June 2-4

Wednesday, June 02, 2010

I pressed play on the dvd player and Eric leaned forward. We held our breaths while he stared at the woman Eric had not seen in a thousand years. His eyes traced every detail of her face and he licked his lips slightly.

“That is not my wife. That is not Aude,” he said.
“Do you recognize her?” I asked.
“I do,” he said. “She was a slave in my father’s house.”
“How did you acquire her?” I asked.

“The way we acquired all our slaves, in battle,” he said. “I remember that battle very well. We had been scouting another village which had been openly hostile to another clan of people we were aligned with. They were strangers who were encroaching on their territory. This was a very serious thing because hunting was the mainstay of our people. If another community encroached on that land, we faced starvation, especially during hard times. We raided them with our friends and we took many slaves and killed many warriors. She was among them.”

“What was her name?” I asked, my pen poised over my notebook.
“Niamh,” he said. “She was a Celt, from the Brittany people of northern France. There had been a mini ice age and the people were starving and they traveled out to find better hunting.”
“Were you married when your father captured her?” Butter asked.
“No,” said Eric. “I lived in my father’s house but I was soon expected to marry. And slaves were under the control of the household. So I took her to my bed in my youth. She seemed to like me very much, though it may be possible she was hoping to be elevated from her slave status by being my bed mate.”
“Was she tattooed all over her body, like the oracle?” asked Scarlett.
“No, her tattoos seemed to be…unfinished and seemed to be fading from her body. They were very intricate, but they did seem unfinished. I asked her if she had been marked this way by her people and she laughed and said she had been born that way. I didn’t know better,” said Eric.
“So, how did Aude happen to have the same markings on her?” I asked.
“When we married, my father made me gift of a certain number of male, female and child slaves to begin my household. I was expected to add to that as time passed of course,” said the Viking. “Among them was this woman and there were still times I enjoyed her as a sex partner, for example when Aude was full of child and could not share the marriage bed with me. Monogamy in females was expected unless there was some defect in her husband but men could enjoy any number of women so long as they were not married or betrothed.”

“Did she ever speak of her people?” Fairy asked.
“No, but in all honesty, I was not interested in her as long as she was a willing bed partner. But Aude admired her tattoos and had one done on her hand by one of our artists. I remember Niamh was not happy,” he said.
“Did she have your children?” I asked. “If you are bedding her regularly, you must have gotten her in a family way from time to time.”
“She did have children when we were in my father’s house and then she had a child when she became a member of my household. But you have to understand, she was a slave, and while it was likely the children were mine, I could never know for sure. Any man could have commanded her to his bed. Any get was mine as a slave,” said Eric. “Regardless of which man was the father.”
“So, there was a bad summer, a summer where the people went hungry. I imagine if the members of the community were hungry, so were the slaves,” said God Speed.

“Yes, slaves ate whatever was left after their masters and if there was very little to begin with, there was very little or nothing for them,” he admitted.
“Did the Norse practice cannibalism?” asked Violet.
“Not often, but it was not unheard of, during times of duress,” said Eric. “And we did not eat people we sacrificed. Human sacrifice was a very touchy thing. We did not do it often.”
“Did you sacrifice during that bad time?” asked Minnie.
“We did,” he said. “Every household was expected to give up a certain number of slaves. We tried never to sacrifice children and men. Older people were prime sacrifices. Problem slaves, women the mistress of the house hated because they caught the eye of their husbands, any criminals, they were the first to be sacrificed.”
“Eric,” I said. “Did you sacrifice any of Niamh’s children?”
“No,” he said. “But my father did.”
“And Aude was pregnant during the bad times?” I asked.
“Yes,” he said.
“And when she delivered the child, who attended her?” I asked.
“The midwives and Niamh,” said Eric. He looked at the face of the woman frozen on the screen.
“Mystery solved,” I said. “I am sorry Eric.”

“So, is there any way that the Oracle, in addition to being angry about the sword, knew about the death of this woman and tacked this onto the list of grievances against Eric and perhaps even Niall?” asked Aolani.
“Perhaps,” I said. “We would need to speak to Niall about that. And the sword in the museum is that the goblin made sword?”
“I don’t know,” said Body Guard.
“Aolani, have you taken a look at the ogram runes that were found on the sword?” I asked.
“I have. It isn’t hard to translate, it is a magikal alphabet, that is why they haven’t translated it,” said Aolani. “I don’t know why they ignore the reality of different sorts of language and writing for magikal purposes.”
“Bigotry,” said Westexan. “Just like the fact this hotel has to be super secure, and the supernatural world is still hidden. They see things they don’t understand and refuse to look at things that may not be main stream. They regard whatever knowledge you may have about the magikal world as some sort weird fringe, but you would think they would be more open if they know about Vampires.”
“True,” said Linzy. “Can you translate that sword?”

