Prey

Chapter 31

Doe's POV:

Just as I couldn't understand the phenomena of a vampire's claws, it too came with a lack of understanding with their wings.

How these huge limbs, each alone measuring close to the vampire's height when fully extended, and the tallest part nearly skimming the floor when folded, tore from their skin from seemingly nothing.

With bones and cartilage all intact, just to disintegrate into back into that prior nothing once they had fulfilled their role.

There were many things that we didn't understand about vampires, most of which they didn't understand either. Given that even Xander didn't have a definitive answer when I inquired it from him.

Still, I stared and tried to figure it out myself.

How the leathery part gently tore away in small pieces from the bottom, like embers flying from a flame, and with a wind that wasn't present.

Just to burn away entirely before it hit the floor.

Xander stood a few feet away, staring the best he could as well, his wings fully extended to the sides for us to both get a good view.

I think he too was trying to find some sort of sense to it, to find somewhat of an answer to a question I had asked half a year ago.

Yet he seemed just as stumped as I was

The boney part of these bat-like wings remaining while the membrane between the 'fingers' shredded away.

"Does it hurt?" I asked.

He kept his eyes on his wing, shaking his head.

"No, which I think is weird," he began, fingers lightly tracing against the skin of his wing near the talon, "These things are crazy sensitive and nearly indestructible, so for them to just tear away like this without any pain just feels... wrong."

"What does it feel like then?"

He met my eyes this time, but only for a second.

He thought for a moment, what remained of the wings bending in before unfurling.

"Like an itchy tingling."

Huh.

We continued to observe in silence, exhaustion creeping up on both of us now that the bloodmoon was nearly officially over.

Once those wings were completely gone, it would be.

Neither of us had slept since the day before.

Xander, because their brains don't let them during nights like those, and me because of my own personal choice.

It just felt weird to me to be asleep when he physically couldn't be, nor was I comfortable with the fact that a vampire with heightened feral instincts would be prowling around when I was vulnerably unconscious.

Regardless of the knowledge that it was just Xander, I didn't like it.

So we kept each other company throughout the night, and then usually crashed after breakfast.

A pattern we picked up around the fifth time we did this.

I leaned back entirely against the sidewall of the window sill as the membrane fully dissipated, and the ends of each of the finger-like extensions began their turn.

The early morning sunlight shining through the window made his pale vampire skin look golden now that I could mostly see it.

My hands absent-mindedly rubbed against the knit sweater I had put on, a slight ache radiating from my upper arms.