A new you retreat (attn:Aishe) (private)

Aishe smiled softly at the sight of the little ankh around Chris' neck. "Whoever's definitions they are, they're not mine." She didn't know if it was optomism or something else, but Aishe's perceptions of vampires were slightly different than the dead corpse walking view. To her, they were just as alive as anyone else. Perhaps in years to come her own idea of 'life' versus 'unlife' would alter but for the moment, life and living were a matter of opinion.

When Chris slipped his arms around her, Aishe placed her hands on them with a gentle squeeze. As his lips gently touched the skin of her neck she tilted her head away, offering her blood, opening herself to him.

Chris' hesitation warmed her. She didn't know what it may or may not cost to hold back in such a way, but the fact that even now he was offering her the chance to reconsider was endearing. It only reinforced her decision. Dead, undead, alive, whatever the view, in Aishe's mind Chris was a good person and someone she didn't hesitate to look up to and follow. There was plenty there to admire and respect, even more to be fond of.

She wrapped her hands even more tightly around his arms, closed her eyes and let her soft smile grow just a bit. To Aishe, there was no sacrifice involved in what was about to happen. There was only joy in the sharing of a gift, hope for whatever the future held, and the simplest of responses to Chris' last offer.

"Yes."

Christian had not expected her to change her mind but he waited very still none the less. At the 'yes' he bit down, gently but quickly and began to drink. He fed slowly at first though he knew there was a lot of blood left that he must consume. It would be wasted, perhaps the last sacrifice made to her humanity was the blood that would never be used by either of them.

He spared a moment to consider what Kem might have felt and he hoped the Egyptian had managed to get himself off the road.

((OOC: Its all with the short so that reactions may be had ))

Aishe had been bitten three times before in her life. Twice she had to admit it wasn't at all objectionable. Her most recent experience had left her more annoyed and unsettled than afraid, and by now at least she knew what to expect.

Briefly, she remembered the delight Kem's bite had caused. Aishe had never used drugs, but she could imagine they might feel something like that; euphoria. Alfarinn's bite had been short, but it too had evoked a good association, a pleasant languor.

Now, Chris's fangs caused a tiny sting as they pierced into her neck but there was no fear, nothing but anticipation. Aishe pushed from her head any thoughts of death; it wasn't natural for her to think of this as her death, although she understood that that was indeed what was about to happen.

She relaxed in Chris' arms, imagining it much like a fall. She let her muscles release every bit of tension, focused her thoughts on the things that made her happy. Kem was foremost in her mind. Her friends came next; Pakpao, Fallon, Ana, Alec, everyone she'd met since arriving here in Nachton. Chris seemed to pervade it all, his presence spread over her thoughts like a comforting blanket. She nestled into it, invited it, wrapped herself in it.

There could, indeed, be joy in the giving of one's self. Aside from the humming of her own excitement, that was all Aishe felt and she knew without having to ask with words, all Kem felt as well in spite of his misgivings.

He watched her with his senses noting her posture, aura, and breathing. Aishe's reaction was not so atypical from being bitten, especially by those who knew what to expect but she was not simply donating to the cause of keeping him alive. There might be pleasure in the bite but insecurity in the anticipation of what was to come.

The signs he focused on told him a different story and so Christian relaxed slowly inch by inch into the experience. The taste of blood was a euphoria that a vampire could spend several lifetimes learning to control, there was a primal urge that demanded he continue to drink until there was no more each time that life giving fluid touched him lips. Blood was the one true indulgence of all his kind, the experience they could all understand. The voice of training and conscience told him he needed to stop, that he had had enough. This night though that was not the case, he could give in to the powerful elixer for a little while longer, Christian drank deeply until Aishe's blood filled all of his senses.

Time seemed to stretch the moment beyond reason, it was as if they had been sitting there for hours but Christian knew that it was only that these experiences were normally timed in minutes of brief rapture. His eyes closed and his drinking slowed, he listened to Aishe's heartbeat and felt the sluggish flow of blood now struggling through her veins.

It was time.

He cradled her head against his neck and then brought his own wrist to his fangs. Christian bit down until blood began to flow. Pressing the wound gently to Aishe's lips.

"Drink"Â?

