Blood & Chlorophyll

Once Katrina was absolutely sure that Alicia was asleep, she slowly slid herself out of bed. As enjoyable as it was to cuddle up with her girlfriend, she had only been up for a few hours and wasn't the least bit tired. The other day, Alicia had made an offhand comment about getting planners to figure out their daily routines, and the thought had stuck with Katrina.

She didn't literally want a planner, that felt like overkill, but she'd been thinking a lot about her nocturnal nature. In a stereotypical Human schedule, a person gets eight hours of sleep and sixteen hours for everything else. However, as a creature of the night, Katrina had spent years only functioning while most of the world slept, which meant she routinely had less time each day to be productive. While this hadn't been a problem before, as she'd spent most of her time in a depressive haze, now she had friends, and a partner. Heck, Alicia had even found a way to include Elias in their little Dungeon adventure.

If she woke at dusk, and went to sleep at dawn, Katrina would have fewer waking hours on average than the rest of the population. Thankfully, the days were slowly growing shorter now that summer was winding down. However, while she might have more time on average during winter, did Alicia? Katrina knew so little about Dryad physiology.

Would Alicia hibernate through the winter? The thought of going months without seeing her girlfriend didn't sit well with her.

Of course, we did just agree that we'd both be open to going poly, which might change some of the specifics. Tabitha certainly wouldn't need to hibernate, so I would at least have some company.

Katrina had been overjoyed to talk about the relationship with Alicia, but the thought of polyamory had caught her off guard. She was glad Alicia agreed with her, that they should take time for themselves before deciding if they wanted more. Still, at the moment, it felt like she had more thoughts in her head than she'd had for years, and she needed time to sort everything out.

Thankfully, there was a lot she needed to do tonight, and there would be plenty of time for reflection. Most importantly, today was Grocery Day, and she needed to catch the train back to her place. After gathering all her things, and making sure that she'd added her Delver's ID to her purse, she took off for the train station. She really hoped she wouldn't need to visit the hospital downtown again, but at least now she could fly if she needed to.

The train ride was short, as always, but she appreciated having time to herself. Tabitha joining their little group had been more transformative than she'd expected; not only was she incredibly capable as a delver, she was also pushing Alicia and Katrina to have serious conversations about their relationship. Was Tabitha honestly just interested in dating them? Or was she the kind of person that absolutely needed to make a splash wherever she went? If the latter were true, it could possibly have adverse effects on their Dungeon efforts.

I guess trust is something we build over time. Maybe I need to have a talk with her at some point, just something to build a bit more trust between us.

As Katrina left the train, her instincts tried to take her into the skies, but she fought the urge. Now that she had spells to figure out, her mana was a precious resource that she couldn't afford to waste. The alternative, walking amongst light crowds of squishy, blood-filled humanoids, wasn't the most appealing option, but Alicia and the Key Dungeon had to be her first priority.

Closing in on the local clinic, she immediately noticed the lack of a line. This had happened last week, and had been an unfortunate herald of her difficult trip to downtown Chicago. She hoped today would be different, but steeled herself for disappointment.

She approached the window, then set her cooler down on the counter and leaned against it. After a few seconds of waiting, a familiar Human face walked over to join her.

"Kat! Long time no see. Looks like you survived the trip downtown, hopefully that wasn't too rough for you," Dennis said.

"Honestly it was pretty terrible, but I survived without any issues." Katrina paused for a moment, her thoughts drifting back to last week. "Oh, by the way, thanks for the... y'know. It was a really big help."

"Glad to hear it! Thankfully, we won't need anything like that this week, got our shipment of rations right on time. Send your cooler through, I'll get it filled up!" Dennis grabbed the cooler and walked off, only needing a few minutes before returning with a full week's worth of rations.

"Are these the 300 or 350 mL?" Katrina asked.

"Still 300. Sorry I forgot to warn you last week, I just had way too much going on. How are things? If you don't mind me saying, something seems different with you today. You're carrying yourself differently."

"Geez, is it that obvious?" Katrina paused, blushing profusely. "Yeah I, uh, met someone."

"Like, a friend? Or

someone

someone?" Dennis asked, grabbing Katrina's donor card and running it through his computer.

