Isabeau and Lauren
"Lauren, I'm sorry!." Isabeau spoke softly as she rubbed her hands up and down the woman's arms.
"It's not your fault. I agreed to stay out." Lauren's teeth chattered as she spoke. The women stood inside of a cabin near a fireplace.
"Here, let's get you settled and most of all comfortable." Isabeau grabbed two blankets and wrapped the doctor like a burrito.
"How am I supposed to drink anything like this?." Lauren laughed.
"Ohhh, are you thirsty!?." Isabeau smiled, left the room and returned shortly. She smiled and took a seat. "Let's see we have water, wine, whiskey, milk and juice. Do any of these sound good?."
"Water. I think I've had enough liquor for the evening." Lauren smiled and took the bottle.
"It is getting late, Lauren. If you are ready for bed, there are two bedrooms here." Isabeau rubbed her hands on her pants and looked around the place.
"Do you want to go home?." Lauren asked.
"What? No! Why do you ask?." Isabeau turned back to the doctor.
"You don't look comfortable here. If we go home we won't be on neutral turf, so to speak. It wouldn't be fair to have home field advantage, so to speak." Lauren gave her bottle back and grabbed her blankets again.
"Lauren, wherever you are will always be fine with me. I am not ready to go home, I'm just anxious, that's all." Isabeau covered her face.
"Wait, was I about to win?." Lauren perked up.
"No. I can hold off for as long as you can." Isabeau laughed and took the seat across from Lauren. She looked at the fireplace and smiled.
"Can I ask you something?." Lauren cleared her throat.
"Sure!." Isabeau stared deep into the doctor's eyes.
"Why do you like being called Isabeau? I saw something with just Bo on it once." Lauren leaned back in her chair.
"I don't like pet names. When I first saw Isabeau written on something of mine, I asked to be called that. Not sweetie. Not honey. Not dear. Just Isabeau. Then I met mom and she told me why I was named that. After that, I was never going to go by anything else. I like the name and carry it with pride for my grandmother." Isabeau smiled as she spoke and Lauren saw it all. Pride. Adoration for her mother and grandmother.
"Well, thank you for explaining. I had been meaning to ask. I just didn't want to come across as being rude and be nosy." Lauren nodded.
"Lauren, you can ask me anything without having to ask permission first." Isabeau's voice nearly cracked and she cleared her throat to recover.
"Again! I almost won again!." Lauren dropped her blankets and pumped her fist.
"Hey! Back under your blankets until you are warmer." Isabeau laughed and nearly jumped in the doctor's lap to wrap the covers around her again. "Oh, you are warmer." She looked at Lauren's eyes, then her lips and then shook her head. "Okay. That time you almost won. But back to the game and your comfort."
"What's there to eat here? I haven't looked around since we got here. I was told it was completely stocked though." Lauren nudged towards the kitchen.
"The fridge is completely stocked. I didn't check the cupboards, yet." Isabeau gently pushed off of Laruen's chair and went to take inventory. When she came back, Lauren listened to her list. "Canned soups and vegetables. Hot and cold cereal. Fruit, juice, cheese sticks, pizzas, milk and meats."
"I will stick with the water." Lauren leaned back.
"Hey, we can dance if you're bored." Isabeau frowned. During their date it had started to snow, so they had to make additional plans. Isabeau wanted to make the arrangements but Lauren insisted she be the one that handles this part. The succubus bowed and let her do whatever she wanted to do.
"I'm not bored!." Lauren smiled and jumped up. She grabbed her hat and started to dance with it.
Isabeau sighed and watched her. "You've ridden a mechanical bull before, haven't you?." She laughed.
"I have. I had to do something to wind down in college." Lauren laughed as she put her hat on.
Isabeau put on some music, grabbed her hat and walked over to the woman. They stood eye to eye. Each raised their hands and the other one took them as they started to slowly dance. Lauren tried not to blink but she couldn't help it. It started to burn and she didn't want to miss a moment of this. Isabeau looks absolutely gorgeous in a black hat with her black hair hanging down her back and around her shoulders. She parted her lips and looked away in hysteria.
"Almost lost?." Isabeau whispered.
"I did. I did!." Lauren laughed.
"Lauren, we don't have to do it like this. It's unfair to you. I was just joking about it, but if it is too much, we can call it off. It will happen when we're ready." Isabeau bit her lip and rocked the woman around in her arms.
"I'm not a quitter." Lauren looked the woman dead in her eyes.
"I didn't say you were." Isabeau laughed at the tone the woman used. "But that almost had me."
"Really, this is not boring. It's not unfair to me. It's fun. Besides, how will we get to know each other and how will it stay fresh if we don't do this? I could be in a clinic somewhere and you could be with your mother." Lauren adjusted her hat and looked at the woman again.
"She was really bad off. When I found her. I vowed then and there wherever I went, she would be there too. When she got stronger, we got closer and have been that way since. She feels grandmother never got to be a real mother to her, so, I'm allowing her to be one with me. Besides Dougie, I was lonely too. But now I have family and a dear friend at the other end of any phone that I call him from." Isabeau twitched her nose and a tear fell. Lauren wiped it and pulled back. "We need a better beat." She walked over and changed the radio station.