For all Aishe knew a week might have passed. She noted with a detached part of her mind what it felt like to experience blood loss on such a large scale. There was a moment during which she almost grew worried, but the sensation of Chris' bite drowned it completely. She felt mild amusement as she experienced a strange floating sensation, as if her body might lift away had Chris not been holding her.

She wasn't aware anymore of having arms or legs. Feeling had suspended itself along with time. Her mind wandered and she slipped slowly away, any natural fight instincts quite readily quelled by both the bite and her own understanding that she didn't want to resist.

Aishe was quite content to utter a long, drawn-out sigh and give up entirely, her body feeling like so much extra weight keeping her from truly floating free. It was only a glimmer of recognition that told her the voice she heard was a familiar one, that she should definitely listen to what it said and do as it instructed.

Something was pressed to her lips; she turned her head slightly, obeyed what was requested of her. Something warm flowed into her mouth and she swallowed almost involuntarily. It tasted strange, foreign, but she understood she was to continue drinking.

She cracked her eyes open; the lids were heavy and her vision swam, but she saw Chris' face overhead... three of him... and figured that was all right as well. The only thing safer than being with Chris was being with three of Chris, right? She lost sight of him again, belatedly realizing that was because she'd closed her eyes once more, but she drank with signs of a bit more life, at any rate, as she remembered her own part in this. She trusted Chris to know what was enough.

Watching Aishe's aura get more and more faint was frightening and he was suddenly very glad that she did not have empathy in order to tell that he was worried in the slightest. He had, as she got down towards that final critical point begun mentally talking himself through everything in an effort to calm himself down. Luckily, such a technique was well ingrained into his soldier's psyche. Large man with a spear, move to left.. faster Cris... use that broken helm as make shift shield... Ow... okay now throw it at him and run!

His fears dissolved the moment she began to drink and Christian had the time to lean back and hope that he had not shown any anxiety that she would have noticed. No, He believed he had been calm enough. His relief along with Aishe's bite released the pent up tension in his frame; muscles began to relax starting with his shoulders and he sighed deeply.

Being bitten is a pleasant sensation that he hadn't felt in quite some time. He had to remember to not let her get too carried away. It would be best if they both had the strength to walk out of here and hunt for more sustenance instead of someone going out to find a donor.

Eventually he pulled his wrist away from her, griping it hard with his other hand until he felt the wound heal over and the bleeding stop. It never took long on a human thanks to the nature of their bite and it took even less time on a regenerating vampire but he'd rather not spill precious drops on the floor.

He felt somewhat weak now and a gnawing hunger; ironic that he was overly satiated just minutes before. Aishe was likely to be starving now or very shortly but they would need to wait for the full effect of the change to take place before they could find something to eat.

Watching her intently, he asked.

“Are you alright?”

As Chris removed his wrist, Aishe swallowed the last of the blood and considered it for a moment. She'd expected it to taste salty and metallic, but it was... appealing. She was a little disappointed he'd pulled his arm away. She licked her lips. She'd thought she'd want water, or something. She was slightly surprised to discover that that had been perfect.

She focused on Chris again at the sound of his voice, which sounded much closer than it had been... a minute? An hour? ago. She was still lying against him, apparently, and while she didn't have that funny floating sensation again, she was pretty certain she wasn't done changing whatever needed to be changed. She could only describe it as odd. Like someone was erasing her insides with a pencil eraser and drawing new ones in.

How much did turning take out of her creator? Chris looked fine. And he sounded fine. She would have worried if he hadn't though. At any rate, too tired to answer, she simply smiled up at him and patted his hand, nodding her head and tucking it back against his chest. She was content to wait out the strange feeling.

For the next while she alternated back and forth between strange and painful. She was quite certain she didn't ever want to have to 'grow' a pair of fangs again, and biting her lip to keep from crying out at one point gave her two lovely piercings. Pencil eraser images gave way to less calming images of her insides being churned about by a hand-mixer, but she clung on determinedly, probably at poor Chris' expense, and instead of his prediction of cursing his name she settled for the tried-and-true "not saying anything at all."

Making no noise became her goal for the entire process, and went hand-in-hand with not crying. That, she figured, was a point of pride. She hadn't done so since arriving in Nachton, and she wasn't about to do so now.

