Date: Sun, 14 Jul 1996 21:40:28 -0500 From: Laura Ruggiero Subject: I know You're Out There Somewhere **Last Knight Spoilers** Howdy everyone, I have to send this out before I edit it more... This is my very first non-war fanfiction story. Any comments, praise, or offers to write my thesis, would be appreciated. Like almost all of us, I did not like they way TBTB ended the season. The day after I saw LK I heard "I Know You're Out There Somewhere," by The Moody Blues. I kept getting this vision of this fairy tale in which a princess had lost her true love, and wore out 3 pairs of iron shoes looking for him, only with FK characters in the roles. The basics of this story quickly developed from that (i.e, this is a bit sappy and the Nick & Nat Packers should like it). Every time I heard the song, visions of the story took over so I finally wrote it. (Now I understand what you guys mean by a story making you write it.) I hope you enjoy reading it. Muchas gracias beta readers, you were very helpful and made this a much better story than it otherwise would have been. I couldn't take all your suggestions as several were mutually exclusive, but I did use a number of them. Once again, thank you. Legal stuff: Natalie and the rest of the FK characters don't belong to me, I'm just borrowing them to fix the travesty TBTB left us with at the end of Last Knight. I promice to return them in as good or better condition than they were when borrowed. I also give my permission for this story to be included in the archives. Spolier space, story involves the aftermath of Last Night, you have been warned: I W A N T M O R E F K ---------------- I Know You're Out There Somewhere: a post - Last Knight song challenge Lyrics by The Moody Blues (Lyrics in "<<<< >>>>") Story by Laura Ruggiero The sun was shining in the windows as Natalie awoke. She was confused. Where was she? Why did her neck hurt so much? Then the memory of what had happened came back. She realized she was in a hospital. She was still alive and mortal, but what had happened to Nick? The memories of what had happened after Nick bit her were not clear, but she vaguely remembered hearing LaCroix's voice. She wasn't sure if he spoke to her or Nick, or to them both. She couldn't remember the words, but she had felt a sense of loss about them. All the while she lay in a heap on the floor stunned by the memories she had received from Nick and from the blood loss. She also had a vague impression of wind; that she had been flying, but that was it. "Oh Nick, what have you done?" Just then the door to her room opened and a nurse walked in. "Hello there! It's so good to see you awake. How are you feeling?" the nurse asked. "I've been better. Could you tell me how I got here?" "You were brought in by a man who said he found you in the park with your throat slashed, suffering from severe blood loss. He didn't have a phone, and his car was nearby, so he rushed you here, but he left before we could get anymore information from him and hasn't been seen since. We were hoping you could tell us what happened." "What did this man look like?" "It sounds strange, but even though several people saw him, no one could quite remember what he looked like. They are fairly sure he was tall, and had blonde hair, but the agreement ends there. One person even swears his eyes were gold. Sound like anyone you know?" "I don't think so. You say I was found in the park? The last thing I remember is being in my car. I was on my way home from work." Natalie normally wouldn't lie, but there was no way she could or would say what had actually happened. "I must have stopped at the park on my way home from work." But where had Nick been since that night? and... "How long have I been unconscious?" "You were brought in three days ago. Now that you are awake, I'll go get the doctor so we can check you over." With that the nurse left. <<<<>>>> The next several days passed in a blur. All Natalie could think of was that Nick had promised they would be together forever, no matter what it took, and yet he had disappeared without a trace. Natalie had told what seemed like a endless stream of police officers that she didn't remember her attack and she didn't know what had happened to Nick, who had disappeared from Toronto the night of her supposed attack. <<<<>>>> Somewhere over the course of her stay in the hospital she had come to a decision. She loved Nick, and she wasn't going to lose him. Once they released her she went home and quietly packed. She spent a few days tracking down all the information she could find about where Nick might have gone. After attempting to visit the now closed Raven she realized LaCroix and Nick were probably together. She wondered if Nick had left completely willingly, or if his (no doubt great) guilt at almost killing her drove him away. When would Nick understand; their love could survive this if only given a chance. So she left behind her former life; it held nothing for her now. <<<<>>>> Natalie packed up her car, turned in her resignation, and left, paying no attention to those who tried to convince her to stay and fully recover before she made any rash decisions. She barely heard them; she was trying to remember everything she had ever learned about Nicholas B. Knight, a.k.a. Nicholas de Brabant, to help her in her search. <<<<>>>> Natalie followed what few leads she had, but to no avail. All the vampires she had known in Toronto were dead or had disappeared, and none of the remaining ones would talk to her. So she went to Montreal, hoping to find Janette, or at least someone who remembered her. Again, no one would talk to her. She walked the streets each night in whatever city she happened to be, hoping to catch a glimpse of Nicholas. So many times she was convinced she had found him, but she was mistaken every time. She would not give up no matter how long it took. <<<<>>> Occasionally Natalie would feel some doubt, but then she would get a new lead or even determine that Nick had left a city shortly before she arrived, and her determination would be renewed. <<<<>>>> He was alive. <<<<>>>> She would not give up hope. <<<<>>>> She would find him eventually. <<<<>>>> No matter how long it took, she would find him. <<<<>>>> Every so often she would run into people she had known in her former life. They did not understand. They would try to convince her to return to her old life, her friends, her job, to all the things that once held meaning for her. They were trying to persuade her to give up this "fairy-tale" quest for her lost "prince," but she would not listen to them. She knew her old life was an empty shell; it had no meaning. The only things that did were her love for Nick, and his love for her. The images that had come to her from Nick had faded, but the knowledge of his love had not. It was through that love that she was certain she would find him. <<<<>>>> Natalie might have been searching for months or years; she wasn't sure, time had no meaning for her anymore. Days were spent sleeping or searching for some trace that Nick still existed. Wherever he was, he had to be leaving a paper trail. Nights were spent visiting the places vampires might be, hoping that someone would help her. Her presence was tolerated by the vampires she encountered because the news of her work to help the vampire community of Toronto and of her quest had spread. So none would harm her, regardless of her forbidden knowledge, but none would help her either. <<<<>>>> Then one night, after she had been searching for a very long time, she had a dream. In that dream she saw Nick, tossing in his sleep, calling out to her, she had gone to him and held him close. When she awoke she knew he was near, it had not been just a dream, it had been something more. He was in this very city, she was sure of it. <<<<>>>> With the false dawn beginning to brighten the skies, she raced out of the motel, and into the streets, following the feeling, following her dream. Then she saw him, little more than a blur in the sky, but she knew it was him. They embraced, then he picked her up and they flew to his place where they would be safe from the quickly rising sun. They were together at last and Natalie would make sure they were never apart again. The End Laura Ruggiero (larug@siu.edu) -- back to the thesis :-( Die-Hard, Methos Flag Waver If you're not part of the solution then you're part of the precipitate.