From: SFryar@aol.com Date: Fri, 7 Nov 1997 16:49:54 -0500 (EST) Subject: Halloween Challenge: Halloween Knight---Part 01/0? Here's another little interlude with Nick and Co. just before "Soldiers Of Glory". The Forever Knight characters belong to TPTB at Sony/TriStar. Sara Louise belongs to me. Glad that all of you are enjoying what I've written so far. I give my permission for this story to be placed in the archives.... ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Halloween Challenge: Halloween Knight By StephiLyn Fryar---Part 01/0? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- When Sara Louise McLendon went to her mailbox that early October morning, she hadn't expected to find a black envelope nestled among the pile of utility bills, magazines and other bits of junk mail. As she went through the mail after she returned to her apartment, the black envelope, with her name and address written in an elegant hand, in silver ink, immediately caught her eye. 'Hmmm...' Sara said to herself as she looked at the envelope. 'I wonder who could have sent me this?' She looked at the envelope carefully, trying to figure out where it came from. There was no return address on the envelope and it felt like a card was inside the envelope. Sara's curiousity got the better of her and she carefully opened the envelope. When she opened it, she found a white card inside. She pulled the card out of the envelope, and looked at the front of it. There was a beautifully embossed black rose on the front. "Wow..." Sara said softly as she looked at the card. "This is beautiful. I wonder who sent it? Nick?" She opened the card and she found a message inside. The message read: "You are cordially invited to the Black Rose ball To be held at the Raven... on Halloween night. From 9:00pm until .... Your presence there will be deeply appreciated. A special costume will be provided for you." "That's it?" Sara looked puzzled at the brief message that was written on the card. "There's no address? Is this somebody's idea of a stupid joke?" She re-read the message on the card, just to make sure that she wasn't reading it wrong. "I don't get this at all." she sighed. The ringing of the phone interrupted her thoughts and she went over to the coffee table and picked up the phone. "Hello!" Sara said cheerfully. "Hi, Sara, this is Natalie." the voice on the other end of the phone replied. "It's good to talk to you, Natalie." she said warmly "How are you?" "I'm doing fine, thanks." Nat replied. "The reason why I'm calling is to ask you if you recieved a black envelope in the mail today." "Yes, I did." Sara replied. "Did you get one today, too?" "I got it earlier this afternoon." Natalie said. "I was wondering if you had any idea about who might have sent it, and what the message meant." "I know what you're thinking, Natalie," Sara said with a light laugh, "and I tried to use my "gift" to figure out who sent it, but, I'm not having much luck in finding out who sent it." She picked up the card and looked at it again. "Do you have any idea who might have sent it, Natalie?" "No, Sara. I don't have a clue." Natalie sighed as she looked at the handwriting in the card. Her address was written in a elegant, spidery hand, and she wasn't sure if Nick or LaCroix had sent it to her. "I don't understand this business about about a costume being provided for us, either." she said. "I mean... what if I get a costume that doesn't fit?" "Well, Natalie..." Sara said until the ringing of the doorbell interrupted her. "Hold on just a minute, would you?' Sara out the phone down and went to the door. When she opened it, a deliveryman was standing at her door, holding a big box. "Are you Ms. Sara Louise McClendon?" the deliveryman asked her. "Yes, I am." she replied. "What is it?" "This is for you." he said as he handed her the big box. "Would you sign this please?" She put the box down on the floor and he gave Sara a clipboard and she signed the recipt and handed it back to him. After she gave him back the clipboard, he tore the recipt off and gave it to her. "Thank you, Ms. McClendon. Goodbye." The deliveryman left and Sara closed the door. She dragged the box over to the couch and picked up the telephone. "Hello, Natalie?" Sara asked. "Are you still there?" "Oh, Sara, I'm sorry. I had to answer the door." Natalie told her. "Did someone come to your door with a big box?" Sara asked her curiously. Natalie was silent for a moment. "How did you know?" she said when she finally got her voice back. "I got a big box, too. Do you think that it means anything?" Sara asked her. "I'm not sure. Do you think that Nick knows anything about this?" Natalie wondered. "I don't know. I'm going to open the box and see what I got... I'll call you back to tell you what's inside, okay, Natalie?" Sara said to her. Natalie looked at the box on