Rating: R –Mature
Warnings: Vampirism/Romance
Status: Complete 7/1/07
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Daniel needed a break. He needed to clear his head and remind himself that he was still a member of the human race. Things at the SGC had been bad lately, too much blood and violence and not enough peace and diplomacy. Daniel needed to reconnect with himself.
He decided that he wanted an interesting, Earth-based, intellectual conversation. He wanted to be surrounded by academics all claiming to know it all. He wanted to find a point and argue it over too much wine till the wee hours.
He left the SGC promptly Friday and was glad to have the weekend to himself. Rushing home he showered and threw some clothes in an overnight bag and headed for Denver. He knew of several little bars around the colleges to suit his purposes with hotels close by.
The first bar he tried was too busy with what looked like half the university's freshman class. He tried his second favorite and although it was starting to get busy, there was still plenty of room. Its dark woodwork and hidden nooks were very inviting and he decided to stay.
The bar specialized in odd little wines, and the back wall was covered in bookshelves brimming with books. A roaring fire was going in the stone hearth and small groups of people had claimed the sofas and easy chairs surrounding it.
Daniel found a stool at the bar and perused the wine list. He settled on a Spanish red wine from a vineyard he had never heard of and when it arrived he was delighted. Glancing around the room he looked for clues as to the patron's areas of expertise. He tried to see what books people brought with them, academics always brought books with them. He spied a group of mathematics scholars, not his cup of tea. He spotted a group that was most likely English literature judging by their reading material, also not his cup of tea. What he wouldn't give for a history crowd.
Feeling a little like an outsider he took his glass of wine and went to the back bookshelf thinking that maybe if he had something in hand that he enjoyed that someone might be interested in starting a conversation.
Engrossed in browsing the shelves he didn't see her immediately. But she saw him. And he intrigued her. Intrigued her like no man had in a very long time. He was not part of the normal crowd; she knew most of them by face. But his tweed jacket over a tight, dark tan t-shirt and jeans let her know that he was in fact in his element. He had studied the wine list like a pro and she was pleased to see a deep red wine in his glass. He was perusing the books on the shelves with an almost reverence. She decided that he would be her conquest for the evening.
Daniel's hand was lingering on one of Shakespeare's works when a sultry voice said from behind him, "O! well done! I commend your pains, And every one shall share i' the gains. And now about the cauldron sing, Like elves and fairies in a ring, Enchanting all that you put in."
Without turning around he quoted the next line, "By the pricking in my thumbs something wicked this way comes. Open, locks, whoever knocks."
He heard a low, sexy chuckle behind him that sent a shiver up his spine, "Shall I knock then?"
He took the copy of Macbeth down from the shelf and turned to face his challenger, "As long as you're not a Shakespearean scholar. I would be a little out of my element."
It was a good thing that he had most of his reply out before turning around, because once he actually saw her he lost the ability to speak. She was like something out of a dream. She had long, thick black hair that hung down her back and was dressed in a black cowl-necked sweater over a pair of black leggings. Her long legs accentuated by the high-heeled black leather boots she wore. Her skin was pale, so very pale. It was almost as if she never saw the sun, never wanted to. She had delicate features and a full mouth emphasized with a deep, deep red lipstick. What immediately captivated Daniel however, were her eyes. Bright green with golden centers, they seemed to dance in the low light, cat's eyes he thought. He had not been with anyone in a long time, and his libido was more than happy to let him know that it was certainly interested. The woman was exquisite.
"I study many things, Shakespeare is merely a hobby."
"Dare I ask what your field actually is?"
The woman took a couple of steps forward to stand next to Daniel. She gently took a hold of his hand that was holding his wineglass and pulled it forward so she would sniff the wine's bouquet. She met his eyes and said, "Nice. The 2000 Castina. Their '97 was better, but the 2000 is good. I study humanity, in all its glorious imperfection. You?"
"Linguistics and archeology mainly." He replied with a suddenly dry mouth, for some reason seeing her sniff his wineglass was extremely erotic. And he would be willing to bet that she knew it.
"Ahh. A true scholar. How many languages do you speak?" she asked with a teasing raised eyebrow.
"Over twenty, counting the ancient tongues." Daniel replied almost honestly, he didn't include the new languages he had picked up off world.
She gave him a little grin and teased in that sultry voice, "You realize there will be a test later?"
He laughed nervously and decided to tease back, "Will it be an oral exam?"
Without missing a beat she replied, "Buy me a glass of the Castina and I'll tell you."
