Disclaimer: As implied by the word "fan" in "fanfiction", all the recognisable elements of the story below belong to their respective intellectual property owners, who happen to be someone other than myself. Sad but true. All the money generated by this story went to Doctors Without Borders for Japan aid.
Story written for Help_Japan community auction.
Summary: Mike finally gets around visiting Delphine in her new home. Sequel to Darkest Moments.
A/N: A big thank you goes to Marlana for betareading.
Whatever the Weather
Affection is responsible for nine-tenths of whatever
solid and durable happiness there is in our lives.
C. S. Lewis
Mike glanced at his watch after taking a sip of coffee. He couldn't remember the last time he had this much trouble waiting for work to end. Then again, if memory served, it had been all about work for the last few years and it certainly hadn't helped matters that for a long time his social life revolved around the one person that had been the poster girl for workaholics.
Well, not anymore. Still, it didn't make it any less ridiculous for him to be this impatient. Not when it was about someone who wouldn't even be alive for a couple more hours.
He cringed internally. That wasn't right. Working in homicide he had very firm definitions of dead and alive that generally didn't overlap and the former didn't cover any state someone could wake up from.
Then again, what did he know? He might have been with Delphine in every meaning he could think of but that didn't mean he had a chance to as much as take a look at her during the day. And he had a strange feeling that was about to change in a matter of hours. Funny how only now he stopped to think what spending the weekend with his vampire girlfriend would mean.
Aside from the obvious things implied by spending the weekend with one's girlfriend, that is. It wasn't as if he was so devoid of imagination to not figure out those.
In his defence, the way this all came about was so natural that he never stopped to think about any additional issues. He snorted into his coffee cup and did his best to make it look like he choked on a too big sip when he received Kate's questioning look.
Sure Celluci, such a normal situation, visiting a vampiress in her new territory because that was the closest she could live to Toronto, hoping for an early St. Valentine's celebration with the nights still longer to give the two of you more time together. Nothing out of ordinary at all, happens all the time.
"Detective Celluci," Crowley's voice tore him away from his thoughts.
"Ma'am?"
"I realise that the weekend is about to start but I'm still expecting the report on the Carlson case on my desk today."
"Yes Ma'am. I'm working on it just now."
"Good. I expect you to have finished it by the time you leave."
"Of course, Ma'am."
"Just make sure the chemistry results from the lab are detailed." Oh hell.
"They should be obvious from the..."
"I realise that. What you should realise is that last week the Richards case almost fell apart because it wasn't equally obvious to everyone. We're not building the case and handing it over just so it can fall flat because someone did a rushed job on the report."
"Yes Ma'am. I'll make sure to include everything."
"Excellent. I'll be waiting for the report then," the captain turned around and went after someone else. How come it's always on the days when you have some plans that your boss decides to have a bad day?
Still, it wasn't as if he could help it.
Turning the files in the folder, he reached the coroner's results. Sure enough, there were the toxins underlined with a pencil and a whole lot of strange numbers that told him absolutely nothing. He picked up his phone.
"Rajani? This is Mike Celluci. Do you have a moment?"
III
"Of course, you don't really need the results for the enzymes in the plasma. They're absolutely not indicative of anything in this case. Not to mention, judging from his skin and nails you can tell this was not prolonged exposure but one big dose. Besides, just take a look at what happened to his liver. You are meeting her today, aren't you?"
"Why would you..."
"We've worked together for quite some time now. This is the first time you are pacing impatiently while talking about the results."
"It's simply because this is pointless. The case is solved and we're just wasting time that could be spent doing something else. All the results are plain to anyone who stops to think for a few seconds. It's not like there aren't any open cases I could work on instead."
"You'd be surprised how many people consider stopping to think a waste of time. Jumping to incorrect conclusions seems much more appealing." Mike closed his eyes for a second. Oh, he did know that. "I saw the photos from the ball. You looked great together," the coroner added matter-factly.
"Thank you. That doesn't mean..."
"She's a relative of Vicki's partner, isn't she?"
Mike blinked. "What makes you think that?"
"Oh, I recognise the similarities. They really look like blood relatives."
