Adult-FanFiction.org : Books

Rave	By : AriannaHawk Category: Anita Blake > Het Views: 2704 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own the Anita Blake series, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
Amiko – lol. I really wanted them to hook up, too. I finished Obsidian Butterfly today, and it ruins the fantasy of it, so I would recommend against taking that book to heart, as far as the Edward/Anita thing. I had to completely disregard that whole storyline to continue writing this. But other than kind of ruining that, OB’s awesome. Anita kicks some major ass, as usual. *g* I wouldn’t say they’re perfect, but much better matched than Richard and Jean-Claude! Those two seriously don’t know her at all, whereas Edward can just read her or predict her almost all the time. Thanks, and hope you enjoy this chapter too.
Meghan – Yeah, I agree, OB was pretty bad, as far as A/E. That’s partly why I set this story after tKD, so that for one I wouldn’t have to wait until I finished the whole series to start writing it, and also so that I could ignore any changes in Edward that would make him unable to date Anita or un-Edward. Thanks, hope you continue to R&R.
Kazel – lol, you know, you’re the first person to comment on that aspect of the story? lol. Anyway, they’re going to get pretty pathetic. You know, groveling and that sort of thing. Pathetic for Jean-Claude because 1) I can see lusting after him, but I still think Anita should either have dumped his ass when she found out he just wanted her for power or else she never should have dated him in the first place, and 2) I never have liked deceitful men, so Jean-Claude has never appealed to me in a “dating” sense. A sex sense, perhaps, if he were real and not dead, but never for dating. He’s too creepy. Richard is only going to be pathetic because I got mad at him after tKD, mostly because he wasn’t being very understanding. Poor Anita. *g* Well, that’s why Edward has come to the rescue. Hope you enjoy, thanks.
A/N: Nope, no nooky yet. But we’re one chapter closer to it. I swear there’ll be some later, but luckily for my readers, this isn’t PWP. Mackinaw and Mackinac are both pronounced the same way, for people who aren’t familiar with Michigan – “Mack-in-awe.” Tecumseh is pronounced “Tea-come-see.” If anybody wants to know more about the sights mentioned here, feel free to email me.

Richard flopped back on the seat beneath him. He’d pulled off so that Jean-Claude could catch up and so that they could try to get to Anita through her dreams.
“That did not go as planned,” the vampire said quietly from where he lay in the back seat.
The Ulfric bit back a snarl. “No shit, Sherlock,” he snapped instead.
An awkward silence passed between them. Jean-Claude didn’t try to make him apologize or respond with his own anger or sarcasm.
“Are there any wolf packs to request permission to enter their territories in the area?” was all he said when he did speak.
Richard shrugged. “Not in Ohio. Lycanthropy is legal here, but the laws protecting us aren’t enforced, so everyone generally clears out. Indiana was a problem, but since I was clearly only passing through, no one had a problem when I stopped for gas. If she continues on to Pennsylvania or any place in New England, there are many packs, and they have a reputation for strict rules. If she doesn’t acknowledge them as my lupa, which she probably won’t, since I haven’t exactly taught her what her position means, they might endanger her. If she turns north into Michigan, the packs there are very friendly, and generally stay in the upper peninsula, or at least near it, since there are more forests there. If she doesn’t acknowledge them, they will most likely ignore her presence or make a friendly overture. They don’t get many visitors, other than tourists, so she would be a welcome change. I’ve been up there a couple times and their Ulfrics are gentle and kind. They don’t rule through fear like other packs of the world; they rule through kindness and because they protect the pack like a family. They have the healthiest packs I’ve ever seen or heard about. I hope she goes that way.” He paused. “Any vamps to worry about?”
“Many vampires live in New York City and densely populated areas in New England, but in Michigan, the only population I’ve heard about is in Detroit, and she may avoid big cities, since she is trying to get away from everything. The Master of Detroit is strong and powerful, and I believe his animal to call is the rat, so if she does go there, Raphael will have to stay outside of the city.”
Richard started. “You brought Raphael?”
“Yes. Actually, he insisted on coming along. Jason and Stephen felt it their duty to inform the pack of Anita’s disappearance, and words spread quickly among the shapeshifters. Louie wished to come, but he stayed behind to comfort her human friends, since he is dating her best friend. Veronica Sims?”
“Yeah. It’s very strange to me that our best friends are dating, and I think she finds it strange as well. Louie surprises me. He doesn’t like Anita since she chose you. I wonder why he wanted to come.”
“Perhaps he still likes Anita, but he doesn’t realize it. She didn’t choose me; she came running to me in a time of need,” he said bitterly.
Richard hesitated. For the first time he wondered what the two of them had been quarreling about. He asked. “Why were you fighting?”
“She told me that our night together had been an act of impulse. She said she needed to calm down after the trauma of you shifting in her lap. She called it… ‘comfort sex.’ She told me she hadn’t really chosen anyone. I became furious. I called her many things that I should not have.”
Richard sensed that now was the time to change the subject a bit before he had a master vamp bleeding his crimson tears all over the clean seats.
