Entre l'Amour et la Mort, chapter 21 part 1
Title: Entre l'Amour et la Mort
Author: P-L
Fandom: The Hollows, AKA the Rachel Morgan Series, Rachel/Ivy
Rating: M
Disclaimer: Those characters belong to Kim Harrison. I'm just having a little fun with them.
Summary: A run gone wrong sets events into motion, events that lead to a bittersweet realisation... and the birth of Rachel's worst nightmare
A/N: So, is anyone still remotely interested in this fic? Big apologies are due this time. I am the god of suckage for making you guys wait so damn long. Feel free to leave mean words. I deserve them.
I was planning to update this again on my first day back to school, which I mistakenly thought was going to be August 15th. It turns out my first day is actually September 7th, and not the one originally planned. So I decided I'd start with the updates straight away, since my deadline doesn't correspond with anything anymore. I'm sticking to my plan to update this again on August 22nd at the latest, though, and then again one week later. The good news is that there's a fair chance I'll make that deadline this time, because a fair chunk of the following chapter is already written and the two after (24-25) are done. Fingers crossed? Hell yes. Do I blame you for not remotely believing that? Nope.
Ce chapitre est dédié à la mémoire de Martin Léveillé, et offert en guise de sympathies à ses fils Félix et Gabriel. Je doute que tu ne la vois jamais, Fil, mais celle-là est pour toi. À ton courage et ton avenir, où que celui-ci t'emmène. Si t'avais des doutes que le destin a un sens de l'humour tordu, et bien sache que j'écrivais un chapitre mettant en scène des funérailles durant les derniers jours de ton père. C'est ma première dédicace à vie; prend-ça comme tu voudras. ;-)
Pierre-Luc
Chapter 22
The moon had already climbed a fair height into the cloudless night sky by the time Erica and I left the church for the funeral home where we would give our final farewell to the love of her life. It was huge and full and bright, almost as if it wanted to lean closer to the earth, to better bear witness to the grief of the young man's loved ones. The air was clear and crisp, uncharacteristically dry and agreeable for the season.
If we've got to hold a vamp funeral tonight, I guess we can at least be grateful it's not raining... I thought, trying to find a silver lining somewhere, and promptly decided that a lack of rain wasn't cutting it, with no more than a glance at the young vampire walking besides me. Erica's shoulders were slumped under the light jacket thrown over her dark silk dress, her youthful features slack, almost as if she were in a trance. Her hand squeezed in mine was limp and cold, and her eyes, I painfully noticed, had drained of life and filled with dread. The irony that her sister was technically the dead one of the two didn't escape me, and yeah, it made hate the whole damn world just a tad more.
"It's all going to be over soon." I offered my grieving friend, placing a hand on her shoulder once we were both sitting in the car. "I know it's not a great comfort now, but I promise you it won't ever hurt more than now." Lame? Probably. It sure felt that way when I said it. However, in my experience no kind words really help with grief. Knowing someone knew what you were going through on the other hand, did. Erica would get more than her share of condolences tonight; she deserved at least one promise that her life wasn't over and the pain would eventually let go of her.
"I know." Erica answered on a whisper of breath, not exactly sounding convinced. "Will it ever go away?" She asked me with a thin, lost voice, turning her huge, shimmering brown eyes towards me.
"You want the truth?"
"Not particularly."
"No, it never will. You'll always feel like this." I gave Erica the lie she asked for, completely deadpan, falling back on my smart mouth to make up for my absolute lack of wise comforting counsel.
"You're a shitty liar." She snorted, making a dead, ugly sound that I think may have passed for a chuckle in some deep dark circle of hell.
"I take offence at that. Really. Look at my offended face." I made a completely neutral face, pointing at it as if it meant something, and the smile that went with that horrible chuckle appeared on hers. It tore my heart out, but it was undeniably a smile, a sign of life, a tiny flicker of hope, and at the risk of sounding like fortune cookie advice, I believe that all it takes is a flicker of hope to hold back the darkness. Deciding I didn't care if I made a tool of myself, I took her hand and took the plunge, looking her earnestly in the eyes and speaking from the bottom of my heart.
"I don't know if it'll ever go away completely. I can't promise you it will, because it never did for me. Not with my dad, not with Kisten. What I do know is that right now it feels like there's a hole in your chest where Seth used to be. It's huge and ragged, and you don't figure for second that you'll ever be able to live with it. It's horrible, and I can't lie to you, it'll be bad for a while longer, but it'll get better too. Every day will be easier than the previous. You'll smile a little more, breathe a little easier, and begin to enjoy things you like again. You'll start to live again, little by little, and one afternoon, sometime in the future, you'll wake up and find that the hole doesn't hurt anymore. It'll still be there, but it won't take up all the space in your heart. You'll remember the good times with Seth, and those memories, they'll overshadow everything else. Once you're there, you'll be ready to move on, cherishing those thoughts of him, just like I know he wants you to, wherever he is now. That's my promise to you, Erica. That's the truth."
I held Erica's gaze for a long time, letting my words sink into her mind, her small cold hand in mine. When her eyes began to swim with tears that she carefully wiped away with the cuff of her jacket sleeve, I knew she believed me. "You make me want to head to bed, and it's not even eight o'clock yet..." She laughed sadly, choking on it a bit before reclining in her seat and letting her eyes flutter close, her breathing deepening. "God, I don't want to go. I don't want to say goodbye."
"I know. Trust me, I do, but that's the one thing you need to do before you can really get better. You've got to put him to rest now. Tonight's about giving you and his other loved ones closure. It's the hardest pill to swallow, but it's also the point where things really start getting better too. Trust me."
I put the key in the ignition, started the engine and backed out of the driveway, taking one last look at the darkened church, feeling acutely aware of the unfamiliar comfort of the scarf around my neck. Jenks wasn't tucked in it, the two of us still angry with each other and too mule-headed to do anything about it. No apologies came forth from either injured party, which meant the car was pixy-free. I didn't feel too good about that, to be honest, but there was no turning back now. I didn't have time to go make up with my four-inch friend. I stepped on the gas and left the church behind, though I couldn't do the same with the foreboding feeling being without backup brought about.
From the church, the ride to the funeral home was a quiet one. My nice quiet neighbourhood gave way to a nicer one as we left the inner outskirts of the Hollows toward the outer ones, an upper-class district where the ruling vampire families Seth, Erica and Ivy were born from made their often grandiose homes. Three or four-stories high manors became the norm as we got closer to the river, cars in driveways multiplied, slush covered lawns became acres of grounds that split up neighbours. It was all a pretty far cry from the place I grew up in.
We weren't the first ones there when we got to the funeral home. The sober white building was surrounded by cars, most of them fancier than my little red convertible. It was sticking out like a sore thumb, to be honest, which made me take a quick, uncomfortable glance at my attire. It had been ridiculously easy to find the clothes meant for me in Ivy's closet, my beloved anal retentive vamp having neatly split her closet in two to make room for what she got me. My jaw had nearly dropped at some of the sights in there; there was everything from a gorgeous, backless evening gown to factory torn jeans and washed out t-shirts. What tied a knot in my throat however wasn't anything I could even consider wearing tonight; a tiny sheer nightie clearly meant to be more enticing than covering, and unobtrusive during bedroom activities, to the point wearing it modestly without panties on would be a reckless endeavour. The garment fit me perfectly, and, saddening but true, had to have been a wishful purchase on her part, considering she bought it back when we weren't together, and she was convinced we never would be. I'd left most of the clothes in her room, but that one I moved to my own closet, making a mental note to get myself some matching lingerie for it, so I could wear it for Ivy the next time we were together. Maybe I could make a date with her next week. She had to have a little sugar coming her way for her patience with me...
Other than the intimate clothing, I picked from Ivy's closet a knee length skirt that wouldn't scandalise anyone and a bell-sleeved shirt with a high collar, slinky and flattering to my silhouette. I'd also borrowed Ivy's black silk duster, having no coat of my own that felt appropriate for the weather and occasion; its fit wasn't as perfect on me as it was on her, but it wasn't glaringly bad. Exceptionally the only leather I wore was my pair of vamp-made boots, and I even had a pair of black pumps with me in a garment bag to replace them once we were inside. As Ivy would say, I looked almost respectable. Didn't mean I looked good, though, and I didn't have a breeding line behind me like most guests would...
