QUO VADIS, LUCIUS?
by Iejasu
Chapter 4
Lucius made her stop for a moment.'No, not this way... we go though the back yard.
I do not wish to upset my mother any further.'
Natalie stared at him in complete surprise.'Your MOTHER??'
'Yea...' he replied dryly. 'You probably imagine that I was born from a rattlesnake but I
assure you, I did, I do ... well, my mother existed.'
They silently sneaked though the backyard and into his rooms.
'Hmm, am I imagining things, or are you sneaking into the house on a regular basis?'
He chuckled softly in the dark until he found a flint stone lighter and lit an oil lamp.
While he worked on getting some light, she heard him silently swear about the lack of
electric illumination. He finally succeeded in lighting the room, sat down on his bed and
grinned at her in a way that made Natalie feel uneasy.
'My dear doctor Lambert, to which whim of fortune do I owe the dept of gratitude that you
have pity on an old and wounded ex - vampire ?' His voice dripped with sarcasm.
Natalie gave him a very frosty glance and shrugged her shoulders.
'I normally attend to corpses, but I will extend my courtesy even to someone like ... you,'
she bit back. After this parry she got some linen and water and cleaned his head wound.
'I hardly doubt I would have thought twice about it if you still were a vampire. I would
had let you fry in the morning sun!' she continued.
He bent towards her and purred into her ear, 'Would you have roasted marshmallows on
my smoldering form?'
Instantly Natalie regained some distance, but she could not help but laugh at this
ridiculous idea. This was certainly wicked, but it was also definitely Lacroixian. He
seemed to be able to extend his 'humor' even upon his own persona.
'This is certainly a nasty bruise. You should lay down for a couple of days,' she continued.
'I do like to think you are jesting, but your face tells me otherwise.'
'Well, Lacroix, you are human in this dream,' Natalie stated flatly.
He touched his head again and sighed. 'There are conditions attached to the bargain of mortality that I
certainly do not appreciate,' he commented while she cleaned his cut.
It was still night, and Natalie did not find the thought of walking alone, without male
protection entertaining.
Lucius read her thoughts correctly.
'I suppose you are stuck in my bedroom for the night.' He had the most malicious grin
on his face. The thought did definitely improve his mood. To tease this coroner was
something he enjoyed far too much even for his own taste. She had the backbone to fight
back, she was intelligent and would allow nobody to intimidate her, not even him.
And she did not disappoint him.'I just wonder how your voice would sound if you should be forced
to talk 2 octaves higher in the future ahead of you....' She returned his malicious
grin with equal force while she cleaned his head wound. She used the cloth more roughly
on his bruise to make a point.
Lucius laughed loud and without malice.
'My dear doctor, I was certainly not implying anything improper. You must be imagining
things. But maybe you would accept my invitation. We could ... talk.'
Talk to Lucien Lacroix? He was certainly a very gifted conversationalist. Indeed she had
enjoyed talking to him at the Azure until that evening had become nasty. He was
educated, had splendid manners and an air of confidence around him that few man possessed.
She pressed him down, ignoring the glitter in his eyes as she did so, and told him to lay still.
'We may talk, but you will stay in bed.'
'I will do as the physician requests.' This annoying smile had never left his face.... that
strange predator smile... Had she made a mistake accepting his invitation?
Natalie Lambert was not sure.
She took a chair and set next to him.
'What would you like to discuss, Dr. Lambert? Any particular subject you have in mind?'
Lacroix requested.
'How about Nicholas?'
'Ahh, Nicholas! Yes, Nicholas is always the center of everyone's attention, is he not?'
'Well, I would like to know what had happened. I mean ...'
'You mean the last thing you remember is that he embraced you in what is called 'a vampire's kiss'?'
'Exactly.' She tried to display an indifferent attitude, at least on the outside. It was never
wise to show weaknesses in front of this ancient vampire.
Lucius stared at the ceiling.
'Well, Dr. Lambert.... As you should already know, Nicholas is a man who starves himself
until he is beyond control. Anybody's control. He drained you to a very dangerous level...'
'Am I dead?' she heard her voice quietly ask.
'No, you are quite alive, I assure you.'
'Where is Nicholas?'
Lacroix laughed.
