Through the Eyes of Another - Now Both POV's (PG)
Posted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 7:56 pm
Hey everyone! One shot time. Wasn't planning on writing anything new other than the new story but the muse decided to bang this into my head. lol Enjoy.
This takes place not too long after Beth was turned.
Usual Dislcaimers, not mine just borrowing.
Beth quietly entered the study, not wanting to disturb Aoife. She stood just through the entrance of the door, waiting nervously.
Aoife smiled as she looked up from her computer screen. She leaned back in the chair and asked, "What can I do for you, Beth?" She could sense the young vampire's nervousness.
Beth took a few tentative steps further into the study. She stopped and looked down at some unseen spot on the floor.
Aoife looked at her curiously. "Beth?"
Beth looked back up. "Can I talk to you?"
"Of course, dear heart." Aoife stood and headed over to the couch that sat on the far wall in-between two windows and under the now repaired tapestry. She flopped down and motioned for Beth to join her.
Beth hesitated at first, but finding her nerve she glided over and sat down on the opposite end of the couch from Aoife. She placed her self near the edge, unsure how to begin.
Aoife sat with her back against the arm of the couch, one leg crossed under the other, her head resting on her bent arm that sat on the back of the couch. "Beth . . . what is it?"
Beth took a deep breath. "Can you tell me about rape turnings?"
A shocked look floated across Aoife's face. Where is this coming from? "Why do you want to know about rape turnings?"
"Well . . ." Beth twittled her fingers. "I've been trying to understand why Coraline would have done what she did to Mick." Beth was talking so quickly that Aoife could barely understand the fledgling. "I mean, why would you do this to someone without them knowing . . . not that I'm not glad in some perverse way that she did . . . Mick and I wouldn't be together if she hadn't . . . but why not tell him? Let him make his own decision?" Beth took another big cleansing breath. "Okay, I'm done now."
Aoife just sat and stared at Beth a moment. How could she explain something that she didn't quite understand herself? "Okay . . . wow. Where is this coming from?"
"I don't know exactly. It's just been on my mind lately. I'm so grateful that Mick turned me and I'm fine with being what I am now . . . but, I just can't understand why someone would turn someone into a vampire and not give them the choice." Beth looked up from her hands and straight into Aoife's eyes.
"Have you tried to talk to Mick about it?"
"Yes. He just shuts down."
"Ah, I see. In a way I can understand why."
"Can you please explain it to me then?"
"I can try." Aoife stood and walked over to the window. "Has he told you much more about Coraline?"
"No. He won't go near the subject."
Aoife chuckled softly. "I didn't think he would. Those wounds run deep."
"Aoife, I know you didn't like Coraline." Aoife nodded in response. "Please, can you tell me about her? I really want to understand."
Aoife sighed. She knew that this conversation would happen eventually, she had just assumed it would be between Mick and Beth; not her.
"Beth, I wasn't there. I don't know the circumstances other that what Mick has said."
It was Beth's turn to sigh. "I know that, but you knew her before Mick. You said that she did what she did to Mick before."
Aoife walked over and sat back down on the couch. She stared into space, trying to gather her thoughts.
She gave a curt nod and then started. "To understand Coraline, you have to understand her sire. She is a total product of him and what she had to do to get the privilege of becoming a vampire."
"Mick said she was royalty and a whore." Beth spat the words out in disgust.
"She was a courtesan. Not quite the same thing. And yes, she was royalty. But she was very far down the totem pole so to speak. Becoming a courtesan was her best way to move up. And trust me when I say she did her job well. Along the way she also learned the art of how to manipulate men."
Beth smiled grimly. "Yeah, she struck me as very, very good at that."
"It got her noticed by Sebastian for sure. He was the only one she couldn't work her wiles on. And that eventually earned her eternity. But along the way she lost herself, I'd say."
"Wait. You think she was a good person at some point."
"That I couldn't tell you. I didn't meet her until she'd been a vampire for about 150 years. By then, any humanity she had was long gone."
Beth giggled. "I just bet you two got along sooo well."
Aoife snorted. "Hated her from the moment I met her."
"But why Mick? Why pick him?"