“Who else insisted on joining the chase?” he wondered.
“Unfortunately we have three coffins to tote around because Damian is connected to Anita in some way and he refused to stay behind. Asher wished to offer companionship and he too was worried for ma petite. Jason, Stephen, Raphael and the wereleopards insisted on coming and would not budge. I convinced the pack that they didn’t all need to come, though it was difficult. Many of them are loyal to her. I hope you have changed your mind about replacing her as lupa, because I do not think they would accept a new one. They might even revolt. A few of the wererats besides Louie wanted to come, but Raphael’s presence eased them that it would be taken care of. The truck is quite crowded, however.”
Richard counted off in his head: Gregory, Vivian, Cherry, Zane and Nathaniel. He cursed under his breathe. “That’s three coffins for three vamps and eight shifters. I’ll bet you can’t breathe. Let’s sort it out with them and see who’s willing to drive with me. Maybe we won’t lose her scent this way though.”
They got out of the car and walked over to the black truck. They had pulled behind a gas station at one of the many exits. The shifters and the two vampires got out immediately.
“You can’t all ride with Jean-Claude,” Richard said without preamble. “Some of you will have to come with me.”
“Whoever rides with me will merely be following Richard’s car from here on. We vampires obviously have to stay with the truck, but we need only three shifters to tend to our truck and coffins.”
“I can’t fit five shifters plus myself in my car. I can fit four more, at the most.”
“That will be fine.”
“I’ll ride with Richard,” Raphael volunteered, eagerly stepping away from the vampires.
“I’ll stay and drive the truck,” Jason said. No one said aloud that he was also one of the only ones who wouldn’t mind being the vamps’ snack while they were traveling. It was enough that they knew.
The pard started talking amongst themselves. The others didn’t disturb them.
“I’ll stay too,” Stephen agreed. Everyone knew what Richard’s temper was like, and the wolves didn’t want to be at his mercy if he got too frustrated.
“Zane, Cherry and Nathaniel are going with Richard,” Gregory said, and then he and Vivian walked back to the truck. They got in the back, and Asher and Damian followed. Jean-Claude shrugged and followed them. Jason and Stephen piled in the cab once the back was securely closed. Richard and Raphael got in the front of his car and the wereleopards squeezed in the back, with Nathaniel in the middle. He looked scared and lost without his Nimir-ra, but he didn’t freak out or anything.
Richard remembered sadly that he still hadn’t asked Anita what her thing with seatbelts was when he made sure everyone was buckled up. He shook it off and put the car in gear before pulling out and getting back on the expressway.

The morning dawned clear and bright. The day was looking up. Edward and I checked out as soon as it had begun and got back on the freeway, headed for the Michigan border. He volunteered to drive, so I let him. I felt so much better after Edward hugged me, and he himself was more relaxed than I’d ever seen him in all the time I’ve known him.
“So where would you like to go?” I asked, looking through the brochures we’d grabbed when we crossed the border and the map in my lap. “Most of the attractions are in the northern parts of the state.”
“I don’t want to be anywhere south of Lansing,” he said. “It’s too populated, and I think we should avoid large cities. Wouldn’t want to chance running into any vamps. Weres we may be able to handle, but not vamps.”
I grinned. “Yeah, that’s true.” I tossed a brochure on the floor and folded the map so that I could only see north of Lansing. “We could go to Frankenmuth,” I suggested.
“What kind of attraction is that?”
“German food and shopping, pretty much.”
“Oh. Boring. If I wanted German food, I’d go to Germany and get the real thing. We went shopping in Toledo.”
“Yep, I agree. That’s out then.” Two more brochures joined the one already on the floorboard. “Traverse City?”
“Let me guess,” he said with a playful edge to his voice I’d never heard before; “tourist resort?”
I checked the brochures. The most honest one agreed. “Yeah, and it rains a lot too.”
“Yuck.”
“All right, no Traverse City. Soo Locks?”
“That in the Upper Peninsula? We’ll get to it eventually. We’ll go to all of the ones in the UP, how about that? Just right now let’s see if we want to look at anything in the Lower Peninsula.”
I nodded. “Good plan. That leaves the Sleeping Bear Dunes, all of the lakes except Superior and Ontario, and the Mackinaw Bridge and its surrounding sites.”
I glanced over at him. He was smiling and looked at ease. I couldn’t tell if it was an act or not, but I didn’t think so, and it made me feel good.
“Dunes are generally pretty boring, and lakes are only exciting for so many minutes. What’s the Mackinaw Bridge area like?”
“The bridge is the longest suspension bridge in the world or something like that. It looks pretty dull in the picture, but cameras rarely do anyone or anything justice. There’s Mackinac Island. Only horses are allowed on the island, and bikes, but no motorized vehicles other than ambulances and fire trucks.” Thas sas sounding interesting. “They filmed Somewhere in Time on that island, you know, the one with Christopher Reeves and Jane Seymour?”
“I never saw it. I don’t watch many movies.”
