Somewhere In Between

Title: Somewhere In Between
Author: MakaiKitty
Rating (this chapter): PG-13/R
Category: Original Fantasy, "Fate" storyline
Pairing: Victor/Blaine, Victor/Caspian, Victor/Sorrel/Victor, North/Victor, Victor/Tamara, Sorrel/Tamara
Warnings: Slash and Het, Vampire Sex, M/M, M/F, F/F, Violence, Language, Sexual Situations
Distribution: My website, My LJ and any LJs I choose to post at, AFF.net, FicWad, and DeviantArt. All of my accounts are under the user name MakaiKitty. If you'd like to use it just let me know.
Disclaimer: The characters, daemon realms, and situations in this story are all original and belong solely to MakaiKitty. Please don't steal, borrow, take, or otherwise use anything from my fics.
Updates: Just join my YahooGroup to be informed of any updates to this or any of my other fics - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/makaikittyfics
Status: Complete
Story Notes: This story contains characters that were first introduced in "Fate". However, it is not really necessary to have read "Fate" to understand this story. In fact, you may like Victor better if you haven't read "Fate". As for those of you who have read "Fate"? No, Shayne and Lexi will not be showing up in this fic. Maybe in later stories (Victor has a long back story), but not this one. Also, I have a general outline for this story, but everything isn't set in stone yet. Just like with "Perceived Perceptions", I'm sure that some things will not go as planned. So, the warning lable above is just a general guide, I really don't know for sure where this fic will go. Just a warning, if you're squicky about some stuff (don't worry, there won't be beastiality or scat or anything too extreme) then read the warnings at the start of each chapter. However, I know from experiance, that most of my regular readers can handle anything that I throw at them, so I'm not too worried about any of you. Either way, I hope you enjoy the fic...

Somewhere In Between

Chapter Five: The Sound of Buzzing Bees

Caspian found himself rather bored after Victor left with Sorrel, and as he was technically Victor's attendant, the other vampire's departure left him with little to do. He had made the brief walk back up to the castle, whistling quietly to himself as he took in the beauty of the night, but the time to himself hadn't given him any better idea of what to do with his evening. He was excited about what Victor was about to do, even if the man himself was not, and he couldn't wait to find out how it went. However, he knew better than to expect his dark haired friend to return with news any time soon. He also knew that there were other things that he should be doing; helping his father with his newest acquisitions, reading up on the latest news about the surrounding kingdoms, annoying the hell out of Sorrel's son Talfryn, but Caspian just couldn't find it in himself to devote his mind to any of these things.

"Aww, how sad." A deep and rumbling voice suddenly sounded out of the darkness, catching the young vampire by surprise, and his eyes searched the shadows in confusion until they caught sight of a glowing red ember flaring against the wall to his left. The lightly mocking voice was one that Caspian knew well and he knew that there was no danger from the other, although he condemned himself for being so easily caught unawares. "You look lost without your dark prince, Princess."

"Bite me, wolf." There was no real malice in Caspian's voice, it was simply the way that things were between himself and the werewolf who was currently lounging against the outer wall of the castle gates, smoking a cigarette as he took in the night breeze.

North was a werewolf that Caspian had known since birth, the other man much older than himself, even though he looked no more than twenty-three or twenty-four. His shaggy hair hung to his shoulders, uneven and wild, a sandy brown color that was several shades lighter than his coat would be in wolf form. His eyes were blazing golden orbs flecked throughout with obsidian specks that somehow caught and reflected the light better than the dominant metallic shade. He had tribal markings running the length of his cheeks, an inch thick and as long as a grown man's hand, starting just below the ridges of his eye sockets and ending in sharp points at the line of his strong jaw. The solid black marks surely meant something to his own kind, but to Caspian they only signified that he was born a pure-breed wolf and not a mortal. His shoulders were broad, his body strong and muscular, and he towered a good six inches over the petite vampire before him. He radiated power just standing still, and his eyes were filled with intelligence and good humor. He was wild and free, untamed and unafraid of any man that walked the realms... everything that an alpha-wolf should be.

His smile was slow and lazy as he addressed Caspian, his back flat against the stone wall, his hand hanging limply at his side when he wasn't taking a drag off of his cigarette. He watched the red-head before him with mischief in his eyes, a taunt ready on his lips, because teasing Caspian was one of his favorite pastimes.