'How many times have I answered that question? Nicholas is away. Unquestionably he
drowns himself in pity. I have seen him doing that so many times, I grew tired of it.'
'You did?'Natalie had the feeling that she would hear an entirely different
story than she was used to from Nick.
'Dr. Lambert, I warned you. Nicholas is a very biased personality. He was brought up in
the Middle Ages. Those were barbaric times. To him a woman can
be either saint or whore, nothing exists for him between those two conditions. He
cherished you as a saint, a healer who would cure his forsaken condition. But when you
turned out to be nothing more than a mere woman, with feelings, offering yourself to his
dark needs, you instantly became the other kind of female and his subconscious made him
lose his restrictions.'
Natalie frowned at his words.
'Nicholas loves me. He is only shy.'
Lacroix laughed.
'My dear Doctor, certainly he loved you! You have not witnessed
the Middle Ages. Knights would have died for a scarf of their cherished
noblewoman. A bard would sit at the feet of his lady, glad to compose hymns to her beauty and
virtue. But he would never touch her. This was also part of the deal. But in the same period, a woman was regarded
lower than dust, the evil seductress, who brought sin upon mankind in the garden of Eden.'
Natalie had realized that he had used the word 'love' in the past.
'You mean I lost him the moment I became flesh and blood.'
He could not help himself but smile at that phrase.
'Yes, indeed, my dear. The moment you became flesh and BLOOD.
Also, Nicholas is a very self-centered being. He believes that everything centers
around him, everything is done because of him. He cannot help himself. I should probably
claim some of the blame because I spoiled him.'
'But what about you? You are driving him to what he is doing!!'
He turned his face towards Dr. Lambert. A very unusual expression flashed over his
features. Was it sorrow?
'Nicholas has told you a lot, but only his point of view.'
Natalie drew in a deep breath and seated herself more comfortably.
'Then let me hear your point, if you don't mind.'
He pondered her request. Normally he would have never cared to
discuss his son with a mortal. But now he was mortal, she was mortal, and it did not
matter -- this was only a weird and extended dream.
'My point of view is simple. He is my son, I am his father. I do not want to see him die.
Is that so hard to understand? To me, his search for mortality is only prolonged suicide.
And Nicholas has very suicidal tendencies, you should have realized. He toys with his life
in hope for death. But he believes that suicide is a sin that would put salvation out of his
reach forever. He is Catholic. So he tries everything to kill himself by other means.'
'You claim to love him as a father, yet you torment him.'
'Do I torment him or does he torment me? Nicholas staked me 6 years ago, burned me
badly. Still I fight not to lose him. Tell me, dear Natalie. Who was it that covered up the
evidence when he was shot in the head? Who healed him?'
Natalie shook her head. She had certainly never thought of it this way.
He saw that she had grown silent and reached out for her hand.
'Nicholas has hurt you more than once. I can see it in your eyes. Still you fight for him,
try to help him. In a way we are not so different from each other. I also try to protect my son.'
Her skin was smooth and warm. Silently he lifted her hand and brought it to his lips. His
kiss silently whispered his apprehension of her actions.
She took her hand away swiftly.'Don't try to seduce me. You are not my type. You are a
puppeteer, and I will not be your puppet!'
'Puppeteer, Puppet. Can you not understand that I am a man, no more, no less? And I
show my appreciation for a woman who is gifted with intelligence and spirit.'
'I am not a saint, not for you, not for Nick!'
'I do not expect a saint, but you do think of me as the devil,' he stated flatly.
Natalie realized the truth in his words. In everything he did, everything he said, she
suspected some dark motive. She could not help herself .
He turned towards her and looked into her eyes.
'How about starting all over again, Dr. Lambert. May I introduce myself? My name is
Lucius Seianus, son of Aurelius Seianus, grandson of Lucius Aelius Seianus, the
infamous Prefect of the Praetorian Guards, who terminated the heirs of Tiberius and was
killed 33 years ago.'
She looked at his outstretched hand and put her own hand into his.
'I am Natalie Lambert, medical examiner and daughter of Helen and Peter Lambert.'
He brought her hand to his lips and brushed his lips over her knuckles ever so slightly.
