UNTRUE BLOOD
There's a place downtown
where the freaks all come around
it's a hole in the wall
it's a dirty free-for-all
Come on Fangtasia was packed. Perhaps more so than usual, due to the influx of young adults and older teens in search of something they couldn't find at the bars and clubs usually populated at the beginning of the "academic" year. Perhaps it was the phenomenon of the full moon that was exciting the normally frightened and timid into coming out of hiding. Or perhaps it was just some unfortunate alignment of the planets and stars that would yield world-changing events and activities.
'Well, her world at least will be changed' the owner thought to himself as he handed off the blonde chemistry major he'd spent the last few minutes feeding on. She stumbled into the arms of a bouncer, a look of ecstatic delirium on her face. Northman put a finger to his mouth and pushed a few stray drops towards his tongue. He could taste the laboratory she clearly spent most of her time in in her blood, mixed with the lavender perfume she had regularly used to cover the scent of iodine and latex. An interesting concoction, to say the least.
Surveying the room with a bored glance, his eyes found Pam engaged with small yet quite voluptuous brunette, a lock of the girl's hair twisted gently in her fingers. Otherwise bright blue eyes were glazed over, showing the girl to be completely entranced by the blonde vampire's glamour. Northman, however, was satiated for the time being and thought as much. Sensing her sire's disinterest, Pam drew back her hand and abandoned the girl for someone much more her own type, leaving the small human to blink and try to understand how she had gotten there.
"Slow night sir," a voice to his left said. Blain was a large man with an intimidating presence, for humans anyway, if you managed to notice he was even there. The giant black man's imposing figure blended easily with the shadows, a mix of his natural talent and his newly acquired vampirism. Eric Northman would not usually have taken any interest in such a young vampire, especially for hire, but the man's unusual control of his bloodlust made him very employable.
However, he seemed a little slow to the fact that his employer wasn't particularly fond of chit-chat, and didn't really appreciate the endless attempts.
"Much like your mind," Northman muttered, knowing the young man would hear as clear as if he had shouted over the music. His response was met with a low chuckle. Blain was strange that way; he seemed nearly without emotional interest in anything around him, but would still laugh at his own expense rather willingly. The once-Viking prince glanced around the room again before closing his eyes.
"Get my attention when Shreveport decides to offer us something of interest." He felt the vampire to his left nod as he let his mind wander to much more intriguing affairs.
Intriguing, but also annoying. The recent marriage of the Mississippi king to Louisiana's queen had made for more than a few troubles in his domain. Things were relatively settled now that the queen was back in her pretty birdcage and the king was imprisoned in the streets of Shreveport.
Temporarily, he reminded himself. A vampire as old as Russell would eventually escape such an inadequate tomb. And when he did, there would be a good deal of tribute to be paid if Eric had any hopes of keeping his head.
And then there was Sookie, who was back with Bill Compton. Defiant Bill Compton whose attempt on his life a few weeks ago had been irritating at the most. Against his stronger desires, Eric had resisted retaliating, to see how things would play out and attempt to figure out Bill's angle. Currently, his obsession with the part-fae girl might keep her relatively safe in the event that Sophie-Anne decided to fly the coop now that her cage-master had gone missing.
All in all, a simple 'slow' night at Fangtasia was like sanctuary for the vampire sheriff.
When the dark of the night
comes around that's the time
that the animal comes alive
looking for something wild
Fingers pressed against a throbbing artery, lips tugging with increasing demand on an earlobe, and nostrils absorbing a mixture of smoke and cinnamon. The tall blonde vampire had absolute control over the redhead she had nearly bent over the bar. The human was literally moments away from begging things from Pam that she would be only too happy to exact. The only question now was whether or not Pam was hungry enough to take her now or if she should keep this one primed for later.
"Your fangs are such a turn on." The woman said, running a hand up Pam's arm and slipping the broad strap of the vampire's tight red dress through her fingers, meeting those powerful eyes through long bangs. The blonde drew her hand over the woman's face and cupped her chin in her fingers, pressing on her lower lip with her thumb and curling her own lip a little.