"You look fine." Erica assured me. "Ivy's got the fashion sense for funerals."
"Says the shameless goth girl." I teasingly defended my lover with a smile, even though I made the same joke about Ivy's taste in clothing myself a few hours ago; the look of dread in her eyes she stared at the funeral home with was just too unbearable not to try and distract her. "You ready?"
"No. But I guess it doesn't matter. Do what you gotta do, right?"
"That you do." I nodded with a tight-lipped smile. "Head high, back straight, and remember it gets better from here."
"It gets better from here." She repeated after me, trying to convince herself as she straightened her back and raised her head. The look of dread in her eyes didn't go away, though. I exited the car first, walked over to her side and opened her door, offering a supporting hand to my grieving friend. She took it slowly, letting me help her out even though she was physically stronger, faster and more nimble than I could ever hope to be. Mental fortitude was another story altogether, though. I hated seeing her innocence Ivy had worked so hard in life to protect grow calluses.
"And if everything else fails, I'm here for you, and so is your family. Tonight, there's no shame in leaning on someone you love to cry. Got it?" I reminded her, discreetly slipping my hand at the small of her back when we got to the front door. Two men in suits were manning the door, holding them open for us without even stopping us to ask whose service we were here to attend. Quiet nods and soft spoken condolences greeted Erica as we walked into the large entry hall, glorious and sober at once with its marble and pale, subdued tones. The ceiling was high and old, solid wood furnishing contrasted well with the whites of the walls. A few employees busied about, all of them impeccably dressed in black suits, as opposed to the guys outside. These two at the doors probably didn't work here full time, then. It made me wonder if the vampires had hijacked the whole funeral home for themselves...
"Erica, Rachel! Over here!" A large blond man called us out a few seconds after we entered, walking towards us with a purpose. Without hesitation from either party, he took Erica in a surprisingly gentle and protective hug, whispering his sympathies against the top of her head before turning to me to offer an extended hand without letting go of the teenager. The familiarity he demonstrated surprised me, but only because it was a little hard to recognise him without the guns, body armour and heavy combat boots...
"Reed. You pulled bodyguard duty tonight?" I said by way of greeting, shaking the hand of Ivy's... helper? Enforcer? Bodyguard? You know, I'm not even sure what he was, or what the name for him was. I guess 'her vampire' is really the only way to describe him, since he was part of her Camarilla and answered to her. I didn't like thinking of the bear of a man as someone else's, but vampire customs be vampire customs. I didn't like them, never had and never would, but it's not like there was anything I could do to change them. "Is Heidi around here too?"
"She got picked for shadowing the boss. I don't know why, but they both thought she was much less conspicuous for the role than me for some reason. Must be the beard." He answered, thoughtfully rubbing his impeccably trimmed blond beard, jokingly oblivious to the fact he towered most conspicuously over the rest of his peers. His fake accent, I noticed to my ears and nerves' bliss, was mercifully gone. I had an inkling his gorgeous brunette friend had a hand in that, but getting the latest gossip on vampire hook-ups would have to wait at least until after the ceremony. "She asked me to look out for you. I'll take you to her, if you want."
"Sure. Is there anything else going on here tonight?" I asked with another look around. Other than the staff, everyone here was a living vamp, with the exception of the occasional undead here and there. I stood out like a sore thumb in the midst of all the graceful creatures that surrounded me. Heck, even Reed, in all his mastodon stature, made me look like a complete klutz... and he even had a slight but perceptible limp I was too scared to ask about. Why was that? I had an illustrated and schematised vampire dating guide sitting on my bedside table, so my knowledge of limp-inducing activities was rather thorough. Enough said.
"Nope. The bigwigs got the whole place to themselves. It's security and sympathisers all around. No one else allowed that isn't staff with a steel-clad background check. There's a truce in place, but a big chunk of Cinci's upper crust vamp population is here tonight, so we're not taking chances. Someone might not take the hint this isn't a good time to get their asses kicked."
"As long as you didn't ruin the last goodbyes of someone's grandma..." I leered at Reed, mentally picturing a bunch of vamp gorillas driving grieving families out of the funeral home.
"No worries, we booked the place first. No toes were trampled, honest."
"Who's here yet?" Erica asked.
"Mostly people from Seth's side of the family." He answered, meaning the ones who were of the same bloodline as the young vampire. "Melissa's here too. She's been asking after you a lot... in between glaring daggers at her mum, of course. You know how she is."
"Oh, God... she must hate me so much..." Erica whimpered at the mention of the name, the swimming in her eyes spilling over and her feet suddenly rooting themselves in the polished marble of the floor.
"Who's...?" I asked, holding my young vamp friend a little closer before she freaked out any further.
"Melissa is Seth's older sister," Reed answered me, "and their twice deceased father's daughter. And you cut that out, young lady." The big man added gruffly. "No one here blames you for anything, and if someone didn't get that memo, I'll be sure to straighten them out myself. Melissa was worried sick about you is all."
Damn... Melissa is their father's daughter, which means Seth was from his mom's line, and she lost her husband too... I thought, my heart going out to a no doubt heartbroken woman I'd never met. "And why would she be 'glaring daggers' at her mom?" I gave them both a questioning look, beginning to wonder if it was standard procedure for elder vamp daughters not to get along with their mothers; just look at Ivy and her mom...
God I hope these two can keep it together tonight... I silently prayed to whoever was out there the two Tamwood women present wouldn't be at each other's throat.
"She's the black sheep in a way. They have, shall we say, differing world views? Mrs Anderson is a bit of a traditionalist, and to put it mildly, Melissa's not a big fan of a lot of our customs. She's trying to make her own way, and she makes a lot of waves, wherever she goes." Reed answered. "She's a lot like the boss, in a way, except she does all of her ass-kicking verbally. I think you'll like her."
"Hmm." I made an unconvinced sound. If she was making a scene here of all place, Melissa and I were not on the right track to getting along. I might be a loud, self-admitted, oft-obnoxious, troublemaker, but even I knew when to shut my big mouth and keep quiet... like now. Now was really a great time for that. "We'll see."
"She's great, Rachel." Erica assured me distractedly, sounding relieved that someone she obviously held in high esteem didn't hate her for pulling through where her brother had been killed. Goddamn survivor's guilt... "Up until she left last year, she's been like another big sister to me. She's always been there for Seth and me. She even had a few pointers for me the first time I..." Whatever the young vamp was about to say died in a strangled warble, though judging by the blush coloring her cheeks, it wasn't a painful stab of grief that cut her off but an embarrassing, or perhaps intimate, memory. I didn't push it. Erica was pretty shameless about things, and if whatever she was remembering could embarrass her, it was probably deep into TMI territory. I didn't want to know.
"Where did she leave for?" I changed the subject, partly because I was curious about Seth's sister, partly because Erica looked like she needed a minute to compose herself before going in. "What is it she does?"
"She's... a vampire rights lobbyist, I think would be the right term for her. Fresh out of law school and trying to shake things up for all of vampire kind. She calls the old ways medieval, want them flushed down the drain; no more tributes and gifts of blood, equal legal protection for vampires and citizens of other species, the end of organised marriages and enforced breeding lines, that sort of things." Reed answered with an admiring glint in his eyes. "Risky stuff, but she couldn't get to Washington fast enough once Cormel stepped down. She's been sitting on nice ideas for a few years, but I think you can guess she couldn't bring them forward with a dead vamp hell-bent on stability at all costs sitting in the oval office."
"Hmm, well, like I said, we'll see." I said neutrally, suddenly unsure if I should hold on to my poor first impressions. Considering how Ivy and Kisten died, I think you can guess I would get behind any movement that pressured for positive changes in the vampire world. That Ivy seemed to have those changes in mind went a long way to earn her some of my forgiveness for her more extreme methods. "And her mom is mad at her for that? I mean, don't take this the wrong way, but the vampire world could do with a little more... twenty-first century? It seems trite to me, to be upset at someone for trying to make those kinds of changes."
"Hard to say if her political goals help or not. Mrs Anderson is older than someone like Mrs Tamwood. She's old enough to remember the Turn, and she's pretty hard-set in our ways, having been raised in them and all, but I think the real kicker is actually her boyfriend. Melissa left her picture perfect power-player GQ model asshole of a fiancé behind to date one of you guys."