'I am enchanted, Mademoiselle.'
by Iejasu
Chapter 4
Lucius made her stop for a moment.'No, not this way... we go though the back yard.
I do not wish to upset my mother any further.'
Natalie stared at him in complete surprise.'Your MOTHER??'
'Yea...' he replied dryly. 'You probably imagine that I was born from a rattlesnake but I
assure you, I did, I do ... well, my mother existed.'
They silently sneaked though the backyard and into his rooms.
'Hmm, am I imagining things, or are you sneaking into the house on a regular basis?'
He chuckled softly in the dark until he found a flint stone lighter and lit an oil lamp.
While he worked on getting some light, she heard him silently swear about the lack of
electric illumination. He finally succeeded in lighting the room, sat down on his bed and
grinned at her in a way that made Natalie feel uneasy.
'My dear doctor Lambert, to which whim of fortune do I owe the dept of gratitude that you
have pity on an old and wounded ex - vampire ?' His voice dripped with sarcasm.
Natalie gave him a very frosty glance and shrugged her shoulders.
'I normally attend to corpses, but I will extend my courtesy even to someone like ... you,'
she bit back. After this parry she got some linen and water and cleaned his head wound.
'I hardly doubt I would have thought twice about it if you still were a vampire. I would
had let you fry in the morning sun!' she continued.
He bent towards her and purred into her ear, 'Would you have roasted marshmallows on
my smoldering form?'
Instantly Natalie regained some distance, but she could not help but laugh at this
ridiculous idea. This was certainly wicked, but it was also definitely Lacroixian. He
seemed to be able to extend his 'humor' even upon his own persona.
'This is certainly a nasty bruise. You should lay down for a couple of days,' she continued.
'I do like to think you are jesting, but your face tells me otherwise.'
'Well, Lacroix, you are human in this dream,' Natalie stated flatly.
He touched his head again and sighed. 'There are conditions attached to the bargain of mortality that I
certainly do not appreciate,' he commented while she cleaned his cut.
It was still night, and Natalie did not find the thought of walking alone, without male
protection entertaining.
Lucius read her thoughts correctly.
'I suppose you are stuck in my bedroom for the night.' He had the most malicious grin
on his face. The thought did definitely improve his mood. To tease this coroner was
something he enjoyed far too much even for his own taste. She had the backbone to fight
back, she was intelligent and would allow nobody to intimidate her, not even him.
And she did not disappoint him.'I just wonder how your voice would sound if you should be forced
to talk 2 octaves higher in the future ahead of you....' She returned his malicious
grin with equal force while she cleaned his head wound. She used the cloth more roughly
on his bruise to make a point.
Lucius laughed loud and without malice.
'My dear doctor, I was certainly not implying anything improper. You must be imagining
things. But maybe you would accept my invitation. We could ... talk.'
Talk to Lucien Lacroix? He was certainly a very gifted conversationalist. Indeed she had
enjoyed talking to him at the Azure until that evening had become nasty. He was
educated, had splendid manners and an air of confidence around him that few man possessed.
She pressed him down, ignoring the glitter in his eyes as she did so, and told him to lay still.
'We may talk, but you will stay in bed.'
'I will do as the physician requests.' This annoying smile had never left his face.... that
strange predator smile... Had she made a mistake accepting his invitation?
Natalie Lambert was not sure.
She took a chair and set next to him.
'What would you like to discuss, Dr. Lambert? Any particular subject you have in mind?'
Lacroix requested.
'How about Nicholas?'
'Ahh, Nicholas! Yes, Nicholas is always the center of everyone's attention, is he not?'
'Well, I would like to know what had happened. I mean ...'
'You mean the last thing you remember is that he embraced you in what is called 'a vampire's kiss'?'
'Exactly.' She tried to display an indifferent attitude, at least on the outside. It was never
wise to show weaknesses in front of this ancient vampire.
Lucius stared at the ceiling.
'Well, Dr. Lambert.... As you should already know, Nicholas is a man who starves himself
until he is beyond control. Anybody's control. He drained you to a very dangerous level...'
'Am I dead?' she heard her voice quietly ask.
'No, you are quite alive, I assure you.'
'Where is Nicholas?'
Lacroix laughed.