“Well, I didn’t see it either, but Catherine and Ronnie like it. They’re trying to get me to see it. Apparently he falls in love with her picture and goes back in time to meet her. It’s supposed to be a great romance. I’ll bet they just use it as an excuse for expensive merchandise on the island.”
“Everyone’s got an excuse for expensive merchandise, so we can’t hold it against them.”
“True enough.” Edward never cuts anyone slack, so I didn’t tease him about it now. “The Grand Hotel is some ritzy joint that only billionaires can check in to. You have to pay to go stand in front of it or walk the gardens. Ridiculous. But I guess I can overlook that; there are fudge shops. And not the fake crap they pass off as chocolate, either, but real fudge! I like the sounds of that. You want to go?”
Edward glanced at me. He was grinning. I mean, grinning, as in showing teeth and shit. Edward doesn’t grin like that. His big blue eyes were bright and warm.
“It sounds like fun.” He looked back at the road. “I’m glad we decided to do this, Anita. I feel real for once. I was starting to believe that I’d lost everything resembling a feeling. I know I’m a sociopath, but I didn’t want it all to go. I wanted something that I could hold onto. This is going to be great.”
I smiled. Edward’s happiness was making me forget my troubles for the time, making me really eager to get where we were headed and see it, even if it did turn out to be just another tourist trap.
“Yeah, it is. We needed this. Hey, I’m getting hungry.”
“Good, we need gas anyway.”
We pulled off in city called Dundee. It was a weird name, but I’ve seen worse. It was one of the victims ommeommercialization; Cabela’s, a hunting outfitter, had built a gigantic store by the e-way, and it had brought tons of franchises, hotels, and other straggling businesses with it, pushing out any small businesses that had originally been there. We gassed up and leaned against the Jeep.
“I don’t want to eat here,” I said. “It’ll be too crowded with hunters, and probably dirty.”
Edward had the map. “There’s a little cluster of towns nearby. Britton, then Ridgeway, and then a bigger one called Tecumseh.”
“Are they all on this main drag?”
“Yep, and I’m sure they can’t be too awful.”
We got back in and headed west. Britton was a sad little town. There was a factory going in, sandwiched between a ramshackle farmhouse and a little gas station. There were two bars, a brand new restaurant, an old bank building that had been empty for a while, a township hall and fire station, a school, a library, a post office, and more houses. An old antiques place was going out of business, and a novelty store called McKinney’s was for sale, almost empty of merchandise. We drove through it, since we’re not fond of bar food, and we weren’t willing to try the new restaurant. They didn’t really advertise what food they sold, which is never a good sign.
Ridgeway was worse, since it sported only a post office, a school-turned-daycare, a different daycare, a septic tank place, a towing service, and an antiques/furniture store. The furniture was not necessarily antique.
Tecumseh was much better, a thriving town that would probably grow into a city in the near future. It had the general food franchises, but a few interesting places. One was called Boomer’s, but it was a burger joint, and neither of us felt like that. The Cowboy Grill might have been interesting, but we finally settled on Basil Boy’s. We ordered breadsticks and a small pizza. The breadsticks were great.
“This is the best thing I’ve ever tasted,” Edward said at one point, reverently holding one aloft. That’s how good they were.
In the afterglow of a great meal, we sat back with our Cokes in the Jeep. We’d had to get back on the road, so we’d gotten the Cokes at McDonald’s. We could have gotten them at the restaurant, but we were afraid of buying more breadsticks. As it was, we bought two bags to go, even though we were too full to eat them.
“Edward?” I said, settling into a slightly more serious mood as the miles slipped by and the afternoon slipped into evening.
“Yes?” he said, picking up on my serious mood.
“If I ever turned vamp, what would you do?”
He didn’t even have to think about it. “I’d stake you and cremate you after taking your heart and head.” It was the answer I wanted, so I nodded.
“What if I got lycanthropy?”
He frowned. “What do you mean? I wouldn’t kill you unless you asked me to. What’s wrong, Anita?”
I shrugged. “I already knew what you’d say to the vamp question, but it’s really been bugging me lately. I mean, you can’t get it put in your will that if you contract lycanthropy, you want to get killed. That’s considered suicide since you’re not dead. I’m not sure I’d even want to be, but I don’t want to be furry once a month, either. I’ve been dealing with shapeshifters a lot lately, so it’s a real possibility that if I survived an attack, I could get furry.” I looked at him helplessly, wondering if he knew what the underlying fear was, the uncertainty I didn’t want to voice.
“Even if you turned furry, you’d still be my friend, Anita,” he said quietly, never taking his gaze off the road.
I breathed a little sigh of relief. I knew how much Edward hated the monsters, so I really appreciated the effort it would take for him to stay my friend. I told him so.
“That means a lot to me, Edward.”
He smiled at me. “I know you would still be there for me if I turned furry, so I can at least return the sentiment.”
I bit my lip, but not nervously or embarrassed. I had that kind of school-girlish feeling, which was weird, because I’ve never felt anything like that toward Edward before. But I didn’t mind it at all.
We roomed together in the next hotel, though they were still separate beds.

That’s it till next time. Feedback?
- 3
- 4
- 5
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Rave