Not for the first time, Mike wondered just how much did Mohadevan know.
"Even if..."
"Oh, don't worry, it's none of my business who is related to whom and how. I'm just sharing my observations with you, seeing how you'd know anyway."
"Right."
"And I hope you'll have a good time when you meet with her. I'd just advise you to buy yourself some tomato juice instead of all that coffee if you want to keep fit for her. It's healthier, contains iron and helps to prevent anaemia." Mike wisely kept his mouth shut and tried to match his expression with the innocent look of the coroner's face. "Now, coming back to those results, I'd say that all you need to write is the part about the toxins and no signs of previous exposure. I'll just make sure to make a more detailed description of the analysis and will send it to you to add to the file."
"Thanks, Rajani."
III
In the end, Mike left the station later than he planned, even if still not as late as he feared he would. As he stepped outside, the weather didn't improve his mood. While rain isn't something anyone is particularly glad to see, freezing rain in near-zero temperatures while you have an hour-long drive before you definitely brings things to the next level. He sighed, looking at the road glistening ominously. He could only hope things looked better on the expressway.
For now, he needed to hit the florist. One of the drawbacks of dating a vampire was that you couldn't exactly buy a box of chocolates in advance and be done with it and buying flowers early, especially in the winter didn't seem like the best of ideas. So much for 'all women like chocolate'. Then again, while she might not eat it, it doesn't mean she wouldn't appreciate it all the same if it was used in a more creative manner...
He shook his head. If one had a perspective of a drive in difficult conditions, keeping their thoughts PG-rated might do wonders to improve their concentration.
III
As soon as Mike turned from Yonge to Gardiner Expy, it became apparent that all hopes of better driving conditions went to hell. Not to mention, the rain got heavier and started mixing with the snow. He sighed and glanced at the time. Sunset would be in a few minutes and he wasn't even out of Toronto yet. And here he was hoping that by half past five he would be almost halfway there.
He slipped his phone out of his pocket and placed it on the passenger seat. It would be poor manners to drag the lady out of bed with a phone call but in a short while he would need to let her know he was going to be late.
Sure enough, fifteen minutes later he was still in Toronto, stuck in traffic and seriously wondering if switching on the sirens to at least get out of the city would be that big of an abuse of power. If only the weather was good enough to actually make driving a bit faster possible... He rolled his eyes and reached for the discarded phone.
The dull sound of the dial tone filled the car as he switched the cell to speaker. Fortunately he didn't need to wait long.
"Hello, Mike," The softly accented voice greeted. He had it bad, he decided, if just hearing her voice made him feel better.
"Good evening, Delphine. I just wanted to let you know that I might be a bit late. I'm sorry but..."
"Yes, I did have a chance to look out the window already. I don't expect you to endanger yourself just to earn a few minutes, don't worry. I'll just do some work. I still have one review to write before the deadline."
"When is the deadline then?"
"Tuesday. I admit I procrastinated. I was hoping for some inspiration. Incidentally, I don't suppose you can think of a nice way to say 'the inconsistencies in the book are so big that it's a miracle the main character is still called the same name by the end of the first chapter. At the same time, what the book lacks in style and grammar, it makes up for by the absence of background search and asinine plot?'."
"Ouch. Quite a page turner, huh? I imagine it practically reads itself."
"It would have to. I find it hard to imagine anyone else being remotely willing."
"That bad?"
"Let's just say the only value this book could have would be if I was in need of something to coat a bird cage floor with."
"I'll take your word for that. Must have been quite a riveting read."
"Oh, like a good thriller. You couldn't help but wonder what rule of narration will end up going missing next."
He chuckled. "Have fun writing the review then. I'll call when I reach Hamilton to let you know I'm almost there."
"Thank you, Mike. Drive safely."
"Don't I always?"
Judging by the laugh on the other side, Vicki must have been providing Delphine with blackmail material.
III
Three hours into the drive, Mike wondered what possessed him to think that a trip of a little over fifty miles would be a relatively short one. He might not have been an expert on the supernatural, like some people he could name, but even he knew there wasn't a better way to jinx something then to utter some variation of the infamous "what could possibly go wrong?"
