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crossoverficCategory: AC (ish) Being Human/True Blood/Angel Crossover
Title: “Choosing Sides”
Author: jackdavfan692
Rating: PG-17
Warnings: Just strong language in this part.
Summary: Mitchell visits an old acquaintance, and Angel encounters an old traveling companion while investigating Fangtasia with Spike. Eric, Bill, Mitchell, Angel, and Spike have their first meeting about Russell Edgington and Herrick's plot to conquer humanity.
Characters: Being Human- Mitchell, George, Nina, Annie, Herrick, and Daisy; True Blood- Eric, Bill, Sookie, Pam, Alcide, Sam, Russell Edgington, Jessica, Jésus, Lafayette, and Queen Sophie-Anne; Angel- Angel, Spike, Wesley, Gunn, Illyria, Harmony, Lorne, Cordelia, and Connor
Spoilers: The first two seasons of Being Human, the first three seasons of True Blood up to the episode “I Smell A Rat”, and all five seasons of Angel up to the episode “Time Bomb”
Disclaimer: Being Human is the property of the BBC & Toby Whithouse, True Blood is owned by Alan Ball & HBO, and Angel belongs to Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt
Chapter 1
As Sookie walks over to the booth near the window, she gets an intense feeling of déjå vu. There, in the exact same place where she had first laid eyes on Bill Compton, she sees a vampire. Having had her fair share of experiences with vampires and the world they operate in, however, she doesn’t experience the same feeling of excitement about the new customer that she did when her current boyfriend had first shown up. Even so, she takes a few moments to look him over, if only to make a comparison to Bill and Eric, the two vampires already vying for her affection, the former of which has the majority of it for the time being.
Sookie’s general assessment of the new vampire is that he is both rougher looking than Bill and not as breathtakingly handsome as Eric, but still quite attractive. The telepathic waitress mentally scrolls through the list of words she had learned since making a word-a-day desk calendar an annual purchase, trying to figure out the right one to describe the vampire now sitting at Bill’s old table. Finally, she settles on one: ‘Byronic’. She assesses his general appearance once more, and decides that yes, the word describes him perfectly.
Following that, she begins to make more detailed observations about him. The first of these is that he was most likely in his early or mid twenties when he was turned into a vampire. After drawing her conclusion about his original age, Sookie turns her attention to his appearance. She is immediately struck by the melancholy, brooding expression in his eyes, which causes her to wonder what it is that’s weighing so heavily on his mind. She ponders over that briefly, then returns to examining his physical appearance. Taking in his head and facial features with one glance, she notices three things: he looks very European, he has longish, rather unruly, somewhat curly black hair, and a shadowy amount of stubble on his face, made all the more obvious by his paleness.
She then looks at the way he’s dressed. From what little she can see above the obstructing form of the menu, he appears to be wearing an unbuttoned, somewhat faded, blue denim jacket, a very light purple t-shirt, and black fingerless gloves. The ensemble gives him a casual, almost carefree air, a striking contrast to his rather gloomy demeanor that makes him intriguing to her, in spite of her making every effort not to feel that way, so as to avoid inviting more trouble into her life. Just as Sookie reaches the table, the vampire puts down the menu and looks up.
Smiling pleasantly at him, she asks, “What can I get you?”
Glancing back down at the menu briefly, he answers, “Uh, the burger and fries, please, and a coke.” As Sookie writes down the order, she tries to place the trace of accent she had just heard. After a few minutes, she decides that it is Irish or Scottish, she’s not sure which.
Looking up from her notepad, she asks, “Would you like a Tru Blood or something while you’re waiting for your date to come back?”
The vampire looks at her in confusion for a moment, then the reason for her question dawns on him. Smiling shyly at her, he answers, “I’m…not here with anyone. I came alone.”
Doing her best to keep the look of extreme surprise on her face in check, Sookie says, “Oh, so…?”
“Yeah, it’s for me.” The vampire replies, nodding briefly.
“How does that work?” the waitress asks curiously. “I haven’t met a single vampire who can eat normal food like you do.”
A brief chuckle escapes from the vampire, and his bashful smile becomes an amused grin. He then says, “I guess you could say I’m a very unusual vampire.” His grin relaxes into a friendly smile, and offering up a hand, he adds, “I’m Mitchell.”
“Sookie.” She answers, smiling back at him and shaking his hand.
“Nice to meet you.” Mitchell says.
“You too.” Sookie replies. “I’ll be right back with your drink.”
“Thanks.” The vampire says in return. Following that, Sookie leaves to get his drink and pass his order on to the kitchen.
Five minutes later, Sookie comes back with Mitchell’s drink. Setting it down on the table, she says in a pleasant tone. “Here you go. Your order should be ready in fifteen minutes or so.”
“Okay, great.” Mitchell replies, nodding briefly.
Keeping the same tone, Sookie explains, “I need to go check on my other tables, but if you need anything, just call or wave me over when you see me, and I’ll be right there.”
“I will.” Mitchell says, nodding again. With that, Sookie leaves to see to her other tables, while Mitchell starts leisurely drinking his soda and idly looking around at the features of Merlotte’s, its customers, and the rest of its staff.
Fifteen minutes later, as she had promised, Sookie returns. She is holding Mitchell’s plate in one hand, and has the bottles of both ketchup and mustard clutched in the other. “Here you are.” She says, smiling briefly and putting everything down on the table.
“Thanks.” Mitchell answers, smiling back at her.
“Sure. Can I get you anything else?”
“No, I’m good for now.” The vampire replies graciously.
“Okay. I’ll come back by in a little bit to see if there’s anything you need.” Sookie tells him.
“Alright.” Mitchell says, nodding. After that exchange, Sookie walks away and returns to monitoring her other tables. Once she has left, Mitchell starts eating.
He finishes his meal thirty-five minutes later, during which time, Sookie had passed his table twice, glancing over briefly both times to see if he’d needed anything. Noticing he is done, she comes over.
Politely, she asks him, “Would you like anything else?”
“No thanks.” Mitchell answers graciously, shaking his head. “Just the check’ll be fine.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back with that.” Sookie says, picking up his plate and glass.
“Thanks.” The vampire tells her.
“Sure.” With that, Sookie leaves to return the dishes to the kitchen and grab the tab. She returns a few minutes later, and upon reaching the table, hands Mitchell the tab, saying as she does so, “There you go.” When he has taken it from her, she reaches for the bottles of condiments she had brought him. Mitchell looks over the receipt, and after mentally figuring out the tip, takes his wallet out of his jacket pocket.
As he pulls out the right amount of bills, he requests, “I was wondering if you could help me with something.”
Feeling suspicious about him for the first time that evening, Sookie says neutrally, “What with?”
Looking up and handing her the bills, Mitchell asks, “You wouldn’t know where I could find Eric Northman by chance, would you? There’s something going on that I really need to talk to him about.”
Her suspicious feelings about him put to rest for the time being, Sookie answers in a more relaxed tone, “Yeah, sure I do.”
“You do?” Mitchell asks, surprised. Sookie nods. “Where can I find him?”
“He owns a vampire bar in Shreveport called Fangtasia.” She tells him. “If you have a map, I can tell you how to get there.”
“I do.” Mitchell says, nodding.
“Okay. Just let me take care of this, and I’ll be right back.” Sookie replies.
“Okay.” The vampire says, nodding again.
The tab once again in hand, Sookie walks over to the register and puts the money away. She then returns to Mitchell’s table, and after giving him a couple of moments to unfold his map and flatten it out, sits down to the left of him, not more than half a foot away. Once they have both settled in, Sookie describes the route from Merlotte’s to get to Fangtasia, tracing the path with her finger as she talks.
When she has finished, she asks, “Will you be able to remember all that?”
“Yeah, thanks.” Mitchell answers, nodding and beginning to refold his map.
“Okay, then have a good night.” Sookie says, smiling slightly and starting to slide toward the end of the booth.
“You too.” The vampire replies, smiling back at her. With that, Sookie starts walking toward the other end of the bar to see to her tables on that side of it.
Just as Mitchell clears the left end of the booth and begins standing up, Sookie briefly stops walking. Turning around and looking back in the vampire’s direction, she says, “And Mitchell?”
“Yeah?” he answers, returning her gaze.
