"Mama, eww." Mina complained about the bagged blood I was offering her.
"I know you prefer fresh baby, but Rory's at work and your Papa's buys, so bagged or scrambled eggs." I insisted.
"No no no!" Mina banged her highchair with the no-spill cup. I sighed. Terrible twos at one? I warmed the blood and put it into a different cup, hoping to fool her, then brought it back to her and offered it to her again.
"Try this one." I urged. She took a drink, then dropped the cup on the highchair surface.
"Eww!" She complained. Thinking there might be something wrong with the blood, I sniffed at it, but couldn't identify any odor to indicate it had expired. So I took a drink from the bag myself, swishing it around my mouth. It did taste a little.. off... I sighed.
"What are my two angels up to this lovely evening?" Alexandre asked, walking into the kitchen. Mina immediately brightened yelling 'Papa, Papa!' over and over as he stopped beside me to give me a lingering kiss. "Mmm, you smell delectable." He murmured against my lips. Mina's cries for attention became more insistent, and he chuckled, turning to her to lift her from the highchair.
"What's the matter little one? Was mama trying to feed Papa's little angel yucky bagged blood?" Alexandre teased, tearing his wrist with his teeth and offering it to Mina. I sighed.
"You spoil her Alexandre. How is she going to get used to a normal diet if you keep doing that?" I shook my head. Mina hungrily latched onto his wrist, her little face scrunched in concentration as she suckled at his wrist.
"Well you fed her for about six months, and carried her for many more beyond that. I think I can do my part now." Alexandre replied, coming over to kiss me again, and then hissed as Mina bit his wrist.
"Careful Angel, you have very sharp teeth and have to learn how to use them correctly." Alexandre scolded gently. I could see his thumb trembling, she must have nicked a tendon or nerve. Mina looked up at him with a blood smeared face and teary eyes.
"No-no?" She asked.
"Yes, a small one-remember you have to be careful how hard you bite sweetie." Alexandre murmured. Mina's lower lip quivered, but she looked at his wrist, then kissed it.
"All better." She whispered and Alexandre suppressed a chuckle.
"Yes, all better. But remember, not everybody heals like your mama, papa, Rory, or Cornelius. Or Uncle Luc." Alexandre said.
"Kook! Kook!" Mina called.
"Oh lord, you said the magic words. Now you know she's not going to settle until you take her to see him." I rolled my eyes. Deciding not to waste the blood Mina refused, I offered some to Alexandre, who declined, and then polished it off myself, despite the slightly strange flavor. The donor probably had an odd diet or took medications.
I heard Mina's cries for her uncle reverberating through the foyer as Alexandre carried her towards Luc's room. I wondered how Luc was doing, I knew Cornelius was in with him right now helping him with physical therapy. Perhaps I should visit. I mused on it while I wiped down Mina's highchair and washed the two cups. I watched the sudsy water drain from the sink and had made it to the kitchen door before the nausea hit me. I groaned and clutched my stomach. Ah fuck, Mina had been right, there was something wrong with that blood. I was suddenly glad she had refused it. I hesitated in the doorway a moment more to see if my stomach was going to empty or just complain. After several minutes of just cold sweats and stomach ache, I started across the foyer, only to be struck by the desperate need to vomit. I raced to the nearest bathroom and vomited every bit of the blood I'd consumed from probably the entire time I'd been a vampire. I moaned, laying my forehead against the side of the toilet.
"Carys, are you ok?" Came Rory's soft voice from the door. I jumped.
"I thought you were at work!" I exclaimed, flushing the toilet and standing to rinse my mouth. I hadn't shut the bathroom door, so Rory stood staring at me in the mirror.
"Traded a shift so Cornelius and I could go look at a couple of places in the morning." Rory said softly. I flinched.
"Ah yes." I murmured, but before I could get emotional, my stomach revolted again, and I was hugging the toilet bowl. Rory looked slightly panicked.
"Alexandre! Cornelius!" Rory called.
