Char could feel Astarion's gaze on her through the rest of the evening. She did her best to ignore him as he brooded by his tent, waiting for her to break her word. She could understand his concern as they had a monster hunter in the group, and most people would classify vampires under that category. Char knew better. While she hadn't ever dealt with vampires herself, she knew that he exhibited no threat or danger towards any of them. At least, no more than Laezel had.

"Do you have a moment?" Wyll asked as the fire died down. Char looked up at the warlock from her seated position and nodded. He sat next to the drow, glancing over at Astarion's tent. "What happened in the woods earlier?"

"What do you mean?" Char wondered as she poked at the embers.

"Astarion has been watching you since you two returned. I can't quite decode his expression," the warlock replied.

"Oh, that. I beat him at a stealth game, and I think he's feeling a little bitter about the loss. He owes me a favor now," Char chuckled as she shrugged. "I'm sure he'll be back to his old self tomorrow."

"Speaking of tomorrow, do you think we'll find the goblin camp? The sooner we find that druid, the better."

"I was just thinking about that. I'm wondering if it would be beneficial to split the party. Two groups of three, and we can scout out the area. Hopefully, one group will find the goblins, and we can infiltrate the day after. That way we can cover more ground," Char suggested, idly drawing her plan in the dirt. "I've been mulling it over, and while I know you won't like it, I do think that Gale and Laezel should go with Shadowheart, and I will take Astarion and you. Those three can take the main roads while us three can scout deeper into the forests. Then we can regroup in the evening and go over where we went."

"As much as I would like to argue against having Laezel in Shadowheart's party, I think you divvied up the group well enough."

"Plus, if tomorrow turns out to be completely miserable and counterproductive, we can reevaluate for the next day. I hope that we only need tomorrow to find the camp," Char sighed, leaning back on her hands.

"You're really falling into the leader role well. Have you led a lot of expeditions?" Wyll asked. Char glanced over at her before shrugging.

"I suppose you could say that. My daughters and I have done a bit of traveling recently, but I'm no stranger to adventuring. I had a company a little while back, but we didn't really have a leader there. We always made our decisions as a group," Char reminisced, making a mental note to include everyone in her ideas.

"What happened to your company?" the warlock pressed as Char pressed her lips together, staring at the fire. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to overstep."

"No, it's fine, it's been a while since I've really talked about it," the drow exhaled. If she wanted to keep traveling, she was going to have to give details eventually. Plus, talking about her friends often made her feel better. "They were a fantastic bunch, and I miss them dearly. Two died in a botched heist about ten years ago. I was busy doing something else at the time. The other one died of a disease we didn't catch in time. He passed seven years ago. I think we had adventured close to thirty years before the heist."

"For thirty years?" Wyll commented.

"I know, it's loads longer than most adventurers stick together. To be honest, they were my family. In my pack, I kept their portraits, so I won't forget their faces. I didn't have it on me when the mindflayers abducted me," she shrugged before looking up at him. "What about you? You said you've been on your own adventures for a while now."

"Just me, for the most part. And my patron, but I think those stories should be saved when we have more time. It's getting kinda late," Wyll admitted, dodging the question. Char sighed as she agreed. "I just wanted to make sure that you were doing okay."

"I appreciate it. I'll take the first watch if you want to rest. I'll grab Gale for the second watch, he went to bed an hour ago," Char smiled. Wyll waved as he retreated into his tent.

~C~

Char watched the stars as she listened to the woods. The wind was stronger than it had been for the last few days, and she hoped that the weather would hold out a little while longer. Tracking in the rain would be less than ideal. She heard someone clear their throat near her. Astarion was the only one not in bed other than her, and she silently wondered if he even needed to sleep.

"Everything alright?" Char wondered in a low voice.

"I did want to speak to you about something," he muttered, clearly uncomfortable as he shifted his weight. She sat up and motioned him to come closer.

"What do you need?" she asked again as he took a step in her direction.

"You asked earlier if I had eaten lately, and I had dodged the question," he began before grimacing. "I have been able to find a few animals to feed on but nothing larger than a squirrel. I'm too slow right now, and it's getting worse without any blood."

"Do you want help on your hunts?" Char offered. Astarion clenched his jaw before he rolled his eyes.

"I was rather hoping for some of your blood."

Silence fell between them as Char swallowed. He stared at her expectantly, waiting for an answer. She took a deep breath as she weighed the pros and cons. For her, there wouldn't be much benefit, but even if it were as a last resort, Astarion had trusted her enough to ask. The cons would leave her bloodless and a nasty hangover. After a moment, she exhaled.

