(A/N): We're back with Evie in 1966, and in this chapter, Nicholai and Jerremyah (but mostly Nicholai) throw some goddamn shade.

January 16th, 1966

Evie

It was Nicholai, rather predictably, that broke up our emotional moment. I don't think he was doing it to be cruel- in fact, I thought he'd given us quite a generous allowance of time to bask in the glow of our newfound connection, before his obvious discomfort became too pressing to ignore, and he interrupted Jerremyah and I's tender eye contact.

"I don't mean to butt in," He said, butting in. "But I was under the impression that I was brought here to weigh in on the whole, 'to turn or not to turn' conundrum." Staring at him as I was, I got to see Jerremyah's face change from earnest empathy, to irritated indignation- closely followed by him rolling his eyes.

"Why? Are you really so desperate to get back to your empty, Hunter-relic filled manor that you'd give up the opportunity to offer your sage advice?" His tone was derisive, making it abundantly clear that this was sarcasm. "Did you leave the oven on, or something?" Nicholai narrowed his eyes at him, already beyond tired of Jerremyah's quips, or otherwise exasperating antics. Personally, I found them to be rather endearing, but then again, I'd always been drawn toward the people who could charitably be described as 'misfits'.

"Am I supposed to be amused by that? I know you depend on coarse humor to supply you with the approval you so desperately seek, so I shall offer you this small semblance of validation: Ha. Ha. Ha." Oof. Even knowing that Jerremyah and Nicholai's relationship was particularly contentious- rife with a rivalry gone sour- that rang unexpectedly harsh. Jerremyah mustn't have been expecting it either, since the color drained from his face quite rapidly as he absorbed this scathing remark.

"No," He ground out a second later, when he'd finally recovered enough to be able to form words. "You're not supposed to be amused- it wasn't for you. It's never been for you." Then who was it for?

"Nicholai, lay off it." Lisbet uttered sternly, and I wasn't sure if her voice was quiet simply because she preferred to keep it that way, or if she was trying not to draw Jerremyah's attention to her defense of him- as if he could miss it. It didn't matter either way, though, because Nicholai was being Nicholai.

"I wonder why that is. Do I perhaps remind you of someone? Someone you claim you don't crave the approval of- because you know you'd never be able to earn it even if you did?" Jerremyah's face hardened, but in the split second before it did, I saw his eyes widen in the textbook definition of horrified shock.

In the end, it wasn't Jerremyah that objected to this- nor Lisbet. No, it was Grey that stepped between the two, both verbally, and physically. "Cool it, Nick." Nicholai shrugged this off like it was nothing out of the ordinary- maybe it wasn't. Maybe they did this sort of thing all the time- but the way that Lisbet and Grey were reacting made me think that even if it was a common occurrence, they didn't approve of it.

"Leave him," Jerremyah told the room at large. "If he wants to be a prick, that's his prerogative." Nicholai crossed his arms over his chest, wearing what I could only describe as a scowl, even if I didn't think the designation quite measured up to the expression I was witnessing.

"You started it!" He pointed out rather childishly, and if he'd been a more expressive person, I suspected he might've huffed, or angrily stomped a foot or something.

"And I'm ending it." Nuria snapped from the other side of the couch, her arm still entwined with Khal's as if some cosmic being delighted in the contrast of her take no shite attitude, and his current- extremely out of place- dreamy expression. "Play nice, or I'm kicking you both out. You can sort out your differences in the courtyard, for all I care." Tough words, and if I hadn't been able to recognise the concern trying to hide behind annoyance on her face, I might've believed that she was truly neutral about the outcome of this situation. Instead, I was left wondering whether she would actually only kick Nicholai out, or do as she'd said, but just be silently cheering for Jerremyah from the sidelines.

"Yes, ma'am." Nicholai said- and didn't that just make you weak in the knees? His voice was full of respect and deference, and I thought it was a fitting tone to use for someone such as Nuria- then I remembered that she was a vampire; a vampire that was much, much older than even Nicholai at that- and I thought that maybe he could lay it on a little thicker.

Jerremyah, on the other hand, took advantage of the bond he had with his sire, and whined, "But Nuri-"

She arched a brow, cutting him off quite effectively. "Do I need to remind you why you came crawling to my door? That none of this is about you- either of you- but poor Evie?" I shifted uncomfortably as Jerremyah's entire being sobered.

Even Nicholai appeared chagrined, and he turned his sheepish gaze in my direction- unfortunately. "I apologise, Miss-" He frowned, and it took me a second to realise that he was trying to address me by my last name.

"Wright." I told him absently, too distracted by the novelty of it to dissuade him in the way I should have.

"Miss Wright. I sincerely regret that we seem to have gotten ourselves off track. I hope you can find it within yourself to forgive me, eventually." I blinked, almost missing the way Jerremyah rolled his eyes.

"I- uh- sure...?" Nicholai smiled, and it felt like the sun coming out from behind a cloud.

"Oi," Jerremyah objected, and as Nicholai's gaze flicked to him, the smile dropped like a ton of bricks. "Stop trying to seduce Evie." I blinked again, stunned by the implications of this apparent order, and Nicholai's expression turned stormy with outrage.

"That is not what I'm-" Jerremyah waved a hand at him dismissively, which certainly didn't help with Nicholai's outrage issue.

"Besides, if anyone's going to seduce Evie, I believe Lisbet's at the front of the queue." I felt my cheeks flame, and the woman in question patted my arm.

"I'm willing to accept offers to allow cutsies, if Evie demonstrates more than a passing interest." If I thought I was red before, I hadn't seen anything yet. This was new to me- the jokes. I couldn't say I disliked it, but it was still a bit of a shock.

"Perhaps this speaks poorly of my manners, but if she were to show more than a passing interest in me, I certainly wouldn't be waiting for your permission, Ma Chérie Sœur." Grey said, which- it was tempting, I won't lie.

"I think if Evie was more than passingly interested, you'd get a lot more than you bargained for, Mon Plus Proche." Jerremyah told him, and Grey shrugged- smirking in a way that I didn't doubt had granted him access to the underside of quite a few women's skirts over the years.

"I'd certainly hope so." He purred, somehow managing to come across as sensual, rather than lecherous. "I look forward to exploring your hidden depths, Douce Sirène... I can't wait for you to show me what you're capable of."

(A/N): Translations (French):

Ma Chérie Sœur = My Dear Sister (both meanings of the sister)

Mon Plus Proche = My Closest (basically 'my closest friend')

Douce Sirène = Sweet Siren