"Seth's sister is with a witch?" And just when I thought Ivy and I were special, I find another vampire princess who's slumming it with one of my kind... I thought wryly when Erica and Reed nodded in unison. And hey, more power to them; I'd never been happier with another witch than I'd been sleeping with someone from another species, especially vamps. Our species complemented each other well, I was finding out.
"Yup. They've been together for what, five years now?" He consulted with Erica. "Tell you the truth, their story reads so much like a harlequin novel it's disgusting. Melissa met Carson in law school, and as soon as their first day together was over they were set up as vicious rival. You know how young vamps tend to be the first time they're loose upon the world; she had trouble treating other species as equals. She looked down on him even when he matched her wits, he thought she was a spoiled brat who never had to work a day in her life. Carson had to fight tooth and nail to get enrolled, you see, and Melissa's place was reserved for her for a long time, even if she could've gotten in without name-dropping on her own merits. It led to them constantly trying to one-up each other, made it hell for their comrades to keep up with them. Their relationship started off as a bitter competition, moved on to a semi-friendly one, and it ended with Melissa resolving their differences years after they began by dragging Carson to her dorm room and having her wicked way with him." With a small smirk that I'm sure would have been a massive grin under better circumstances, Reed added, "Well, I suppose you won't find that last part in a harlequin novel, but anyway... they both graduated with honours, and they've been inseparable, and exclusive to each other, since. True love, of which I don't need to tell you Mrs Anderson does not approve."
"That almost sounds familiar..." I mumbled with a small, private smirk; Ivy and I hadn't gotten along in the beginning either, only it wasn't a steamy encounter in the broom closet that had resolved our differences but a sleep charm sucker punch, a length of rope and a bottle of nail polish. Good times, man, good times... "You know, I didn't picture you for such a gossip monger, big man. Or did you make all that up just to jerk me around?" I teased, but a quick glance at Erica, who actually had some business knowing, confirmed he hadn't.
"I'm shocked you'd think I made that up! And I'm not gossipy, I'm... keeping up with current events and developments in the community I'm part of." He said in a way that would have made me think of him as distinctly metrosexual if I hadn't seen him punch a hole in a linoleum floor dressed in combat boots and matte black body armour. "Word gets around, especially within a tight knit group with deeply rooted traditions, especially about something this scandalous. I mean, Melissa is pretty much parading her magical stallion around. She was at least expected to keep something this 'shameful'" Reed mimicked big quotation marks, clearly indicating he didn't see it as any kind of big deal, "as discreet as possible, not flaunt it."
"Were there ever any rumours about Ivy and me?" I asked, curious about a not altogether different scandal.
"'Were there'? Why the past tense? There still are, like you wouldn't believe." Reed answered incredulously. "She's scarier, so no one tells it to her face, but Ivy has been the talk of the town ever since she swore off blood and broke off her engagement with Felps. The rumour mill has just been going crazy ever since she left the IS and went private with you though. They covered everything, from it being a simple crush she would get over once you put out, to you putting a spell on her, to stuff scientifically proven to be impossible. Wait, it's still impossible for two women to have children together the old fashioned way, right?"
"Hum, I think it might be possible under certain circumstances." I told him, torn between smiling at his distraught expression, chuckling at the ludicrous idea someone thought Ivy or I had knocked the other up despite lacking some essential equipment or chromosomes that could line up even if we did, and uncomfortably frowning in bitter jealousy at the reminder another woman had managed to literally have Ivy's baby.
I wonder if Erica knows she's got a cute little banshee niece... I thought idly while Reed mused under his breath about what time men had left before women decided they were completely useless and got rid of them altogether. His comments managed to make me laugh, and I offered the gentle giant a reassuring smile before stealing a glance at Erica.
"Thanks for that, Reed." I scoffed before deciding the young vampire looked as steady as she was going to get. "Ready to go in?"
Without further ado, Reed guided us into one of the room with a door in the hallway, one that was large, spacious, and most importantly loosely filled with enough emotional vampires to make the scars on my neck and wrist tingle discreetly, even though I was still standing in the threshold and had barely drawn a single breath.
And of course, it's freezing. I thought, distraught and shivering, as I stretched the fabric of my sleeves to cover my hands and buried them under my crossed arms. I shouldn't have been surprised. A vampire gathering meant the air conditioning was working overtime, even though we were in the middle of spring. The temperature in here was a couple degrees lower than comfortable for most species. Note that I only say most species because that ideal temperature is warmer for a witch, meaning this witch was anything but comfortable. Maybe our species aren't that compatible...
A quiet hum of conversation filled the air, and needless to say I was facing a sea of black clothes and distraught expressions. It seemed the final death of such a young vamp touched something very profound amongst those whose immortality was supposedly assured... or perhaps that was a callous way to see it, and their species had nothing to do with it. The simple horror of Seth's death was certainly ghastly enough to warrant most if not all of those dead-eyed stares...
Erica left my side the second she spotted her parents, slipping past the crowd like water around rocks to go meet them, making me silently glad that she'd let go of me first and hadn't dragged me towards her terrifying mother. I'd never formally met Mrs Tamwood, and honestly, I didn't want to, even under better circumstances. What with her obsession with grand-children that Ivy sometimes rambled about, I felt pretty certain she would hate me for diverting her daughter's attention from the droves of eligible (read; male) admirers she no doubt had while she was still able to bear children. Undeads hold long grudges when it comes to that sort of things, and Mrs Tamwood was just the teensiest bit... immortal. And really freaking strong. And vindictive. Did I mention that already? Sorry. Like I said, the woman scared me, and the cherry on top was that I was expected to walk into her home for dinner later in the evening, too. The occasion made me worry whether I was on the vampire's guest list or her menu. No shortage of vamps to feed here, and I was the only non-vamp by the looks of it, save maybe the mysterious Melissa's boyfriend...
Screw species solidarity, if they come after you, trip the other guy who's freezing his ass off...
"You're with me, you know. The worse she can do is give you a nasty look. No need to-"
"Gah!" I yelped, the suddenness of the beautiful female voice's whispering in my ear making me jump out of my worried contemplations, and damn near my skin as well. "That's it, I'm putting a freaking bell on you! And not a tiny puppy bell, either, no, a church bell so big and heavy not even you can lug around! Try and sneak up on me then!" I rambled quietly through my gritted teeth at, you guessed it, Ivy. The vamp had appeared out of nowhere, a habit I could've sworn I'd browbeaten out of her over the months we'd lived under the same roof.
"Is it my fault you jump so easily?" Ivy embraced me from behind before I could turn to swat at her, her strong arms encircling me and her lips finding her favourite spot below my ear, instantly soothing the flames of my ire down to embers. With a very mild glare and my lips quirking despite my best effort, I turned around in the circle of her arms so we faced each other, tilting my head up and down to give my yummy vampire a once over. Ivy had gone with a dark woman's suit tonight, her shirt underneath the jacket as impeccably pressed as the pair of dress slacks she wore. Impractical but incredibly stylish black high heels, an easy concession for her to make with her sense of balance and the resilience of her body, completed the look, giving her the air of a perfectly confident business woman in absolute control of her surroundings. Even though she had the body language to match, her forehead was more rumpled than her clothes, a few lines breaking its usual snowy flawlessness. There were a few tiny crow's feet at the corner of her eyes, too, and I wondered as our earlier phone conversation played back in my head if the lack of rest and sleep was finally starting to get to her. Her brain was incredible and her body could withstand almost anything, even her stiletto heels, but even she needed to shut down once in a while. I didn't like how tired she looked, and it made me frown with the urge to kiss every little line off her face until it was smooth again. I liked her hair a lot, though. A perk of the way her cells could multiply at such a blinding speed on her say-so was that she could grow it a lot faster, and it now flowed in a flawless, unbroken ebon wave around her face and shoulder, almost down to her mid-back. Not quite as ridiculously long as it was when we first met, but more than enough to make me long to thread my fingers through the heavy lusciousness of it.
Like I said. Yummy.
"You wouldn't really do that to me, would you?" Ivy pouted.
"Without a second thought. In fact, I'd pat myself on the back about it." Her pout worsened at my ironic reply, making the usually intimidating and sexy vampire look like a wet kitten. The lure of slinging my arms around her neck was simply irresistible, and so I didn't even try. "What? Like I could get you to hold still long enough to chain you to a church bell if you didn't want to be? I'd deserve a pat on the back if I could pull it off."
