FicWad

Title: Incarnations of Immortality
Author: TheBear!
Crossover: XF/HL/FK
Pairings: M/S N/N T/V
161,428 words
15-Apr-02

Disclaimer—I don’t own any of it.

=====

Chapter 14

Vachon’s Church

3:45 a.m. Friday December 15th

Tracy woke up from a light sleep. She was slightly confused, as she didn’t remember having gone to bed. She quickly noticed that she was on the floor, or rather, on Vachon, who was on the floor. She was naked and sticky, Vachon was still partially in her. In the past she would have been mortified to be in such a state. “Certainly not ‘proper’ or lady-like,” she thought. Instead, she felt deliciously wanton. She decided to wake her lover, “And what an amazing lover he is!” in what she thought would be the most appropriate way possible.

Vachon awoke to two competing sensations. His head ached a little, “I must have really hit hard,” he thought. He remembered that he passed out standing up, with Tracy hanging onto him. He obviously fell and whacked his head on the hardwood floor.

The second sensation Vachon was feeling was Tracy, licking the sticky blood off of his balls while she stroked his semi-erect member- already cleaned apparently. Vachon moaned loudly, and it wasn’t the headache!

Tracy heard her lover’s return to the land of the conscious and chuckled. She was savoring the taste of both of their blood mixed with the taste of his skin. She felt him lengthening and hardening in her hand and smiled at her ability to affect him. As she took him, now standing at full attention, into her mouth she heard him moan, “God, Tracy! You’re insatiable!”

[Yeah, lucky you] she thought to him.

“‘Lucky me’ is right!” Vachon thought as he lay his now-healed head back on the floor and sunk down into the sensation Tracy was eliciting from him. He had wanted Tracy from the first moment he had seen her. Lately, though his cravings were becoming almost incontrollable. He had fantasized about her constantly for the last several months. Thank God she had decided to come across. [I can’t even imagine life without you Tracy,] he thought to her. [I never imagined I could love someone as much as I love you.]

Tracy pulled away from him and crawled up his supine form until her lips hovered over his. She looked down at his angelic face and said, “I never imagined that I could be loved like that. I love you, Vachon- with all my heart.” Their lips met, and he thrust himself up into her.

This time their actions were slow, as they cherished one another. An hour later they fell asleep in each other’s arms again- still never having made it to the bed.

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

The Corbeau

3:45 a.m.

Franklin had been waiting for over an hour for her to get back. He only lamented that he was too late to save her latest victim. He had been watching her when the poor sap just walked right up to her and invited her out for a bloody walk. Franklin had been near the front door and by the time he made it out and around to the back of the building, they were nowhere in sight.

He had figured out that she was one of the unholy ones last weekend when he had stopped in with a couple of his buddies to try and score some chicks. He had seen her with her pale skin and her smug look of superiority, drinking blood from a glass like it was wine. He could tell it wasn’t wine- too thick, it stuck to the glass. He had seen her kind before- devil spawn, bloodsuckers. His papa hadn’t done much for him growing up, but he did teach him about vampires. It was a vampire what done in his papa when he was fourteen. He’d seen the aftermath. He hadn’t ever found the bloodsucker that did it, but he figured this would be as good a chance as ever for a little payback.

He knew she would have to come back here before sunrise- she apparently lived in the club somewhere. “Must have a coffin in the basement or something,” he thought. Then he heard footsteps coming. He could hear them talking and laughing. “She must be saving him for a bedtime snack,” he thought. “Good, I might be able to save him after all.”

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

Janette felt absolutely wonderful. Duncan was extremely charming. He was also very intelligent, funny, well traveled, and knowledgeable about a wide range of subjects. They had had serious discussions about politics and history (about which he had been surprisingly well versed), he had entertained her with amusing anecdotes and stories, as well as listened attentively to her when she shared selected stories- though she told them as third person, not wanting to seem suspicious.

They had gone from her hand on his arm to being wrapped in each other’s arms without even noticing it. It just felt natural. As they got close to the club she felt suddenly compelled to kiss him. Actually, she had felt that compulsion from the moment he sat down with her at the club, but she had rigorously suppressed it. It would be more accurate to say that she suddenly felt unable to restrain herself any longer. It was this distraction that kept her from paying adequate attention to the sound of the heartbeat in the alley beside the Corbeau. Hindsight was indeed 20/20.

MacLeod had just brushed her lips with his own when he felt the impact against her back as the arrow thudded home just under her right shoulder. She immediately let out a terrifying scream and spun to face her attacker.

The pain was almost unbearable. Fortunately the fool had shot her on the wrong side. She would survive this wound, assuming she could keep him from bettering his aim on the next. Of course this would undoubtedly be the end of any relationship she would get to have with Duncan. That angered her more than the arrow in her back. She was just about to counterattack when she noticed Duncan was already more than halfway across the alley. He had, of all things, drawn a sword and was hurling himself at her attacker, who was screaming some cliché about ‘Hell-Bitch’ and ‘Unholy Bloodsucker.’ Her wound kept her from moving fast enough to save Duncan from his next arrow.

She watched with horror as it struck him right in the heart. He had already began his down stroke with the sword and, therefore, managed to avenge his own death- neatly severing the assailant’s raised bow in two, and splitting his head like a giant melon- killing him instantly.

The pain in her heart overshadowed the pain in her back when she got to Duncan’s side. He was fading fast, but not before he saw her eyes and fangs.

Duncan’s last thought before he died was one of joy. He’s already decided that he could easily fall in love with this woman, and a small part of him dreaded the inevitable death and passing that was inherent in loving a mortal. “You won’t die,” were his last words as blackness stole over him.

