Date Fri, 10 Jul 1998 151206 -0400 Reply-To WILSONE1 Sender Forever Knight TV show stories From WILSONE1 Subject Rainbow (01/01) To FKFIC-L@lists.psu.edu Status This was inspired by the song 'Iris' by the Goo Goo Dolls from the 'City of Angels' soundtrack. The lyrics can be found at the end of the story. Iris is the goddess of the rainbow in Greek mythology. Permission given to archive at Mel's site. ===================================================================== Rainbow - A Story in One Part Erika 1998 At some point during the movie, Natalie had fallen asleep with her head pillowed against his chest. Nick sat motionless on the couch, watching the rise and fall of her breathing and the steady flicker of the pulse in her neck. Her lips were parted slightly and he could feel the warmth of her all along his side through the fabric of his shirt. His hands yearned to touch that warmth, to gather her against him like a down comforter against the chill of the night air. But he stilled the impulse, contenting himself with running his fingers along a silken skein of hair that trailed along the back of the couch. The sweet scent of her surrounded him and he closed his eyes to savor it all the more. The swift prick of his fangs against his bottom lip reminded him of the danger of such indulgence and he fought to quell the insistent surge of desire to taste that sweetness. Looking again at her peaceful expression he marveled at how secure she must feel around him. She trusted him enough to fall asleep next to him. Not just next to him, but practically on top of him. He smiled, but there was a great deal of pain in it. He knew that he was the last person to deserve such trust. Her unwavering belief in him was a source of strength as well as a additional source of guilt. He wanted to be worthy of her belief, he ached to be as human as she insisted he was, but sometimes he wondered if it wasn't just an elaborate charade. In his eagerness to please, perhaps he had been playing his role a little too well. Now Natalie took his control over the vampire for granted and Nick knew, to his great sorrow, just how dangerous a game that could be. But not tonight. Tonight he was willing to go along with the pretense of humanity and enjoy one of its simplest and most profound pleasures. Curving his arm more closely around Natalie's shoulder, he lowered his head next to hers and willed himself into the oblivion that served as sleep for his kind. Natalie woke up to the persistent feeling of being chilled. She groped around for a blanket before she understood that she was not in her own bed. Her head was not resting on a pillow and there were arms around her. Cold, heavy arms. She blinked muzzily and looked up into a face that was only inches from her own. Nick. Her memory clicked together and she realized that she must have fallen asleep. On Nick's couch. In Nick's arms. A feeling of dread raised goosebumps on her skin. How could she have been so careless? The last thing he needed was to lose control and attack her because she let herself forget what he was. But it was so easy to forget. Her eyes lingered on his still, pale features, looking for any hint of the beast that she knew was lurking just beneath the surface. But all she could see was the man. Was it because that was all she wanted to see? She shook her head tiredly. This was an old argument and one that never had a pleasant resolution. She knew that her feelings towards Nick were no longer those of a researcher to a subject, or even a doctor to a patient. And this shift had left her in a very dangerous, very precarious position. Could she still help Nick when she was no longer able to rely upon her own professional detachment? Should she even try? If she slipped up, made a mistake, how much damage might be done--to both of them? The blackness behind the windows was beginning to fray and Natalie picked up the remote that would lower the metal blinds against the oncoming day. As they rumbled down, Natalie felt other shutters sliding in around her heart. No, she wouldn't stop trying to help Nick. She had committed too much of herself to the effort. Pulling back was no longer an option. Rising from the couch, she took one more look at Nick as he lay in the gloom of the darkened room. She noticed that his expression now seemed rather troubled and there appeared to be a faint sheen of red across his skin. For a brief, hopeful moment, she wondered if he missed the feel of her in his arms. Recklessly she thought of going back, of soothing the knots from his forehead and somehow bringing him the peace he craved. Instead, she trudged up the stairs and let herself out the door into the alley. The sky was a cold, iron gray and there was a steady drizzle obscuring the world. She lifted her face, allowing the rain to run down her cheeks like tears before continuing on to where her car was parked. It was time to go home. She had a hungry cat waiting for her and there was nothing for her here. Not yet. Behind her in the distance a small patch of blue sky appeared and with a shimmer of silent bells, a rainbow suddenly spanned the distance between heaven and earth. END =================================================================== Reactions, revelations, resolutions to Erika ===================================================================                "IRIS" And I'd give up forever to touch you 'Cause I know that you feel me somehow You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be And I don't wanna go home right now And all I can taste is this moment And all I can breathe is your life And sooner or later it's over I just don't want to miss you tonight And I don't want the world to see me 'Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming Or the moment of truth in your lies When everything feels like the movies Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive And I don't want the world to see me 'Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am I just want you to know who I am - The Goo Goo Dolls