"Are you going to bite me?" The woman looked excited at the prospect. Pam raised an eyebrow and leaned forward with the intention of biting gently on that pouty lower-lip when a scent stopped her. Barely inches from the human woman's face, the vampire looked over towards the entrance of the club.
She wasn't sure what she smelled. She didn't even think that she was really inhaling the aroma emanating from whomever had just entered Fangtasia, more like she was sensing an aura with her whole body. A scent like dayflowers, a sound like the most welcoming windchime, a feeling like the softest down feathers, and somehow a taste of honey like none she'd ever tasted before. If anything, she felt like her human memory of sunshine had just walked into the room.
Raising herself up further and looked over most of the people between her and whomever seemed so attractive, but the masses of bodies blocked her view. She felt oddly frustrated, and momentarily wanted to rend everyone that was in her way. She quickly rationalized that thought and noticed that her previous engagement had lost interest in the absence of her glamour.
She then noticed a change in most of the people nearest the entrance. Whatever they had been doing before, they were no longer interested. Vampire and human alike were atuned to the unusually captivating and mysterious person. Moving with agility and grace only possessed by the undead, she slipped through the crowd to get a glance of the body behind all this prelude.
Her eyes settled on a lithe woman who appeared only a little older than every other 20-nothing-year-old in the place, but carried herself as though she had centuries of experience. In fact, she moved much like any other cultured vampire, except that she was very definitely alive.
Her olive skin had a certain iridescence about it, as if she were lit from within, or perfectly covered in glitter. Dark hair was braided about the back of her head and ornamented with silver baubles. Her almost perfect features - high cheekbones, pert nose, large evenly-set eyes, full lips - were almost sculpted. A deeply-cowled dark blue and sequined tank showed off her narrow but strong shoulders and full bosom.
Pam was fulled with mixed desires; to bite her and make her the perfect mate, to fuck her to pieces and tear her apart so no one else would lay eyes on her again, and to bolt to the deepest and darkest place where she might be safe from such a person. That odd feeling of absolute terror rode her a little and seemed puzzling, but it offset her other instincts and balanced her mind. She noticed that many of the others nearest the woman seemed overcome by the same instincts and desires, ergo none approached her and most moved shyly out of her way as she made her way to the bar.
Pam. She tore herself away from the sight of the mysterious woman and was by her sire's side in seconds. From Eric's position on his dias, he could clearly see the woman that had captured the attention of so many. At this distance, Pam felt less affected by her aura than she had before and she noticed that the majority of the humans in the club hadn't noticed any change, only those nearest the woman seemed affected. Also, it appeared that most of the vampires had either chosen to keep their distance in favor of that fear feeling or kept glancing in Eric's direction to see what action he was going to take.
"A fae? Like Miss Stackhouse?" Pam asked.
"Perhaps, only far more powerful." Eric said, as though he'd already considered all the possibilities. Pam could feel his fear and curiosity rolling off him. It was reassuring to know that even her sire had mixed feelings in response to the woman, but it also unnerved her to think that this woman made him feel any fear at all.
"Do you want me to-"
"Yes." Eric cut her off before she could finish. So he'd already decided. Pam steeled herself and moved within range of the woman. She let all the feelings from before wash over her before forcing herself to consider it the norm and moving in closer. The woman had a drink before her and was staring rather intently at the bartender, who seemed unaffected by her presence. Probably due to all those mind-wipes, Pam considered.
She braced herself and made her move, sweeping up beside the woman with her face very near what would have been the other woman's ear, except she and turned and met her gaze at that precise moment.
"Why hello there gorgeous." Her voice was almost painful, like a beautiful surround-sound symphony forced into a small speaker. Pam felt like most of it was missing, muted, and she longed to hear it in full force. She forced herself to focus and reminded herself why she was there.
"I was going to say the same thing to you." Pam let her hand glide up the woman's arm and slowly reached out with her glamour. The woman's lip curled into a crooked and playful smile and she tilted her head forward a little.
