"Stand still, would you?"

Sable fidgeted in her seat, clearly uncomfortable as Tiana placed small dabs of some kind of herbal mixture across her body at various points. Alain stood nearby, watching in confusion.

"I'm sorry, I don't seem to understand," he confessed. "What is this, and how will it help us draw my mother out?"

"This is an herbal salve that amplifies some of the scents that vampires give off," Tiana informed him. "Normally, these scents are only recognizable by skilled vampire hunters. Our aim is to make it easier for your mother to know that there's a vampire wandering around New Orleans."

"Eugh…" Felix managed to grunt. "You didn't mention that this stuff reeks, either. Seriously, I don't know a damn thing about vampires and I can still smell it from across the room."

Sable glared at him, and he held his hands up in surrender. "Sorry, but it's true. It smells like really pungent rusted copper."

"Good, that means it's working," Tiana said. She finished placing some of the salve on Sable, then stood back to admire her work. "Okay, that ought to do it."

"My lady, I am still not at all comfortable with this," Az said from alongside her. "We have Alain here with us, yes? Why not use him to draw his mother out?"

"Heather went to all this effort to separate herself from her son specifically to keep him safe," Tiana pointed out. "She isn't about to reveal herself to him again for no reason. If you want her to come out, it's going to require the proper bait, and in this case, the proper bait is a powerful vampire."

Az let out a grunt of displeasure, crossing his arms over his chest. Across the room, Felix looked over to him.

"Don't worry, big man," he offered. "We'll be right behind her, keeping her safe the entire time."

"See to it that you do," Az simply stated.

Sable finally rose from her seat, a small shudder escaping her as she moved. "This stuff is so sticky and unpleasant…"

"Sable, you drink people's blood," Alain pointed out. "You have no room to complain about something feeling sticky and unpleasant."

"I do that to survive, Alain. This is for something different entirely." She shook her head. "Look, we should be going. I want us to make it back to New Orleans so you, Felix, and Jasper can have time to rest."

"Yeah, about that…" Jasper began. "I'm staying here for a bit."

"You are?" Alain asked.

"Yes, I am. I want to catch up with my sister for a bit. Don't worry, though – I'll be back in town right behind you guys before you know it. You need any backup, I'll be there."

Alain nodded in understand. "Sounds good. Thanks for your help."

"No, thank you for reuniting me with my sister," Jasper said. He offered Alain a hand, and the two men shook. "Like I said, I'll be right behind you by a few hours. But for now, I want to speak with my sister."

"Understandable. We'll handle things on our own for now, then." Alain turned to his friends, and nodded.

"Right," he said, "it's time to get going."

XXX

Alain let out a big yawn as the four of them entered New Orleans once more. The sun had started to rise as they'd made their way back from the swamps, signaling that they'd once more had another day without sleep. Predictably, Az and Sable both seemed completely unaffected by it, but him and Felix were definitely feeling it.

"Fuck me…" Felix groaned. "Whatever we're going to do about the Tribunal, I'd prefer if we could do it fast, so I can finally get some damn sleep."

"That's entirely dependent on when my mother decides to show herself, unfortunately," Alain said without looking back. "But yes, for what it's worth, I'd prefer if she'd do something soon, too."

"It's out of our hands," Sable commented. "You both should find a place to rest for a bit. Az and I can keep watch, in case the Tribunal decides to make a move."

"I think I saw an inn a little way back," Felix commented. "If you both don't mind staying up, we'd appreciate the opportunity for a little shut-eye."

"Ain't that the truth…?" Alain muttered.

They all changed course, headed for the inn. As they walked, all of them kept their heads on a swivel, watching for anything suspicious or out of the ordinary. Alain saw nothing, however; New Orleans was full of people, of course, and while he was sure the Tribunal was watching somehow, nobody appeared strange or out-of-place to him.

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He was sure that would change in due time, but for now, he was going to enjoy the silence as best as he could.

Him and Felix checked into the inn and went to their respective rooms, and Alain passed out as soon as he laid down on the bed.

XXX

It was a gunshot from downstairs that awoke him. Alain cracked both eyes open, then groggily scrambled for his shotgun in the darkness. After a quick check to make sure it was loaded, he threw open the door to his room and stepped outside. Felix was already there, Winchester rifle at his shoulder; both men exchanged a look, then gave each other a nod and began to push down the stairs. They moved past the terrified front desk worker and out onto the street outside.

The street was illuminated by a series of lamps that lined the sidewalks, but they were muted thanks to a thick haze that had settled over the city during the night. Both men took a few cautious steps forward, leading with their long guns, looking for whatever had awoken them earlier. Az and Sable were nowhere to be found.

"Shit…" Alain breathed. "I don't see them."

"Neither do I," Felix reported. "What do you think? Tribunal?"

Alain shook his head. "I didn't see any of them carrying guns when we were being held by them. So either it's not them, or they're trying to make it seem like it's someone else who's doing this."

Another gunshot split through the night, this one from about a block away. Both men took off running towards it as fast as they could, searching for their friends the entire time. As they rounded a corner, Alain saw someone lying in the road; after a moment, he realized it was Az.