her coffee table and her curiosity got the better of her. "I'm going to see what I got in my box, too, Sara." she told her. "Good." Sara said with a smile. "I'll call you after I find out what I got in my box and you can tell me what you got in yours. Is that okay with you?" "Sure." Natalie replied. "I'd love to know what's inside here, too. I'll be wating for your call, then. Bye, Sara!" "Bye, Natalie!" Sara said and she put the phone back into its cradle. She went over to her desk and took out a plastic letter-opener and carefully cut the brown tape that held the box together. She opened the box and peeked inside... -------------------------------------------------------------------- End Part 01/0? StephiLyn Fryar---SFryar@aol.com Copyright Oct., 1997. -------------------------------------------------------------------- >> Disclaimers are in Part One... Happy Reading! This is for all of my Demented FK Sisters on America Online! ------------------------------------------------------------------- Halloween Challenge:Halloween Knight by StephiLyn Fryar---Part 02/04 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sara Louise carefully opened the box and peered insiide. She touched the material and felt the soft smoothness of black velvet. She carefully grasped the velvet gown and lifted it out of the box. As she looked at it carefully, she noticed a set of glittering buttons down the front of the outfut and the the collar and cuffs were trimmed in soft white satin. "Wow.... this is beautiful..." Sara said happily as she took the outfit to her bedroom and stood in front of her mirror, holding the outfit up so she could see how she looked in it. "This is lovely... I wonder if it fits?" she asked herself as she looked at the outfit. She laid the outfit down on the bed and went back to the living room to see if anything else was inside the box. She pulled out a long white satin underskirt, a black velvet beret, with a glillering rhinestone-and-feathered pin attached to it and an elegant pair of black leather boots. "Oh! This is lovely!" Sara said happily. She took the rest of the items to the bedroom and laid the underskirt on the bed, while she laid the beret on the dresser and put the boots on the floor. She looked at the articles of clothing very carefully and slowly slipped out of her jeans and sweater and put the underskirt on first, the she put the velvet gown on over top of the underskirt. After she fastened the buttons on the gown, she put the beret on, using a couple of bobby pins to fasten it in place. She stood in front of the mirror and noticed that something was missing from the outfit. "I need a pair of earrings." Sara said to herself as she went back to the living room to look in the box to see if a pair of earrings was tucked inside. After checking inside the box to see if there was a pair of earrings inside the box. When she didn't find any in the box, Sara went back to the bedroom to try on the boots. She sat down to put them on when she felt something in one of the boots. She shook the boot and a pair of glittering earrings that matched the pin on her beret. She put the earrings on, then she slipped her her feet into the boots and fastened them up. She looked at herself in the mirror and couldn't believe how beautiful she looked. "Everything is a perfect fit; even the shoes are in my size." Sara said to herself. "I wonder who could have known what my sizes are?" Her musings were interrupted by the ringing of the phone. She rushed over to her bedside table to answer the phone. "Hello?" Sara said breathlessly. "It's Natalie, Sara." the voice on the other end said. "What kind of costume did you get in your box?" "I got a 1930's-style black velvet gown." Sara told her. "What did you get, Nat?" Natalie looked at herself in the mirror in her bedroom and looked at the gown she was wearing. "I'm wearing a medieval-style gown. It looks like it came from the Thirteenth or Fourteenth Century. It's beautiful... and it actually fits! What about your gown, Sara?" She gently fingered the golden tassels that hung from the belt while she spoke to Sara. "MIne fits me perfectly, Natalie." Sara told her. "Who could have know about the sizes of our clothing and shoes?" "I have no idea, Sara. Do you have any clues?" Natalie asked her, a touch of mischief in her voice. Sara giggled. "I've tried, Natalie, but I haven't been able to pinpoint who could have sent them to us.Are you going to talk to Nick tonight?" she asked her, a bit of mischief in her voice. "Maybe. Why do you ask?" Natalie wondered. "Well..." Sara said, "Maybe he might know what's going on with the costumes?" Natalie thought about it for a moment and said, "I can ask him about them, but Nick keeps a lot of secrets... so he might not know about them either." Sara was silent for a moment before she answered. "Perhaps he might not know about it, but if Nick doesn't know about the costumes, then who did?" "Hmmm...." Natalie replied, while her mind raced with all sorts of interesting thoughts. --------------------------------------------- End part 02/ 0 ---StephiLyn Fryar---SFryar@aol.com Copyright, Oct., 1997 ---------------------------------------------- Disclaimers are in part 1.... Happy Reading to all!! Happy Birthday to my Demented FK Sister on AOL, Amanda! