Author's Rating- PG
I awaken to find Lestat towering over me. I immediately rise and he ushers me out of my room and over to the balcony. I peer outside and am shocked to find a whole mob on the street right outside our apartment flat.
"What is this all about?" I ask Lestat wonderously.
"I was going to ask your little Regina the same question." he says ruthlessly.
"Lestat! She has nothing to do with this!" I say exasperatedly as he walks to her room.
I walk over to him and try to stop him from entering her room. He just pushes me aside and barges in. He pulls her roughly from her bed and drags her over to the balcony to look at the mob.
"Who did you tell about us living here?!" he says angered and impacient.
Her face immediately hardens at being wrongly accused. "I have said nothing and told no one where you live! I haven't the slightest idea what these people are doing out there! Don't accuse me of something I did not do!"
Lestat is amazed at this young mortal girl's temerity to stand up to him, the most powerful of our kind. Because of this he decides to accept the girl's statement as truth.
"If you did not tell them then who did!?" he asks directing the question to both of us.
"What about that woman? Milanthe?" I say sheepishly.
Lestat turns to me, eyes aglow with anger anew. "Yes! It has to be her! She is doing this to get back at you! We must formulate a plan to get them away from here because, dammit, I'm not leaving this flat!" he accentuates his position by slamming his fist down on the table nearest him. "I don't care if I have to spirit them away to some dark alleyway one by one and have done with them! They must go before the whole city of New Orleans is outside!" with that Lestat begins to pace anxiously about the room.
Regina walks over to me and puts her small arms around my waist for comfort. Then an idea comes to me.
"Lestat, what if we send her down there as if she is going for a walk and she tells them that she lives up here with her family, mom and dad?"
Lestat stops his pacing and looks to me for a moment and then to her. "You know, I think it just might work. Go down there as if you have no knowledge of them and if they ask you about us tell them you've never heard of us before and that you live here with your family. Got that!?" he says to Regina. She knods her head in understanding then pulls her coat on and walks down the stairs to the mob. We watch her from the balcony.
"Little girl!" a man calls to her from the crowd. She sees the man and acknowledges his presence.
"Did you just come from that upstairs flat?" he asks her curiously.
"Yes, I live up there with my mother and father. We just finished dinner and now I'm off to the park to play, why?" she says resolutely.
The man looks from her to the other people of the crowd and says,"Well, I guess they were probably here, but they obviously don't live here any longer. Come on you guys let's go to the cafe down the street and I'll treat you all to a coffee." there are some groans of disappointment, but they all begin to disperse with that statement, leaving Regina alone by the iron gate.
She comes back upstairs and we congratulate her on a job well done. Then we begin forming a plan on what to do about Milanthe.
"She is the one who created that whole scene! Louis, you and I must go and stop her!" he says, staring at me with his face full of determination.
"No, Lestat, I can do this on my own. Stay here and take care of Regina while I'm away." I say to him as I begin pulling on my coat. He looks at me incredulously.
"Oh no you don't! I don't underestimate your strength, but you know she can shape-shift! She first came to you in the form of that Michael guy and then in the form of a woman! Who knows what she really looks like!" he moves to get his coat,"I'm coming with you!"
I stop him with my arm on his shoulder and he looks at me wonderously and a bit annoyed. "No, Lestat,..stay..I will be fine...don't worry about me. Stay, and take care of Regina. Please, Lestat." With that I am gone in a flash of my vampiric speed and he has no idea what direction I took. Before I leave I watch Lestat through the balcony as he sulks into his room and slams the door behind him, leaving Regina alone in the parlour.
I'm not sure exactly where to start, but I have an idea. It is late at night as I walk the streets of New Orleans savoring the smells coming from the cafe's and little bakery shops. I come to a more quiet part of the city and stand before the main church. It has always been my favorite place to go to think and reflect on many things. I walk up the cold stone steps and through the double doors. Inside it is deathly silent and quiet enough a mortal could hear a pin drop. Looking around I see a few people seated here and there in the pews deep in prayer and concentration. I walk up the aisle and find my own spot then seat myself, folding my hands in my lap.
I sense someone's presence near me and I turn my head to see the preacher stop at my end of the pew section. He sees me and lays his hand on my shoulder, I cringe slightly at his unsentimental touch.
"What is it that has brought you to my church this evening?" he says in a raspy voice that sounds as if he is getting over an illness of sorts.
"Nothing particular, I just wish to be alone, thank you." I say in a dismissive, yet polite manner. He knods in understanding and continues on his way up the aisle.
I stare at the cross above the altar and communion table. I still do not understand why I come here because every time I do I am filled with an intense anger because of the unrealness of this whole place. There is nothing ethereal here, nothing truly holy and powerful. I never understood why the place of God was in a church. Why in a church? I mean, what makes a church thee place? These things I think whenever I come here.