“Fangtasia’s kind of an upscale place, so you might wanna wear something a teeny bit nicer whenever you see Eric tonight.” Sookie suggests politely.
Mitchell is taken slightly aback, but he maintains a polite demeanor and answers, “I’ll keep that in mind, thanks.”
“Sure.” Sookie says in return, smiling slightly. “Maybe I’ll see you around sometime in the next few days?”
“Yeah, maybe.” The vampire replies, nodding and smiling a little.
“Okay, then I’ll see you when I see you.”
“Yeah.” Mitchell says, nodding again and giving Sookie another small smile. She briefly returns it, then continues walking to the other tables in her section. Sookie’s attention now elsewhere, Mitchell turns away and continues out the door and into the night.
.....................................
Mitchell, looking more presentable than he had in a while due to the light gray, long-sleeved, collared shirt and black slacks he is wearing, arrives at Fangtasia a few hours after departing from Merlotte’s. Mitchell’s only reaction to the spectacle around him is a feeling of utter bewilderment and disbelief, one that persists as he makes his way to the bar. He had long known about vampires revealing themselves to humans, had expected it to happen at some point, in fact, considering what Herrick’s plans were, and still remained.
What he had not expected, however, was how readily humanity would accept vampires, nor had he thought contact and relations between the two groups would be so benign and intimate. Yet that’s exactly what he is seeing around him— humans and vampires in close, almost comfortable, contact in a mostly public place. In the infrequent instances he overhears a human, usually a woman, invite a vampire to bite her, Mitchell feels both appalled and intrigued, so he quickens his pace and rapidly continues on his way, lest the bloodlust that keeps arising within him ends up getting the best of him.
When Mitchell reaches the main bar, he promptly sits on a stool and turns his back on the activity going on around him, all in an effort to get his urges (all of which have been put into overdrive due to the sheer number of humans present, and in the case of the women, their revealing style of dress) under control.
As Mitchell looks up, the bartender, also a vampire, says to him, “This is your first time here, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Mitchell replies with a nod. “First time in the country, actually.”
“Oh? Where from?”
“England.” Mitchell answers.
Nodding understandingly, the bartender says, “That explains a lot.”
His tone somewhat annoyed, Mitchell inquires, “What do you mean?”
“This whole ‘coming out of the coffin’ thing?” At the sight of a confused look from Mitchell, the bartender says, “You know, us vampires publicly telling humans we exist?” The meaning of the phrase now clarified for him, Mitchell nods. “It hasn’t taken as quickly in England and other parts of Europe as it has here, so you don’t find very many places like this there. It’s a shock to the system if that’s where a vampire comes from, doubly so if he’s recently fed, like it seems you have.”
Mitchell shifts uncomfortably on the stool and replies, “You could say that.”
Giving another understanding nod, the bartender tells him, “I’ve got just the thing, hold on.” While making his way to the shelves where beverages are kept, the bartender glances behind him and adds, “You know about Tru Blood, right?”
Nodding slightly, Mitchell answers, “Yeah, but I’ve never had it.”
As he takes a bottle of Tru Blood off the shelf, the bartender says, “I can’t say it’s exactly delicious, but it takes the edge off.” After a pause, he adds, “Warm or room temp?”
Shrugging, Mitchell replies, “Whichever way is better.”
“It tastes best when it’s warm.”
“Warm then.”
“You got it.” With that, the bartender turns away and puts the bottle in a microwave placed on top of a counter below the beverage shelves.
Just as Mitchell looks away from the bartender, who is currently busy with another patron, Eric comes out of his office. Immediately, the two vampires lock eyes. It is Eric who speaks first, his voice full of extreme surprise. “Mitchell, this is an unexpected surprise! You’re looking well.”
“And you look like you’re doing well.” Mitchell replies, offering his hand.
“Yes, I am. Thank you, Mitchell.” Eric says, shaking the young vampire’s hand. “What brings you to Shreveport, or more generally, the United States?”
Mitchell looks around furtively before answering him. Noting that no one else is nearby and the bartender is busy removing his drink from the microwave, Mitchell leans forward and asks quietly, “What do you know about a very powerful vampire who lives in the state of Mississippi?”
The state name piques Eric’s interest, and he too, leans forward, after which he inquires of Mitchell, “Are you speaking of Russell Edgington?”
“I might be. Does he have a lot of power in both the vampire community and the human community?”
“Yes, he’s the vampire king of Mississippi.” Eric answers. “Why so much interest in him?”
“A female vampire I know in England told me that this Russell Edgington and an equally powerful vampire there are planning something that could affect individuals like you and me just as much as it will humans, and not in a good way.” Mitchell explains. He looks around nervously again, then asks, “Is there somewhere more private where we can talk?”
“Yes, my office.” Eric, now looking slightly concerned, tells him. “But why don’t we get our drinks first?” Mitchell nods in agreement. At that moment, the bartender brings over his drink. No sooner has he set the bottle down in front of Mitchell, than he catches Eric’s gaze and proceeds to hastily grab another Tru Blood, then prepare it for him.
Once the task is finished, the bartender promptly brings the bottle over and respectfully hands it to Eric, asking as he does so, “Would you like anything else, sir?”
“No, that will be all, thank you.” Eric answers. He then looks at Mitchell and asks, “Is there anything more you would like, Mitchell?”
“No, I’m fine, thanks.” He replies politely.
“Very well, then let’s go into my office.”
As soon as Mitchell is standing up and has his drink in hand, Eric walks to the right end of the counter and pushes open a waist-high door attached to it, allowing the younger vampire to join him behind the counter. Once there, Mitchell closes the small door, then promptly follows Eric into his office.
......................................
The first thing Mitchell notices as he comes in the door behind Eric is a dark-brown haired vampire in a white Henley shirt. The unknown vampire, who is holding a partially finished bottle of Tru Blood, is sitting in a chair placed at the upper right corner of what Mitchell presumes is Eric’s desk. While Mitchell’s preference is to speak to Eric alone, he reserves any judgments about the unfamiliar vampire until he is actually introduced to him.
When the dark-haired vampire looks up, Eric, indicating Mitchell with his hand, says, “Bill, this is John Mitchell. He’s an old acquaintance of mine.” Once he has introduced Bill to Mitchell, he turns to the younger of the two and adds, “Mitchell, this is Bill Compton. He’s a colleague of sorts.”
Following Eric’s introduction of him, Bill sets his drink down on the desk, stands up, and walks over. When he reaches them, he offers his hand to Mitchell and says, “It’s very nice to meet you, Mitchell.”
“And you.” He replies, shaking Bill’s hand.
“Allow me to get you a chair. “ Bill offers politely as he and Mitchell conclude their handshake.
“Thanks.” Mitchell says in return.
“Of course.” Bill acknowledges, putting the chair he has just brought over beside his own. Once Bill and Mitchell are sitting, Eric, who had returned to his chair after introducing them to each other, resumes speaking.
Looking at Mitchell, he says, “Before we came in here, you told me you had learned some disturbing news about Russell Edgington’s plans.” Mitchell nods. “Perhaps you could share the details of that with us.”
“Sure.” The much younger vampire replies with another nod. He pauses and takes a sip of his Tru Blood, then continues. “The vampire who talked to me said that Russell Edgington and a vampire there in England named Herrick met in Mississippi, then formed an alliance so they’d have a better chance of achieving their shared goal— the conquest of human beings.”
Bill, who had been listening with rapt attention since Eric had first mentioned Russell Edgington’s name, now looks over at Mitchell with shock and exclaims, “They intend to conquer all of humanity?”
“Yes.” Mitchell replies, nodding grimly.
Bill then turns to Eric and asks, “Did you know anything about this? Because I most certainly did not!”
“No. I suspected Edgington had grander ambitions, but nothing on such an expansive scale as that.” Eric pauses for a moment, then looks over at Mitchell and inquires, “The vampire who told you this information, did she give you any details about how Edgington and this Herrick plan to carry out their mission of conquest?”
Shaking his head, Mitchell replies, “No. All she said was that both of them are forming their own armies, and they would start launching attacks once they’d finished doing that.”
Eric nods slightly, then asks, “What about progress? Did she say anything about how far along they are in their preparations?”
