Tiana rubbed her eyes and glanced over at the bibliothèque sofa. Adam and Belle had fallen asleep together and she couldn’t help smiling. They really did make an adorable couple. Belle had fallen asleep clutching a book which was slowly beginning to slip from her hand. As it hit the floor, Meg stirred at the sound, but didn’t wake. She had fallen asleep leaning against one of the arms of the armchair, with her rear on the cushion and her legs over the other arm, her arms folded and her head tilted, mouth slightly open. She twitched slightly and Tiana was put in mind of a sleeping dog that dreams it’s chasing a rabbit.
Only Lestat was still awake with her. As Tiana stifled a yawn, he glanced in her direction and smiled. “Tiana, you’re tired. toi should go to bed.”
“But we haven’t found anything...” Tiana was cut off par another yawn. “Useful,” she finished.
“Well, we can look tomorrow when you’re awake,” Lestat replied, getting to his feet. He picked up the book that Belle had dropped in her sleep. Tiana sighed.
“Yeah, maybe you’re right.”
She snapped shut the book she was lire and then winced. “Ow!”
In an instant, Lestat was at her side. “Are toi alright?”
“Yeah, it’s just a paper cut,” Tiana replied, holding up her finger. Blood oozed in miniscule drops from a tiny slit in her skin.
Lestat took her hand and kissed her finger. At his touch, Tiana closed her eyes, feeling his lips caress her fingertip, gently, lovingly, like she was the most precious thing in the world. A rush of adrenaline flooded through her, and she felt relaxed, almost like she could fall asleep right now on her feet. She gave a soft sigh of pleasure.
Lestat quickly pushed her away and she opened her eyes in surprise. Before she could ask what was wrong, he had fled from the room quicker than she could blink.
“Lestat!” Tiana exclaimed.
On the sofa, Belle shifted in Adam’s arms, but didn’t wake. Neither did Adam, nor Meg. Tiana stared at the open window, not entirely sure what had just happened. She rubbed her finger, and then frowned. It was no longer bleeding. It looked like Lestat had just used his powers to heal her wound. But then why had he just taken off like that?
“Lestat?” Tiana followed him out onto the balcony. Lestat was sitting on the balcony rail, still as a rock, with his eyes closed. As Tiana approached him, he turned his face away from her.
“I can’t believe I just did that.”
Tiana was confused. “What?”
“You didn’t notice?” Lestat sighed. “No, why would you? toi were too overwhelmed par the glamour.”
Tiana stared at him. “Glamour? Why would you-?”
“Tiana, don’t toi get it?” Lestat turned to face her. “I was feeding on you!”
Tiana blanched and, automatically, took a step backwards. Lestat sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He looked genuinely worried about this. “I promised myself I wouldn’t do that to you.”
Tiana took a deep breath and stepped up to him. She touched his shoulder. “But toi stopped yourself, it’s ok.”
“What if I hadn’t stopped myself in time?” Lestat shot at her. “I could have drained toi dry.” With a sigh, he leaned his forehead against hers. “I told toi before; it’s hard for me to control myself around blood. And yours is so tempting...” He sighed and shook his head, pulling away from her. “I’m a monster.”
Tiana knew, in her heart, that he was right, and that whilst she was still a mortal, their relationship was a dangerous one. Yet she stubbornly insisted “No, you’re not. And even if toi are, you’re my monster.”
Lestat glanced at her and then chuckled. “I l’amour your naivety, Tiana.”
She took his hand. “Say what toi like; toi won’t scare me away. Nothing’s going to stop me from wanting to be with you. Ever. I l’amour you.”
Lestat gripped her hand and rested his forehead against their joined hands. “And I l’amour you, Tiana. But promise me you’ll never let me do that ever again...until it comes to turning you. I don’t want to hurt you.”
Tiana nodded. “I promise. It’s ok, really.”
Lestat didn’t look convinced, but with her gentle coaxing he came back inside. They both glanced at Belle, Adam and Meg, still all fast asleep. “Should we leave them there?” Lestat asked.
“Might as well,” Tiana replied, sleepily, leaning against him. “Lestat, promise toi won’t leave tonight. You’ll stay here, with me?”
Lestat gave her a small smile. “I promise.”
If anything, Tiana was worried that the other vampires might come back and Lestat made her feel safer. She led Lestat back to the room they had shared the précédant night and was just turning down the lit when Lestat suddenly stepped towards the window. Bewildered, Tiana glanced up at him as he picked something off the window ledge.
“Another one for your bucket list,” he said, turning to her.
Tiana knew what he was holding in his hand. “A spider? Lestat, I don’t...”
