I've never written a fan-fic before, so be gentle! Send any comments to me
at mjenkins@bsumail.idbsu.edu
I don't own any of the FK character's they belong to TPTB, I would, however,
really like to own Lacroix, at least for a little while, maybe a
Friday?:-)….Any character that ends up in the story no recognizable as a FK
member is mine,( I don't think there'll be any in here.) The story is mine
too, but if you want to post it else where, go ahead, just keep my name on
it and tell me so I can go admire it :-)
Next Valentines
By: Mary Jenkins
Chap1:
It arrived on Thursday, February 12th, two dozen white roses and a note:
"Meet me at the Azure at eight o'clock if you remember me." It wasn't
signed, but Natalie knew who it was from. Lacroix. What game was he
playing? She remembered last year's little debacle well enough, Nick didn't
realize she did, and she'd hoped Lacroix believed she'd forgotten everything
too. She's been drugged, hypnotized and nearly killed…so why wasn't she
calling Nick right now? Why wasn't she on the phone to the police station,
quickly telling Nick to come and protect her from the evil 2000-year old
master vampire? Maybe it was because if Lacroix really wanted to hurt her
she realized Nick wouldn't be able to stop him, at least that's how she
rationalized her actions for a moment, it made sense. Then she admitted to
herself that she actually wanted to see Lacroix again, and without Nick.
And in an arranged place like this, not him popping up behind her in an
empty morgue when she was up to her elbows in a dissection.
Lacroix was darkly fascinating, he'd been in her thoughts more and more of
late, and not always as the inhuman monster and sadistic tormenter Nick
portrayed him as. And recently he'd begun to show up in her dreams too,
even more so than Nick used too, 'and definitely not as a monster!' She
thought, blushing…and that's how Grace found her, staring at the card and
blushing like a schoolgirl.
"Oooo! Roses! Who are they from? A certain blonde homicide detective?
Hmm?" Grace teased her friend, snatching the card away from a startled Natalie.
"Ah, no they're from someone else, and not something a certain blonde
detective needs to know about, okay?" Natalie answered back, instantly
feeling guilty, as Grace gave her a surprised look. 'Hey, I could be
protecting him!' she thought quickly, then dismissed that thought; no, she
was definitely not protecting Nick!
"Okay." Grace said, sounding rather uncertain about that. "So who is this
mystery man?"
"It's no one in particular, it'll be our first date, if I go," but she had
already decided to go, "I just don't want Nick to get weird about it, not
that he's shown much interest lately." Natalie ended.
"He hasn't been around much recently," Grace agreed, deciding to go along
with her friend, she deserved better, not some guy who in her opinion, was
stringing Natalie along. "Well, I hope you have fun, and I do want details
on Monday!"
"Okay, let's start on the Murphy autopsy," Natalie said changing the topic
away from her love life, slightly amused by the idea that finally her love
life wasn't as dead as her customers, 'even if both of the men in my life
were.' She chuckled to herself over that…then froze, Lacroix? A man in her
life? Maybe not, what was she getting herself into?
Maybe it wasn't such a good idea, she thought. Then she looked to her desk
where a valentine's gift from Nick sat. A beautiful silver letter opener
shaped like a dagger, her name and various flowers were etched on one side.
It was lovely, but it spoke more of friendship than of love, and the card,
though it had a wonderful verse on the front was sighed, "sincerely, Nick,"
never Love! She steeled herself against the onslaught of emotions. She would
not cry! She'd never been one of those weepy women, waiting for some man to
give her a crumb of affection. He'd even called earlier, before she's
received the flowers from Lacroix, and asked her if she wanted to come over
and watch videos on Saturday, on Valentine's Day! Videos and popcorn! On
the most romantic day of the year! She'd politely refused, making up some
excuse about college friends being in town. Natalie wasn't sad any more;
she was beginning to get mad…mad enough to go to Azure with Lacroix…again!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
…I don't own FK….blah,blah…see part one
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chap2
Natalie had Saturday off, and decided if she was going to this, she was
going to do it right, dammit!! She was feeling this giddy euphoria, the
kind of feeling that she remembered getting during midterms in college, when
the dread was long gone, and you'd gleefully march into an exam, knowing
your not going to pass, but not caring anymore. Natalie decided to make all
of Valentine's a day to be remembered. So she called up Grace and the two
of them went shopping. Natalie was looking for a dress to 'wow' her date,
she told Grace. And Grace was delighted to help; she refused to let Natalie
pick out anything. Because in her opinion she was always "Way too
practical," always getting something that worked well in an office, but was
way too modest and business-like to ever be called a 'wow' dress.