Isabeau bent over laughing when Lauren started to do the craziest dances she had ever seen. She knew the doctor in her knew she needed to change the mood to try and mend the pain inside the succubus.
"Hey, it was getting gloomy in here. I won't have you like that. You are exactly where you need to be. Right here. Right now." Lauren danced like a fool but she didn't care. She has rhythm but doesn't need to be so serious and competitive right now.
"Is that your professional opinion or...
"It's all of my opinion." Lauren gently cut her off and started her crazed dance again. Isabeau laughed and started dancing crazy too.
Aife
"I know you're there. You have always had that cheap, rat piss cologne." Aife spoke over her shoulder.
"Where is she?." Trick asked.
"I don't know but even if I did, I would never tell you. I'm shocked your baby nuts has the guts to ask me that." Aife never turned around. Why? He would probably ogle her face looking for a glimpse of the old queen. That would be disgusting.
"She's my granddaughter. I want to get to know her. You can't keep me from her forever." Trick walked forward.
"I don't have to keep you from her. She already despised you the minute that she saw you. That girl makes mama proud. She doesn't take shit from anyone. She will wear her own crown that won't be tied to a cowardly king like yourself." Aife stayed where she was. She never moved forwards or backwards. She didn't lie about not knowing where the girls are, when Isabeau is ready to tell her, she will. Until then, the succubus is free to have her own fun.
"I'm not the same, Aife. I've changed." Trick held his hands up.
"Bullshit. You are the same. You want what you want when you want it and how you want it. She will never welcome you. She's dark. Not a dark Fae but her succubus is darker than anything you could have ever imagined. I hate her bastard father but I adore my Isabeau. My Isabeau." Aife was nearly in tears talking about the succubus. She literally owes her baby her life and she will devote that life to paying her back for it.
"I can help her with that." Trick stood still.
"She wouldn't ask for your help if her ass was on fire. Shouldn't have given your only born away but then again my daughter wouldn't have been born. Born to raise hell, literally. Born to save her mother from my own hell. She's a good succubus but when she hates, she hates." Aife walked over and poured herself a drink.
"She will need me one day, Aife. Remember that." Trick turned to leave.
"Need you? Your blood is piss compared to hers. The only part of your blood that she will ever like is her mother." Aife threw her glass into the fireplace and poured another drink. She always hated drinking out of the same glass more than once.
"Well? Did she tell you anything?." Kenzi asked.
"Kenzi, what are you doing here?." Trick asked as he shut the door behind him.
"Your car is easy to spot and where is the succubus?." Kenzi asked. Trick's silence was her answer. "Ahh the all powerful Blood King can't get intel from a crazy succubus. What would the other Fae think of this?." Kenzi threw her arms in the air.
"You know two Fae, Kenzi. Be happy with us. Me and Dyson." Trick rolled his eyes as he walked.
"No. I want that Succubus. She will pay for what she did to me. That shit from earlier today too. I don't dress in all white! That was bullshit. She will mate with Dyson. Once she does, she's ours. Ours to use to fight anyone we want. Ours to make you a great-grandfather. I know you want that too. All of that." Kenzi rambled off as they walked down the small walkway towards Trick's car.
"Kenzi, you need sleep because you have completely lost your mind. There is no way I want anything of Dyson's as my blood. He's a wolf. Wolves can die if they piss off the wrong people. So can you if you don't do as I say and go to bed." Trick looked up at Kenzi and for the first time in her life, she backed away.
"You wouldn't! You wouldn't curse me with your blood. I'm Kenzi, Trick!." Kenzi stayed backing up until her back hit a wall.
"No wolf will mate with my blood. Ever." Trick gritted his teeth. He always had to do that as a last resort for Kenzi to listen to him.
"Fine. No Dyson but she will still be ours. We just need to plan better. See you tomorrow. After I've slept." Kenzi rolled her eyes and threw a rock against the wall.
Trick took a deep breath and walked towards his car. He climbed in and drove away. He could have given Kenzi a ride to wherever she was going but she would be asking a million questions and plotting her own death, if she hadn't already.
"Dyson! We have got to do something, now. Trick just threatened me. So, it has to be me and you. Get Aife!." Kenzi stood with her back against the wall as she talked. She didn't wait for a response. He would come to her or he wouldn't. Either way her plan will go forward. That succubus pissed off the wrong human. Storming into town like she owns the place. The Dal Riata, no less. That has been her bar for years. Many Fae have been banished from there on her word alone. She always had to play the human pity card and Dyson always felll for it. Then Trick. It's why she tries to keep the same weight. If she gained some weight, her act wouldn't be as effective.
Dyson watched his phone ring but ignored it. He was too close to the old Succubus to stop now. Perfect time to get her and see what Isabeau would be willing to trade for her. Money? Lauren? Sex? He smiled at the last thought. He pulled himself out of his smile and went back to his stakeout.
Aife.
