Date: Wed, 31 Aug 1994 16:21:11 -0700 Warning: some fluffy fanfic ahead. ******************************************************************************* Softly Comes the Night a Forever Knight Story by Margaret Newman Possibility #1: Natalie He could feel the setting of the sun in his bones. After all these years, these centuries, how could he not know? The pulsing, blind, burning light drowning in the cool, soft, darkness of the night. His dreams, his nightmares, eased with moonrise. This was the time that he would come up from sleep, sometimes gently and sometimes violently. "Mmmmm..." A face burrowed against his chest. His eyes came open quickly. His vision was blurred by a light wave of russet colored hair. What was this? He tried to move, and found his right arm was pinned underneath his...his what? He didn't remember going to bed with anyone! He brushed the hair out of his face, and glanced around. The sight of his austere bedroom relieved some of his anxiety. The sleeve on his left arm indicated that he was wearing his black rose pajamas. Okay.... He sniffed. Not from disdain but to ascertain the scent of his, uhm, companion. He knew it wasn't Janette. He would have know it was her before even waking up. Natalie? Natalie?! Her scent was part antiseptic, part formaldehyde, and part... He sniffed again. Kitty litter and Lady Stetson. He grinned. She probably would not appreciate that assessment. The grin slipped. What was Nat doing in his bed, draped across him? He tried to shift her slightly so that he could sit up. She clung to him, though, and it made moving her difficult. Resting a hand on her back, he was relieved to find out that she was still fully clothed. Another wave of relief washed over him. He hadn't smelled blood. "What are you doing?" Nat grumbled, flopping over onto her back. "Trying to figure out what is going on." Nick sighed. He leaned up on his right elbow, and brushed the hair out of her face. There were no marks on her throat, her skin was warm, and a steady pulse assured him that she was still Nat, still mortal. "Thought ya got me, eh?" She half-grinned. Then she stretched, arms up over her head, and toes pointed towards the end of the bed. "So what's it like?" "What?" He frowned. What had happened? Had she been incapacitated in some way? He didn't remember anything except coming home to an empty loft, and going to sleep in a cold, empty bed. It was the way his life went, why would it be any different? "What do you mean what?" She sat up, and pulled her blouse out of her pants, and straightened it out. She was a rumpled mess. She didn't even want to think of what her hair must look like. "Natalie." He said her name softly, and she turned to look at him. She could see the worry and concern in his eyes. It deepened as she realized he hadn't caught on. "Okay. How about this?" She reached over the edge of the bed, and came back up with a card. She handed it to him. Nick hesitantly took the card, and opened it. He could feel her eyes on him, watching him. It was a birthday card. "I mark my birthday by the beginning of each year - January by this calendar." He raised a puzzled gaze to her. "I missed this last year, remember? We were in the middle of those Blackburne murders. Janette then whisked you off to that vampire ball in Montreal." She ran a hand through her hair, waiting to see if he would catch on. "You gave me a card then." He tilted his head. He knew he was missing something, but couldn't figure out what. "Okay, sport." Nat sighed, and wiggled to the end of the bed. "I told you I'd get you a present later on. Or, rather, you said not to worry, I could get you something later on. Okay, so this is later on. Maybe it seemed like a better idea last night. I haven't slept in 3 days." "Waking up with you is my present?" He said it so uncertainly that it made her laugh. "Alright, so I'm no Elle McPherson!" She stood, and picked up her shoes. "You've always said you wanted to wake up with a woman in your arms. I know it's not exactly what you meant-" she shrugged. "It was the best I could do." With that, Natalie sauntered out of Nick's bedroom and into the bathroom. She gasped at the sight of her hair. She then saw a blurred movement behind her, and Nick was standing behind her. He rested his hands on her shoulders. The expression on his face caught at her heart. "Thanks, Nat." He whispered. "Best birthday present I've had in a long time." * * * * * * * * * * Possibility #2: Janette He could feel the setting of the sun in his bones. After all these years, these centuries, how could he not know? The pulsing, blind, burning light drowning in the cool, soft, darkness of the night. His dreams, his nightmares, eased with moonrise. This was the time that he would come up from sleep, sometimes gently