As they entered their third boutique, Natalie again considered what Lacroix
could be up to. If he wanted to warn her away from Nick, taking her out for
the evening was hardly necessary. Showing up unexpectedly was much more
effective if that was his reason. As for last Valentine's Day… Nick was
spending a lot less time around her than before, maybe some of that was to
keep Lacroix away from her, but she doubted that was the only reason, he
cared about her, she knew that, 'but he might not love me,' she thought with
a frown. Her thoughts turned away from Nick's feelings for her and returned
to Lacroix. What was he up to? 'Maybe he's planning to seduce me away from
Nick,' she thought, and instead of being upset by that she became just a
little more giddy, and decided to buy new shoes too, after Grace and her
stopped for frozen yoghurt, of course, a girl had to have priorities.
At seven that night Natalie stood in front of her mirror, her courage had
abandoned her an hour ago. She looked in the mirror in bewilderment. She
took in the tight black and silver dress that the sales girl and Grace had
assured her she looked "gorgeous" in. It was black velvet with a silver
satin design, cut low in front; it hung to her knees but was there was a
mid-thigh slit up the left side. It was definitely a 'wow' dress. It
wasn't trashy or cheap looking, it was, however, very seductive. Combined
with black silk hose and high heels, she definitely would make an
impression. She'd put her hair up, and artfully placed a black silk rose in
her upswept hair. Onyx earrings dangled from her ears and a matching
necklace rested along her collarbone. She'd gone with darker, dramatic
colours on her make-up too. With a start she realised she looked almost as
glamorous as Jeanette! Almost anyway…'well this should get a reaction from
Lacroix,' she thought, 'if only I knew what that reaction is going to be.'
She briefly wondered if she should tell Nick where she was going, in case
Lacroix did try something, it would be better if someone knew where she was,
in case she didn't come back! But, 'no, Grace knows I'm going to the Azure
and if I don't come back, Nick will figure out what happened, I'll be dead,
but he'll know who did it.' There was an odd comfort in that…she wondered
if Nick would avenge her?
Maybe she shouldn't go at all, but she was too curious…"Curiosity killed
the cat." She mumbled under her breath. Sidney answered that with a
meow…startled out of her inner dialogue by her cat, she took one last look
in the mirror, scooped up her coat and beaded hand bag (that had been way
too expensive) and rummaged about for her car keys. 'Too late to turn back
now.' She straightened her shoulders, marched out of her apartment and drove
to the Azure.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
…I don't own FK….yada, yada …see part one.
(( If I can't have him Natalie does!!!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chap3
As Natalie drove up to the Azure she noticed the near empty parking lot…'he
bought out the entire restaurant again,' she realised. Pure feminine
satisfaction coursed through her for a moment…it was very gratifying that
he'd gone through that much trouble, she knew he could easily afford it…but
still, so could Nick and all she usually got from him was pizza and movies
at his place! She pulled over and allowed the valet to park her car. She
braced herself and walked into the restaurant.
"I'm supposed to meet someone here." Natalie told the dignified maitre'd as
she walked in.
"Of course madam," he answered her with a very strong French accent.
A waiter helped he off with her coat and she received a quick once over
from both men, the young waiter's gaze took on a look of pure awe and the
oh-so-dignified maitre'd very nearly leered at her, like a starving man
looks at a seven course dinner! 'I am so glad I let Grace and that sales
girl talk me into this dress!' She thought, as she smiled with triumph.
It'd been a long time since she'd received such openly appreciative looks
from anyone! What Natalie didn't realise was that it wasn't just the dress,
it was the pure feminine confidence that she was projecting that held both
men's attention.
"This way madam." Directed the Maitre'd, indicating the wide double doors on
their right. Natalie noticed him give the waiter a sharp look for staring
at a guest, even thought he'd been doing the same thing! So it was strait
from this ego boosting experience that Natalie entered the main dining room.
And she needed it, because there in the middle of the room, at an intimate
table for two sat Lucien Lacroix, in all his glory.
Again Natalie thought about running, there he sat, dressed in a very elegant
black silk suit. Drinking from a crystal wineglass, something she hoped was
wine. Some of her newly acquired confidence abandoned her, but not all of
it. She was frightened but kept her face calm and actually managed to smile
at Lacroix.
What actually came up on her face was more of a smirk. The look Lacroix
was giving her was one of surprise, mixed with a great deal of appreciation.
"My dear Doctor Lambert, you look…lovely." Lacroix raised his glass in
salute as Natalie walked across the room and sat across from him.
"Call me Natalie." She said giving him a dazzling smile, he seemed almost
as confused as she felt, 'might as well try to keep him guessing.' She thought.
