Sweet Captivation by Kristen Fife This vignette describes Nicholas several years after Janette has left him during the Renaissance. He and LaCroix are visiting Tudor England where young king Henry VIII is known for his youthful exuberance. LaCroix hopes that something has finally captured Nicholas' attention away from his broken heart. Dark Knight with IB overtones. ======================================== Sweet Captivation London, 1514 “By my troth, LaCroix, this inanity doth bore me!” Nicholas looked around the hall at the mortals dressed like exotic birds. His own doublet of midnight blue velvet and crisp white ruff were stark in comparison to the gaudy colors swirling on the dance floor. “Nicholas, mon fils, you have been insufferable for these three years past. Good King Harry is renowned for his gay courts and pageantry, especially now that his sister is judiciously wed to Louis. *You* bore *me* with your constant brooding. It is time to rejoin life anon.” The master vampire’s voice had taken on an edge of steel which warned his errant protege that it would be in his best interests to comply. LaCroix, resplendent in extravagant black velvet trimmed in silver and ermine, idly watched the mortals cavorting to the sounds of lutes, recorders, and other instruments. He had fed once that night, but toyed with the thought of a young lord or lady of the court as an aperitif. Nicholas sighed. His life was a series of half-forgotten mortal repasts. He had no pleasures, nothing appealed to him. It had been just over three years since Janette had left him to travel her own path. The first year had been filled with anger alternating with despair. The second year had been a torrent of tawdry poetry and a penchant for raven-haired beauties he toyed with and dominated before he savagely took their terror-filled blood. Finally he had settled into a moody numbness which grated on his sire’s nerves. His disenchanted eyes surveyed the garish mortals until suddenly they stopped their listless roving. There, just inside the door, stood a slender beauty with an older man, obviously her father. Her golden hair cascaded down her slender neck in a froth of curls. Pearls woven in the gold of her tresses peeked from under the pale rose cap on her hair. Her creamy skin flashed beneath a small ruff of starched white. As she turned and caught his gaze, her dark eyes fluttered open then were demurely cast upon the floor, and a delicate blush stained her alabaster cheeks. Her golden beauty enchanted him, as a flame to the moth. Her ethereal innocence and golden delicacy drew him. Dragging his eyes from her lovely face, he turned to LaCroix who had noted his animation. “LaCroix, who is she that just entered? That innocent maid by the door?” Smirking, thinking his son was finally emerging from his doldrums, he carefully considered his answer. Perhaps Nicholas was finally ready to appreciate life again. A lovely distraction for a few nights or weeks before he drank his fill would do wonders toward making him forget Janette. It had been far too long since his son had engaged in the game of seduction with a lovely maiden. “Ah, yes. That lovely creature is the youngest daughter of Baron Darcy, standing to her left. Her mother recently died and her father is trying to marry her off. I believe I heard that her name is Alice, or Alys, or somesuch. Fetching morsel, I commend your taste.” As if mesmerized, Nicholas started moving toward the young lady and her father. LaCroix wholeheartedly approved of his apparent captivation. A quick dalliance would be just what he needed to regain his vitality. He followed his son, anticipating the entertainment this subtle hunt would provide for the next several nights. He was heartily looking forward to Nicholas once again joining him as a vital creature of the night. ============================= Basically, my premise is that Nicholas married Alyssa on the rebound, as the total opposite of Janette. Standard disclaimers, I don't own the FK characters. Comments to fenix23fyre@yahoo.com. All rights reserved Permission granted to archive at the FTP site and fkfanfic.com/fkfanfic2.co, anyone else please contact me for permissions.