"Touché." Ivy admitted with a thoughtful chuckle before letting me pull her closer. "I'm sorry about that. It's just that I've been here since sunset, and my mother walked in all of three seconds after me. I needed a witchy break after spending all that time with her. You just smelled so good a second ago, I couldn't resist giving you a little scare..." Ivy trailed off, her eyes fluttering close as she inhaled our mixing scents. That my clothes didn't have the latest olfactory trends brought about by her change didn't seem to bother her at all. "The hint of adrenaline is lovely. You're scrumptious when your heart's racing, darling." She smiled as she leaned in, something sure to make my heart do just that in mind. I sighed happily when the rich decadent texture of her mouth covered mine, her delicate and feminine taste still as enthralling now as it was the first time we'd kissed, making me hope I would never get used to it and it would always feel this thrilling to kiss my darling vampire.
"I've waited all week to do that..." We both said at the same time and in the same longing tone as our mouths broke away from each other, my eyes twinkling at the surprise in Ivy's. Feeling coquettish, I sultrily licked her taste from my lips before nibbling on my lower one, all for her stressed-out benefit, my eyebrows raising, in perfect synchronicity like always, at the sight of her slightly expanding pupils. "What? It's true." I stated innocently, feeling a little forward. This wasn't the place for full-blown advances, but what was a little harmless flirting in preparation for what was sure to be a dreary evening? No serious harm done.
"Thank goodness I didn't want to have those kinds of thoughts..." Ivy groaned quietly, taking a quick peek at the overhead lights to stop the slight dilation of her pupils. For a second, I thought I saw something in her face, something that looked analytical and maybe even a little wary, but it went away so fast I didn't really get a good read on whatever it was that travelled over her features.
"Is something the matter? Present circumstances aside?" I frowned, pushing up on my tip-toes so I could whisper in her ear, so quietly the drone of ambient conversation drowned my voice out to all but her. That was the second time she got that uncomfortable look in the past minute. Something had to be up with her. I silently hoped she wasn't suspecting, or worse had figured out, why I wore a scarf that covered up my neck and had swapped in my usual bracelet for my very conspicuous broad metal wristband. I was getting concerned for her, but that didn't mean I lost all sense...
"It's nothing, nothing in particular. I'm not used to rest being such a scarce commodity, that's all. Even I have my limits." Ivy answered in a very similar fashion, her cool forehead coming to rest against mine, her eyes shutting lightly. "I need a break. The novel appeal of not sleeping wore off about a month ago, and frankly, it was easier to get used to the absence of sunlight than yours. I want my life and my little witch back." A small smitten smile tugged at my lips at the weary but earnest declaration, and I tilted my head back to kiss her lightly again. The vampire melted against me for a blissful moment we unfortunately had to cut short. No place to make out, no place to make out... I mentally repeated myself over and over again, trying to snap my thoughts back to the seriousness of the current events and out of the gutter.
"Jenks isn't with you?" Ivy said rather huskily once we broke apart, looking like she was struggling with the same demons of lust I was.
"No." I answered flatly, the reminder of my earlier fight with our pixy friend like a dip in cold water. "We had... a bit of an argument. Nothing you need to worry about." I added reassuringly when she put on a worried face, holding her a bit tighter both to keep our privacy and to comfort myself. "Really."
She regarded me doubtfully, but I decided it was better not to mention the meeting with the elves that triggered the dispute. Ivy was a power player now, one who was already at odds with them, and if she learned of Trent's hastily hatched scheme to use Erica as leverage against her, or worse that he had almost put it into action, Cinci would no doubt be in for an even longer period of bloody war. Sweeping this afternoon's incident under the rug was for the greater good, even if it inadvertently saved Trent's sorry elf ass.
"You fought over me, didn't you?" She asked, my following silence all but confirming what she had already guessed in a single try. "I suppose I can't expect any different. He and I didn't even get a chance to chat since I came back. I'm sure he's feeling very disapproving of us now." She shrugged, dismissing the pixy's absence just like that.
"Aren't you even a little upset?" I gently prodded her, slightly off-put by how coolly she took the pixy's absence. "He used to be your friend too, remember?"
"He didn't 'use to be'. He still is, at least as far as I'm concerned. It's simply a big change to adjust to. I'll just have to build up our thrust again, the same way I did with you. Right?" She asked and I nodded my head, though I wasn't quite sure whether she meant that was all it would take to glue her friendship with Jenks back together or if she was asking me if I trusted her. I made some inarticulate noise at that, not quite sure on the former; Jenks' trust was a hard thing to earn, and an easy one to break. As for the latter, well...
You know, I could totally do with another hug... I mentally sighed and wrapped my arms around the vampire's waist, letting my head tuck neatly beneath her chin. Her patented back torture devices made her almost freakishly tall, and that was one neat benefit. After a slight hesitation her arms wrapped around me without further questions, and I closed my eyes, soaking in her sudden, solid warmth and the feeling of intense safety I felt in her arms. I wasn't one-hundred percent sure about her, but in this instant, it sure felt right to be held like that.
"How come you're warm one second and cool the next?" I mumbled, not wanting to dwell on Jenks and warnings and funerals for a little while longer. Ivy hmm-ed vaguely in response, as if I'd disturbed her train of thoughts and she'd been too distracted to hear me. "I've noticed sometimes you're really warm and comfy to the touch, others you're almost cooler than room temperature. What's up with that?"
"Oh, that?" She chuckled softly before explaining. "My body doesn't function the way yours does anymore. My heart doesn't beat most of the time, my digestive track is inert, I only need to breathe in order to talk, I don't shed hair or sweat, things like that. What this also means is that my skin doesn't bleed away heat and energy under normal circumstances like yours does. It's pretty much all passive heat transfer. I'm always comfortable at room temperature."
"You're definitely not room temperature now." I nearly slurred when I pointed that out, my mind going pleasantly foggy. Damn, she felt good. The momentary solace from the cold and morbid atmosphere I found in her arms almost filled me with a selfish desire to snag her and whisk her away someplace private where we could cuddle (just cuddle; right this second I didn't want to see what colour panties she had on) in peace...
"I can get everything flowing again if needed, even become warmer than I was before when necessary... like when my girlfriend is freezing her pretty witchy butt off."
"Ooh, best bodily function ever." I nearly moaned as she demonstrated her ability. Her body quivered almost violently for several seconds, the rapid contraction and release of her muscles raising her temperature up a few more degrees, making me snuggle closer to her, more than a little tempted to unbutton her jacket and slip my hands inside to warm them up. In contrast to the cold of the room, she was so sinfully comfortable, and combined with the pheromones floating in the air, I was almost lulled to sleepiness when Ivy cleared her throat to catch my attention. Feeling stuffy enough I had to blink even after only a few minutes, I looked up to see her staring at a point behind me, and with an apologetic smile, she gave my cheek a lingering stroke with the back of her hand before reluctantly disentangling herself from me and pulling away.
"I'm sorry to cut this short, Dear Heart, but I'm afraid I have to give your seats someone else tonight." She said as her fingers fell from my skin, and opened her arms, just in time to catch her little sister in a hug. Despite her back-torturing footwear, both sisters stayed upright as Erica finished a ninja-like dash that would have toppled me straight into her arms, the younger vamp burying her face in her older sister's chest as she was protectively embraced, Ivy's softest and most delicate tone rising as I took a few steps back to give them some privacy. Unfortunately, the unthinkable happened; someone showed less tact than I did. Many someones, in fact. A whole slew of sideway glances were being cast at the sisters, intruding on what should have been a moment of family comfort.
Well, that didn't last long... I growled angrily in my head as the sweet feelings Ivy had coursing through my body vanished, replaced by a dark, protective rage. I knew the sisters got the looks because Erica was technically siding with their mom and Ivy was technically her enemy, but technically, the people attending could have checked the politics at the door.
"I couldn't agree more." A gravelly voice coming from my left startled me out of my glaring. "Tonight is about comfort and closure. It isn't supposed to be about politics or picking sides, and no one here should make it so, especially if it keeps my girls apart in their time of need." Erica and Ivy's dad, Mr Randall, said with almost solemn approval before extending his hand to me, a tired and sad smile on his face.
