The Terrible Twelve

Chapter 4: First Sight

Viridian was starting to be able to feel again. For a while the only thing she could feel was pain and fire. But now the edges of her fingertips were starting to come back to her. She was starting to feel the edges of her reality come back and she was starting to feel again. She felt her blankets underneath her, and her clothes pressed into her skin. She could even feel Phoenix on the bed with her, sprawled out and taking up too much space as always.

She could feel so many familiar things but she could also feel a lot of things that weren't familiar at all. She could feel a stranger's hand in hers. She could feel that her skin was harder than usual and she could feel her teeth felt sore and her bones ached. She had a massive headache and her heart was pumping wildly.

She brought her empty hand up and brushed it across her face. She opened her eyes and froze. The darkness that she was used to, the steady image of nothing was starting to fade. There were streaks of light coming through her eyes and the dark was starting to become lighter. Viridian blinked and turned her head wildly trying to figure out what was happening.

Was this actually light? Was she really seeing right now? She felt the roughness of the quilt above her body and looked down. Through the haze there was a bright color coming through. She moved her hand to feel the quilt and then saw her hand. She saw the marble hard skin and the soft nails that had colors on them as well.

She knew what all of these things were, she'd read about them and had people describe them to her and felt them with her own hands but she had never seen them. She had never had that sense and now she did.

"Don't try to see everything too fast, you'll get a headache. You're brain isn't used to having this sense. Just take it easy."

Viridian turned towards the voice that she remembered hearing when all she could feel was pain. It was the same voice she'd heard on the way home and the same voice she'd heard at the diner. This guy must have been following her all evening.

"Who are you?" Viridian tried to take her hand back but the man was holding on too tight.

"My name is Christian Le Armurer, but you can call me Ian. I'm not going to hurt you but you need to calm down." He answered calmly.

Viridian wanted to fight but there was something about his voice that was so calming. He was lowering her heart rate without even trying.

"Who are you?" Viridian's voice was shaky but she was determined to find the answer to her question.

"Call me Ian."

Viridian shook her head, "No, what are you?" Viridian was certain that whatever was sitting in front of her was not human. As her sight came to her, that fact was more and more evident.

"Don't be alarmed . . . " Christian hesitated. This was a part of the plan that he'd wanted to avoid early in the conversation.

"Just tell me, I can handle it." Viridian was used to people thinking she was weaker because of her illness but she needed answers.

"I'm a vampire." Christian Answered while staring directly at her.

Viridian's vision was blurry but it was there. She could see the man sitting in front of her in a chair that she had only felt before. Viridian could see his face and the expression that he was making but she couldn't tell what it meant. She'd never seen it before.

She understood that he was telling the truth though. She believed him although before today she would have laughed directly in his face and called the cops. But it was something about the way he looked and also that she could see the way he looked. There was something supernatural going on here and nothing else would explain it.