Victare was certain that Patreous heard him. It was not just a shout in the dark, but rather Victare was inside of Patreous' consciousness. He felt his mind and his presence in the connection he made. There was no doubt that it was his husband. What he didn't realize at the time was that Patreous would not be able to respond. The bond he created was a one-way connection.
"What do you want?" he yelled at the girl as she tightened her grip on Jana and held her even higher.
Victare was strong and could fight, but he questioned this girl's inhuman strength if she could lift another person with one arm. Before he could give her time to answer, he lunged at her legs and managed to knock her balance off. Jana's limp body went crashing down under the weight of the necklaces. He caught a glimpse of her, and she wasn't moving or even trying to gasp for air. He considered the worst, that she was already dead.
The girl had already skillfully jumped back to her feet and was standing laughing over Jana's lifeless body. "Lucky for you, your lover is on his way."
"How did you know?"
"Every telepath in fifty miles heard you ask him to come home. Was that your first time?" she sneered.
Victare didn't answer.
"Lucky for you that you called for him or this bitch would be dead already. I can still smell her lifeblood."
Victare knew this was true. One of the things vampires do not usually tell their human friends is that if they get too close, they can smell the life pulsing through their bodies. A few vampires many years ago with impulse control issues gave them all a bad reputation. Mostly, they can control the urge.
The two vampires were squared up against each other, but Victare was blocking the door to the bedroom. He suspected she could muscle her way out easily, so there must be a reason she stayed. Jana gasped so he knelt by her side. Her neck was starting to bruise and the gemstones around her neck were covered in blood. Her wounds were very bad, but he couldn't let her know.
"Breathe slowly."
"It hurts."
"I know, but Patreous will be here soon and it's going to be all right." He was crying. This was the one person they had met over the years who didn't act scared of them. She didn't judge or condemn. She just, well, poked fun at them mostly. She was loyal to the clan which meant, in turn, she was protected like family.
"Fucking cunt," Victare muttered under his breath, and he jumped towards the girl with all his strength. He intended to kill her. She grabbed him by the throat with one hand and threw his body against the doorframe with ease. He landed next to Jana's body dazed and unable to move.
***
Patreous did not take time to assess the situation. He was highly protective of his husband, and Victare never asked for help, so he knew it was serious. He did not engage in his usual showmanship and leaped straight from the water into the form of the fastest bird he could manifest without thinking. He got lucky and had a tailwind. He was home in just a couple of minutes.
As he descended towards his home, he prepared himself. Without thinking, the small bird form he had assumed began to shimmer and stretch in mid-air. The front door was open which was odd. As he landed, his tiny bird form had morphed itself into a large brown bear, one that he had studied and used to hunt many years ago.
He entered his home and could smell fresh blood and sense Jana's weak pulse. He also realized there were two vampiric auras present. He paused to smell the air. It was all coming from upstairs. He jumped up the stairs in a violent rage and into their bedroom where he saw a figure that wasn't family. As he jumped across the room, fully prepared to dismember the girl, he recognized her causing him to transform quickly back to his human form. There was not enough time to fully stop the energy he put into the leap, so he crashed into the girl and they both fell to the floor.
"You!" he yelled at her as he pulled himself off her. He was not wearing any clothes.
She was visibly confused. "I'm sorry, have we met?"
"We just..." it was unlike Patreous to be speechless. "You just bathed me in the moonlight."
"Oh," she said. It was clear she understood. "I see you met my twin sister." The girl looked down at his impressive body. She had already jumped to her feet. "I assume she gave extra attention to your cock?" she laughed. It was true, she had, but Patreous had no intention of letting Victare know this. "She's soft. What did she tell you?"
"Nothing," he lied. "Leave, you are not welcome here." He pointed to the stairs.
She looked him directly in the eyes. "We allowed the Dareeniou to leave. Those who refused, we killed. You have two more sundowns to leave yourself or you will suffer the same fate. The girl has been marked, so take her too or she dies as well... if she makes it through the night. Our quarrel is with the Dareeniou, not you."
"I could kill you now."
"That would be foolish if you love your friends," she said as she made her way down the stairs and out the door. He didn't follow her but could sense that she shifted to the form of a bird and quickly flew away.
Victare had come around during this conversation and heard most of it. Vampiric blood was resilient and healed itself quickly. Jana was not so lucky. The swelling was getting worse around her neck and the blood pooling around her was concerning. She was barely alert but looked up at the boys. She smiled slightly with the last bit of energy that she could muster.
Patreous took control of the situation. "Carry her down the stairs and get that shit off her neck. And whatever you do, don't speak to anyone with your mind again until we discuss it." He paused. "I love you."
Victare carefully carried Jana down the stairs. By the time he got her to the sofa, he was covered in her blood. Her chest heaved every time she struggled to breathe. He cried for her. This was all his fault. He was not able to protect her as Patreous could. Why couldn't he be gifted something that he could use to protect his family?
He used a towel to clean her face and neck the best he could. The bleeding had stopped but she was very weak. She didn't seem to be conscious which may have been for the better as the pain would have almost been unbearable. The two men looked at each other concerned. They both had the sense to feel her lifeblood and they both knew it was getting weaker. She would pass soon.
Patreous kneeled beside her and kissed her forehead. He cried. It had been many years since he cried. He tried to rouse her, but she was completely unresponsive.
"Are you?" Victare questioned.
"I can't," he replied. "She's not conscious... It's not the way." Patreous looked at his husband's face and saw the pain and sadness would last a thousand years. Consent is customary but not necessary and not possible in this case but there was still hesitation.
"Fuck it," Victare said as he moved Patreous out of the way. He could feel her presence leaving the room quickly. He sat down at the foot of the sofa and leaned over her body. He pressed his lips against her neck and felt his teeth puncture her fragile skin. To an outsider, it looked violent. But to Victare, it was an act of compassion and one of the most intimate moments he could share with another person.
He felt part of himself drain into her body through her veins. Her lifeblood was gone, but in its place was a living, breathing woman who could live forever.
"You are immortal now Janare," he whispered.
"Welcome to the clan," Patreous said warmly behind him.
YOU ARE READING
Vic & Pat's
吸血鬼A timeless gay vampire couple who have been together for hundreds of years find themselves and their small overnight diner at the center of a nationwide social-media frenzy. This would normally be great for business, except they are also at the cent...