Author: P-L
Fandom: The Hollows, AKA the Rachel Morgan Series, Rachel/Ivy
Rating: M
Disclaimer: Those characters belong to Kim Harrison. I'm just having a little fun with them.
Summary: A run gone wrong sets events into motion, events that lead to a bittersweet realisation... and the birth of Rachel's worst nightmare
A/N: So, is anyone still remotely interested in this fic? Big apologies are due this time. I am the god of suckage for making you guys wait so damn long. Feel free to leave mean words. I deserve them.
I was planning to update this again on my first day back to school, which I mistakenly thought was going to be August 15th. It turns out my first day is actually September 7th, and not the one originally planned. So I decided I'd start with the updates straight away, since my deadline doesn't correspond with anything anymore. I'm sticking to my plan to update this again on August 22nd at the latest, though, and then again one week later. The good news is that there's a fair chance I'll make that deadline this time, because a fair chunk of the following chapter is already written and the two after (24-25) are done. Fingers crossed? Hell yes. Do I blame you for not remotely believing that? Nope.
Ce chapitre est dédié à la mémoire de Martin Léveillé, et offert en guise de sympathies à ses fils Félix et Gabriel. Je doute que tu ne la vois jamais, Fil, mais celle-là est pour toi. À ton courage et ton avenir, où que celui-ci t'emmène. Si t'avais des doutes que le destin a un sens de l'humour tordu, et bien sache que j'écrivais un chapitre mettant en scène des funérailles durant les derniers jours de ton père. C'est ma première dédicace à vie; prend-ça comme tu voudras. ;-)
Pierre-Luc
Chapter 22
The moon had already climbed a fair height into the cloudless night sky by the time Erica and I left the church for the funeral home where we would give our final farewell to the love of her life. It was huge and full and bright, almost as if it wanted to lean closer to the earth, to better bear witness to the grief of the young man's loved ones. The air was clear and crisp, uncharacteristically dry and agreeable for the season.
If we've got to hold a vamp funeral tonight, I guess we can at least be grateful it's not raining... I thought, trying to find a silver lining somewhere, and promptly decided that a lack of rain wasn't cutting it, with no more than a glance at the young vampire walking besides me. Erica's shoulders were slumped under the light jacket thrown over her dark silk dress, her youthful features slack, almost as if she were in a trance. Her hand squeezed in mine was limp and cold, and her eyes, I painfully noticed, had drained of life and filled with dread. The irony that her sister was technically the dead one of the two didn't escape me, and yeah, it made hate the whole damn world just a tad more.
"It's all going to be over soon." I offered my grieving friend, placing a hand on her shoulder once we were both sitting in the car. "I know it's not a great comfort now, but I promise you it won't ever hurt more than now." Lame? Probably. It sure felt that way when I said it. However, in my experience no kind words really help with grief. Knowing someone knew what you were going through on the other hand, did. Erica would get more than her share of condolences tonight; she deserved at least one promise that her life wasn't over and the pain would eventually let go of her.
"I know." Erica answered on a whisper of breath, not exactly sounding convinced. "Will it ever go away?" She asked me with a thin, lost voice, turning her huge, shimmering brown eyes towards me.
"You want the truth?"
"Not particularly."
"No, it never will. You'll always feel like this." I gave Erica the lie she asked for, completely deadpan, falling back on my smart mouth to make up for my absolute lack of wise comforting counsel.
"You're a shitty liar." She snorted, making a dead, ugly sound that I think may have passed for a chuckle in some deep dark circle of hell.
"I take offence at that. Really. Look at my offended face." I made a completely neutral face, pointing at it as if it meant something, and the smile that went with that horrible chuckle appeared on hers. It tore my heart out, but it was undeniably a smile, a sign of life, a tiny flicker of hope, and at the risk of sounding like fortune cookie advice, I believe that all it takes is a flicker of hope to hold back the darkness. Deciding I didn't care if I made a tool of myself, I took her hand and took the plunge, looking her earnestly in the eyes and speaking from the bottom of my heart.
"I don't know if it'll ever go away completely. I can't promise you it will, because it never did for me. Not with my dad, not with Kisten. What I do know is that right now it feels like there's a hole in your chest where Seth used to be. It's huge and ragged, and you don't figure for second that you'll ever be able to live with it. It's horrible, and I can't lie to you, it'll be bad for a while longer, but it'll get better too. Every day will be easier than the previous. You'll smile a little more, breathe a little easier, and begin to enjoy things you like again. You'll start to live again, little by little, and one afternoon, sometime in the future, you'll wake up and find that the hole doesn't hurt anymore. It'll still be there, but it won't take up all the space in your heart. You'll remember the good times with Seth, and those memories, they'll overshadow everything else. Once you're there, you'll be ready to move on, cherishing those thoughts of him, just like I know he wants you to, wherever he is now. That's my promise to you, Erica. That's the truth."
I held Erica's gaze for a long time, letting my words sink into her mind, her small cold hand in mine. When her eyes began to swim with tears that she carefully wiped away with the cuff of her jacket sleeve, I knew she believed me. "You make me want to head to bed, and it's not even eight o'clock yet..." She laughed sadly, choking on it a bit before reclining in her seat and letting her eyes flutter close, her breathing deepening. "God, I don't want to go. I don't want to say goodbye."
"I know. Trust me, I do, but that's the one thing you need to do before you can really get better. You've got to put him to rest now. Tonight's about giving you and his other loved ones closure. It's the hardest pill to swallow, but it's also the point where things really start getting better too. Trust me."
I put the key in the ignition, started the engine and backed out of the driveway, taking one last look at the darkened church, feeling acutely aware of the unfamiliar comfort of the scarf around my neck. Jenks wasn't tucked in it, the two of us still angry with each other and too mule-headed to do anything about it. No apologies came forth from either injured party, which meant the car was pixy-free. I didn't feel too good about that, to be honest, but there was no turning back now. I didn't have time to go make up with my four-inch friend. I stepped on the gas and left the church behind, though I couldn't do the same with the foreboding feeling being without backup brought about.
From the church, the ride to the funeral home was a quiet one. My nice quiet neighbourhood gave way to a nicer one as we left the inner outskirts of the Hollows toward the outer ones, an upper-class district where the ruling vampire families Seth, Erica and Ivy were born from made their often grandiose homes. Three or four-stories high manors became the norm as we got closer to the river, cars in driveways multiplied, slush covered lawns became acres of grounds that split up neighbours. It was all a pretty far cry from the place I grew up in.
We weren't the first ones there when we got to the funeral home. The sober white building was surrounded by cars, most of them fancier than my little red convertible. It was sticking out like a sore thumb, to be honest, which made me take a quick, uncomfortable glance at my attire. It had been ridiculously easy to find the clothes meant for me in Ivy's closet, my beloved anal retentive vamp having neatly split her closet in two to make room for what she got me. My jaw had nearly dropped at some of the sights in there; there was everything from a gorgeous, backless evening gown to factory torn jeans and washed out t-shirts. What tied a knot in my throat however wasn't anything I could even consider wearing tonight; a tiny sheer nightie clearly meant to be more enticing than covering, and unobtrusive during bedroom activities, to the point wearing it modestly without panties on would be a reckless endeavour. The garment fit me perfectly, and, saddening but true, had to have been a wishful purchase on her part, considering she bought it back when we weren't together, and she was convinced we never would be. I'd left most of the clothes in her room, but that one I moved to my own closet, making a mental note to get myself some matching lingerie for it, so I could wear it for Ivy the next time we were together. Maybe I could make a date with her next week. She had to have a little sugar coming her way for her patience with me...
Other than the intimate clothing, I picked from Ivy's closet a knee length skirt that wouldn't scandalise anyone and a bell-sleeved shirt with a high collar, slinky and flattering to my silhouette. I'd also borrowed Ivy's black silk duster, having no coat of my own that felt appropriate for the weather and occasion; its fit wasn't as perfect on me as it was on her, but it wasn't glaringly bad. Exceptionally the only leather I wore was my pair of vamp-made boots, and I even had a pair of black pumps with me in a garment bag to replace them once we were inside. As Ivy would say, I looked almost respectable. Didn't mean I looked good, though, and I didn't have a breeding line behind me like most guests would...