"Like, I have a girlfriend now. Ran into her last week after picking up my rations, and we really hit it off. It's been kind of a crazy week, honestly. I'm also a certified Delver now? I got wrapped up in some Dungeon business with her."

"No kidding? That must have been one heck of a week. You certainly seem excited, you're practically glowing."

"Oh? Are you saying I was cold and boring up until now?"

"W-well, no, I didn't mean--"

Katrina cut him off with a laugh. "I'm just kidding, Dennis. I was a sourpuss and I know it. I tried to hide it whenever I came here, but now? Things are really coming together."

Dennis slid back Katrina's donor card, along with her rations, and she quickly put everything away. He spoke up again as he leaned against the counter. "I'm really happy to hear that, Kat. I'd love to meet her, if the opportunity ever comes up. Though, I'm not sure a visit to a Race Clinic counts as an exciting date."

"Please, we got our Delving Licenses together. A trip here sounds like a walk in the park comparatively."

"I'll hold you to that. Now, in all seriousness, be careful, okay? Delving is insanely dangerous. I don't see nearly as many delvers as the hospital downtown does, but I've seen my fair share of injured patients. And I've got a list of all the ones that stopped visiting after a trip to the Dungeon went south."

Katrina looked up at Dennis, smiling as warmly as she could. "I appreciate that, Dennis. I'll see you here next Sunday, that's a promise."

The two waved goodbye, and soon Katrina was boarding the train back to Alicia's place. As usual, she waited until she was alone to open up her newest ration; even with a mostly empty train car, she still wanted to avoid drinking in front of other people when it could be avoided. She'd only just gotten comfortable drinking in front of Alicia, which had been a big step for her.

Once she made it back to her girlfriend's place, she quietly snuck inside, grabbed her guitar, and settled down on the front lawn.

She began by playing through some old favorite songs. No magic, no spellcrafting, just enjoying the instrument she'd fallen in love with years ago. She'd found forum posts from Bards that grew to resent their assigned instrument after treating it like a job, and Katrina was determined to not let that happen. There was actually a pretty big discussion in the Bard world about the mental health benefits of taking a Secondary Method of Inspiration, simply to avoid feeling trapped by your Class.

Thankfully, there was still plenty of enjoyment to be found. Not only was playing an immense joy, but she was still marveling at the craftsmanship of the guitar Alicia had given her. After nearly a solid hour of simply appreciating the music, she finally decided to get back to her spellcasting.

She now had four spells ready to go, which meant she was halfway towards her limit for this level. By taking Bonus Spells, she increased her limit from five to eight, and was thrilled to continue iterating.

The next spell she began working on was slightly more involved, and she'd purposely waited until she was alone to begin practice. Partially because she wanted the peace and quiet to help her concentrate, and partially because she'd wanted spells to show off to Alicia when sparring practice had ended.

She hoped that, by the end of the night, she would have figured out how to create small illusions.

After creating four spells for herself, Katrina was growing more and more confident in her ability to connect with her magic. When she'd first hit Level Three, it had felt like this nebulous well of energy that spoke a language she didn't understand. It wasn't something she had direct control over, it was something she had to ask permission from, and then create a cradle of music to serve as the delivery method. The more she practiced, the more she recognized how the magic and the music worked together.

In many ways, it felt like acquiring a brand-new instrument that was flawlessly made, but all the strings were horribly out of tune. With enough time, her magic began to resonate more and more powerfully with her music, and it became easier to weave the two together.

Her first attempts to create illusions were laughably simple. The first goal was to make anything at all; a cherry blossom, a small rock, or perhaps a stick. It took nearly an hour before she could consistently make any visual at all, and that was only the first step. After growing confident with simple shapes, she next needed to practice how an illusion might move.

The idea of a moving image seemed to confuse her magic. It felt like hitting a wrong note every time she tried; the magic would buzz and the image would fall. She struggled with how to relay the thought to her magic, unsure what method would work best. Should an illusion be built on a series of still images, or a single image moving fluidly through space? Her magic seemed to want these answers, and it wasn't something she had prepared for.