It was with an unhidden joy that he saw the sign indicating he finally reached Hamilton. He reached for his phone again.
"Mike!" the call was picked up almost instantaneously. "Finally. I was beginning to worry."
"Sorry about that. The road was awful. Any suggestions on how to find your street?"
"It's pretty straightforward, really. Just drive to Oakhill, towards the Somerset Park. It's right next to it."
"Somerset Park?" Mike frowned. Just why did that sound strangely familiar?
"I know. Augustus isn't talking but between the name and how good the price for the house was, I'm suspecting Henry had something to do with it. It certainly fits his sense of humour."
Oh yeah. That's why. Mike all but rolled his eyes.
"I wouldn't be surprised," he answered noncommittally. "I'll be there soon then."
"I'll be waiting. Just don't miss the exit towards Rousseaux Street."
"I'll do my best. See you in a few."
"Of course. Bye, Mike."
The detective sighed. Not miss the exit. It was much easier said than done when you happened to be driving somewhere for the first time, at night and in the rain.
III
Contrary to his fears, Mike managed to find the way easily enough but it was still with an immense sense of relief that he pulled into the driveway in front of Delphine's house. Still, he couldn't completely rule out that the improvement of his mood had something to do with the vampiress that stepped out of the house as soon as the car stopped and immediately greeted him with a passionate kiss.
"I missed you," she informed him when the kiss ended.
"Missed you too," he replied as soon as he caught his breath. "But we should probably get inside. You're getting all wet and at this rate you'll catch a cold unless you change into something warmer."
She looked at him, clearly amused. "Vampires don't catch colds."
"You don't have to be trying so hard to be the first one. Besides, I wouldn't be surprised if I managed to catch it just from looking at you standing here in nothing but jeans and a T-shirt."
Delphine laughed. "We can't have that, can we? I didn't intend to keep you here, you know. Then again, there was nothing stopping you from going in. Or can't humans go into a house unless invited?"
Mike groaned. "I'm never going to live that down, am I?"
She grinned in response and gestured for him to come inside.
III
As soon as he took off his coat (while trying not to be too obvious admiring the result of Delphine stepping into the rain in just a shirt), Mike realised something was off about the house. Not something immediately obvious, perhaps, but still, it was there. Finally it hit him. Of all the things he expected in a house of a vampire...
"Why does it smell like something's cooking?" he blurted out and saw her look down embarrassedly, with a hint of blush on the pale cheeks. He wisely decided not to wonder if said blush could be an indicator that some other type of food was involved earlier that evening. "Delphine?"
"Well, you were running late and I figured you might want something warm to eat when you get here."
Mike blinked. He wasn't sure, but probably the last time he had a meal waiting for him he had been still at school, living with his parents. "Oh. That was very thoughtful of you. Thank you."
"It's nothing extravagant, I wasn't sure if I would still remember how, but I hope it turned out all right."
"I'm sure it did," he assured automatically.
"In that case, let me show you to the kitchen," she smiled and turned, obviously expecting him to follow her. He did.
Delphine's kitchen was a rather ordinary one. Still, it was done all in white which would probably mean constant cleaning normally, with shiny, and most likely unused, plates in a glassed cupboard. Combined with the brand-new looking pots on the stove everything wouldn't be out of place in a furniture store. Only the soft murmur of the fridge insisted the place was actually in operation. Well, that and the can of cat food lying on the shelf. Mike stared at it in disbelief.
"You have a cat?" he didn't recall learning that bit of trivia before.
"I wouldn't say that. I'm pretty sure he belongs to himself. He's dark grey and ugly as sin but if he has one thing, it's personality."
"And that leads to you buying cat food how exactly?"
"We've reached an agreement of sorts. As long as I leave him breakfast next to the back door, he agreed not to leave dead rodents on my doorstep."
"Doesn't he realise that pestering a vampire for food might not be a good idea?"
"I think it's a matter of pride. The previous owner of the house fed him and he is not about to show that the fact the new one is a vampire changed anything."
"Charming. Do you know where he lives?"
"Honestly? No. He just appears and then disappears. He could be jumping in from another dimension for all I know. What I suspect is that he found himself a nice spot somewhere in the park, a few naive humans to feed him and one equally naive vampire."
