The Vampire & the Rebel (Completed)

Part 2: Chapter 28

I barely made it to my bed before I collapsed, blackness overwhelming my consciousness. Standing out in the sun and gloating over my fallen enemies had taken its toll on me. Still, it had been entirely worth it.

I woke from the darkness feeling quite refreshed. I stretched languorously and met the eyes of Dean.

"How are you feeling?" He had gone to the medical wing after a minor injury from Willow. His wrist was wrapped up, but he looked healthy besides.

"I'm fine," he said in his deep, slow way. "You?"

"I'm wonderful, as always. Don't worry, this little wrinkle will get smoothed out soon enough, and it will be back to life as usual before you know it."

Lying to Dean did not soothe my own concerns in the slightest, although I hoped it would at least give him some temporary peace of mind. This was far more than a slight wrinkle. Although the destruction of Magnus and his ilk had been deeply satisfying, it was also a serious move in a potentially deadly game. The long stasis had been broken and things were moving, whether I had wanted them to or not, at this point.

I would try to bring everything to a halt, but failing that there was no choice but to revel in the disruption. "I need to see Leif," I told Dean.

"He's waiting for you."

"Very good. Please get me some coffee and I'll meet you at his office."

"Yes," he agreed, and we parted ways.

I knocked as I pushed open the door and Leif looked up expectantly.

"Leif, we need a meeting with the other leaders," I informed him without preamble.

He sighed. "Good, because I already called them. Apologies for—"

I scoffed, "Save your apologies. If anyone should be apologizing, it's me, since it's my predilections that brought trouble to our doorstep. Of course, I don't apologize, but I will acknowledge this one time that I may bear a certain...responsibility in current and potential future difficulties."

My words managed to shock a startled chuckle out of Leif. After years of him reacting to my jokes with deadpan calm, unbeknownst to me, he apparently had been capable of such human demonstration of mirth all along. How my wit had not elicited such a reaction before was mystifying.

"Sorry," Leif said. "I acknowledge your acknowledgement."

I smiled at him and decided that was enough of unbecoming apologies. "So, I assume those three are well dead?"

"They're nothing but piles of ash. We haven't discarded their remains yet in case you wanted to see them before we did."

"Thank you. A shame I had to miss the actual moment of their demise. We really need proper video cameras again." I paused. "What next, do you think?"

"Well, it depends on what other people know. Did the three tell anyone what they expected? Did they tell anyone where they were going? We should expect some questions, at the very least, since the council won't simply quietly accept the disappearance of three of its members."

"Ugh, that council is nothing but a continual problem. They're simply not worth the vanishingly small amount of amusement I glean from manipulating them."

"If nothing else, there won't be any physical evidence for anyone to find once the ash is discarded."

I nodded. "I'll go out to the training yard tonight, after the meeting." Perhaps, for a moment, I could recapture the feeling of finally taking out three of my most tedious adversaries before dealing with all the coming complications. I would wait until it was dark enough that I could comfortably go outside. Their remains were not going anywhere, unless perhaps a strong breeze came up.