Lacroix took in that smile and drank down the remainder of his wine in a
single gulp, nearly choking.
'Boy, I think I shocked him.' Natalie thought with glee. She was having a
wonderful time so far this evening, all day in fact, normally she'd be much
more apprehensive, after all he was a killer, but for some reason, she
wasn't frightened at all. She took a moment to look around the Azure; it
was again decorated with white roses and candles. She could hear the
restaurant staff in the distance, but didn't worry that they could over hear
any of their conversation, Lacroix would have already thought of that, it
was nice to let him be the one to worry about such details. Sometimes with
Nick it was as if she were the older one, even though he was 800 years old,
he'd give her that lost-little-boy look and she'd feel the urge to take care
of and protect him, with Lacroix she'd never be in that role.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
…I don't own FK…see part one.
((If I can't have him, Natalie should!!!))
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chap4
Lacroix watched Natalie look around the Azure. She really did look lovely.
He had grown to appreciate the good doctor, at first he'd resented her
ambition to help Nicholas find his precious cure, but now... He could
easily see what his son saw in her, she was beautiful, intelligent and
brave…she had come to face him again. He knew she remembered last
Valentine's Day, she'd come knowing full well who'd be here to meet her. He
also knew that Nicholas did not love her, his son cared for her, he might
have even convinced himself that he loved her, but he did not truly love
her, in the depths of his soul…'Perhaps Nicholas is not capable of feeling
that deeply' Lacroix thought. He knew well Nicholas's faults, and one of
the largest was that he did not fully appreciate the jewel he'd found in
this woman.
His goal in inviting her here had been to find out if she remember their
encounter last year, and maybe to gently remind her with the card and
flowers if she did not. Now that she was here…he wasn't quite sure what to
do with her. He knew she had not told Nicholas that she was going to meet
him tonight, his son was currently with Jeanette, 'probably in the back
rooms of the Raven by now,' he thought with a smirk…'Nicholas always was a
bit of a hypocrite.' Then his thoughts and eyes returned to the woman in
front of him.
'I wonder what he's thinking about?' Natalie thought, hoping it wasn't of
her as dinner, she looked him in his eyes and asked, "So Lacroix, to what do
I owe this delightful invitation?" 'Might as well be direct,' she thought,
she was curious to hear his answer.
He raised an eyebrow, "You think this is 'delightful?' And…please…call me
Lucien." He said the last with a smile.
'It's better than being alone with Sidney, or worse yet videos with Nick,'
she thought. It was strange to see him smile, 'I don't think I've ever seen
him actually smile,' she thought, smirk, yes, even a few cruel chuckles from
time to time, but an actual smile…it was strange, but nice. "Yes, I'd say
this was delightful." She said, and was startled as she did by the fact that
it was true.
They began to talk then, slowly and about insignificant things at first,
but as they warmed to each other they began to get more personal. He told
her about himself, and asked her questions about herself. He talked about
being in the Great Roman Army and about being a vampire. She told him about
her life and asked about his. She asked every questioned she thought of,
never having to censor herself as she sometimes had to with Nick. Lacroix
didn't get upset or begin to brood about his past, even though there were
things she could tell he regretted, though killing mortals wasn't one of them.
He was enjoying her questions, they were well worded and intelligent, he
even gave answers to some that he'd refused answer for his children. She
asked about his life in Rome, about his life before bringing either Nicholas
or Jeanette across, and he told her, all she asked and more. He told her
why he'd chosen each of his children, and how much he liked his immortality.
Her comments and observations were intelligent, and in some cases funny!
She had a delightful sense of humour, and a marvellous wit.
Natalie was having a wonderful time and dinner was excellent, she barely
even noticed she was the only one eating. Lacroix was a fascinating and
charming man. She'd never realised how pleasant he could be, all the times
Nick had told her about him; he's always taken on the role of the epitome of
evil and cruelty. And though some of the stories he told her were
disturbing, from what he'd told her of his years in the Great Roman Army and
his reasoning behind his actions, the things he did tended to make some
sense. She thought back to her grandfather's old war stories, things he'd
done had been disturbing too, but understandable. Not that Lacroix wasn't a
lot worse than her grandfather, but if she put herself in a ruthless,
merciless mindset…She was beginning to understand this man before her…'maybe
it's the wine,' she thought.
By the fourth course, Lacroix and Natalie were laughing and telling stories.
Blood tears were running down Lacroix's cheeks as Natalie told him about the
time as a freshman in collage she'd given a Biology presentation on
protozoa, and, because of a slight spelling mistake, had said 'orgasm'
instead of 'organism' over two dozen times.