Shaking his head again, Mitchell replies, “No.” He stops and takes another sip of his TruBlood, then continues. “I don’t think they’ve made very much progress yet, but I might be wrong. That’s why I came to you— I thought you’d know more about what they’re planning.”
“Clearly, I don’t, and until your visit, knew even less than you do.” Eric states matter-of-factly. Mitchell’s only response is a brief nod, so Eric continues. “It would have been preferable to know more about their plans before making any of our own, but the seriousness and scale of this mission of theirs makes it necessary for us to formulate a plan now.”
“I agree.” Bill comments, nodding. He then looks at Mitchell and asks, “I assume you do as well?” The younger vampire nods. A response having been given, Bill turns to Eric and inquires, “What would this plan of ours entail?”
“It’s quite simple— Edgington and this Herrick are assembling armies as we speak, so we should, as well. Do either of you disagree?” Both Bill and Mitchell shake their heads.
“Very good. A number of contacts must be made before we can begin to do that. While I am making those calls, perhaps the two of you can get better acquainted.” Following a nod by the two younger vampires, Eric leaves them alone to converse with one another.
...........................................
A couple of hours later, Angel and Spike arrive. As they are walking through the door and into the bar, Angel is thinking over what Wesley had told him the night before. The past few years, he had heard a good deal about vampires making themselves known to humanity, but he’d never believed a single word of it. Even after Wesley had flat out said it was true, Angel still harbored lingering doubts about the information’s validity. Yet here he was, walking into a bar in a little backwater town in the state of Louisiana, with evidence confirming it right in front of him.
He begins looking around, and finds he is forming a decidedly divided opinion about the existence of beings such as himself being so out in the open. On the one hand, he is amenable to the prospect that he’ll no longer need to lurk in the shadows, and there is a readily available alternative to drinking blood, human or otherwise. But on the other, he is deeply concerned about how much easier it will be for other vampires to prey on humans. He knows very well that any vampires who are at all like he was before he regained his soul will never be satisfied by a synthetic form of human blood, and will continue to kill.
He is also extremely disturbed by the diffident, even reverent manner in which most of the people approach the vampires scattered about the bar, not to mention those individuals who are literally inviting said vampires to bite them. In his view, beings such as himself are supposed to be feared, not pandered to and revered.
Angel’s musings are abruptly interrupted by Spike gleefully saying, “Now this is my kind of place!”
Glancing at him after briefly looking across the way at an approaching figure, Angel cautions, “Don’t get too comfortable yet. We’ve got company.” Spike looks in the direction of Angel’s gaze, and sees a brownish-blonde haired woman walking toward them. Angel glances at him again, and adds quietly, “Be ready.”
“Oh I will, believe me.” Spike answers in the same way. “A shame we have to kill her, though, because she’s fucking gorgeous!”
“Yeah, well, it’ll probably come down to her or us, so take your pick.” Angel remarks blandly.
“Unfortunately.” Spike replies. With that, each of them reaches into a jacket pocket and slowly pulls out a stake.
As Pam draws closer to the pair of recently arrived vampires, she grows increasingly suspicious. When she is a few feet away from them, she catches a brief glimpse of what the taller of the two is holding in his left hand— a stake. At that point, her suspicion gives way to anger and hatred. After slowly advancing another foot, she stops.
Her fangs extended, she looks at the tall, dark-haired vampire, and asks in a voice laced with chillingly controlled rage, “Are you planning to use that?”
“Only if you give me a reason to.” Angel answers, smiling dangerously and revealing his true form, Spike doing the same.
Just as the three vampires are about to engage in combat, Bill comes out of Eric’s office. Looking over at them, he says with surprise, “Angelus?”
Upon hearing his original vampire name spoken by the vaguely familiar voice, Angel comes out of fighting mode and hurriedly shoves the stake back into his jacket pocket. When Angel looks in Bill’s direction, he walks over to them.
Holding out a hand, he says in a moderately friendly manner, “It’s been a long time, Angelus. It’s very good to see you.”
Taking Bill’s hand and shaking it, Angel answers graciously, “Good to see you, too, William. And it’s just Angel now.”
“Really?” Bill asks, looking mildly amused.
Sounding somewhat perturbed, Angel answers, “Yeah. I know it’s a weird name, but it fits better with what I do now.”
All traces of amusement now absent, Bill says, “Very well, Angel it is.” He pauses briefly, then asks curiously, “What have you been doing since we parted ways eight decades ago?”
“Not much the first several years after that, but for the last four and a half, I’ve been working as a private investigator in Los Angeles. We look into cases that law enforcement either won’t take or doesn’t have the ability and resources to solve.” After pausing momentarily, Angel adds, “I’m the CEO of a law firm there, too.”
The last piece of information garners a brief, wide-eyed look from Bill, who exclaims, “You are?” Angel nods. “My goodness, you have kept busy!”
Shrugging, Angel replies wryly, “Yeah, well, I had to find something to do. How about you? What have you been up to?”
“The same thing you most likely were in the years after we went our separate ways— wandering, trying to find a place to fit in. About a year ago, I moved back into my family’s home in Bon Temps.” Bill answers.
“Right.” Angel remarks, giving a brief nod. “What’s that been like? It must have been strange to go back there after being gone for so long.”
Nodding in agreement, Bill says, “Yes, it’s required a great deal of adjustment in many ways, but I had grown tired of wandering from place to place, and wanted to find a permanent home.”
Returning the nod, Angel replies, “I can relate.”
“I imagine you can.” Bill comments. “But it sounds as if you’ve been able to find a place in this world.” He adds.
“I have.” Angel says, nodding briefly again. “As much of one as something like us can, anyway.”
Bill looks over at Spike for the first time since coming out of Eric’s office, then turns back to Angel and asks, “Who is this other vampire accompanying you?”
Glancing briefly at Spike, Angel answers, “He’s a colleague of mine named Spike.”
A look of mild amusement crosses Bill’s face again, and he says, “Is that so? His name is as unusual as yours.”
“Well, Hollywood and all that, you know?” Angel replies, shrugging briefly.
“Of course.” Bill says in return, nodding. He then looks over at Spike, and holding out a hand, tells him, “It’s very nice to meet you, Spike.”
“You too, mate.” He answers, stepping forward slightly and shaking Bill’s hand.
Just then, Eric, who had sensed that Pam was in danger, walks out. Ready to leap into the fray as soon as he’d cleared the door, the Sheriff of Area 5 stops short at the wholly non-threatening, calm scene in front of him. After briefly assessing the situation, he decides to use his businessman persona instead.
Looking pointedly at Angel and Spike, he inquires neutrally, “What seems to be the trouble, gentlemen? Why were you about to murder my child and partner in our place of business?”
As soon as Angel sets his eyes on the tall vampire and hears his words, he recognizes him for who he is, and quietly sighs with relief for the interruption his old traveling companion had so fortuitously provided mere moments ago. Angel takes a minute to calm his nerves, then answers in an immensely respectful tone, “It was just a misunderstanding. My apologies, Mr. Northman.”
Eric’s suspicion is piqued considerably by the fact that this unknown vampire knows his name, but he chooses not to question him further for the moment. Instead, he looks at Bill and asks him, “You know this man, Bill?”
“Yes. A few years after my maker released me, I encountered Angel in England. We spent eight years traveling together, then went our separate ways in New York in 1920.” He explains.
“So you know him well?” Eric resumes.
“Yes, well enough.” Bill answers.
“Alright.” Eric says, nodding slightly. “One final question.” Bill nods. “Is he trustworthy, in your opinion?”
Bill is initially baffled by the purpose of the question, but then he makes a connection between it, the information he and Eric had learned from Mitchell a couple of hours earlier, and Angel’s inexplicable choice to kill his own kind. Following his realization of the connecting thread among the three things, Bill recognizes the shrewdness of Eric’s decision to spare Angel rather than kill him right then and there.
Coming out of his brief reverie, Bill answers, “Yes, I consider him very trustworthy.”
“Very good. Thank you for sharing your opinion with me.”
“Of course.” Bill replies with a slight nod.
Eric then looks at Angel and says to him, “Because you have apologized and Mr. Compton has a favorable opinion of you, I will let this incident go, with one additional condition— a guarantee that you will never again make an attempt on the life of my progeny or any other member of my staff.”