I look around to find that the church is now vacant and the preacher has gone home for the evening. I rise and walk up the aisle to the cross and the communion table. With my hands in my pockets I stare at this cross and depiction of Jesus Christ for a while. Then, the main doors slam closed and the candles blow out in a gust of wind.
I am on my guard and I use my senses to scan the room. There is something here, but what it is I have yet to discover. Slowly I walk back down the aisle. I hear a soft noise behind me and turn swiftly around. Before the communion table stands the beautiful seductress from the previous evening's encounter. I see that she is smiling in a malicious way. I begin walking towards her and she does the same. We meet in the middle. She takes my hand in hers and leads me to the steps of the communion rail. Laying me down on the steps she begins kissing me passionately. There is something not right for I am no longer on my defense, her powers are diminishing my will to fight her sensuous fire. She runs her delicate fingers through my black locks as I return her kisses. I feel myself losing control and, try as I may, I am unable to regain my will. I feel her teeth penetrate my neck, but I do nothing, for I cannot. My mind responds to it indifferently, not caring, only wishing for this intense passion to continue forevermore. My soul drowning, intoxicated in her heated desire. Then, suddenly, my eyes focus and rest upon the young girl in the background standing in the aisle. It is Regina.
"Louis!" she cries helplessly as she watches the woman take my blood.
This causes Milanthe to lose her concentration and look back at Regina. She snarls in rage and moves to attack Regina. Fear is written all over Regina's innocent face and I am in despair for I am unable to save her, I am weak from loss of blood. I see Milanthe grab Regina in her arms and spirit her away.
I cry out,"Nooo!.." but it is too late.
I stand and crawl up the winding iron staircase to the rooftop. When I get there I see Milanthe pushing Regina to the edge of the building. I cry out again and stretch my hand out in anguish. Milanthe looks in my direction and seeing me she decides to end this scene. With that she lets out a hideous howl and scream. This scares Regina, who backs up, but too much, loses her balance and falls over the edge.
I watch this in horror and shout,"Noooo!..." as I watch the poor young girl fall to her death. It is because of this that I come out of my delusion and stand on my feet. I feel my strength and conciousness returning. I open my eyes and see Regina standing before me in Milanthe's place. This confuses my mind which is already drowned and unsure of reality.
"No! You are not Regina! You killed Regina! Now you will die as well!" I shout in vengeance.
With that I quickly have her in my arms and throw her body down the iron stairs. Then, once down in the church again, I slam her body hard against the stone wall, hearing the bones crack sickeningly, but I do not care. I slowly walk over to the body slumped against the wall. She slowly opens her eyes and looks up at me.
"Louis...no..." her voice whispers softly to me.
But I do not heed it for I know it is just another one of her tricks to get me into her grasp again. I pick her up by her neck and bare my teeth at her in a snarl.
"Louis! don't do it!" I hear a familiar voice shout behind me.
I turn swiftly, still holding her by her neck in the air gasping for breath. It is Lestat. He is racing to me when, suddenly, the ground opens up before him and up bursts Milanthe from the ground. She throws him to the ground then turns and smiles maliciously, laughing in triumph. I look to the girl in my grasp and realize then that it is truly Regina that I hold. I bring her down and lay her on the floor, blood trickling from her mouth. I see Lestat stand again and before Milanthe realizes what is happening she is thrown to the front of the church and slammed against the altar. He then looks to me.
"Louis, go! You must get her to a hospital before she dies!"
I look from her, to his worried face, and to Milanthe against the altar. "Louis, go now before she dies in your arms and has no chance of living!" he shouts.
This breaks me from my trance, I realize that he will be able to hold her off while I escape with Regina. Swiftly I leave, holding her tenderly in my arms. I only look back for a moment and when I do my eyes see the flames engulfing the church, destroying Milanthe and all the empty holiness inside the church.
At the hospital I tell them I am her father. They take her from my care to the emergency room. Then I watch over her in her bed after the hours of operating. There are wires everywhere and monitors all over the place to keep an eye on her vital signs. I gently brush her hair from her forehead and kiss that delicate head that I almost crushed with my bear hands. I feel now, as a father with a drinking problem who has just realized the evil he has commited in battering his wife and/or children. I watch her heart monitor as it slowly begins to decrease. I look from that monitor then to her. She is dying before my eyes. In that moment, I am desperate to save her, to selfishly save myself from the pain of my own guilt and to lovingly help her hang onto life. With that I pull my coatsleeve up my arm revealing my stark white wrist. I go to put my teeth to my wrist when, suddenly, the door bursts open and in barges Lestat, slamming me hard against the wall.
"Louis, don't!" he says to me.
