Chapter Text
Chapter 3
It haunted her with each mile that flew by.
The hunger, the crimson tint that Calliope saw through her girlfriend’s eyes. The bounding pulse of the hunter that she’d hyper-fixated on.
There were no thoughts of getting her girlfriend flowers anymore. Didn’t feel the paint of the silver chains at her wrist and wrapped around her torso, or the intermingling liquid silver and eclectic poisons.
Through their connection, Cal couldn’t identify whether it was because she’d reached her pain limit or because she was starving.
Juliette’s thoughts did not come through clearly through the blistering pressure of her blood-starved migraine.
Mercifully, she’d seen enough for Jack to guess the safehouse that Tess was using as her base of operations.
His car flew down the streets as quickly as would prevent them from being pulled over. It wasn’t as if an officer of the law would believe that they needed to get to his daughter’s vampire girlfriend because she was being tortured by her hunter ex-girlfriend, at least not without proving that Savannah had an issue that they were not ready to face.
Cal understood that, but she still chewed at her nails, her legs bouncing despite Talia’s hand resting on her forearm.
Not even her mother could calm her nerves when Carmen had shown her how much Juliette was suffering. When she’d felt the extent to which the young vampire wanted to hurt Tess in return.
To drain her.
She understood the impulse with what Tess was putting her through, but also knew that losing control was her girlfriend’s worst nightmare. One that would take her a long time to recover from, even after all of her physical injuries.
“How many are there?” Oliver piped up from the front seat.
Cal wet her lips, her legs bouncing more.
They had five seasoned hunters and a Legacy vampire travelling towards the safe house, but it still felt like it wasn’t enough.
As far as she was concerned, they needed an army.
Aware that this was unreasonable, Cal replied, “Tess had two guys with her that I didn’t recognise.”
“Probably novices,” Jack assured, pulling down a dark street, finally putting the car into park. His sons pulled up a car length behind them. Addressing Oliver specifically, he said, “They’re young, inexperienced and have obviously been misled…”
“So don’t tear their heads from their bodies is what you’re saying?” Oliver repeated, opening the car door.
Jack rolled his eyes and turned around as the vampire exited his vehicle.
“Cal…” he started.
“No, I’m not staying in the car,” Cal interjected and Jack locked eyes with Talia, who had the same reservations, “Juliette needs me, so I’m going!”
“Okay,” Talia said calmly, “you’re not staying in the car. Remember what Oliver said though, Juliette is a vampire and she is starving…”
“She won’t hurt me,” Cal said, adamantly following Oliver’s lead.
She stared at the unassuming house ‘For Sale’ so didn’t catch on to her parents’ worried glances as they also emerged to join the group.
With their connection still startlingly clear, Calliope was acutely aware that Juliette was nearby.
Nothing could stop her feet from moving towards the door.
Oliver had already broken it down before any human would have been capable of getting to it, but it did give her the chance to pass him, so she was the first to approach the stairs at a run.
Voices hit her frenzied mind when she reached the second door-barring her from Juliette.
“Won’t she just heal from acid?” came a deeper tone.
“Probably,” Tess replied and Cal’s knuckles whitened as she gripped the handle, “it can’t hurt to try.”
Intent on proving this sentiment wrong, Cal pushed the door open.
The hunter carefully handling a thick metal, hand-held vat of something steaming halted and hissed as its contents sprinkled upwards and struck his face and it slipped to the ground.
His male comrade jumped away but the two inexperienced hunters were taken down in a blur of movement that rendered the rest of the Burns family superfluous.
There was something that Oliver was unable to help his sister with though.
As Apollo and Theo rushed to Oliver to save the lives of the misguided young men, Cal finally forced herself to look at the reason that they were all here.
It was so much worse from this perspective.
The chains were wrapped tightly around a prone body hooked up to an IV.
Before arriving in Savannah, Calliope would have been interested in Tess’s results and would have asked her how she could help.