Nodding, Angel replies, “I give you my word I won’t.”
“Very well. Perhaps we can discuss what your business here is in my office?”
Before Angel can answer Eric, Pam cuts in. Still with an angry tone to her voice, she exclaims, “Are you completely fucking insane? He was about to murder me!”
Just as Eric is about to instruct her, in the strongest of terms, to hush up and return to entertaining customers, Bill leans toward him and says quietly, “I believe it would be best tell her.”
“Yes, maybe you’re right.” Eric agrees, nodding slightly.
Pam makes use of the silence that follows by asking, “Tell me what?”
“Earlier this evening, Bill and I learned some troubling, but valuable, information about Russell Edgington’s plans. If you’re willing to tolerate the presence of your one-time would-be assassin, you can join us in my office and find out what it was.”
Eric’s utterance of the vampire king’s name gives Pam pause, just as it had Bill a couple of hours earlier. Unlike him, however, her reaction is completely unreadable. After a moment, she says with some resentment, “Fine. But keep him the hell away from me.”
Eric smiles with mild amusement and remarks, “I imagine Angel knows of many ways to accomplish that on his own, but I will watch him, if you wish.”
“Thank you.” Pam gives Angel one last piercing, hateful look, then turns on her heel and follows after Bill and Eric. Out of respect for Pam’s declared insistence that he keep his distance, Angel hangs back for a few seconds before proceeding to follow her.
.....................................
As Angel, followed by Spike, sets foot in Eric’s office, his attention is caught by the young vampire seated at the corner of the Fangtasia owner’s desk. Immediately, Angel recognizes the individual as the second man Cordelia had described from her vision. Angel makes no move to introduce himself, however, his near-disastrous encounter with Pam and Eric having made him loathe to invite the possibility of another such occurrence. Instead, he waits for Eric to introduce him. Moments later, the Viking vampire does just that, introducing Pam and Spike to Mitchell, as well.
Once he has finished, Eric sits down and resumes his questioning of Angel. “Now tell me, Angel, how did you learn of me and my business?”
Angel remains silent for a minute, thinking carefully over his words so he doesn’t arouse Eric’s suspicion even further. Finally, Angel answers, “I learned the information in an unusual way.”
“Unusual? In what way?” Eric inquires with a bit of interest.
“A friend and source of mine has the ability to see visions. Her most recent one included an image of you, this bar, Mr. Mitchell, and a third man. After the vision ended, she told me I had to come here as soon as I could.”
Eric looks searchingly at Angel before replying, trying to detect any sign of deceit in the other vampire’s demeanor. Seeing none, Eric, now more intrigued than suspicious, asks, “The third man you mentioned, what was shown in the image your friend saw of him?”
“It showed him pulling a reporter’s spine out in a newsroom. Why?”
“The man your friend saw in her vision is a very powerful, influential vampire named Russell Edgington. According to Mitchell, Edgington and another vampire in England named Herrick are plotting to conquer humans.”
“They are?” Angel, wide-eyed with shock, exclaims.
“Yes. It’s fortunate you were there when your friend had her vision. I imagine you wouldn’t have known about any of this otherwise.”
“No, I wouldn’t have.” Angel agrees. “So what exactly is the situation? How are they planning to do it?”
Eric looks over at Mitchell and asks, “Mitchell, would you be so kind as to tell Angel, Pam, and Spike what you shared with Bill and I earlier?”
With a slight nod, he answers, “Yeah.” Following that response, Mitchell once more shares what he had learned, Bill adding in at one point that a group of werewolves works for Russell Edgington.
When Mitchell is finished speaking, Eric resumes. Looking back at Angel, he says, “Now that you know what we are going to have to face, I have a request to ask of you and your colleague.”
“Go ahead.” Angel replies, nodding slightly.
“Because of the...work the two of you do, I believe your assistance would improve our ability to oppose Russell Edgington’s forces once he begins carrying out attacks. I am, in short, asking you and your colleague to become our allies and help us fight him. Will you assist us?”
Angel converses briefly with Spike, then looks at Eric and answers, “Yes, we will.”
“I’m very pleased to hear that, and grateful to have your help.”
“You’re welcome.” Angel replies with a slight nod.
“Do you have any additional questions or concerns you need addressed, or can we set aside further discussion of this subject until a later time?” Eric asks.
“Just one— are the four of you the only vampires who are going to be involved in putting together some sort of opposition force against Edgington, or are there others in a more influential position who know about his plan and are worried about it?”
“Not long after Mitchell shared his information with Bill and I, I contacted some officials in the vampire community whose positions are comparable to Russell Edgington’s. Once I informed them of the scope of his plan, each and every one promised to offer assistance.” Eric answers.
“Okay, good. That’s all for now, but I guarantee I’ll have more questions and concerns once we start discussing everything in more detail.”
“Naturally.” Eric replies, nodding briefly. Following that, he looks over at Spike, and addressing him by his name, asks the same question. Spike answers in the negative, so all discussion of Russell Edgington, Herrick, their plot, and how to keep it from coming to fruition ceases.
Eric, now cautiously comfortable with Angel and Spike, invites them to engage in some small talk before departing. The sincerity of Eric’s offer is impressed upon Angel and Spike by the sight of Bill bringing one chair, then another, over and setting each one down in front of them. Once all three vampires are seated, conversation, led by Eric, begins. It progresses slowly at first, but eventually, fifteen minutes in, all of the assembled vampires but Pam have settled into a mildly relaxed flow of casual chat that lasts for half an hour.
The first individuals who get up to leave after conversation stops are Angel and Spike, but before they depart, Angel inquires of Eric, “When do you want to meet again?”
Eric sits silently for a moment, thinking, then he answers, “Tomorrow night just after sunset. The bar doesn’t open for two hours, so there won’t be any customers to overhear our discussion, and the only staff present will be those individuals Pam and I completely trust.”
“Okay, that’s fine.” Angel replies, nodding. "Until tomorrow night, then?”
“Yes, until tomorrow night.” Eric answers, standing up and shaking Angel’s hand, then Spike’s. Once Eric has sat back down, Bill and Mitchell offer their own goodbyes to Angel and Spike, the former telling Angel it was good to see him again, and the latter saying it was nice to meet him.
Following Angel and Spike’s departure, the other vampires leave one by one, until only Eric and Pam remain. Turning and looking toward her, Eric says, “Pam, please have a seat. I would like to speak with you before you return to working.” Pam does as she is bidden, then waits for her maker to continue, which he does in short order. “I trust you’re in favor of taking some form of action against Russell and this European ally of his named Herrick?”
Pam, hurt by Eric’s seeming doubt of her loyalty, answers somewhat angrily, “Of course I am! I have just as much invested in this business as you do, and will be just as thoroughly fucked if they succeed in this conquest, or whatever it is, of humans!”
“I thought you were.” Eric replies levelly, giving a slight nod. “But you don’t agree with my decision to enlist Angel and Spike to assist us, correct?”
“Yes.” Pam answers. “But what else did you expect from me when the first thing they wanted to do when they arrived was kill me?”
“I expected nothing different from you. I’m very pleased you made that judgment, even though they’re vampires as well.” Eric reassures her. Following a brief pause, he says, “But you do understand why I decided to enter into an alliance with them rather than kill them, don’t you?”
“I’m not an idiot, Eric, of course I do— having the assistance of two vampires who kill other vampires, as fucked up as that is, give us an advantage over Russell Edgington.”
“Then you understand the strategy of it?” Eric inquires.
“Yes.” Pam answers. “But Eric, I don’t trust either of them, especially not Angel.”
“That’s understandable.” Eric replies, nodding briefly. “And you aren’t alone in your distrust. It may not have been apparent when I was speaking to them, but I share your suspicion of them, especially of Angel, which is why I’ll be keeping a very close eye on him until he’s proven his trustworthiness to my satisfaction. Does that reassure you about this new alliance?”
“Yeah, for now. Is that all? Because I need to get back to entertaining the humans.”
“Yes.” Eric answers. “As you said, you need to return to work, and there are a few other telephone calls I have to make. You can go.”
“Thank you.” Pam replies with the utmost respect. Eric simply nods in response. Following that, Pam heads out of the Area 5 Sheriff’s office to resume working, and Eric returns to making phone calls.
