Here's the next chapter, I'd like to really thank you all for the warm welcome back! I really missed your reviews so don't hold back on this one either! Enjoy, guys!
It was after midnight. The Leavold mansion was dark, the only sound that could be heard was the distinct rustling of the wind in the large trees in the garden behind the house. That, and sometimes the cry of an animal somewhere in the darkness of the moonless night. The mansion was asleep, awaiting the next morning to shine brightly as its owners in the light of the morning sun.
Lauren hadn't been able to sleep for hours. She had twisted and turned in her large bed but there seemed to be no way sleep would find her. Since she finished her Tai-Chi session her mind had been in overdrive. She had gone to the library, desperate to find out what caused the family feud that she had never heard about before. It was what almost struck her the most. The fact that she had been a part of the Leavold family for more than a millennium but hadn't been told something this important. This time though, the library didn't offer her much help. There were old journals from the time of the Great Fae Wars with descriptions of crimes both families had committed in their raging hate for each other, so terrible that Lauren had to force herself to continue reading but other than that, there was no explanation as to where the hate had come from.
After finally giving up she decided to go to sleep early and continue her search tomorrow, maybe even ask her mother but that sleep never came. The feelings swirling inside her like a tornado kept her wide awake. The disgust at what her family had done, the hurt of being deprived of a part of her family's history and most of all, the never leaving thoughts of Bo. It had only been one dance but the brunette seductress occupied the Phoenix' mind almost constantly since. Lauren didn't know why. Her hypothesis were the things the Succubus had offered her with just a smile. That smile that was barely there, just an up-turned corner of her mouth but promised pleasure like no other, pleasure the blonde had denied herself for far too long. While trying to sleep Lauren had often thought about what could have been if she had let Bo fulfill that promise. It sent thrills down her spine and she almost regretted disappearing but always remembered that what the Succubus had offered was only pleasure, nothing less, but also nothing more and as much as the brunette appealed to Lauren, she didn't want something meaningless.
The Phoenix chuckled humorlessly to herself. It was absolutely ridiculous. A Succubus was stealing her sleep while said creature had probably already forgotten her amidst all the potential lovers throwing themselves at her. What had Lauren thought about Dyson? If he wanted to get his heart broken by a sex-demon, it wasn't her problem? It was so ironic it wasn't even funny anymore. Seemingly without knowing it, the wolf-shifter had made this totally her problem.
Sighing heavily, Lauren got out of bed and slowly padded down the long corridor that led to her room, heading down the large flight of stairs and into the kitchen. There was still some pasta left from the small meal she had made herself this evening. While the rest of her family preferred to let the humans they owned cook for them, Lauren did everything herself. It was only so much that she actually enjoyed cooking it was much more that the thought of human 'servants' disgusted her more than anything.
As she closed the microwave and slowly watched the plate turn in the small illuminated cabin, her thoughts drifted off again. There had been a time where she wouldn't have said no to Bo. In fact she wouldn't have even thought about it. It was the time shortly after Nadia died. They had had beautiful forty years together and it had to come to an end eventually, Lauren had known that all along but it still hit her like the earth came crushing down on her. The human woman's dying wish had been that Lauren kept going on and that she would find happiness again someday. After that Lauren had given into the fire-spirit nature inside her. She searched for pleasure to fill the void Nadia had left in her heart and soul but nothing seemed to be enough. It didn't take long for her to realize that nothing could ever replace the curly brunette so she completely shut down, detaching herself from everything and became the distant workaholic she was now. She often asked herself if Nadia would still love this version of her. The answer would probably be no. The human had loved the Phoenix' passion, the intensity of her love but Lauren didn't think there was anything left of the person she once was.
The blonde was pulled from the depths of her mind by a rustling sound behind her. She turned her head, confused that anyone else would be up at this time of night. "Miss Lewis, I'm sorry. I thought everyone was asleep. I'll come back later." It was Eva. She was holding a bucket of water and a mop. Lauren realized she had never asked herself how the huge mansion was kept as impeccable as it was but now it made sense. The humans cleaned at night. The thought made her sick once again.
"No, Eva, stay. I just couldn't sleep so I came down here to eat something." The blonde smiled at her, adding in a softer tone. "It's the middle of the night and my mother is fast asleep. Will you finally accept my offer to call me Lauren, even if it's only for tonight?"
The young human smiled back. Of all the Fae that lived in this house, the eldest daughter of Madam Leavold was the only one who treated all humans with respect. Eva was extremely grateful that, during the day she was personally assigned to Lauren. It meant she didn't have to endure what all other servants of the Leavold's went through every day.
"Of course, Lauren. Please know that I only call you Miss Lewis because of your mother."
The blonde Phoenix sighed sadly. "I know." The microwave pinged, announcing that Lauren's food was ready. She opened it without thinking and took out the scorching hot plate, absorbing its heat. Doing so, her hand glowed slightly golden, making Eva's eyes widen in surprise. Lauren quickly realized her mistake. "I'm sorry." She put the plate down on the bar, slipping onto one of the stools in front of it and pulling the one next to her out. "Sit with me?" She asked Eva who snapped out of her shock and hurried to do Laurens bidding.
