Key Canon for Ficathon Story
I'm going over my femme-fic ("We Love Female Characters") ficathon story draft one more time today, trying for as much polish as I can achieve before posting to the community this weekend. As part of that, I've just transcribed the key dialogue from those episodes on which the story most draws, including every word ever spoken by my favorite neck-of-the-week, the most canonically pertinent guest character we ever received (such that I am joking by lumping her into that category, naturally). The transcriptions below are exact; I did not omit even those lines that make me throw rolled-up socks at the screen, and you know these episodes have their share of those! But I love them anyway, as shown by the 14,000-word draft continuing them that I'm scrubbing right now, and striving to make evoke these very lines.
If I've written the story well, no one will need to rewatch any episodes in order to understand it. But reviewing FK canon is always a delight, right? ;-) I will get these quotations properly sorted into my FK Concordance after the ficathon story is on its way. (Gracious, but transcribing is so much easier with the DVDs than it was with tapes!)
Transcribed excerpts, in reverse chronological order:
"Crazy Love" (from flashbacks circa 1535, Italy)
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Outside a stone palazzo.
Lacroix: My goodness, Nicholas, in such a hurry to leave your paramour. And such a willing one at that. I'd say she was something of a find: the beautiful daughter of a wealthy wine merchant. What's this all about? You can tell me . . . can't you? Nick: You know what this is all about. Lacroix: Let me think. Hmm. You have found a ravenous beauty. A mortal, who makes love to you, and wants you to possess her totally, who will happily die in your arms, drained. I'm afraid I don't see the problem. Nick: I must have her. Lacroix: Ahhh. But if you go on this way, possess her as a vampire must, then you will have to kill her -- or bring her across -- and either way, you will no longer possess her. Nick: Yes. Lacroix: I do sympathize. You may not believe that, but I do. [beat] It is our nature to possess, to drain away the lives of others into our bodies And that is the logical consequence, isn't it? Nick: What do you mean? Lacroix: Of possession, my dear, hungry Nicholas. For a vampire or a mortal to possess another totally is to destroy them. They cease to exist. Nick: Then we possess nothing. Lacroix: Until we kill again. And creatures such as you and I always kill again.
"Fallen Idol" (from flashbacks circa 1247, France)
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A copse at the edge of a graveyard.
Lacroix: The loss of a family member is never easy, especially when you had the power to prevent it. Nick: It is not what my sister wanted. Lacroix: Time has dulled your memory, Nicholas. It was not what you wanted. A fact that I will enjoy reminding you of -- often. Nick: I loved her too much to let you subject her to your hell. Lacroix: And I loved Fleur so much that I offered her the gift of eternity. What has your love given her? [looks at grave] Au revoir, mon amour. Nick: She wrote to me after she knew she was dying, asking me to look after her son. Lacroix: You can't be serious. Nick: It's something I have to do for her. Lacroix: So this is how you're going to ease your conscience. Very well, Nicholas: play the charade if you must. But you know how it will end.
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A chamber of a stone building.
Nick: Andre, this is Monseiur Lacroix. Lacroix: It's a pleasure to meet you, Andre. I knew your mother. Andre: Really? Mother never spoke of you. Nick:It's time for bed, Andre. Andre:Good night, monseiur. Good night, Nicholas. Nick:Good night. Lacroix:He has her eyes. Nick:And her spirit. His tutor says he's doing well. Lacroix:Seems like a very caring relationship, though I wonder what young Andre would think of you, Nicholas, if he knew your little secret? Nick:I'm planning on telling him, though I don't think it really matters. You see, Lacroix, it's more important to Andre who I am than what I am. Lacroix:Are you certain?
"Be My Valentine" (from flashbacks circa 1229, Brabant)
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The great hall of Castle Brabant.
Janette: Quickly, Nicolas, get out of the sun! Lacroix: [screams] Madness, utter madness! We should never have come here! This -- this [Janette examines burns] -- is what I get for humoring you, Nicholas. It will not happen again. Nick: My mother and sister have not seen me since I left for the Crusades. I'm not disappearing again without seeing them one last time. Janette: That is all very well and good, Nicolas, but you presume a great deal -- that we are prepared to die, for one thing, which we are not. Nick: They're my flesh and blood. Lacroix: Not any more! Just get on with it. Fleur: Nicolas? You're back! Nicolas! Oh, my dearest brother, thank God you're home! Can it be you, after all these years? Nick: And you, a woman now. I can't believe my eyes. My little flower has blossomed, my little Fleur. Fleur: You must tell me everything -- the Crusades, the adventures! Nick: I do not mean to be rude, but we are sick from travel without rest, and we have been injured in a skirmish down the road. Fleur: What terrible misfortune has befallen upon you all? This gentleman's suffering is very great. Mother: Nicolas! A miracle! After all this time, I was certain you'd been killed in battle. Nick: Mother. Mother: But what's happened? You're so pale! Nick: We have not slept in three days. These are my travel companions: Janette Ducharme and Lucien Lacroix. Mother: You must eat! Nick: We could not go on another moment without rest. Mother: But, Nicolas-- Nick: No, please, Mother, excuse me. I will tell all tonight. Mother: Very well, then, tonight. I must be content with knowing that you are safely home at last. Nick: Oh, my dearest mother! [Mother, Nick and Janette exit. Lacroix steps, then falls, injured and ill from sunburn.] Fleur: [catches Lacroix] Monsieur! Lacroix: [stares at Fleur] Forgive me, I ... [stares again] I need to rest. Fleur: Yes. Come.