Prologue
http://jackdavfan692.livejournal.com/16598.html
Title: “Choosing Sides”
Author: jackdavfan692
Rating: PG-17
Warnings: Just strong language in this part.
Summary: Mitchell visits an old acquaintance, and Angel encounters an old traveling companion while investigating Fangtasia with Spike. Eric, Bill, Mitchell, Angel, and Spike have their first meeting about Russell Edgington and Herrick's plot to conquer humanity.
Characters: Being Human- Mitchell, George, Nina, Annie, Herrick, and Daisy; True Blood- Eric, Bill, Sookie, Pam, Alcide, Sam, Russell Edgington, Jessica, Jésus, Lafayette, and Queen Sophie-Anne; Angel- Angel, Spike, Wesley, Gunn, Illyria, Harmony, Lorne, Cordelia, and Connor
Spoilers: The first two seasons of Being Human, the first three seasons of True Blood up to the episode “I Smell A Rat”, and all five seasons of Angel up to the episode “Time Bomb”
Disclaimer: Being Human is the property of the BBC & Toby Whithouse, True Blood is owned by Alan Ball & HBO, and Angel belongs to Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt
Chapter 1
As Sookie walks over to the booth near the window, she gets an intense feeling of déjå vu. There, in the exact same place where she had first laid eyes on Bill Compton, she sees a vampire. Having had her fair share of experiences with vampires and the world they operate in, however, she doesn’t experience the same feeling of excitement about the new customer that she did when her current boyfriend had first shown up. Even so, she takes a few moments to look him over, if only to make a comparison to Bill and Eric, the two vampires already vying for her affection, the former of which has the majority of it for the time being.
Sookie’s general assessment of the new vampire is that he is both rougher looking than Bill and not as breathtakingly handsome as Eric, but still quite attractive. The telepathic waitress mentally scrolls through the list of words she had learned since making a word-a-day desk calendar an annual purchase, trying to figure out the right one to describe the vampire now sitting at Bill’s old table. Finally, she settles on one: ‘Byronic’. She assesses his general appearance once more, and decides that yes, the word describes him perfectly.
Following that, she begins to make more detailed observations about him. The first of these is that he was most likely in his early or mid twenties when he was turned into a vampire. After drawing her conclusion about his original age, Sookie turns her attention to his appearance. She is immediately struck by the melancholy, brooding expression in his eyes, which causes her to wonder what it is that’s weighing so heavily on his mind. She ponders over that briefly, then returns to examining his physical appearance. Taking in his head and facial features with one glance, she notices three things: he looks very European, he has longish, rather unruly, somewhat curly black hair, and a shadowy amount of stubble on his face, made all the more obvious by his paleness.
She then looks at the way he’s dressed. From what little she can see above the obstructing form of the menu, he appears to be wearing an unbuttoned, somewhat faded, blue denim jacket, a very light purple t-shirt, and black fingerless gloves. The ensemble gives him a casual, almost carefree air, a striking contrast to his rather gloomy demeanor that makes him intriguing to her, in spite of her making every effort not to feel that way, so as to avoid inviting more trouble into her life. Just as Sookie reaches the table, the vampire puts down the menu and looks up.
Smiling pleasantly at him, she asks, “What can I get you?”
Glancing back down at the menu briefly, he answers, “Uh, the burger and fries, please, and a coke.” As Sookie writes down the order, she tries to place the trace of accent she had just heard. After a few minutes, she decides that it is Irish or Scottish, she’s not sure which.
Looking up from her notepad, she asks, “Would you like a Tru Blood or something while you’re waiting for your date to come back?”
The vampire looks at her in confusion for a moment, then the reason for her question dawns on him. Smiling shyly at her, he answers, “I’m…not here with anyone. I came alone.”
Doing her best to keep the look of extreme surprise on her face in check, Sookie says, “Oh, so…?”
“Yeah, it’s for me.” The vampire replies, nodding briefly.
“How does that work?” the waitress asks curiously. “I haven’t met a single vampire who can eat normal food like you do.”
A brief chuckle escapes from the vampire, and his bashful smile becomes an amused grin. He then says, “I guess you could say I’m a very unusual vampire.” His grin relaxes into a friendly smile, and offering up a hand, he adds, “I’m Mitchell.”
“Sookie.” She answers, smiling back at him and shaking his hand.
“Nice to meet you.” Mitchell says.
“You too.” Sookie replies. “I’ll be right back with your drink.”
“Thanks.” The vampire says in return. Following that, Sookie leaves to get his drink and pass his order on to the kitchen.
Five minutes later, Sookie comes back with Mitchell’s drink. Setting it down on the table, she says in a pleasant tone. “Here you go. Your order should be ready in fifteen minutes or so.”
“Okay, great.” Mitchell replies, nodding briefly.
Keeping the same tone, Sookie explains, “I need to go check on my other tables, but if you need anything, just call or wave me over when you see me, and I’ll be right there.”
“I will.” Mitchell says, nodding again. With that, Sookie leaves to see to her other tables, while Mitchell starts leisurely drinking his soda and idly looking around at the features of Merlotte’s, its customers, and the rest of its staff.
Fifteen minutes later, as she had promised, Sookie returns. She is holding Mitchell’s plate in one hand, and has the bottles of both ketchup and mustard clutched in the other. “Here you are.” She says, smiling briefly and putting everything down on the table.
“Thanks.” Mitchell answers, smiling back at her.
“Sure. Can I get you anything else?”
“No, I’m good for now.” The vampire replies graciously.
“Okay. I’ll come back by in a little bit to see if there’s anything you need.” Sookie tells him.
“Alright.” Mitchell says, nodding. After that exchange, Sookie walks away and returns to monitoring her other tables. Once she has left, Mitchell starts eating.
He finishes his meal thirty-five minutes later, during which time, Sookie had passed his table twice, glancing over briefly both times to see if he’d needed anything. Noticing he is done, she comes over.
Politely, she asks him, “Would you like anything else?”
“No thanks.” Mitchell answers graciously, shaking his head. “Just the check’ll be fine.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back with that.” Sookie says, picking up his plate and glass.
“Thanks.” The vampire tells her.
“Sure.” With that, Sookie leaves to return the dishes to the kitchen and grab the tab. She returns a few minutes later, and upon reaching the table, hands Mitchell the tab, saying as she does so, “There you go.” When he has taken it from her, she reaches for the bottles of condiments she had brought him. Mitchell looks over the receipt, and after mentally figuring out the tip, takes his wallet out of his jacket pocket.
As he pulls out the right amount of bills, he requests, “I was wondering if you could help me with something.”
Feeling suspicious about him for the first time that evening, Sookie says neutrally, “What with?”
Looking up and handing her the bills, Mitchell asks, “You wouldn’t know where I could find Eric Northman by chance, would you? There’s something going on that I really need to talk to him about.”
Her suspicious feelings about him put to rest for the time being, Sookie answers in a more relaxed tone, “Yeah, sure I do.”
“You do?” Mitchell asks, surprised. Sookie nods. “Where can I find him?”
“He owns a vampire bar in Shreveport called Fangtasia.” She tells him. “If you have a map, I can tell you how to get there.”
“I do.” Mitchell says, nodding.
“Okay. Just let me take care of this, and I’ll be right back.” Sookie replies.
“Okay.” The vampire says, nodding again.
The tab once again in hand, Sookie walks over to the register and puts the money away. She then returns to Mitchell’s table, and after giving him a couple of moments to unfold his map and flatten it out, sits down to the left of him, not more than half a foot away. Once they have both settled in, Sookie describes the route from Merlotte’s to get to Fangtasia, tracing the path with her finger as she talks.
When she has finished, she asks, “Will you be able to remember all that?”
“Yeah, thanks.” Mitchell answers, nodding and beginning to refold his map.
“Okay, then have a good night.” Sookie says, smiling slightly and starting to slide toward the end of the booth.
“You too.” The vampire replies, smiling back at her. With that, Sookie starts walking toward the other end of the bar to see to her tables on that side of it.
Just as Mitchell clears the left end of the booth and begins standing up, Sookie briefly stops walking. Turning around and looking back in the vampire’s direction, she says, “And Mitchell?”
“Yeah?” he answers, returning her gaze.