"Alright, on one condition though," she answered. Astarion gave an almost imperceptible nod. "I want you to watch my back the day after you drink my blood. My senses will be dulled, so I'll need your help to make sure I don't end up on the wrong end of a goblin spear."

"You just want me to watch your back? I do that anyways," he scoffed, crossing his arms.

"More than usual then. Like I said, I'll be weakened. I'll be prone to dizzy spells, and I might have slow reflexes."

"That's all you want from me?"

"I think that's a fair arrangement."

"What are you getting out of it?" he demanded.

"A strong ally. You've shown at least a little trust by coming to me about this. I would like to keep that trust," Char answered honestly. Astarion raised his eyebrow. "Okay, would you like to offer something else instead? I think I'm being more than fair."

"Most people would ask for money or something more tangible. And I don't trust you more than I can throw you."

"You could have secretly bitten anyone of us, but you decided to talk to me about it. That shows that you at least trust me enough to talk to me. It's a start."

"How can you trust me not to drain you dry?"

"Easy, you would have attacked me if you aimed to kill me. We wouldn't be talking if you were interested in drinking all of my blood."

"What if I lose control?"

Char didn't have an immediate answer for that. There was a chance that he would decide not to stop until she was a dry corpse.

"Then you'll have a lot of explaining to do when everyone else wakes up tomorrow."

"I'm being serious."

"Okay. Do you want me to say no?" she countered. He said nothing. "Then I'll put my trust in you not to kill me."

"I don't understand how you can be so calm about any of this. We're literally talking about me drinking your blood."

"Do you want me to make a scene? Would it help if I got upset or angry?"

"You didn't seem to hold back after we first met," Astarion grumbled as he rolled his eyes.

"You were arguing with me every step of the way that first day. No matter what choice I made, you were there to make a snide remark. You can't blame me for a being a little irritated after what we went through," Char reminded before she sighed. Her jaw clenched as she stared at him. "Then you saved my life when we dealt with that spider. You held me back when I was in no condition to help."

"I just needed to make sure that you didn't reveal me to the creature after we got away," Astarion corrected, affronted by the accusation that he saved her life. Char chuckled, shaking her head. His lips turned up in a smirk, using a sweet voice to lure her in. "But~ if you feel the need to pay me back, I wouldn't say no."

Char raised an eyebrow up at him. She pondered the idea, not thrilled that his actions would be reduced to a transaction. A life saved just for a little snack later. She regretted bringing it up to him, but she shrugged. What was done was done.

"Fine, I will repay your heroics with my blood," she relented, standing to her feet. "But my condition still stands. I want your help in case we run into trouble. I'll be vulnerable tomorrow."

"Of course, darling, I promise to watch that delicious back of yours," he purred. Char grimaced at the sudden charm, unsure what he was after now. "I'll even take over your watch tonight so you can get some proper rest afterwards."

"Just don't get carried away, I still have things to do tomorrow," Char warned as Astarion led her to her tent.

"I wouldn't dream of it," he grinned.

Char lowered herself on her bedroll in the tent, away from any potential prying eyes. Astarion carefully closed the tent flap before kneeling at her side. She stared straight up at the tent ceiling as he leaned over her. He watched her carefully, expecting her to change her mind at any second.

"Is it going to hurt?" she asked, her voice a lot softer than she wanted it to sound.

"I don't know, but I promise I will try to make it as painless as possible."

"Okay."

Astarion waited another moment before he caged her in, bringing his head to her neck. Char closed her eyes as she breathed in the bergamot and rosemary. Again, he hesitated, waiting for a second thought. Then he bit into her neck quickly, thinking the faster he was, the less pain she would be in.

Char felt as if she had been stabbed by twin icicles in her jugular. She opened her mouth to scream, but she held her breath, keeping herself silent. As the initial pain started to fade away, she could feel the soft suction of his mouth, drawing her blood away from her. Now, there was a subtle ache, like she had a sore muscle instead of puncture wounds. She relaxed in his grip as his arm came to cradle the back of her head, keeping her still.

The drow hummed idly as she started to feel sleepy. Her head felt light as her thoughts began to fade away. When she opened her eyes again, she remembered what was going on. She put her hands on Astarion's chest and started to push at him. He resisted the first two attempts to get him off her neck before he jumped back, remembering himself.

"You are delicious, darling," he hummed as he wiped the blood off his lips with his thumb. Char stared up at him with a lopsided grin, her eyes barely open. Astarion froze as he made eye contact. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Oh, I'm just fine. Just a little fuzzy up here," she teased as she tapped her forehead. Astarion smiled back down at her with a light chuckle. "I told you so."