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The garden of Castle Brabant.
Lacroix: A good book is hard to put down. Fleur: Oh, the heavens. They're my new passion. Lacroix: And a very old one of mine. Fleur: [looking for burns] They say a benevolent power flows through one who heals quickly. Lacroix: A generous compliment that I don't deserve. More accurately, my pain evaporated with the warmth of your touch. Fleur: You flatter me. Yet something troubles you. Lacroix: [picks a white rose] For you. Fleur: [smiles, accepts, pricks finger] Oh! [Lacroix sucks on her bleeding finger] Janette: Let them be, Nicolas. The attraction seems mutual. Nick: It cannot be. Fleur is one who has always brought light. The world needs her mortal love. Excuse us. We've been asked to invite you to dinner.
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Inside Castle Brabant.
Nick: I know what's on your mind. Lacroix: Of course you do. Nick: If you're punishing me for bringing you here, you have made your point. You cannot be in love! You have not one shred of humanity left in you. Lacroix: I would have agreed before we arrived. How do you think this makes me feel? I can't control it. I can't accept it. And yet it is! Nick: "Let go your mortal bonds." Have you forgotten your own lessons? Lacroix: No, of course I haven't forgotten! But -- Fleur is everything that I am not. She is pure, life-giving. My immortality has nothing to do with my feeling -- love.
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The garden of Castle Brabant.
Fleur: When I gaze upon the stars, I yearn to know what they are, and why they exist. Lacroix: Each is unique. Each possesses the potential to reveal the mysteries of the universe. Fleur: Oh! I desire that knowledge! Lacroix: We both seek the same revelation. If I could spend the rest of my days on this quest -- with you -- there's nothing more I would ask of life. Fleur: I have never felt such closeness. This bond I seem to have with you-- Lacroix: It's as if we've been together forever. Fleur: Yes. [Fleur kisses Lacroix lightly; he jerks back, as if shocked. Lacroix kisses Fleur; this kiss is not light.]
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The garden of Castle Brabant.
Fleur: Lucien, please, take me. Take me with you. I cannot live without you. I thought I was used to the pain of separation; there have been so many from my family -- my father, Nicholas to the Crusades once, and now again. But I have never felt such overwhelming sorrow. Lacroix: My only comfort is a vision I have, that you and I will never die. We will be together through all eternity. Fleur: To live forever? Oh, what an impossible dream. Lacroix: There is a way, my precious flower. [Nick flies in, knocks Lacroix back. Much growling by vamped-out Nick and Lacroix.] Nick: This is what he is, Fleur! Look at him! This is what I've become. Fleur: I understand now. The strange behavior, the pallor of you faces -- I have heard of this: the vampire! Nick: He will make you one of us whether you want it or not. Fleur: My only wish is to be with the one I love. I am interested in so many things that are of another world; why should this be so different? Nick: Please, Fleur, listen to me. I do not regret what I am, but when I chose this, the future of our family fell to you. Fleur: There is no future without Lucien! Nick: This is not right for you, Fleur! Fleur: Nicholas. [pushes past him to Lacroix] Lacroix: Whose heart do you choose to break, Nicholas? Your mother's, your sister's -- mine? Nick: For you, this is just another conquest, another death to satisfy your craving. Lacroix: Aren't you a little confused, Nicholas? She is mortal, therefore she will die, and all her beauty will die with her. I can preserve that -- forever. Nick: If you bring her over, she becomes a killer. Cold-blooded. Her purity annihilated. Lacroix: Would you rather see this beauty whither to old age, and die? Nick: It is the beauty of her innocence that you love, and that you will kill with the first taste of her blood. If you truly love Fleur, Lacroix, you won't destroy that. You will not. Lacroix: [to Fleur] 'Tis a great irony, is it not, that such a cold, still heart can feel such pain? [kisses her forehead] Nick: Fleur, you need to rest. Fleur: Nicolas, I don't want to go. Nick: Don't be afraid. [whammy echo effect] I promise you that after we've gone, your life will be good again. Sleep. Fleur: Yes. Nick: Sleep and forget. [Fleur leaves; echo sound ends] We will leave as soon as possible. Lacroix: Yes. You have probably done me a favor. But you must realize, Nicholas, that I will demand retribution. One day, when you have fallen in love, I will take from you what you have taken from me now. We're agreed? Nick: If I ever truly love a mortal . . . Lacroix: Are we agreed? Nick: [nods] We are agreed.
"Near Death" (from flashbacks circa 1228, Between Life and Death)
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A symbolic landscape.
The Guide: You may come to us, Nicholas. Nick: Who are you? What is this place? The Guide: Come to us and you will know. Choose to return to the evil that awaits you, and you will be lost. Lacroix: [from the living world] Turn away from the light, Nicholas, It is not your salvation. It is only for the weak, the defeated. Come back to me, Nicholas. Nick: He has offered me a thousand lifetimes, everything I desire and covet. Can you do the same? Why should I go with you, when I can live? The Guide: You must choose. Nick: What can you offer me? The Guide: The choice.