**AN: Sorry, it took so long for this chapter. Anyways, thanks for the reviews =) it is greatly appreciated. I do not own the House of Night series, any of it characters or affiliates. That being said, here is chapter 5. Happy Reading! NC**
Loren
"To be or not to be—that is the question. Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer…" The fledgling on stage was waving his hands around extravagantly as the soliloquy progressed. Too extravagantly. I was personally wondering when the boy planned to take flight.
Alright, so maybe he wasn't that bad, I conceded as he finished his speech to a roaring applause. My foul mood seeped ever deeper; partially because this was the fifth rendition of Shakespeare's Hamlet. In all honesty, who is teaching these kids? I mean, Shakespeare did a lot more than just Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet.
One of the fourth formers from the Tulsa House of Night took her place at center stage and began, "What fire in mine ears? Can this be true?" Ah! About time, I thought. Much Ado About Nothing was one of my favorite Shakespearean comedies. The girl continued through Beatrice's monologue, enrapturing the audience with her performance. She curtsied upon its completion and flounced behind the thick red curtains.
"Next, we have Erik Night from the Tulsa House of Night," a perky vamp wearing a floor length blue evening gown announced from the left side of the stage. Erik Night strolled out in the spot light from the right hand side, arms raised like a hero home from victory. He stopped, just short of the microphone, and bent his head down. When he lifted his face to meet the crowd, Erik Night no longer existed. In his place, he left a Moorish warrior desperately trying to explain how he fell in love with the Venetian princess and her with him.
"Her father lov'd me; oft invited me;
Still question'd me the story of my life
From year to year, the battles, sieges, fortunes
That I have pass'd."
As much as I hated him—hatred being the most severe understatement—it would be impossible for him to not get first place. Even I—who would surely kill him should I have to chance to make it look like an accident—could realize that talent like his lay unmatched with any others. Perhaps it was his gift from Nyx? She clearly did not gift him with manners, I scoffed.
My mother had metaphorically beat manners into me from a young age. Helping a lady with her jacket, holding doors for people, it was my thing. Call me old fashioned, but—well no buts… I am actually old, well twenty-five—it was always better when you were being polite. I briefly contemplated what my mother would think if she met Erik. I laughed internally. She would probably whack him upside the head with a wooden spoon the first chance she got. My mother was big on manners, and if you didn't have them, you learned them really quick with Mama. She didn't take well to rude people, or lack of manners in young children, especially if they were table manners. I chuckled, thinking back to a long time ago in my memories. My father sat at the head of the table, looking pretty much like me. Blonde hair, dark eyes, and tall. Yeah, that was my dad. Mama always sat on his right and my brothers and sisters filled in the remaining seats around the table.
That was the one downside to becoming a vamp—other than the chance of an early death. I loved my family, more than life itself, and I have to spend the next few decades with only memories of them—my family had fallen apart after my mother's death. I hadn't seen or heard from any of them since that day, other than the short call from a city hospital announcing the premature death of my father.
It had been somewhat easier for the other professors at the House of Night. Not simple, but easier. Neferet hated humans after the abuse her father put her through, Dragon and Anastasia found each other the same day the both got Marked and have been together since, and Lenobia was working at a factory when she was Marked. None of them remembered their families, or they didn't want to. I imagined that came with a different set of issues though. But again, they weren't the same as the constant remembrance of what you once had and knowing now that now you're all alone. I had no one to come home to but Wolverine. No wife or children, no one to tell about my day and to ask about theirs. No one to wake up to every morning. I just wanted to have that one person I could count on to be there for the rest of my existence. I wanted love, as bright and strong as the love my parents shared. The last woman I had even been with had been… Zoey.
I sighed. Mama would have liked Zoey. And, boy, my father would have gotten a kick out of her fire. The tiny Cherokee temptress had a spark to her. One that could explode and heat the world around her. There was something about her that sparked the poet in me.
It had been a long time since I had written poetry purely because I was inspired. I had done pieces required by my title. But with the loss in my muse in a world of politics and business, it was hard for my fingers to give birth to the swirling ink letters that so fondly expressed my every emotion. Zoey had cured my temporary disease. The proof of that lay scattered across the floor of my loft.
"She lov'd me for the dangers I had pass'd
And I lov'd her that she did pity them."
I stood in conjunction with those around me, generously applauding my adversary. I watched him bow and press two fingers to his lips before holding them out as if to hand his kiss the audience. He paused for a moment and then bowed his head and pressed the same two fingers against his heart. Overkill, I thought bitterly.
