Exposed (Closed)
Seeing the situation, Julrik - who had been working the day shift and had been watching Liana - heard the receptionist's panic and immediately ran out to check on the young woman.
"Everyone, step back! I know some healing magic!"
As he lay his eyes upon the unconscious woman with a pool of blood around her head, the male elf's heart was on tenterhooks as he knelt down beside her head and very gently moved it on its side so he could check the wound. His eyes widened a little as he saw the bleeding was already slowing down a lot which was odd considering it was a large head wound. Not wanting to aggravate it, he placed his hand near it and summoned up some magic to heal the wound.
Once the wound was covered by a thin layer of skin, Julrik then carefully picked Liana up - as well as the wine bottle she'd dropped - and carried her in a princess carry to a resting room so he could continue healing her without disturbing the adventurers still wanting to hand in reports. Gently placing her on the nearby sofa, he continued healing the wound beneath the skin. As he did this he thought about how the same thing happened the day before at around the same time. He then recalled how he had often read her reports being done in the evening, rather than in the day. Looking at Liana's corpse-like stillness, yet feeling warmth still on her body and a healthy glow to her skin, Julrik began to wonder just who exactly she was.
***
As the sun set, Liana woke up to find herself - once again - lying on a sofa in a resting room of the guild. Opening her eyes, she saw Julrik and Hejlikka sat in nearby chairs, talking about something. Knowing that she couldn't avoid them, she slowly got into a sitting position - which aroused the two elves' attention - and smiled weakly at them while looking a little embarrassed.
"You're awake!" Hejlikka stood up and immediately went over to her. "Are you okay? Are you hurting anywhere? Feeling discomfort? Feeling feverish?" She bombarded her with questions while grabbing her face and inspecting her - a concerned look in her eyes as she ignored the glasses that were slipping down her nose.
Gently holding Hejlikka's hand and removing it from her face, Liana smiled wryly before responding, "I'm fine. Really. I just wasn't paying attention to how tired I was and fell asleep on the spot."
"Preposterous!" The female elf exclaimed as she pushed her glasses up.
Liana showed a surprised expression at the elf's outburst before asking, "What's preposterous?"
Julrik stood up and walked over, "Why are you staying awake to the point you collapse from fatigue? Why are you suddenly taking on quests day and night?" He stared into her dull gold eyes, "Why did you cancel your room at the tavern and leave the house without a word a few days ago?"
Hejlikka glared at her brother, before turning to Liana and showing an expression of wanting to know the answers too. Seeing this, Liana hung her head and sighed, knowing the two wouldn't stop asking until she answered them.
"I didn't like the rowdy atmosphere of the tavern..." She reluctantly started.
"..." "..."
They both continued to stare at her, waiting for her to say more. Liana sighed again and continued:
"...I had a...conflict with another tenant...and felt it necessary to vacate the premises..." As she recalled what had happened that night, her cheeks flushed in shame and embarrassment as she subconsciously folded her arms in a defensive posture.
The siblings noticed this action, with Hejlikka moving to sit next to Liana and wrap an arm around her shoulders - gently pulling her closer to her. This gesture made the new-born feel even more ashamed as she realised she'd thrown the kindness they'd shown in their faces by avoiding them. As such, bloody tears began slowly sliding down her pale cheeks.
"...I'm sorry..." Julrik and Hejlikka were alarmed by the blood and started panicking internally as Liana continued, "...I'm sorry for leaving...without thanking you for that night..." She wiped her tears and noticed they were made from blood, "...Ah..." She smiled wryly before moving away from Hejlikka and turned her face so they couldn't see.
"Why are you bleeding?! Are you injured somewhere else!?" Hejlikka asked in a panic while Julrik continued staring at the young woman silently.
"No...I'm fine--"
"How are you fine when you're bleeding?!"
"Sis, let it rest." The male elf said while continuing to stare at Liana.
"Why are you so relaxed about this?"
"...Because I think this is normal for her, right little miss?"
Liana hung her head low, before slowly nodding in confirmation. The female elf looked confused, while the male elf went over to the table and picked up the wine bottle. Shaking it while observing the contents, he slowly opened the lid and smelled the liquid before frowning a little. The new-born vampire stiffened as soon as the bottle was opened; the bitter scent wafting out of it made her body begin to ache in craving for it. Seeing Liana's reaction, Julrik screwed the lid back on and stared deeply at her.