and sometimes violently. "Mmmmm..." A face burrowed against his chest. His eyes came open quickly. His vision was blurred by a veil of black hair. What was this? He tried to move, and found his right arm was pinned underneath... Janette?! "Janette?" He called her name softly, gently stroking her head with his free hand. Once his face was free of her hair, he glanced to make certain that he was in his own bedroom. He certainly remembered coming home this morning. He didn't remember going to bed with Janette. -and that was definitely something one remembered! "SSShhhh, Nikki." Her voice was husky with sleep. The hand resting on his chest patted him reassuringly. "SShhh..." How absurd! To be chided as if he were a babe. He grinned. Just what was she doing in his bed? She must have come in after he had gone to bed. Why hadn't she woken him up? His thoughts paused a moment as he tried to remember. Had they, ahem...? Surely he would remembered that! As much space as he tried to keep between them over the last few hundred years, he never forgot his passion for her nor how he had Fallen in the first place. Well, he wasn't going to dwell on that. He would remind her that she was not in bed with a boy. His grin brightened, and his eyes sparkled. "I never thought," he purred, letting his free hand run down her backside, " I would see the time when Janette would would be the first to cry 'enough'." Janette languidly leaned up on an elbow -an elbow planted in the middle of his chest- and peered down at him. Her hair was a wild, black mane about her face and shoulders. She was without artifice. No make up, hairdo or dark sunglasses. Just Janette, simple and breath-taking. "Nicolah." She began, her voice suggesting she was talking to an idiot. She often felt that way with him, mon dieu. "Do you not remember what today was?" She didn't wait for him to answer. "Today was the day for The Raven and my private quarters to be fumigated. A stupid city requirement for a business such as mine. The place will stink. You offered me a place to stay, and since you don't have another bed...." She traced his jawline with a long, graceful index finger. She leaned down and placed a light kiss on his chin. "You could always sleep on the couch, if you like, mon cher." She purred, and her purr was much more dangerous than his. "Work." Nick managed to gasp. "Work, mon cher?" She arched a fine eyebrow at him. Her finger traced the line of his neck, and he shivered. "I think you should call in sick. Mortals do that from time to time, don't they? And you do so want to fit in...." When her lips started following her finger, Nick lost all sensible thought process. He did manage to call in sick before his shift started, and before Schanke had a chance to come in search of him. "You know, Nikki." Janette said much, much later. "You should be ill more often." "And you should fumigate The Raven more often." He chuckled, though his voice was muffled. Janette found the top end of his body, and pulled the silk sheet back. He looked quite rumpled, but his grin made him look young and boyish. "Are you ready to cry 'enough'?" She let her fingers sink into his hair. It was a weakness she did not often allow herself to indulge in. "Never." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. * * * * * * * * * * Possibility #3: Lucretia He could feel the setting of the sun in his bones. After all these years, these centuries, how could he not know? The pulsing, blind, burning light drowning in the cool, soft, darkness of the night. His dreams, his nightmares, eased with moonrise. This was the time that he would come up from sleep, sometimes gently and sometimes violently. "Mmmmm..." A face burrowed against his chest. His eyes came open quickly. His vision was blurred by a light wave soft brown hair. At first he was puzzled, and then memories came flooding back to him. He grinned. He brushed the hair from his face, gently stroked the head nestled on his chest. "No, Lys." She grumbled. "Go'way." "Lucia, my love." He spoke softly, fighting to keep the humor from his voice. "It's dusk." "Dusk." Her body stiffened against his. Her head popped up, and she blinked rapidly at him trying to clear her blurry vision. "Lys, where is Lysette?" "Downstairs. We left her on the couch remember?" He cupped her face his free hand. His right arm was trapped under her body. "I hear the stereo, but not the vcr. She must be asleep." "Oh, yeah. Right." Her head sunk back down, her forehead resting on his chest. She was quiet for a while, and her body began to slowly relax against his again. "Lucia," he couldn't resist a chuckle this time, "I hate to say this, my dear, but I have to get up. I have to work tonight." "Which means I'll be stuck alone with her all night." Lucretia said with a hint