“You have to overcome your fear sometime,” Lestat pointed out, stepping up to her. “And who’s ever heard of a vampire who’s scared of spiders, hm?”
Tiana knew he was right. Slowly, she held up a trembling hand. Lestat covered her hand with both of his and she felt something tickle her palm. She twitched. Lestat smiled. He didn’t let go of her hand, however. Tiana took a deep breath and tried not to shriek as the thing crawled over her skin. “Lestat?” It came out in a squeak. “How big is this thing?”
“About that big.” Lestat gestured with his thumb and forefinger. It wasn’t that big.
“You’re telling me the truth, right?”
“Do toi doubt I’d ever tell toi otherwise?”
Tiana swallowed. “No.”
Lestat took the araign? e, araignée from her hand and tossed it out of the window. Tiana breathed out. “I did it. I held a spider.”
“And that’s another one off your list,” Lestat reminded her, smiling. “You’re getting closer to...”
“Becoming a vampire,” Tiana finished, sinking into his arms. “Thank you.”
Lestat laughed, softly, and hugged her back. “You’re welcome.”
Tiana didn’t think she’d be able to sleep that night; and it was nothing to do with the fact that she had just held a spider. She had so much to worry about; other vampires accepting her as one of them, and trying to feed off her friends, and her sister now wanting to kill her boyfriend and exorcise her. However, being in Lestat’s arms put her at ease and she fell asleep easily, although in the small hours of the morning, she woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep.
Tiana stretched and reached for a dressing gown. Then, she slid quietly out of bed, leaving Lestat sleeping peacefully, crept downstairs and out into the palace gardens. She felt like she needed to think, quietly, alone.
The gardens were beautiful but shrouded in a faint morning mist and chilled. Tiana wrapped her dressing robe tighter around her and started along the path flanked par rose bushes. Now, Lestat a dit that laying claim to her and her Friends meant that no other vampires could touch them, but what if there was some way that they could find a loophole in that contract? vampires seemed very polite to her, in that sense; backing off when another laid claim to some humans, having to ask permission to enter the house and all that, but surely there had to be some rogue ones out there to whom the rules did not apply. Lestat had mentioned ancient vampires, a dit he had fed off one and that had donné him the power to survive in sunlight; did the same rules apply for them? ou were the rules different for ancient and modern vampires? She resolved to ask him.
Alice she certainly didn’t trust; Lestat had been right about her, vampire brat indeed. Cendrillon too struck her as being rather vicious. Marius seemed alright on the surface, but she didn’t trust him the way she trusted Lestat. It really didn’t matter to her that he had killed before, in his vampire youth; she didn’t care. He was her Lestat and as long as he was then nothing else mattered.
Except for the fact that her sister was now out for revenge. Tiana knew her sister well enough to know that once Esme was messed with, revenge was the only thing on her mind. Even in school, if someone had made fun of her, ou made a nasty commentaire that she wasn’t meant to hear, she would go to the extremes to extract her revenge. In fact, she was practically a vampire herself in that sense.
A movement over par the gates caught her attention. She squinted into the mist. What was it? Probably not another vampire, at least not one Lestat knew, because he claimed that they couldn’t survive in sunlight. It had to be human, then, but who?
Her cœur, coeur leapt as she saw exactly who.
“Esme?”
Esme looked terrible. Her eyes were bloodshot and had large bags beneath them. Her hair was messier than usual and unwashed. But what caught Tiana’s attention was her blood spattered chemisier and hands and the small scratch marks on her skin. Her lower lip was bleeding and she wielded what looked like some kind of spear.
Seeing her sister, she held up the spear, looking manic. “Tia! My sister! toi must come with me! We must stop the vampire scum!”
“Esme, what are toi doing?” Tiana asked, staring at her. “Are toi hurt? You’re covered in blood!”
“It kind of happens when you’ve killed two vampires.” Esme gripped her weapon tighter. “Now I see why John always got such a rush out of it.”
“Esme-”
“Pity he can’t remember it now, thanks to your monster!”
Tiana bristled, briefly forgetting herself. “He’s no monster!”
“He’s a blood-sucking deamon and he’ll make toi one too unless toi come to me!” Esme reached into the neck of her chemisier and drew out a small bottle on a cord. She pulled out the stopper and threw the contents at Tiana. “Devil woman! Be gone!”
Tiana spluttered, stepping back to avoid the holy water. “Esme, stop!”
“Do toi want to become like them?” Esme’s eyes were blazing. “Do you?”
“Yes!” Tiana cried back. “I’m going to! I’ve made my decision!”