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Halloween Challenge: Halloween Knight by StephiLyn Fryar---Part 03/04 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Just as Sara was about to reply to Natalie, she heard a knock at the door. "Someone's at the door, Nat. I'm wondering who it could be." Sara said to her. "I could call you back, if you like." Natalie said to her. "No, Nat. That won't be necessary." Sara said as she walked out of her bedroom and into the living room. "I'm glad that I've got a cordless phone, so it makes things a lot easier." Sara got to the front door and looked into the peephole to see who was at the door. She saw Tracy standing in front of the door and she was holding a large white box under her arm. "Who's at the door, Sara?" Natalie asked her. "It's Tracy, Nat." Sara told her while she unlocked the door to let Tracy in. "She's also got a big box, too." "Hi, Sara!" Tracy said as she entered the apartment. "Wow! You look great! Where did you get that costume?" "I don't know, Tracy." Sara grinned at Tracy while she managed to get the door locked without dropping the phone. "Do you like it?" she asked her. "Yes, I do. It's beautiful... " Tracy said as she looked at the outfit that she was wearing. "Who are you supposed to be?" "An elegant lady from the 1930's, Trace." Sara told her. "Natalie got a costume today, too. She's dressed as a Frenchwoman from the Thirteeth or Fourteenth Century. I'm talking to her now." "Really?" Tracy said. "Did both of you get a black envelope with your costumes, too?" "Yes, we did. There was an invitation to a Halloween party at the Raven inside it, too." Sara told her. "Nat and I were wondering who could have known our clothing and shoe sizes. What knd of costume did you get, Trace?" Tracy sat down on the sofa and opened the box.She took out a pink cashmere sweater, a black, full circle skirt decorated with scampering poodles, and a white petticoat. Sara described the contents of Tracy's box to Natalie and both women giggled while Tracy pulled out a pair of white bobby socks, a pair of fifties-style saddle shoes and a pair of pearl earrings. "Try your outfit on, Tracy, so I can tell Nat about it." Sara said to her with a giggle. "Sure." Tracy said as she headed off toward Sara's bedroom. After a few minutes passed, she emerged from the bedroom, wearing her costume. "How do I look, Sara?" she asked her while she described it to Natalie. "You look great, Trace." Sara told her. "Nat, I wish that you were here so we could see you in your costume." "Me, too." Natalie replied. "Ask her if her costume is a perfect fit." "Nat wants to know if your costume fits you, Trace?" Sara asked her. "It's a perfect fit." Tracy told her as she did a little twirl around the room. "I don't believe it, Sara. Who could have known about my clothing and shoe sizes? Have you and Nat been able to come up with any ideas?" "Nat and I think that Nick might have something to do with it, but we're not sure." Sara told her. "Well, our shift will be starting in a few hours, so I could ask him if he might know something about it." Tracy told her. "Perhaps Nat might ask him about it, too." "She said that she would, Trace." Sara told her. "I'm going to change my clothes and get ready for work, Sara." Natalie said, giggling. "I'll probably see Nick tonight and ask him about this if Tracy can't get a straight answer from him. If he tells me anything, I'll let you know. Bye, Sara!" "Okay, Nat. Thanks. I'll talk to you soon. Bye!" Sara hung up the phone and looked at Tracy. "You look terrific, Trace." "Great! I'm going to change clothes and get ready for my shift." Tracy said as she headed to the bedroom. "Me, too. I don't want to get this outfit messed up before the party." Sara said as silpped out of their costumes and got dressed. ********************************************** Later that evening.... The 96th Precinct was quiet and Tracy was thinking about how she could ask Nick about the costumes, without giving too much away. "Uh, Nick..." Tracy said as she was finishing up a report. "What are you planning to do on Halloween? Nick looked up from a sheaf of papers and said, "I hadn't planned anything for the evening, Trace. I was thinking about spending it at home. What were you going to do on Halloween?" "Well, I was thinking about going to a party..." Tracy said. Nick looked mildly