Eventually, however, she figured out the answer. The magic began to resonate with her ideas, and soon she was able to confidently summon small cherry blossoms floating through the air.

The last step to practice was increasing the size of the illusion. In a perfect world, she would be able to use this magic to hide doorways, distract monsters with copies of her delving party, or any number of other ideas. Illusion magic was well known for being both incredibly helpful and also entirely dependent on the creativity of their wielder. The perfect spell in an arsenal of a jane-of-all-trades Bard like Katrina.

In the end, as the sun began to peek around the horizon, Katrina had added another spell to her list. Not only did she only have three spells left, but she also felt significantly better about the various things she'd talked about with Alica.

It was helpful to know that Alicia had some self-image issues, even if they were incredibly minor, and Katrina was eager to take steps to make Alicia feel good about herself and their relationship. It was especially good to have an open discussion about jealousy since they'd agreed that polyamory might be in their future.

After packing up her guitar, Katrina checked her phone as she started walking towards the stairs. She unexpectedly froze when she saw the date on her lock screen: August 7th.

Yesterday was the anniversary of the Change. That means this morning is the anniversary of my first time trying to dust myself in the sunlight.

A wave of emotions washed over Katrina. She had been dreading this day for weeks, operating under the assumption that her guilt would drive her into the sunlight, just like it had every past anniversary. She thought back to her neighbor, to the woman in the alley, to everyone she'd hurt since turning into a Vampire.

Katrina walked to the front door, opened it, and stared outside. Long shadows crept across the ground, slowly growing shorter as the sun rose high in the morning sky.

Unbidden memories returned to her; the feel of skin breaking under her teeth, of blood running over her tongue. The countless songs of her victims, ending without fanfare or ceremony purely because she needed to feed. Becoming a Vampire had pushed her to hurt so many people.

But it had also led her to Alicia.

She thought back to her last week, reviewing everything that had happened. She had friends now, people she regularly talked to that wanted to see her. She had a delving party, one that was built to help someone in need rather than to seek fame or glory. She had a girlfriend, a wonderful partner who knew everything about her past, and had chosen to stay with her. After spending years utterly convinced that she didn't deserve happiness, Katrina had somehow found a life for herself.

"Kat? Kat?!"

Upstairs, Katrina heard a small commotion as Alicia woke up. Her voice was sleepy at first but had grown panicked almost instantly. Footsteps rang through the house as the Dryad raced through the halls, then down the stairs. Katrina had barely paid attention to the noise, she was so lost in her own thoughts, but she returned to her senses when Alicia ran in front of her. She was breathing heavily, tears in her eyes, and she threw her arms around Katrina before speaking up again.

"Kat! Oh my god, I forgot it was the anniversary today, please, don't go outside!" Alicia said, still gasping for air.

Having been pulled from the past, Kat looked down at Alicia before hugging her back. "Shhh, it's okay, I'm here Alicia. I'm not going anywhere."

"I was so worried! You said that you try every year, and when I woke up you were gone, and I thought maybe I wasn't enough, and that--"

Katrina leaned down, cutting Alicia off by bringing their lips together. She ran her hands through the Dryad's hair, across her face, and finally down her back before embracing her in a hug once more. "You couldn't be farther from the truth, Alicia. I'm happier now than I've ever been. I got so caught up in my life that I had completely forgotten about the anniversary, and when I remembered... well, I guess I got caught up in my memories. I've spent years wrapped up in guilt, I used to constantly wish that I could go back and erase everything that had happened. But just now, when I looked out into the sunlight, I realized I don't want that anymore. I think, even if I had the most powerful wish in existence, I wouldn't change what happened to me. Yes, it was terrible, but it also led me to you, and I can't imagine giving you up."

Alicia sniffled again. "You sure you're not just saying that? I know I've been pretty emotional these last few days."

"You're amazing, Alicia, and I mean every word of it. Now c'mon, you still need a few more hours of sleep, and I was just about to go to bed. This time I promise I won't slip out of bed."

After a quick nod, Alicia took Katrina's hand and followed her upstairs. This time, when they crawled under the sheets, their schedules permitted them hours of peaceful cuddling.