"Give me one of those, would you." It sounded like a question, but there was little doubt that it was much more a demand than a request. Caspian took a place beside the werewolf, mimicking his relaxed posture against the wall, holding out his hand without even looking to see if the other man would comply.

"Are you even old enough to smoke?" North chided, mock concern sounding in his growling voice. "Don't want to stunt your growth, do you?"

"Fuck you." Caspian scowled, taking the offered cigarette and waiting patiently for North to strike a match against the stones they leaned against, holding it up so that Caspian could touch the flame to the end of the herbal tobacco-stick between his lips.

"Speaking of which," North said, not at all put off by the harsh words, "Do you think he'll fuck her?"

"Sorrel?" Caspian asked with mild shock, his eyes widening and his brow furrowing ever so slightly. There was no need to discuss who the he was, but the rest of the question left him a bit stunned.

"No, the human."

"So, it's to be a human female, is it?" Now the question made a bit more sense, although for a moment it left the vampire a bit put off by the knowledge that North knew more about Victor's intended rendezvous than he did.

"Jealous, are we?" There was laughter in the werewolf's voice, but Caspian didn't take it personally. North tried his best to piss off as many people as possible each and every day of his life. Caspian didn't know of a good reason why he would be exempt.

"Hell no." It was Caspian's turn to laugh. "It's high time that my Victor took a lover. It'll be good for him."

North's snort was less than dignified, far from elegant, but highly expressive none the less. "Like you two haven't slept together before."

"Slept together, yes. Had sex, no." Caspian corrected. "You know good and well that a vampire doesn't come into his sexual maturity until he comes of age with a feeding. We've fooled around, sure, but that's all that it's ever been. All that Victor's really ever been interested in."

"But you want to, right?"

"Nah," Caspian answered honestly, bringing his cigarette to his lips and exhaling a stream of smoke as he pulled it away, "I don't want the responsibility of a virgin. Especially one who happens to be my best friend."

"Then you wouldn't mind if I took him, would you?" Golden eyes slid to the side, watching for the minutest reactions from the vampire at his side. Everyone who knew them knew that Caspian and Victor shared a bond deeper than either brothers or lovers could ever hope to have, so it only made since to clear such a move with the red-head before even thinking of making a move on his dark prince. Anything less could be very dangerous indeed.

"Have at him." Caspian answered simply, his small shoulders shrugging against the wall with a whisper of cloth on stone. There was silence for a moment while the vampire stubbed out his cigarette against the wall, the glowing ember dying a silent death, and North thought that those were the only words that Caspian was going to give him. Then the other man turned towards him, midnight blue meeting with gold despite their difference in height, a seriousness present in the younger male's eyes. "Although, you do know that if you hurt him I'll take your head without hesitation, right?"

"Of course, it goes without saying." North knew that it wasn't an idle threat, and he respected Caspian for his honesty and his loyalty. There was no hint of the child that he was often mistaken for in his voice, and despite his desire to tease the boy, in the end North decided that his response should be just as honest. He owed the other man as much. "I would expect nothing less."

"Good," Caspian said, already turning his back to the werewolf and walking towards the entrance to the main gate, "I'm glad that we understand each other. I'd hate to have to kill a friend."

***

Talfryn was every bit his mother's son as he strode down the candle-lit hallway deep within the castle's lowest levels. His dark grey ringlets hung about his shoulders, each strand perfectly groomed, his skin gleamed pearly white in the light of the flickering flames, and his dark grey eyes were the mirror image of Sorrel's. His body was elegantly lean, lithe and cat like, moving with graceful ease. He carried himself with a regal bearing that spoke of both his position and his arrogance over it. He was the male version of his sorceress mother, and they could just as easily be mistaken for twins as for mother and son. No one knew who his father was, and Sorrel refused to say, but there were many rumors as to who the mystery man might be. Some said that he was a dead lover of the sorceress' and that she never spoke of him because of the pain that his very name would cause her, but others believed that his name was unimportant because she had only chosen him for breeding purposes, discarding him once she had gotten what she wanted. The latter was more than likely. There were also rumors that said that his sire was a human, although no one dared to voice these speculations when in the presence of either mother or son. Obliteration wasn't worth the price of petty gossip.