interested. "That's nice. Where's the party going to be held?" he asked. "At the Raven..." she told him, looking for a reaction from him. "Well, Trace, I hope that you have a good time." Nick said, with a grin, not giving anything away. Tracy sighed, and hoped that Natalie or Sara would have better luck at getting the information about the party and the costumes from Nick, because she wan't having much luck. After their shift ended, Nick dropped by the morgue to see how Natalie was doing, especially since she had managed to complete three weeks worth of backlogged cases in a couple of weeks with Grace's help. "Hi, Nat." Nick said to her as he entered the morgue. "How are you doing?" Natalie had just finished putting some files in her desk drawer when she looked up and saw him standing in front of her. "Hi, Nick." she said "i was just putting the last of my case files away. I wouldn't have been able to get through these if it weren't for Grace. What are you doing here?" Although her feelings for him had changed since last year, she still cared about him and was willing to help him as much as he would allow her to. "I was wondering... " Nick said to her. "You haven't taken any blood samples from me in the past three months." "Well, I've been busy with this backlog of cases, and you've been busy, too," Natalie replied, "so, blood collection is rather low on the list of priorities, but if you want me to take som samples for you, I will." Natalie got the syringe, along with three vials from the cabinet while Nick took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeve. She put on her rubber gloves and applied a torniquet on Nick's arm. When she found a vein, she carefully inserted the needle in his arm and drew out the first vial of blood. As she contined to get her samples, Natalie decided to take advantage of Nick's good mood and asked him, "What are you planning to do on Halloween? I know that you've got the night off and I was wondering how you were going to spend it? Were you planning on going out then?" ------------------------------------------------------------ End Part 03/04---StephiLyn Fryar---SFryar@aol.com Copyright, Oct., 1997 ------------------------------------------------------------- I'm resending this because I'm having a problem with AOL mail. Disclaimers are in part 1. I had to split this final chapter into two parts because it was too long to fit. Sorry if this is late, but blame AOL's "upgrading", Real Life, and problems with the local phone line! Happy Reading! --------------------------------------------------------------- Halloween Challenge: Halloween Knight by StephiLyn Fryar---Part 04A/04 --------------------------------------------------------------- "Hmmm... You're the second person who's asked me that question tonight." he said. "Oh?" Natalie said casually. "Did anyone else ask you that question tonight, Nick?" She sealed up the first vial of blood and got the second vial ready to be attached to the syringe. "Tracy did..." Nick said as Nat attached a second vial onto the syringe and drew out another vial of blood. "Why are you two so interested in what I'm doing for Halloween? This doesn't have anything to do with Sara, does it?" "Of course not." Natalie replied as she finished sealing up the second vial and attached the third vial to the syringe. "I was just curious; that's all, Nick. No harm done.." She watched as the third vial filled up with Nick's blood. After the vial had been filled, she removed the syringe from his arm and unwrapped the tourniquet. "Thanks for being so cooperative. Usually you don't like having your blood drawn." She went through the ritual of putting a bandage on Nick's wound, even though she knew that he would heal quickly. "Well, Nat, after all the things that we've been through, I should be a little more cooperative with you in finding a cure for me." Nick told her quietly as she took off her rubber gloves. "I owe you a lot. I also owe Sara something, too. Both of you are responsible for giving me hope that I will be cured, one day. Both of you have helped me to hold on to something that I thought I would never regain." "Thanks, Nick." Natalie said as she finished putting the blood samples in the refrigerator and discarding the syringe and the rubber gloves in the disposal unit. "I'm glad that you feel that way. Are you sure that you're not going anywhere for Halloween, Nick?" "I don't think so, Nat, but if I do, I'll be sure to let you know. Okay?" he said with a mischievious grin as he put on his jacket and got ready to leave. "I'll see you around. Bye, Nat." "Bye, Nick." she said as he left the morgue, got into his Caddy and drove off. He grinned as thought about how he had managed to fool Tracy and Natalie about the party. 'Everything's working out like I planned.' he said to himself. 