Delphine moved to the cupboard and took out a bowl and filled it with what Mike could only assume was chicken soup. A moment later the bowl was placed before him and he took a cautious sip. Then another one. He glanced at Delphine as he continued eating.
Another interesting fact about vampires, even if pretty obvious in retrospect, was that apparently they couldn't use seasoning to save their life. Not that the soup was completely bland. He just doubted there was any recipe that actually told you to use three grains of salt per gallon.
She was looking nervous, clearly waiting for his reaction. Well, they say salt is unhealthy anyway.
"This is pretty good. Thank you."
She smiled shyly in response and quickly started preparing a plate with the second course. At least, Mike thought silently, there weren't many ways one could blunder with grilled chicken. And it felt strangely touching to know she went to all that trouble.
III
Downing another cup of coffee – socialising with a vampire did have a funny side-effect of letting you enjoy jetlag without ever needing to leave the province – Mike thought the time passed normally enough. Bizarrely so, considering what one could imagine spending time alone with a vampire implied.
Not that he was complaining. There was the obligatory showing of the house (and either writing reviews for a publisher and doing translations paid much better than he imagined or Fitzroy really did have something to do with her being able to afford the house), telling him which windows he could safely open later ("You simply must see the view from that side") and finally selecting a movie to watch together ("I can't believe you've never seen 'The Shop Around the Corner'!"). Then, of course, came the talking, first about work and then quickly progressing to other topics.
It somehow felt natural that eventually they drifted towards the bedroom and soon were engaged in showing each other just how much they enjoyed mutual closeness. A while later they lay in an embrace, with Mike gently caressing the cool skin of his lover who let out an occasional sigh of contentment.
Then he felt Delphine stiffen suddenly.
"What's wrong?" He asked immediately, stilling as well and studying her face.
She was looking at her hands. "It's nothing, really. It's close to dawn, that's all."
"Already?" he asked surprised and felt her laugh softy in his arms.
"Time flies when you're having fun, doesn't it? But I just realised I won't be alone this time. It's been so long since I had someone with me when I..." she hesitated, "went to sleep."
Not knowing what to say, Mike simply stroked her hair. He couldn't deny, this wasn't something he could quite dismiss yet or that sat all that well with him. He loved Delphine, of course, but it hardly made things any easier. Every instinct he had, professional or otherwise, screamed against the idea of just calmly watching as somebody's heart stopped. To know that would happen to someone you cared about as you held her in your arms, that she would go still like all those he saw... He swallowed. Definitely not an appealing perspective.
"It doesn't bother you, does it?" Delphine's voice tore him from his musings.
He held her closer. "No, of course not. I just hope I'll remember where everything is if I need it. Wouldn't be very polite to make a mess looking for something."
She lifted her head to look at him. "If you need anything I haven't bought or just want to go out for a while, there's an extra pair of keys in the bedside cupboard."
"Thanks."
III
Mike was on the verge of drowsing, still holding Delphine, when she suddenly gasped softly and went still in his arms. Immediately he felt all thoughts of sleep leaving him as his adrenaline kicked in. Slowly, he took a deep breath and moved to check her vital signs only to find what he already expected, even if still couldn't wrap his mind around it – he could feel none. He closed his eyes and exhaled.
She was fine. This was nothing to be worried about. She would wake this evening. He knew this was going to happen.
It was surprisingly hard to convince himself about that, seeing how rivalling thoughts kept maliciously whispering that this was exactly what everyone working in the department feared on some level when it came to their loved ones. Something he could in no way help and could not understand.
He took another breath, softly caressing her cheek. She did look as if she was asleep. And she had that small smile of hers playing on her lips. That helped, of course. Besides, her heartbeat while awake was already so much slower. Who's to say it's not there, just too weak and slow for him to find? He could live with that, he decided.
Then, deciding to leave the bed, he tried shifting from the spot, which wasn't easy with the weight of a sleeping vampiress on his chest that apparently decided he made a nice pillow. When he finally did manage to free himself, he felt a pang of guilt about moving her from a position she was apparently comfortable in, so he spent the next couple of minutes trying to make sure Delphine would be comfortable. In the process, he noted to his relief that she felt as if she was alive too, which was a strangely comforting thought.
