xover: Inner Fire and The Light (10/16) 
Jeannie Ecklund Aug 17, 2000


The usually tough angel was looking at him with tenderness shining from
her eyes."Do not feel ashamed," she said.   "This will pass.  You and
LaCroix can become fast friends.  You have much to teach each other."

"He's 2000  years old.  What can I teach him?"  he asked, not quite
masking the  sarcasm in his voice. That realization washed him with new
pain and embarrassment.

"Joe,"  Tess said, "Nick will never love you less.  You can't imagine
how much that young man loves you.  You accepted him as he was.  You are
still supporting him.  You could not be more his father if
you had the same blood in your veins."

"Both he and LaCroix are now human, but they have very little true human
experience left in their memories.  The Lord brought you here for the
purpose of helping to instruct all the former vampires.  Janette will
see your relationship with Grace and learn as well."

She and LaCroix will soon find each other in a whole different way
than they have in the past. They're all babies compared to you.  You
will be the patriarch of this group."

"God trusts me with that?"  he asked, amazed.

"Yes, Baby,"  She said. Then she touched his cheek, and he felt  peace
flow through him.

"Thank you, Tess," he said, humbly. They started back. "What happens now
for you? Will you be moving on?"  He found he dreaded the time when the
angels would leave.  What if the vampires came back?

As if reading his thoughts  (or having God tell her his thoughts), Tess
said,  "They may threaten, but they can not touch any of you.  God
promised Nick and Natalie and this place His protection."

"Really?" Joe laughed with glee.  He turned back to look at Tess's face,
but she was gone.

That evening, the six humans sat at the dinner table. LaCroix had gotten
through several simple meals without difficulty and had felt strong
enough, with a bit of help, to come down to the dinner table.

They dined on a light meal of broiled chicken with fresh vegetables.
Little was said.  They had all been quiet since Joe had come with the
news from Tess.

They finished their dinner and Joe and Nick rearranged the furniture
so that the grouping before the fire held enough seats for them all.
That night they had the rare treat of listening to LaCroix talk about
his life in Pompeii.

Janette sat close to him, holding one of his hands.  LaCroix seemed to
enjoy her closeness.  She had been his companion for hundreds of years
and it seemed natural to have her at his side.  Being in love was far
from his mind.

Janette, having fallen in love in the past with a man she had met, knew
what human love could be like.  She wanted that for herself and
LaCroix.

After storytime, Nick announced,  "I'm going to ask the trainer to
come back tomorrow.  I need to continue my physical training.  Perhaps,
in time, you will join me, Father. This human body has limitations.
It's very difficult at first."

LaCroix nodded. "I feel the weakness of this body.  It's also strange
not to hear someone's heartbeat or have night vision.  I feel like I am
tied to the floor.  I miss levitation already,"  he stated.

"I know what you mean, Father.  The hardest thing for me to leave behind
was flying.  Still, you wouldn't believe what this human body is capable
of.  There's physical training that allows humans to go far beyond what
most people realize."

LaCroix said, "It sounds interesting.  I'll watch you for awhile and
probably join you as soon as I feel stronger.  Now, I think Janette and
I should go home.  All the reminders of my former diet are gone, I
understand, and the lab has been put to rest.  I wasn't able to tell you
how much the decor in my room means to me, Nicholas. Thank you."

Nick nodded, "Before you leave, I wanted to talk to all of you about
naming this place.  I've been thinking about calling it "Saving Grace"
if you all agree.   It will be a home and a haven for all of us, and all
of us have been saved by God's grace, so...  What do you think?"

"Oh, Nick, it's perfect!  I love the idea," Natalie enthused.

The others all agreed that the name would fit their little retreat
perfectly, and it was enthusiastically and unanimously accepted.

Nick turned back to LaCroix, "I know your place is simple, but I hope
that you can enjoy it for a while longer.  When you are ready, we will
have a proper home built for you here.  You will be welcome to stay or
use it as a vacation home, whatever you prefer."

"Thank you, Nicholas.  We will talk about it another day.  I'm really
tired now."  With Janette and Nick's help, he struggled to his feet, and
the three left.