"I'm fine, seriously." I protested through another groan. "Bad blood." Rory made a non-committal noise as he held my hair back from my face.
"Carys!" I heard Alexandre's cry from outside the bathroom door.
"Guys, seriously, Mina said the bagged blood tasted funny. She was right. I thought she was just being picky like usual, so I drank it. Apparently, it was going off. We might want to check the dates." I leaned back and wiped my mouth, closing my eyes, trying to calm my stomach.
"I mean to be fair, she does seem to have a finicky stomach." Rory murmured. I cracked an eye and glared at him. Alexandre chuckled.
"Are you sure you're ok?" He asked. Cornelius came into the room to feel my face and look into my eyes.
"You've burst all the capillaries in your eyes." Cornelius commented. I groaned.
"Ah crap, I'll scare Mina." I sighed.
"Here, drink." Cornelius offered me his wrist, but I groaned and shoved it away.
"If it's alright with you guys, I'm going to go take a nap, curled around my traitorous stomach." I complained, to scattered chuckles. "Alexandre-I hate to ask about Mina-but will you be able to take her today?" Alexandre tugged me off the bathroom floor into his arms.
"She's my daughter Carys, why would you think I would ever not be able to make time for her? Or for that matter, make time to help care for my wife?" Alexandre brushed his lips against mine and I winced. I must taste awful. "Besides, Luc is keeping her entertained right now, so let's get you settled, and then I'll tend to her." He scooped me up like a bride, cradling me against his chest. I noticed Cornelius and Rory had discreetly withdrawn. Alexandre carried me to our bedroom. We were gradually moving back to Alexandre's room as Mina needed us less and less. He laid me down on his bed gently and kissed my forehead before tugging off my shoes and tucking me in.
"If you need anything, just call." He murmured. I reached out a hand and grabbed his sleeve.
"You. Always." I murmured, to his chuckle.
"Sleep and recover Carys love. My beautiful wife and mother of my child." Alexandre whispered, kissing my hair. I was asleep before he'd left the room.
Mina clapped as Luc used the walker to make his way across the foyer.
"Yay Kook!" She cried, giggling, in a fair imitation of the adults around her when she was learning to walk. I hid a grin, but shouldn't have bothered, Luc was enjoying it immensely.
"Am I doing well Little Doll?" He asked her with a happy grin.
"Good job." She said solemnly and I bit my lip to hide my smile. Alexandre wrapped his arms around my rib cage, resting his chin on my shoulder as we watched his brother make his way towards the kitchen.
"He's doing well." He remarked.
"In more ways than one. His muscle atrophy seems to be the biggest issue for him right now, but he's recovering quickly. With Cornelius' blood of course. Well all of ours, really. Cornelius has a mixture set up that combines our bloods, trying to sustain the virus in his system while promoting health. He believes it's working because Luc was nearly drained and almost died. Cornelius said the only thing that might stabilize the virus further would be love. But I kind of wonder if his love of Mina would work? It's not quite the same, but a familial tie might help the virus mutate in a new way. At least for him." I murmured. Mina had toddled across the foyer and was holding onto the walker as her uncle made his way through the kitchen doors.
"What about you? Still nauseous?" Alexandre asked. It had been several days since the bad blood incident and I was still struggling to keep things down.
"Ugh, don't remind me. This is like that time I drank that damn wine." I moaned.
"Or when you were pregnant." Alexandre chuckled. I stiffened, and felt Alexandre do the same. He ran his nose along my neck and shoulder, inhaling deeply.
"Carys..." He said in a dazed voice.
"No.." I whispered. "It can't be! Mina was a one-off! Just an amazing miracle! There's no way that a vampire can remain fertile! Is there?"
"I don't know." Alexandre's dazed voice continued as I turned to face him. "We're in uncharted territory here." He mumbled, eyes glazed over.
"I..." I clamped my mouth shut and snatched both hands against my abdomen. "Do we still have those pregnancy tests?