"Az!" Alain shouted, rushing over to him. "Talk to me, big guy. What the fuck is going on?"

"It's her…" Az said through gritted teeth. He forced himself to sit up, showing a silver dagger buried in his stomach. "Shit, this hurts…"

"What do you mean, it's her?" Alain asked. "Do you mean-"

"Yes. It's your mother, Alain – I know it is. And she's after Sable."

Alain blinked in disbelief, but he was quick to shake himself out of it, instead standing up straight. "Felix, watch him," he said.

"What are you going to do?" Felix asked.

"Whatever I need to," Alain said as he took off running.

XXX

He ended up following the gunshots more than anything. However Sable and his mother were fighting each other, they were doing so while on the move, because every shot was in a different location, and each one had a few seconds between it and the last. Still, though, he was getting closer with every passing second, and before long, he turned another corner and saw the two of them.

Sable was on the ground, breathing heavily and covered with stabs, slashes, and gunshot wounds. Black ichor poured from her injuries and onto the streets below. Meanwhile, his mother stood over her, reloading a revolver. She seemed completely unharmed, somehow, though was equally as out of breath as Sable was, and was additionally covered in a layer of sweat.

His mother looked different from how he remembered her. She'd always worn her hair very short in his youth, but now it was much longer, tied back into a brown ponytail that stretched down to the middle of her back. She was dressed in jeans and a plaid shirt, and was wearing two bandoleers full of bullets crisscrossed over her chest, plus a belt of additional ammunition on her waist. There was a spare revolver on her left hip, plus a double-barrel shotgun slung over her back. Finally, she had several long, sharpened wooden stakes held in a bracer on her left arm.

She looked every bit the vampire hunter everyone had made her out to be. It almost defied belief, but here he was, staring at her with his own eyes.

As he watched, his mother finished reloading, then angled the revolver down towards Sable. Alain's eyes widened, but he didn't hesitate. He ripped his father's old Colt from its holster, then pointed it at his own mother and thumbed the hammer back. The sound of the weapon being cocked echoed through the night, and his mother immediately paused, lowering her guard.

"That sound…" she muttered, in that same thick southern accent she'd always had. The sound of it almost brought tears to his eyes. She turned and stared at him in amazement. "Alain…?"

"Mother," he said, the words coming out through a lump in his throat.

She blinked in disbelief, her gaze trailing down to the revolver in his hands. "Son… what are you doing?"

"Lower the weapon, mother. Please."

Her brow furrowed. "Do you have any idea what she is-"

"I do," he confirmed. "She's not just a vampire, mother. She saved my life and the lives of countless other people. Please, lower it."

Suddenly, her face contorted with rage, and she looked back to Sable. "You turned my son into your Thrall?!"

"It's not like that!" Alain desperately protested. "I'm not her Thrall! We're working together of our own accord, against the Tribunal."

"The Tribunal…? You know about-"

"Yes," Alain insisted. "Mother, you heard about what happened in Los Banos, I know you did. That was me, and her." He motioned towards Sable with his head. "We stopped it together, along with some others. She is not your enemy."

"She's a vampire," his mother growled. "You can't trust them."

"I know all about what happened," Alain said, growing increasingly desperate as he watched his mother's finger tighten around her gun's trigger. "I understand why you wouldn't trust them. But Sable is different, you have to believe me. Because if you don't… you'll leave me no choice."

"No choice? What are you going to do?"

"Put your gun down now, or I'll shoot," Alain threatened.

"You wouldn't shoot me," she insisted. "Your own mother? You could never-"

"Who said anything about me shooting you?"

She gave him a confused look, but it soon turned to horror as Alain suddenly angled his gun up towards himself and placed it under his own chin.

"You wouldn't," she repeated, though she sounded much less certain than before.

"You can't take the risk, and you know it," Alain replied. "So I'll say it again – let her go, or I will do it."

She grimaced, but finally lowered her gun. "...Fine."

Gently, she thumbed the hammer down, then holstered the weapon. Alain let out a sharp exhale, then did the same, stowing his weapon. Once that was done, he approached the two women; Sable was struggling to her feet, grimacing from the myriad wounds that were scattered across her body. He pushed past his mother and over to her, letting her lean against his shoulder.

"Easy," he said. "How do you feel?"

"Terrible…" she muttered. "She's a monster… I didn't think a mortal vampire hunter could move like that…"

Alain looked back to his mother, who he noticed seemed extremely hurt by the fact that he'd ignored her in favor of Sable. That'd be something to answer for later, but for now, they needed to get off the streets.

"Do you have anywhere we can go?" he asked.

She nodded. "I do – there's a hideout nearby. We can head there, and… catch up, I suppose."

Alain nodded. "I'll go get the others, and then we can head there. Can I trust you two to get along while I'm gone?"

Both women grimaced, but nodded. He let out a tired huff, then turned and began to run back to where Az and Felix were.

Somehow, he could tell that catching up with his long-lost mother was going to be like pulling teeth, and he suspected that his friendship with Sable was only going to be part of the problem.

After all, his mother had a decade of absence to answer for.