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Daniel felt his luck had perhaps changed with the woman's sudden appearance and ordered a bottle of the Castina. He took it from the bartender with another glass and headed over to the table tucked into a little nook where his new companion sat waiting for him.
"A bonus vinum." she said with a smile as he approached.
"It is a good wine. But Latin is not much of a challenge you know. Try again." He teased.
"Un buono vino."
"Italian. And your accent is horrible. Care to try again?" he asked as he poured them each a glass.
"Ein artig Wein." She said, drawing out the last sound.
He looked at her over his wineglass, "German, nicely done. "
She went on to test him on Greek, Arabic, Hebrew, and Russian.
"Satisfied?" He asked sitting back in his chair.
"A true scholar is never satisfied." She countered.
"Good point. I don't even know your name."
"Tsk, tsk…names are powerful things. They can create a persona or shatter it." She glanced down at the copy of Macbeth that he had brought to the table, "Perhaps tonight I should go by Hecate."
"Goddess of Sorcery. And what part would I play to your Hecate."
Her eyes glittered over her glass, "Somehow I don't think you could be anyone but yourself. " She looked purposely around the bar, "People come here to either lose or find themselves. I suspect you are already lost and looking."
He looked around the room, wondering how if he really was so easily read. "So I should just go by Daniel then?"
"That's a powerful name, don't dismiss it so lightly."
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Daniel was entranced. They moved from topic to topic with fluid ease. Hours they spent talking, arguing philosophy and history, each conceding points to the other. He, of course, couldn't tell her the truth about what he did for a living but was able to skirt around it. She told him nothing personal, not a thing. She bared her soul and her feelings on subjects ranging far and wide, but he knew nothing about her, where she lived, where she worked, nothing.
Daniel was enjoying the jealous looks other men were shooting him. His companion was by far the most beautiful woman in the place, and she only had eyes for Daniel. His ego and libido were both being stroked in a way that they had never been before. Geeky archeologists never got the beautiful girls in the college bars.
He felt alive, free and alive. And much to the delight of his companion, and the dismay of the snobbish intellectuals surrounding them, he laughed with the mime that came in selling roses. He bought her a perfect white rose. He didn't care about the significance of the flower color; he just found that particular flower to be perfect. When he handed it to her something in her eyes told him that he had made a good choice.
They had finished their second bottle of wine and when Daniel asked her if she wanted him to order a third she laughed, and it was a silky, sexy sound. "Daniel, do you have a hotel room nearby?"
He gulped, "Yes."
Her eyes flashed and she asked in the same sultry voice she had used when she first approached him, "Have you had enough verbal foreplay?"
Daniel's two working brain cells managed to connect and he stood and offered her his hand. She took it and they walked out together much to the chagrin of the rest of the male population of the bar.
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He was nervous now, out of the safe confines of the bar. Daniel wasn't one for one night stands. But he suspected that he wasn't the one making up the rules tonight. He did want an honest answer to one question though, before things went any further.
Standing in front of his hotel he turned to face her, "Will you answer a question honestly? Without riddles?"
She could see the desire in his eyes, eyes that also held a question. And she knew what the question was, he was an honorable man and there were certain things his honor would just not allow him to do, desire or no desire.
"No, Daniel, I'm not married. Nor am I in a relationship."
He looked perplexed, "How did you know what I was going to ask you?'
She reached up and stroked his cheek, "It was in your eyes."
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The door of the hotel room had no sooner closed when their lips found each other. There was no talking. The time for talking had passed. There was just heat and need. Stripping each other to stand naked face to face in the moonlight that was gently streaming in, they paused and looked their fill.
Gentle hands explored and learned the lines of the other's body. They both knew it wasn't love, but the passion was undeniable. And when the touching and tasting almost became too much for either of them to bear, he pressed her to the bed and joined himself with her.
Sonnets could be written about the tempest they created together, and rode out together. Wave after wave they rode. Until they finally were sated. Daniel was lying on his back with her tucked in the crook of his arm, her face nestled in his neck and her hand on his heart. Sweaty and exhausted they both were silent in their basking.
She could smell him everywhere. His essence. Her hand on his heart reminding her of what flowed in his veins. His sweat teased her lips, a shadow of what she longed to taste. And she could do it right now, he wouldn't fight. All she would have to do is open her mouth. Instead she clamped her jaw shut and willed the thirst to recede. She had never wanted anyone like this and her need was painful. She fought with her whole being, clamping her lips together and feeling the sharp points inside cutting into them.
She was on the edge of losing her battle when she felt dampness on her cheek that wasn't sweat. She dipped a finger into it and looked at it, and tasted it. It was a tear. His tear.