"You look fine." Erica assured me. "Ivy's got the fashion sense for funerals."
"Says the shameless goth girl." I teasingly defended my lover with a smile, even though I made the same joke about Ivy's taste in clothing myself a few hours ago; the look of dread in her eyes she stared at the funeral home with was just too unbearable not to try and distract her. "You ready?"
"No. But I guess it doesn't matter. Do what you gotta do, right?"
"That you do." I nodded with a tight-lipped smile. "Head high, back straight, and remember it gets better from here."
"It gets better from here." She repeated after me, trying to convince herself as she straightened her back and raised her head. The look of dread in her eyes didn't go away, though. I exited the car first, walked over to her side and opened her door, offering a supporting hand to my grieving friend. She took it slowly, letting me help her out even though she was physically stronger, faster and more nimble than I could ever hope to be. Mental fortitude was another story altogether, though. I hated seeing her innocence Ivy had worked so hard in life to protect grow calluses.
"And if everything else fails, I'm here for you, and so is your family. Tonight, there's no shame in leaning on someone you love to cry. Got it?" I reminded her, discreetly slipping my hand at the small of her back when we got to the front door. Two men in suits were manning the door, holding them open for us without even stopping us to ask whose service we were here to attend. Quiet nods and soft spoken condolences greeted Erica as we walked into the large entry hall, glorious and sober at once with its marble and pale, subdued tones. The ceiling was high and old, solid wood furnishing contrasted well with the whites of the walls. A few employees busied about, all of them impeccably dressed in black suits, as opposed to the guys outside. These two at the doors probably didn't work here full time, then. It made me wonder if the vampires had hijacked the whole funeral home for themselves...
"Erica, Rachel! Over here!" A large blond man called us out a few seconds after we entered, walking towards us with a purpose. Without hesitation from either party, he took Erica in a surprisingly gentle and protective hug, whispering his sympathies against the top of her head before turning to me to offer an extended hand without letting go of the teenager. The familiarity he demonstrated surprised me, but only because it was a little hard to recognise him without the guns, body armour and heavy combat boots...
"Reed. You pulled bodyguard duty tonight?" I said by way of greeting, shaking the hand of Ivy's... helper? Enforcer? Bodyguard? You know, I'm not even sure what he was, or what the name for him was. I guess 'her vampire' is really the only way to describe him, since he was part of her Camarilla and answered to her. I didn't like thinking of the bear of a man as someone else's, but vampire customs be vampire customs. I didn't like them, never had and never would, but it's not like there was anything I could do to change them. "Is Heidi around here too?"
"She got picked for shadowing the boss. I don't know why, but they both thought she was much less conspicuous for the role than me for some reason. Must be the beard." He answered, thoughtfully rubbing his impeccably trimmed blond beard, jokingly oblivious to the fact he towered most conspicuously over the rest of his peers. His fake accent, I noticed to my ears and nerves' bliss, was mercifully gone. I had an inkling his gorgeous brunette friend had a hand in that, but getting the latest gossip on vampire hook-ups would have to wait at least until after the ceremony. "She asked me to look out for you. I'll take you to her, if you want."
"Sure. Is there anything else going on here tonight?" I asked with another look around. Other than the staff, everyone here was a living vamp, with the exception of the occasional undead here and there. I stood out like a sore thumb in the midst of all the graceful creatures that surrounded me. Heck, even Reed, in all his mastodon stature, made me look like a complete klutz... and he even had a slight but perceptible limp I was too scared to ask about. Why was that? I had an illustrated and schematised vampire dating guide sitting on my bedside table, so my knowledge of limp-inducing activities was rather thorough. Enough said.
"Nope. The bigwigs got the whole place to themselves. It's security and sympathisers all around. No one else allowed that isn't staff with a steel-clad background check. There's a truce in place, but a big chunk of Cinci's upper crust vamp population is here tonight, so we're not taking chances. Someone might not take the hint this isn't a good time to get their asses kicked."
"As long as you didn't ruin the last goodbyes of someone's grandma..." I leered at Reed, mentally picturing a bunch of vamp gorillas driving grieving families out of the funeral home.
"No worries, we booked the place first. No toes were trampled, honest."
"Who's here yet?" Erica asked.
"Mostly people from Seth's side of the family." He answered, meaning the ones who were of the same bloodline as the young vampire. "Melissa's here too. She's been asking after you a lot... in between glaring daggers at her mum, of course. You know how she is."
"Oh, God... she must hate me so much..." Erica whimpered at the mention of the name, the swimming in her eyes spilling over and her feet suddenly rooting themselves in the polished marble of the floor.
"Who's...?" I asked, holding my young vamp friend a little closer before she freaked out any further.
"Melissa is Seth's older sister," Reed answered me, "and their twice deceased father's daughter. And you cut that out, young lady." The big man added gruffly. "No one here blames you for anything, and if someone didn't get that memo, I'll be sure to straighten them out myself. Melissa was worried sick about you is all."
Damn... Melissa is their father's daughter, which means Seth was from his mom's line, and she lost her husband too... I thought, my heart going out to a no doubt heartbroken woman I'd never met. "And why would she be 'glaring daggers' at her mom?" I gave them both a questioning look, beginning to wonder if it was standard procedure for elder vamp daughters not to get along with their mothers; just look at Ivy and her mom...
God I hope these two can keep it together tonight... I silently prayed to whoever was out there the two Tamwood women present wouldn't be at each other's throat.
"She's the black sheep in a way. They have, shall we say, differing world views? Mrs Anderson is a bit of a traditionalist, and to put it mildly, Melissa's not a big fan of a lot of our customs. She's trying to make her own way, and she makes a lot of waves, wherever she goes." Reed answered. "She's a lot like the boss, in a way, except she does all of her ass-kicking verbally. I think you'll like her."
"Hmm." I made an unconvinced sound. If she was making a scene here of all place, Melissa and I were not on the right track to getting along. I might be a loud, self-admitted, oft-obnoxious, troublemaker, but even I knew when to shut my big mouth and keep quiet... like now. Now was really a great time for that. "We'll see."
"She's great, Rachel." Erica assured me distractedly, sounding relieved that someone she obviously held in high esteem didn't hate her for pulling through where her brother had been killed. Goddamn survivor's guilt... "Up until she left last year, she's been like another big sister to me. She's always been there for Seth and me. She even had a few pointers for me the first time I..." Whatever the young vamp was about to say died in a strangled warble, though judging by the blush coloring her cheeks, it wasn't a painful stab of grief that cut her off but an embarrassing, or perhaps intimate, memory. I didn't push it. Erica was pretty shameless about things, and if whatever she was remembering could embarrass her, it was probably deep into TMI territory. I didn't want to know.
"Where did she leave for?" I changed the subject, partly because I was curious about Seth's sister, partly because Erica looked like she needed a minute to compose herself before going in. "What is it she does?"
"She's... a vampire rights lobbyist, I think would be the right term for her. Fresh out of law school and trying to shake things up for all of vampire kind. She calls the old ways medieval, want them flushed down the drain; no more tributes and gifts of blood, equal legal protection for vampires and citizens of other species, the end of organised marriages and enforced breeding lines, that sort of things." Reed answered with an admiring glint in his eyes. "Risky stuff, but she couldn't get to Washington fast enough once Cormel stepped down. She's been sitting on nice ideas for a few years, but I think you can guess she couldn't bring them forward with a dead vamp hell-bent on stability at all costs sitting in the oval office."
"Hmm, well, like I said, we'll see." I said neutrally, suddenly unsure if I should hold on to my poor first impressions. Considering how Ivy and Kisten died, I think you can guess I would get behind any movement that pressured for positive changes in the vampire world. That Ivy seemed to have those changes in mind went a long way to earn her some of my forgiveness for her more extreme methods. "And her mom is mad at her for that? I mean, don't take this the wrong way, but the vampire world could do with a little more... twenty-first century? It seems trite to me, to be upset at someone for trying to make those kinds of changes."
"Hard to say if her political goals help or not. Mrs Anderson is older than someone like Mrs Tamwood. She's old enough to remember the Turn, and she's pretty hard-set in our ways, having been raised in them and all, but I think the real kicker is actually her boyfriend. Melissa left her picture perfect power-player GQ model asshole of a fiancé behind to date one of you guys."