'How many times have I answered that question? Nicholas is away. Unquestionably he
drowns himself in pity. I have seen him doing that so many times, I grew tired of it.'
'You did?'Natalie had the feeling that she would hear an entirely different
story than she was used to from Nick.
'Dr. Lambert, I warned you. Nicholas is a very biased personality. He was brought up in
the Middle Ages. Those were barbaric times. To him a woman can
be either saint or whore, nothing exists for him between those two conditions. He
cherished you as a saint, a healer who would cure his forsaken condition. But when you
turned out to be nothing more than a mere woman, with feelings, offering yourself to his
dark needs, you instantly became the other kind of female and his subconscious made him
lose his restrictions.'
Natalie frowned at his words.
'Nicholas loves me. He is only shy.'
Lacroix laughed.
'My dear Doctor, certainly he loved you! You have not witnessed
the Middle Ages. Knights would have died for a scarf of their cherished
noblewoman. A bard would sit at the feet of his lady, glad to compose hymns to her beauty and
virtue. But he would never touch her. This was also part of the deal. But in the same period, a woman was regarded
lower than dust, the evil seductress, who brought sin upon mankind in the garden of Eden.'
Natalie had realized that he had used the word 'love' in the past.
'You mean I lost him the moment I became flesh and blood.'
He could not help himself but smile at that phrase.
'Yes, indeed, my dear. The moment you became flesh and BLOOD.
Also, Nicholas is a very self-centered being. He believes that everything centers
around him, everything is done because of him. He cannot help himself. I should probably
claim some of the blame because I spoiled him.'
'But what about you? You are driving him to what he is doing!!'
He turned his face towards Dr. Lambert. A very unusual expression flashed over his
features. Was it sorrow?
'Nicholas has told you a lot, but only his point of view.'
Natalie drew in a deep breath and seated herself more comfortably.
'Then let me hear your point, if you don't mind.'
He pondered her request. Normally he would have never cared to
discuss his son with a mortal. But now he was mortal, she was mortal, and it did not
matter -- this was only a weird and extended dream.
'My point of view is simple. He is my son, I am his father. I do not want to see him die.
Is that so hard to understand? To me, his search for mortality is only prolonged suicide.
And Nicholas has very suicidal tendencies, you should have realized. He toys with his life
in hope for death. But he believes that suicide is a sin that would put salvation out of his
reach forever. He is Catholic. So he tries everything to kill himself by other means.'
'You claim to love him as a father, yet you torment him.'
'Do I torment him or does he torment me? Nicholas staked me 6 years ago, burned me
badly. Still I fight not to lose him. Tell me, dear Natalie. Who was it that covered up the
evidence when he was shot in the head? Who healed him?'
Natalie shook her head. She had certainly never thought of it this way.
He saw that she had grown silent and reached out for her hand.
'Nicholas has hurt you more than once. I can see it in your eyes. Still you fight for him,
try to help him. In a way we are not so different from each other. I also try to protect my son.'
Her skin was smooth and warm. Silently he lifted her hand and brought it to his lips. His
kiss silently whispered his apprehension of her actions.
She took her hand away swiftly.'Don't try to seduce me. You are not my type. You are a
puppeteer, and I will not be your puppet!'
'Puppeteer, Puppet. Can you not understand that I am a man, no more, no less? And I
show my appreciation for a woman who is gifted with intelligence and spirit.'
'I am not a saint, not for you, not for Nick!'
'I do not expect a saint, but you do think of me as the devil,' he stated flatly.
Natalie realized the truth in his words. In everything he did, everything he said, she
suspected some dark motive. She could not help herself .
He turned towards her and looked into her eyes.
'How about starting all over again, Dr. Lambert. May I introduce myself? My name is
Lucius Seianus, son of Aurelius Seianus, grandson of Lucius Aelius Seianus, the
infamous Prefect of the Praetorian Guards, who terminated the heirs of Tiberius and was
killed 33 years ago.'
She looked at his outstretched hand and put her own hand into his.
'I am Natalie Lambert, medical examiner and daughter of Helen and Peter Lambert.'
He brought her hand to his lips and brushed his lips over her knuckles ever so slightly.
'I am enchanted, Mademoiselle.'