“Fangtasia’s kind of an upscale place, so you might wanna wear something a teeny bit nicer whenever you see Eric tonight.” Sookie suggests politely.
Mitchell is taken slightly aback, but he maintains a polite demeanor and answers, “I’ll keep that in mind, thanks.”
“Sure.” Sookie says in return, smiling slightly. “Maybe I’ll see you around sometime in the next few days?”
“Yeah, maybe.” The vampire replies, nodding and smiling a little.
“Okay, then I’ll see you when I see you.”
“Yeah.” Mitchell says, nodding again and giving Sookie another small smile. She briefly returns it, then continues walking to the other tables in her section. Sookie’s attention now elsewhere, Mitchell turns away and continues out the door and into the night.
.....................................
Mitchell, looking more presentable than he had in a while due to the light gray, long-sleeved, collared shirt and black slacks he is wearing, arrives at Fangtasia a few hours after departing from Merlotte’s. Mitchell’s only reaction to the spectacle around him is a feeling of utter bewilderment and disbelief, one that persists as he makes his way to the bar. He had long known about vampires revealing themselves to humans, had expected it to happen at some point, in fact, considering what Herrick’s plans were, and still remained.
What he had not expected, however, was how readily humanity would accept vampires, nor had he thought contact and relations between the two groups would be so benign and intimate. Yet that’s exactly what he is seeing around him— humans and vampires in close, almost comfortable, contact in a mostly public place. In the infrequent instances he overhears a human, usually a woman, invite a vampire to bite her, Mitchell feels both appalled and intrigued, so he quickens his pace and rapidly continues on his way, lest the bloodlust that keeps arising within him ends up getting the best of him.
When Mitchell reaches the main bar, he promptly sits on a stool and turns his back on the activity going on around him, all in an effort to get his urges (all of which have been put into overdrive due to the sheer number of humans present, and in the case of the women, their revealing style of dress) under control.
As Mitchell looks up, the bartender, also a vampire, says to him, “This is your first time here, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Mitchell replies with a nod. “First time in the country, actually.”
“Oh? Where from?”
“England.” Mitchell answers.
Nodding understandingly, the bartender says, “That explains a lot.”
His tone somewhat annoyed, Mitchell inquires, “What do you mean?”
“This whole ‘coming out of the coffin’ thing?” At the sight of a confused look from Mitchell, the bartender says, “You know, us vampires publicly telling humans we exist?” The meaning of the phrase now clarified for him, Mitchell nods. “It hasn’t taken as quickly in England and other parts of Europe as it has here, so you don’t find very many places like this there. It’s a shock to the system if that’s where a vampire comes from, doubly so if he’s recently fed, like it seems you have.”
Mitchell shifts uncomfortably on the stool and replies, “You could say that.”
Giving another understanding nod, the bartender tells him, “I’ve got just the thing, hold on.” While making his way to the shelves where beverages are kept, the bartender glances behind him and adds, “You know about Tru Blood, right?”
Nodding slightly, Mitchell answers, “Yeah, but I’ve never had it.”
As he takes a bottle of Tru Blood off the shelf, the bartender says, “I can’t say it’s exactly delicious, but it takes the edge off.” After a pause, he adds, “Warm or room temp?”
Shrugging, Mitchell replies, “Whichever way is better.”
“It tastes best when it’s warm.”
“Warm then.”
“You got it.” With that, the bartender turns away and puts the bottle in a microwave placed on top of a counter below the beverage shelves.
Just as Mitchell looks away from the bartender, who is currently busy with another patron, Eric comes out of his office. Immediately, the two vampires lock eyes. It is Eric who speaks first, his voice full of extreme surprise. “Mitchell, this is an unexpected surprise! You’re looking well.”
“And you look like you’re doing well.” Mitchell replies, offering his hand.
“Yes, I am. Thank you, Mitchell.” Eric says, shaking the young vampire’s hand. “What brings you to Shreveport, or more generally, the United States?”
Mitchell looks around furtively before answering him. Noting that no one else is nearby and the bartender is busy removing his drink from the microwave, Mitchell leans forward and asks quietly, “What do you know about a very powerful vampire who lives in the state of Mississippi?”
The state name piques Eric’s interest, and he too, leans forward, after which he inquires of Mitchell, “Are you speaking of Russell Edgington?”
“I might be. Does he have a lot of power in both the vampire community and the human community?”
“Yes, he’s the vampire king of Mississippi.” Eric answers. “Why so much interest in him?”
“A female vampire I know in England told me that this Russell Edgington and an equally powerful vampire there are planning something that could affect individuals like you and me just as much as it will humans, and not in a good way.” Mitchell explains. He looks around nervously again, then asks, “Is there somewhere more private where we can talk?”
“Yes, my office.” Eric, now looking slightly concerned, tells him. “But why don’t we get our drinks first?” Mitchell nods in agreement. At that moment, the bartender brings over his drink. No sooner has he set the bottle down in front of Mitchell, than he catches Eric’s gaze and proceeds to hastily grab another Tru Blood, then prepare it for him.
Once the task is finished, the bartender promptly brings the bottle over and respectfully hands it to Eric, asking as he does so, “Would you like anything else, sir?”
“No, that will be all, thank you.” Eric answers. He then looks at Mitchell and asks, “Is there anything more you would like, Mitchell?”
“No, I’m fine, thanks.” He replies politely.
“Very well, then let’s go into my office.”
As soon as Mitchell is standing up and has his drink in hand, Eric walks to the right end of the counter and pushes open a waist-high door attached to it, allowing the younger vampire to join him behind the counter. Once there, Mitchell closes the small door, then promptly follows Eric into his office.
......................................
The first thing Mitchell notices as he comes in the door behind Eric is a dark-brown haired vampire in a white Henley shirt. The unknown vampire, who is holding a partially finished bottle of Tru Blood, is sitting in a chair placed at the upper right corner of what Mitchell presumes is Eric’s desk. While Mitchell’s preference is to speak to Eric alone, he reserves any judgments about the unfamiliar vampire until he is actually introduced to him.
When the dark-haired vampire looks up, Eric, indicating Mitchell with his hand, says, “Bill, this is John Mitchell. He’s an old acquaintance of mine.” Once he has introduced Bill to Mitchell, he turns to the younger of the two and adds, “Mitchell, this is Bill Compton. He’s a colleague of sorts.”
Following Eric’s introduction of him, Bill sets his drink down on the desk, stands up, and walks over. When he reaches them, he offers his hand to Mitchell and says, “It’s very nice to meet you, Mitchell.”
“And you.” He replies, shaking Bill’s hand.
“Allow me to get you a chair. “ Bill offers politely as he and Mitchell conclude their handshake.
“Thanks.” Mitchell says in return.
“Of course.” Bill acknowledges, putting the chair he has just brought over beside his own. Once Bill and Mitchell are sitting, Eric, who had returned to his chair after introducing them to each other, resumes speaking.
Looking at Mitchell, he says, “Before we came in here, you told me you had learned some disturbing news about Russell Edgington’s plans.” Mitchell nods. “Perhaps you could share the details of that with us.”
“Sure.” The much younger vampire replies with another nod. He pauses and takes a sip of his Tru Blood, then continues. “The vampire who talked to me said that Russell Edgington and a vampire there in England named Herrick met in Mississippi, then formed an alliance so they’d have a better chance of achieving their shared goal— the conquest of human beings.”
Bill, who had been listening with rapt attention since Eric had first mentioned Russell Edgington’s name, now looks over at Mitchell with shock and exclaims, “They intend to conquer all of humanity?”
“Yes.” Mitchell replies, nodding grimly.
Bill then turns to Eric and asks, “Did you know anything about this? Because I most certainly did not!”
“No. I suspected Edgington had grander ambitions, but nothing on such an expansive scale as that.” Eric pauses for a moment, then looks over at Mitchell and inquires, “The vampire who told you this information, did she give you any details about how Edgington and this Herrick plan to carry out their mission of conquest?”
Shaking his head, Mitchell replies, “No. All she said was that both of them are forming their own armies, and they would start launching attacks once they’d finished doing that.”
Eric nods slightly, then asks, “What about progress? Did she say anything about how far along they are in their preparations?”