They sat in silence while Lauren ate but the blonde felt eyes on her all the time. "What is it, Eva? Just ask." Her voice was friendly, she didn't want the human to hold back.
"I.." The young brunette stuttered "I always wanted to ask you a few questions... how do you do that?" She pointed at Lauren's hands, making the Phoenix chuckle. "You feel every part of your body, don't you?" She received a shy nod. "Imagine you can feel the energy around you, like it's a part of your body. I can move this energy like you move your arms, make it concentrate in one area to ignite a flame." Lauren opened her palm, making a small flame appear in it. Her eyes glinted with a hint of gold but it was barely recognizable.
Eva was awestruck. She had seen Lauren practicing Tai-Chi sometimes and found it purely amazing. The way her eyes turned their reddish gold was scary but in some way it made the blonde even more beautiful.
"What are the other questions?" Lauren smiled, the small flame giving her face a golden hue in the otherwise dark kitchen. "If you can cool the plate with your powers, why..." She trailed off and looked away, clearly embarrassed but Lauren knew what the question was and smiled. "Why I even used the microwave?" She shrugged. "I don't know. I just felt like it. Why do you have on a pair of jeans and not a skirt?" Eva looked back up surprised, then she laughed and answered "I don't know. I just felt like it."
Lauren winked. "See?" She could see Eva by far hadn't run out of questions. "Anything else?"
After a few more minutes of questions and answers later, Eva finally didn't feel embarrassed anymore and they talked for almost an hour. When they finally parted, the human to finish her cleaning much to Laurens dismay, and the Phoenix herself to finally get some sleep. Lying in her bed she was surprised at how relaxed she felt. Thoughts of her family's history and Bo drifted through her mind but they didn't affect her state of calm. She smiled. Having somebody to talk to, even if it was just about mundane things was something she hadn't had in a long time. She would have to thank Eva when she next saw her. That was her last thought before she fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.
-x-
Bo stirred in her large bed. She felt the sheets wrapped around her naked body and sighed. It had been a successful night. The wolf-shifter had been good, not great, she had had better, but it was satiating nonetheless. The Succubus kept her eyes closed for a little while longer, enjoying the one moment of the day where she felt completely satisfied. She lived for pleasure, for the energy rush it gave her and by now she needed her daily fix. Her day was a search for her next victim and as much as she enjoyed the hunt she found it tiring at times to constantly feed her nature. Sighing, she reached to her side, finding cold sheets. A brilliant smile graced her beautiful features as she finally opened her eyes. She was alone yet again. Bo congratulated herself for finally getting a hang of picking the right feeds. Those who weren't clingy, who didn't insist she was the only one they would ever love once she was done with them. She sat up, stretching her muscles. She wasn't sore at all, another perk of being able to heal through sex. Just as she wanted to get up and shower before treating herself to a well deserved coffee, Bo heard a clatter from downstairs and then there was Kenzi arguing. The Succubus couldn't make out the words but she sounded positively furious. The Djinn must have a problem with the TV again, it was one of the rare occasions where she really lost it. Bo chuckled at her best friends antics but soon realized steps coming up the stairway but she didn't have much time to wonder what that was about. Before she could even reach for the knife on her nightstand the door opened, revealing Dyson with a tray of food on it, closely followed by a furious Kenzi. "Hey police-dog I told you there will be no waking sleeping beauty here!" When she saw Bo was up her face fell. "I'm sorry Bo-Bo, but this one is a particularly stubborn one." She pointed her thumb at Dyson who pretended to not have heard a thing. He moved forward, placing the tray of food in front of Bo on the bed. "I made you breakfast." he said in a sugar-coated voice that made the Succubus sick to her stomach although the food did smell quite good. She sighed. The moment she congratulated herself it of course had to backfire as badly as it could.
"Dyson, I thought you knew the rules?" Her tone was even, Kenzi recognized the calm before the storm and slowly slipped out of the room. Dyson just kept looking at her with awe in his gaze and Bo mentally slapped herself for not recognizing the puppy-dog-look when she saw it last night. "You need to leave." Now her voice held a certain edge, although it wasn't as prominent as it would soon become if the wolf didn't leave but he was oblivious to the warning. "Don't you want to try it, Bo, honey?" He pointed to the breakfast again. The term of endearment did it for the Succubus. She got out of bed, not caring that she was still stark naked. "Listen, dog, what we had was a one-night-deal. I don't expect to see you again and I don't particularly want to. I wanted some fun last night and you provided that. You were a feed, nothing more. Now leave my house before I throw you." By now her voice was pure anger, eyes bright blue, she hated dealing with the clingy part of her feeds.
