...
I've got a hunger twisting my stomach into knots
That my tongue is tied off
My brain's repeating
If you've got an impulse, let it out!
But they never make it past my mouth
This is the sound of settling
This is the sound of settling
[Death Cab for Cutie – The Sound of Settling]
...
Godric sighed annoyed, when he wiped the trail of blood away that had started to drip from his nose – again. Not only had he had problems falling asleep last morning, he had also awoken much earlier.
Under different circumstances he would have been happy about such extra time and used it productively, but at the moment he was not able to concentrate for more than a minute on a single task. Normally he could multitask easily, while supervising his surroundings almost automatically.
But as a petit young woman preyed on his mind with increasing frequency lately, he was glad if he was able to comprehend the last sentence he had read...
It was disturbing.
The way Laura had reacted, when he told her about his wish to spend their rests in separate sleeping quarters, had almost tempted him to backtrack. The hurt expression he had caught, when she finally realized what he was getting at, had led him to reconsider his decision.
But the more he thought about it, the surer he became that his choice had not only been the right one – it had been vital.
When he repeated the scene of Laura licking her fingers deliciously – almost sensually – in his mind, a shudder ran down his spine. He had been on the verge to jump her then and there, and even now – merely thinking of her – he couldn't deny the effect she had on his body.
What made the situation even trickier, was the fact that Laura's attractive scent seemed to haunt him as well. He had initially picked this room because there hadn't been any hint of her presence there, as it was situated on the other end of the hallway, where she had not set foot on yet.
Why was it that his room suddenly smelled of her then? Had she been sneaking into it while he slept?
With a low growl he slammed the chronicle he had tried to study shut and put it on the bedside-table, while he simultaneously got up to pay the Young One a visit. If she indeed had sneaked into his sleeping quarters while he had been dead for the day, it would be pointless to go to rest in a separate room again...
He knocked impatiently on her door, but when he did not receive an answer after he had tried it a second time, he became worried and concentrated his senses on finding her vital signs, to make sure she was well and just fast asleep.
But when he could neither hear the sound of her breathing, nor the soothing rhythm of her steady heartbeat, his worry immediately turned to panic and he rushed inside without thinking about knocking another time.
What his eyes witnessed then, should have made him suspicious – there was absolutely no way he could have been transported to France by merely opening a door in Eric's mansion, even less to France, as it had looked like at the time of the Second World War.
But his mind was solely focused on the fact, that Laura wasn't where she should have been and his surroundings only fanned his fear, hindering him to realize the most obvious.
He knew all too well where he was – this was Royan – and the scene that played out before his eyes, took place exactly the way it had been back then. Numbed by the fear of what was to come, he was forced to witness it helplessly: the baker who tried to sell his bread even if devastation and death was all around him, the desperate cries of a mother mourning the dead child in her arms to his left.
The raised dust clouded his vision and the debris everywhere made it difficult to maneuver himself through the streets without tripping, but then he saw it: the dark alley he knew he would find her.
Slowly his feet moved him automatically in its direction, carrying him closer. He did not want to go down there, but he seemed to have lost control over his body and with every step he drew nearer, he became more aware of the fact that he could smell her much too strongly, but still not feel her.
He had kept a close eye on the bond during his search with Eric. His son had been relentless when he approached him, requesting his help as he had found another lead, indicating that whoever had murdered his family currently resided in Germany, around Augsburg.
When he had tried to tell him, that it was a dangerous time for him to leave his love, as she was very vulnerable and unfortunately part of a demographic group Hitler was after, he had shown no sympathy and simply reminded him of the oath he had sworn shortly after his turning, to help him revenge his family. With a heavy heart he had admitted defeat and bid farewell to the woman he had come to care for over the last months to follow his son on his trail of vengeance.
Though he had felt her fear at times, it had always dimmed out again, without her being hurt. When he received a letter from her, telling him that her troupe had continued on, but she had stayed behind to wait for him.
He had cursed her persistency inwardly and would have been at her side within three nights – had his son not restrained him from doing so, reminding him of their mission once again.
He had never felt her pain in that eight months since her letter, but this afternoon he had felt it – he had already been on his way, resting for the day about three hours away – and had been woken by the intensity of her feelings. The fact that it had subsided all too fast and the fear this fact caused him to undergo, had kept him awake till sundown and he had flown towards Royan with a speed, he had not been aware he was capable of.