In the end, she found herself awake and still alive although some might argue the technicalities on that second point. She was still sentient at any rate. When she felt it was safe at last to open her eyes and pry her fingernails out of whatever they'd dug themselves into, the first thing she saw was Chris.

Aishe smiled, and sat up almost cautiously. "That was all?" she said with a shaky laugh. "Hardly felt a thing." She did her best to look convincing... which was to say, not at all. She would have to save her acting for when it was really needed. Giving up on that she looked at her creator carefully and asked, "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

She meant physically, but it occurred to her that turning her could have tired him out as well, so she didn't elaborate and just let it lie as a blanket question.

Chris watched Aishe through the entire process though he knew it to be totally out of his hands at this point. It was not important however because the delicate portion was over. He hadn't killed her and she had enough blood to change. It was a tough balance to strike and he knew one or two vampires that walked the earth still by only the grace of great good luck.

Aishe used him as something to hold on to and he considered it a good thing the bruises would fade quickly. He noted with calm when her strength had begun returning and again noted it as it grew beyond that of a normal human.

She didn't make any noise and was trying very hard not to. Christian thought perhaps he should tell her to just let it go but was that really a comfort? He wasn't sure, social situations, especially those that involved comforting people, had never been something he considered a strength. Silence attentiveness seemed better than shallow words like “it will be better soon” and “Don't think about the pain...go to a happy place.” He knew what he would rather and that was no distractions and so he went with that.

When she finally looked back up at him, he smiled. Quite the trooper, Aishe was. He raised an eyebrow at her comment.

“Really? Well I must have done something wrong then. Perhaps I should try again just to be certain it worked.”

Looking down at his arm where the bruises were already fading away into healthy skin, he said.

“I think I will live.”

He watched her for a moment before asking.

“How hungry are you?”

Aishe would have tried to make a little joke about how everyone was a comedian, but the moment Chris spoke, her eyes went wide and she stared at the air around his head.

Tilting her own head this way and that she reached up with balled fists to scrub at her eyes. No, it was still there. Or they were still there. How strange. She reached up, almost timidly, and swatted at the air next to Chris' ear.

He, in the meantime, had looked down at his arm, and Aishe stared hard at the air around his head again. When he proclaimed himself fit, or close to, she went bug-eyed again.

His last words fell on unhearing ears as she looked at him and poked the air by his mouth.

"You're talking in rainbows."

Her voice was slightly uneven as she stared at him and tried very hard to will him to believe she was not insane. She was certain, however, sure as it was night time in a cabin in Nachton and she'd just been bitten by a vampire, that she saw colored shapes floating around Chris' head and mouth every time he spoke. Little angular asymmetrical stars of deep red-orange, some strong, others faded, mingled with softly swirled yellow spirals.

Afraid that any minute it was going to be blue diamonds and purple horseshoes, Aishe fixed Chris with a worried expression.

"Chris... did you turn me into the Lucky Charms leprechaun?"

Christian regarded Aishe as she began scrubbing her eyes and behaving as though she had taken some sort of hallucinogen. Raising both eyebrows at her, he smiled calmly.

“Am I? Interesting.”

He remembered what it was like seeing the auras for the first time. It developed as he was turned as well. Quite a shock and one that he had a hard time explaining to his creator. His empathy did not work around speech however; so this was different.

“Tell me what you see.”

Inspecting himself for cleanliness found that he had been as neat and careful as he would have hoped. Chris leaned over and grabbed his shirt and slid it back over his head.

“A what? No, I doubt it besides I'm Swiss, not Irish.”

It was spoken with a straight face despite him knowing that she was not serious. He wasn't sure exactly what a lucky charms leprechaun was but he did know a leprechaun and their habit of hanging out with rainbows. It was enough to make the statement make sense.

Aishe knelt in front of Chris, feet tucked underneath her, facing him straight on and trying not to stare too hard as he spoke. She had her hands braced on the floor in front of her and leaned slightly on them in her eagerness to observe the strangely-colored symbols that floated about Chris as he spoke.

"That would explain the lack of any green floaty clover shapes," she said solemnly, matching Chris' remark on being Swiss rather than Irish. She was fairly certain he was cracking a joke, possibly... but her own habit of doing so when she was nervous tended to make her self-conscious.