"Were you really? Maybe I read your mind." A wink. Reminding herself that Sookie had mentioned that she couldn't enter the minds of vampires, she considered the probability that a stronger fae might be able to. She remembered at the same time that glamours didn't work on Sookie and if this woman were any part fae, she too wouldn't respond like any normal human.
"Perhaps. What am I thinking now?" If a glamour wouldn't do it, Pam could be just as persuasive all by herself. Her hand was still gently sliding over the woman's shoulder.
"Well I guess you called my bluff, dear, I can't read minds." Her laugh hurt almost more than her voice on its own. Pam considered that she could be lying, but figured she'd get more answers if she played the odds.
"What's your name?"
"I'm called Tayras."
"Creative parents."
"You could say that." The glamour definitely wasn't working or she would be prattling gibberish by now. Pam was growing frustrated.
"So what is a pretty little thing like you doing in a place like this?"
"Oh, I'm hardly little, don't you think?" On that, she stood up, brushing by Pam's hand and letting her own hand slid over the vampire's shoulders as she walked around her, proving that she was indeed nearly Pam's height. She stopped behind Pam, her arm still wrapped around the blonde's shoulder, her fingers resting on her collarbone. "But I did come to see the owner. I've heard he's quite the catch."
Pam turned her head toward Tegas and found the other woman's face just behind her shoulder. "Oh, he's not mine."
"Shame," she sighed across Pam's skin. "But then again that would put your talents to waste wouldn't it."
It wasn't a question so Pam didn't answer it. She did bring her hand up and take hold of Tegas' arm and pull her back around in front of her. Terrifying presence, glamour immunity, and potential telepathic trepasseur or not, Pam would not be the submissive one in this game.
"I know. If you tell Eric Northman I've a proposition for him, I'll go get that dirty vampire away from the fox you were with when I walked in." Pam resisted the stunned expression that wanted desperately to make itself known. Nothing had really worked, and she was absolutely not in control of this situation. She knew nothing more about the woman than what might be a fake name and that she was never going to give Pam a straight answer. Tegas or whomever she was may not be a vampire, as almost everything about her suggested, but she definitely wasn't human.
Lose your mind
lose it now
lose your clothes in the crowd
We're delirious
tear it down
till the sun comes back around
"She's all yours, I couldn't break through at all. She's powerful, whatever she is." Eric had listened to Pam's retelling of what had transpired, and it all had seemed as much from where he'd been watching. Tegas, who was over intimidating the scruffy-looking vampire who'd been glamouring Pam's redhead, was something to be reckoned with.
"Eric, maybe you should just let it be. We still have no footing with her." Pam's arms were crossed and she was clearly upset that she hadn't made any real headway with the enchanting girl and her concern over unknown danger was evident.
"What does it mean, 'Tayras'?" Eric murmured thoughtfully.
"I don't know. Maybe she actually has creative parents."
"You may go. I know you'll be alert." His second statement was a clear interruption of any objection she might have had to the first. Pam huffed and moved off in the direction of the abandoned redhead, no doubt intending to drain her within inches of her life to take some of the edge off.
"Blain."
"Understood sir," the large man murmured as he moved off towards the bar, vacating the space around the dias and leaving Eric alone. Eric forced a breath and closed his eyes, bowing his head a little. It didn't take long for him to feel the presence that had been dominating his attention since she entered approach him and pause before his chair.
Like a little king on a cheap throne in a dingy palace of the marsh. I'm sorry for intruding." Her voice was as Pam described, and Eric Northman found himself wishing he had a way to turn up the volume or adjust the system. Never mind the clearly sarcastic insult.
"I hear you wished to speak to me." Eric raised his head and felt ill, suddenly wishing he'd kept his eyes closed. She was beautiful and commanding, the perfect mix of power and elegance. And he'd always thought Pam had that combination mastered. This girl somehow seemed like ten Pams and more. She had spared him meeting her gaze, as her eyes were surveying the room.
"Well, in a perfect world, we'd have a little more privacy."
"I'm sure you can appreciate the potential threat you represent and understand my desire to incur no trouble where trouble is not necessary."
"I understand perfectly. Where else can we speak?" She had moved closer, although Eric wasn't exactly sure when.