At this I am astonished. For all these years it has always been me stopping him from creating more of us and now it seems that the tables have turned at last.
"Why, Lestat? I need to save her from this finality of death that has been brought upon her by me!" I say anguishedly. "Now let me do this!" I say to him and push him away.
He is on me again and pulls me away from her bed. This ensues a fight between the two of us. He pins me against the wall again. Then, the alarm sounds telling the nurses and doctors that her heart has stopped. They rush into the room, taking no heed of us against the wall, as they try to re-start her heart with the paddles. There comes nothing of it, she remains lost to them and to us. One of the nurses pulls the white blanket over her head and they escort us out of the room.
Lestat puts his arms around my waist, pulls me close and whispers into my ear,"Come, Louis. We must leave before they try to detain both of us and ask you questions as to how she was beaten so severely." I knod my head in understanding as he leads me out the door.
Back at the flat I pace slowly around the parlour in my sadness. Then I flip out in a rage and begin throwing things all over, turning over tables and chairs, throwing candles on the floor in hopes of the carpet catching flame and taking us to our deaths.
"Are you nuts!? Louis, stop this nonesense you fool!" with that he manages to get ahold of my hands and force them behind my back.
Looking me deep in the eyes he says to me,"Stop now before you set the room aflame and kill us both!"
I let out an angered snarl in my rage and try to get free, but my trying is all in vain for he is more powerful than I am. He smiles maliciously as I fight him and the more he smiles the more I fight, but I still cannot free myself from his grip.
"Close your eyes, Louis," I grumble a bit, but do so anyhow.
When I open them again we are in a deep forest. He releases me and yet begins walking with my hand in his.
I am looking around in wonder as to where we are. "Where are we and why are we here, Lestat?" I ask a bit annoyed.
"Quiet, Louis,...hush or you will scare all of the animals." he says to me softly, still continuing on his trail.
We soon come to a lake. I look to my left and see towering mountains. All around there is this majestic and tranquil beauty. Here there are no roaring cars or smoke-filled air. A slight breeze blows rustling through the trees and I watch the ducks as they make their way to their homes.
Lestat comes over to me and puts his arms around my waist. "You see, Louis, this is true beauty. Men may build thousands of monuments and temples for their God. They can build the grandest of skyscrapers and or produce cities of lights. But nothing they make can compare to the tranquil beauty of a place such as this. True beauty does not have to be made, for it is here before your very eyes now. God may not have all the answers for everything, as we ourselves do not either, but he sure did something right when he created all of this majestic splendor." Lestat says, waving his arms around to include the whole picture in his meaning.
For a moment both of us can say nothing. We just stare up at the starry night and listen to the loons sing their wistfull call of the wild. Lestat has moved to the edge of the lake and is standing with his arms folded about his chest, looking to the mountains and the night sky. I slowly walk to him and stand beside him.
"Louis,...we are not saviors and were never meant to be angels. We cannot go around saving every human from death by bringing them into this life that we lead. It is all part of a cycle, living then dying. We are part of what is unnatural for we do not die and never shall. We cannot rob them of their chance to take their place in the natural cycle. We cannot bring them into this hellish eternal damnation to forever walk the earth and feed on the living because we were robbed of our chance to die. No, Louis,...we must survive for ourselves. I realize that you were full of guilt because you battered her and it was your fault she died and that is why you wanted to save her. We may be immortal, but no one is immune to suffering and guilt." There is then silence again.
He turns to me, putting his arms around me and pulling me close to him. He whispers softly to me,"I care for you greatly, Louis. But having gone through those years with Claudia I did not want to risk going through it all again. I could not bear to stop this girl's life and have her live an eternity in the body of a child forever while her mind kept maturing. No, Louis. I could not let you make the same mistake I did those many years ago. I love you my friend. I love you..." he says softly, then kissing me ever so tenderly upon my silken red lips. He slashes his tongue with his teeth and slips it lovingly into my mouth. I take his blood for I am weak from loss of my own. He is not one to give his blood away to anyone for it contains power unimagineable and strength only he knows of. He gives me his blood now out of love and to make me strong and whole once again. That compassionate act through, we embrace for a long time, comforting eachother in this solitude and peacefullness. How I longed to remain and hold that moment forever, but as all things, it soon passed.
"I wanted to save her, Lestat. I wanted to keep her alive and free." I say to him softly.
"Louis, she would never truly be alive again after that and she is more free where she is now than if she was damned to walk the earth as we do for eternity. Rest your mind and think on it no longer, my friend. The pain of this whole ordeal with ease and pass with time as all pain eventually does. Now come, let us get back before sunrise." With that he takes me in his warm embrace once more and we fly back together to New Orleans, arriving back at our flat just before the sun's rays appear over the horizon.
*~The End~*
Copyright © 2000 Property of Lady Mercareth