Janette wondered at his words, and even more so at his beatific smile. She was even more heartsick, if that was possible. He had seen what she truly was, and not only accepted it, but seemed genuinely happy with it- even as he died. She was sure now that Duncan MacLeod would have been an ideal candidate whom to offer immortality.

She managed to pick him up and carry him into the club with her. It was, of course empty by this time. She didn’t house any strays here as she had in Toronto. She valued her privacy after hours too much right now. So it was that she had to figure out how to get the arrow out of her back by herself. First she grabbed a bottle of the house special and drank it down. Then she managed to remove the arrow by closing it in a doorframe, holding the door tightly against it with one foot, and basically falling forward as hard as she could. The pain was quite excruciating, causing her to cry out again. She lay on the floor for several minutes while the wound healed. Fortunately it appeared that there were no splinters from the shaft. The idiot had actually left the steel tips on the arrows!

She downed another bottle of the house special before going over to consider Duncan. She tried to harden herself against the emotional pain, she tried not to think about the future they could have had together. Even though she had only met him that day, the sense of loss was even greater than when Robert had died. With Robert, though she loved him dearly, she had been changing herself to be with him. At best, she would have remained mortal, and they would have had twenty or thirty years together before one or both of them died. She could envision bringing Duncan across to be with her for twenty or thirty centuries.

Finally she approached his body, she had left him on a table, on his back- the arrow sticking straight up into the air. She angrily yanked the arrow out and snapped it in half. “As if that could bring him back,” she thought, furious at the insignificant worm that had perpetrated this monstrosity upon them out of some misguided religious fervor. “Aarghh!” she growled. She had to restrain herself from going out into the alley and jumping up and down on what remained of his head, or perhaps pulling out the sword and chopping him into little bits.

The thought of the sword led to other thoughts. “Why was he carrying a sword?” she wondered. She remembered that he had been at Hénri’s muttering about a sword. Maybe that’s what he purchased there. He did seem to know how to use it, however. He also responded to the attack in a manner that suggested combat experience. She had never been a warrior, but she knew that most people tended to react with confusion or fear when an attack commenced. She knew this from having been the attacker, more often than not. Duncan didn’t hesitate- he armed himself and counter-attacked before she even turned around. That bespoke training. And, it specifically suggested training with a sword- as his counter attack was weapon specific- not the way one would react if one were armed with a pistol.

Her musings were interrupted by a loud gasp, and the sound of a heart beating rapidly. She spun around to see who had invaded her privacy and was properly shocked to see Duncan MacLeod sitting up on the table, his hand clutched at his chest where he had been struck by the arrow. Janette was dumbstruck.

MacLeod awoke to find himself sitting on a table in the now-deserted club. Janette was standing in front of him, jaw dropped. He could see that she had reverted- no fangs and eyes normal. He could almost believe that what he had seen had been a pain induced delusion, except for the fact that he knew- intimately- that vampires did indeed exist, and that she would not be standing at all if she were not one of them. His first question was, “Are you alright? Did you get it out?” he croaked. At her blank stare he repeated the question, “The arrow. Did you get it out of your back? Do you need me to get it?”

Janette was stunned into silence. She nodded her head and pointed to the arrow lying on the floor in the doorway beside the bar.

Duncan saw one bloody arrow on the floor where Janette was pointing, and another- broken in half- at her feet. “Do you need blood?” he asked, concerned that she might be in shock “If vampires are susceptible to that,” he thought.

Janette slowly shook her head, still unable to formulate the proper response.

Duncan’s next question was, “Where is my sword?”

Janette managed to reply to that one. “In the alley,” she said, pointing to the door.

Duncan jumped down from the table. “Janette? Are you alright?” he asked, concerned. “Surely she won’t freak out about my immortality,” he thought. Certainly a vampire wouldn’t consider an immortal a monster. He hoped not, anyway. His feelings for her had gelled in his mind and his heart. He knew he was definitely in love. “I’ll be right back, Ok?” he said, sprinting into the alley.

Janette listened as Duncan recovered his sword. She was shaken by this turn of events. She was definitely happy that Duncan wasn’t dead, but how? He wasn’t a vampire, she was confident of that. He had undeniably died. Heart stopped, breath stilled, dead. Dead for several minutes. Also, he didn’t seem at all disconcerted to find out that she was a vampire. “He has to know! Doesn’t he?” she whispered. He had seen the wound- had asked if she needed blood. No, he definitely knew about vampires, and knew she was one. She was equally convinced that he hadn’t known previous to the attack. He had been genuinely surprised and pleased to see her looming over him as he died. “As he Died!?” her mind shouted at her, still having difficulty accepting that he wasn’t dead even yet. He had even commented that she wasn’t going to die. He had said it with astonishment and joy.

Duncan came back in after recovering his sword. He wanted to make sure that Janette was going to be ok, and that she was going to be OK with him. He could see her mulling it over as he re-entered the club. He walked up to her hesitantly, knowing that she could seriously hurt him if she freaked out. He had fallen in love before and faced the pain when the object of his affection couldn’t accept the truth about him. He really didn’t think he could face that again. “Janette, are you going to be alright?”

She could hear his unspoken question. She could see the fear of rejection in his eyes, and her heart broke. Questions could come later. She loved this man. He had fought and died for her, even if it wasn’t permanent. He obviously accepted her for what she was. How could she not do likewise? Why would she even want to? As before, she let her actions answer both his questions. She stepped to him and wrapped herself around him, kissing him soundly.

When Duncan broke the kiss, he saw bloody tears streaming down her face. His heart was overcome with relief and love- relief that she was alive, and that she would accept him. He said, “When that arrow hit you…”

At the same time Janette said, “When I saw you die…”

They both laughed.

Janette let go of him and stepped back one pace and said, “As you have clearly surmised, I am a Vampire.” She felt surreal saying those words out loud.