Despite the fact that he walked with a purpose, Talfryn couldn't help but stop for a moment as he passed one of the full length mirrors that hung in the otherwise empty corridor. He had found his way to one of the many hallways that his mother had covered with walls of mirrors, and he decided that he was quite grateful for his mother's peculiar tastes and decorating habits. Talfryn was notoriously vain, his own greatest admirer, and he never passed up an opportunity to look at himself if he could help it. He smiled as he saw his reflection because, in his not so humble opinion, he looked stunning. He wore a billowing white silk shirt with lace cuffs that hung low on his hands, stopping just before the shinning tips of his freshly manicured fingernails. His waist was cinched tightly by a black leather corset that started just below his nipples and ended low on his slender hips. His boots were of the same fine leather, tailor made just for him, and the heals were high and the lacing ran up the back all the way to his upper thighs. His eyes were ringed in dark kohl that made his skin look paler and his eyes seem brighter, his hair was held partially back from his face with a jewel encrusted barrette, and his ears bore twin onyx studs. Perfection was the only word that came into his mind as he continued to stare, smiling at his reflection just to see the gleaming pearls of his fangs.

Another figure suddenly joined Talfryn in the wall of mirrors, and the youth spun on his heal in a flurry of black, white, and grey to glare at the true figure of the approaching man. He was short for one born as a vampire, maybe no more than five foot eight or nine, his short hair was dark brown and his eyes were the color of old rust, lending to the belief that many held that he might have had a lycanthrope or two in his family line. The glasses that were perched on the end of his nose led Talfryn to believe that there were probably humans in his lineage as well. He wore a white lab coat, as always, and held a massive stack of paperwork in his arms.

"Lorcan!" Talfryn shouted, watching as the other vampire's head shot up at the sound of his name.

"Lord Talfryn." Lorcan answered, bowing his head slightly at the approaching man. He was late as it was, his latest experiment needing constant supervision, but he knew better than to try to blow off Talfryn when he wanted something. He was even more stubborn than his mother in many ways, and every bit as vicious when ignored. "What can I do for you?"

"Where is my mother?" He demanded. Lorcan was his mother's assistant, he oversaw her labs when she wasn't present, and he worked with the sorceress more closely than any other person in the kingdom. If anyone knew the whereabouts of his mother, Talfryn knew that it would be the scientist that stood before him. "I haven't been able to find her all night."

"I'm sorry, Lord Talfryn." Lorcan answered respectfully, attempting to back away as the other vampire stepped closer to him, invading his personal space in an attempt to bully him. It seemed to be an unconscious action, second nature to the larger man, but it bothered Lorcan all the same. When his back came up against a mirror, Talfryn smiled and stepped a little closer, suddenly realizing just how much his presence was upsetting Lorcan.

"Is something wrong, Lorcan?" Talfryn teased, a menacing twist of his lips passing for a smile. "You seem a little nervous."

"No, sir." Lorcan stuttered, clutching the papers in his arms closer to his chest, reaching a hand up to push at the bridge of his glasses. "Nothing is the matter, nothing at all, I just need to be getting back to my experiments."

"Then tell me where my mother is and I'll let you be on your merry way."

"I would presume that Lady Sorrel is currently with Lord Victor." The scientist ventured to guess. "Tonight is his coming of age."

"Victor." The one word held so much contempt that Lorcan involuntarily shrank back from the vampire before him.

"Yes, I believe she is feeding him on Miss Tamara this evening."

"Gods!" Talfryn exploded, throwing his arms up in the air and stomping away from the other man with an audible clicking of his boots. He only got a few paces away before he spun on his heal and faced Lorcan again, anger blazing in eyes suddenly darkened to a disturbing shade of storm grey, the other vampire half expecting to hear the cracking of thunder at any moment. "All I ever hear about anymore is Victor or Tamara!" He looked accusingly at Lorcan, but it was obvious to the smaller man that Talfryn wasn't really seeing him. It didn't lessen the desire to hurry down the hall and away from the venom radiating off of the noble one bit, so it was little consolation, but it was the truth all the same. "That whelp was supposed to be nothing more than an experiment, one that should have ended a long time ago, and that bitch is a mere human. A human, for fuck's sake!"

"Well, she is quite promising, and-"

"I don't give a damn what she is, she's still a worthless human who ought to know her place."

"But your mother-"

"My mother is easily distracted by her pets, always has been, and with any luck she'll grow bored with this one before she wastes any more of her time with that little girl. Magickal ability or no, she's not worth all of the effort that my mother is putting into her. There are so many other, more worthwhile, things that she could be doing with her time."