Shaking his head again, Mitchell replies, “No.” He stops and takes another sip of his TruBlood, then continues. “I don’t think they’ve made very much progress yet, but I might be wrong. That’s why I came to you— I thought you’d know more about what they’re planning.”
“Clearly, I don’t, and until your visit, knew even less than you do.” Eric states matter-of-factly. Mitchell’s only response is a brief nod, so Eric continues. “It would have been preferable to know more about their plans before making any of our own, but the seriousness and scale of this mission of theirs makes it necessary for us to formulate a plan now.”
“I agree.” Bill comments, nodding. He then looks at Mitchell and asks, “I assume you do as well?” The younger vampire nods. A response having been given, Bill turns to Eric and inquires, “What would this plan of ours entail?”
“It’s quite simple— Edgington and this Herrick are assembling armies as we speak, so we should, as well. Do either of you disagree?” Both Bill and Mitchell shake their heads.
“Very good. A number of contacts must be made before we can begin to do that. While I am making those calls, perhaps the two of you can get better acquainted.” Following a nod by the two younger vampires, Eric leaves them alone to converse with one another.
...........................................
A couple of hours later, Angel and Spike arrive. As they are walking through the door and into the bar, Angel is thinking over what Wesley had told him the night before. The past few years, he had heard a good deal about vampires making themselves known to humanity, but he’d never believed a single word of it. Even after Wesley had flat out said it was true, Angel still harbored lingering doubts about the information’s validity. Yet here he was, walking into a bar in a little backwater town in the state of Louisiana, with evidence confirming it right in front of him.
He begins looking around, and finds he is forming a decidedly divided opinion about the existence of beings such as himself being so out in the open. On the one hand, he is amenable to the prospect that he’ll no longer need to lurk in the shadows, and there is a readily available alternative to drinking blood, human or otherwise. But on the other, he is deeply concerned about how much easier it will be for other vampires to prey on humans. He knows very well that any vampires who are at all like he was before he regained his soul will never be satisfied by a synthetic form of human blood, and will continue to kill.
He is also extremely disturbed by the diffident, even reverent manner in which most of the people approach the vampires scattered about the bar, not to mention those individuals who are literally inviting said vampires to bite them. In his view, beings such as himself are supposed to be feared, not pandered to and revered.
Angel’s musings are abruptly interrupted by Spike gleefully saying, “Now this is my kind of place!”
Glancing at him after briefly looking across the way at an approaching figure, Angel cautions, “Don’t get too comfortable yet. We’ve got company.” Spike looks in the direction of Angel’s gaze, and sees a brownish-blonde haired woman walking toward them. Angel glances at him again, and adds quietly, “Be ready.”
“Oh I will, believe me.” Spike answers in the same way. “A shame we have to kill her, though, because she’s fucking gorgeous!”
“Yeah, well, it’ll probably come down to her or us, so take your pick.” Angel remarks blandly.
“Unfortunately.” Spike replies. With that, each of them reaches into a jacket pocket and slowly pulls out a stake.
As Pam draws closer to the pair of recently arrived vampires, she grows increasingly suspicious. When she is a few feet away from them, she catches a brief glimpse of what the taller of the two is holding in his left hand— a stake. At that point, her suspicion gives way to anger and hatred. After slowly advancing another foot, she stops.
Her fangs extended, she looks at the tall, dark-haired vampire, and asks in a voice laced with chillingly controlled rage, “Are you planning to use that?”
“Only if you give me a reason to.” Angel answers, smiling dangerously and revealing his true form, Spike doing the same.
Just as the three vampires are about to engage in combat, Bill comes out of Eric’s office. Looking over at them, he says with surprise, “Angelus?”
Upon hearing his original vampire name spoken by the vaguely familiar voice, Angel comes out of fighting mode and hurriedly shoves the stake back into his jacket pocket. When Angel looks in Bill’s direction, he walks over to them.
Holding out a hand, he says in a moderately friendly manner, “It’s been a long time, Angelus. It’s very good to see you.”
Taking Bill’s hand and shaking it, Angel answers graciously, “Good to see you, too, William. And it’s just Angel now.”
“Really?” Bill asks, looking mildly amused.
Sounding somewhat perturbed, Angel answers, “Yeah. I know it’s a weird name, but it fits better with what I do now.”
All traces of amusement now absent, Bill says, “Very well, Angel it is.” He pauses briefly, then asks curiously, “What have you been doing since we parted ways eight decades ago?”
“Not much the first several years after that, but for the last four and a half, I’ve been working as a private investigator in Los Angeles. We look into cases that law enforcement either won’t take or doesn’t have the ability and resources to solve.” After pausing momentarily, Angel adds, “I’m the CEO of a law firm there, too.”
The last piece of information garners a brief, wide-eyed look from Bill, who exclaims, “You are?” Angel nods. “My goodness, you have kept busy!”
Shrugging, Angel replies wryly, “Yeah, well, I had to find something to do. How about you? What have you been up to?”
“The same thing you most likely were in the years after we went our separate ways— wandering, trying to find a place to fit in. About a year ago, I moved back into my family’s home in Bon Temps.” Bill answers.
“Right.” Angel remarks, giving a brief nod. “What’s that been like? It must have been strange to go back there after being gone for so long.”
Nodding in agreement, Bill says, “Yes, it’s required a great deal of adjustment in many ways, but I had grown tired of wandering from place to place, and wanted to find a permanent home.”
Returning the nod, Angel replies, “I can relate.”
“I imagine you can.” Bill comments. “But it sounds as if you’ve been able to find a place in this world.” He adds.
“I have.” Angel says, nodding briefly again. “As much of one as something like us can, anyway.”
Bill looks over at Spike for the first time since coming out of Eric’s office, then turns back to Angel and asks, “Who is this other vampire accompanying you?”
Glancing briefly at Spike, Angel answers, “He’s a colleague of mine named Spike.”
A look of mild amusement crosses Bill’s face again, and he says, “Is that so? His name is as unusual as yours.”
“Well, Hollywood and all that, you know?” Angel replies, shrugging briefly.
“Of course.” Bill says in return, nodding. He then looks over at Spike, and holding out a hand, tells him, “It’s very nice to meet you, Spike.”
“You too, mate.” He answers, stepping forward slightly and shaking Bill’s hand.
Just then, Eric, who had sensed that Pam was in danger, walks out. Ready to leap into the fray as soon as he’d cleared the door, the Sheriff of Area 5 stops short at the wholly non-threatening, calm scene in front of him. After briefly assessing the situation, he decides to use his businessman persona instead.
Looking pointedly at Angel and Spike, he inquires neutrally, “What seems to be the trouble, gentlemen? Why were you about to murder my child and partner in our place of business?”
As soon as Angel sets his eyes on the tall vampire and hears his words, he recognizes him for who he is, and quietly sighs with relief for the interruption his old traveling companion had so fortuitously provided mere moments ago. Angel takes a minute to calm his nerves, then answers in an immensely respectful tone, “It was just a misunderstanding. My apologies, Mr. Northman.”
Eric’s suspicion is piqued considerably by the fact that this unknown vampire knows his name, but he chooses not to question him further for the moment. Instead, he looks at Bill and asks him, “You know this man, Bill?”
“Yes. A few years after my maker released me, I encountered Angel in England. We spent eight years traveling together, then went our separate ways in New York in 1920.” He explains.
“So you know him well?” Eric resumes.
“Yes, well enough.” Bill answers.
“Alright.” Eric says, nodding slightly. “One final question.” Bill nods. “Is he trustworthy, in your opinion?”
Bill is initially baffled by the purpose of the question, but then he makes a connection between it, the information he and Eric had learned from Mitchell a couple of hours earlier, and Angel’s inexplicable choice to kill his own kind. Following his realization of the connecting thread among the three things, Bill recognizes the shrewdness of Eric’s decision to spare Angel rather than kill him right then and there.
Coming out of his brief reverie, Bill answers, “Yes, I consider him very trustworthy.”
“Very good. Thank you for sharing your opinion with me.”
“Of course.” Bill replies with a slight nod.
Eric then looks at Angel and says to him, “Because you have apologized and Mr. Compton has a favorable opinion of you, I will let this incident go, with one additional condition— a guarantee that you will never again make an attempt on the life of my progeny or any other member of my staff.”