The fact, that he did not even have a bond with Laura, as he had been having it with Viola, did not cross his mind in that situation. He was too focused on this memory, on this scene playing out in front of his eyes.
Again he had been too late. And although he had already known it deep inside, the sight of her dead body lying in this very alley where Viola had once lain, caused him to break down at her side.
She had left him.
With a shaking hand he wiped her hair to the side, to make sure it was indeed Laura and not just an unfortunate woman resembling her. But when he glimpsed her expressionless face, her blue-grey eyes that had always been so full of life staring into nothingness, he had to accept that it was indeed his Little One lying lifeless in his arms.
She had really left him – although she had promised to never do exactly that.
Disgusted by himself he shook his head vehemently. How could he even think of blaming her?
Laura had been violated like Viola had – and he had not been there to prevent it, neither her raping, nor her murder. He had witnessed many times during his long lifetime, what people were capable of, when their world descended in chaos. The bereaved were mostly women and children, becoming an easy prey for angst-ridden men who sought to vent their frustration about their own defenselessness on them.
And now Laura had become such a prey.
It would have been so easy to defend her – he could have prevented it – he should have been with her!
But he was not.
He alone was to blame!
She would have had the opportunity to leave – to go with her troupe and live somewhere else, where man would not have judged her for what she was, where she had not been forced to live under a false name with false documents just because she was a Roma. But she stayed, fearing he would not find her if she continued on.
How could she have been so careless?
He cried out in pain when he thought of all the things he would never have the chance to witness again, like her beautiful voice, or her lively eyes. Never would he be able to cup her warm, flushed cheeks again, to feel her fragile arms tightening around him when he hugged her, or to show her how much she meant to him.
Trying to relieve himself from this unbearable emotion, his fingers desperately dug into the skin of his forehead and scratched ten deep, red lines over his entire face. The pain was so intense, that his vision became blurry for a few moments, but when it cleared again, his surroundings were suddenly totally different.
Though he was still ridden from the recent events, he quickly realized, that this must have been a dream – the horizontal position he was in, as well as the nightstand with the chronicle he had read in before he went to rest in the morning, sped the process up.
It was odd how Laura had morphed into Viola in his dream. Without him really noticing it – or at least not sparing it another thought – their lives had blurred into each other. But when he thought about it, it was quite fitting somehow: Viola had been the only human he had ever come to love and Laura was the only human he cared deeply about now.
He had not dared to think of his lovely violinist in the last decades and forced his mind to focus on another issue whenever she threatened to invade his thoughts. But now that he had been forced to do so, he realized that it did not feel as painful as he had thought it would.
It almost felt comforting that there had been indeed a human, who had been capable to love him...
When he suddenly felt something dripping onto the cushion, he cautiously touched his face and registered, that he obviously really had scratched it – if the blood on his fingers was any indication.
But it did not matter. His only concern was if Laura was still where he had left her in the morning and if she was fine.
With a start he sat in an upright position and listened intently to his surroundings. And really: he could detect the faint beat of Laura's heart and her slow but steady breathing. As it was hours before his usual waking time, she would probably still be asleep.
Without another thought he got up and left his room to silently sneak into hers without waking her.
What a pathetic hypocrite he was! He had accused Laura of doing the exact same thing in his dreams – not being overly happy about it himself! How would she react when she found out what he had done?
But he could not have lasted another minute without being absolutely sure, that she was fine. Hesitantly he approached her sleeping form and examined her peacefully slumbering face. The relief hitting him at her sight, caused his body to shake and he had troubles to maintain his standing position. When he spotted traces of dried tears on the soft skin of her cheeks, he leant down, about to follow their route with his fingertips.
Fortunately he became aware of the state his hand was still in and pulled it back, before he could have touched her. After a short mental debate wether or not he should wash his blood off – for he knew he would be tempted to continue where he left off, as soon as his fingers were clean again – he headed to her bathroom and got rid of it.
He had believed her to be dead and he would make use of every single one of his senses to make sure that she was not – that all had indeed been a horrible nightmare.
He needed this to calm down again.
Immediately after he had cleaned himself, he returned to crouch beside her and enjoyed the simple fact, that he was able to watch her breathing steadily. But those dried tears on her face still bothered him.