"You're incorrigible."
"Among other things."
"I think I made things clear, and I've been considerably patient."
"I suppose you have," her words were thoughtful, the first emotion he'd heard her express. She moved even closer and rested her hands on the arms of his chair and brought her face level with his, eyes now lowered. "And patience is a virtue." She was looking at him now, but not actually meeting his eyes. It was strange; she wasn't avoiding him making eye contact with her, more like she was protecting him from her own gaze.
"And virtuous souls are rewarded." Her voice was very soft and her eyes were looking through him as she leaned forward, her lips barely brushing his cheek. Eric could almost feel Pam tense up across the room, her discomfort was so powerful.
"But it would be better, if we could..." her voice trailed off in such a way that seemed unintentional, distracted. Eric felt like he had been in some sort of strange trance and he stood, forcing Tegas back. She wasn't paying attention though, her unfocused eyes staring straight ahead and becoming cloudier by the moment. An actual fog seemed to be moving over her dark irises.
"You really aren't human are you." Eric said with an eyebrow raised. No response. He looked more closely at her and saw that her body was trembling, vibrating was a more appropriate description, far faster than any body should be able. Feeling an undue degree of concern, Eric moved to step towards her.
Her eyes covered over completely and her mouth dropped open. In the back of her throat, the vampire could see a white light building in intensity. Surprisingly, he didn't feel afraid of an attack and was more worried about the girl before him. Tegas' head snapped back and the light tore out, as if pulled by some unseen power, and scattered throughout the room. Tegas' body crumpled like a puppet with its strings suddenly cut, and Eric felt his body move without his command and catch her before she hit the floor.
When he stood up, the girl in his arms, Pam was already beside him and Blain not far away.
"Office," Pam hissed, and both of them moved swiftly off of the dance floor and into Eric's office where he placed the unconscious body in the chair. She felt cold, as if dead, and her skin had gone sallow, though she was still beautiful.
"Settle things will you." Eric snapped to Pam, who was already moving out the door.
When she was gone, he bent over the form of Tegas and put a hand on her cheek. No movement, not much of anything, in fact she seemed quite dead but for the faint sound of a heartbeat. He waited for a few moments, to see if her body would start coming back to life by itself, as Sookie's seemed often able to do. When there was no change, he brought his wrist to his mouth.
"Eric, it's not worth it." Pam's voice stopped him.
"What do you suggest?"
"Just leave her."
"We can't do that. If she's fae or something even stronger she could be extremely useful, you know that."
"Or extremely dangerous."
Eric wasn't going to argue with Pam, and his eyes and bared fangs made that clear. Raising his wrist again, Pam stepped in between him and the girl.
"I'll do it." Before he could stop her, although he might not have had he thought to, Pam bit down on her own wrist and pressed it against Tegas' lips.
"Come on girl. You're not dying just yet." Pam muttered.
Tegas' mouth moved against Pam's arm and she took that as a sign to bring her arm away. Both vampires watched in confusion as the girl's breath quickened to match the speed of a small rodent before stopping altogether, along with her heartbeat. Seconds passed before her body jumped and thrashed around. Pam stepped back but Eric attempted to hold her still so she wouldn't break anything. The chair toppled over and Pam moved forward as Eric leaned back, on one knee, and stared at the now stable body of Tegas. She breathed as any sleeping human would and they could hear that her heart had restarted a steady rhythm.
"This explains nothing." Pam huffed as Eric stood.
"It doesn't have to. She does." Eric said firmly, carefully watching the sleeping body for signs of sudden stirring, although nothing changed except the hue of her skin as it became healthier. Pam may be right in that they hadn't received any real answers to the kind of questions they had regarding the girl, her origin, and her genetics. But the events of the evening had determined that Tegas was indeed no mere human, and after all that had happened in the past few months in Eric's county, they shouldn't be surprised whatever she turned out to be.
Song lyrics "Take It Off" by Ke$ha.
I love reviews, it helps me know people are reading and interested.
Also, I'd love to hear guesses about what "Tegas" is as we go along, it'll help me write.