"To be honest, only she could have told you that." Aoife glanced out the window and at the setting sun.
"I did ask her. All I got was, I loved him."
Aoife's eyes widened in shock. "When did you ask her that?"
"When I was being held. I woke up at one point and she was sitting on the far end of the bed. They were starving her and part of her punishment was to be in the room with me but not be able to feed."
Aoife pursed her lips together. "Sounds like Sebastian." Aoife gracefully stood up and went to the sidebar, picked up two glasses and a carafe of blood. She padded back, put the glasses on the table, filled them and set the carafe down. She handed one glass to Beth, taking a long drink of her own.
"Aoife, please. Tell me about Coraline." There was a hint of desperation in Beth's voice.
"Why the sudden interest, Beth?" Aoife took another sip.
"Mick."
"Well I figured that. What's going on?"
Beth took a long draw off of her glass of blood. "He's been so distant the last few days. The feelings that I get from him are a jumbled mixture of pain, sorrow, love and disgust." Aoife couldn't help but notice the pain in her voice and see it in the fledgling's eyes.
"Disgust at you or himself?"
"Himself. I know it has to do something with his turning . . . well his first turning. I know he's fine with your turning of him." Beth added the last part quickly.
Aoife smiled gently at her. "I know he's fine with his second turning. Beth . . . how would you feel if Mick just up and walked out on you right now?"
"You mean, left me here, never to see him again?"
"Exactly."
Beth sat staring at her glass, thinking. "Well, knowing how I feel when he's just gone into town on an errand for you, I'd probably either try and follow or do something stupid."
"Again, how would you feel, not what would you do?"
Beth thought some more. "I'd feel like part of me was ripped away. My other half was gone."
"Okay. So imagine not only having to kill your sire once yourself but then watch as someone else killed her again?"
Beth's eyes went wide in shock. "Oh, my god!" Beth sat in stunned silence for a few moments. "Wait, you said that the tie was broken when you returned him."
"It did. But he had a history with her. Beth, Coraline used everything she had to get him to fall for her. She drove him to the brink of insanity." Beth nodded in understanding.
"He told me he went to her house one night, drunk and threw a chair through her plate glass window."
"She had him right where she wanted him. I'm sure she had what she thought were feelings for him or she wouldn't have turned him on their wedding night, especially since she didn't have Sebastian's blessing. I think she knew that he'd never give it. All of the ones I know about weren't really vampire material."
"Some foundation for a relationship. Hey honey, I know you don't know this. I love you but not enough to trust you with the truth about me."
"To be honest, I don't think Mick could have handled the information. I'll say it again. He should have never been turned."
"I think he could have."
"Beth, you know Mick better than that. I've never seen a more tortured soul. And frankly, I can only imagine the skeletons that are in that closet of his."
"So how do I get him past this?" Unshed tears were floating in Beth's eyes.
"You can't Beth. He has to do this on his own. He knows that he can talk to me anytime. And I have a feeling he will, when he's ready. Just be patient."
Beth snickered. "Never been one of my strong points."
Aoife laughed in return. "I noticed that." She turned serious. "Beth, what Coraline was or wasn't doesn't matter anymore. What matters is how you two go on from here. Coraline is the past for both of you. She needs to stay there."
"So no advice?" Beth finished her blood and set the glass on the coffee table.
"Just one. Just love him."
"That one's easy." Beth stood to head up to Mick and her suite. She could feel that he was waking up.
"Trust me, Beth. Sometimes it's not." Aoife stood to follow her to the door.
"I never for a second thought it would be. He's so broken." Beth headed towards the stairs.
"We all are in one way or another Beth. Just love him, dear heart."
Beth started climbing the stairs, saying over her shoulder as she did, "That one is a piece of cake, Aoife."
Aoife watched her for another moment, shaking her head as she turned to head back into the study. She smiled as she felt a tickle in her mind. Aoife, can I talk to you later?
Of course, Mick. What's up?
Just need to talk to work through some things
Aoife sat back down in her office chair. Anytime you're ready. I'm in the study.
Thanks, Aoife.
Anytime. I'm always here for you.
Thank you. I'll be down in a little while.