"What do you mean, darling?" he murmured as he leaned toward her again, making her giggle.

"I said you wouldn't lose control," she smiled, reaching up to tap his nose. He raised an eyebrow at the drow. "You took what you needed and didn't take one drop more."

"Careful, sweetheart, you'll ruin my reputation," he argued as he knelt beside her again.

"You can't keep up that big bad Astarion image forever," she yawned, stretching her arms above her head. He hummed lightly with raised eyebrows.

"Of course, dear, but get some sleep. You said you had a big day tomorrow," he teased. Char groaned as she rolled onto her stomach, covering herself with the blanket.

"Don't remind me. I don't wanna play the leader anymore," Char slurred before sleep took her. Astarion stayed a moment, watching her as her words played over and over in his mind. A plan formed as he smirked down at her.

~C~

Char cursed as she woke up, her head pounding with the sunlight pouring into her tent. She turned her face into her pillow, hoping the darkness would cure the pain. Voices outside her tent grew louder, like an ice pick imbedding it further and further into her skull with every word. She took her pillow and pulled it over her head, but the voices were getting closer. When she tried to sit up, her head swam and made her collapse back onto the bedroll. It was strange, she didn't recall getting drunk last night.

"Would you kindly take your conversation elsewhere?" Char shouted before she covered her head with the pillow and blanket. She heard some confused answers before her tent flap was thrown open. She made no effort to uncover her head when he discovered her.

"What are you doing in here?" Gale asked, his voice muffled to her ears. She groaned loudly before waving her hand for them to go away. "It's almost noon, sleepyhead."

"I have a splitting headache," she complained as she removed the bedding. When her eyes focused on the wizard, he was pale as a ghost. "What?"

"Are you okay?" he whispered as he reached towards her neck. She scrunched up her face in confusion before she felt a jolt of pain when he touched her neck. "You've been bitten."

Char froze at the word. Bitten. She had allowed Astarion to bite her last night. She gingerly touched the wound before she flinched again. Gale covered his mouth as he knelt by the tent's opening. Char started to panic, wondering what story would be best to tell. She still didn't feel like Astarion's secret was hers to tell but lying to Gale also felt just as uncomfortable.

"What happened last night?" he prodded. Char opened her mouth before Astarion cleared his throat behind Gale.

"It was me," he admitted, crossing his arms. Char blinked in the light as she moved to see him. Gale stood out of the tent to turn to the pale elf.

"What do you mean it was you? You bit her?" Gale clarified.

"I didn't realize that you were this clueless, Gale. Obviously, I'm a vampire," Astarion admitted, rolling his eyes.

"Do you think I'm stupid? You're standing in the sunlight right now!" Gale countered as the vampire shrugged.

"It's a side effect of the tadpole. I'm not exactly sure why, but I am able to stand in the sun," the vampire explained. "And Char figured it out before anyone else did. I was sure that the cat was out of the bag."

"You knew?" Gale nearly shouted at Char.

"I guessed, but it was confirmed last night," she answered softly.

"Is that why you bit her? Some sort of consequence of learning what you are?" the wizard continued, making Astarion laugh.

"I allowed him to bite me," Char informed, followed by a deafening silence. Gale and Astarion both stared at the unsteady drow as she stumbled out of her tent.

"Why?" Gale wondered. His voice sounded more curious than upset.

"Same reason I'm on the look out for those magic artifacts you need. You asked me to help you, and Astarion asked if I could help him," Char explained, leaning against the boulder by her tent. "Is there any food left? I'm guessing I missed breakfast."

"Of course, you sit tight, and I'll get you a bowl," Gale replied as he walked toward the campfire. Astarion watched him leave as he stepped closer to Char.

"Why did you reveal yourself? I could've said something," she wondered. Astarion glanced down at her before turning back in Gale's direction.

"The truth had to come out at some point. Plus, now I can fight with all my weapons," Astarion grinned, flashing his fangs. "I don't have to hold back anymore."

The drow watched the vampire carefully, unsure what to make of the situation. It certainly didn't help that she felt like she had the worst hangover in the world. She reached for her waterskin before drinking deeply from the pouch.

"Any tips or tricks on treating blood loss?" she sighed, changing the subject slightly.

"I'm not in the business of healing people, darling. That's a job for your local cleric," Astarion teased with a glimmering smile. Char resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Shadowheart was near her tent, readying herself for the day.

"If it's a spell that's going to cure me, you're learning it for next time," Char grumbled as she stood. He could hardly contain his grin at her words.

"For next time?"

"Only if you learn the spell," she repeated before slowly making her way over to Shadowheart.