"Seth's sister is with a witch?" And just when I thought Ivy and I were special, I find another vampire princess who's slumming it with one of my kind... I thought wryly when Erica and Reed nodded in unison. And hey, more power to them; I'd never been happier with another witch than I'd been sleeping with someone from another species, especially vamps. Our species complemented each other well, I was finding out.
"Yup. They've been together for what, five years now?" He consulted with Erica. "Tell you the truth, their story reads so much like a harlequin novel it's disgusting. Melissa met Carson in law school, and as soon as their first day together was over they were set up as vicious rival. You know how young vamps tend to be the first time they're loose upon the world; she had trouble treating other species as equals. She looked down on him even when he matched her wits, he thought she was a spoiled brat who never had to work a day in her life. Carson had to fight tooth and nail to get enrolled, you see, and Melissa's place was reserved for her for a long time, even if she could've gotten in without name-dropping on her own merits. It led to them constantly trying to one-up each other, made it hell for their comrades to keep up with them. Their relationship started off as a bitter competition, moved on to a semi-friendly one, and it ended with Melissa resolving their differences years after they began by dragging Carson to her dorm room and having her wicked way with him." With a small smirk that I'm sure would have been a massive grin under better circumstances, Reed added, "Well, I suppose you won't find that last part in a harlequin novel, but anyway... they both graduated with honours, and they've been inseparable, and exclusive to each other, since. True love, of which I don't need to tell you Mrs Anderson does not approve."
"That almost sounds familiar..." I mumbled with a small, private smirk; Ivy and I hadn't gotten along in the beginning either, only it wasn't a steamy encounter in the broom closet that had resolved our differences but a sleep charm sucker punch, a length of rope and a bottle of nail polish. Good times, man, good times... "You know, I didn't picture you for such a gossip monger, big man. Or did you make all that up just to jerk me around?" I teased, but a quick glance at Erica, who actually had some business knowing, confirmed he hadn't.
"I'm shocked you'd think I made that up! And I'm not gossipy, I'm... keeping up with current events and developments in the community I'm part of." He said in a way that would have made me think of him as distinctly metrosexual if I hadn't seen him punch a hole in a linoleum floor dressed in combat boots and matte black body armour. "Word gets around, especially within a tight knit group with deeply rooted traditions, especially about something this scandalous. I mean, Melissa is pretty much parading her magical stallion around. She was at least expected to keep something this 'shameful'" Reed mimicked big quotation marks, clearly indicating he didn't see it as any kind of big deal, "as discreet as possible, not flaunt it."
"Were there ever any rumours about Ivy and me?" I asked, curious about a not altogether different scandal.
"'Were there'? Why the past tense? There still are, like you wouldn't believe." Reed answered incredulously. "She's scarier, so no one tells it to her face, but Ivy has been the talk of the town ever since she swore off blood and broke off her engagement with Felps. The rumour mill has just been going crazy ever since she left the IS and went private with you though. They covered everything, from it being a simple crush she would get over once you put out, to you putting a spell on her, to stuff scientifically proven to be impossible. Wait, it's still impossible for two women to have children together the old fashioned way, right?"
"Hum, I think it might be possible under certain circumstances." I told him, torn between smiling at his distraught expression, chuckling at the ludicrous idea someone thought Ivy or I had knocked the other up despite lacking some essential equipment or chromosomes that could line up even if we did, and uncomfortably frowning in bitter jealousy at the reminder another woman had managed to literally have Ivy's baby.
I wonder if Erica knows she's got a cute little banshee niece... I thought idly while Reed mused under his breath about what time men had left before women decided they were completely useless and got rid of them altogether. His comments managed to make me laugh, and I offered the gentle giant a reassuring smile before stealing a glance at Erica.
"Thanks for that, Reed." I scoffed before deciding the young vampire looked as steady as she was going to get. "Ready to go in?"
Without further ado, Reed guided us into one of the room with a door in the hallway, one that was large, spacious, and most importantly loosely filled with enough emotional vampires to make the scars on my neck and wrist tingle discreetly, even though I was still standing in the threshold and had barely drawn a single breath.
And of course, it's freezing. I thought, distraught and shivering, as I stretched the fabric of my sleeves to cover my hands and buried them under my crossed arms. I shouldn't have been surprised. A vampire gathering meant the air conditioning was working overtime, even though we were in the middle of spring. The temperature in here was a couple degrees lower than comfortable for most species. Note that I only say most species because that ideal temperature is warmer for a witch, meaning this witch was anything but comfortable. Maybe our species aren't that compatible...
A quiet hum of conversation filled the air, and needless to say I was facing a sea of black clothes and distraught expressions. It seemed the final death of such a young vamp touched something very profound amongst those whose immortality was supposedly assured... or perhaps that was a callous way to see it, and their species had nothing to do with it. The simple horror of Seth's death was certainly ghastly enough to warrant most if not all of those dead-eyed stares...
Erica left my side the second she spotted her parents, slipping past the crowd like water around rocks to go meet them, making me silently glad that she'd let go of me first and hadn't dragged me towards her terrifying mother. I'd never formally met Mrs Tamwood, and honestly, I didn't want to, even under better circumstances. What with her obsession with grand-children that Ivy sometimes rambled about, I felt pretty certain she would hate me for diverting her daughter's attention from the droves of eligible (read; male) admirers she no doubt had while she was still able to bear children. Undeads hold long grudges when it comes to that sort of things, and Mrs Tamwood was just the teensiest bit... immortal. And really freaking strong. And vindictive. Did I mention that already? Sorry. Like I said, the woman scared me, and the cherry on top was that I was expected to walk into her home for dinner later in the evening, too. The occasion made me worry whether I was on the vampire's guest list or her menu. No shortage of vamps to feed here, and I was the only non-vamp by the looks of it, save maybe the mysterious Melissa's boyfriend...
Screw species solidarity, if they come after you, trip the other guy who's freezing his ass off...
"You're with me, you know. The worse she can do is give you a nasty look. No need to-"
"Gah!" I yelped, the suddenness of the beautiful female voice's whispering in my ear making me jump out of my worried contemplations, and damn near my skin as well. "That's it, I'm putting a freaking bell on you! And not a tiny puppy bell, either, no, a church bell so big and heavy not even you can lug around! Try and sneak up on me then!" I rambled quietly through my gritted teeth at, you guessed it, Ivy. The vamp had appeared out of nowhere, a habit I could've sworn I'd browbeaten out of her over the months we'd lived under the same roof.
"Is it my fault you jump so easily?" Ivy embraced me from behind before I could turn to swat at her, her strong arms encircling me and her lips finding her favourite spot below my ear, instantly soothing the flames of my ire down to embers. With a very mild glare and my lips quirking despite my best effort, I turned around in the circle of her arms so we faced each other, tilting my head up and down to give my yummy vampire a once over. Ivy had gone with a dark woman's suit tonight, her shirt underneath the jacket as impeccably pressed as the pair of dress slacks she wore. Impractical but incredibly stylish black high heels, an easy concession for her to make with her sense of balance and the resilience of her body, completed the look, giving her the air of a perfectly confident business woman in absolute control of her surroundings. Even though she had the body language to match, her forehead was more rumpled than her clothes, a few lines breaking its usual snowy flawlessness. There were a few tiny crow's feet at the corner of her eyes, too, and I wondered as our earlier phone conversation played back in my head if the lack of rest and sleep was finally starting to get to her. Her brain was incredible and her body could withstand almost anything, even her stiletto heels, but even she needed to shut down once in a while. I didn't like how tired she looked, and it made me frown with the urge to kiss every little line off her face until it was smooth again. I liked her hair a lot, though. A perk of the way her cells could multiply at such a blinding speed on her say-so was that she could grow it a lot faster, and it now flowed in a flawless, unbroken ebon wave around her face and shoulder, almost down to her mid-back. Not quite as ridiculously long as it was when we first met, but more than enough to make me long to thread my fingers through the heavy lusciousness of it.
Like I said. Yummy.
"You wouldn't really do that to me, would you?" Ivy pouted.
"Without a second thought. In fact, I'd pat myself on the back about it." Her pout worsened at my ironic reply, making the usually intimidating and sexy vampire look like a wet kitten. The lure of slinging my arms around her neck was simply irresistible, and so I didn't even try. "What? Like I could get you to hold still long enough to chain you to a church bell if you didn't want to be? I'd deserve a pat on the back if I could pull it off."