Had she been mourning her grandmother again? Or had something else upset her – something she had not yet shared with him?
When he pondered if she had shown any signs of a depression the night before, he remembered the hurt look she had examined him with before she had shut the door in his face.
Could it be, that she had cried because of him?
The mere thought of that possibility nauseated him and an uncomfortable lump formed in his throat, causing him to gulp.
Hesitantly he allowed his eyes to roam over her body, or at least the revealed parts of it. The blanket hid her lower areas up to about three inches above her hips, which left quite a lot for him to explore.
She had put a simple cotton shirt on and the way her beautifully formed breasts were showing underneath it, led him to conclude she was not wearing anything beneath it. Her body was facing to the side and the bulge of the blanket made obvious, that she had drawn her knees up.
He could have easily snuggled into her from behind, relishing the fact that she had not left him – that this terrible nightmare had just been exactly that: a nightmare.
But would it not go against their agreement?
When he considered it more carefully – she had not seemed to be overly fond of the idea anyway and he could always leave before she would wake up. Other than him she would not be able to notice his scent lingering in her room...
Without another thought he undressed as usual, leaving only his shorts on to prevent startling her (though he would have preferred to sleep completely naked) and lifted the blanket to position himself behind her. Carefully he wrapped his arm around her petit body and closed the remaining gap until not even a piece of paper would have fit between them.
He was surprised by the intensity of the feelings flooding his body when he held her in his arms again. It had only been a few hours since he had embraced her the last time, but it felt as if it had rather been decades. And now he had returned from a long and tiring journey to finally come home.
It felt so good!
This nightmare had obviously cut him to the quick and he was well aware that he behaved like a little boy – snuggling into a female body to seek safety and comfort, to forget about everything else – but it just felt so right to be by her side!
He nestled his cheek in the crook of her neck and inhaled deeply. This moment when their scents mingled was the most satisfying one he could think about. It was the only way he allowed himself to mark her and though the method was most innocent, he enjoyed it to the fullest! Unfortunately his scent would only remain until she washed her body the next time – the major disadvantage of this approach.
But even if he ached to stake his claim in a more permanent way: making her smell of him would remain the only way he would allow himself to. He would not be so selfish as to draw her into his world – the brutality and deception of his kind would only cause her pain and sorrow in the end...
With a sigh he allowed his fingertips to trail down her arm, interlacing his fingers with hers when they arrived at her hand, while his arm pulled her gently closer in the same movement. His other arm had wandered under the pillow, allowing him to lay his head comfortably onto it and still be able to nestle his face up to Laura's inviting neck.
With his eyes closed and her soft hair grazing his cheek, he concentrated every fiber of his body on branding this lovely moment on his memory. How her gorgeous body molded into his. How her warmth slowly seeped into him. How her wonderful scent reminded him of a blend of blueberries and fields of sunlit wheat at the hight of summer.
He could not help but chuckle at that thought. It was interesting that her scent brought food of all things to his mind. He had not savored anything beside blood for over two millennia and would not have been able to remember the berries' or corns' taste, even if his life had depended on it.
But for some reason her scent reminded him of these distinct smells, even if he had avoided the sun as long as he avoided digesting food. Would her blood taste like the things she smelled of?
He could not tell how long he dwelled on his thoughts, but he knew it must have been quite some time, when he realized that Laura's heartbeat, as well as her breathing pattern slightly increased, indicating that she would wake up soon.
For a few seconds he considered to retreat, but concluded that her potential anger would be worth the moments he could remain at her side before she would awake.
When he felt her stir, he began to caress the back of her hand with circling movements of his thumb and drew her body even closer to his to make her feel safe and prevent startling her with his presence. As his head still lay partly in the crook of her neck, he could see how her eyes finally fluttered open and her face first displayed a surprised, then a slightly displeased expression.
"I thought you wanted to spend your rest in another room", she stated dryly, but didn't seem to intend to escape his embrace. This had to be a good sign.
"I did", he told her carefully, "And I promise this will remain an exception."
"This was the first night and you already make exceptions?", she asked in a disbelieving and somewhat bitter tone, but still did not move away from him. "Why are you here? You wanted this – why did you suddenly change your mind?"
The usual soft and kind tone in her voice was completely gone and replaced by a harsh and unyielding one. He could see that she had furrowed her eyebrows and stared at their interlaced fingers furiously.
