Paul, a fae with dark blue-grey skin and fluorescent green, spikey hair aged somewhere between me and Dr. Kelly—whistles low. “Nice place you got here.” His neck cranes every which way. “Where should I set up?”
I point him towards the dining table and after setting everyone up with a tea, I go through my last battery of tests. Dr. Kelly and Paul both make it easy, though. They’ve been with us the entire step of the way. We got incredibly lucky getting referred to her as our Vampire Transition Specialist. Not only is she and Paul really friendly and caring, but they are both highly experienced in home transitions—which means we didn’t have to go through the hospital, or one of the specialised vampire turning facilities.
Laurence invited us to his villa for the ritual, but after all the planning and discussions, doing it at home was the most important thing for us.
“Sorry about that.” Paul apologises, wincing. I wave him off with a smile. I’m about to get much worse. “So, how was your last day in the sun? Everything you hoped?”
We’ve talked a lot during our appointments about my plans. Paul had some really amazing suggestions, too, from things he’s picked up along the way—like making sure we have bottle warmers in the bedroom, and making sure they workbeforewe need them. Not all vamps are fussy over having blood straight from the fridge, but he’s had patients in the past where it made them feel sick in those first few days.
“Everything and more.”
“Well, don’t leave me hanging. What did you do?” Paul rips the cuff off me and quickly notes down my results.
Sighing contentedly, I offer my other arm for the just as eager Dr. Kelly to withdraw my blood.
“Well, last night Egbert and I climbed up to the roof to watch the sunset. Then Nikolo and I went to Hearts Gate to hang outwith Kai and Finn for a bit.” They’ve both heard me talk about my friends enough over the past couple of months that by now, I don’t have to clarify who everyone is. “Then we came back so I could nap for a bit. Nikolo woke me up in time to hang out before sunrise.” I skip overexactlyhow he woke me up. They don’t need to know every detail. “Lusce, Jax, Bedeer, and Jes came and picked me up. They surprised me with a sunrise picnic on the beach. It was freezing, but definitely worth it. Then we ate and just hung out until I had to come back to start getting ready.”
“What was the best thing?” Dr. Kelly asks—as a hobby baker she’s deeply invested in my answer. I take a beat to think about it.
“The spiced chocolate lava cake for flavour. But, honestly? The chips and salsa Jes made. Simple, but the crunch was… I feel like I’m going to miss the crunch.”
Paul does a strange cough-snort-laugh hybrid, almost knocking over the bag of equipment he’s packing up. Dr. Kelly and I shoot him matching concerned looks.
“Sorry!” He splutters, getting his stuff together. “I just—you sounded soearnest.”
“But it’s true! That crunchy mouth feel—it’s not like I’m going to be digging into a bag of crackers anytime soon, right?” My answer sets off another round of snickering from Paul.
Done with her blood samples, Dr. Kelly rolls her eyes, unclipping the tourniquet from my arm. “Don’t worry about this one. Food’s not his thing. He’d live on kibble if he could. Missing the crunch is a thing. So is missing chewing. Just don’t—no matter how tempting—try to eat. You’ll only make the mistake once.”
I’ve read as much in the many, many pamphlets I’ve collected. “Yeah, don’t worry. I’ll be good.”
Dr. Kelly pulls out her stethoscope next to check my heart rate, so we’re all quiet while I breathe deeply, in and out.
“Well. That’s it. We’re all done.” Dr. Kelly announces, putting away her stethoscope, the tray of blood samples rattling when she accidentally knocks it. “You’re perfectly healthy. All you need is your wonderful young man to wake up and you’re good to go. Do you have any questions for me? And you’re one hundred percent certain about your status for your new registration?”
Without a moment's hesitation, I nod. “Yes. I’m certain. And I don’t think so. No questions, I mean.”
Paul and Dr. Kelly share a look, then Dr. Kelly pats my knee, squeezing it. The weight of the situation settles on my shoulders, but it doesn’t feel heavy.
During all the paperwork, I learnt that after turning, vampires have a choice to add their former being status to their new registration. And for clans and groups that allow it, you can still register as being aligned to that clan.
Thanks to Aleksi, the Mazheri now allows dual registration. However, I’ve declined the option. For now, at least.
I’d love nothing more than for everything between my family and the clan and me and Nikolo to be tied up in a neat little bow, but that’s not how life works. Too many of the clan—including my parents—still see Nikolo as the wild child, hellion he was all those years ago, and despite my brother's sincere apologies, nothing can undo what was done.
Aleksi, at least, understands that. And more importantly, he respects us and the boundaries we’ve drawn. If I can give my brother credit for anything, it’s that he’s trying.
“You’ll be fine. We’ll be back in the morning to check on you.” It’s all part of the home care service, to ensure that I’ve turned safely and there are no complications. “I’ll leave this now, though, because you’ll probably be a bit out of it whenwe come back. It’s just for your friends—a guide to helping you through the early days. All the basic do’s and don’ts and what to expect. As well as all the helpline numbers, and the line for the emergency blood service.”
In some cases—especially in particularly large beings—newly turned vamps are too hungry to be sustained by bottled blood alone and it’s too risky to let them bite. In those cases, they receive large volume transfusions until their bodies adjust. Being a mage, it’s unlikely I’ll need it, but I’ll put the helpline numbers on the fridge, just in case.
“Thank you. For everything. Both of you.” I didn’t expect to be so emotional, but tears prick at my eyes anyway. They burn even harder when Dr. Kelly stands up, opening her arms for a hug. I’m quick to accept it, sniffling when Paul pats my back.
“You’ll be fine, Willan. We’ll see you at four.”
And then they're gone.
With fifteen minutes left until the sun sets I take a moment to run to the bathroom to splash my face with cold water and give my teeth one more scrub.
