a funeral party A Vampire Chronicles story by _Twi_ (mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]) , May 1998. Number one in the Cure trilogy and the "Le Coeur" series. Rated PG. "I didn't think it would end like this," Lestat murmured. "Like what?" his companion asked, stroking an errant lock of heavy gold from Lestat's face. "This," he said, turning his head in an attempt to gesture toward his surroundings. "This attic. The chains. You." "Oh, Lestat," said Louis, wrapping his slender arms around himself, "it hasn't ended. Nothing has." "That's the worst part. Everything has changed...and yet, there is no end, no sense of closure to tell me it's over. Everything just goes on." "That's how life is, Lestat. Nothing really ends." "I'm so hungry," Lestat moaned under his breath. "It's driving me mad." "A short trip," Louis quipped. A pale ghost of a smile crossed Lestat's face. "Do you really think me mad? Am I crazy? Misunderstood? Any of those things that humans debate endlessly? They judge and lock away the ones who offend their sensibilities, the different people. I was thought mad as a mortal." "'Judge and lock away...' Do you comment on humans, or something else entirely?" Louis said, eyebrow raised. "I'm not all that sure. I know I'm hungry. How long do I have to be here?" "I don't know." "I thought not." They sat in silence, lost in their respective worlds, staring into blank space and candlelight. "I feel cold," Lestat complained quietly, "and I'm hungry." "Oh, for God's sake--" "What for?" "--if you're so hungry," Louis held his arm out to Lestat, eyes a flash of impatient green, and swiftly rolled up the sleeve, "here." Bright-eyed hunger on the pale face, blue eyes wide and intense, but he resisted. "No, I can't, Louis," he said, turning away. "Then just be quiet about how damn hungry you are." "Can I, can I see Dora? She'll take care of me. She'll feed me..." "No, she won't, Lestat. She's gone." "Where did she go?" "No one knows..." He shrugs. "All we know is she's gone. And good riddance, I think." "...she had the veil..." "And it went with her. You're the only one who believes in her now, Lestat. Her human followers have long forgotten." "But I haven't been here that long. It's only been...a week? Two?" "Five months, Lestat. An eternity to some mortals." "Damn." Lestat hung his head, the weariness in his eyes sharp and defeated and heartbreaking. A lost child, a tired man on the verge of giving up. "I'm sorry, Lestat." Louis' fingers were tentative, restrained as they touched his face, learning the curves and planes like a blind man reading Braille. Lestat's distracted eyes followed them, tongue creeping out for a second as they skated deftly across his lips. Their eyes met, the look a blade-sharp kiss between them, and then Louis leaned back, closing his eyes. "Well. That is comforting." Lestat cursed the biting snap of his words, wanted to rewind the tape and delete them. Louis rested his chin on his drawn-up knees, flicking a hand carelessly through messy black locks. "Don't. Don't say that. I hate when you talk to me like that. It's like listening to...a falling sky...the death of love..." "A wounded vampire." "Yes." Lestat shrugged. "I wonder why I even bother talking, sometimes. It seems everytime I open my mouth my foot goes in. Or I earn another enemy. And when I try to apologise I make it worse." "You exaggerate." "Louis." A wistful smile. "You've known me for more than two centuries now. You know me better than anyone. Do I?" "A little." "Feh. I try, I really do. No one understands what I'm saying, like I'm speaking a foreign language, and everything ends up getting misinterpreted. People get excited or offended at the stupidest things. No one understands." "I don't think anyone really understands anyone, to tell the truth. Even people who think they know everything about someone really know only what they will admit to themselves; they rationalise or ignore what they can't accept, be it good or bad." A half-amused grin flickered across Lestat's lips. "Everyone likes to hold onto their illusions, Louis." "It's a coping mechanism. I'm sure of it. The mind has a hard time dealing with the totality of being and beings. So they - we - shut out the important things to keep from going mad." The grin got wider. "That's right. To keep from going mad. But let me ask you this: Is madness such a bad thing?" Silence. Echoes in the attic. "I thought so. I'm hungry." "Oh, shut up." (http://star.less.as/) ************************************** Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL at http://discover.aol.com/memed/aolcom30tour
