She of Little Faith

Sequel to Existing

Author's Note: Reading the previous story isn't required; you'll understand this one just fine. If you haven't read the previous story, here's what you need to know: Agnes and Mateo are Carmilla's friends, now also really Laura's friends. Agnes is a vampire, Mateo is not. They are in a vampire run city underground, beneath the streets of New York. Laura was dying, and Carmilla opened her veins for Laura to drink from to try to save her. And here we are:


"Drink."

The word was the first thing that sounded familiar to Laura, her senses fuzzy, like emerging from a coma.

It was bright and dark all at the same time, and the word kept repeating itself, in different voices, spoken softly but louder than it should be.

"Drink, Laura. I know you're hungry. It's okay." The familiar female voice drew her into more of her surroundings, becoming less and less fuzzy. She felt the hand stroking her hair for a split second, before she felt the hunger.

A violent jerk of hunger immediately took over her senses. She could see clearly that she was in the room she had been sharing with Carmilla, and the exposed wrist in front of her face.

There was no hesitation. As soon as she had noticed the wrist, the smell of the fresh blood running through the veins underneath caused Laura's very new, but still very tiny and sharp canines to pop into place, immediately attacking the skin, feeling like she hadn't eaten for days. She felt her head pounding and heard her own primal growl, although she couldn't stop herself. The pull to feed was too strong.

"Oh! This one's just a little prick. Barely a bite at all." Mateo laughed at Laura, who pierced his offered arm, knowing that offering to be Laura's first meal as the only human in the group was more about his guilt at not being able to save her from the massacre that led her to die, and ultimately, for Carmilla to re-birth her.

Laura continued to make little growl noises, although being so newly re-birthed Carmilla knew she was barely going to be able to drink a few tablespoons out of a trickle of a cut she was able to make with her baby fangs. Carmilla continued to stroke Laura's hair as she had her first feed, knowing not to try to talk to Laura until she satisfied the intense first hunger.

Agnes threw a glance over her shoulder at the trio, but continue to monitor the melt-down across the street from the window, making sure the room stayed safe for Laura to cycle into re-birth. Of course, Laura would still be able to walk and talk, but would be adjusting to her new senses, and most likely would be stumbling through a couple of days like a new born foal. The chaos outside would be much too dangerous for her to survive.

Carmilla smiled down at Laura when the growls turned into purrs, her suckling slowing down. The leather-clad vampire refused to cry in front of her friends, sniffling back the happiness that was Laura not dead, watching her awaken for the first time into a new existence.

Laura abruptly stopped once the hunger was no longer throbbing through her head and her body. She hadn't even tasted what she was drinking—her body was completely driving her first bite into Mateo's skin. When she pulled back, she looked embarrassed, first looking sheepishly at Mateo, then at Carmilla.

"Hey. It's okay." Carmilla said, waiting or Laura to make eye contact with her. When she did, Carmilla saw what was in her eyes.

Fear. She was afraid of what just happened-what was happening.

Agnes was still watching at the window, seeing the nightclub implode on itself, the fires being smothered out by the collapsing of heavy steel and concrete. Most of the city seemed set to evacuate, although that part was less chaotic. Many of the Shadow creatures—vamps, werewolves, necromancers, warlocks—they'd had to up and leave a city in a haste before.

Laura continued to stare up at Carmilla questioningly, slowly gaining her perception back. Her vision was less fuzzy, and it was suddenly clicking that Mateo was pulling back an arm that she had just bitten.

"Carm?" She stuttered out.

Carmilla nodded, not sure what to say. She let both hands run through Laura's hair, somewhat in awe that it had worked. That Laura was a short breath away from death. And now Laura was very much alive and breathing. And had tiny, tiny little fangs and a red, bloodstained tongue.

Laura ran her tongue over the two protruding, sharp points, eyes starting to dart about the room. She could hear the murmuring outside clear enough to pick up individual conversations. She heard voices she didn't recognize arguing about going or staying, or something about all the smoke that was rising to the street looking suspicious, and the tail end of what seemed to be a shop owner arguing with a looter.

The light in the corner that used to be dim suddenly seemed blazing. It was all frightening and unfamiliar and too much.

Except for Carmilla. She could smell Carmilla's scent as the more experienced vampire continued gently stroking her hair, sometimes trailing fingers over her face as Laura sat frozen. Carmilla's smell was familiar, but stronger than she had ever remembered it. She instinctively moved towards it, leaning into the familiar smell and touch burying her face in a soft, pale neck. She felt two arms immediately wrap around her, lips fluttering on her forehead.