As soon as he was up, Mike couldn't help but take a closer look at the window. It wasn't that he didn't believe Delphine could see to her own safety but plywood shutters installed from inside combined with some curtain didn't seem like a particularly reassuring protection. Still, there was nothing he could do about it at the moment. Just to be on the safe side though, he moved a chair closer to the window so that even if something happened to the glass, the protections would hold off the light.
III
Eventually, after making sure Delphine would really be fine, Mike went to explore. While, when she was showing him the house before, most of his attention remained fixed on her (and the rest of it was already busy with the fact that her shirt was still a bit wet and clingy), his well-cultivated curiosity was now resurfacing.
There were three rooms upstairs that had windows facing the street, which seemed to be some kind of odd compromise between guest bedrooms and just some fancy storage space. Then again, he mused, you didn't exactly get a lot of people staying overnight when you were a vampire so those could just be usable if there happened to be someone in on the secret.
Other than him, that is, as she seemed content to share tonight so unless... A thought occurred to him. If vamp women didn't have those days, there possibly was such thing as the ideal woman after all.
Mike winced as soon as the thought properly registered. For something like that Vicki would surely rip him to little pieces and there was good chance Delphine would let her. Sure, it was just a brief thought and she would have to find out about it first so under normal circumstances he would be safe, but she was Victory Nelson meaning all bets were off.
To distract himself, he looked critically at the thick velvet curtains covering the windows. It made sense, he supposed, not to have all the windows virtually boarded up in an obvious manner, especially from the front side of the house, but he could think of at least half a dozen things that could go wrong with those.
Just to reassure himself, he went back to the bedroom to make certain Delphine was safe, before continuing on to her study. It probably wasn't surprising that being who she was she had covered almost all available space with books. He smiled to himself. She really was quite an adorable bookworm.
Ignoring the temptation of the open laptop on the desk – she must have been working up until the moment he arrived – he gravitated towards the shelves. There was a framed black-and-white photograph fitted into a space between the books and he studied it carefully. On some level, it was a really unnerving feeling to easily recognise people from an obviously very old photo, most likely from the early forties. But aside from that, judging by what he could see in the background of what had to be an evening picnic... A blooming Rolls-Royce? Really? As if the Jaguar wasn't bad enough.
Shaking his head, Mike went downstairs hoping to find himself something for breakfast. Through the kitchen window, he was greeted by a look of a green feline eye that clearly informed him the owner of the glare took his existence as a personal offence.
Mike continued walking firmly to the coffee machine. Just because he dated a vampiress, he wasn't about to be intimidated by some furball with delusions of being a witch's familiar. Besides, the cat had nothing on Vicki's annoyed look.
III
After a quick snack, he felt tiredness hit him with full force. It was only at that point that he realised that he had been up for over twenty four hours straight. He rose tiredly, cleaned up carefully because the kitchen was simply too spotless for him to spoil the effect, then remembered his overnight bag which was still in the boot of the car. Making sure the door wouldn't shut closed behind him (though it made sense that you wouldn't install a lock allowing you to shut yourself out when you happened to have a violent reaction to sunlight), he went to his car and retrieved it.
One quick shower to freshen up later, he tiptoed to the bedroom and lay on the bed on his side to watch Delphine.
Moments before he finally surrendered to sleep, he realised that tiptoeing might not have been necessary.
III
When Mike woke up, it was already dark and he was alone on the bed, even though the scent of Delphine was still lingering in the air. Running his fingers through his hair, he got up and went about looking for the apparently missing vampiress.
The search turned out to be considerably short, as he found her in the kitchen of all places. She was standing over some pot, with a focused look of someone who was just overseeing a violent chemical reaction. She did turn, however, when he approached.
"Slept well?" she asked, grinning at him.
"Very. I could definitely get used to it." Her grin widened.
"I started on your breakfast," she informed, making Mike suddenly process the fact that it took quite a bit of twisting to refer to a meal served at quarter to six p.m. as such.