If they figured out how to end a Legacy vampire they would have been promoted over any of their peers, raised through the ranks more quickly than their parents ever could.
At this moment, she wasn’t worried about what the Guild would think, because this vampire had done nothing to deserve this experimentation.
“Cal….” came to her, giving her a reason to look away from the sight that succeeded in having Talia gasp at her back. Her family were waiting for her to make the first move, though her brothers did have to hold Oliver back from Tess.
The girl stood at the table with the prod still in hand, which had Cal’s lips pull up in disgust.
Never before had she understood the irony of believing that Juliette Fairmont was the monster.
The sneer disarmed her ex-girlfriend and Cal moved to the centre of the basement to the starved vampire.
“Cal! Don’t be stupid, it is too dangerous…” Tess pleaded.
Cal made it to her girlfriend who lifted her face in response to the approach. She froze just before her because Juliette spread her lips to present her fangs with a deep growl. There was no recognition in the bloodshot eyes staring back at her.
It took Cal a moment to realise that she hadn’t stopped in fear but shock that anything could have driven Juliette to this state.
“Cal…” Tess tried again, unable to physically intervene with Oliver blocking her path, daring her to do so.
“Shut up!” Cal bit over her shoulder and took the final step into Juliette’s space.
“Hey Jules,” she whispered, palming her stained cheeks, not flinching as the vampire strained against the chains with eyes on the curve of her neck, “You’re okay, right? I know you’re hungry but we’re gonna get you home and get you some blood?”
With the vampire incapable of verbalising anything, Cal went right ahead to start undoing the silver to reveal charred skin that had the hunter wince, but she persevered.
Pausing before releasing the last link, Cal reminded her, quietly, “You’ll never hurt me, right?”
Juliette’s arms flopped to her side and Cal braced herself only to be pushed aside.
She hit the ground but recovered in time to watch Juliette’s blurred trajectory.
Her finger circled Tess’s neck who hissed and struggled hard.
Still, she stubbornly said, “Told you!”
“Shut up Tess!” Cal shouted and ran over before fangs could cross into her ex-girlfriend’s artery. The hand on Juliette’s shoulder had her head whip around, the air passing over her fangs in ragged breaths, “Juliette…Jules, please don’t do this. I get you’re hungry but you don’t have to do this, don’t be who she thinks you are,” Cal ripped up her sleeve to present her arm, “feed from me instead.”
“You can’t be serious,” Tess breathed ungratefully.
“Shut up, Tess!”
This time it was Talia who shouted at the young hunter and received a pleading look that neither she nor Jack gave into.
Neither of them quite appreciated the struggle of a truly hungry vampire before now. What Juliette risked for their daughter.
The instruments strewn across the table proved that now was not the time for judgement.
Juliette discarded Tess to the table, unable to resist the blood enriched by their bond.
Cal made no sound as her skin was pierced, but her eyes did flutter closed.
It was nowhere near as gentle as last time, but she didn’t complain, though she did bite her tongue hard.
The room was silent other than the sucking until Jack said, worriedly, “Cal…”
Cal shook her head, allowing Juliette to take what she needed until her vision blurred at the edges, prompting her to resist.
She wanted to give Juliette as much as she required but when Juliette finally came to her senses, she would never forgive herself if she went any further.
“Jules,” she whispered, “please stop.”
The vampire gripped her arm harder and Cal noticed Tess reach for the prod while her family appeared ready to leap to her aid.
She knew exactly what to say though.
“Juliette, please, you’re hurting me.”
Instantly the pressure let up as Juliette’s eyes flicked up.
They were still bloodshot, but not devoid of humanity. They soon switched to horror and she tore her fangs out.
Blood dripped down from her mouth and she croaked, “Calliope?”
Despite deep dizziness, Cal smiled and said, “Juliette.”
Juliette pitched forward, mumbling, “sorry,” but Cal was there to catch her, with Oliver, Apollo and Theo arriving to assist the pair.