“I think so,” she said. “It likely carries the spell that enchants it, gives it its anime.”
“Anime?” asked Bella.
“Its soul,” said Aolani. “Everything wrought by magikal hands had a soul endowed to it as it was made. The seven metals are no mistake.”
“Aolani,” said Bill. “The Fae cannot handle iron, how would they use a sword like that, much less make it?”
“The blade is not steel. It is something else. Silver, platinum, other hard metals. That is why Eric could hold the sword,” she said.
“If we give back the sword, will that cause a war or will it keep the war from happening?” asked Scarlett.
“I don’t think we can stop the war,” said Eric. “If the fae want to fight among themselves, they will. The question is, would the rest of the supernatural community be dragged into it?”
“Well, we know certain elements are brought in because of…” I looked at Eric and Bill. Sookie was one of the many catalysts that start a fae war, aggravating a long time grudge between two warring factions of a fae royal family.

It was nearly sun up. The Vampires had to go to bed but we were going to stay up a while and chat. When they went to their rest, we sat down.
“So, we know from the Connection that there is a fae war that concerns Sookie,” said Barrister. “What should Eric do?”
“I say he should simply let things follow their course. We will see what the grudge is about, we will see what Sookie learns about her own heritage, we will see what might need to be done and who needs to be informed,” said Body Guard. “In all honesty, what can Eric do with this information?”
“Not much that I can see,” I said. “We are just observers in so far as what happens next. And we will soon be down a Vampire and Eric will be busy with…other things.”
“Why did we become involved in all this if nothing is going to be done?” asked God Speed.
“Leverage is always a wonderful weapon,” I said. “And Eric is always looking for an edge. If he has some bargaining power, he may be able to get out of a sticky situation.”
“Well, we know that he is in it up to his neck because of the situation with the queen and the V,” said Renee.
“But will knowing all this stuff help him?” asked Chris. “The Magister is very upset apparently.”
“I don’t know,” I said.
“What do you think will be the next move for Eric?” asked Butter.
“I think there are a few things he wants to just see here,” I said. “And I think we will likely go back to back to England for a day or so.”
“Why?” asked God Speed.
“I think that although Markingham was influential in England, I think Eric will have to talk to some people who are more influential,” I said. “He will have to answer for this.”
“Will he be in trouble do you think?” asked Fairy.
“I don’t know,” I said. “Eric is in big trouble in the states and he told this Markingham about it. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had to account for himself. I am sure they have the same rules about killing your own kind here as they do in Louisiana.”

“You know, we killed Vampires too,” said Scarlett.
“I don’t think Eric will let you hang for this,” said Barrister.
“Do you think he will be forced to make Vampires like Bill did?” asked Butter.
“I don’t know,” I said.
“Do you think the Magister will have it out for Eric for killing his half brother?” asked Lina.
“I don’t think he will be besties with Eric anytime soon,” I said.
“Is there anything we can do to help Eric?” asked Body Guard.
“We may stand up for him in trial,” I said. “Whatever happens, this will not just be about Eric, it will be about the queen as well.”
“Will the weres stand up for Eric?” asked Lina. “They were being strangled by Markingham. Surely they will step in.”
“The thing that might get Eric out of the hole in England is the human trade. If this got out to the human world, Vampires will not be safe anywhere. That is our bargaining chip for Eric’s life,” said Barrister. “I told the Magister there was a Vampire bloke in the House of Lords who was using a human relative as a puppet but he was the one actually in charge. This sort of scandal would scotch any chances of his reclaiming his hereditary title.”
“Do you think it will help with the Magister?” I asked.
“Probably not,” said Westexan.
“We have a lot of troubles here,” I said. “Jessica for one, Eric and the Queen, maybe even Pam. I worry about all our Vampires.”
“Plus whatever happens with Edgington,” said Aolani.
“Body Guard, is there anything the Colonel can do with those weres that seem to be aligning themselves with Edgington?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” said Body Guard. “I think we should take a wait and see approach to that.”
“Why, do you suspect something?” asked Aolani.
“We will have to see,” he said again.