Understanding this as her way of telling him to let go of her, he reluctantly removed his hand and pulled his arm back to rest it on his side. "I had a nightmare and wanted to make sure that you are alright", he admitted gently, while he intently observed her reaction.
Laura suddenly shifted her body to lie on her back and eyed him with a suspicious side-glare. "I did not know that vampires have dreams", she stated doubtfully and cocked one of her beautifully formed eyebrows. Sighing softly, Godric hesitated for few moments, before he tried to explain.
"It is rare, but not impossible for my kind to dream", he told her honestly and felt how he lost control of his own face, probably displaying a somewhat unhappy expression. He better should have left when he had the chance to. It was not pleasant to be eyed with this almost hostile glare – this was definitely not how he wanted her to look at him.
"I know I had absolutely no right to enter your room, even less to seek your physical closeness. It just felt so right at that moment, that I could not resist..."
Her expression suddenly changed to a stunned one, before she bit on her luscious bottom lip and furrowed her eyebrows slightly. "You really had a nightmare", she whispered, when she obviously realized that he had not been joking and looked at him ruefully. "I'm sorry Godric", she told him softly and lifted her hand to cup his cheek, before she shifted her body to the side again to face him fully. "Would you like to talk about it?"
Glad about her change of mind, he leant into her touch with closed eyes and enjoyed the feeling, not able to suppress a purr. It was a sound he seldom had felt the urge to produce in his almost 2300 years on this earth, but right now he could not help it.
When he heard her chuckle, he immediately stopped and opened his eyes in surprise.
"You sound like a very content tomcat", she pointed out and showed him an amused grin.
"I suppose I feel like a very content tomcat would", he replied nonchalantly and put his arm around her again to pull her closer. Without another thought he snuggled his face into the crook of her neck once more, marking the other side of her throat with his scent without her noticing it. If she compared him to a tomcat, a tomcat she would get!
Her infectious laugh caused him to grin into the inviting skin of her neck and the joy he felt that moment, educed another purr from him. When her hand wandered to his neck, running her fingers through his hair there, she asked once more: "Are you sure you don't want to share your dream with me? Sometimes talking about a problem helps – and dreams usually have a reason, you know..."
He slowly lifted his head from this pleasant place it had rested in and sighed. "It is already forgotten, Laura", he assured her and brushed his thumb over her cheek in a caring manner.
"Well, I'm glad my mere presence obviously causes your brain cells to go on strike", she mocked and sticked her tongue out to him.
"It indeed does", he admitted and chuckled softly about her choice of words, "Though in another way than you just implied. You make me forget about problems I may have and thoughts that usually plague me."
Her eyes widened in surprise at that statement and only caused him to chuckle again. "I do?", she asked disbelieving and put her hand on his chest, pushing her body back a bit to have a better view of his face. Those mesmerizing grey-blue eyes of her seemed to look for any hint of untruth, but fortunately she obviously found none – if the careful smile developing around her lips was any indication.
"Yes, you do Laura", he assured her with a smile and tightened his arms around her body, pulling her closer again in that process, deeply thankful for the opportunity to hold her like that again.
When they filled Eric and Pamela in about their exact traveling plans that night, his grand-progeny had pointed out that Laura would probably wish to have a female companion at certain stops on their route and selflessly offered to join up with them, as soon as they reached Berlin, Paris, London, Barcelona or Rome – whichever they arrived at first.
Eric had just rolled his eyes and muttered something about needing to limit her credit card, but when he felt for the bond to his son, everything he could detect was approval and contentment.
They visited Fangtasia the next night, as Pamela wanted to show Laura around – for whatever reason. But after the first vampire approached her inappropriately, he deemed it healthier for everyone to spend the rest of the night at Eric's house again.
On their last night in Shreveport he accidentally interrupted a video-conference between Laura and her mother. He had misinterpreted her "Good night Dad – bye" as end of the conversation, not being aware that her other parent was still an active part of it.
Laura's mother had obviously been delighted when he entered the frame, as he heard her mentioning how "handsome" he looked and how much she wished to meet him in person one day. If she only knew...
When he realized his lapse, he apologized and turned to leave again, but both women objected in unison and asked him to take part in their conversation instead. He was a bit baffled by this offer, but accepted and made himself comfortable on the bed beside Laura.