MacLeod responded with, “We call ourselves Immortals. Not terribly clever- but I never knew there were any others who could lay claim to that label.”

That statement puzzled Janette. “But, you were not surprised when you found out what I am.” At his look of protest she clarified, “Not surprised that we exist, I mean.”

“You might find this to be an incredible coincidence, but I only recently had my first meeting with your kind, at least so far as I know it was my first. It was, in fact just Wednesday evening,” he mused, remembering the eclectic mix of immortals he had encountered that night. He was distracted enough that he missed Janette’s question. “Hmm? Sorry, what was that?”

Janette was amused by the far-away stare Duncan had, it reminded her of Nick when he was reminiscing. “I said, your meeting must have been unusually genial. Most people who meet my kind aren’t allowed to remember it, if they are lucky enough to live through it. We generally don’t get along well with humans.”

MacLeod smiled at that. “Actually, I met several vampires that night. One was following a friend of mine who met me at the airport. He killed us and then ran off.”

Janette grabbed his arm, concerned. “Why? Why would he do that?” she asked, upset at the thought of Duncan lying dead- regardless of whether he could recover from it or not.

Duncan reached out with his free hand and gently stroked a lock of hair away from her face, answering, “To make a long story short, he was following my friend, we detected and confronted him, and he blew through us like straw in the wind.”

“Your friend is like you? He recovered? Did you encounter that one again?” she asked. She was still uncomfortable with the idea of one of her kind stalking Duncan.

Duncan reassured her, “It’s all right; we ended up meeting the person who had put the tail on my friend. While surreal, that meeting ended up all right. We met several vampires and a new immortal, and his lover- who was a new member of your ranks. And we met someone who will become immortal, if she doesn’t become a vampire first.”

Suddenly MacLeod knew why this club was giving him déjà vu! “Janette? Have you ever heard of a club in Toronto called the Raven? It reminds me a lot of this place.” He looked back from the club surrounding them to Janette. She looked stunned again.

Janette’s mind was whirling with the implications. It seemed fate was playing a trick on her. “Oh dear,” was all she said for several moments. Finally she led them to a table and said, “Tell me everything that has happened to you since Wednesday,” as she sank into her chair.

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

Nick’s Loft

4:00 p.m. Friday

Mulder woke up first again. He looked at the clock and saw that he had a little over half an hour till sunset. He pressed into the link with Scully and detected only her presence, no thoughts or any definable emotions. “I guess vampires don’t dream,” he thought. “I’ll have to ask about that.” He was thirsty again- product of making good on his promise at the quick-mart. They had barely made it to their room before he was tearing her clothes off and going down on her. This time, the blood set him off again. She tasted like strawberries and caused his fangs to drop. This development was a joy to them both, he could definitely see himself spending hours giving head to Scully, the taste and sensation from the blood was supremely satisfying to him, and so long as he made one wrist available to her, she could have repeat orgasms while he serviced her. Of course, he still enjoyed straight coitus, a fact which he demonstrated twice before they succumbed to the pull of death. This time he lasted a lot longer before dying. It felt like heaven, and it just went on and on. He knew that she was absolutely addicted to his blood and that she was embarrassed by that fact, but he was hopelessly addicted to her as well. “And, this is one addiction with no downside!” he thought. Well, there was the thirst. But, that was a very small price to pay.

Once he had come back to life, Scully was out for the day. He had gone down to the kitchen and finished off the OJ, making a mental note to get some more for Natalie, if she still needed it, and himself. Then he rejoined his partner in bed, this time bringing a large jug of water with him, which he now emptied.

Mulder thought about their link. It was a marvel. In his wildest imaginings he could never have dreamt of this level of intimacy. Despite the fact that her vampirism would present many difficulties for them both- they would probably have to leave the FBI- he was glad that she was a vampire. The cause was horrifying; he got cold chills whenever he remembered walking into that alley and seeing the pile of broken flesh and bone that was his Scully. The effect- her vampirism- was magnificent. Of course, that effect was definitely affecting him as well. He hadn’t had a chance to face the sun since the increase in his change. It would be interesting to see if he was truly turning, or his link with her was just allowing some bleed-through. He didn’t think giving up the sun would be too high a price to pay for being a part of Scully. “Flying would be great, too,” he thought. Not to mention, it would definitely give him an edge in ‘The Game’. He would be able to avoid most fights, and if not, he would have an advantage in speed and strength.

Thinking about the future inevitably lead back to thoughts of their jobs with the Bureau. In some ways it would be a relief to be free of the restrictions placed on them by their jobs. Of course, he would also miss some of the access that came with the badge. “Maybe they would let us consult, from time to time,” he thought. Natalie had a point when she said they could still search for the truth. He would wait to see what Scully thought. Knowing that she would wake up hungry, Mulder went down to the kitchen and got several bottles from the fridge. Then, he finished off the Gatorade, making another mental note to restock the fridge. Whether it was for him and Natalie, or just himself, it would definitely get consumed.

Mulder lay on his side, watching her sleep. He knew she would wake up soon- sundown was in less than ten minutes now. He was running his fingers through her hair when an idea struck him. “I wonder if Scully wants to get married,” he suddenly thought. He knew that she wanted to be with him for the rest of their lives, as did he. He never even thought about marriage. He personally didn’t have a strong opinion about marriage. He often thought of it as being almost inconsequential to the relationship. People who loved each other- truly loved each other- didn’t have to be married to do so. Some of them did get married, some of them didn’t- but they stayed together and loved each other for their whole lives. On the other hand, many, many people were together- married or otherwise- and didn’t love each other like that at all. They didn’t stay together more than a few years, at best. Again, the institution of marriage seemed inconsequential to the relationship’s success or failure. Scully might feel otherwise, however. He was pretty sure Scully’s mom would definitely feel otherwise. “Dana Mulder,” he whispered, trying it on for size. Of course, Scully was a modern woman. She might not want to take his name. “I’ll probably always call her ‘Scully’ anyway,” he thought.