I was tired. We all looked like we needed sleep. Slowly we began to drift off to our rooms. Whatever happened would happen and we just have to keep our eyes open.

To be Continued.

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Like a house, there are many doors to Faerie. There are back doors and side doors and front doors and cellar doors and little closet doors and doors in the floors and doors in the ceilings. One of the first doors we ever see is the door of our imagination. In our youth, we have complete suspension of disbelief. We believe that Santa lives at the North Pole, that Mickey Mouse lives at Disney World, and there are little green men who live on the moon.

As we get older, we understand that many of the happy creatures we believed in were metaphors to something else, or simply crass commercialism and they faded away not from our knowledge but from prominence. They were no longer authentic. They were just a part of our childhood beliefs that promised a nickel under our pillows in exchange for our baby teeth.

But there is still a part of us that believes God drives a flying saucer, that Oz is over the rainbow and that there are fairies at the foot of your garden and all you need is a key and know how to open the door. But what do you do when you haven’t believed in fairies since you saw Pinocchio?
I remember in some long ago psych class, when I was just old enough to be ignorant as hell, listening to a professor talk about “commonplace hallucinations”. These were things that everyone, or most everyone, experiences. The Fleeing Gnome is one of them. I know what you are doing right now as you read this. You are rolling your eyes and saying “what the fuck sort of drugs has Aslinn been on?” but keep reading.

Have you ever been busy with something and caught something moving just out of the corner of your eye? Something that disappears around a corner or behind a piece of furniture? Of course you go and look, especially if you have pets or a small child and you don’t want them getting into mischief and when you get there, there is nothing…nothing at all. And maybe you shrug it off as a play of shadows or a trick of the eye.

But now we have Vampires out in the open, more or less, and we have met werewolves and we have met fairies at the foot of our gardens. Meeting Vampires was easy. They have bars and they live next door, and they come and go in your lives. Same with werewolves and shapeshifters and the odd witch or two. Not to mention a telepath and a maenad and a crazy oracle.

If your world seems strange, it can only get stranger. There is nothing more surreal than watching your friends sitting around among them. There is a thousand year old Viking who for the last couple of weeks has been running all over Europe, holding one of his human wives on his lap, rubbing her belly big with child, his other wife, a fairy half breed, her hands on his shoulders laughing at something funny one of the group has said.

Then there is a southern gent, a war veteran, smiling his sweet closed lipped smile, drinking his supper. He is not the most demonstrative of men but he leans down and kisses one of his wives on the mouth. She smiles at him and he winks at her, a subtle motion. He is not a Gulf War Vet, or a Vietnam Vet, or even a World War II Vet. He fought on the side of the south and was made Vampire sometime just after the war.

Sitting with her elegant long legs crossed at the ankle on the coffee table, her feet encased in stiletto heels and her body snugged into a vintage lavender dress, a Victorian lady is looking at her sweetheart, a red headed beauty who shot and killed another Vampire who was torturing her. She smiles at her and shows off her long fangs. This lady may have started her life in flounces and lace but she is living it as a free woman, liberated in a way most of us will never know.

A laugh draws our attention and I look over and a young girl is laughing at her darling. He leans over and kisses her sweet mouth and her eyes glow in a way no human woman’s would glow and her fangs slide out and he leans over and licks them with the tip of his tongue. She covers them self consciously, like the shy girl she really never was, but the demure girl she sometimes pretends to be to the detriment of any hot-blooded and horny male.

A werewolf is hugging is wife, the witch, and he sniffs her. She smells of the Craft, like ginger and bergamot and spearmint. A lawyer from a posh English family leans his head on the shoulder of his true love, one he shares with a Vampire only because she shares him with one, one who has a very unusual library, who has eccentric spiritual beliefs, beliefs she shares with the witch, because she too practices Craft.

So, when the Viking asked her if she could find one of the doors to Faery, she said sure, no problem.