See you then. A knowing smile graced the elder vampire's lips. Time for the flip side. She moved her mouse and went back to her research.
This takes place not too long after Beth was turned.
Usual Dislcaimers, not mine just borrowing.
Beth quietly entered the study, not wanting to disturb Aoife. She stood just through the entrance of the door, waiting nervously.
Aoife smiled as she looked up from her computer screen. She leaned back in the chair and asked, "What can I do for you, Beth?" She could sense the young vampire's nervousness.
Beth took a few tentative steps further into the study. She stopped and looked down at some unseen spot on the floor.
Aoife looked at her curiously. "Beth?"
Beth looked back up. "Can I talk to you?"
"Of course, dear heart." Aoife stood and headed over to the couch that sat on the far wall in-between two windows and under the now repaired tapestry. She flopped down and motioned for Beth to join her.
Beth hesitated at first, but finding her nerve she glided over and sat down on the opposite end of the couch from Aoife. She placed her self near the edge, unsure how to begin.
Aoife sat with her back against the arm of the couch, one leg crossed under the other, her head resting on her bent arm that sat on the back of the couch. "Beth . . . what is it?"
Beth took a deep breath. "Can you tell me about rape turnings?"
A shocked look floated across Aoife's face. Where is this coming from? "Why do you want to know about rape turnings?"
"Well . . ." Beth twittled her fingers. "I've been trying to understand why Coraline would have done what she did to Mick." Beth was talking so quickly that Aoife could barely understand the fledgling. "I mean, why would you do this to someone without them knowing . . . not that I'm not glad in some perverse way that she did . . . Mick and I wouldn't be together if she hadn't . . . but why not tell him? Let him make his own decision?" Beth took another big cleansing breath. "Okay, I'm done now."
Aoife just sat and stared at Beth a moment. How could she explain something that she didn't quite understand herself? "Okay . . . wow. Where is this coming from?"
"I don't know exactly. It's just been on my mind lately. I'm so grateful that Mick turned me and I'm fine with being what I am now . . . but, I just can't understand why someone would turn someone into a vampire and not give them the choice." Beth looked up from her hands and straight into Aoife's eyes.
"Have you tried to talk to Mick about it?"
"Yes. He just shuts down."
"Ah, I see. In a way I can understand why."
"Can you please explain it to me then?"
"I can try." Aoife stood and walked over to the window. "Has he told you much more about Coraline?"
"No. He won't go near the subject."
Aoife chuckled softly. "I didn't think he would. Those wounds run deep."
"Aoife, I know you didn't like Coraline." Aoife nodded in response. "Please, can you tell me about her? I really want to understand."
Aoife sighed. She knew that this conversation would happen eventually, she had just assumed it would be between Mick and Beth; not her.
"Beth, I wasn't there. I don't know the circumstances other that what Mick has said."
It was Beth's turn to sigh. "I know that, but you knew her before Mick. You said that she did what she did to Mick before."
Aoife walked over and sat back down on the couch. She stared into space, trying to gather her thoughts.
She gave a curt nod and then started. "To understand Coraline, you have to understand her sire. She is a total product of him and what she had to do to get the privilege of becoming a vampire."
"Mick said she was royalty and a whore." Beth spat the words out in disgust.
"She was a courtesan. Not quite the same thing. And yes, she was royalty. But she was very far down the totem pole so to speak. Becoming a courtesan was her best way to move up. And trust me when I say she did her job well. Along the way she also learned the art of how to manipulate men."
Beth smiled grimly. "Yeah, she struck me as very, very good at that."
"It got her noticed by Sebastian for sure. He was the only one she couldn't work her wiles on. And that eventually earned her eternity. But along the way she lost herself, I'd say."
"Wait. You think she was a good person at some point."
"That I couldn't tell you. I didn't meet her until she'd been a vampire for about 150 years. By then, any humanity she had was long gone."
Beth giggled. "I just bet you two got along sooo well."
Aoife snorted. "Hated her from the moment I met her."
"But why Mick? Why pick him?"
"To be honest, only she could have told you that." Aoife glanced out the window and at the setting sun.
"I did ask her. All I got was, I loved him."
