Dakota realized she had been found out and groaned as she got up off the floor. Her head still felt a little fuzzy, almost like she was still partly inside the shadows. She rubbed at her eyes to clear them then realized that she had use of her arm once again. Dakota looked down at it and saw that it had healed. More or less. There was still the scar of a bite mark and the skin around it was dark due to damage from the poison. Dakota flexed her fingers and moved her arm around. Everything seemed to be working like normal so Dakota didn't worry too much about the scar. She was just glad her arm was still there.
"I see you have finally woken child. How do you feel?" Rin inquired. "Any pain at all?"
"I'm alright." Dakota replied. "My head feels fuzzy but my arm is working fine." She thought maybe if she gave her face a wash and got a drink of water this would help clear her head. "Is there a washroom I could use?"
Rin smiled. "Of course. I will get you a fresh towel. I'm sure you will want to at least freshen up after that ordeal."
Rin bade Dakota follow them and got her a clean towel from a cupboard. They showed Dakota the washroom and left her on her own. Once alone Dakota closed the door behind her and took a few deep breaths. Her head had finally started to clear and memories of floating in the void came flooding back to her.
"Am I still me?" Dakota asked the empty room.
The washroom was small and smelled of cleaner. There was a toilet and a counter with a sink and mirror. Dakota placed the towel on the counter and turned the water on. She cupped her hands and took a drink of the cool water to get the nasty taste out of her mouth. 'I wish I had my toothbrush with me. My breath probably smells like something died in there.' Dakota thought as she tried her best to clean her mouth.
She then turned the hot water on and wet the cloth. She almost dropped it when she looked up and saw her reflection in the mirror. The person staring back at her was not familiar. She had pale luminous skin, and delicately pointed ears. Her chestnut hair was soft wavy, and there was a slight red glow in her eyes. Dakota slowly raised her hand to her face and poked her cheek.
"I really am someone else now."
A sob escaped Dakota's lips but the noise was caught in her throat as she saw small sharp fangs peeking out of her mouth.
"No!" Dakota shook her head in disbelief. "What happened to me?" She opened the door and ran back through the small shop to the back room where Claude and Rin were still sitting.
"What did you do to me?!" Dakota demanded.
Both Claude and Rin looked at the girl before Rin pat the chair beside them. "I think it is best that you sit down."
Dakota didn't really feel like sitting but then sighed and reluctantly sat down beside Rin then looked over at Claude expectantly. He took a deep breath before he started.
"Before I start explaining I need to say that there is still a lot I can't tell you yet. I don't want you to be in any more danger than you already are. Your parents came from a very prestigious family. Your father was meant to be the leader of our bloodline but was killed because of it." Claude paused as he tried to collect his thoughts. He was Dakota's Uncle after all and missed his brother dearly.
"You were very young when all of this happened and your Mother named me your guardian and protector. The safest place for us was to hide among the humans and lock away your powers until you were 17."
'Seems like they were a couple of years too early.' Dakota thought to herself as she tried to make sense of everything that had happened. She then had a thought.
"But you looked like a normal person too." Dakota was getting very confused by all of this.
"Yes and in a way I was just a normal human. I had my powers sealed to make sure nothing could track us." Claude had a look of frustration on his face as he continued. "The question is who was strong enough to fund us and send that darkling after you?"
"Ok so you confirmed that our family isn't human. So what exactly are we?" Dakota asked.
"We are what humans call vampires. Our kind has been around long before humanity. Some say we are kin to the winter fey."
Dakota didn't really know what to say. She had a suspicion that could have been the answer but didn't want to believe it. Vampires were supposed to be fictional creatures. Nothing more. Dakota then took a good look between Claude and Rin. There were some similarities, but Claude had normal human shaped ears, while Rin had pointed fey ears.
"Wait, why are my ears pointed like Rin? Also do I have to drink human blood because that is gross and I really don't want to kill anyone."
Claude looked puzzled as he moved Dakota's hair out of the way to get a better look at her ears. He was going to say something but Rin interrupted.
"I do not want to cut this conversation short but it seems like we have run out of time. I can sense there is something trying to get through my protective barrier. We have to go now!" Rin looked serious as they grabbed a couple of blankets and threw them at us.
"The sun is still up and I don't know how well the two of you can handle it. The transportation won't be at the meeting spot until after sundown. We will have to take the basement tunnel and then run."
Dakota watched as Rin slid open one of the bookshelves to reveal a door behind it that had stairs going down. Clutching onto the blanket she followed Rin with Claude right behind them.
"The basement connects to old prohibition tunnels. We will take the tunnel to the building across the street. It's one of the only exits that I know of that is unlocked." Rin was explaining as Dakota walked through the dark, and damp space. She noticed that none of needed a light to see where they were going. It made Dakota wonder how bad stepping out into the sunlight was going to be.
Rin led everyone over to a small wooden door. Behind it was a small tunnel that smelled of dirt and stagnant water.
"Oh gross. I hope we don't have to be in this mud hole for long." Dakota complained.
Claude poked the girl in the middle of her back to get her moving. "This is not the time for your attitude. We need to move quickly."
Thankfully the tunnel only spanned the street and ran under the building across from the herb shop. Once everyone was out of the tunnel and up the stairs Dakota took a deep cleansing breath of the afternoon air. It really did stink in that place.
Rin cautiously peeked outside and looked across at their shop. "Familiars, and hobgoblins." They stated. "They must have been stationed close to be able to sniff you out so soon."
"Hobgoblins? Do you think the winter court is behind all of this?" Claude was surprised by who was sent after them.
"I am not sure, but we have to get out of here before they notice we left my shop. Do you have a phone Claude?"
Claude fished around in his pocket for his cell phone and passed it to Rin. They cringed as they took it as human technology and the fey didn't mix well. Rin dialed a number and put it on speaker so they didn't have to put the phone to their face. It rang a couple of times before a male voice answered.
"You've reached Berry." He said in a cheerful tone.
"Berry it it Rin. We need you to get to the extraction point as fast as you can. They have sent hobgoblins and a few wolf familiars after us."
"I'm on my way boss."
Once the call was finished Rin gave the phone back to Claude. "Wrap those blankets around you and cover your heads. Now we run."