“Why are we looking for a door to Faery, Eric?” asked Bill. “I do not understand what you think you can accomplish.”
“I have to tell Niall what we have experienced and see if he will give us any insight,” said Eric.
“Who are you doing this for? Yourself? Or the blond in Bon Temps?” asked Pam. She loved to aggravate Eric with the fact he is becoming increasingly interested in Sookie much to Bill’s displeasure.
“Sookie will learn of her connection to the fae soon enough,” said Eric. “But I do not want to be caught unaware when the battle begins.”
“So you are feeling Niall out to see when this might happen?” asked God Speed. “He won’t tell you and I would be hard pressed to trust anything he said.”
“I agree,” said Eric, nuzzling Butter’s neck, smelling her scent and perhaps the smell of her child. “But I have to see what direction Niall might take.”
“I don’t think this is a good idea Eric,” said Barrister. “He may have set you up to go to Faery to begin with in Armagh and he may have definitely set you up to see the Oracle at Lough Derg and that almost got you killed. If it hadn’t been for Bill, you might be a bit of sludge at the bottom of that flooded chamber.”

Eric gave Barrister a long look I did not like, but then he softened. I don’t think Eric was used to being spoken to that way, and nor was he used to being beholden to his rival for Sookie’s affections.
“Will Niall want that sword?” I asked.
“I do not know. Perhaps if I tell him it is safe, he will simply leave it be. Niall certainly did not seem too concerned about it,” said the Viking. “At any rate, we must go back to England and have a chat. I hope everyone brought formal attire.”

We nodded. I brought a lovely black dress with silver beading on the bodice and matching bag and shoes and wrap. Barrister had a wonderful three piece cut away with an oxford coat. I wondered if it would get messed up during the evening. I hoped not. I really liked that dress.

“So when do you want to go and see Niall?” I asked.
“Tomorrow night, then we catch a late flight back to England,” said Eric. “Our business should not take us long.”

It is easy to find the door to Faery. A real door. There are places of power all over the world. The space between the paws of the Sphinx, the open mouth of the Rude Man of Ireland, a geoglyph in marble on the side of a hill in Connebarrah, the center of Stonehenge, the middle of the Bermuda Triangle, the stone inside the Blue Mosque in Jerusalem and the plains of Wounded Knee. And while men inhabit these places or otherwise control them, trouble is always there, turmoil and even death.

Near these power places, almost like map lines, you can find Faery. I studied all the power places and found one such place, near Nidallvellir, named after the underworld under the World Tree. There was a pool there and a waterfall called the Alfar Platz, the Elf Place and that was where we would travel. Legends connected to the place suggested that those looking to meet with a fairy were to bring cakes and honey and fruits and wine and call into the doorway the name of the fairy you wished to speak with and he or she was beholden to appear and talk to the summoner.

So, while the Vampires slept their day sleep, deep and deathlike, I went out with my friends to see the city of Stockholm and buy treats fit for a prince of Faery. I chose carefully. I bought a jar of honey and a couple of baskets of cloudberry, fresh and sweet. I bought two bottles of cloudberry wine and a bottle of brandy and vodka. I bought a small box of pastries full of nuts and fruits and cream fillings and even some jams and preserves. Into a large basket I would arrange them for Eric to bring to the door of Faery when he called out the name of Niall Brigant.

After a lovely lunch we walked back and showed our passes to the guard and went up to our room. Body Guard had already called the concierge to hire us a car and God Speed had found the location and plotted our route. We stretched out and rested and waited for our friends to wake up.
When Bill came into the room, Renee got up and warmed him a bottle. He looked at the carefully arranged basket with interest and came and sat next to me.
“Hello sweetheart, did you rest well?” he asked.
“I did,” I said. “And then we went out into the city and had lunch and I bought all the goodies for the basket.”
“Is is necessary?” asked Bill.
“Well, all of the myths suggest it is good manners. In light of everything that has happened, I think showing our good matters would work in our favor,” I said. “Besides, Eric had no qualms against bringing the Maenad a young bull, there is no reason for him begrudging Niall a few buns and honey and fruit.”
“None what so ever, though it will chafe him to a degree,” answered Bill.
“Bill, while you are gone, I want your permission for we sister wives to work on your house, remodeling it and fixing it up,” I said. “We really have to get you and Jessica out of that hole in the ground under your house.”
“You may do whatever you like darling,” he said.
“Good,” I said. “And we will be going in and out of your house to get books so we can help you with your database.”
“Certainly,” he said. “And I want to make sure you are paid, so I will arrange it with my money manager.”
“Not necessary,” I said.
“Never do things for free for Vampires, make us pay for your services,” said Bill cooly. “It places you in the proper perspective for Vampires. “
“Alright,” I said.
Eric was up a few minutes later. Whatever had happened to him in the fairy glamour was gone and he was his easy going, gregarious self. He kissed his wives and accepted a bottle of Tru:Blood and looked at the basket. He sat down on the couch opposite me.
“Did you have enough money for the offering?” he asked me.
“Ample Eric, thank you,” I said. “In fact I have money left over.”
“Keep it,” he said. “For doing an excellent job on the basket.”
“Thank you Eric,” I said.
“As soon as you are ready, our transport is waiting us down stairs,” said Body Guard.
“No sense in waiting,” said Eric. “May as well get this over with.”

