The Final Messenger

23. Sucking The Marrow Dry

It was like being back to the good old days, if the good was actually very, very bad. Niryn was regressing. Her speech was limited and she couldn't stomach food, which was alarming considering her already low weight. Even her hygiene, which had always been kept well, was now falling by the wayside.

If she didn't go out, why would she need a shower? Why do anything at all?

Adria was a saint in these times. She knew that. But even she couldn't know what happened on the night of harvest moon. No one could ever know.

One person certainly did — Lydia.

For all the little prancing and posturing and pretences at civility, in the end, she was just as inhuman as the rest of them. Only, she has a name and a face. The others were all lumped into one anonymous abolition that was out to get her in her sleep and followed her thoughts during daybreak like phantoms.

Niryn rubs her red eyes and looks at the sad bowl of cereal she made on the counter. She's not even sure if the milk is still fresh or expired. One spoonful proved it was sour and she had to toss it all away, already put off eating for the whole day. Now what?

She doubted she could ever get tired of talking to Adria, yet she didn't want to bother her so much. Just because they were both stuck in the same place didn't mean that they both had to interact with each other all the time.

Okay, that doesn't sound bad at all, but doesn't Adria ever get tired of her? What if she was lying when she said to 'take it slow'? What if she really despised Niryn but didn't want to reject her directly? What if she knew deep down how much of a terrible, terrible person she was and thought Niryn would do something to her in retaliation if she did? Oh god, what if...?

Overthinking never did much good for Niryn, but here she was, anxiety-riddled and clawing her thighs, a head full of mess like it was medicine for her soul.

But if that were all true, why did Adria comfort her by laying her head on her lap and soothe her with a foreign lullaby? Why do any of that? Niryn couldn't make sense of it. Maybe it was possible Adria fell for her too. Nothing made sense anymore. Maybe only the fact that a man was out to get her.

Oh, a person wants to kill me for some tumultuous, unexplained reason? Perfect sense. I'd kill me too if I could.

Aegean was busy. He had proven his loyalty to the Underwoods and was finding ways to gather information about the head honcho. Theridion is notorious for being a hard man to contact. Hence, his hands were full these days.

No time to spend on your little sister? She thinks with a bit of irritation. It's not his fault. But now that they only reunited barely a week ago, she thought that they would spend more time together.

In the meantime, she could always dive into Adria's treasure trove of novels and poetry. Given Adria's good taste in all things art, fashion and music, she's bound to find something she enjoys. Though, she can't disturb her friend now. It's two in the morning, which means it's feeding time.

Finding entertainment these days was like sucking the marrow dry. Everything is licked clean of any enjoyment. Now she was cramped with worry and paranoia, and the only way she seemed to calm down was her companion's presence.

Again, now what? That was the question of the century. Niryn may be a reserved, introverted person, but that didn't mean she wasn't also very impulsive.

Fuck it. It's Adria's feeding time, but I want to see her and I'm going to see her.

That doesn't stop the fact that there's this fluttery, itchy, high-pitched feeling in her chest. She's never had this sensation before, it's getting to the point where it feels like it's screeching, like clean metal cleaving against her sternum.

When Niryn opens the door, she finds Adria sank down in the middle of the floor. The sounds of slurping and squelching can be heard audibly in such a big room. It's as if she's too distracted with her feeding to even notice Niryn's presence.

When she does turn back to see why there's a cold chill in the room, the pupils in her newly-reddened eyes dilate. It was like seeing an albino rabbit turn ferocious with bloodlust. She was still so cute with crimson dripping down her jaw and wrists.

Not so cute however, was when she pinned Niryn against the wall. For being so petite, she had a lot of strength. One of the many perks of being a vampire.

Now she seems dangerously close to leaning towards Niryn's face, her breath surprisingly hot for someone who's supposed to not be truly living. Her lips were a luscious cherry red instead of pale blush pink.

They were incredibly enticing, the scent of iron only adding to the magnetic allure. She wasn't just dangerously close, they were nose-to-nose. Is - is Adria going to bite her? Her breath hitches at the thought. If she's not going to do something now about her friend's bloodlust, the girl will do something she'll regret. So Niryn does the only thing she can think of.

She kisses her.

Adria lets out an 'mmn!' at the sudden intrusion of lips upon lips. It's not just her breath that's hot, it's her mouth too. It's like a furnace that's mixed with blood and sweetness.

At first it starts off basic and chaste, with Niryn having to take a breather after a few seconds. She's not so used to the stamina of being a good kisser just yet. But she gently thumbs over Adria's lower lip, and dives in for a second kiss, her fringe falling on the other girl's forehead.

It builds up slowly, heat roiling and swirling in both their inner cores. When her fangs make the faintest of grazes on Niryn's tongue, that heat sparks up really high and curls the top of her stomach. She doesn't know what she's doing but that's okay, because it's all good. So good. It's like there's mini fireworks deliciously exploding everywhere. Hands are clumsily entangled in each other's hair, soft and hard, clean and messy, sweet and iron.

It's almost too much, so they break away again, a string of saliva the only thing connecting them both.

What. Was. That.

Niryn had never experienced anything like that before. Much less with a girl who had blood on her lips and the look of someone who was searching for her second prey. Somehow, it never felt more right.

Adria seemed to be enjoying herself too, by the looks of her flushed cheeks and hunger in her no longer pale eyes.

"Another round?" Niryn couldn't help but say.

"I think... I think we need to stop," Adria pants. She looked very close to passing out from the restraint she was using.

That was probably the correct thing to do. Niryn nodded, panting as well. Her heart was pounding so hard it's a wonder how Adria didn't hear it. It's funny, Niryn realised. They were still both staring at each other's lips even as those words left hers.

"I think... you should leave. Before anything happens." Adria adds on, covering her mouth with a delicate hand.

Before they were covered however, Niryn caught a glimpse of how elongated her fangs were. It's a wonder how they didn't make more of an appearance when their lips were smashed together like they were dying to taste the back of each other's throats.

It's clear how intensely Adria wants that feeling again, but it's best she only got a taste for her mouth and not what's buried inside. Niryn nods again, gathering herself up. The thought of Adria getting to her blood excited her though. She doesn't know why.

"We'll see each other tomorrow?" Niryn asks. She just had to be sure.

"Yes, yes. Tomorrow. I need time to think."

As the door drew to a close, all Niryn could think of was — how fucked are my dreams going to be tonight?