The concept of 'Immortals' and 'The Game' belongs to Panzer/Davis of Highlander. So it stands to reason that the character of Adam Pierson and any other Highlander characters that are likely to pop up are the creation and property of Panzer/Davis. No copyright infringement is intended or implied. Several upcoming characters will belong to their creators on the RPG list and I will point those out as they appear. In this story, Erin does not belong to me. Erin belongs to Carrie. Antar belongs to Rob. Van and Reid belong to me. Landon belongs to herself and to me.
Thank you to my beta readers: Lorenzo and Kim (actually, I don't remember if you beta-ed this one yet, girl!)
Landon's Diary
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Small Italian Restaurant
November 28, 2000
(Erin Posted)
Landon walked into the Italian restaurant ten minutes before seven and stopped short when she spotted a head full of red curls hiding behind a garlic butter smeared menu. Angrily she marched over to the watcher's table and jerked the menu out of Erin's hand.
"You'd think that they'd teach you to be more inconspicuous in Stalking 101."
Erin calmly leaned back in her chair and looked up at the livid "child". "Landon, if I were hiding, you wouldn't know it."
Landon grunted and threw Erin a hate-filled glare. "You told me that you weren't going to follow me. Did you change your mind, or were you just in the mood for bread sticks?" she demanded sarcastically.
Erin was getting a bit fed up with the attitude Landon had taken, and thought about telling her a so, but decided that the brutal truth was better. She adopted a very cold ruthless tone that she had often seen Adam use with people he found annoying.
"Well, since you asked so nicely, AMY, I didn't follow you. I didn't have to. I just called you watcher and asked him where you were going. I just happened to be closer so I got here sooner." She crossed her arms across her chest and slipped into an Adam-ish sprawl. "So you see, I was good to my word."
****
(Antar posted)
"Did I miss anything, ladies?" Antar asked as he sat down at the table that Erin occupied. At that point, Landon couldn't have looked any more frustrated. Antar didn't have to be psychic to see that she was tempted to leave; something that Erin noticed with a little morbid pleasure.
Landon noticed that Erin and Antar noticed and sat down. She was NOT going to let Erin get the best of her. "No, Antar... You didn't miss anything at all, I was just sitting down," Landon replied with obvious contempt in her voice. Landon couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so frustrated. She wanted to yell at Erin and tell her to keep her Watcher nose out of her business and storm off. She wanted to so badly, but then she'd never know about Adam and Alexa. She would also lose the opportunity to find out about Armand from Antar... This was truly frustrating.
Erin was another story... Erin was curious about Adam's disappearance and Landon held the answer to her question. And from Antar, she just wanted to know more. Until now, the world of Anne Rice's books had been cleverly written fiction. She never would have dreamed that the books were true stories of actual vampires' lives.
"You didn't miss anything. I just think I surprised Landon, that's all," Erin added and smiled at Landon.
"Glad to hear it," Antar replied with a toothy smile. He was infinitely amused with their situation. He'd been listening in to their conversation since it all started with Landon taking Erin's menu and saying, "You'd think that they'd teach you to be more inconspicuous in Stalking 101." Seeing through the eyes of others is one of the more basic of his powers; a gift that really came in handy at times. He thought it best to move the evening along and get the unpleasantness behind them.
"I trust you found the place easily?" he asked of Landon and looked to Erin moments later.
Landon decided to let her anger go for now... She could tell Erin off another time if she was still upset. "Yeah. The front desk at my hotel knew exactly where it is, thank you."
A waiter approached the table and placed a glass of wine in front of Erin and one in front of Landon. He circled the table and placed a large café mocha in front of Antar.
Antar wrapped his hands around his drink and smelled the hot drink. "So, what shall we talk about?"
****
"Food. That's why I'm here," Landon told him.
Antar smiled. "All three of us know that isn't the entire truth, but you are looking rather…emaciated, so order absolutely anything," the vampire urged.
Erin smirked from her sprawl across the table. She picked up the folded paper in front of her and motioned it toward Landon, "Would Ally McBeal like to see a menu?" Landon took the menu silently, ignoring the Watcher as best she could.