The place was about an hour of easy road outside the city limits. It was difficult to appreciate the natural beauty of the land around us in the darkness of night. God Speed sat in the seat behind the driver and told him where to turn and where to finally pull off. We got out, Bill carrying the basket.
The terrain was unremarkable except for the small pool and the solitary formation of rocks. I went to the formation and felt of the stone. I knocked on it three times and shouted the name of Niall Brigant. I stepped away from it and Pam pulled me gently behind Eric.

We waited and it seemed like an hour instead of a few minutes. Finally there was a light that crept through the cracks of the stone formation. The light intensified, like a bright light spilling into a dark room from an over bright hall way. Then a tall figure appeared and Niall Brigant appeared before us.
You have heard tales of mortal women who fell in love with fairy men and I could understand why. Niall Brigant was beautiful and there was a part of me that wanted to go with him to Faery and never return, but then I shook my head and the fairy glamour was gone and though he was still lovely, I could not imagine leaving Barrister and Bill and my friends, even Eric and Pam and Jessica. I looked at Aolani and she was chanting a spell to disperse the fairy glamour.

“Niall,” said Eric.
“Eric,” he replied.
“Have you heard about what happened in Lough Derg?” asked Eric.
“I have. I would not have believed it possible for the Oracle to be bested, but then again, I have underestimated you and your resources. It will not happen again,” said Niall. He looked at the basket Bill was holding. “See someone knows their fairy etiquette.” He clapped his hands and two little elves appeared and they took the basket from Bill and scampered away into the darkness.
“Did you know the story?” asked Eric.
“What story would that be Sheriff?” asked Niall.
“The Oracle was some sort of half sister to Ossian and somehow their goblin made sword came into the possession of my people in battle, that another human fae had been a slave of my father’s and of mine?” asked Eric.
“I had my suspicions,” said Niall.

“And did you know we would be in jeopardy by visiting the Oracle? That they are your sworn enemy? That they are in a struggle with you to gain power over the world of fairy, that they trafficked in human children with the Vampire Markingham in England?” asked Bill.
“Perhaps I did,” said Niall. “But I had faith that your Sheriff would do his duty and keep his minions and his humans healthy.”
“So why did you put us in the middle?” asked God Speed.
“It was nothing personal,” said Niall.
“Are you going to open the doors to Faery in the New World?” asked Aolani.
“I am,” he said. “Faery is dwindling, there are not many of us left, but there are humans who have the strain of fae blood all over the New World. I wish to contact as many of them as I can.”
“To what ends?” asked Body Guard.
“To my ends Werewolf,” he said. “We will need all of us, even those with merely a drop of fairy blood will be useful in the war to come.”
“You should keep the door closed,” said Scarlett. “It is selfish to involve mortals in your war.”
“How can you say that when you have fought with the supernatural yourself? What happens to Faery will happen to man. If Faery dies, so will man,” said Niall. “Did you find the Answerer?”
“We found a sword, but we do not know if it is the Goblin made sword you seek,” said Eric.
“Where is it?” he asked.
“Safe,” said Eric.
“In human hands?” he asked. Eric shrugged. He could be as obtuse and stubborn as any fae. “It does not matter.”

“Is our business concluded?” asked Eric.
“I may call upon you, to have a way of introducing myself to my great granddaughter,” said Niall. “Will you agree to it?”
“Call on me and I will consider it,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “I will meet her whether you help me or not.”
“This concludes our business, for the time being,” said Eric.
“Then I bid you safe journeys and good luck with the Vampire King and Queen of Britain, then,” he said. He turned on his heel and walked into the darkness and disappeared into the night.
“Fucking fairies,” cursed Eric.

To Be Continued.

Friday, June 10, 2010

We arrived at an abnormal early time and had supper and went up and we humans actually got in bed during the night time hours. What our Vampire companions did we knew not, but when we woke that morning, they were safely ensconced in their coffins. After showers, we got dressed, packed our things and headed for the restaurant for breakfast. We would board our Anubis flight around ten am and fly the two hour trip to London.