Her thirst instantly squelched, she leaned up on an elbow and he moved to cover his face but she wouldn't let him. Instead she kissed each of his eyes and kissed away the tear tracks. She heard him speaking softly, "I'm sorry. I don't know where this is coming from. I just haven't felt like this in so long."
Smoothing the hair from his brow she asked in a whisper, "Like what, Daniel?"
"Alive. Human I guess. I can't find the words."
A hair's breath away from his mouth she breathed out, "Me too." And she kissed him soundly, reawakening the passion that had burned so brightly.
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Daniel was not a graceful morning person. He cracked one eye and instantly squinted against the sun streaming in through the curtain. He gently reached an arm out looking for his companion only to find the other half of the bed empty. He sat up and looked around. There was no sign of her. Her clothes and purse were gone. He had no way to find her. And he wanted to find her.
Grabbing his glasses off of the night stand and his boxers from the floor he padded off to the bathroom. On his way back to bed after taking care of his bladder he noticed something on the little table near the window.
It was the rose he bought her at least it looked like the rose he bought her. Perfect in every way, the same yellow ribbon tied to it, but now somehow it was a red rose. Confused he picked up the note next to it and read, "Daniel, I don't think you're lost anymore. If you are ever lost again, burn a petal from this rose. I will find you. I am the Queen of Sorcery after all. Be well lover mine, Hecate"
He fingered the words gently, tracing the beautiful archaic style writing. He could almost picture her graceful hand writing it as her hair fell over her shoulder.
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That night the rain came and no one in the bar noticed her in the shadows of the building across the street. She wanted to see him again, just a glimpse. She knew he would come back tonight, looking for her. She saw him sitting at the table they had occupied for hours the night before with a glass of what she would guarantee was Castina red in one hand and the well worn copy of Macbeth in the other.
She rubbed the open wound on her wrist and a silent tear streamed down her face when a familiar voice chided, "You should let that heal."
She turned to face the insubstantial woman next to her, "I will eventually."
"You weakened yourself for him."
"It was my choice." She said firmly remembering what she had done before leaving him.
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She had eased out of bed, out of his warm embrace. She dressed quickly and in the remnants of the moonlight she held the snow white rose he had given her. She whispered an ancient incantation and bringing forth her razor sharp incisors she bit her wrist allowing her blood to fall on the rose as she continued the incantation. When she was finished the rose was as perfect as it was when she started but was now a deep crimson.
She wrote the note in her slow deliberate script and left it on the table near the rose. She allowed herself one last look at him before she walked out of the door.
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"That was not a simple blood offering you gave him. I know what that took from you to give it to him. Will you be safe?" The woman asked in a caring voice.
"I will be fine." She sniffed and wiped away another tear that made its way down her cheek.
The other woman looked at her for a long moment, "You fell in love with him."
She turned to face the glowing shade, "No, Oma. I didn't. But I could. And I want to. But that's not his path, nor mine."
"I have seen his path and we are watching over him."
"He'll ascend?"
Oma nodded. "Join us, Hecate. You don't have to be alone. And you have more than made up for the sins of the past."
"I will. But not quite yet. Humanity still interests me."
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In the bar Daniel could almost swear that he could feel her eyes on him as he read. He finally finished his single glass of wine and with a little haggling with the bar owner bought the battered copy of Macbeth from him. He tucked it safely in his jacket and made his way out to his car to drive home. Looking at the red rose on the front seat he closed his eyes and for a moment could see her. He smiled and started the car for the long ride home.
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Epilogue
A year and half later
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She was walking along the river, the moonlight playing off of it gently. She stopped and looked up at her lunar friend. They had been companions a very long time. She was about to continue walking when she felt a familiar presence behind her.
"Long time no see, Oma." And she smiled as she turned around. The smile turned to shock however when she realized that it wasn't Oma behind her.
With a broad smile he said, "By the pricking in my thumbs something wicked this way comes. Open, locks, whoever knocks."
His name came out of her mouth as a whisper, "Daniel."
"I ascended obviously. And when I did, I found out who you are. You really are Hecate."
She nodded, "I didn't want to lie to you. I have to lie to everyone all the time, but I didn't want to lie to you."
"You are the Queen of Sorcery."
"Among other things, Daniel. Not all of them pleasant."
His face took on a gentle expression, "I know. But I also know how long you've been atoning for them. Come join us Hecate. Don't be alone anymore."
He held out his hand and she closed her eyes and took it. When she opened her eyes they were surrounded by a brilliant light and Daniel handed her a perfect white rose.
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