Waking up was hard. It always was, but this morning it seemed particularly difficult. It had been a long, hard War, and too much had happened to allow sleep to come easily. She had tossed and turned all night long, and the morning had come far too soon.
Finally, she decided the she wasn't going to get back to sleep. She groaned, crawled out of her sleeping bag, and stumbled bleary-eyed into the bathroom. Sorting through all the toiletry bags to find hers, she opened it up and started to remove her toothbrush when she noticed the card stuck in among the make-up. Pulling it out, she turned it over...and stopped, startled, when she saw it was a Valentine. Little red hearts. White lace. Cupids, even. The words 'Be Mine' scrolled in over-ornate letters across the middle. Under those words was a hand-written message: "We will not be forgotten."
She smiled with relief. <Finally!> she thought, <I wondered when we were going to meet.> She placed the card carefully in another toiletry bag, hoping that her fellow affiliation-mate would find it soon, and went back to brushing her teeth.
The silent figure skulked her way down the dark street, stopping every now and then to be sure she wasn't being followed. When she was certain that the street was clear, she made her way to the shadowed doorway half-hidden behind a large dumpster.
*knock*
*knock, knock, knock*
*knock*
A muffled voice came from behind the door, "Who comes?"
"A follower and a seeker," the figure in black replied.
"What do you follow?"
"He who has gone before," the litany continued.
"What do you seek?"
"Light!"
The seeker's quest was rewarded by the opening of the door, letting bright light spill out onto the sidewalk. She entered, and gave the door-keeper a brief hug in greeting. "Hey, how did you get here before me?" the seeker asked, surprised by the identity of the door-keeper.
"I have my ways," the door-keeper said, her mysterious tone ruined slightly by the giggle that followed. "Come on, we're all here now, so we can get started."
"Is...he here...?" the seeker asked, following the door-keeper down the stairs to the wine-cellar.
"Oh, yeah!"
***
"The meeting will come to order," the Cousin in charge said, standing up and banging her gavel. "Come on, quiet down," she added when that didn't silence the group in the back who were enthusiastically discussing the latest fan-fiction.
"...and in this one, Nat flies off to Rio with LaCroix, leaving Nicholas to spend eternity locked in the toy factory with Tracy--"
"Silence!" the voice boomed out across the room, effectively quieting the conspirators gathered there. He glared at the motley assemblage--he was already annoyed that he had agreed to this fruitless endeavor, and the behavior of these people made him doubly sure that nothing would be accomplished. Sighing heavily, he sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. <The things I will do...> But the memory of soft, warm skin beneath his fingers, the enticing fragrance from her long hair as he drew closer.... He sighed again, as hope quivered to brief life within him. <Perhaps...>
Now that it was silent, Cousin Cherri said, "One of our members has asked that this emergency meeting be convened. She nodded to the person who had been serving as the gate-keeper. "I'll let her explain why," she said, then sat down.
Chris stood up, and addressed the crowd. "I'm sure you're wondering why I called this emergency meeting of the Underground," she said. It was clear that she was excited about something. The petitioner cleared her throat, then continued. "I know that it is the fondest wish of many of you here that Natalie return from her seclusion and rejoin...her friends. I'm happy to say that that day has come."
A ripple ran through the crowd, and the Cousin tapped her gavel once again for silence.
"Nat has liberated herself from sanctuary," the speaker continued. "And she has not yet rejoined the NatPack. In fact, I have it on good authority that she is wandering around Toronto, revisiting some of the sites from her past." She stopped, for dramatic impact. "And I think that she will be in the Azure tonight!"
Chaos (the event, not the person) broke out. The turmoil was disturbed, however, by the sharp, shrill ring of a phone. Cousin Cherri lifted the receiver and listened into the earpiece. "Good," she said shortly. "We'll take care of it." She hung up the phone and turned to the master vampire beside her. "She's on her way there."
Kelly stood in one of the many shadowed doorways which seemed to litter Toronto and paced irritably. She was nominally keeping an eye on Natalie, but she had an even more frustrating task--waiting for LaCroix to turn up after her call to the meeting. She wondered briefly what the ethics were concerning dual affiliations--as a NatPacker, should she really be aiding and abetting a meeting between her friend and the dangerous vampire? As a Valentine, could she resist? She sighed, and suddenly understood the appeal of being a Merc and getting paid for things like this.
But then, there are rewards even more enticing than chocolate...
"Is she here?" LaCroix asked, stepping into the doorway beside her. Kelly gulped. She had, of course, met Nick's master the day before at CERK, but her memories of that meeting were...fuzzy, at best. Besides, she didn't remember him being this close to her, looming over her in that way which he undoubtedly thought was intimidating, but only served to remind her why she was a Valentine.
She snapped herself out of reflections of that sort. "She's already in. I made the reservations for you earlier, so there's no problems there." She grinned at him. "I hope that I can consider this a favor that you owe me."
He glowered at her, but she merely cocked her head, waiting for a response. "Yes," he said finally, forming the word as if it pained him. He looked over to the restaurant, and then a smile <Oh my! I got to see him smile!> crossed his lips. "You have done well."
She resisted the urge to wriggle like a puppy (Pull yourself together! Sharon and Jill would be horrified!).
He turned to leave, but first pierced her with a stony glance. "And Kelly, my dear..."
"Y-y-yes?"
"No fan fiction shall come from this."
She tried to put on a "who me?" expression, but doubted that she succeeded. "Sure. No fan fic."
He was gone.