Scully woke up about that time. Mulder felt his consciousness expand to include Scully’s awareness. Immediately the hunger hit him and he wordlessly handed her the first bottle. It only took two bottles this time to sate her. “Does that mean you’re getting acclimated?” he asked.

“I never asked Nick what was ‘normal’ for a morning feeding,” she replied. “Thanks for bringing me breakfast in bed Mulder,” she said with a grin.

Mulder sat in front of her and looked at her. She was deliciously naked, her eyes still glowing and her fangs just starting to recede. He felt arousal, of course, but even more so he felt a deep and abiding joy suffuse his spirit.

Scully watched as Mulder’s grin got wider and wider, and felt the growing joy that he was feeling. It made her smile and giggle, “What, Mulder?”

“Do you feel that? Of course you do,” he said, answering his own question. “That’s you, Scully. You make me feel like that. So happy,” he shook his head slowly in amazement. “I never even knew anyone could be so genuinely happy, let alone me.” He reached out and gently cupped her cheek, “Thank you, Dana,” he said, trying out her name- something he rarely did.

Scully had never felt more cherished. Every time they made love, she could feel his adoration for her, and now with the link, it became constant- like being wrapped in a warm cloak on a cold day. Even so, she couldn’t imagine it could grow to more than it already was; yet it did. Every day his love for her grew, and hers for him. “We are going to be a pretty goofy pair, Fox,” she said; and then she giggled- using his given name seemed strange.

“It does, doesn’t it,” Mulder answered her feeling. I guess I fell in love with Scully, and that will probably always be how I think of you,” he said.

Feeling Mulder’s unspoken possessiveness when he used her name, she said, “Don’t you mean ‘My Scully’? Isn’t that how you think of me?” she asked with a smile.

Mulder nodded his head, moving in to kiss her. “That’s right,” he whispered. “You are mine, Scully. Forever.”

“Forever!” she agreed just before they kissed.

The kiss started softly, as they delighted in each other’s love. Soon, however, the kiss deepened, Mulder’s fangs dropped- Scully’s had never fully retracted. Before they knew it they were each drinking from the other. This time Mulder didn’t die. They stopped after about 10 minutes- both of them amazed. Mulder did feel a little lightheaded, unlike Scully who felt blissfully sated.

“I think you drink faster!” Mulder said.

“I only drink as fast as it comes, Mulder,” she replied. “Maybe you bleed faster.”

Without any thought, Mulder picked up the remaining bottle of blood, bypassing the water he had left, and drank it down.

Scully was somewhat stunned. “That’s new,” was all she said.

Mulder stared at the bottle in his hand. The blood tasted good, not nearly as good as Scully tasted- this was much less flavorful, but it still tasted good. He caught a faint emotional residue from it; nervousness? Someone was nervous about donating, a young man? That startled him. “I don’t feel like a vampire,” he whispered. Turning to Scully he asked, “Do I?”

Scully considered him for a moment. “No, not really,” she answered. “You don’t feel like any vampire I’ve met, anyway. All four of them. Your heart is beating, but it’s really slow… about 20 beats per minute.” She shook her head as if to clear it, “It’s kind of hard to tell what I’m feeling separate from what I’m feeling you feeling. Does that make sense?”

“No- but, I know exactly what you mean,” Mulder said sympathetically.

“It’s kind of late to ask this, but… Do you want to be a vampire, Mulder?” Scully asked. “I never really thought about it when Natalie suggested it. I just wanted this thing between us, [this], to get stronger. I like feeling like I’m a part of you,” she finished sheepishly.

[Every time I think I couldn’t possibly love you more than I do at that moment, I find out that I’m wrong. And my love for you grows,] he thought to her as he tightened his arms around her and kissed her.

Before their kiss could deepen into something else she pulled away. “Mulder! At this rate we will never get out of this bedroom,” she objected. She cut off his protest with a thought, [You need a shower, Mister!]

Mulder leered back at Scully, “We need a shower, Scully.” Sensing that she really wanted to give in anyway, he added- in his most innocent tone- “I could wash your back…”

Scully did not for a moment have any illusions that washing her back was all he had in mind. However, her thoughts were leaning in that direction as well. She smiled a coquettish little smile and said, “Ok!” as she bounded out of the bed, dragging Mulder along with her.

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

Nick’s Loft

4:30 p.m. Friday

He woke up before Natalie that evening. He could hear Dana and Mulder playing and giggling in the guest room. He smiled to hear the joy they had in each other. He was looking forward to a bond with Natalie. It might not be as close as the bond his childé had with her lover, but it would be a wonderful sharing of souls. Thanks to Mulder, Nick wouldn’t have to worry about Dana being jealous of her new sister. Especially since this sister would also be her master’s life-mate.

Nick also was giddy with anticipation about Natalie’s transformation. It seemed that she was vampire. “Her reaction last night was certainly textbook vampire,” he thought. He would be interested in Mulder’s reaction- to see if she exhibited any ‘Quickening’ once she awoke from her death-like sleep. Whatever the case, he could feel her now as he did Dana, so he was hopeful. He drank one bottle himself in order to be properly fortified for the evening ahead, then waited in eager anticipation for his beloved to awake.

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

Natalie woke up to the feeling of hunger pains so intense that she was cramping up into a fetal position. She heard someone say ‘Here Nat, take this,’ and a wine bottle was pressed into her hands. She could smell the blood and immediately poured it down her throat as fast as it would come out. The moment it was empty it was taken from her and replaced with a full one. This continued until she was nearly through her fourth bottle. She set it down in her lap and finally took a breath, “You weren’t kidding about the first hunger!” She licked her lips and finished off the bottle. Turning to face Nick she asked, “It gets better, right?”