"Like listening to you." Lorcan said under his breath. He instantly regretted it, however, once those steely eyes turned on him with single-minded hatred burning in their depths. Lorcan wasn't sure what he had done to anger the Goddess so grievously that his day had turned out the way that it had. He didn't remember doing anything that would warrant such suffering.

"Damn right!" Talfryn shouted, slamming his hand against the mirror right above Lorcan's head, not even seeming to notice when the glass splintered out from the point of impact. "I'm her son, aren't I? Shouldn't that entitled me to some of my mother's time?" When Lorcan didn't respond Talfryn put his other hand up, caging the scientist in with his arms. "Well?"

"Yes, sir. I should suppose it does." For a moment his eyes flashed crimson in the reflected candlelight, as though defiance played on the tip of his tongue, but then the expression was lost to shadow and there was only timid respect and perhaps a bit of annoyance left on the scientist's tired face. He said nothing else.

"I'm glad that you see it my way." Talfryn said, satisfied for the moment, as he finally released the smaller man from the confines of his arms. He smiled as he pulled back from both Lorcan and the mirror, brushing away tiny bits of glass from his palm, reaching his other hand up to check that his curls were still in place. "If you see my mother, let her know that I'm looking for her, would you?"

Lorcan just nodded, thinking to himself that he didn't blame Lady Sorrel for preferring the company of Victor and Tamara to that of her son.

He waited until Talfryn was out of sight before he shrugged to himself, the entire situation already meaningless to him, the nobleman's behavior nothing new in the least. If you spent any time at all in the castle proper then you were bound to encounter one of Talfryn's little tantrums at some point or another. He had gotten used to that fact long ago. Lorcan righted his papers in his arms, tugged the lapels of his lab coat into place, and continued down the hallway alone. His experiment was still waiting.

TBC ...

Review Responses:

Michelle:
I haven't been reviewing lately, I'm sorry. Yay for Caspian! I really like him and Victor... I just love vampires so there's too much to say about him... This woman that's waiting to be his coming of age meal thing sounds interesting. I can't wait to find out more! See you soon hopefully..

Michelle

Don't sweat the late reviews, 's okay! Glad everyone likes Caspian, he's one of my favorites (although I guess I know him a bit better than you all). His "coming of age meal"? *LOL* I love that! Sorry that I've made you wait one more chapter before meeting her, but she's up next, I promise!

MoonStar:
Aww...poor yous...no other reviewers? Well, it's certainly not because the story's worse...probably because it's a less populated section, ya. ^^ But still...cool chapter! I thought the way they were both edging Sorrel on was hilarious. And I'm glad to hear you won't be hurting Caspian! Or...at least not killing him off. T_T ^^; The way you described the sorceress's expressions was just priceless...and I love the thought of Victor all rugged and dirty. *evil laughter* xP ^^ Very shmexy.

I figured it might have something to do with the section and/or the new layout of AFF, but I'm too lazy to move it so it's my own fault. No big. Glad you liked the way that Victor and Cass handled Sorrel. They're the only ones who refuse to take her too seriously. And I agree, a rugged and dirty Victor is a very good thing.

The way Victor acts around Sorrel...I know she's beautiful (and I loved the way you described the color of her hair by the way, how it "...wasn't the grey of old age that he often saw on the slowly decaying mortals in the village, but the grey of a dove's wings, the grey of a majestic wolf's winter coat, of dark clouds that signaled an approaching storm." Very vivid.) But I keep thinking of her as his 'mother figure' or something of the like...and him being all kissy on her is like...o_O I guess I'll have to get used to it, though. ^^

Well, that's kind of on purpose. It's supposed to be a little creepy and weird between them. There is a mother/son sort of thing, but there's also some UST, and I don't think that either of them knows for sure what they think of each other.

And, omg, do I have to prepare for...dun-dun-dun-dun....H3T3RO$3XUAL $3X?? xP J/k. I know he's just biting her....but I wonder if it goes farther than that? Nyah. I suppose...until then! Sorry that it took me a while to review...I forgot about it...then remembered it...then got all excited as I read it...then didn't review *guilty*...but now I'm reviewing! Quite nice. And I look forward to the next bit! ^^

-Moonstar

Hetero? I'm not really completely sure. I'm not even sure if I can do it, so who knows. If there is any het then I promise to keep it as brief as possible, and I'll add an extra slash scene for every one! How's that? ^-^