Jack approached the two hunters who had been drawn into this mess, they were beginning to stir and had better have a good explanation.
Tess, on the other hand, was cornered by Talia.
The young hunter blinked at disbelieving tears and addressed the woman she’d always considered an aunt.
“You’re protecting that monster?” she asked, peering over at her ex-girlfriend cradling the unconscious vampire.
Talia sighed as she restrained her and could only think to say, “Just…shut up, Tess.”
S
It was fair to say that Juliette Fairmont was exhausted, she’d only been vaguely aware of Oliver and Ben hugging her before they had to go.
The constant flow of IV silver, electrocution and every poison known to the Guild were a bit much even for her Legacy body to recover from in a timely manner.
Sinking into the plush couch with the fleece that had been wrapped around her certainly helped, but there were a couple more things she desperately needed.
The arrival of the first thing was heralded by the opening of the front door, and the appearance of Theseus Burns.
Juliette smiled blearily at him, he was clearly uncomfortable with the opaque container that he was holding out to her.
“Oliver said this should be enough,” he said and Juliette cradled it reverently.
She could smell even through the seal that it was definitely enough and hopefully the type she enjoyed the most.
She couldn’t ask him what Oliver selected for her without probably increasing Theo’s level of discomfort or potentially having to explain the finer facets of drinking blood to a member of the Guild.
They’d been more understanding since the spearing but certain things were too far, so she just said, still a little raspy, “This is great, thank you, Theo.”
The hunter inclined his head and said, after passing from foot to foot, “I’m glad you’re okay, Juliette.”
The young vampire smiled weakly, but with genuine gratitude that she hadn’t originally thought would be easy to come by with anyone but Calliope in this particular household.
Theo peeled away, figuring there was nothing else to say just as the matriarch appeared.
She offered the additional blanket she’d collected, but thought better of it and promptly took it upon herself to wrap the injured teen in it.
She then straightened and inspected Juliette for indications of pain that had mostly physically healed already. The sight wasn’t as jarring now that she’d had her face cleaned and clothes changed, but she still didn’t look great,
“Do you need anything else?” Talia asked, “A drink? Something to eat?”
“I’m okay, Ms Burns,” Juliette assured, showing her the container, “Theo already gave me what I need.”
With none of her historical grimaces of disgust, Talia said, “Good. That’s good. You will let me know if you need anything else?”
Juliette nodded.
The second thing she needed was currently showering after a stressful day, something her parents had to force her to do.
Juliette didn’t mention that instead, she shifted in a failed attempt to sit up and then replied, “Thank you, Ms Burns, I know you’re doing this mostly for Cal, but I really appreciate it.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s just for Cal,” Talia said and Juliette’s eyebrows shot up, shock giving her the energy to sit up a little.
She opened her mouth as if she had any idea what to say in response to such a heartfelt sentiment (from a seasoned hunter at least) but was saved from emitting a strangled sound by the appearance of her girlfriend, looking forcibly refreshed.
It was almost eerie how similar her mask of concern was to her mothers but she did grant herself a better look at their patient by readily sitting down beside her.
Absently, she took the vampire’s hand and asked, for maybe the fifth time, “Are you okay, Jules?”
“I am,” she replied softly, “Just really tired.”
“Can Juliette stay here tonight?” Cal asked, turning her attention to her mother, “Please mom?”
Despite their recent acceptance, sleepovers were as yet still out of the question but Calliope was obviously hoping that they would qualify for extenuating circumstances after literal hours of torture.
Talia didn’t miss a beat, “Well, that would depend on what Margot and Sebastian say when they get here.”
Juliette scrunched her brow and almost whined, “You called my parents?”
“You thought I wouldn’t?” Talia retorted.
As if on queue, the door knocked.
Theo was the one to open it to reveal two dishevelled vampires, probably owing to the fact that they must have broken a few speed limits to be back in Savannah so quickly.