Nick smiled and replied, “You will always wake up hungry, my dear; but it will get much easier with time.”

Now that her thirst was assuaged, she became hungry for something else. Nick was sitting on the edge of the bed, and they were both naked. Her new senses made her more aware of him than she had ever been before- the smell of him was stronger now, and she could smell herself on him from last night. Her own arousal quickly surged and she gave in to the impulse to attack him.

Nick saw the look in her eyes a split second before she leapt on him. As they fell to the floor he spun them around so that he landed on her, pinning her wrists above her head and her legs with his. “Oho! Feeling playful this evening, are we?” he teased.

Natalie felt her fangs tear through her gums for the first time and saw everything around her through a filter of green. She felt a need in her for Nick that was almost as strong as her hunger for blood had been. She needed to feel him inside of her, thrusting. She needed to feel his fangs in her throat and sink her own into the sweet honey she could smell flowing through his veins. “Nick! I need you now!” she said as she struggled to get to him with her teeth.

“Patience love, behave yourself and you will get what you need,” he said. He saw a subtle change come over her when he told her to behave, a certain glint in her eye. He felt himself becoming even more aroused at the possibilities, but he wasn’t certain that she wanted what he was thinking of, so he tried another tack; “You will have to restrain yourself, Natalie,” he began- emphasizing the word ‘restrain.’

Natalie suddenly had a picture in her mind of Nick restraining her, dominating her and driving her wild with ecstasy as she lost all control. She didn’t know if he was sending the image to her, or she was sending it to him, but she could see that he was definitely getting it. This was an aspect of her personality that even she had been unaware of. She had never played BDSM games before, but the thought of it was making her wet with anticipation.

Nick definitely got the picture. He didn’t have all the hardware they would need, but he did have handcuffs, and they would do for now. Plus, with her new strength, she could easily break free if things went beyond what she was willing to do. He swiftly grabbed her, and the handcuffs, and but her on the bed, on her knees facing the headboard. He cuffed her hands together to the headboard and pulled her back towards him until she was bent over, stretching forward to reach the headboard with her ass up in the air facing him. She was softly moaning and demanding for him to take her now. Nick stared in silence for a moment at Natalie’s delicious ass wiggling in the air, her lips wet and dripping for him. It took all of his self control not to give in to her demands for satisfaction. He leaned forward over her, letting the head of his cock brush her lips, but not enter. He whispered in her ear, “Is this what you want?” rubbing the head up and down, wetting it in Natalie’s dripping juices.

Natalie was wild with need. “Yes Nick! Do it now!” she demanded. She tried to push back onto him when she felt a delicious sting as his hand came down on her ass with a resounding slap. It made her even more aroused and desperate for him.

“Beg me for it Natalie,” he growled in her ear. “Make me believe that you need it more than you’ve ever needed anything before!” he said, relishing this role, but at the same time hoping she wouldn’t hold out too long. He didn’t think he could wait very long himself.

She wanted to beg, but she also wanted the game to go a little longer. She had never felt this aroused before. The anticipation was amazing. She couldn’t trust herself to speak so she just shook her head and bit down on her lower lip.

Nick alternated between resounding spanks and gentle licks and kisses on her pale white ass-cheeks, reddening them delightfully. After each spank he would repeat his demand that she beg for her release. He was almost to the point where he would be the one begging, himself. Finally he ended one kiss by driving his fangs into the smooth ruddy flesh.

The sensation of Nick’s fangs in her ass drove her over the edge. She had already bitten through her lower and upper lips in an effort to remain silent. She finally gave in and began begging, crying for her master to give her what she needed.

That was all the encouragement Nick needed. He immediately drove in to her, pumping madly as his own need was so great. She pushed back against the headboard, meeting his thrusts with bone-shaking impact. Finally he could take no more and sank his fangs into her neck, while offering her his wrist so that she could find her way too.

Natalie felt the warm jets of his release within her as her own convulsions wracked her. She felt the delightful weight of his body as he collapsed on top of her, the length of his torso warm against her back. “Warm?” she muttered. “Nick, why are you warm?” she asked, confused momentarily.

Nick chuckled, “Some doctor you are!” he teased, whispering in her ear. He reached over to the nightstand and got the key for the cuffs.

As he unlocked the cuffs, understanding dawned on her. “I should have expected that, I guess,” she said, shaking her head at her foolishness. “I’m just used to you feeling cool to the touch. It didn’t dawn on me that that would change.”

“It’s no matter, Love,” Nick replied. “Although, speaking of surprises…” he began, holding up the cuffs and shaking them in front of her, “Where did that whole thing come from?”

Just looking at the cuffs dangling in front of her was making her hot again. She suddenly had an image of herself strapped spread eagle to the bed while Nick tortured her with his hands and mouth. Liquid warmth spread through her at the thought.

Nick watched his mate’s eyes glaze over at the sight of the handcuffs. He saw her nipples surge erect and smelled her renewed arousal. He was amazed at this response. “You never told me you were into this, Natalie,” he said seductively. “I would have been happy to accommodate, you know,” he whispered, drawing closer to her.

Natalie was a modern woman. She believed that women were equal to men in every way; frankly, they were superior in many ways. She still believed that- and if she had thought for one second that Nick considered her to be anything less than his equal she would have never allowed him into her life as she had. That being said, the thought of Nick dominating her, enslaving her, and utterly possessing her was driving her wild. She finally took her eyes off of the cuffs and met his gaze. “I never thought I could be, Nick. I never imagined that I could trust someone enough to surrender myself wholly to them.” She smiled at him in delight, “When you possess me, Nick, I feel free.”