Taking a deep breath she did reflect gratefully on the fact that he was going to take her for her word. Aishe wasn't sure she could have taken it if she came off as slightly crazy yet again. Or still. Picking up Kem's emotions had given her pause for thought, but seeing odd colored shapes around Chris would have sealed the deal if he hadn't been there to explain for her... and she very much hoped he could.

"There are red-orange stars. I guess stars; they're not five-pointed ones, just zig-zagged multi-pointed things. And there are yellow spirals, but they're going away. They're only very pale now. And there are blue squares as well. Greenish-blue, like turquoise."

Sitting back on her heels she suddenly felt very tired, and a little frightened. She'd known about abilities like this, and in truth she'd very much hoped she wouldn't be afraid of hers, but for someone who was usually critisized for being too practical and yet praised for being down to earth, this spectacle was a bit much. She looked at Chris with an imploring expression.

"Please tell me you can explain this. I'm confused. Is it always going to be this way?" Aishe was trying hard not to sound desperate. It had been easier to quietly deal with the feeling that her insides were being hand-blended than it was to deal with yet another abstract mental foible that she'd never before heard of or encountered.

Maybe she'd end up crazy after all.

Christian arched an eyebrow at the mention of green clovers. Sitting down on the couch, he leaned forward to consider the information she gave.

“I cannot say that I understand shapes or why you see them when someone is speaking but I believe I understand the colours and their meanings.”

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. This could potentially be a long explanation if she did not believe what he was saying. After all that she had seen, Christian would hope that she was more open minded but some things seem like your typical vampire abilities, shape shifting, telekinesis, talking to animals, being hard to kill, etc... seeing auras sounded more like a new age joke.

“I am an empath. It is a typical enough ability for Evenhet. For me though the information comes visually in the form of auras. I see them all the time. In the beginning they were faint and I had to concentrate to make them clear. It did not take long for them to become strong and vibrant; then I had to learn to see through them. Now it is just added visual information that I barely notice on a conscious level.”

Her's would be different though and perhaps the colours themselves would not be the same, though peering down at his hand, he noticed the same colours she had just described...more or less.

“I had to learn what the colours meant over time. Generally you have verbal and visual clues anyway, this person sounds angry.. and yes their aura confirms it. The best way to learn your colours and symbols would be to observe yourself and keep notes. You always know, with some analysis, what you feel so it is a good control. Take note of other people and make notations there also. After a while you will be able to reliably understand colours from other people that you haven't seen on yourself.”

Smiling, he added.

“Now, are you hungry?”

An empath. Aishe took in this new information with hopeful eyes and ears. Well... that wasn't such a bad thing, she thought as the sense of fear began to recede. Hadn't she told Chris she would like it if her abilities helped her communicate with others? It wasn't exactly what she'd meant, but it was still something like that.

"Look at myself?" She did so, turning her head slightly, and to her surprise noted she did indeed have floating funny shapes around herself. They were fading quickly with her short words, but she saw faint dark blue spirals and primary green zig-zags touched with silver. No clue what it meant. But it was pretty, in its way.

"Oh." She took a moment to study the fading patterns again before she realized Chris had repeated his question to her yet again. This time she found the presence of mind to answer, although she was somewhat distracted by the light show over her head.

Smiling a little sheepishly she said, "I could go for a snack."

She took a moment to reach out to Kem; she couldn't feel him there, and it made her wonder a bit, but if he could sense her she wanted him to know she was all right.

Nodding at her answer, Christian explained a few ground rules

"There are many forms of "getting a snack"Â? that you will observe from vampires. You can tell a lot about their personality by the way they hunt. There are those that play an elaborate game; some have to play it on themselves in order psyche themselves into doing what they must, some play it on their prey. There are those that go for the quick meal like a street thug looking for your wallet and there are those like to take at specific moments such as sex, after a struggle or when their target is sleeping. A vampire quickly learns what is the easiest and most comfortable for them."Â?

He shrugged slightly.

"Personally, becoming set in your ways is a trap. Try most everything at least once and change it up from time to time to make certain you can do it."Â?