"Did you get what I asked for?." Aife asked.
"Yes, ma'am. I also have something else for you." A man handed Aife something and watched her eyeroll her packages.
"Daft ass is at it again, huh?." Aife asked as she played the recording.
"What do you want me to do?." The man asked.
She turned, wrote something down and turned back to him. "Show this to the three of them." She gave him a piece of paper and nodded for him to go do as she said.
Isabeau and Lauren
The succubus walked to one of the bedrooms and laid the doctor on the bed. When Lauren unknowingly pulled Isabeau's head towards hers, the succubus smiled and pulled the arm from around her neck and placed it on the bed. She placed the covers over the doctor and stood there and watched her sleep. She looked her body up and down, even with the covers covering her- head to her feet. This is the one. The one she will finally lose her heart to. Hell, she already has. Man. Woman. Lauren is the one. Date over? Hell no. Every moment with this woman whether she's awake or not is a date. Her only wish is if Lauren could have stayed up as long as she can. But it doesn't matter. Their all nighters will come. But those nights are far away because they haven't kissed yet. I will lose. I will gladly lose. Lose myself in you. All of me in all of you. She thought to herself and smiled as she quietly left the room. She made sure the air fresheners worked and picked a bedroom for herself. She pulled her cowgirl clothes off and plopped down on the bed. She smiled as she thought of the blonde. If that kiss is what she is predicting it to be, the world will never be the same again. She will never be the same again. She grabbed a bottle of water and doused her face with it.
The Dal Riata
"You better have a damn good reason for calling me, Trick. Last we spoke, you threatened me." Kenzi stood over the man with her hands on her hips.
"I didn't call you. I was summoned out of my own sleep." Trick rubbed the top of his head.
"Dyson, then." Kenzi turned around.
"I didn't call either of you here, I was busy doing something else." Dyson sat at a table in the back.
"When did you get here?." Trick asked.
"A few minutes ago." Dyson replied. The trio bickered back and forth about being pulled away when suddenly, the door swung open and feet could be heard coming inside.
"Who are you?!." Dyson growled.
"I brought something from Aife." The man put his hand in an envelope, making Dyson grab for his gun. "Stop or I will shoot!." The wolf screamed.
The man held the paper up and Trick fell to his knees. "No. It can't be."
"What is it? That looks like blood." Kenzi squinted to read it but it wasn't in English.
"Boom." The man laughed and dropped it on the floor in front of Trick. Trick looked up as the man turned and walked out.
"Well?." Kenzi asked.
"She has my blood." Trick replied.
"Trick!." Dyson screamed as he clutched the paper.
"How? What did she write?." Kenzi asked.
"It's your name Kenzi, well most of it." Dyson replied.
"Whoa. Whoa. Whoa. What else did she write?." Kenzi asked.
"She wrote that she knows you told Dyson to get her. But that's not the worst of it. She has my blood. Whatever she writes will come true." Trick sat with his legs extended.
"She can't do that without your book right, Trick?." Dyson asked.
"She's my daughter. We issued her a book as a baby. Before we knew Isabeau would be murdered and Aife would go crazy over it. It appears she has gotten the book back somehow or secretly ordered a new one." Trick replied.
"We are screwed, Kenz." Dyson shook his head. "She can literally write on anything with his blood and it would come true." Dyson swallowed.
"Super sized shit, I'm going back to bed. Down there." Kenzi pointed. There is no way in hell she's ever leaving the Dal without Trick going ahead of her. "Have a better plan by morning or else."
Trick and Dyson stared at each other. "Was that a threat?." Dyson asked.
"Focus on Aife, Dyson. She's a big fish. Kenzi's a goldfish." Trick replied.
"I'm not finding her, Trick. I have been at it for hours." Dyson shook his head. Nothing was helping him find Aife.
"Find the book. Get out there. Use your contacts, hell, use my contacts. Just get the book or my blood now." Trick stomped his foot down hard.
"How did she get your blood?." Dyson asked.
"Probably from a Fae doctor. A doctor that was supposed to keep my confidentiality." Trick walked around the bar.
"Didn't Hale say Aife took the compound over? Maybe that's when she got it." Dyson looked at the doors like he had already left.
"Go and find out what else she got her hands on. Don't screw this up, Dyson. We are in deep here." Trick stared at the wolf. "Go!."
Isabeau and Lauren
"Good morning!." Isabeau smiled and stretched.
"Good morning and what are you wearing?." Lauren asked.
"If you tell anyone there will be consequences but this is my cabin clothes. To prove to you that you have my undivided attention." Isabeau rubbed her fluffy pajamas as she stood and pointed towards the dining area. Breakfast sat ready to eat.
"Eat up, doctor. We have so much more to talk about. By the end of the day one of us will have lost and you are going to need all of those carbs and your strength." Isabeau smiled and stabbed her steak.
"We'll see who loses, succubus." Lauren laughed and took her first bite.
TBC.
A/N I know a few of you are ready for them to pounce on each other. Isabeau's nature and patience with Lauren has been adorable. Happy New Year!