Both deliberately ignored her mother's statement how nice they fit there, though he did not miss how beautifully Laura blushed when her parent winked at them.
As the two women were mostly gossiping about people they both knew he sat silently beside them most of the time, only nodding here and there, when they asked him about his opinion to something. He had not known that his Laura was someone who partook in such an activity, but other than he had thought, he had to admit that he liked even this trait on her.
Only when their conversation turned to their traveling plans, he became more involved in it and when her mother asked, if it was possible to see them a last time in person before they would depart, he had agreed without hesitation. Just when he felt Laura's elbow hit his ribcage, he turned his head to face her and became aware of her displeased expression.
Her brows were furrowed a bit and her mouth formed a thin line, while she folded her arms in front of the chest. "I don't think that's a good idea!"
"Why not sweetie?", he heard her mother ask, but did not dare to avert his gaze from Laura, as she still stared quite pissed at him.
"I really want to start this trip soon", she stated dryly, but when she saw his obviously confused face, she explained, "I don't want to repeat what happened when you guys met the last time! I don't want to be forced to take a plane to another country to find Godric again, if something goes wrong!"
He gulped hard at that statement and averted his face in shame, forgetting that the camera would still capture it. "Oh darling – I'm so sorry for what happened!", her mother suddenly apologized, which attracted his attention, "I can't remember anything, but I want to tell you that I'm sorry for whatever we said Godric! We did not know you and had no night to judge you!"
"You know about that night?", he asked in a disbelieving voice when he realized what she just had said. Had his glamour not worked? Had he not phrased it carefully enough?
"Yes, Laura told us as soon as we gave her a chance to", the woman who looked so much like his lovely young friend answered with a somewhat bitter smile, "I can only imagine what we must have said, that it caused you to take such measures – I hope you'll forgive us!"
Godric looked baffled at the screen before he turned to face Laura with an equally stunned look. She only shrugged and grinned at him, forming her lips to a silent "It worked".
They arrived at Dallas about two hours before sunrise and as he did not want Laura to strain herself, he carried their possessions the short way from the cab to his house. Though she protested as if it was a big deal to transport her duffle bag, it was nothing that took even the slightest effort – and it was not as if he had much to carry on his own. Everything he had taken with him to Shreveport had been the Bonsai she had gifted him with and to ensure that it was taken care of while they were 'on the road' so to say, he had left it there and instructed his son what needed to be done to keep it nourished.
When they prepared themselves for their day rests, it was the first time, that she did not go to sleep in his sleeping quarters while residing at his home. She was just in the next room, but still it was something he had to adjust to – even if they had not shared a bed the last few days either. They were back to 'normality' now and it would take some time until he accepted that this was how things were now. Friends did not share beds after all – at least not, if they intended to stay friends...
Like Eric had predicted, the expression on Laura's face was priceless, when they arrived at the airport three nights later. As he had purchased two economy class tickets for them online – with her supervising every single move he made – she had concluded they would use those tickets. There would even have been a stopover in Dubai – as if he ever would expose her to such a stressful journey!
When his mischievous son had brought that prank to his mind, he had at first been inclined to give him a scolding hit on the back of his head for such notions. Eric had to endure much more for even less in the past, so he assumed it would not have hurt him overly much – just enough for causing him to let go of such ideas.
But when he had been about to lift his arm, his son had interrupted him with a simple request: "Just think of her beautiful eyes widening in surprise – of her luscious lips parting in awe! Think of the cute little line appearing between her eyebrows when she realizes that you've managed to trick her!"
A knowing smirk had spread on his Viking's face then, as he knew his words had already enticed him. Eric had examined him briefly, before he leant forward to whisper the rest of his prognosis directly into his ear. "Now think of how happy she will be to find out, that she wouldn't have to spend ten long hours in an uncomfortable seat, squashed between strangers, but rather relax in the cushions of your jet's seating area – surrounded only by you... Think of all the ways you could-"
"Stop it Eric!"
He himself had been surprised by the harshness in his tone. Almost embarrassed he averted his gaze and addressed him with a much calmer voice. "I do not have to be a clairvoyant to know what you were about to suggest", he had noted dryly and was not able to suppress a heavy sigh, "You should accept my wish to keep my distance – or at least accept hers!"
"Oh, believe me father, she would-", his son had tried to reason, but he only needed to lift his hand and glare warningly at him to end their discussion.
