Pre Edit Count – 1,745 Words

Song I listened to for this chapter: Unforgettable by Nat “King” Cole and Natalie Cole

Previous:

Neither looks in another direction as each is captivated by the other’s eyes.  And now that the fog was thick enough, no one can tell that the couple is no longer dancing on the floor;  no, their very feet are lifted from the ground as they swirl across the floor.

As the music slowly dies, the lights dim, and the two end their magical dance staring into each other’s eyes, and the love they have for each other is evident to all.

And for that moment, life is all that Bella could wish for.  The love of her Mate is strong enough to make her very dreams come true.

Now:

The crowd is quiet as no one wants to disturb the dream-like scene in front of them.  That memory would stay with them all through the night, and the photographer Eric had hired for the occasion had caught it perfectly, to make it an unforgettable memory for the two for the rest of their lives. Eric grins knowing that he will gift Godric with the portrait, which he knows will be placed in a spot of honor.

Then the band strikes up a new song, and the dream is only paused as Bella lights up to hear another one of her favorites, and her eyes drift over to the stage to see Natalie Cole there.  The delight on her face when Eric walks out and swings her into his arms to start dancing with her breaks the crowd’s trance.  Slowly more dancers grace the floor.  Soon Godric has one of the females in his nest in his arms and they glide among the rest of the dancers.  Yes, the dream is only being paused so as to share it with the rest of the crowd as they all take to the floor, many of them vampires who remember dancing to this song when her father had sung it.

Bella is quite the belle of the ball.  She dances quite beautifully to the song with her brother, and as she had noted earlier, he is quite skilled in formal dance.  His long, lean body gives the touch of elegance that the song requires.  He grins down at her, and she can feel his affection flowing through their Bond.  This will be one of their shared treasured memories that that will come in handy when times get rough.

By sweeping his sister into his arms, Eric knows he is allowing others to take to the floor. Earlier his dear sister had been close to tears from the love Godric had sent her. Not that he could blame her; the love the two of them have for each other is breathtaking, and has Eric wishing to find the same love for himself.  He feels very blessed that the two of them don’t block him from their Bond.

Now she laughs in his arms as he gracefully sweeps her along the floor, especially when he leans in close and murmurs, “Sorry I can’t sweep you off your feet, syrra.  But I supposed that honor belongs to Godric.”  He grins down at her, and the photographer grabs a snapshot of the happy scene.

The crowd feels the intimacy of the place, and later will tell the reporters waiting outside that the club brings back images of the old musicals.  They will state that they would not have been at all shocked if Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers had been among the dancers, having no idea that many of the people on the floor actually knew the two dancers personally.  They would have no suspicion of which vampires the Revelation would allow to come out of hiding…

The music and the dreamy atmosphere all help to make it a roaring success.  The main group spends the night taking turns dancing with Bella and with each other.  Andrew takes his Queen out for a spin on the dance floor, then Armando claims his own elegant turn.

Godric and Eric watch their little one with pride as she swings in the arms of the other vampires and shows her new confidence in her every move.  They grin to each other, and go back to watching her as they engage in small talk with their peers.

Pamela has her own suitors, but she watches how Bella has everyone eager to dance with her.  She hears about how the club is amazing, that there is nothing like it even in Vegas. She smirks and wonders how Felipe will deal when he hears that.  But at the same time, she keeps watching the syrra of her Maker and wonders why he never paid the same kind of attention to her, his only Child.

Her thoughts turn sour as she considers that when the Revelation happens, she will be stuck in pleather and pvc clothing while Bella will be in silk evening gowns.  And that after the success of this place, Bella will be begged to showcase designer gowns from all over the world instead of her, the queen of couture.

While she will have to put up with the general public making a bore of themselves, Bella will be treated as something to watch and admire, never touch. She will not even be on the floor often.  While she, Pam, will have to check IDs.  Yes, she knows a lot of it has to do with her vault and the information she will gain from the duty, but how can she be happy about that when she sees how well her Master’s syrra will be treated?

Why does she get the preferred treatment?  Eric is even building a new club for when she comes to Shreveport, saying that it will be there for when Bella comes to visit.  He says that Fangtasia will become hers, and that she can run it as she sees fit…like she wants to own a place that will be even worse than their current club?

She sighs, and works to keep her anger from flowing through the Bond to her Maker.  She will not be sent elsewhere, not now, not when Bella Northman is going to be wined and dined.

Throughout the evening, many eyes surreptitiously observe the proceedings in the Club.

Resentful blue eyes furtively watch as her Sheriff and the girl his Maker has Bonded to interact.  Pity, she had been told that the group has been seen in the sunlight.  But when she had thought of taking the girl as her own, a flame had appeared on the wall across from her and had written a message:

‘Isabella Marie Northman has gifted her Mate and her Brother with the ability to daywalk.  Any who try to take her from the two of them will be ended on the spot. ~F’

According to her sources, that same message had been sent in a similar fashion to vampires across the world.  There is no doubt that this Isabella has a Patron in high places.  What a shame, the girl would have been amusing as her lover.  Seems she will need to look into those rumors of Fae living in Louisiana after all.  She will be allowed the sun.  If her own Sheriff is allowed it, then she will be, too.

But what angers Sophie Anne is the attention the human girl is getting.  She is not vampire yet, however Godric has pushed for her to be treated as an equal to those such as she.  Even when she is in attendance, as a real queen, Bella still outranks her since she is the queen of Texas and Sophie Anne is a visiting monarch.