Esme stared at her.
“I’m in l’amour with Lestat,” Tiana persisted. “I’m going to become a vampire so we can be together, properly.”
Esme narrowed her eyes. “Then you’re no sister of mine!”
She raised the spear. Tiana screamed. “Esme! No! Lestat!”
Only Lestat was still awake with her. As Tiana stifled a yawn, he glanced in her direction and smiled. “Tiana, you’re tired. toi should go to bed.”
“But we haven’t found anything...” Tiana was cut off par another yawn. “Useful,” she finished.
“Well, we can look tomorrow when you’re awake,” Lestat replied, getting to his feet. He picked up the book that Belle had dropped in her sleep. Tiana sighed.
“Yeah, maybe you’re right.”
She snapped shut the book she was lire and then winced. “Ow!”
In an instant, Lestat was at her side. “Are toi alright?”
“Yeah, it’s just a paper cut,” Tiana replied, holding up her finger. Blood oozed in miniscule drops from a tiny slit in her skin.
Lestat took her hand and kissed her finger. At his touch, Tiana closed her eyes, feeling his lips caress her fingertip, gently, lovingly, like she was the most precious thing in the world. A rush of adrenaline flooded through her, and she felt relaxed, almost like she could fall asleep right now on her feet. She gave a soft sigh of pleasure.
Lestat quickly pushed her away and she opened her eyes in surprise. Before she could ask what was wrong, he had fled from the room quicker than she could blink.
“Lestat!” Tiana exclaimed.
On the sofa, Belle shifted in Adam’s arms, but didn’t wake. Neither did Adam, nor Meg. Tiana stared at the open window, not entirely sure what had just happened. She rubbed her finger, and then frowned. It was no longer bleeding. It looked like Lestat had just used his powers to heal her wound. But then why had he just taken off like that?
“Lestat?” Tiana followed him out onto the balcony. Lestat was sitting on the balcony rail, still as a rock, with his eyes closed. As Tiana approached him, he turned his face away from her.
“I can’t believe I just did that.”
Tiana was confused. “What?”
“You didn’t notice?” Lestat sighed. “No, why would you? toi were too overwhelmed par the glamour.”
Tiana stared at him. “Glamour? Why would you-?”
“Tiana, don’t toi get it?” Lestat turned to face her. “I was feeding on you!”
Tiana blanched and, automatically, took a step backwards. Lestat sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He looked genuinely worried about this. “I promised myself I wouldn’t do that to you.”
Tiana took a deep breath and stepped up to him. She touched his shoulder. “But toi stopped yourself, it’s ok.”
“What if I hadn’t stopped myself in time?” Lestat shot at her. “I could have drained toi dry.” With a sigh, he leaned his forehead against hers. “I told toi before; it’s hard for me to control myself around blood. And yours is so tempting...” He sighed and shook his head, pulling away from her. “I’m a monster.”
Tiana knew, in her heart, that he was right, and that whilst she was still a mortal, their relationship was a dangerous one. Yet she stubbornly insisted “No, you’re not. And even if toi are, you’re my monster.”
Lestat glanced at her and then chuckled. “I l’amour your naivety, Tiana.”
She took his hand. “Say what toi like; toi won’t scare me away. Nothing’s going to stop me from wanting to be with you. Ever. I l’amour you.”
Lestat gripped her hand and rested his forehead against their joined hands. “And I l’amour you, Tiana. But promise me you’ll never let me do that ever again...until it comes to turning you. I don’t want to hurt you.”
Tiana nodded. “I promise. It’s ok, really.”
Lestat didn’t look convinced, but with her gentle coaxing he came back inside. They both glanced at Belle, Adam and Meg, still all fast asleep. “Should we leave them there?” Lestat asked.
“Might as well,” Tiana replied, sleepily, leaning against him. “Lestat, promise toi won’t leave tonight. You’ll stay here, with me?”
Lestat gave her a small smile. “I promise.”
If anything, Tiana was worried that the other vampires might come back and Lestat made her feel safer. She led Lestat back to the room they had shared the précédant night and was just turning down the lit when Lestat suddenly stepped towards the window. Bewildered, Tiana glanced up at him as he picked something off the window ledge.
“Another one for your bucket list,” he said, turning to her.
Tiana knew what he was holding in his hand. “A spider? Lestat, I don’t...”
“You have to overcome your fear sometime,” Lestat pointed out, stepping up to her. “And who’s ever heard of a vampire who’s scared of spiders, hm?”