***
<No fan fic, indeed> Kelly thought irritably as she crouched behind an extremely large potted plant. <How does he expect me to resist an opportunity like this? Besides, I'm good for his PR.> It had not been difficult to persuade the manager to let her creep into the restaurant silently. After all, LaCroix was paying to have the entire place to himself (again). And as far as the manager knew, she was still acting on LaCroix's behalf. The wad of cash from the salt smugglers' cache had not hindered her chances of gaining entrance either.
Hoping desperately that LaCroix would be so focussed on Natalie that he would not notice another mortal heartbeat, Kelly made herself comfortable behind the greenery and took out her pad to scribble intriguing bits of dialogue. This could be so rewarding! If only she hadn't missed the first few minutes as she tried to find a hiding spot within ear shot!
*******
"You're falling into a rut, LaCroix," Natalie tut-tutted. "Will the champagne be drugged?"
LaCroix regarded her passively. "Perhaps we are both in a 'rut,' as you say, my dear doctor. I certainly did not expect to meet you again so soon."
She gave a rather unladylike snort. "Soon, huh." Natalie fingered the pale pink roses in the centerpiece delicately. "Not white roses, this time."
He closed his eyes for a moment. "No. I should not have sent you white ones the first time. They are not...you." He eyed her carefully. "I am happy to see that the pink matches the color in your cheeks. You must be recovering nicely."
She did not respond, but sat silently as a waiter, who had abruptly appeared bearing a bottle of red wine, poured drinks. "Thank you," Natalie said, a bit more forcefully than she intended, "but we won't be needing anything else."
"Won't need anything else," the man parrotted dumbly and stumbled off.
<Fascinating,> LaCroix thought. <She does indeed have the power, and yet does not realize it. Ah, Nicholas--what have you done?>
He returned to the task at hand. "Have you seen Nicholas yet?"
Her lips tightened, and she took a drink of the wine before she answered. "No," she said finally. "I'm sure that I will see him soon enough."
"Oh?" he asked, checking his voice for any betrayal of emotion. "Are you not looking forward to seeing him again?"
"I don't care to discuss it with you, LaCroix," she said stiffly.
"Considering the events...surely, you don't still love Nicholas."
Her eyes narrowed. "You know, I'm rather tired of people telling me how I feel." She gave him a long look. "What about you? How do you feel?"
It was his turn to go on the defensive. "What do you mean?"
She gestured at the surroundings. "Why are you here?" She smiled slightly, as if enjoying a private joke. "Have you come to profess your love?"
He rose from his seat and circled the table like a predator tracking his prey. "Is that what you want? A man who is not afraid to express his love?"
She flinched, hearing in her head the voices from long ago, hearing Nick saying the same words to Schanke.
LaCroix was behind her now. "Love is a fitful thing," he continued, placing his cool hands on her shoulders. "Better to talk about desire, perhaps? Desire, which can burn as deep as the brightest star?"
"Be careful that you don't get scorched, then," she replied, amused by his attentions. She was tired of being uncertain. Tired of being afraid. Just pretty tired in general.
"Desire does not appeal, then? What about lust? Shall we debate the vagaries of the deadly sins?" he whispered in her ear.
She turned her head and met his gaze fully, the blue eyes challenging her. "Have you ever loved, LaCroix?"
He blinked. Still, he would not deny her this. "Yes," he said softly. "I have loved."
Her lips grazed his, the cool touch reminding her of Nick. The silence lengthened, and--
Was disturbed by a large "Ah-choo!"
<Blasted plants!> Kelly thought.
Natalie continued regarding LaCroix. "You wouldn't be able to stand the loss of control," she whispered.
"Perhaps you are right," he said simply, and stood up straight. "Kelly," he said, his voice pitched to carry an undertone of warning.
"Yes?" she asked, sheepish and slightly fearful.
"Make sure that Doctor Lambert finds her way back to your mutual friends safely."
He offered a hand to Natalie, helping her as she rose from the chair.
"Good night, LaCroix," she said firmly.
After they had gone, he picked up one of the pale pink roses from the table. "No thorns go as deep as a rose's," he quoted. "And love is more cruel than lust."
He smiled as a drop of blood welled on his fingertip.
Natalie and Kelly made their way carefully out of Azure, Kelly watching her friend closely for signs of fatigue. "Nat?" she asked hesitantly, "You aren't mad at me about LaCroix being here, are you?"
Natalie smiled reassuringly. "No, I had to see him sooner or later. I'm glad it was sooner. I'll need all my strength to deal with other confrontations."
"Well, I--"
Whatever Kelly had been about to say was cut off as they were group-pounced (because while NatPackers bounce, Valentines pounce). "Natalie!" a plethora of Valentines, who had been lurking (small "L") outside the restaurant--and, unbeknownst to LaCroix and Nat, peering into the windows--screeched as they greeted her fondly. They peppered her with questions.
"How are you!" "It's so good to see you!" "Did you see LaCroix?" "How was it?" "What was he wearing?--Ow! Hey, don't hit me like that! It's a valid question...."
Natalie waved them all to silence affectionately. "I'm fine, I'm glad to see you guys too, yes, it was fine, and I can't remember, respectively." She leaned a little heavily on the NatPacker beside her. "Now, if you don't mind, I think that I need to get some rest. The Pack is expecting me."
The group parted easily to let her through, and Kelly led her to the Autumn-Wine (tm) Chevy Cavalier. A few of the Valentines moved forward to help Nat inside the car, while Kelly moved around to the driver's side.
"Good night, Nat!" they chorused.
"Good night, guys. And thanks for thinking about me," Nat waved goodnight.
Kelly smiled at the group over the roof of the car and mouthed silently, "I've got details! See you at the next meeting!"
"Oooooooh," they moaned, visions of fanfic dancing in their heads.
And they heard a voice exclaim,
As the car drove out of sight,
"A Merry War to all Valentines,
and to all Valentines a good night!"