"What's in this bottle?" He already knew the answer, but he wanted her to say it.
"Julrik, why are you--" Hejlikka started asking before being interrupted by Liana's meek voice.
"Something I need to survive..."
"What do you need to survive?" Julrik asked.
Liana lifted her head and looked into the male elf's eyes with her dull red ones, "...Blood..."
Hejlikka's eyes widened in disbelief and was about to refute when she suddenly recalled the time when she'd cut her hand and how Liana had started licking and sucking on the wound with fervour. She looked at the young woman and subconsciously shifted away out of instinct while rubbing the palm of her hand.
Noticing the female elf's actions, Liana smiled wryly to herself, "This is one of the reasons why I was hesitant to live with you." She got up from the sofa and moved to grab the bottle - which Julrik allowed. Walking over to the door, she paused and said, "Thank you for looking after me all this time...I really do appreciate it. However...I doubt you will want to stay near a blood-sucking monster..." Hejlikka came to her senses at those words and suddenly looked at the young woman, "So I will try my best to stay out of your sight from now on..."
Liana opened the door and began exiting the room when a hand grabbed her arm and pulled her back in, before she felt slender arms hugging her from behind.
"How can you say that?!" Hejlikka shouted.
Julrik looked bored with the situation and decided to sit down on the empty sofa - taking out a mirror and checking that his appearance was okay - while glancing over at the two women very now and then.
"...Because it's the truth?" Liana responded in confusion, not really understanding why Hejlikka was acting like this so suddenly.
"What truth?! You're not a monster! If you were, I'd be dead!" Tears started falling down the female elf's cheeks as her arms squeezed tighter.
Liana smiled wryly at those words, "You might not be...but others are..."
Julrik showed an intrigued expression at those words, while Hejlikka felt shocked before calming her emotions and resting her forehead on Liana's back.
"So what about those others?! People kill other people all of the time in this city! You didn't kill me when I was injured, which means you have restraint!" She shouted, blushing a little as she recalled how good she felt at that time.
"Oh~? What's this about being injured, Sis~?" Julrik smirked while enjoying seeing the blush on Hejlikka's cheeks, thinking he'd discovered something about her that he could tease her with in the future.
"S-shut up, you good-for-nothing brother!"
Realising she wouldn't be able to leave with the female elf trapping her in her arms, Liana sighed before gently patting the arms on her stomach. "I didn't kill you back then because I wasn't overcome by my blood-lust." She turned her head to try and look at Hejlikka, "Believe me when I say that had I been exceptionally hungry, or in a frenzy, that you would have been drained dry."
"So what? Isn't that why you got that bottle? To stop that from happening!"
Liana opened her mouth to refute, "..." but couldn't, since it really was for that reason.
Seeing that she wasn't denying it, Hejlikka released her arms and smiled, "See? A monster wouldn't go to such lengths and would just enjoy killing without feeling any remorse."
"..." Liana remained silent again as she recalled the huge grief and guilt she'd experienced when she found out what she did. Noticing this, the female elf smiled more deeply.
"Don't avoid us and keep us away. We(
I)care about you."
"..."
Hejlikka grabbed Liana's hand while pushing up her glasses with the other, "Come back with me to the house and live with us(
me). Won't it be safer if you live with people who know your situation, than to live in constant fear?"
Julrik's pointy ears perked at the mention of living in the house and rose up from the sofa with a charming smile on his face, "Yes~! Live in our house so we can look after you~"
The female elf glared at her flirtatious brother as she could clearly tell the reason why he was suddenly so eager to join the conversation. She then thought about why she was also eager and suddenly blushed before coughing back her shame, "How about this: You live in our house until you either feel it's impossible to be around us, or you find a better place?"
Hearing Hejlikka's suggestion, Liana thought about how nice and relaxing the house was. Looking back on what had happened in the past few days every time she'd tried to go out to find somewhere to sleep, she realised that the female elf's offer was really ideal for her current situation. With her eyes returning to their original bright gold, Liana smiled gently and replied, "Okay. I'll take you up on that offer, then."
Hejlikka's face brightened in happiness as she flung herself on Liana and hugged her tightly. Julrik also took the opportunity to touch the young woman by joining the hug, to which his sister promptly kicked him away with a glare.
[
OC: Liana with Hejlikka and Julrik|
Setting: Scribel City - Adventurer Guild resting room|
Word Count: 1745]
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