"Well, it looks like most people are going up to the surface." Agnes didn't bother to turn around as she spoke, watching the smoke from the previous fires pouring up to the vents that she knew would go through the sewer system, and eventually lead to steam piping out of street vents into the above ground city.

"Are you two going to stay or go up?" Mateo asked, rolling his sleeve back down.

"We can't go to a human city. Not after she's just re-birthed." Carmilla answered quickly, still cradling Laura in her arms.

"Of course not. We can stay too, if you need us." Agnes said, finally turning around, showing her guilt on her face for not having been able to fight off Kris and Kris sooner.

"Thanks." Carmilla said offering a small smile. And she meant it. If she didn't have such good, loyal friends, Laura would have long been somebody's dinner well before she arrived to save her.

Agnes and Mateo nodded, understanding that it was a good time to leave the pair. They would have much to discuss.

Once the door clicked shut behind them, Laura pulled back, giving her room to look up at Carmilla's face. The memories were starting to come back into her consciousness.

Being in the nightclub. Being mad at Carmilla. Being smashed, tied up, slashed. Being an immense amount of pain. Being relieved when she felt herself slipping into unconsciousness, as it would finally dull the feeling of being cut and bled. And then nothing, until she woke up in their own bed. No memory of how she got there, but judging from her first instinct when she awoke, she was quickly putting two and two together.

"Laura, I'm so, so sorry. I couldn't let you die. I had no choice. I know that-"

"I'm not mad." Laura cut her off quickly, running her tongue again over the new points in her mouth. She heard Carmilla let out a long breath before holding both sides of her face, kissing her with all of the emotions she couldn't vocalize all at once.

Laura kissed her back, welcoming the familiar feeling of lips and tongue and hands moving to her hair, her own hands gripping Carmilla's shoulders and back. She lt their mouths seal, tongues reintroduced to each other with a slight iron hint of flavor. Carmilla broke off, taking in a deep breath.

"You almost died." She waited, letting Laura take her time before saying anything. Laura's brow furrowed in thought.

"I think I technically did die. Didn't I? Is that how this works?"

Carmilla nodded slowly, waiting for a reaction from Laura. It only took about three seconds before the questions that she knew bubbled under the surface would start pouring out.

And indeed they did.

"So. I drank Mateo's blood. And—it tasted good. I'm just going to drink blood now? Like that's what I'm going to just wake up and want for breakfast? And I can hear outside and all around us. Am I going to shift into a panther at some point? How does that work? We're staying here? I thought Agnes said everyone is leaving and there is something evil right across the street-"

Carmilla grabbed Laura's head, kissing her again. She was relieved that Laura was still—well, Laura. She smiled when she pulled back, stunning Laura into being quiet long enough for her to answer.

"Yes, you will want blood now. Yes, you have vampire senses. I don't know if you can shift—probably, since you drank from me to birth, but it's based on your own predisposition. And yes, we need to keep base here. You're too new to be up in a human city. Doesn't worry about across the street. She doesn't stick around when evil shit hits the fan and she's found out."

Carmilla didn't need to name who 'she' is. They both knew exactly who she was talking about, but Laura chose not to press.

"Why can't I go up above to New York with everyone else?" Laura sounded genuinely curious.

"Laura, you have a lot to learn. Trust me, vamps left on their own to figure everything out tend not to do well. Your body is different. Your senses are different. And now, there will be humans who will want to kill you if you don't learn to hide those new realities long before we go anywhere."

"What about us?" Laura said, not wanting to get back into their last argument, as given recent events it would be a moot point.

Carmilla shook her head by kissing Laura again, this time slower. She tried to shove down the all too fresh memory of Laura slipping into death in her arms, focusing on the very much alive mouth attaching to her own. She deepened the kiss, her tongue running accidentally over Laura's new sharpened teeth, causing her to pull back in a grin.

"Does that answer how I feel about that?" Carmilla couldn't stop smiling. Part of her new that Laura hadn't gotten to make her own decision, and it felt wrong. The circumstances were certainly less than ideal.

Another part of her was excited that Laura was like her now. She liked the thought that Laura would be able to tell if she was in a room with her just by sensing her and by scent. That she could run at full speed, and once Laura had some experience, she would be able to keep up.

It was the first time she could kiss Laura and not have a nagging voice in the back of her mind at their inevitable demise.

"Okay." Laura answered, smiling back. "This is a lot to take in. Where do I even start?"

Carmilla didn't even know how to answer that. There was a lot Laura was going to need to learn, and some of it in a short time.