By dessert, a rich chocolate cheesecake, Natalie had silently declared this
the 'best date I ever had!' She was having a wonderful time. And so was
Lacroix. It had taken a long time to finish the gourmet meal, mostly
because she kept stopping to talk, it was almost two in the morning by the
time she finished her cake, but as if on cue, 'and it probably was' she
thought wryly, a string quartet started playing. Natalie was briefly
embarrassed when she realised they'd been waiting for her to finish, but
then again, she was having too good of a time to worry about it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
…I don't own FK…see part one.
((If I can't have him, Natalie gets him!!))
…..I actually did that in a biology speech…..So embarrassing! :-)
***warning, part of the next bit gets a little sappy***
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chap5
Lacroix then stood up and offered her his arm. "Care to dance, my dear?"
He asked, with a raise of the eyebrow, that she was secretly beginning to like.
"Of course, kind sir," she answered back with a grin.
As they moved to the centre of the dance floor, she belatedly realised
dancing would mean being in his arms. They reached the centre of the floor
and he pulled her into his arms, and she went willingly. He was a wonderful
dancer. And they continued to talk as they danced. By the third song,
Natalie was pressed against him. They weren't talking anymore.
Lacroix ran his hand down her back and gently stroked the small of her back.
A shiver ran through Natalie, and Lacroix chuckled quietly at her reaction.
'Two can play it that game,' she thought wryly, resenting his power over
her. She pressed herself closer to him and reached up and gently kissed the
side of his throat. A shiver ran through him. But Natalie did not laugh;
things had just taken an interesting twist.
They continue to dance in silence for a moment more. A Natalie anxiously
waited for him to react. Then he suddenly pulled away from her, and looked
down into her eyes. Whatever he saw there must have pleased him, because he
smiled and pulled her back into his arms. And they continued to dance in
silence, just enjoying the feel of each other's arms and the sounds of the
music.
It was almost five in the morning when the music stopped. Lacroix gave the
musicians a sharp look, but they were all yawning and too tired to be
intimidated anymore. Suddenly realising how late it was, the pair returned
to their table. Natalie gathered up her purse and they walked to the
entrance. 'He must have paid in advance,' she thought as he helped he on
with her coat at the entrance. Their whole leave-taking was very tense;
neither said anything as they left the restaurant.
They met each other's eyes for the first time since after she'd kissed his
throat then. For a moment they just gazed at each other. Natalie was the
first to break the silence. "I had a wonderful time," she said quietly,
almost whispering. A light snow had began to fall moments earlier and
snowflakes began to collect on her curls. The entire area had taken on an
enchanted feel.
Lacroix gazed down at her, silent still. But a searching, almost fearful
look was on his face. 'Gods, I hope she isn't in love with Nicholas,' was
the thought that passed through his mind, whether he'd admit it or not.
"I'm glad you enjoyed it, I also found this evening…most diverting." He
said, he took up her hand and was about to kiss the back, when he changed
his mind, turning it over he pressed his lips onto her wrist and kissed it
gently. "Thank-you for your company, Natalie."
She stared in fascination as he kissed her wrist. Then, keeping her hand
in his, he walked her to her car. She got in and started it up, she
wondered briefly where the valet had gone, but decided he was probably
asleep by now, and that it didn't matter. 'He waiting to make sure her car
would start,' she realised. Amazed about how considerate he was,
'definitely not the epitome of evil!'
He was about to leave, when she stopped him. "Lucien," he froze. Despite
his earlier insistence that she call him by his first name, she hadn't all
through the evening, it had always been 'you' or a playful 'kind sir' or
even 'General' the entire night. Hearing his name from her lips stopped him
cold. He turned to look at her; she'd gotten out of her car and stood
before him.
"Lucien," she repeated, "let's not wait until next Valentine's, okay?" she
said this in a joking voice, but he could hear some fear behind it. 'She
wanted to see him again!' He smiled.
Natalie watched as his smile, turned into a smirk. Then…he slowly raised
one eyebrow at her. And flew up, not saying anything!!! He'd come to see
her again, she was almost certain. "What have I gotten myself into?" she
asked the empty parking lot. She didn't know, but it'd be interesting. And
with a sigh she got into her car and drove home, a smile hovering on her
lips as she remembered her evening.
end?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Okay, okay, so some of it got a little sappy, and no one ever has a date
that good, but the ending was all right? Right? …I liked it…tell me what you
thought…send me your comments at mjenkins@bsumail.idbsu.edu
Text file Source (historic): geocities.com/zoewolfson/val
geocities.com/zoewolfson(to report bad content: archivehelp @ gmail)
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