He had not thought about this conversation much, but Laura's reaction reminded him of Eric's words, as she acted exactly like he had predicted – and just then her eyebrows slightly furrowed to show the thin line he had talked about.
He was not sure if he should be proud of his progeny's observational skills, or upset because he almost knew his Laura better than he did...
"What's with the tickets you've bought?", she asked disbelievingly and with the hint of an accusing tone in her voice, while they approached his jet.
"I gave them away", he told her casually, but could not suppress a grin when her suspicious glare changed to a baffled one, "Two students were quite happy about seeing their families again, without having to spend money on the flight!" Now that he thought about it, he took a mental note to comp things, that were not exactly cheap for most people, more often. It felt good to be a bit altruistic once in a while...
"Well – at least I don't have such a guilty conscience anymore, now that I've seen just how wealthy you are...", she muttered and accepted his outstretched hand, before he helped her to climb the steps up to the cabin.
She had been plagued by multiple headache-attacks and vertigoes the last couple of days and he did not intend to risk her falling down the stairs.
"Wow", she suddenly whispered and stopped in her tracks when they had entered the cabin. It was nothing really fancy in his eyes, but he had never given much thought to such things – the interior served it's purpose by creating a comfortable atmosphere and that was all he needed.
Her eyes roamed over the wood-paneling and the portholes to the cozy seating area, becoming wider the further she looked. "This is beautiful Godric", she whispered in awe, which elicited a soft chuckle from him. This obviously surprised her, because she wheeled around to eye him with a slightly confused expression on her face.
"It's nothing compared to Eric and Pam's jet, but it will do", he informed her with a wink and left her for a second to store their luggage away.
He had been positively surprised to notice that she traveled very light, compared to other women he knew. The heaviest bag was probably her backpack, as she had stored her notebook and two cameras into it – a digital reflex camera her father had bought her for Christmas a few years ago and the analog one her grandfather had earned his money with.
That certainly meant, that she had packed a few lenses as well and of course those electronic devices needed charging equipment too. He was really glad she had allowed him to carry her luggage – he feared she would have tilted backwards as soon as she tried to shoulder it...
Laura was just about to make herself comfortable on the beige cushioned couch, when the two shifters he had hired, entered the cabin, one of them closing the door behind him.
"Good evening Sir! Are you ready to depart?", the woman asked politely and bowed her head slightly to him, the man behind her following her example. With displeasure Godric realized, that both seemed to ignore Laura completely – despite the fact that she had even been kind enough to get up for greeting them.
"We are", he stated coolly and examined them with a reprimanding stare, "But first I think it would be appropriate to introduce yourself to my guest!"
The woman's eyes widened briefly and scurried finally to Laura, before she bowed her head again – this time in an apologetic manner.
"I am sorry Sir – of course we should introduce ourselves!", she admitted in embarrassment, "This is Gerry White – the copilot and steward. If you wish to drink or eat anything, or if you have any questions, you only need to press that button above the seating area – yes, exactly that one – and he will be at your side within a few moments.
"I am Anne White. I'll fly you to Istanbul and every other destination you wish me to. Other than what I just told you, we are also your contact persons for the entire length of this journey, should you need anything during the day. We will try to see to your requests with all available recourses, Ms. Freeman."
His Young One seemed a bit baffled by this flood of information, but simply nodded in understanding.
"But please – just call me Laura", was all she asked for at that moment and he could detect a hint of embarrassment in her voice. Godric was not able to suppress the faint smile that forced itself onto his face – she was such a modest one...
"Only if you accept to call us Anne and Gerry", Mr. White finally found his voice as well and smiled at her, while he put his arm around his wife's waist, which she obviously did not exactly approve of – if her sour side-glare at him was any indication. How he always tried to mark his territory in his presence was not very impressive – rather ridiculous...
"Accepted!", Laura chimed with a grin and beamed at the two shifters.
"Well – we will start with the departure-procedure then", Mrs. White informed them factually, "We will take off in a few minutes. Have a good flight!"
Godric liked how she always focused on the necessary matters and this was one of the reasons why she was the pilot – not her husband. He could be a spitfire and was much too lightheaded when it mattered, while his wife always stayed in control and made the right decisions when they were needed the most.