The combination of her words, her scent, and the feelings she was broadcasting through their link was more than he could stand. He dropped the cuffs and grabbed her hands in his own. “Then feel free, my love,” he said as he pressed her against the bedroom wall, holding her hands above her head with one of his own. He ravaged her mouth with his, while running his free hand over her body. He reached behind her and pulled her hips away from the wall until she was hanging by her hands.

She wrapped her legs around his waist for support as he drove himself home inside her once again. He began ramming himself into her, pressing her into the wall with each stroke. He drew out slowly and slammed back in forcefully again and again. She had no real leverage to thrust back, so she tried to pull him into her with her legs around his waist, but he ignored her and kept his steady pace- relentlessly driving her insane with need. She begged him to go faster, but he paid no heed to her pleas.

Nick was driving himself insane at the same time. He felt the need to drive his fangs into her neck and trigger his release but ignored it. He was going to bring her to the edge slowly, knowing the outcome would be more intense, the slower he took her there. So he continued to drive into her until she was weeping blood tears, thrashing about and crying his name. Her eyes were blood red and her fangs were gnashing as she tried to reach out and sink them into his flesh. He kept her restrained and leaned away from her efforts to bite him. His own eyes were red and his fangs too itched to be sheathed in her flesh.

When she was ready to reach the summit he denied her his blood. She was crazy with need, trying to reach him with her mouth, trying to bite him anywhere she could get to, trying futilely to free her hands from his grasp. Finally when she thought she would lose her mind entirely, he lowered his head to her and allowed her to sink her teeth into his throat. The moment his warm blood hit the back of her throat she came like a supernova- the sensation burning her mind with its intensity. The pleasure felt like fire searing through her veins and she didn’t even notice his teeth in her shoulder until they had consumed enough of one another to begin tasting themselves in the blood.

Nick released her hands as he pulled away from her. Then he leaned forward and kissed her, softly and lovingly. “I love you Natalie Lambert,” he said simply.

Feeling the love flow through to her she luxuriated in its warm embrace. “I love you too, Nicolas de Brabant Knight,” while returning the feeling through the link.

They decided that a shower would be in order, and spent another 45 minutes exploring each other’s bodies before the water got too cold for even them.

“We need a bigger hot water tank,” Nick said as they returned to their bedroom to dress- kissing all the way.

“Absolutely,” Natalie agreed. “Maybe one of those ‘constant demand’ water heaters,” she said as she briefly broke the kiss. “Do you think we should go downstairs and join Dana and Mulder?” she asked before planting another kiss on his mouth.

Nick slid away from her mouth and began kissing her cheek toward her ear, which he began licking and biting gently, “I suppose we are being neglectful hosts,” he answered.

“Ok,” Natalie answered with a shiver. “But, we will continue this later, right?”

“Ab-so-lutely!” Nick whispered in her ear, before breaking away to finish dressing.

They went down the stairs hand-in-hand and noticed Dana latched on to Mulder’s neck. Nick smiled at the thought of catching his daughter ‘necking’ with her boyfriend on the living room couch.

Natalie wondered if Mulder was getting used to the flavor of blood, as she remembered her own distaste for it before coming across.

Nick chuckled aloud and said, “Alright you two, get a room.”

He stopped dead in his tracks when they pulled away from each other suddenly and turned toward himself and Natalie.

Natalie gasped at the look on Mulder’s face. More accurately, she gasped at the look of his face.

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

Nick’s Loft

6:00 p.m. Friday

After drying off and getting dressed, Mulder and Scully went downstairs and sat on the couch in front of the fire that Nick seemed to have perpetually going. Mulder sat in the corner of the couch, with Scully curled up against him. They each had a glass of bloodwine they were sipping on, and they were discussing their immediate future. Out of deference for Nick and Nat, who they could hear were moving about in Nick’s room, they were conversing via thought. Besides, Mulder thought it was cool to be able to do it this way.

[You’re such a boy, Mulder,] Scully thought.

[Come on, Scully. Didn’t you ever dream of being telepathic? We’re living, breathing X-files!] he replied.

Scully sighed. [Speaking of the X-files…]

[Yeah. I've been thinking about that lately. What do you want to do?] he asked.

[I don’t think I can stay in the bureau like this. Frankly, I don’t know that I want to anyway.]

[Really?] Mulder asked, astonished. He had always thought their work was just as important to her as to him.

[We don’t need the Bureau to look for answers, Mulder,] she said. [We are part of a community now that has resources unlike anything the bureau could have ever provided. If we combine that with the links the gunmen have, we should be able to do even better than we were before.]

Mulder was somewhat surprised to hear her echoing Natalie’s sentiments so exactly.

Scully continued, warming to her subject, [plus, we won’t have to put up with the crap details, the oversight, the politics…]

[The expense reports! I always hated those,] Mulder added.

Mulder’s comment took some of the wind out of Scully’s sails, [Well… yeah. There is that.] she began. [We could find a way to make it work. Maybe we could consult, consultants make a lot of money.]

Mulder realized that Scully thought he was nay-saying. [Actually, Scully. I’ve got money. I was serious about hating those expense reports.]

“What do you mean, ‘I've got money?’”] Scully demanded, pushing away and turning to face him with one brow raised.

[The wages of sin pay pretty well, Scully. Dearest Dad left behind quite a chunk of change. Plus there are several houses…] he began.

[You mean all this time you were rich? Why did we always have to stay in the seediest hotels available?] she demanded. [If I had known you were rich, I would have seduced you a long time ago,] she joked.

“If I had known you would have seduced me, I would have told you a long time ago,” he whispered.

