Page 75Alone together

Before I headed for the door itself, I checked my wrist and finger, making sure that they showed no sign of what I'd done. Not sure why I did that, but it just felt important.

The place was very different from where I saw Seriph before. It was a corner house, yellowish with the corner 'cut off'. The front door was literally on the corner itself, making a forty-five degree with either street. It was a little old, the paint of it showing little cracks of age. The doorknob was brass, still shiny. It was clean as such though, when I touched it, it felt polished, but not recently. In fact, the walls looked fairly clean as well, as such.

The door wasn't open.

The doorbell was a simple ding-dong sound when I rang it. It took a while for someone to walk down and open the door. It was Seriph herself, letting me in and leading me upstairs to the first floor. There was a nice view there, overlooking the older houses across the street. The lights outside shone in to give a mysterious glow to the room itself. Walls that were bare but clean and an old solid wooden floor that looked slightly mistreated by time. Some planks weren't level with the others anymore. No furniture in the room but barely any dust in the air either. Tidy but empty. And I noticed a lack of candles.

"Why did you want to see me?" Seriph's voice cut through the silence.

"I've made a choice, but I want to ask something first, before I tell you what I've chosen."

"Sure."

"Are you part of the Jason Group?"

She smiled. "I wondered how long it would take you to wonder about it. But, No. I am the owner of a rival company to the Jason group."

"Do you know who I am?"

She nodded. "Technically Jason's daughter, if my sources are correct."

"Don't you care about that?"

She looked a little sad. "I know how far away someone can be from their parents." She looked up again. "Besides, there were rumors of you causing Jason to leave."

I smiled. "I suppose that's partly true. But, isn't it dangerous to have a possible spy working in your company?"

She shrugged. "I prefer to be aware of where people are, having them work for me is a very easy way to do that. And of course I make sure to limit access to anything I don't want someone else to find out. Though with you finding my Voice, I had to reassess both what I thought of you and my priorities."

"Do you still want to become like me?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"Why?"

"For practical reasons. Strength, no longer becoming ill, living longer." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "That's all true though, right?"

I nodded. "Yes. But you'll have to drink blood to keep on living."

"Can you live on donated blood?"

"I don't know, it's not something I have access to. But, and this is important to me, I never kill as I take blood. You have to promise me to do the same. Never kill."

"Never ever, or just never when feeding. I mean, can I kill in self-defense?"

"Never when feeding, let's just keep it at that." I sighed. "Oh, and one other thing. I'm not exactly sure how to do this... It might be very dangerous for you."

"Because?"

"I think I have to drink you close to passing away, then let you feed on my blood."

"I understand."

"You still want to go through with this?"

She nodded. "I've arranged everything in case I died. A long time ago, in fact. I'm not really sure how long I'd live anyway. I could live another fifty years, but this is a nicer alternative."

"Are you serious?"

"Very."

It was so easy to forget that she was actually older than me. Her very gentle way of speaking, small posture, and her childish looks still fooled my mind. It was a very good defense mechanism though. Who would expect a cute girl like that to be so powerful in a way. But, she was vulnerable as well.

"Amy, one more thing. I'm very oversensitive. I'll probably faint as soon as you bite me."

"Faint? From the pain?"

She nodded. "More or less. Sensory overload, basically."

"Wouldn't that prevent you from drinking blood?"

She smiled. "Of course not. I'd also keep on breathing. Swallowing fluids is a reflex, just like breathing. It's just a pity that I won't remember any of it."

"Won't it hurt?"

She bit her lip. "Well... Not exactly. In a way it hurts me so much I faint, but my mind shuts down before I consciously acclaim the sensation. So in effect, I'll know I felt it, but I won't feel it."

"You're sure you want this?"

She nodded slowly. "Yes, completely. I've even arranged your place to be paid for the next two years. After that, it's probably smarter to move anyway. Everything I need to do is already done. I'm ready."

I took a really deep breath. "Alright" I looked around. "There's nowhere here for you to be comfortable, is there?"

She smiled and sat down. "The floor is comfortable, smooth and splinter-free."

Of course it was. She was, like before, barefoot. Any splinter while walking around would probably cause her to faint as well. A prick, cut or hurt beyond, and the world would fade away. She looked up expectantly, probably horribly aware of the cute expression on her face. But there was a gentle smile behind those teasing eyes. It wasn't that easy for her and she understood it wasn't easy for me either.

She smiled. "Is this your first time?"

I gulped. "Making another? Yes."

"It'll be the first time someone will kiss me. Don't worry, I'm sure you'll do alright."

She was still a virgin?

No candle.