Timeless (19/?) by Elisa P. Black Natalie didn't say a thing as they drove along in the Caddy. In fact, she hardly seemed to be moving; there was hardly a sound in the car, not a rustle of clothing, no slight shuffling, just the barest touch of breath and a comforting heartbeat. He felt so thankful that she was still alive, but her silence made him uneasy. What could possibly have happened with LaCroix? What did he do to her? She seemed to sense his apprehension. Turning away from the window, she flashed him a weak smile which he returned. "He didn't hurt us. LaCroix, I mean." "Then why was he there?" he asked tightly. Nat fidgeted, shifted nervously, and resettled herself, giving herself time to consider her words. "I don't really know, but... he saved us. He stopped the other vampire from killing us. He let us go." He shook his head. It couldn't be. It was impossible. Unless LaCroix was up to something far worse. He took a deep breath. "So what happened exactly?" As Nat told him the story, he felt increasing agitation run through him. He wanted very much to grab Nat and tuck her away somewhere safe, to hide her from the bad things in the world. But then again, *he* was a bad thing, and if he hadn't met her in the first place, then she wouldn't be in so much danger... He suddenly became aware that Nat had stopped talking. She placed a comforting hand on his arm, and looked at him with compassion. Why was she comforting him? She was the one who had gone through the ordeal. Why was she always comforting him? This whole thing was all wrong, he and she together were all wrong... Nat sighed as she studied Nick. Here he was again on another guilt trip, no doubt over her safety. How she wished that he would just snap out of it! It tore at her heart to see him hurting like this. It seemed so unnecessary to her, he was destrying himself... "Nick, this is not your fault. I would have been at that convention even if I hadn't ever met you. I would still have run out into the lobby when I heard that scream, and the vampire would still have taken me. In fact, it might have helped a bit that they knew who I was. They might not have let us go otherwise..." Nick's jaw remained resolutely clenched, but his eyes softened as he looked at her. He nodded gravely. "All right. But what about Agent Scully? What exactly did she think of all this?" She knew that he must be worried about whether or not the FBI agents would figure anything out; she was worried herself. But there was no way to stop them from investigating, at least not as far as she could see. Somehow she had to tell Nick that without having him go berserk. "She doesn't believe in vampires, but she does think that something is going on here that needs investigating." Nick sat silently as if waiting for more bad news. She sighed and continued. "Before all of this, Agent Scully had asked to help with the autopsy of bodies. After all, we are getting too many bodies nowadays, and we do need help..." Nick raised an eyebrow, the rest of his body still rigid. "Well," Nat explained reasonably, unwilling to be intimidated, "we really do need help with all the bodies. It would look suspicious to refuse. They will investigate no matter what, and we shouldn't give them any reasons to suspect us even more." Nick sighed and nodded. "Mulder got a sample of some ash." She didn't have to ask what exactly he meant by that; she knew it had to be vampire ash. He was asking her whether or not the FBI agents would find anything interesting in the ash. Using some simple methods, she hadn't been able to find any useful information. However, she hadn't been able to study any samples in close detail before, and didn't know if anything could be found using more sophisticated techniques. She shrugged and shook her head. "I didn't find anything in what little ask I had been able to analyze, but I wouldn't know if further study might turn up something. Let's just hope that they don't find anything." Nick nodded grimly as he stopped the car in front of her building. She said good night and started to get out of the car. With a hand on her arm, he stopped her. "Nat, who was that vampire that took you? Will he come back for you at any time?" "I don't know if he'll come after me, but I don't think so. LaCroix pretty much convinced him that it was a bad idea. And I believe that LaCroix mentioned that the vampire's name was Shane." Nick's eyes grew wide in shock. "Shane? About my age and height, dark eyes and hair, thick eyebrows, ..." She felt bewildered. Who could this Shane character be? "Yes, why?" She was even more shocked when he began roaring with laughter. "What??" Nick calmed down a bit. "He is *the* laughing stock of the Community. I'm usually sort of grateful that he keeps me from being the one. There are just so many stories of his incompetence that I wonder how he was able to pull this off." She snickered a bit. "Well, LaCroix did call him a fool." Nick sobered. "I still don't know about LaCroix. I have to wonder what kind of game he's up to." She nodded. "I'm a little uneasy about it myself, but he did save Scully and me. I don't think he'll be doing anything so soon. I'll be fine for tonight at least. So go home and we'll figure this out tomorrow." Nick hesitated. "We should get some rest," she soothed. "Go on, I'll be fine." He nodded and let her go. He had been out hunting for whatever was killing off his children at such an alarming rate. While he hadn't yet found the cause, he had found something else very interesting. At a hotel in the city, an interesting situation developed with the idiot Shane and some ladies. One lady in particular caught his attention, an extraordinary red-haired beauty, intelligent and strong. An amazing strength of will, independent, sensible, a challenge. It was a good thing that the other fool, LaCroix, had prevented Shane from killing her. Now, he floated outside her window, gazing upon her gorgeous face, considering just how delicious her blood must be, how sweet and lush. Oh, how would she react when she realized what was happening to her? When she died and was reborn? He could wait no longer; the night was fleeting and there was much still left to do. With a bit of concentration, his mind opened the window, and he stepped silently inside. She continued her peaceful slumber, blissfully unaware. He reached down and caressed her pale cheek. She moaned softly to her dream lover, shifted languorously. Slowly, he slid his arms around her, lifting her into his embrace. Clad only in a black nightshirt, she felt silky and supple against him. He brushed back her firey hair, ran a hand down her pale neck, and began to kiss the soft skin. She sighed and shifted in his arms. Slowly, he allowed his fangs to emerge, running them lightly over her neck, searching for the perfect spot... Right there... He bit in and she winced a bit. The blood started flowing, lustrous and sweet. She moaned and moved restlessly, trailing towards the edge of wakefulness... Not yet, love... He ran a hand over her forehead, willing her to remain asleep. With a final arch of her back, she settled contentedly. He shifted her again and prepared to bite in once more. Suddenly, someone grabbed him by the neck, choking him with an inhuman strength. He felt bones begin to snap under the pressure as he gasped in pain. Dropping his unfinished child, he reached up to pull at the large hand. This must be the one one he had been searching for, the hunter that was killing his children! What was this being?! He jumped back, trying to fly around and rip himself away, but his attacker was too strong. In another attempt to break free, he twisted rapidly, and somehow was able to slip out of the iron embrace. Whipping around, he launched himself at his enemy, intent on draining the life and power out of the being. His teeth met little resistance as they sank into the other's neck. In the millisecond before anything rushed out, he could sense that something was terribly wrong. But there was no time to draw away, no time to escape the caustic flow of fluid that bubbled into his mouth. He screamed in pain and threw the being aside, staring in horror as not red blood but some green substance flowed from the hunter's wound. He clutched his mouth as the substance burned like fire. This being was not human or vampire, it was like nothing he'd ever seen in his many millenia of life. The creature was huge, seemingly a human male except for the green fluid bubbling from its neck. The large angular face stared calmly at him, making no move to attack again. It said nothing, and yet he knew, it was allowing him this one chance to escape. He had better take it now or he would die. Never before had he felt such fear, never been the weaker one, but this being was far superior to him. In pain and frustrated, he flew. End of Part 19