They both laughed softly at that, mostly at their own stupidity for not seeing how the other felt for so long. Scully curled back up against him and they sat in silence for a moment- mental as well as physical. They could sense each other’s emotions intimately, however, it seemed that they only heard each other’s word thoughts, not mental pictures or images, unless they were sharing blood. When they were in the same room, their senses overlapped and everything seemed to be in 5-sense equivalent of surround sound. When they were in different environments, their own senses dominated unless they concentrated on the other’s.

Suddenly they both thought to each other, [I was thinking…] then they laughed and Scully thought [go ahead, Mulder]

[I love you Scully. You know that…] he began.

She would have been nervous at that except that she felt nothing but love and adoration from him. [Yes, I do,] she interjected.

Mulder smiled, pulled her a little tighter against him and nuzzled her hair, luxuriating in the feel, smell, and presence of his Scully. [I want to be with you forever. In ten millennia I want to be holding you in my arms, just like this. You’re mine- ‘My Scully’.]

She secretly- although not so secretly anymore- enjoyed Mulder’s possessive streak. She wanted to be possessed by him, wholly. Just as she owned him utterly. [Yes. And you belong to me. I own you, Mulder.]

Mulder reached his hand up and caressed her face with the back of his fingers, [Completely,] he agreed. [I want to proclaim it, Scully. I want to look at you and think, ‘That’s my wife’,]

Scully’s breath caught and she spun around in his arms to face him, just in time to meet his gaze as he said, “Dana Scully, will you marry me?”

Immediately tears of joy welled up in her eyes and left bloody streaks down her cheeks. She was rendered speechless, but not without thought, [Every time, Mulder…]

Mulder thought that was a funny way to answer his question, [every time?]

[Every time I think ‘I couldn’t possibly get any happier than I am right now,’ you prove me wrong,] she thought. Recovering her voice she said, “Of course I’ll marry you, Mulder. I’ll love you forever- and ten millennia from now I want to be sitting in the arms of my husband.

The happiness Mulder felt both in himself, and from his now fiancée, combined with the smell of her bloodtears sparked Mulder to change. His eyes turned, his fangs dropped and he couldn’t restrain himself from leaning forward and licking the tears from Scully’s cheeks.

Well, that incredibly erotic act broke what little restraint Scully was showing and she changed too. Within a heartbeat- his, not hers- their fangs were buried in each other’s necks. Just in time for Nick and Natalie to come walking down the stairs.

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

The Corbeau

3:00 p.m. Friday

Janette woke up to the sound of snoring. Very faint, but unusual enough by its very presence to bring her back to consciousness. Vampires, not needing to breathe at all, didn’t snore. She hadn’t woken up to that sound since Robert had died.

She turned to her side to look at the man who now occupied her bed. It was amazing to think that she had met this man less than 24 hours ago, and yet here he lay in her private chambers below the club; in her bed. She barely knew him, yet she already loved him. “At least he is not mortal,” she thought with relief. She would not have to suffer the anxiety of the thought that he could die at any moment, car wreck, illness, random violence, etc… There was, however, the matter of this ‘Game’ that he had told her about. “Ritual Combat seems a silly way to spend eternity,” she thought. Still, Janette had not fallen in love on a whim since Nicolas. She had, on impulse, become infatuated with a potential new toy from time to time, yes. But not love.

Then, of course, there was the revelation of her family in Toronto. They had spoken for several hours before they finally both were on the verge of exhaustion. She had invited him into her bed, but neither had the energy to do more than fall asleep in each other’s arms.

She was still incredulous at the turn of events in Toronto. Nicolas had made a childé? She had expected that he would eventually give in and turn his precious doctor. He would never have the control to successfully try the ‘cure’ by taking only a little from Natalie. “No, he would end up draining her, and bringing her across. Then he would be obsessively guilty about it for the next two centuries,” she thought. And now, it turned out that Natalie might be an immortal, or she might be a vampire- Nicolas was actually willing to bring her across? “Obviously things have changed since I left Toronto. Changed dramatically,” she thought. She wondered what circumstances could have possibly led to him making a childé other than Natalie in the first place. Especially an FBI agent- one whose partner turned out to be an immortal like Duncan.

That thought brought her back to this glorious man who was lying next to her. She felt her fangs ache in desire. She still could not believe her good fortune to have someone like this quite neatly drop into her life. She would have been suspicious if not for the fact that she would know the truth at the first taste of his blood. She believed in him already, but if he were trying to trick her she would know soon enough. “And what point would there be to such an elaborate ruse?” she wondered.

MacLeod awoke, opening his eyes and seeing before him a most beautiful sight. Janette was lying there, watching him. Her hair was sleep-tousled, her eyes were bright; the irises a deep green that he imagined he could fall into forever. “God, Janette. You are lovely!” he whispered, the words torn from him by her sheer presence.

Janette could hear the desire in his voice, his accelerated heart beat and respiration. She saw his beautiful eyes dilate with arousal. “You look absolutely delicious, Duncan,” she replied. She reached out to still him momentarily before he moved in on her. She responded to his look of confusion by saying, “I doubt that either of your encounters with my kind involved a discussion of vampire sexual practices.”

“No. They did no cover that topic,” he replied. “Is there a great difference?” he asked, taking her hand from his chest and delicately kissing her palm.

Janette smiled at Duncan’s behavior. Her own arousal was climbing rapidly, but she felt that he needed to know, even if he didn’t really risk death, “At least not permanently,” she thought. “Vampire sex involves the exchange of blood in addition to the usual physical coupling,” she explained delicately. We can not reach our, shall we say, ‘peak’ without the blood.”

“Ah,” he replied. “Do humans usually survive sex with vampires?” he asked.