After settling LaCroix in his own bed and kissing Janette good night,
Nick returned to his own home.  Joe and Grace where just bidding Natalie
a good night.  Joe turned to Nick as he came in, "Good night, son.  I'm
going to see if Grace would like to go for a walk."
He turned and asked Grace, "Would you like to come with me?"
"I'd love too," She grinned.  Turning to Nick and Nat, she gave them
each a hug, then left hand in hand with Joe.

Nick sighed when they were out of sight,  "Alone at last."  He sat next
to his wife on the couch and drew her against his chest so she could put
her feet up and relax.  "Now I want to devote a great deal of time to
you, my lovely wife." Kissing her temple,he added, "My love."

Natalie snuggled against him.  "I'd love that." Nick laid a hand against
her belly, hoping to feel the babies move.  Despite all the things they
had gone through during the last  few months, there had been no
difficulty for the babies.  Natalie was tired and a bit run down, but
otherwise healthy.

"Oh, I forgot," Nick added, "Pop, is going to ask Grace to marry him."

Natalie squealed with delight. "Oh, Nick, that's wonderful.  She's so
crazy in love she can't see straight!  I'm so happy for them."

"Nick, could we go shopping tomorrow?  Just the two of us?  I'd love to
spend some time alone with you... maybe talk about the babies...  about
names and things... decide what we will have in the nursery?"

Nick kissed her neck and said, "Sounds great, Nat.  A day alone with my
girl.  I can't think of anything I would rather do, and we do need to
gather all the nursery items for their arrival.  We've put it off too
long."

"Nick, since you are in a naming mood, I'd like to name the babies
Joseph Nicholas and Lucy Anne.  What do you think?"

Nick was speechless for a moment, then he sputtered, "That's a
wonderful idea, Natalie. They will be honored." He sighed and held her
close.  The fire warmed them.

"There are so many unknowns now," Natalie said after a few minutes. "How
will LaCroix adjust... and can he?  Just like some fledglings never make
it, will he be unable to turn back and be a human? Janette loves him.
What will she do if he doesn't love her back?"

"Nat, lets not worry about them now.  Janette will find someone else
if it becomes clear that LaCroix thinks of her only as his child.  Right
now, they are free of all former bonds as he and I are, but he will
always be my father.  We'll just have to pray for them and surround them
with love and support."  He stood and drew her to her
feet. "Come on, let's go to bed."
Natalie agreed. She was more than ready.  They went up on the lift.
Natalie asked Nick, "Do you think Janette and LaCroix will stay?"

"For now...  eventually, all of us have to go back into the world. This
will become our vacation home.  We can't stay here and hide from the
world forever."

As they passed the guest room, they heard Monica and Tess talking.
"They'll probably be leaving soon, too,"  Nick commented.  "I'm
surprised they are still here.  Andrew already left this morning."

Natalie said, "I really like Andrew.  It's comforting to know how
beautiful and gentle the death angel is.  I'm also comforted that he's
gone.  I had a fear he was here for someone else."

Nick nodded, understanding. "I guess he WAS here for someone. He helped
take away the death from father and Janette."

When they opened the door to their room, they found that it  had been
cleaned, and the bed was changed and fresh... no doubt the work of
angels.  The young couple took a quick shower, crawled into bed,
Sidney jumped up too and curled up beside Nat and they slept.

Outside, Grace and Joe had settled on the big rock.  There had been a
full moon to light their path.  They lay on their backs looking up into
the trees and watching the stars through the gently swaying branches.
They watched in silence for a time.  Joe finally blurted out, "Grace...
marry me?"

She sat up and turned to him. "What? Did I hear you right?"

He repeated quietly, " Would you marry me, Grace?  I know I'm much..."

Grace leaned over and kissed him to stop him from saying "older."

He wrapped his arms around her,  kissing her and holding her
close.  "My life has been in limbo for so long, Grace.  I want what
Janette and LaCroix have now... a chance to live again.  What do you
say?"