"You're so unbelievably beautiful, Bo." Dyson whispered, looking her up and down. The succubus growled with rage. "You have got to be kidding me! That's it, leave!" She grabbed his wrist, giving him a strong pulse that made him weak at the knees, giving Bo the chance to push him out of her room, down the stairs and out of her house where she released him, storming back in through the door. "Don't you dare come back!" She yelled over her shoulder. "But Bo I love..." He didn't get any further as the door crashed shut because Kenzi snapped her fingers from the other side of the living room, the locks snapping closed.
"Thanks, Kenz." Bo sighed. "Why do I always get the crazy ones?"
"Well.." Now that the difficult situation was over and Bo had blown off her steam Kenzi smirked. "It would maybe help to put on some clothes." The succubus looked down at herself, grumbling profanities under her breath as she made her way up the stairs again to get showered and dressed.
The moment she stepped out of the spray of hot water of what had been a relaxing shower she heard her cell phone ring. Wrapping a towel around herself she padded across the plush red carpet of her bedroom and picked up the small device. She sighed when she looked at the display. "I don't get a break, do I?" She muttered before she pressed the green button on her display and lifted the phone to her ear. "Yes, Mother?"
"Ysabeau, I was hoping I would catch you." Aoife's voice was dripping with fake friendliness and Bo cringed. "I wanted to speak to you about the ball for the peace treaty signing in a week."
"What?" Bo didn't know what her mother was talking about, as usual.
"Ysabeau, darling, you should pay more attention to the politics. You know, you will be one of the elders one day when I decide to call it a career. Anyway, I expect to see you there next week. The elders of both sides have come to a compromise and we will put our signatures under the final document at the ball. Oh, and one more thing darling, I know you obviously can't contain yourself but could you please be decent enough to keep off the Leavold family? You know about them. It's not good for our reputation if your seen with one of them. Anyway, I will see you there." With that the one-way conversation ended and Bo groaned. She really didn't get a break. Her thoughts drifted off as she stood there wrapped in her towel. The Leavold family? Bo knew about the family feud going on but it had been quiet for a long time, or at least quieter. She couldn't remember speaking to one of them or doing anything to upset her mother but then again, she didn't care one bit. What she did care about was that she would get another chance at seducing the beautiful blonde, thus repairing her broken record. Yes, Lauren was something she could look forward to.
-x-
Lauren sat at the breakfast table with the rest of her family. She had made muffins for herself while the others ate the foods one of their servants, Sophie, had made for them. Elizabeth had been in a particularly good mood and she immediately told everyone why. There would be another ball next week where the elders would sign the peace treaty they agreed on. Lauren's grandmother wasn't so happy. She stated that this treaty in its current form would not change a thing. A discussion ensued but Lauren didn't listen anymore. She was caught in her head again, the thoughts of the upcoming event quickly reverting to a sole purpose: She would see Bo again, be in the same room as her. Lauren shivered. She would have to prepare for the ball, otherwise she would probably burst.
The only one at the table that noticed the change in Lauren was her father Evan. As he wasn't a Leavold by birth he didn't care to engage in the discussion about the peace, he didn't have a say anyway. He watched the older one of his daughters closely. She was lost in her head again, that alone was nothing new. It was the way her eyes glazed over, a golden twinkle in the usually light brown orbs. Evan wondered what it meant. The last time he had seen this look was while she was with that human woman centuries ago, although it was slightly different. It wasn't the look that told everyone who looked closely enough she was happily in love, it was just a look of passion. That indeed was something new. Lauren had abandoned the passion she was born with after the human she loved died. Evan decided to keep a closer eye on his daughter in the near future. He was happy to see the long-lost passion resurfacing but wasn't sure yet if it was really a good thing.
-x-
Kenzi put her cell phone down, jumping across the room towards Bo excitedly. "I know who Hotpants is!" she exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear.
"What?" Bo looked at her best friend, utterly confused.
"Bo-Bo, don't be so dense! The blonde hottie? My contact just got back to me. Her name's Lauren Lewis. Or Leavold. Whatever you prefer. She seems to be skipping back and forth between them. Oh, and here's the bomb: she's a doctor. In fact, the best doc the Light have. So beauty and brains. You say there's another lame-ass party in a week? You'll see her again there, and I bet you'll get her to play doctor with you!" The Djinn wickedly winked at her best friend. "Am I great or am I awesome?"
"Awesome, Kenz. Totally." Bo smiled but her mind drifted off again. Lauren Leavold? She should have known. The most beautiful woman in the room was the one that was totally off-limits but Bo was a Succubus. There was nobody that could resist her and if the victim was somebody she shouldn't have, all the better. Let the hunt begin, she thought, her eyes flashing cerulean blue without her noticing. Kenzi however, did and smirked even wider. Bo was totally in her seductress-mode.
Next time, the second meeting of our two ladies. I also might add that Nadia will be a reappearing topic throughout the story as it help me explain a lot about why Lauren sometimes acts the way she does or became the person she is. Anyway, please tell me what you thought, I'm eager to know!