Antar continued, "Both of you. Please. Waiter!" he called in Italian. "Another menu and more appetizers." Then in English again to the women, who had understood the Italian but still were impressed, "I'm taking care of the check."
"How cavalier of you," Landon muttered under her breath.
Erin showed more outward gratitude. "Great, thank you. I've been so swamped settling in here at University. I keep forgetting to eat." The woman sat up straight, glad to be formally invited to remain in the party.
Landon ordered more wine, though she had yet to touch her first glass, preferring water to the bitter red liquid. She also ordered some barely pronounceable entrée for the sole reason that it was the most expensive item listed on the menu. This, she hardly touched as well, though her stomach growled and pitched. The Immortal girl trailed her fork through the sea of marinara sauce and islands of small dead creatures and pasta while Erin and Antar too, barely picked at their plates. Of course the vampire would not eat solid food, but Erin just seemed to talk too much to eat anything. The two scarcely looked Landon's way after the trio had ordered their food.
Landon nibbled on her fourth breadstick and tried to listen in on the seemingly fascinating conversation. This proved impossible and she deduced Erin must have picked up telepathy over the past forty minutes and no longer needed to move her lips to talk with Antar. The two adults chuckled at an inside joke and Antar's hand brushed Erin's elbow resting on the table.
Landon knew a third wheel when she was one. She gulped down one of her glasses of wine and thought to herself, the only thing missing at their table of romance was a string section serenade. On cue, two violinists appeared beside Landon and a soft harmony rose to fill her ears.
"God, give me a break," Landon moaned. "I was joking."
Antar turned to her, his mouth in a wide grin. "So am I…I'm sorry." Landon fought the laughter threatening to escape her throat.
"But really," she told the two of them, "I already have plenty of people in my life to run to when I feel the need to be ignored." At this, Erin's expected sneer was of a softer variety, and Antar's face revealed only understanding. "And besides," Landon continued, standing up and chasing the musicians away, "I have a date."
The Watcher's eyebrows rose. It was close to 9pm, very late for girls who looked fourteen to be running around socializing. Landon put her hands on her hips. "Oh come on, Antar isn't the only guy who knows how to live the night life."
Antar and Erin exchanged conspiratory glances.
"Say hi to Van for me," Erin told her lightly.
Antar reached for Landon's hand and kissed the back on the small extremity. His fingers were warm. His lips were warm. That was not at all what Landon had expected. Was the heat the result of the mocha or a recent feeding? Landon knew that Antar knew plain well she didn't have any date tonight besides this one, but it seemed her secret was safe. Yet before he let her hand go, the vampire whispered, "Beware of your Welsh prince. He keeps in touch but keeps his secrets. Far too many centuries of secrets."
Landon pulled her hand free of him and ran for the restaurant door, shaken. Antar's soothsaying was becoming uncomfortably habitual. But at the same time, the Immortal girl was both highly intrigued…and terrified. She felt inside her coat for her loyal sword and then caught a cab to her hotel.
(Erin posted)
"I'll be right back," she whispered to Antar and followed Landon out the door. "Wait up a second!"
Landon stopped and turned to look at the watcher and waited for her to speak.
"Look, I'm sorry. I had no right to stick my nose into your business like that."
"No, you didn't."
"I realize that I've ruined what was supposed to be a meeting between you and Antar, and I feel that I owe you something for that."
"Possibly." Landon crossed her arms over her chest.
Erin thought for a second and the sighed. Erin felt a flash of loss, but knew that this was probably her only shot at finding Adam, because there was no way Landon was going to tell her anything under the current circumstances. "If you still want to know about Alexa, meet me tomorrow around noon at that coffee shop we stopped at last night. Forget about you telling me where Adam is in return. We'll just see how the trust develops from there."
"That is quite noble of you, Watcher. Quite the sacrifice. I'll think about it." With that Landon turned and left.
Silently, Erin watched her walk away.
FIN
© 2000 Rain Pierson
first penned January 2001
revised through April 2001
