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Nik had thought that it was a good idea to pull Victoria out of her struggling to paint her toes, instead of helping her. He did that because he wanted to have dinner to celebrate his so-called triumphant return.
He led her to a dinner table and he pulled out her chair at the end of the table, allowing her to sit before he went to sit at the other end. On either side of the table sat Marcel and his vampires.
Nik clinked his cup with a fork, "Let us begin with a toast to our shared gift: immortality. After a thousand years, one might expect life to be less keenly felt, for its beauties and its sorrows do diminish with time. But, as vampires, we feel more deeply than humans could possibly imagine."
Victoria watched as the hybrid gestured toward a group of waiters and waitresses to have them join them at the table, one for each guest, "Insatiable need, exquisite pain..."
The servants slit their wrists with knives, filling the cups with blood for the vampires, "Our victories, and our defeats."
Nik looked at Marcel, "To my city, my home again. May the blood never cease to flow..." He raised his glass in toast.
Marcel followed Nik's lead and raised his glass, "...and the party never end!"
A vampire, whose name Victoria learned was Diego, raised his glass, "To New Orleans."
"To New Orleans!" Nik chimed in, making everyone follow, "New Orleans." They all drank, except for Victoria considering she was pregnant and not a vampire, so she settled for water.
"I understand that some of you may have questions regarding the recent change in leadership," Nik started, "and I invited you here tonight to assure you that you are not defeated. No, my intentions moving forward are to celebrate what we have. What Marcel, in fact, took and built for this true community of vampires."
"What about her?" Diego pointed toward Victoria, "The wolf." Victoria flashed her eyes and growled at the vampire, causing him to shrink a little.
"Had you'd let me finish, Diego, you would know that there is, of course, one further matter I would like to address" He walked over to the other end of the table where Victoria sat, "As many of you know, the girl is carrying our child. Consequently, I trust you will all pay her the appropriate respect."
He placed a hand on her shoulder, "However, I understand that some of you are concerned by this vicious rumor that I intend to use the blood of our child to create hybrids. I assure you I do not."
Victoria smirked sarcastically, "Father of the year."
Nik returned to his own seat, "It appears I will have to earn your trust. Very well, we'll eliminate the root of your anxiety. You see, how I can I sire any hybrids if there are no more werewolves alive in the bayou to turn?"