"Thanks. You didn't have to bother."
"You were still sleeping and the sooner you eat, the more time we'll have together," she informed.
"True enough," Mike agreed, as he went to the pot and tried the sauce. He felt tears appear in his eyes as the substance burned through his tongue. Apparently Delphine did suspect she might have been too cautious with the spices yesterday.
"Too hot?" he heard her ask in concern.
"Nah," he took a deep breath through his mouth to cool it slightly. "It's perfect. But I won't say no to a glass of ice water."
She looked down. "It is too hot, isn't it?"
Mike smiled and gave her a quick kiss, absently noting that her soft, cool lips felt more soothing than ever.
"It's fine, I promise. And it will be even better when we add some pasta. Did you buy any bread?." She dashed to one of the cupboards at lightning speed and a moment later was back with the bread. "Excellent. And Delphine? For the record. I think you're a great cook." Considering.
III
After the meal of undefined name, it was quickly agreed that a short trip around town would be in order. It was hard to say whether Delphine wanted to boast about her new territory a bit or she wished to return the favour of Toronto sightseeing a couple months earlier but Mike was fine with it either way.
Not to mention, it turned out to be quite a bit of fun, even though it appeared that dragging Delphine out of a bookshop was an art in its own right. He was just thankful she was kind enough to select a big shop that had a cafe inside. Then again, the elaborate and quite passionate 'thank you' he got when he managed to buy the book that interested her was quite satisfying (and came close to raising an interesting question of whether professional courtesy was enough to get away with some public indecency).
In contrast to the awful weather the day before, the night was a pleasant one, with a brisk air, slight wind and clear starry sky. Seeing as it would be a waste to ignore it, they ended up going for a walk afterwards, only deciding to go back when the wind started picking up.
They had just entered the house and Mike had been helping Delphine with her coat when his cell rang. He glanced briefly at the caller name and sighed.
Of course Vicki would call him at one in the morning simply because she suspected he might not sleep, societal standards be damned.
"What is it, Vic?" he greeted as amiably as he could manage at having his time with Delphine disturbed.
"Gee, Mike, you don't have to sound this enthusiastic to hear me."
"Why wouldn't I be? Buy yourself a clock, Vic. Because I guess it's too late to hope for common sense."
"Whatever you say Mike. Are you busy?"
"I'm out of town, in the company of a beautiful woman and in no mood to help any PIs out, thanks for asking."
"Aww, you're so sweet. Say hello to Delphy from me, will you?"
He glanced at the vampiress who grinned. "Yeah, she says hello too. Now, let's be honest, you wouldn't be calling me just because you missed me. What do you want, Vicki?"
"Now that you mention it, I've got this new case. A body stolen from a funeral home."
"I'd think you still remember where the station is. Now go, be a good citizen, inform the authorities and let me spend my weekend in peace."
"Oh, didn't I mention? It was a theft by resurrection... reanimation," she corrected herself.
Mike rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Listen, Vic, I've already got five active cases waiting for me at the office..."
"And you took time off?"
"Go to hell, Vic. Just because you refuse to acknowledge weekends, doesn't mean everyone else has to."
"Hell, huh? I would, really, but while the company might be interesting, I don't think I would care for the climate so I'll give it a pass."
"I still can't help you, Vicki."
"This might be interesting, you know."
"What I do know, is that my job is about finding out why people go into the ground, not why they come out."
"Okay, so can I drop by the station on Monday when you finish?"
"I'm not helping you. And besides, I'll be going to work straight from Hamilton and catching up on my sleep after work."
"I'll buy you coffee. See you at five on Monday."
"I'll get you for that, Vic."
"Yeah, I'm sure. Bye!"
He sighed. "Bye, Vicki." He turned to Delphine. "You know, I sometimes suspect she is from another planet."
"Just don't let her hear you say that."
He shuddered. "No, definitely not. Wouldn't fancy being shot by her again."
Delphine blinked incredulously. "Again?"
"Long story."
"We do have the rest of the weekend," she reminded wryly. "And I propose we start with us going upstairs and you telling me the story while I search you for the scar."
"Sounds fair."
He smiled. They did have half of the weekend before them.
The End