Grace drew back a few inches so she could see his face in the pale
moonlight.  "I say, yes!"  she shouted with glee, as Joe pulled her down
to kiss her deeply and fully.

"When?"  she asked against his lips.

"Soon,"  Joe said. "As soon as you want."

"I've wanted this for months, but I suppose we'll have to wait until
tomorrow," she laughed.

"Right!" Joe said, playing along with what he took to be a joke.

"No, Joe, I'm serious!  Let's go down to the city tomorrow and see
what we can do.".

"We should have it here, Grace.  We owe Nick and Natalie a chance to be
there.  They are our friends and hosts."

Grace smiled, "You're right, of course."  She laid her cheek against his
chest.  "But we can get the license tomorrow and see if we can find a
minister to come here for the ceremony."

"Sounds good!"  Joe beamed.  "You've got a deal."

While checking on Lacroix, Janette found him uncovered.  She grabbed the
blankets and tucked them around him. He awoke and grabbed her hand,
holding it to his cheek. "I feel such peace, Janette.  I can't even
mourn the loss of my powers... not yet anyway.  I have always had to
control this terrible rage inside of me, and so often I would fail.  I
know now it was the demon, but we were so much a part of each other. I
always thought it was just an evil part of me."

"It was different for me." Janette told him.  "I never fought what I
was... ever.  I accepted it.  I'd forgotten what it was to be human, and
when I became human so unexpectedly the first time with Robert, the love
overwhelmed me."  She continued, "It was not even close to what I
thought was love with Nichola. I lived in the sun again. I wanted to
have a baby.  You know how much I've always wanted a baby."

He reached up and caressed her face with his fingers. "Yes, I remember.
We have been forgiven, but can we forget what we did... what we were?"

"That's a price we have to pay, Lucus."  She said his new name shyly.
"We must never forget how easy it is to embrace the darkness.  We must
always be ready to fight it and strive to do good with the rest of the
life that the Lord's has given us."

She brought his fingers to her lips, kissing the tips of them. He
slipped his other hand behind her neck and drew her down to his chest,
wrapping both his arms around her. Janette could hear and feel his heart 
beating in his chest.  His hand was stroking her hair.  

"I do not know what I would have done without you all these centuries, 
my dear.  You have made it possible to get through the times when 
Nicholas was gone.  You have always been faithful and have remained 
at my side, as a devoted daughter."

"Lucus, I am no longer your daughter."  She drew back and looked him in
the eye.  "You are human... I am human.  We are no longer bonded as sire
and daughter by the vampire blood.  We are free to make our lives what
we want them to be.  If you wish, we can walk away from each other...or
form a new bond.  We are free to love, live, maybe even have babies...
if you want that, Lucus."

LaCroix's face registered surprise. "That's an intriguing thought, my
dear.  I think that we will just step forward into the future and take
it a day at a time.  You might want to see what kind of man I become
before you offer me such a wonderful gift."

"Who else could we share our memories with?  I know we both deserve the
kind of love I found with Robert.  I only told you what is in my heart
because I want you to consider a life with me.  If I did not say
it, it might never have occurred to you, and we could both lose out."
She leaned down and gave him a very soft, sensual kiss.

LaCroix's face was full of wonder as she turned off the light and left,
closing the door behind her.

The next morning, Nick and Natalie announced that they were going on a
shopping spree for the babies.  As much as they both wanted to go alone,
Grace's announcement that she and Joe were going to get married the next
day spurred Natalie to offer to take Grace and Joe with them to town.

Janette decided to stay with LaCroix since he wasn't up to traveling.
He and Janette planned to 'just be domestic' as she put it.

On the trip in, Joe and Grace discussed their plans to get the paperwork
and find a minister to marry them.  They asked Nick and Nat if they
would mind having the wedding at "Saving Grace."

"Joe, I've told you, that place is just as much yours as ours.  I think
it would be wonderful to have the wedding there, and I know Nat will
agree," Nick said, as he glanced at his ecstatic wife, who was nodding
vigorously.

end part 10 

**** Jeannie Ecklund **** gersknightlady@cs.com