She hoped he was not getting cold feet, “If sex is all the vampire has in mind? Sometimes; if the vampire wants to stop. Their mortal partner will survive,” she answered. “Of course it isn’t as simple as that. If the vampire has a strong emotional attachment to their lover, it can be especially hard to stop in time,” she added.

Duncan moved closer to her, stroking his hand up her bare arm, to the strap of her nightgown. He looked into her eyes for any sign that she wanted him to stop. Finding none, he slowly slid the strap over her shoulder. “Why is that?” he asked, casually.

Janette smiled even more broadly at the incongruity between Duncan's questions and his actions. Obviously his mind was made up. She ran her free hand down over his muscled chest and abdomen, exploring, teasing and tweaking. “Well, a vampire’s bite, and the subsequent consumption of blood, forms a connection between the two. A person’s thoughts, feelings and emotions are carried in their blood. When it is someone for whom you have deep feelings, you can get caught up in the experience, distracted.”

“Hmm, what happens then?” MacLeod asked, sliding the strap off her other shoulder.

Janette was definitely becoming distracted by Duncan’s ministrations. Her breasts ached to be held, and her nipples were diamond hard, begging to be suckled. “Ah, well… Hmm, we can take too much; forget ourselves and fail to stop in time.”

“And then…” he whispered as he cupped her breast through her gown.

Janette was growing slick with arousal. She thought that she would melt if she didn’t get him inside her soon. “The mortal will die, or be brought across,” she answered at last. Her fangs were dropping, and all the colors around her were turning green.

MacLeod looked Janette straight in the eye as he slipped his hand beneath the now loosened nightgown and gently cupped one breast in his hand, sliding his palm across the hardened nipple. His voice dropped to a husky whisper, “You will no have to worry about that with me, Janette. I will come back to you.” He closed the rest of the distance between them and kissed her, gently. His tongue slid across her teeth, scraping lightly on her fangs, drawing a drop of blood.

Even that tiny drop was enough to show Janette the truth behind his words. It was impossible that they could love each other after so brief a time, yet she tasted echoes of her own feelings in his blood. She could feel his erection pressing against her gown, trapped inside his briefs. She rolled him onto his back, hitching up the length of her gown and pulling down his underwear just enough for what she needed.

Mac felt himself groan from deep inside his belly as her slick, cool flesh enveloped him. It was a sensation entirely unique in his 400 years of life. He looked up at her as she slowly slid up and down his length. Her eyes glowed a golden green, her ruby lips were parted and her bright white teeth and fangs glistened. Before he knew of vampires he would never have imagined that glowing eyes and fangs would be sexy, but they were. And how! He caught a tantalizing glimpse of her breasts swaying under the gapped nightgown, and suddenly he had a desperate need to see all of her. “Janette, please,” he moaned. “I want to see you.”

She knew instinctively what he meant. She swooped down on him for a short, but heated kiss, and then sat up on him, shimmying her gown over her head and off.

MacLeod’s breath caught at the sight. Her flesh was uniformly creamy white, save for her dark nipples and the triangle of hair on her lower abdomen where their bodies met. He hadn’t thought it was possible to become harder than he already was, but he did. He gasped, “God in heaven, you are beautiful!”

Janette felt his member swelling inside her. He was like a length of just forged steel inside her, filling her with heat. He reached around her and pulled her down to him, pressing his face into her bosom, suckling like a newborn. She hadn’t felt this cherished in a long, long time. It felt wonderful.

Mac felt himself coming close to the edge and began to thrust powerfully up into her, increasing the tempo of their love. He remembered that she would need to take his blood in order to reach her own orgasm, so he arched his neck and said, “Now, Janette. Do it now!”

She needed no further urging, having been restraining herself since she awoke. She buried her fangs into the golden sweep of his neck and drank strongly.

The link was established between them and swept them up into the whirlwind of thoughts, feelings, and memories attendant to the act. They jointly felt the hot gush of his orgasm inside her, and the tremors and contractions of her nearly simultaneous release. They each felt the cherishing love that they had for one another. The lack of time shared between them was erased in an instant, and they knew one another completely. Each was amazed at the other’s age, not having known what to expect. They instantly forgave one another for past sins, and gloried in their joy of life, despite dark times. More importantly they accepted each other as they were, and could easily see joining for eternity.

In the past, each had lamented the loss of those whom they might have thought of as soul mates. Now they saw that each had really been waiting for this moment. This relationship was already beyond what either had ever experienced before, and it was in its infancy. They would delight in seeing it grow over the next millennia or two.

Inevitably, Janette was unable to stop in time. MacLeod felt death approaching, as he had hundreds of times before. He reassured her through the link that he would come back for her, and then blackness took them both.

===== X-FILES ===== FOREVER KNIGHT ===== HIGHLANDER =====

The Raven

6:00 p.m. Friday

“Very well,” LaCroix said as he put down the phone. Aristotle hadn’t found out very much about ‘Adam Pierson.’ The name was obviously false, Aristotle had found a birth certificate for him, and a death certificate dated not long after. The personal history was quite good, he had said. Not quite at his own level of expertise, but better than what most government agencies were doing these days.

The only thing Aristotle had found that was of any interest to LaCroix was a tax record of a research grant to the University of Washington that listed Pierson as the chief researcher. The grant came from a source that was well hidden, but Aristotle had been able to track down as an obscure historical society based in Bern Switzerland. The description of the society sounded to LaCroix as though it might be affiliated with this Watcher group his granddaughter had run into, “or run through,” he thought with a small smile. He wondered what Pierson’s affiliation with the Watchers was. It was too unlikely to be mere coincidence.

LaCroix was, however, hesitant to have Aristotle dig any deeper. If the enforcers and the council were to become aware of the existence of immortals, things could become rather unpleasant. He needed to bide his time until he knew more about the situation, until he could guide the events as he saw fit.