We were staying in the Midnight Garden Hotel, a new Vampire hotel in London. Body Guard was not as impressed with security at this hotel as he had with the Swedish hotel and for good reason. When we got there, we were informed by the concierge that there was a human wing and a Vampire wing and we were to be separated from our Vampires.

“No, fucking way mate,” I said. “If we have to slip the coffins under our beds like luggage, we aren’t being separated from our Vampires, you can forget it.”
“Ma’am, I assure you they will be quite safe. This is a tourist hotel, we make our money being able to advertise the grand arrival each night of the fanged ones,” explained the nob in the hotel Nehru jacket and trousers.
“Oh, no way, I don’t care if other Vampires dress up in clown suits and prance around to the sounds of the Elephant’s March, we aren’t being separated from our friends. Now, are we gonna argue, or are we going to take our friends and go?” I asked him.
“But that will require us to put you up on the Vampire side of the hotel,” he said. “And that simply isn’t done.”
“Fine, we will find somewhere else to stay,” I said. “Mr. Northman will be less than pleased and I am sure the hotel will regret losing our money.” The shmuck looked at me with loathing.
“Very well ma’am, but we cannot be held responsible for you if one of our fanged guests try to feed from you,” he said smugly.
“Strange fangs get on me, I will cut them where it doesn’t grow back and then I will come after you,” I said. “Chris, take care of the bills please.”

Chris came up and took out Eric’s credentials and credit card and got our keys and Eric’s receipts and we went up to the Vampire side of the hotel. We opened the doors and saw to our Vampires first then opened our own rooms. I looked in the loo.

“We need toilet paper and tissues and we need the minibars and fridges stocked with human food as well as Tru:Blood,” I said tersely. “All of the rooms, not just this one. I will be checking. And I want three more sets of towels to each room as well, Vampire rooms included.”

“Yes ma’am,” said the bell boy. He hurried along with the other bell boys who had either brought up a coffin or baggage cart. We went to check the Vampires first, to make sure they were safe and sound.

The rooms were nowhere near the elegance of the hotel in Sweden. Once we ascertained our boys and girls were safe, we went to settle our luggage, shake out our formal attire and make plans for lunch. This hotel had very little in the way of a restaurant, but we had an excellent guide in Barrister and he arranged for lunch at Jekyll and Hyde’s.

After we had settled ourselves, we relaxed and waited for the hotel service to bring our additional linens and stock our rooms. We did not tip as we had in the Swedish hotel, particularly when the snotty concierge came up with 22 velum envelopes, all sealed with wax. We sat down in one of the suites and opened them. They were our official summonses to the court of the Vampire Queen and King of Britain.

The Vampire Queen and King of London held court in the formal chambers of the Tower of London. The Bloody Tower had been called, it was once the prison and execution grounds of noble offenders. Much of the Tower was open to the public, but some of it was closed to the public. I imagined these areas were, if not the Royal Residents of the King and Queen, they were at least the court chambers for them to entertain and hear legal matters before the Vampire government. Barrister had not been to any of these proceedings, but he knew of them from Markingham.

“How tight is security?” asked Body Guard.
“Pretty damned tight for Vampires, I understand, but curiously lax for humans. I suppose they never really think of humans as a security problem while they are all together. They do have weres in their court, probably to sort out any non-Vampire problems,” said Barrister.
“Think I should put in a call to Liam?” asked the Body Guard.
“I don’t see why not,” said Barrister. “He is the packmaster.”

Body Guard called his werewolf friend and they chatted for some time, the conversation punctuated with laughter. When he hung up he told us that he and twenty of his men would be there, acting as security that if anything came up, he would take care of it.

We went to lunch and enjoyed a leisurely meal and came back and had a nap. I rose early to bathe and get ready for the party and soon there were taps on the door from the group, looking for stockings, asking for opinions and help with clothes.

Butter looked amazing in her dress, a Grecian cut affair of pale pink. She was slightly golden from the sun and her hair was caught up in a pony tail with little ringlets cascading down her back. Fairy was wearing red, her blond hair curling gently on her shoulders, her feet encased in red silk pumps. Renee was wearing what Chris called “Classic Fangbanger” a black chiffon number with her hair brushed all around her face in what I would call a pixie style. Chris was wearing purple satin and velvet and matching shoes.