"Touché." Ivy admitted with a thoughtful chuckle before letting me pull her closer. "I'm sorry about that. It's just that I've been here since sunset, and my mother walked in all of three seconds after me. I needed a witchy break after spending all that time with her. You just smelled so good a second ago, I couldn't resist giving you a little scare..." Ivy trailed off, her eyes fluttering close as she inhaled our mixing scents. That my clothes didn't have the latest olfactory trends brought about by her change didn't seem to bother her at all. "The hint of adrenaline is lovely. You're scrumptious when your heart's racing, darling." She smiled as she leaned in, something sure to make my heart do just that in mind. I sighed happily when the rich decadent texture of her mouth covered mine, her delicate and feminine taste still as enthralling now as it was the first time we'd kissed, making me hope I would never get used to it and it would always feel this thrilling to kiss my darling vampire.
"I've waited all week to do that..." We both said at the same time and in the same longing tone as our mouths broke away from each other, my eyes twinkling at the surprise in Ivy's. Feeling coquettish, I sultrily licked her taste from my lips before nibbling on my lower one, all for her stressed-out benefit, my eyebrows raising, in perfect synchronicity like always, at the sight of her slightly expanding pupils. "What? It's true." I stated innocently, feeling a little forward. This wasn't the place for full-blown advances, but what was a little harmless flirting in preparation for what was sure to be a dreary evening? No serious harm done.
"Thank goodness I didn't want to have those kinds of thoughts..." Ivy groaned quietly, taking a quick peek at the overhead lights to stop the slight dilation of her pupils. For a second, I thought I saw something in her face, something that looked analytical and maybe even a little wary, but it went away so fast I didn't really get a good read on whatever it was that travelled over her features.
"Is something the matter? Present circumstances aside?" I frowned, pushing up on my tip-toes so I could whisper in her ear, so quietly the drone of ambient conversation drowned my voice out to all but her. That was the second time she got that uncomfortable look in the past minute. Something had to be up with her. I silently hoped she wasn't suspecting, or worse had figured out, why I wore a scarf that covered up my neck and had swapped in my usual bracelet for my very conspicuous broad metal wristband. I was getting concerned for her, but that didn't mean I lost all sense...
"It's nothing, nothing in particular. I'm not used to rest being such a scarce commodity, that's all. Even I have my limits." Ivy answered in a very similar fashion, her cool forehead coming to rest against mine, her eyes shutting lightly. "I need a break. The novel appeal of not sleeping wore off about a month ago, and frankly, it was easier to get used to the absence of sunlight than yours. I want my life and my little witch back." A small smitten smile tugged at my lips at the weary but earnest declaration, and I tilted my head back to kiss her lightly again. The vampire melted against me for a blissful moment we unfortunately had to cut short. No place to make out, no place to make out... I mentally repeated myself over and over again, trying to snap my thoughts back to the seriousness of the current events and out of the gutter.
"Jenks isn't with you?" Ivy said rather huskily once we broke apart, looking like she was struggling with the same demons of lust I was.
"No." I answered flatly, the reminder of my earlier fight with our pixy friend like a dip in cold water. "We had... a bit of an argument. Nothing you need to worry about." I added reassuringly when she put on a worried face, holding her a bit tighter both to keep our privacy and to comfort myself. "Really."
She regarded me doubtfully, but I decided it was better not to mention the meeting with the elves that triggered the dispute. Ivy was a power player now, one who was already at odds with them, and if she learned of Trent's hastily hatched scheme to use Erica as leverage against her, or worse that he had almost put it into action, Cinci would no doubt be in for an even longer period of bloody war. Sweeping this afternoon's incident under the rug was for the greater good, even if it inadvertently saved Trent's sorry elf ass.
"You fought over me, didn't you?" She asked, my following silence all but confirming what she had already guessed in a single try. "I suppose I can't expect any different. He and I didn't even get a chance to chat since I came back. I'm sure he's feeling very disapproving of us now." She shrugged, dismissing the pixy's absence just like that.
"Aren't you even a little upset?" I gently prodded her, slightly off-put by how coolly she took the pixy's absence. "He used to be your friend too, remember?"
"He didn't 'use to be'. He still is, at least as far as I'm concerned. It's simply a big change to adjust to. I'll just have to build up our thrust again, the same way I did with you. Right?" She asked and I nodded my head, though I wasn't quite sure whether she meant that was all it would take to glue her friendship with Jenks back together or if she was asking me if I trusted her. I made some inarticulate noise at that, not quite sure on the former; Jenks' trust was a hard thing to earn, and an easy one to break. As for the latter, well...
You know, I could totally do with another hug... I mentally sighed and wrapped my arms around the vampire's waist, letting my head tuck neatly beneath her chin. Her patented back torture devices made her almost freakishly tall, and that was one neat benefit. After a slight hesitation her arms wrapped around me without further questions, and I closed my eyes, soaking in her sudden, solid warmth and the feeling of intense safety I felt in her arms. I wasn't one-hundred percent sure about her, but in this instant, it sure felt right to be held like that.
"How come you're warm one second and cool the next?" I mumbled, not wanting to dwell on Jenks and warnings and funerals for a little while longer. Ivy hmm-ed vaguely in response, as if I'd disturbed her train of thoughts and she'd been too distracted to hear me. "I've noticed sometimes you're really warm and comfy to the touch, others you're almost cooler than room temperature. What's up with that?"
"Oh, that?" She chuckled softly before explaining. "My body doesn't function the way yours does anymore. My heart doesn't beat most of the time, my digestive track is inert, I only need to breathe in order to talk, I don't shed hair or sweat, things like that. What this also means is that my skin doesn't bleed away heat and energy under normal circumstances like yours does. It's pretty much all passive heat transfer. I'm always comfortable at room temperature."
"You're definitely not room temperature now." I nearly slurred when I pointed that out, my mind going pleasantly foggy. Damn, she felt good. The momentary solace from the cold and morbid atmosphere I found in her arms almost filled me with a selfish desire to snag her and whisk her away someplace private where we could cuddle (just cuddle; right this second I didn't want to see what colour panties she had on) in peace...
"I can get everything flowing again if needed, even become warmer than I was before when necessary... like when my girlfriend is freezing her pretty witchy butt off."
"Ooh, best bodily function ever." I nearly moaned as she demonstrated her ability. Her body quivered almost violently for several seconds, the rapid contraction and release of her muscles raising her temperature up a few more degrees, making me snuggle closer to her, more than a little tempted to unbutton her jacket and slip my hands inside to warm them up. In contrast to the cold of the room, she was so sinfully comfortable, and combined with the pheromones floating in the air, I was almost lulled to sleepiness when Ivy cleared her throat to catch my attention. Feeling stuffy enough I had to blink even after only a few minutes, I looked up to see her staring at a point behind me, and with an apologetic smile, she gave my cheek a lingering stroke with the back of her hand before reluctantly disentangling herself from me and pulling away.
"I'm sorry to cut this short, Dear Heart, but I'm afraid I have to give your seats someone else tonight." She said as her fingers fell from my skin, and opened her arms, just in time to catch her little sister in a hug. Despite her back-torturing footwear, both sisters stayed upright as Erica finished a ninja-like dash that would have toppled me straight into her arms, the younger vamp burying her face in her older sister's chest as she was protectively embraced, Ivy's softest and most delicate tone rising as I took a few steps back to give them some privacy. Unfortunately, the unthinkable happened; someone showed less tact than I did. Many someones, in fact. A whole slew of sideway glances were being cast at the sisters, intruding on what should have been a moment of family comfort.
Well, that didn't last long... I growled angrily in my head as the sweet feelings Ivy had coursing through my body vanished, replaced by a dark, protective rage. I knew the sisters got the looks because Erica was technically siding with their mom and Ivy was technically her enemy, but technically, the people attending could have checked the politics at the door.
"I couldn't agree more." A gravelly voice coming from my left startled me out of my glaring. "Tonight is about comfort and closure. It isn't supposed to be about politics or picking sides, and no one here should make it so, especially if it keeps my girls apart in their time of need." Erica and Ivy's dad, Mr Randall, said with almost solemn approval before extending his hand to me, a tired and sad smile on his face.