of doom in her voice. "I don't mind being damned for eternity. But why do I have to be damned for eternity with her? It's God's way of punishing me, I know it." Lucretia sat up, shoving a riotous mangle of curls out of her face. Her gray-green eyes stared down at Nick, her lips curling up into a smile at the corners. She was as different looking from her cousin Lysette as night is from day. Lucretia's beauty was smoldering and sultry. Lysette was bright and angelic, though tinged with a peculiar brand of lunacy. Lucretia took Nick's right arm, the appendage that had been trapped beneath her, onto her lap to gave it a tender massage. "Good thing you don't have to worry about circulatory problems." Her voice was musical when her mood turned light. "I appreciate your letting us stay over. Nothing with Lyssie is ever simple, and I had no idea this trip would be so insane. I should have known better." "Lucia," His right hand encircled her neck, and brought her down for a warm kiss, "I always have room for you." "Tease." She said with a giggle shoving him away. "Do you want to shower first? Or shall I?" She bounced up from his bed very merrily. If she were able to blush, she would have. Kissing Nick was something she always enjoyed. He didn't reply, so she glanced back at him. He was sitting up, a wolfish grin on his face. He was enjoying the sight of her nightshirt twisted about her very womanly body. "I didn't know you had taken to wearing such interesting undergarments." His chuckled sent a thrill up her spine. "Janette sent me the Frederick's of Hollywood catalog." She shrugged, straightening his silk pajama top out which covered the vision of her lacey panties. "Lysette challenged me to really order something from there. I ended spending a few thousand." Nick whistled. "Some night when we have the time, maybe I could get a fashion show." Bang! Bang! Bang! "LUCKY! ARE YOU AWAKE? NICK? NICK!" Lysette pounded on his bedroom door. "Hey! What's going on in there?!" Nick and Lucretia looked at each other, and rolled their eyes. Lysette was awake.... She who made Janette threaten to walk out into the sunlight, and had given LaCroix migraines. "You go first." Nick said with a sigh, getting out of bed and pulling on his bathrobe. He cinched it tight. Lys liked trying to slip it off of him. "I feed the beast while you shower." "Thanks." She kissed him sweetly on the cheek, and then stood behind him when he opened the bedroom door. "Geez! What took you so long!" Lysette cried at Nick. "It's not like you and Lucky could be doing anything interesting in there." "Lysette." Nick warned. "Don't try." Lucretia whispered. "Your fridge is empty. There are some weird phone calls on your machine. Oh, and there's this wonderfully entertaining man downstairs. A mortal, unfortunately. His name is Donny. He's so cute! I love his tie, it has palm trees on it! Oh, and the remote jammed, I can't get the blinds up." Lysette grabbed Nick by the bathrobe tie, and pulled him down the hall behind her. He glanced back at Lucretia who was quickly slipping into his bathroom. She waved at him, and winked. "The tv screen is all black. I guess it didn't like it when I used the turpentine to wash the paint off." "What?!" Nick finally heard some of what she was rattling on about. "Hey, Nick ol' buddy." Schanke grinned up at his buddy. His eyes were quite bright as he twirled a paint brush in his fingers. He obviously had been enjoying his chat with the scantily clad Lysette. * * * * * * * * * * Possibility #4: Schanke He could feel the setting of the sun in his bones. After all these years, these centuries, how could he not know? The pulsing, blind, burning light drowning in the cool, soft, darkness of the night. His dreams, his nightmares, eased with moonrise. This was the time that he would come up from sleep, sometimes gently and sometimes violently. "Mmmmm..." A face burrowed against his chest. His eyes came open quickly. The body resting against his was solid and very warm....with the faint scent of Old Spice. With a sense of growing horror, pulled the black silk sheet of his face, and stared into the top of a slightly balding head. "Oh, Myra." Schanke mumbled, lovingly patting Nick's chest. "Schanke." Nick choked, half in laughter and half in dismay. What was Schanke doing in his bed?! "Nick? Not now. I'm sleeping. Myra, tell Nick to go away." Don sighed, but he was beginning to wake up. The body he was laying against did not have the familiar curve his Myra. Blurrily, he looked up into Nick's face. Dawning realization made his eyes grow wide. Nick and Schanke both moved at the same time, bellowing in unison. "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" ******************************************************************************** THE END?