Westexan was wearing midnight blue, sprinkled with tiny jewels that looked like a midnight sky. Minnie was wearing cloth of gold and looked like a gilded prize. Bella was wearing sky blue and looked like a princess out of old story book. Lina and Vi were wearing tropical colors like exotic birds, their dresses made of silk. Linzy was wearing silver with burgundy accents. Jen was wearing red with black lace overlay, making her look like a gothic sweetheart. Aolani wore hunter green silk with tiny India paisley embroidery in gold threads. Scarlett wore a deep wine red that matched the color of her hair. Raki was dressed in pale green that made her skin seem almost bronze. And I wore black.

The boys were in tuxes. God Speed wore black and a red jacquard vest. Body Guard wore black as well and Barrister wore his dark grey Oxford cut suit. After we dressed, we cooled our heels waiting for the Vampires to be ready. The first one ready was Bill. He looked beautiful in a steel blue suit and deep lavender tie. Then Jessica came out in a flowy dress so pale pink was it nearly white. Pam dressed in grey silk cut in an oriental style with white water lilies embroidered on the silk and matching grey silk pumps. Finally Eric made his appearance, wearing all black.

“We all look beautiful,” he said, looking at all of us. “Jessica, should anything untoward happen, you should take Butter and Chris out, do whatever you have to get them out.” Jessica nodded.
“Think we will have to fight our way out Eric?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” he said. “But we should be ready for any eventuality.”
We all made our way down stairs. There was applause as we came down the main staircase.
“Stupid fangbangers,” said Pam. “They think we are all Vampires.”
“Oh well,” said Scarlett, walking arm in arm with her. “Humans, honestly.”

The limousines were waiting for us downstairs and we split up, two Vampires to a limo and we were whisked away in luxury into the London night. The Tower of London was all lit up when we arrived and the secured gate was opened upon presentation of Eric’s and Bill’s passes. The cars drove down into deeply set porte-cochere and we handed out by shifters on each side of the car. We waited for the entire group to be handed out and our limos parked in the guest parking nearby before we entered the Tower’s events room.

You could tell there had been careful consideration with the décor. The floors were hard English oak and probably three inches thick on what was undoubtedly a floating floor. The walls were carefully white washed in a very pale cream color, nearly white, with wrought iron sconces lit up with electricity. There were still famous areas, like the miserable little hole where the little princes were kept by their evil uncle, Richard III who virtually starved them to death and went unfound til the 1990’s. There were cells, decorated with the rack and other scenes of torture and wax dummies from Madam Toussaud’s added to the eerie effect of the subterranean court of the Vampire King and Queen of England. Eric said we would know them when we saw them. I wondered who they were.

Finally we were led up a short flight of steps and we were announced to a grand ballroom. It was heavily gothic decorated, with wrought iron hanging lamps, huge shields and swords that would be even too big for Eric to carry properly. There were comfortable little tables and chairs around the ball room and already there were Vampires and their human consorts in attendance. I noticed the blood being served was Royalty, poured in Waterford crystal, and all of the Vampires, excluding those who might be of African or Indian decent were the strange, underfed, unhealthy grey of Markingham. Even our Vampires and their pale skins seemed more robust, healthier than their European kin.

It made me wonder if Anne Rice was right with her depictions of the European Vampires Louis and Claudia encountered in Interview with a Vampire. Were they sickly and unhealthy with their ennui and snobbery? I looked at the largest European Vampire there, a big guy who might have been German or Russian and he looked shrunken and wasted next to Eric and his large, heavy body and pinkish cast to his skin and the golden of his hair. Even Bill, who as a human had been an average sized man and being dark haired seemed usually far paler, looked as though he was blushing. Pam and Jessica did as well alongside their English sisters, who looked like muddy old hens who had been dipped in grey water to rinse the worst off their skin. I scanned the rest of the crowd and was surprised to see a smiling redheaded man in a kilt coming to us when I realized it was Liam. He went over and shook hands with Body Guard and Eric and Bill.

“Let me seat you, somewhere not quite in the front, but not too far in the back,” he said, looking around at the layout. He decided on a spot and whistled up a couple of his friends and we had tables moved together so we would all be close. “There is not much in the way of human food at court, but I can send someone over to get you all drinks and put out a sample of what they may have on the tables.”
“Can we speak a moment, in privacy packmaster?” asked Body Guard.
“Let me get you settled and then I will take us to a quiet room to chat,” said Liam. I watched the European Vampires and they seemed quite interested in us. Bill leaned over.
“Do not worry sweet heart,” he whispered, his lips brushing my earlobe. “Everything is going to be fine.”
“I hope so Bill,” I said, turning, my lips brushing his as I breathed the words into his mouth. He leaned back and winked and said something, probably along the same lines to Renee. Wine and Beer and mixed drinks were brought to us by werewolves we recognized from the Slaughtered Lamb. Finally a couple of fangbangers came with the warm bottles of Royalty and carefully poured the blood into the Waterford Crystal goblets. Eric lifted his glass.