Christian did not want to scare her with details at this stage of her new life but he had seen more than one vampire nearly starve to death because their preferred method of hunting or prey had become out dated and difficult to find.

"Evenhet doesn't kill. I will watch you or have someone watch you for the first few times until you feel confident enough to hunt by yourself. We don't feed off someone else's familiar so if you suspect someone belongs to another then either stay away or ask them. You're an empath it would seem and that will help you out. Even without it there is generally a certain air about a familiar; They know what a bite feels like and what to expect. Some will try to trick you into biting them, perhaps their vampire hasn't been paying enough attention to them, perhaps they just aren't picky or maybe its a set up to get the clan in trouble. I'll show you how to spot them and it will be easy enough to stay away from that kind."Â?

It was a crazy world she had jumped into and it might only now be fully dawning on her. These were the things you couldn't truly impress upon a human. You will have to feed and it has rules if you wanted to stay alive.

"The other option is to feed off animals."Â?

He watched her neutrally but explained.

"The blood isn't the same. We were once human and that blood works the best but if biting Fluffy and Lassie make you feel more comfortable then that's your choice. Tonight, however, we'll find the two legged animal."Â?

Standing up, he gave a critical inspection of both their clothing.

"This won't work."Â?

Christian reached out a hand to help her up.

"I had MARI help me order evening attire for you in the correct size. You'll find it hanging up in your closet. Go get changed and I'll do the same."Â?

He turned then and walked purposefully back to his room, wondering at what level her nerves were right this moment. It was the best way to learn...at least according to one of his old battlefield trainers.

As Chris talked, Aishe tried very hard to ignore the funny colors and shapes and focus on just the content of what he was saying. She briefly wondered what kind of feeder she'd be, but decided that like everything else, it was just how it had to be. She'd try and make it as simple as possible; Aishe had never needed elaborate games for any other aspect of her life and there was no reason to start now. She understood what Chris meant about being used to everything though; a sound idea, and one she should also try to embrace.

The idea of finding a meal in general did not upset her. It had, at one point, but that point was almost a year gone, when she'd first realized who and what Kem was. It was fortunate he hadn't been in town at the moment she first wrapped her head around the idea; she'd spent the week feeling insecure and uncertain, and more than a little queasy at the idea. Perhaps the fact that Kem was who he was had helped her adjust to the idea; never in her wildest dreams could she imagine him taking a life or even causing harm. As she learned he took no joy from feeding, even tried to stave off the need for it as long as possible, she became used to the idea quickly enough. When the alternative to not sustaining yourself was nonexistence, Aishe would pick being the bloodsucker any day. By necessity she adjusted to the idea... having a vampire boyfriend versus having no boyfriend at all, when the boyfriend in question was Kem, wasn't even a question to her.

Being the one doing the biting was certainly a new approach, Aishe thought. It was putting a new spin on her, and on Kem's, past. What was it like for him, to spend so much time with her and never bite? Had he wanted to? Would she have allowed it? Of course. She was, after all, the one who'd forced the issue ultimately. More and more things to ask, Aishe supposed.

The rules of engagement, as it were, were fairly clearcut to her. She had no desire to kill, and she noted everything else Chris said, memorizing it all and glad she would have him to show her what to look for. Feeding off animals, too, was something she'd not considered. The idea didn't quite appeal to her though. Fur... she didn't think she could bite into fur. Her nose wrinkled up ever so slightly without her even realizing it, but she wasn't going to write it off. Practical she may be, but let it not be said Aishe wasn't adaptable and openminded.

Grabbing her own shirt in one hand and taking Chris' offered hand with the other, Aishe stood, surprised to feel much more energetic than she'd expected.

She offered Chris a smile, then impulsively threw her arms around his neck. How lucky she was, to have someone so caring, to show her everything she needed to know, to teach her, and to answer every question that popped out, even the little silly ones. Chris had never once made her feel silly or stupid; he'd never treated her like a child, and he'd never assumed she was seeing, hearing, or feeling anything that didn't exist. Instead he approached everything so logically, and so coolly, that Aishe felt grounded and secure even when fear had threatened to overwhelm her.

"Thank you, Chris!"

She released him so he could go get changed as well, and took the stairs up to her room two at a time.

((ooc: Both out!))