Nodding, Angel replies, “I give you my word I won’t.”
“Very well. Perhaps we can discuss what your business here is in my office?”
Before Angel can answer Eric, Pam cuts in. Still with an angry tone to her voice, she exclaims, “Are you completely fucking insane? He was about to murder me!”
Just as Eric is about to instruct her, in the strongest of terms, to hush up and return to entertaining customers, Bill leans toward him and says quietly, “I believe it would be best tell her.”
“Yes, maybe you’re right.” Eric agrees, nodding slightly.
Pam makes use of the silence that follows by asking, “Tell me what?”
“Earlier this evening, Bill and I learned some troubling, but valuable, information about Russell Edgington’s plans. If you’re willing to tolerate the presence of your one-time would-be assassin, you can join us in my office and find out what it was.”
Eric’s utterance of the vampire king’s name gives Pam pause, just as it had Bill a couple of hours earlier. Unlike him, however, her reaction is completely unreadable. After a moment, she says with some resentment, “Fine. But keep him the hell away from me.”
Eric smiles with mild amusement and remarks, “I imagine Angel knows of many ways to accomplish that on his own, but I will watch him, if you wish.”
“Thank you.” Pam gives Angel one last piercing, hateful look, then turns on her heel and follows after Bill and Eric. Out of respect for Pam’s declared insistence that he keep his distance, Angel hangs back for a few seconds before proceeding to follow her.
.....................................
As Angel, followed by Spike, sets foot in Eric’s office, his attention is caught by the young vampire seated at the corner of the Fangtasia owner’s desk. Immediately, Angel recognizes the individual as the second man Cordelia had described from her vision. Angel makes no move to introduce himself, however, his near-disastrous encounter with Pam and Eric having made him loathe to invite the possibility of another such occurrence. Instead, he waits for Eric to introduce him. Moments later, the Viking vampire does just that, introducing Pam and Spike to Mitchell, as well.
Once he has finished, Eric sits down and resumes his questioning of Angel. “Now tell me, Angel, how did you learn of me and my business?”
Angel remains silent for a minute, thinking carefully over his words so he doesn’t arouse Eric’s suspicion even further. Finally, Angel answers, “I learned the information in an unusual way.”
“Unusual? In what way?” Eric inquires with a bit of interest.
“A friend and source of mine has the ability to see visions. Her most recent one included an image of you, this bar, Mr. Mitchell, and a third man. After the vision ended, she told me I had to come here as soon as I could.”
Eric looks searchingly at Angel before replying, trying to detect any sign of deceit in the other vampire’s demeanor. Seeing none, Eric, now more intrigued than suspicious, asks, “The third man you mentioned, what was shown in the image your friend saw of him?”
“It showed him pulling a reporter’s spine out in a newsroom. Why?”
“The man your friend saw in her vision is a very powerful, influential vampire named Russell Edgington. According to Mitchell, Edgington and another vampire in England named Herrick are plotting to conquer humans.”
“They are?” Angel, wide-eyed with shock, exclaims.
“Yes. It’s fortunate you were there when your friend had her vision. I imagine you wouldn’t have known about any of this otherwise.”
“No, I wouldn’t have.” Angel agrees. “So what exactly is the situation? How are they planning to do it?”
Eric looks over at Mitchell and asks, “Mitchell, would you be so kind as to tell Angel, Pam, and Spike what you shared with Bill and I earlier?”
With a slight nod, he answers, “Yeah.” Following that response, Mitchell once more shares what he had learned, Bill adding in at one point that a group of werewolves works for Russell Edgington.
When Mitchell is finished speaking, Eric resumes. Looking back at Angel, he says, “Now that you know what we are going to have to face, I have a request to ask of you and your colleague.”
“Go ahead.” Angel replies, nodding slightly.
“Because of the...work the two of you do, I believe your assistance would improve our ability to oppose Russell Edgington’s forces once he begins carrying out attacks. I am, in short, asking you and your colleague to become our allies and help us fight him. Will you assist us?”
Angel converses briefly with Spike, then looks at Eric and answers, “Yes, we will.”
“I’m very pleased to hear that, and grateful to have your help.”
“You’re welcome.” Angel replies with a slight nod.
“Do you have any additional questions or concerns you need addressed, or can we set aside further discussion of this subject until a later time?” Eric asks.
“Just one— are the four of you the only vampires who are going to be involved in putting together some sort of opposition force against Edgington, or are there others in a more influential position who know about his plan and are worried about it?”
“Not long after Mitchell shared his information with Bill and I, I contacted some officials in the vampire community whose positions are comparable to Russell Edgington’s. Once I informed them of the scope of his plan, each and every one promised to offer assistance.” Eric answers.
“Okay, good. That’s all for now, but I guarantee I’ll have more questions and concerns once we start discussing everything in more detail.”
“Naturally.” Eric replies, nodding briefly. Following that, he looks over at Spike, and addressing him by his name, asks the same question. Spike answers in the negative, so all discussion of Russell Edgington, Herrick, their plot, and how to keep it from coming to fruition ceases.
Eric, now cautiously comfortable with Angel and Spike, invites them to engage in some small talk before departing. The sincerity of Eric’s offer is impressed upon Angel and Spike by the sight of Bill bringing one chair, then another, over and setting each one down in front of them. Once all three vampires are seated, conversation, led by Eric, begins. It progresses slowly at first, but eventually, fifteen minutes in, all of the assembled vampires but Pam have settled into a mildly relaxed flow of casual chat that lasts for half an hour.
The first individuals who get up to leave after conversation stops are Angel and Spike, but before they depart, Angel inquires of Eric, “When do you want to meet again?”
Eric sits silently for a moment, thinking, then he answers, “Tomorrow night just after sunset. The bar doesn’t open for two hours, so there won’t be any customers to overhear our discussion, and the only staff present will be those individuals Pam and I completely trust.”
“Okay, that’s fine.” Angel replies, nodding. "Until tomorrow night, then?”
“Yes, until tomorrow night.” Eric answers, standing up and shaking Angel’s hand, then Spike’s. Once Eric has sat back down, Bill and Mitchell offer their own goodbyes to Angel and Spike, the former telling Angel it was good to see him again, and the latter saying it was nice to meet him.
Following Angel and Spike’s departure, the other vampires leave one by one, until only Eric and Pam remain. Turning and looking toward her, Eric says, “Pam, please have a seat. I would like to speak with you before you return to working.” Pam does as she is bidden, then waits for her maker to continue, which he does in short order. “I trust you’re in favor of taking some form of action against Russell and this European ally of his named Herrick?”
Pam, hurt by Eric’s seeming doubt of her loyalty, answers somewhat angrily, “Of course I am! I have just as much invested in this business as you do, and will be just as thoroughly fucked if they succeed in this conquest, or whatever it is, of humans!”
“I thought you were.” Eric replies levelly, giving a slight nod. “But you don’t agree with my decision to enlist Angel and Spike to assist us, correct?”
“Yes.” Pam answers. “But what else did you expect from me when the first thing they wanted to do when they arrived was kill me?”
“I expected nothing different from you. I’m very pleased you made that judgment, even though they’re vampires as well.” Eric reassures her. Following a brief pause, he says, “But you do understand why I decided to enter into an alliance with them rather than kill them, don’t you?”
“I’m not an idiot, Eric, of course I do— having the assistance of two vampires who kill other vampires, as fucked up as that is, give us an advantage over Russell Edgington.”
“Then you understand the strategy of it?” Eric inquires.
“Yes.” Pam answers. “But Eric, I don’t trust either of them, especially not Angel.”
“That’s understandable.” Eric replies, nodding briefly. “And you aren’t alone in your distrust. It may not have been apparent when I was speaking to them, but I share your suspicion of them, especially of Angel, which is why I’ll be keeping a very close eye on him until he’s proven his trustworthiness to my satisfaction. Does that reassure you about this new alliance?”
“Yeah, for now. Is that all? Because I need to get back to entertaining the humans.”
“Yes.” Eric answers. “As you said, you need to return to work, and there are a few other telephone calls I have to make. You can go.”
“Thank you.” Pam replies with the utmost respect. Eric simply nods in response. Following that, Pam heads out of the Area 5 Sheriff’s office to resume working, and Eric returns to making phone calls.
Prologue
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