Somehow the girl has managed to have Nash himself announce that he agrees with this move.  Pure stupidity.  Even when she becomes a newborn, she will still be hundreds of years younger than her peers.

Sophie Anne watches as her Sheriff takes his sister out on the floor once again.  That is something else that has everyone wondering.  Isabella is, for all intents and purposes, Eric’s sister.  They look like each other, and as far as any of her own retinue can find, she has always been.  But her past is secreted, hidden from all.  She is not a vampire, though Godric has announced that he will be turning her, as well as that she is his Mate and Bonded.  But how could she be Eric’s sister? He himself is over a thousand years old, but she has heard with her own ears the girl speak with Northman in his native language, one that even his Child does not know.

She taps her glasses against her teeth as she mulls over the possibilities.  Godric only told her about the Turning of his Bonded because he wants Eric to be there during her change.  The Authority had backed his call, and there was nothing she could do but agree.

And her informant in the Authority, the little bitch Nora, is gone.  There is a rumor that she had been given to the Dark Prince to straighten up, and his presence here seems to give credence to that claim.  Her eyes narrow cunningly.  She is going to find a way to mess up his life, one way or the other, due to the inconvenience of losing her Authority Spy.  Her highly placed Authority Spy, at that.

Sighing, she smiles up at Andre as he holds a hand out to her to dance with him.  Her Andre…always willing to work with her.  Yes.  She will send him to deal with the Dark Prince.  He will be able to complete the job easily.  Yes.

And with that, she heads out to the dance floor, the plans in her head churning away.

Across from the Queen, a pair of perplexed golden eyes watches the human in the arms of the tall blond.  His brow is furrowed;  the information he was given does not seem to match what is going on, nor did the woman match his memories of her.  She is much more.

The way she sweeps across the floor in the blond’s arms, dressed in an exquisite white gown with a black lace overlay on top, is nothing like what the Isabella Swan he knew could have been able to do.  She had just been too clumsy, too unsure of herself.

Then there is the issue of her eyes.  He had seen them many times and they are not the chocolate brown that he remembered.  Hair color can be changed with dyes, and he could have misremembered the slight change in her facial structure and body.  But the eyes?  Nope.  Not with that crystalline shine to them.

Her facial structure and body lines are different, and she seems to be more of the man holding her in his arms than of Charlie.  But maybe it’s because she’s standing straight and proud.  The girl he knew had been always hunched over, watching her feet.

He also is confused.  If she needed rescuing, why the dress, and the expensive necklace and jewelry?  Why the ring?  And how she is being handed off is not like she is being forced, not with that laugh.

He had watched when she danced with the one vampire, and there had been nothing forced in that dance.  No, he knows he needs to act tonight, but he will be taking her elsewhere to find out what has really happened.

Things are not adding up.

In another corner, a pair of angry blue eyes, narrowed with hatred, observes the Mated pair as they dance.  “They will be punished.”

A face with a matching pair of eyes nods. “I will make sure of it.  Is it too late to stop it?” He too is watching the woman in the arms of the vampire she should have never found.

The female sighs. “She has been blessed by Freya.  There is a chance, there is always a chance, but we will need to make sure the blond doesn’t find his other half.  Except no one has any ideas where she is.  I am beginning to suspect that she is not human.  You know my little know it all cannot see anything that is not vampire or human.” She sighs as she acknowledges the restriction of her main source of information.

The male growls. “How is it that She has been able to block all these Mates and yet now they seem to be finding each other so easily?  It makes no sense.”

The female’s eyes narrow into slits.  “No, it doesn’t, does it.  Like this woman, she should have never found Godric.  But somehow, he happened to land in the wrong airport, and happened to catch a snatch of her scent.  And instead of ignoring it, he went and found her.  How? This smacks of someone interfering.”  She will make them suffer if she finds out who is making all her efforts go to waste.  Because somehow the ones that she never wanted to see Mated, and therefore becoming even more powerful, are all finding each other.  If she is not careful, the prophecy will self-fulfill.

The two watch for a few more minutes, then fade away, making sure nothing of their presence is left. They had some strong questions to ask.

Later on the dance floor Eric dances a faster set with Bella, and she finally has to tell him, “I need a human moment.” She is laughing, her face flushed, but she needs a second to herself.

He nods then twirls her to edge of the dance floor.  He is going to walk her to the restroom, but is stopped by his Queen.  Bella nods to her, then apologizes for needing to step away.  Eric kisses on her cheek, murmuring, “Be careful, syrra.  If you can, grab Char.” He pulls back and watches her eyes that match his exactly until he feels and sees her agreement.  He smiles, and then bows to his Queen, “How may I help you?” He expertly hides his laughter at her anger for him putting his lillasyster ahead of her.

Bella walks away, hiding her own laughter.  The feelings Eric actually has are so different from the ones he shows the woman.  She quickly heads to the restroom, wanting to hurry before she has her guards worried.  She looks around, but, not seeing Char anywhere, decides to go anyway.  No one should miss her for such a brief amount of time, and who would try something in the woman’s bathroom?  It only has one exit.

She slides in and, after doing her business, approaches the sinks.  As she washes her hands, she looks down with love at the ring from Godric.  She listens to the phrases in the background from the current singer, then a movement causes her to look up, but it’s too late.  A cloth covers her face and she never gets to look at her assailant.

Final count:  2,505 words.

Fairfarren~Wendy