Aoife's eyes widened in shock. "When did you ask her that?"
"When I was being held. I woke up at one point and she was sitting on the far end of the bed. They were starving her and part of her punishment was to be in the room with me but not be able to feed."
Aoife pursed her lips together. "Sounds like Sebastian." Aoife gracefully stood up and went to the sidebar, picked up two glasses and a carafe of blood. She padded back, put the glasses on the table, filled them and set the carafe down. She handed one glass to Beth, taking a long drink of her own.
"Aoife, please. Tell me about Coraline." There was a hint of desperation in Beth's voice.
"Why the sudden interest, Beth?" Aoife took another sip.
"Mick."
"Well I figured that. What's going on?"
Beth took a long draw off of her glass of blood. "He's been so distant the last few days. The feelings that I get from him are a jumbled mixture of pain, sorrow, love and disgust." Aoife couldn't help but notice the pain in her voice and see it in the fledgling's eyes.
"Disgust at you or himself?"
"Himself. I know it has to do something with his turning . . . well his first turning. I know he's fine with your turning of him." Beth added the last part quickly.
Aoife smiled gently at her. "I know he's fine with his second turning. Beth . . . how would you feel if Mick just up and walked out on you right now?"
"You mean, left me here, never to see him again?"
"Exactly."
Beth sat staring at her glass, thinking. "Well, knowing how I feel when he's just gone into town on an errand for you, I'd probably either try and follow or do something stupid."
"Again, how would you feel, not what would you do?"
Beth thought some more. "I'd feel like part of me was ripped away. My other half was gone."
"Okay. So imagine not only having to kill your sire once yourself but then watch as someone else killed her again?"
Beth's eyes went wide in shock. "Oh, my god!" Beth sat in stunned silence for a few moments. "Wait, you said that the tie was broken when you returned him."
"It did. But he had a history with her. Beth, Coraline used everything she had to get him to fall for her. She drove him to the brink of insanity." Beth nodded in understanding.
"He told me he went to her house one night, drunk and threw a chair through her plate glass window."
"She had him right where she wanted him. I'm sure she had what she thought were feelings for him or she wouldn't have turned him on their wedding night, especially since she didn't have Sebastian's blessing. I think she knew that he'd never give it. All of the ones I know about weren't really vampire material."
"Some foundation for a relationship. Hey honey, I know you don't know this. I love you but not enough to trust you with the truth about me."
"To be honest, I don't think Mick could have handled the information. I'll say it again. He should have never been turned."
"I think he could have."
"Beth, you know Mick better than that. I've never seen a more tortured soul. And frankly, I can only imagine the skeletons that are in that closet of his."
"So how do I get him past this?" Unshed tears were floating in Beth's eyes.
"You can't Beth. He has to do this on his own. He knows that he can talk to me anytime. And I have a feeling he will, when he's ready. Just be patient."
Beth snickered. "Never been one of my strong points."
Aoife laughed in return. "I noticed that." She turned serious. "Beth, what Coraline was or wasn't doesn't matter anymore. What matters is how you two go on from here. Coraline is the past for both of you. She needs to stay there."
"So no advice?" Beth finished her blood and set the glass on the coffee table.
"Just one. Just love him."
"That one's easy." Beth stood to head up to Mick and her suite. She could feel that he was waking up.
"Trust me, Beth. Sometimes it's not." Aoife stood to follow her to the door.
"I never for a second thought it would be. He's so broken." Beth headed towards the stairs.
"We all are in one way or another Beth. Just love him, dear heart."
Beth started climbing the stairs, saying over her shoulder as she did, "That one is a piece of cake, Aoife."
Aoife watched her for another moment, shaking her head as she turned to head back into the study. She smiled as she felt a tickle in her mind. Aoife, can I talk to you later?
Of course, Mick. What's up?
Just need to talk to work through some things
Aoife sat back down in her office chair. Anytime you're ready. I'm in the study.
Thanks, Aoife.
Anytime. I'm always here for you.
Thank you. I'll be down in a little while.
See you then. A knowing smile graced the elder vampire's lips. Time for the flip side. She moved her mouse and went back to her research.