Both shifters nodded a last time at both of them and turned to head to the cockpit then. Laura had already made herself comfortable on the couch again and patted the vacant seat beside her invitingly, when he had obviously examined her lovely appearance a moment too long. He could not help but smile when he sat down beside her, being once again reminded of her innocent nature.
Her clothing revealed less skin than usual, as she wore 'comfy pants' – as she named them. The customary blouse was replaced by one of the cotton shirts she normally wore to sleep.
"Do you think they'll allow me into the cockpit to take a few photographs when the sun comes up?", she asked excited and eyed him hopefully. He could not suppress a chuckle, as he was pleasantly reminded how easy it was to make her happy. If he only could have been with her when she glimpsed the first sun rays...
"Of course they will, Laura", he assured her and leant back in his seat, "It will not be long. Which one of your cameras do you intend to use?"
"I think I'll take both – I should better make use of such an opportunity", she told him thoughtfully and winked at him, "I'd like to get them if you tell me where-"
But he did not let her finish that sentence and had already sprinted to the back, fetching her backpack. He contemplated bringing her only the cameras for a moment, when he picked it up and became aware of its weight again, but then he remembered how she had reacted the last time he had taken something out of her luggage. As he was not keen on incurring her wrath, he abandoned that thought and returned with her whole rucksack.
"-you put it", she ended her sentence dryly and continued with a sour tone, "You know that it's impolite to just disappear when somebody's talking to you?!"
"I had a good reason – you would have given yourself a hernia if you tried to shoulder it!", he told her gently but could not help grinning, when she accepted the bag and immediately started to search for her cameras.
"I will retreat now, Laura – the sun will rise soon", he told her while she pulled her grandfathers camera out of the rucksack, "Should you get tired later: behind this door are several light-tight bunks. Feel free to use whichever you like."
"You sure?", he head her asking when he had already turned to leave and looked over his shoulder at her. She had cocked her head to the side and grinned at him mischievously. Had he just said something wrong?
"Of course, Laura", he confirmed, his confusion blatantly ringing in his voice. But when she smiled at him honestly, he simply shrugged it off. Maybe he had imagined her conspiring expression...
"I hope you will be able to capture the scenes you desire to see", he told her gently, before he vanished in the back to hide from the first sun rays. Almost automatically his body moved him to his usual cabin, where he immediately unclothed and slipped under the blanket.
It was odd how he woke earlier and earlier with every decade, but as soon as the sun was about rise above the horizon, he felt the pull – the desperate need to rest in a dark and safe place. Of course, a plane was by no means safe, but it had to do for now and he trusted Mrs. White to take them safely to their destination.
He had not really fallen asleep yet, when he was suddenly startled by the sound of the door-handle being turned. When he forced one of his eyes open to see what was going on, he saw Laura stumbling inside with her digital camera in her hand. He would have been surprised if it had been one of the Whites, as he had forbad them to enter this part of the jet unless it was an emergency. Still he was a bit baffled to see Laura so soon.
"I had hoped you'd still be awake", she chimed, when she had obviously caught him staring at her. He had absolutely no idea how she had been able to do that, as the little screen of her digital camera was the only light source in this room, but before he could have protested, she sat beside him. "Look at that – isn't it beautiful?"
Baffled he examined her for a moment, inwardly doubting her usually omnipresent empathy, before he forced his body in an upright position. As inconspicuous as possible, he made sure that the blanked hid his lower body properly, before he finally looked at what she had been holding out to him the whole time.
What the screen of her camera showed, was only a tiny picture of what she had seen outside, but it was indeed beautiful. The clouds formed a fluffy blanket, only a few of them towering like mountains like imposing mountains. All was basically held in blue and violet tones, but the edges of each cloud showed a deep orange color, where the sunlight touched it.
When Laura Flipped to the next picture and then the next, the orange tone became more dominant with every scene and when she showed him the last shot, the sky already had a light blue color, while the clouds were colored in a soft yellowish rose.
"These pictures are amazing", he admitted and looked up to smile at her, "Thank you for sharing them with me..."
It had been a while since he had seen the sun rise like that. Of course he had watched movie scenes of it when color film had been invented and he had to admit, he had been almost addicted to absorbing those back then. But it soon lost its appeal – after all he would never be able to ever see it in real life and that fact ruined every attempt to enjoy such scenes after some time.
