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The fog in his mind, the urge to bite lessened the further he got from Alric, but it wasn’t any better as a sharp pain in his chest replaced it instead. But he just needed to suck it up and deal with it while he processed everything Alric had finally admitted was happening to him... that hee was becoming a dhampyre; becoming one whether he wanted to or not. Alric’s cowardice, selfishness had stolen that choice from Eden and there was nothing he could do to change it now. He needed to accept this new reality - one where he craved blood like it was the only drink worth filling his glass with – or destroy himself and Alric in the process. Emotionally at least.
Fated lovers. Eden had wanted to laugh at the idea when Alric had mentioned it, not wanting to believe such a thing could be true. He was changing his mind now, as the tearing sensation in his chest grew stronger, harsher the further from Alric he got. It was as though his heart was trying to escape and make its own way back to the vampire. Stepping into Alric’s apartment brought some relief, his scent calming him with every breath in he took and the ritual’s he’d read about; the connection created between a vampire and the human the turned could no longer be dismissed as an author’s fantastical whim.
But he was still missing something. Alric had remained vague about his parentage and deflected Eden’s attempts to learn more after he’d stated that he was born vampire. None of the textbooks Eden had read mentioned anything about vampires being born, especially to another vampire while others theorised over whether a human female could be impregnated, giving birth to a creature that was of both worlds – dhampyres. Except that’s what Alric said Eden would soon become and unless he was about to go through a dramatic physical change, he couldn’t see how it could be true. The books that was. Except that wasn’t the part of Alric’s annoyingly vague statement that bugged him, slumping onto the couch and groaning.
“I can imagine it’s quite the trip to find out,” Albie said, chuckling as he walked over to him with a bottle water. Eden didn’t feel like water, much preferring the scent of the wine in Albie’s glass, or what the heavy bouquet of the pinot noir was trying to hide. It smelt delicious, though not as tantalising as Alric’s. “That once you’ve been turned you can have children.”
“I’ll be able to do what now?” He stared at Albie in confusion, not wanting to believe what he’d heard was true. There was no way it could be. He stroked his abdomen trying to imagine just how it would even work.
Albie stumbled, a curious look flickering over his face like he’d expected Eden to know what he was talking about. “Child bearing in Vampire Society isn’t the sole domain of women... hell there are very few women in our society to start with – vampire born that is. They are rare, precious and powerful. In some societies they are revered, and in others they are vilified... but I don’t want to get into that now. It’s also not just the domain of those vampire born either, with dhampyres able to bear children.
“It’s always amusing to watch you humans try and wrap your heads around that fact. Like you can readily accept every other change being turned wrought on your body, but the development of a womb is considered impossible. Too caught up in genderising roles and refusing to accept that not all species inhabiting this earth procreate the same way - okay some of those species you humans only believe to be fairy tales, but they are real – and of those that are sentient, only you humans have the one-gender gives birth thing.”
Eden tipped his head back, covered his eyes with his hands and giggled. Laughter bubbled out of him in uncontrollable waves and shook his body hard. It still didn’t seem real. A dream that his lust-addled, sleep deprived brain had dreamt up one night after he’d collapsed over his textbooks.
Albie cursed, the glass in his hand fell to the ground, smashing on the tiled floor. “You didn’t know? Alric hadn’t told you, warned you that you could get pregnant once turned? And I’d told him to do that weeks ago,” he muttered voice disappearing a little as he knelt to clean the mess of blood and glass up.
“Nope. News to me. Though I can’t say he wasn’t going to... today. Weeks ago, would have been appreciated along with learning about all this-” gesturing at the fangs in his mouth. “-it might have been easier to accept if I knew what was coming... that it could happen this way. I knew if I wanted to stay with Alric, then I’d need to become a vamp-dhampyre. None of what is happening to me is written about in any of the books I’ve studied.”
“That change thing, I don’t really get it, though I’ve seen plenty of dhampyre struggle with it fated lovers or not. Like Alric, I was born vampire.”
“Oh good. So, glad to know I’m not alone in this.” He rubbed at his chest as the sharp pain intensified.
His attempt to hide his pained wince failed as Albie snorted and mumbled something about needing to make a phone call to check where Alric was. He’d already figured that the pain had something to do with his proximity to Alric, or lack of, but he hadn’t known that it was going to be this intense. Pushing himself off the couch, grabbing the back of it for a second as he breathed through another breath-stealing twinge before staggering to the kitchen where Albie stood watching him. “Did you know it would be like this? Did Alric?”
“Of course, he did,” Albie snapped back. “And he’s suffering as much as you are... No, it’s worse for Alric because he’s waited so damned long for you... watched over you until you were old enough. This pain your feeling? That’s always been with him, a slow burning ache that he kept hidden from everyone. And you? You’ve only known him for two months.”
“Then why did he agree to it?” His body screamed in agony and Alric’s lingering scent in the apartment no longer took the edge off it. If anything, Eden was beginning to think it was making it worse.
“Because you asked for it. You wanted time to think or whatever and Alric decided that now was the best fucking time to do the right thing. The Heavens and the Fates both know that I tried my damnedest to get him to tell you all about this weeks ago, but he was too stubborn. Maybe if he had, we wouldn’t be in this situation.” Angry words delivered with the pained concern of friendship that Eden might have found pleasure in if he hadn’t been missing the same comradery with his own friends who hadn’t seen in weeks. May never see again, because how did one explain that you were now a dhampyre and could now become pregnant.
And how could he acknowledge Alric’s pain when his own was crippling. Eden grabbed at the kitchen counter, a pained groan slipping from his lips as his legs refused to hold him upright. It was as though his organs had decided to play a round of duck duck goose; racing around inside of him, ripping themselves loose in the process as they rushed to find a new place in his body to sit.
Laughter ripped from his throat; a derisive, resigned sound that had Albie rushing to his side and grabbing a hold of him. Of course, it felt like that. His body was literally reorganising itself to make room – if Albie was to be believed – for an organ he never thought would appear in his body. But then again, it wasn’t as though Eden could think of himself as human. Not vampire either. Caught somewhere painfully in between.
“I think I’m done thinking. Not that there is anything to think about... it’s not like I can yell stop and this overwhelming, unbelievable situation will screech to a halt or let me turn everything back to the way it was.” There was no rewind button on life. What was done, was done and Eden would have to deal with it... and he was going to have plenty of time to do just that.
Albie’s relief poured off him in heavy waves as he pulled out his phone once more and fired off a message to someone. Eden didn’t know who, almost didn’t care as the game of duck duck goose started another round, but this time it felt like all the participants were wearing heels. Pain radiated through him and the rest of the world began to disappear into a foggy haze that he almost missed Albie mutter, “Thank the heavens for that. And it only took you an hour,” before he lifted Eden up and carried him out of the apartment.