Tiana knew he was right. Slowly, she held up a trembling hand. Lestat covered her hand with both of his and she felt something tickle her palm. She twitched. Lestat smiled. He didn’t let go of her hand, however. Tiana took a deep breath and tried not to shriek as the thing crawled over her skin. “Lestat?” It came out in a squeak. “How big is this thing?”
“About that big.” Lestat gestured with his thumb and forefinger. It wasn’t that big.
“You’re telling me the truth, right?”
“Do toi doubt I’d ever tell toi otherwise?”
Tiana swallowed. “No.”
Lestat took the araign? e, araignée from her hand and tossed it out of the window. Tiana breathed out. “I did it. I held a spider.”
“And that’s another one off your list,” Lestat reminded her, smiling. “You’re getting closer to...”
“Becoming a vampire,” Tiana finished, sinking into his arms. “Thank you.”
Lestat laughed, softly, and hugged her back. “You’re welcome.”
Tiana didn’t think she’d be able to sleep that night; and it was nothing to do with the fact that she had just held a spider. She had so much to worry about; other vampires accepting her as one of them, and trying to feed off her friends, and her sister now wanting to kill her boyfriend and exorcise her. However, being in Lestat’s arms put her at ease and she fell asleep easily, although in the small hours of the morning, she woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep.
Tiana stretched and reached for a dressing gown. Then, she slid quietly out of bed, leaving Lestat sleeping peacefully, crept downstairs and out into the palace gardens. She felt like she needed to think, quietly, alone.
The gardens were beautiful but shrouded in a faint morning mist and chilled. Tiana wrapped her dressing robe tighter around her and started along the path flanked par rose bushes. Now, Lestat a dit that laying claim to her and her Friends meant that no other vampires could touch them, but what if there was some way that they could find a loophole in that contract? vampires seemed very polite to her, in that sense; backing off when another laid claim to some humans, having to ask permission to enter the house and all that, but surely there had to be some rogue ones out there to whom the rules did not apply. Lestat had mentioned ancient vampires, a dit he had fed off one and that had donné him the power to survive in sunlight; did the same rules apply for them? ou were the rules different for ancient and modern vampires? She resolved to ask him.
Alice she certainly didn’t trust; Lestat had been right about her, vampire brat indeed. Cendrillon too struck her as being rather vicious. Marius seemed alright on the surface, but she didn’t trust him the way she trusted Lestat. It really didn’t matter to her that he had killed before, in his vampire youth; she didn’t care. He was her Lestat and as long as he was then nothing else mattered.
Except for the fact that her sister was now out for revenge. Tiana knew her sister well enough to know that once Esme was messed with, revenge was the only thing on her mind. Even in school, if someone had made fun of her, ou made a nasty commentaire that she wasn’t meant to hear, she would go to the extremes to extract her revenge. In fact, she was practically a vampire herself in that sense.
A movement over par the gates caught her attention. She squinted into the mist. What was it? Probably not another vampire, at least not one Lestat knew, because he claimed that they couldn’t survive in sunlight. It had to be human, then, but who?
Her cœur, coeur leapt as she saw exactly who.
“Esme?”
Esme looked terrible. Her eyes were bloodshot and had large bags beneath them. Her hair was messier than usual and unwashed. But what caught Tiana’s attention was her blood spattered chemisier and hands and the small scratch marks on her skin. Her lower lip was bleeding and she wielded what looked like some kind of spear.
Seeing her sister, she held up the spear, looking manic. “Tia! My sister! toi must come with me! We must stop the vampire scum!”
“Esme, what are toi doing?” Tiana asked, staring at her. “Are toi hurt? You’re covered in blood!”
“It kind of happens when you’ve killed two vampires.” Esme gripped her weapon tighter. “Now I see why John always got such a rush out of it.”
“Esme-”
“Pity he can’t remember it now, thanks to your monster!”
Tiana bristled, briefly forgetting herself. “He’s no monster!”
“He’s a blood-sucking deamon and he’ll make toi one too unless toi come to me!” Esme reached into the neck of her chemisier and drew out a small bottle on a cord. She pulled out the stopper and threw the contents at Tiana. “Devil woman! Be gone!”
Tiana spluttered, stepping back to avoid the holy water. “Esme, stop!”
“Do toi want to become like them?” Esme’s eyes were blazing. “Do you?”
“Yes!” Tiana cried back. “I’m going to! I’ve made my decision!”
Esme stared at her.
“I’m in l’amour with Lestat,” Tiana persisted. “I’m going to become a vampire so we can be together, properly.”
Esme narrowed her eyes. “Then you’re no sister of mine!”
She raised the spear. Tiana screamed. “Esme! No! Lestat!”