Seeing those pictures now, knowing that they were Laura's work, that she had seen those scenes with her own eyes before she captured them and showed the photographs to him, was something totally different though.
The urge to pull her close, to bury his face in the crook of her neck and to kiss every inch of her glorious body was very, very present at that moment. Only the fact that he was still naked under the blanket and that she would probably not approve of his actions, managed to hold him back.
"It was the least I could have done", she told him, totally serious suddenly and reached for his hand with her free one, "Thank you so much for that experience!"
The last sentence had not been more than a whisper, but he had caught it nonetheless. It warmed him from within to hear her voice such things. She looked so very happy that moment and the fact that he had enabled it, filled him with a joy he had not felt in years.
"I don't know how I will ever be able to make it up to you...", she muttered and lowered the camera to her side again, staring at their still linked hands absentmindedly.
Was the fact that she sat here with him, that she had been willing to make this trip with him, not enough already? How could she think she would ever be in his debt, after she had shared so much of her precious time with him?
"If anything, then I am indebted to you – not the other way around!", he clarified and squeezed her hand gently to get her attention. When she lifted her head to face him with a baffled expression, all he could do was smile at her.
"What kind of twisted logic is that?!", she asked him confused, "You practically lay the world to my feet – you offer to take me wherever I'd like to be – and you think you're in my debt?!"
He chuckled at how she had phrased that and drew her hand up to his lips to lay a gentle kiss on its back. "If it was in my power, I would indeed lay the world to your feet", he admitted with an impish smile, "I wonder how you would look if I did."
"That's not funny Godric, I'm serious!", she told him annoyed and withdrew her hand. First he thought he had accidentally offended her and she was about to leave, but she merely put the camera on the nightstand and lit the lamp installed there (which fortunately spent only a dimmed light), before she faced him again.
"You do so much for me – you literally make my wishes come true!", she pointed out and examined his face almost desperately for a moment, as if she hoped to find an answer for some unspoken question there. "There must be something I can do for you too! You surely have wishes or goals too – maybe I can help you make some come true as well! Please tell me Godric – I'd do anything for you!"
He inhaled sharply at that statement and grit his teeth to avoid his canines to pop out. Was she mad to state something like that? She could not really mean that...
"You should be more careful what you say, Laura", he advised and tried so sound as gentle as possible, but he had trouble to control his emotions appropriately, "Someone else may take advantage of such an offer!"
"Well, that was the intention of that offer!", she stated dryly, "I'd literally do anything for you – just name it and I'll do whatever it is as best as I can."
He stared at her thunderstruck and really contemplated telling her what he wished her to do for a moment. That he wanted her to kiss him like she had kissed that pest on his threshold. That he wished to hear her moan like she had moaned then. That he ached to go much further with her, than she had with any other man before...
But he gulped it down and just kept staring until she sighed and pulled her pants down her legs.
What the hell was she doing there? Had he accidentally voiced any of his thoughts out loud?
"Laura, what-...?", was all he was able to stammer when she suddenly lifted the blanket. Fortunately he was able to hold it down at his side in the last moment and watched bewildered how she slid underneath it, making herself comfortable beside him.
"You said I could use whichever bunk I liked – didn't you?", she reminded him with a grin, when she turned to him and planted her head on top of one of her hands, laying on the cushion.
"Yes, I indeed did", he confirmed, slowly realizing what she was getting at, when she reached back with her hand to turn the light off again. She merely wanted to sleep beside him again.
"Good day, Godric. Have nice dreams", she yawned and he watched as she snuggled into the cushion and pulled the blanket tighter around her body.
Why was it that he suddenly felt kind of disappointed?
AN: hey again :) I hope you liked this Godric-POV chapter - I had some troubles writing it, but now I'm at least partly satisfied with the result. I'm afraid it wouldn't get any better - not with my current English knowledge that is -_-
a big thanks to galwidanatitud, Guest, WinchesterGirl2975, downbelowgirl, Mr. and Ms. Cuddles and Arenola again! I really appreciate your kind words!
Guest: I'm glad you liked the last chapter - I hope this one was well received as well ;) I'm usually quite unsure when it comes to how I characterize Eric and Godric - so I'm very happy that you liked Eric's and Laura's interaction :)
I hope some of you will leave me reviews again - it's really motivating to read your opinions ;)
Thanks for reading! 'Till the next chapter ;)