---

The next day, for better or for worse, was quite similar to the day prior. When Katrina woke up, a quick glance out the window revealed that Alicia had spent as much time as possible clearing space for Elias' pond, then returned to sparring with Tabitha in the evening. Katrina could hear the two fighting, and made sure not to test any spells without first consulting her fellow delvers; she still felt bad about getting Alicia hurt last time.

When Katrina left the house, the first thing she noticed was an unusual new structure on the front lawn. The chair she'd previously been using, that she'd stolen from Alicia's kitchen, had been replaced with an elegantly designed collection of bark and plants that clearly resembled a chair. Its placement seemed too coincidental, and when coupled with the chair's missing arm rests, she had a feeling this was a gift for her.

Thankfully, Alicia and Tabitha were no longer training in the pit, and were instead just outside the house. Katrina waited for a break in their practice before speaking up. "Hey you two!"

"Kat! You're up!" Without hesitation, Alicia ran closer and jumped into Katrina's arms. They spun around a few times before settling into a series of excited kisses, and Katrina was so caught up in the moment she almost missed Tabitha groaning in the background.

"You two have a room, you know," The Foxgirl said.

"What, are public displays of affection too much for you? Would you rather us strip down and film ourselves making love instead?" Kat asked, sticking her tongue out at Tabitha.

"Ouch, touché. Didn't think you had that much sass in you, Fangs." Tabitha smirked as she set her staff down. "You have good timing, at least. I was about to recommend a break anyways. Cherry Blossom here is making really great progress!"

With a smile, Katrina looked back to Alicia and caught her blushing profusely. Her entire face was dark green, and Kat didn't bother asking why; it was obvious what the Dryad was thinking about. "Our Mage Knight's not being too rough on you, is she?"

Alicia adamantly shook her head, her cheeks still dark. "No, it's been a lot of fun! It's tough, but I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would."

"She's caught me off guard a couple times, and she's getting better at using her Race Features in interesting ways. She figured out that she can root herself for extra stability, and she's gotten pretty creative with that," Tabitha said.

"Okay, but you're obviously still taking it easy on me. You have, like, a million Agility; if we were to actually fight you'd tear me apart!"

"We're on the same team, silly. I'm not expecting our Bulwark to have the same fighting prowess as a Mage Knight, we all have different strengths. I have no defensive abilities, nor can I offer Regen or any of the support magic Fangs has. Speaking of, how are your spells going? Got a full suite yet?"

Katrina finally let Alicia go, and she picked up her guitar in preparation for a practical demonstration. "Almost there. I needed a lot of time for this spell, but I think it'll be really helpful." After a quick pause to position her hands correctly, she began playing a melody and weaving her magic into it. Seconds later, just a few feet from the group, a full-sized illusory double of Alicia appeared.

"Whoa, check her out!" the Foxgirl said. She started circling the illusory Dryad, looking back and forth between the copy and the real thing. "The level of detail here is incredible, Fangs, but I think you're showing your hand. Now Cherry Blossom is going to know how much time you spend checking her out."

"Well, I mean, that wasn't what..." Kat caught herself blushing heavily, and when she looked at Alicia, she was doing the same. As a distraction, she began moving the illusion around, showcasing a series of simple maneuvers she'd seen Alicia use during sparring practice. She cleared her throat, then continued talking. "I've got Bardic Knowledge, so it's easy to memorize all the things you two are doing. Hopefully these illusions could work as distractions, but I could also make copies of you, Tabitha, or stuff like fake barriers. They aren't solid, and anything that touches them will realize they're fake, but I still think they'll be helpful.

Tabitha took one last circle then moved to stand next to Katrina. "I've never seen illusions before, it's wild how real they look. And you can make them move as fast as you want, right? If you made copies of me, I bet we could trick other people into thinking I can create speed illusions of myself."

"Wait, other people?" Alicia asked, finally speaking up. "I thought we were just fighting monsters?"

"Oh, we are," Tabitha said. "I'm just thinking of the worst-case scenario where we end up fighting other Guilds or something. Every Guild in the American Midwest is going to know that I've started delving in a few days, and there's always a chance one of them might try something. If word gets out that I'm so fast I leave afterimages? It might dissuade them from doing something stupid."