'Now, if I can keep Sara from finding out, it'll be just fine.' Nick stopped by at Sara's apartment just before he went home. He knocked on the door, and when she opened it, she greeted him with a hug and a kiss. "Hi, Nick! How was your night?" "It was a quiet one, Sara. That's a rare thing these nights. Did I disturb you?" Nick asked as he entered. He noticed several notebooks on top of her desk and he wondered what they were. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything." "Oh, no, you weren't, Nick. I was just doing some writing before you got here." Sara told him as she put the notebooks away in a drawer. "So, what brings you here?" she asked him as they sat down on the sofa. "I thought that I'd stop by to see you before I went home." Nick told her. "That's nice of you to do that, Nick." Sara said with a smile. "I was wondering... what are you planning to do on Halloween?" Nick looked at her for a moment and said, "I've been asked that question twice tonight. Why do you want to know?" His smile was warm and gentle. "Well, I was wondering if you were planning to go out to a party for Halloween." Sara said. "I mean, you do have Friday night off, don't you?" "I have Friday night off, but I was thinking about staying home." Nick replied as he blocked his thoughts from Sara's mind. He knew that if she could read his thoughts, the surprise would be ruined, but Nick kept cool and blocked his thoughts from Sara's mind. After they chatted for a while, Nick checked his watch and said, "It's time for me to get going, Sara. I'll see you around, okay?" "Okay." she said to him as she held him in her arms and kissed him tenderly. "I love you, Nick." "I love you, too, Sara." he said as he kissed her tenderly. "Good night." "Good night, Nick." she said as she closed the door behind him. Nick felt relieved that Sara wasn't able to pick up on his thoughts about the costumes and the party. As he passed by the mailbox as he walked to his car, he pulled out three black envelopes from the inner pocket of his jacket and slipped them inside the mailbox. After that was done, Nick got into the Caddy and drove home. ************************************** Halloween Day... Sara, Natalie and Tracy each found another black envelope in their mailboxes on Halloween morning. Inside the envelope was a another card with a unusual set of instructions written on it. The card read: "The three of you are to meet at 1262 Gerrard Street West, Apt 1B at 7:30 pm tonight. Two agents will escort the three of you to the Raven for the Halloween Ball. Be sure that you're wearing your costume... " As Sara looked at the card, she wondered who came up with the idea that Natalie and Tracy were to meet at her apartment, but the longer she thought about it, perhaps it did make sense, especially since they would be leaving together to go to the party, and it would be easier for them to get to the Raven from her apartment. She got a phone call from Natalie shortly after the card she got the card from her mailbox. "Sara," Nat said after she had answered the phone, "did you get a card that said the Tracy and I are supposed to meet at your apartment tonight and that we're to be in costume?" "Yes, I did, Nat." Sara told her. "Actually, it does make sense for the three of us to meet at my place. Someone is going to take us to the Raven and I guess that they don't want to put a lot of wear-and-tear on their car." "I was wondering about that." Natalie said to her. "I wonder who's going to pick us up? I didn't think that we'd be getting an escort to the Raven. Were you able to get anything from Nick when you talked to him a few nights ago? Tracy and I couldn't get a word out of him about it." "Nope." Sara sighed. "If he knew anything about it, I couldn't pick up on it. I'm aware that there are those people who can block their thoughts from detection by a psychic by exercising a lot of willpower. Maybe Nick is one of them." Natalie smiled. "That's possible, Sara. Perhaps Nick might not know what's going on, but, I'm not convinced that he's totally innocent." "So, are you coming over tonight, Nat?" Sara asked her curiously."I'd love to see you in your costume." "Sure, why not." she replied, with a grin. "I'd like to meet the two "agents" who are going to take us to the Raven, and I'd love to see the costumes that you and Tracy are going to wear tonight, too." "Great!" Sara said with a grin. "I'll be dressed and ready." "I can hardly wait." Natalie said happily. "So, I'll be at your place at seven. Bye, Sara." "Great!" Sara replied. "I'll be looking forward to seeing you later tonight. Bye, Nat!" After she hung up the phone, she went to her bedroom, took the lovely costume out of her closet and laid it out on the bed. She had taken the earrings out of the small pocket of the dress and laid them on top of the outfit when her phone rang. She picked up