Margot, with wide eyes, demanded, “Well, are you going to invite us in?”
“Er…” Theo said, looking to his mom and dad who’d been drawn by the knocking.
“Yes, you can come in,” Talia called back and Jack rolled his eyes but made no verbal objections. What would be the point now that all but one Fairmont could get into his home?
The pair blasted over the threshold, so Theo had to stumble out of the way as they zeroed in on their swaddled daughter still hugging her container of blood.
“Hey mom, how was your trip?” Juliette tried to say brightly, even as she sank against her girlfriend.
Margot shook her head, also looking for signs of damage, though it was more intense coming from a mother towards her child.
“What exactly happened?” Sebastian demanded.
“A member of the Guild ignored our protocols and took it upon herself to test out ways to kill a Legacy,” Jack replied and Margot’s nostrils flared.
“And which member of the Guild would that be?” Margot asked though it came out as a growl.
Jack exchanged a look with his wife who shook her head, agreeing that couldn’t end well.
“Names don’t matter, she’s in our custody and the Guild will deal with it internally. We will never allow this to happen again,” Talia said.
Margot and Sebastian narrowed their eyes simultaneously, it was almost creepy.
“Forgive me for not placing any faith in your Guild,” Margot said, “Whatever internal punishment they come up with will not be sufficient for..”
“Mom, please don’t,” Juliette said, effectively ending the rant, “I’m fine.”
Margot softened, finally taking in the fact that her daughter was safely cuddled up to her girlfriend with a familiar fuzzy ear poking suspiciously through the blanket.
Not at all what the panicked phone call suggested she would look like.
“Are you sure?” Sebastian asked.
“We need to know exactly what happened,” Margot insisted.
Juliette groaned and Talia interjected, “Maybe we could discuss this over a drink while the girls rest?”
Margot inclined her head after confirming that her daughter was happy with the plan.
“That is an excellent idea,” Sebastian said, clapping his hands together to cut the tension.
The parents gave Juliette one last look before Jack and Talia led them towards the kitchen area.
“Well…good night,” Theo announced after a period of silence, making his way up the stairs.
At last, Juliette and Cal found themselves alone.
The vampire slumped further into her girlfriend, her eyes drooping, but Cal nudged her before she could give into the need to sleep.
She undid the cap on the small flask and said, “Hey come one, Jules, you need to drink some more before you sleep.”
Weakly, Juliette accepted it and brought it up to her lips, drinking more hungrily with each gulp until she allowed it to fall to her lap and her head lolled into the couch cushion, wearing a more serene smile now.
Cal wiped her mouth with a nearby tissue, depositing it to the coffee table as if it wasn’t soaked with blood, following it closely with the flask.
At last, she pulled her girlfriend into her arms, frowning at the musty smell covering her usual scent. She wanted to suggest that she should have a shower too, but that would involve being apart, plus there was the exhaustion factor.
If the Fairmonts insisted she go home, Cal wasn’t confident that the vampire would have an easy time standing.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Cal prompted again because she wasn’t sure that she would ever believe the answer after what she’d witnessed.
She wanted to think that there was no way she could have seen it coming, but that wasn't true at all.
Everyone in their family’s circle would happily do the same thing to the girl slumped against her, if only they knew how to actually finish the job.
She could leave all of that for the adults to sort out, however, her only priority was holding her girlfriend close.
“I’m sure, Cal,” Juliette replied sleepily, “Thank you for finding me.”
Cal was about to tell her that there was no way she could have done anything else, but the squeaking of sneakers in front of them had the couple look up to find Apollo standing over them with two bowls in his hands.
Silently, he handed one to each of them and walked away before anyone could say anything, though he did stop to make sure Juliette was okay like everyone else had.
Cal watched him go and then laughed at the contents of the bowls that her girlfriend was already eating.
Mint chocolate chip ice cream was exactly what they both needed.