Erik strode off the stage, all smiles for the watching crowd. The next fledgling on stage was pretty much screwed. Anybody who followed that performance wasn't going to score very high—whether they were good or not. It would not be able to compare to Erik Night's rendition of Othello's soliloquy. And sure enough, without comparing her to Erik, the fledgling on stage performing Cleopatra's death scene was fantastic, at least top five worthy. But I knew the system all too well, and with Erik still fresh in the minds of the judges, this talented actress would be lucky to get anything above fifteenth place.
On and on the monologues went, further driving me to insanity. Shakespeare was an excellent study but after hearing one hundred and twenty five fledglings perform his monologues—one third of which, probably consisted of Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet—my mental nerves began to fry. It was with great elation that I finally burst through the open doors of the theater, breathing in the fresh air. I was with a great deal less enthusiasm, that the first thing I saw upon exiting those doors was Erik Night. As if to further grate my nerves, my ears picked up his conversation with the Barbie doll brunette in front of him.
"Yeah, we should definitely hang out sometime, B," Erik smiled and took a step closer to her.
Her voice was as smooth as silk, musical even, as she giggled, "That sounds great. I know this little coffee place by the hotel we could go to."
Erik smiled his perfect, white-toothed, charming guy smile, before gently saying, "Great, I can't wait. I'll see you when we get back to the hotel then."
I wanted to squish his tiny superman styled head under my foot. No good, cheating, lying, man whore, my thoughts screamed venom at him. Zoey deserved better than the pathetic excuse for a man standing that was Erik Night. I had never really liked him. At all.
It wasn't just his overwhelming perfection that had irritated me. There was something about his attitude that had always gotten to me. I had watched this fledgling strut around the House of Night like he owned the place. Erik had always thought about one person: himself. Thinking about it now, it made me realize why he probably didn't have a cat. I hadn't realized how close Erik had gotten to the giggling fledgling, but when I looked up he was practically becoming part of her. Any closer to her, Night, and you'll need to be surgically removed, I thought.
My anger boiled just beneath my skin as I watched as Erik lean in slowly and capture the girl's lips with his. I wanted to strangle the life out of this arrogant little asshole. My blood pounded through my veins, and unconsciously I took a few steps forward.
Maybe things would have been different, had I not seen this tiny exchange. Maybe, maybe not. But Erik had finally pushed me over the edge with this little scene. The idiot was lucky I wasn't going to cause a little scene of my own. Then again, I thought as he added another long kiss to the foolish girl within his grasp, maybe I will kill him.
I had to admit, for once, I was enraptured by a woman. Zoey had all the beauty and innocence a man could ever desire in one creature. And to see this… this, asshole man whore cheating on her, using her for nothing more than a reputation, a warm body; it made every nerve in my body explode into flames. Who knows whether or not I would have killed the prick if Professor Nolan hadn't of come over to talk to me before I could begin destroying him.
"So, what do you think? Do you think we have a chance at first with Erik?" she asked hopefully.
"I suppose. After all, Mr. Night is a highly talented actor," I knew she wouldn't catch the double meaning in my words. But as her expression morphed to confusion I quickly began to fear I had said too much.
Thankfully, Professor Nolan merely said, "I wonder when the SUV's are going to finally show up." I was severely hoping that they would be late. There was no way I would be able to sit in such a confined space with Erik Night without a high chance of his death. My mind scrolled through all the possibilities, each of them starting off well but ending badly for me.
Luckily for Erik, the SUVs didn't arrive for another twenty minutes; plenty of time for me to cool my blood and get a grip on myself. The ride was a short one, thank goddess. And in no time I was laying on my bed in my large one bedroom suite. My mind kept flashing back to Erik. The vision of him flirting with some ignorant girl followed by Zoey's broken expression, swirled through my head making me want to vomit. What was it about this tiny temptress that had me so tied in a knot?
I sighed and rubbed my face with my hands as if the motion would dispel the images harassing my mind. I knew deep down what I was going to do. I was going to fight against it, slamming myself in the opposite direction. But in the end, I knew what was going to happen. In the end, Erik would push me too far and I would either kill him or take Zoey for myself. In the end, against every fiber of my being, I would probably pursue Zoey Redbird.
I groaned internally and flicked off the lights to my fancy hotel room. Tomorrow morning (well, night), I would be on the House of Night's private jet, riding back to the school. Back to the conundrum that is a goddess faced Cherokee temptress. Tomorrow I would be on my way home to problems.
**AN: I know, I know… a bit on the short side, but I promise they'll get longer… Don't forget to Review! NC**