the phone and said, "Hello." "Hi, Sara, it's Tracy." the cheery voice on the other end of the phone replied. "Did you get a black envelope in your mail today?" "Yes, I did, Trace, so did Natalie." Sara told her. "Did you notice where the three of us are supposed to meet?" Tracy laughed and said, "I noticed that. That's not a bad idea, Sara. I was wondering about these "agents" who are supposed to pick us up and take us to the Raven. Do you have any idea who they might be?" "I don't know." Sara told her. "I've tried to pinpoint my thoughts toward who they might be, but, it seems that my "gift" works when it wants to, so, I try not to force it to work. It makes for fewer headaches." "I was wondering... have you seen Vachon during the past couple of days?" Tracy asked her curiously. "No, I haven't, Tracy." Sara told her. "Why do you ask?" "Well, I've been trying to get in touch with him about what he planned to do for Halloween, and I haven't been able to locate him for the past two days." Tracy said. "I thought that you might have seen him." Sara heard the note of concern in Tracy's voice and understood how she felt. "I understand, Tracy, but, I don't think that you have anything to worry about." she told her. "I hope that you're right." Tracy said. "Did Nat tell you what time she'd be at your place?' "Yes, she did, Tracy." Sara told her. "She'll be here at seven. What time are you coming?" "I'll be over at... six-forty-five. I hope that it won't be too early for you?" Tracy said. "I want to be here in plenty of time." "That'll give me plenty of time to be dressed and ready." Sara replied. "I'll see you then, okay?" "Okay, Sara. See you then! Bye!" Tracy said. "Bye, Tracy! See ya!" Sara said and hung up the phone. She went back to the bedroom to finish getting the rest of her costume together. When she had everything ready, she checked the clock on her bedside table. "Wow... It's almost four o'clock, and Natalie and Tracy will be here before seven." Sara said to herself. "I'd better take my shower and have something to eat before I have to leave." She hurried to the bathroom to take her shower. After that, she styled her hair, put on her bathrobe and went to prepare some nachos. She looked at the clock and noticed that it was four-forty-five. "Well, I'm sure that I'll be ready to go before Nat and Tracy arrive." Sara said to herself as she went to the kitchen to prepare a quick bite to eat. "I'm so excited!" *************************************** Halloween Evening at Nick's loft.... just before dusk... Javier Vachon looked a bit uncomfortable as he put on the white shirt, black pants and black necktie. He knew that he was going to surprise Tracy with his costume, but he didn't think that he'd have to get his hair cut as part of the look for the costume. "Nick..." Vachon said as he helped him straighten out his necktie. "Are you sure this is what I'm supposed to look like?" "Vachon, " Nick said as he made sure that the necktie was fastened securely, "If you're going to be a Man In Black, you have to look the part. Men In Black must present a conservative appearance at all times." "I know that, Nick, but... I didn't think that I'd have to get my hair cut." Vachon said with a touch of sadness. "I'm sorry that there are no long-haired MIB's." Nick chuckled and said, "Well, there weren't any in the movie, so, you'll just have short hair for a while. Besides, it'll grow back after a few days, so you shouldn't worry about it too much. Are you just about ready to go?" Vachon found his black suit jacket and sunglasses lying on Nick's bed and put them on. "Okay, Nick, or should I say, Agent N, I'm ready to go." he said. Nick put his sunglasses on and said, "Agent V, we've got a job to do, so let's do it." The two men left the loft, got into Nick's Caddy, which had been painted black for the occasion and drove to Sara's apartment. As they were driving to Sara's apartment, Vachon asked, "Do you think that LaCroix is going to wear the costume that you picked out for him, Nick?" "I hope that he will." Nick said to him. "I thought that it was rather whimsical and a nice change-of-pace." "I hope you're right about that." Vachon replied. **************************** LaCroix was in the back room of the Raven, glaring at a box that was filled with fluffy pink fur... ----------------------------------------------------------- End part 4A/04---StephiLyn Fryar---SFryar@aol.com Copyright, Oct., 1997 ---------------------------------------------------------- >> This is the conclusion to the tale. Sorry if this is a bit late, but I've had problems with AOL, Real Life and the local phone line! Disclaimers are in part 1. Happy reading!!! ------------------------------------------------------------- Halloween Challenge:Halloween Knight by StephiLyn Fryar---Part 04B/04 ------------------------------------------------------------ Tracy arrived at Sara's apartment at six forty-five, dressed as a 1950's high school girl. Natalie arrived just before seven, dressed as an elegant woman from Medieval France, and Sara dazzled them with her 1930's lady costume. "Wow, Sara!" Natalie said as Sara entered the living room. "You look lovely!" "Thanks, Nat. I'm glad that you like it." Sara said happily. "You look beautiful. The color of that gown almost matches your eyes." "You think so?" Natalie said curiously as she looked at the lovely shade of deep violet velvet. "Thanks, Sara. I appreciate that." "You're welcome, Nat." Sara said with a grin. Tracy walked over to the front window and took a peek outside. The trick-or-treaters had long since gone home and she was wondering when those two "agents" would arrive to pick them up. Sara checked her watch. "Don't worry, Tracy. It's ten minutes after seven. They'll be here. Have either of you had anything to eat yet?" "What have you got, Sara? I'm starving!" Tracy said. "Me, too." Natalie said with a smile. "I hope that these costumes are washable, just in case we spill something on them." "Well, I have some nachos, if either of you didn't mind." Sara replied. "Nachos!" Nat and Tracy said in unison. "I haven't had any nachos an a while." Tracy said with a happy smile. "I hope that you've got some spicy salsa for them." "Neither have I, Trace. I hope that it's not too hot. " Nat said as the three of them made their way to the kitchen, where Sara put on her apron and prepared the nachos. ************************************ Sara, Natalie and Tracy had just finished up their meal when the doorbell rang. "I'll get it!" Sara said as she took off her apron and went to the door and looked out of the peephole. She saw two men standing at the room and she wasn't sure who they were. "Who is it, Sara?" Tracy asked her. "I'm not sure." Sara told her. "There are a couple of guys here and they're wearing black suits and dark glasses." She opened the door slightly and looked at the two men carefully. She thought that she recognized the blond-haired man, but the identity of the dark-haired man that was standing next to him puzzled her. "Yes, gentlemen?" Sara asked them. The blond-haired man said to her, "I'm Agent N and this is my partner, Agent V. We're here to escort you and your friends to the Halloween party that's being held at the Raven nightclub tonight." "Oh, of course!" Sara said, smiling brightly. "Come in, gentlemen." She opened the door and let the two men inside. When Nick and Vachon entered the apartment, Natalie looked at both of them and said, "Nick? Is that you? What are you supposed to be?" "I'm a Man In Black, Nat." Nick said with a mischevious grin. "So is Vachon." "Vachon?" Tracy said, looking at him in disbelief. "What happened to your hair?" Vachon shrugged his shoulders and said with a grin, "I had to get my hair cut, so I'd look like a Man In Black, Trace. There weren't any MIB's with long hair in the movie." Nick took a look at the three women who were standing before him and he knew that the costumes that he had selected for them were perfect. "The three of you look absolutely beautiful." he said to them. He walked over to Sara and Natalie and said, "I hoped that both you would like the costumes that I picked out for you." Natalie looked at Nick and said, "I knew that you were involved in this..." Sara giggled a bit, and Natalie smiled. "Thanks, Nick. I love my costume." Nat said and kissed his cheek. "Thanks, Nick." Sara said as she kissed him on his other cheek. "You're a sweet guy, and I love my costume, too. How did you know our clothing and shoe sizes?" Nick grinned at them and asked, "Can't I keep a few secrets from you two?" "Nope." Natalie said. "Not as long as Sara and I are around." "Absolutely." Sara agreed as she took a quick look at her watch. "It's almost eight, and we should be on our way." The five of them left here apartment and walked over to the Caddy which was parked nearby. When they approached the car, Natalie and Sara couldn't believe what they saw. "What did you do to the car, Nick?" Natalie said as they got in. "I had it painted black for the occasion, Nat." Nick told her. "It'll be back to it's original color by tomorrow night." "I wasn't complaining, Nick." Nat grinned. "I like it." "I like it, Nick." Trasy said with a slight giggle. "Me, too." Sara replied, while Vachon said, "Black is a much more interesting color for a car like this one." Nick laughed and said, "All right, let's go." He started the Caddy and they drove off to the Raven. *************************************** Halloween Night at the Raven..... The party was in full swing when Natalie asked Nick, "Have you seen LaCroix tonight, Nick? He should be here, after all, isn't he supposed to be hosting the party?" Nick looked around and