“Dea Shlainte, “he said in Irish. He sipped the glass of blood and his slight pinkish coloring deepened a trifle. I laughed.
“I see you were paying attention when I tried to teach you a little Irish,” I said. One night in the parlor, I took some time to try to teach Eric the little bit of Irish I knew and he seemed disinterested in it, or at least not serious about it.
“I am a slow learner,” he said, putting his arm around Butter. There was a small group of young looking Vampires eying Butter. One of them approached Eric.

“I say,” said the thin small Vampire with slicked back hair. He spoke with a North London accent. “How much would you take to drink from the pregnant woman?”
“My wife is not for sale,” said the Viking lazily, hardly looking at the fop.
“A human wife? I had no idea Americans had legalized human/Vampire relationships,” he responded. “How about the little one then, she looks wonderfully fit.”
“She is mine,” said Eric, still feigning boredom. “If you do not move away from my table I will rip your head off.” Eric finally favored him with a look that said ‘Don’t try me.’

The swain finally walked away and rejoined his fellows. All of the Vampires looked uncomfortable. I felt their tension. Liam came up and whispered to Eric. He nodded and stood up and left the table, stopping for a moment to speak to Bill. Bill nodded.

The men’s lounge was in a side room. Liam checked all the stalls and when he saw they were empty, he locked the door. “You guys usually bring your blood meals in here to sip and shag, so it is sound proof,” explained the werewolf.
“What is wrong with these Vampires?” asked Eric.

“They are all inbred, seriously damaged, many of them sick, so I don’t know what your particular twist is, but don’t drink from any of them and don’t shag any of them. The European Vampires are spreading around Sino AIDS and Hep D so fast it is not even funny. Plus they are such snobs they won’t drink anything synthetic but Royalty and it runs out and nearly dry every six months or so and they won’t drink any human blood unless it is at some level noble,” said Liam. “So, this is what I know about your situation, Northman. You have some serious balls my fangy friend. You and your humans are in big trouble for the shit that went down at Markingham’s, so you better get that pregnant girl and that young ‘un out of here, and I mean right now. The music is about to start, me and my men can start waltzing your women out of the building and getting them to the cars, but you will want them out as soon and as discretely as possible.”

“Are the King and Queen hearing the case?” asked Eric.
“They are indeed. We can’t help you much if you decide to stay and take whatever punishment they might levy, we have to live here in England, so you will be on your own once we get your humans out,” said Liam. “And if you make it out, be careful of the weres involved with Edgington, he is gunning for you…something about a little tart in that backwater you come from?”
“Thank you,” said Eric. “I will be sending Butter and Chris home with one of my Vampires.” Eric left the room and came to the table. “Jessica, Butter, Chris, follow me please, no questions.” The other Vampires were watching. “We may be too late.”

The girls followed the Viking back to the sip and shag room. “Jessica, take Chris and Butter out to the limo. Have the driver drive you back to the hotel. If they ask anything, say Butter was feeling unwell. If we do not return by dawn, or if you do not hear from us, take the girls, and Chris take your computer and catch the Anubis flight back out. Go to Fangtasia. Tell Chow I am definitely dead and put yourself under his protection, he knows what that means.”

“But Mom?” said Chris, tears falling on her cheeks.
“Don’t worry, the others will be following as soon as we can arrange it,” said Eric. He walked over and cupped her chin in his large hand. “It has been wonderful dearest.” He kissed her sweetly on the mouth. He went to Butter. “Keep the baby safe, and don’t worry about anything but the little one.” He pulled her against him and his hand went to her belly and he touched her child as he kissed her. “Now get the hell away from here.” The Viking went to the door and opened it and looked outside and motioned for them to go out. He watched as Jessica put her arms around Butter and Chris and moved faster than humans to get them out.

There was the sound of trumpets in a flourish and an announcement:

“All rise for the King and Queen of Vampire Britain, Victoria and Albert!” said a large dark haired were.

To Be Continued