noticed that LaCroix was nowhere to be seen. " That's certainly odd, Nat. I'll go find him." Nick went to the back room of the club and carefully knocked on the door. "LaCroix? Are you all right?" he asked as he carefully opened the door and entered the room. When he entered, he saw LaCroix standing in front of a box fulled with pink fur and an unhappy look on his face. "Nicholas," LaCroix said coolly, " I realize that the point of a Halloween costume party is to have fun, but, if you think that I'm going to wear this... costume, think again." "Oh, LaCroix, that's the point." Nick said. "It's a chance to become something different, if only for a while." He walked over to the box and pulled the costume out and gave it to LaCroix. "Please, LaCroix, I've humored you in many things for the past six hundred years, so, please, indulge me this once." LaCroix looked at the costume and then at Nick. He thought about it for a moment and said, "All right, Nicholas. I'll indulge you, but, only because you are my favorite child." "Thank you, LaCroix." Nick said quietly as he left the room so LaCroix could put on the costume. "I appreciate it." Nick went back to the table where Natalie and Sara were sitting. "LaCroix will be out in just a few minutes." he told them. "What costume did you pick out for LaCroix, Nick?" Natalie asked him curiously. Nick didn't answer Nat's question right away, while Sara took a look around the room and noticed a tall pink bunny rabbit heading toward their table. "Uh, Nick...." Sara said as the pink rabbit approached them "who's that?" Natalie looked at the pink rabbit and tried her best not to giggle out loud as he stood in front of their table. "Well, Nicholas, I hope you're satisifed." LaCroix said as he gave Natalie an odd look. "What is so funny, Doctor?" "That's an interesting costume you're wearing, LaCroix." Nat said as she tried not to giggle like mad. Sara smiled and introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Sara Louise McClendon and you are...?" "This is Lucien LaCroix, Sara." Nick said hastily. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mister LaCroix. Nick has told me a little bit about you." Sara replied as LaCroix took her hand and kissed it gently. "I'm glad to meet you, Sara." LaCroix replied smoothly. "Would you care to dance with me?" "I'd love to, if Nick didn't mind." Sara said. "You don't mind if I dance with your friend, do you?" Nick thought about it for a moment and said, "All right, Sara." As Sara got up from the table, Nick looked at LaCroix and said, "If you harm her, LaCroix...." "You needn't worry, Nicholas. I have no intention of harming Sara." LaCroix assured him. "I simply want to get to know her." LaCroix left the table and joined Sara Louise out on the dance floor. Nick watched Sara and LaCroix dance while Tracy and Vachon were at another table, laughing and talking. Sara managed to handle LaCroix with ease, and Nick was pleased that the evening went smoothly. ******************************** The party came to an end all too quickly and the group retuned to Sara's apartment. After Natalie, Tracy and Vachon said their good-byes to Nick and Sara and went home, Sara sat down on the couch, and Nick sat beside her. "Wow, Nick! This was a wonderful night." Sara said happily. "I'm glad that we went there together. I had a lot of fun tonight." "I'm glad, Sara." Nick replied. "What did you think of LaCroix?" "He's an interesting man." Sara told him. "He's also a vampire, like you. He's also very old and powerful. And......" "Go on...." Nick said to her. "What else were you able to find out about him?" "Well, " Sara began, "he seems to be rather "protective" of you. Was he the one who... brought you across, Nick?" "Yes, he was, Sara." Nick replied. "Perhaps it's time I told you the whole story..." Sara got up from the couch and pulled down the window shades and closed the curtains. "I know that this is going to be a long story, Nick, and I don't want the sunrise to bring your story to an early end." she said as she sat back down on the couch. "I'm sorry that I don't have anything for you to snack on..." Nick grinned and said, "That's okay, Sara. I'll manage." He was grateful that she wanted to know more about him, and the fact that she was interested in him in spite of what he was made things much easier to handle. "Good...." Sara said as she snuggled close to him on the couch. "Now, I'm ready to hear that story, Nick." Nick smiled at her and began to tell her everything about himself and LaCroix.... -------------------------------------------------------------------- End part 4B/04----StephiLyn Fryar---SFryar@aol.com Glad that you liked this story, and I'll have another story in this ongoing series for you very soon! Copyright, Oct., 1997 -------------------------------------------------------------------