Katrina was sure her stomach wasn’t making any noise, but after looking at the stream, she noticed that her eyes were glowing brighter than usual. Despite how comfortable she’d felt up until this moment, the anticipation of her first live feeding in years was starting to build. Memories she’d spent years trying to bury resurfaced, and she licked her lips as she remembered how delectable blood could be when it wasn’t sitting in a medical bag.

  “Now, before we get started, I want to stress that we’ve already taken a bunch of precautionary measures. We’ve got a secret temporary mod just off-screen who’s helping us monitor the situation, and Scarlet here is a pro! I promise I’m in good hands, but most importantly; I can’t wait for you all to see this. I’ve seen her drink before, and it’s really something else.”

  With a quiet laugh, Katrina tried to play along. “Don’t worry, chat, I’ll keep her safe. After all, if something happens to her, I won’t be able to come visit anymore, right?” It was difficult to stay jovial; every nerve in her body was itching to taste Tabitha’s blood. She could already smell the Foxgirl’s nervousness, the hints of fear that would no doubt be exponentially more potent once she had blood in her mouth. A part of her hated how excited she was getting, but she could feel the predator in her taking over.

  With the disclaimers out of the way, Tab slid closer to Katrina. She turned to face the camera, then angled herself in such a way as to give the audience the best possible view of the action. Before leaning back into Kat’s arms, she leaned close and whispered, “Please be careful, Kat.”

  Kat nodded, then put an arm around Tabitha’s shoulder to help her lean back. Once she was comfortable, Kat shifted her hand to the Foxgirl’s head, cradling it to help control the position of her neck. Kat’s other arm crossed over Tab’s stomach, reaching behind her back to hold her steady. The lights almost seemed to fade as all of Kat’s attention turned to the body in her arms, the neck on display, the blood running just beneath the surface. She could hear its song growing stronger by the second, and her tongue danced over her lips as she leaned down.

  Opening wide, her fangs on full display, she sank her teeth into Tab’s neck. They punctured her skin easily, it was their purpose after all, and glorious ambrosia sprang forth. It filled Kat’s mouth, overwhelming her senses as the music of creation exploded around her.

  Her body shuddered as she drank, and she completely lost track of the stream. Nothing mattered now but the heavenly nectar passing over her lips and down her throat. A powerful warmth surged through her limbs, bringing power and life that had eluded her for years. Her tongue darted out, repeatedly running through the short fur on Tab’s neck as she desperately reached for every last drop.

  She felt her vampiric nature fighting for control, the horrid curse inflicted by the Status that begged for her to go further, to drain Tabitha dry. How much time had passed? A second? A minute? Alicia was supposed to say something if Kat drank for too long, but would she even hear her in this state?

  More importantly, did she want to?

  Tab’s body twitched in her arms, her breathing growing heavy as Kat kept drinking. Blood kept flowing, and Kat kept drinking.

  So hungry. More.

  More memories flashed through Kat’s head. She thought back to the night of Change, to every night she’d been forced to hunt, and the faces of her victims sped through her thoughts. Somehow, either through her own strength or through the connections she’d forged, Kat knew that continuing would condemn Tab to being just another memory.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  No. I can’t! I WON’T!

  Despite every bone in her body begging her to continue, Kat found the strength to pull her lips away from Tabitha’s neck. The Foxgirl was still breathing, which was a good sign. Kat jumped in surprise as Alicia ran on stage, brandishing the medical supplies they’d prepped ahead of time. She pushed medical gauze and a towel against Tab’s neck, then settled in to pull her into her own lap. Kat watched for a moment, still lost in a daze, and ran her fingers over her chin to push the last drops of Tab’s blood into her mouth. She slowly licked her lips, then her fingers, and soon enough she’d licked herself clean.

  With no more blood in her immediate surroundings, Kat snapped to her senses. She looked over at Tabitha, her breathing obviously weak, and then reached for her guitar. A melody sprang from her fingers, and inspiration flowed into Tabitha as the regeneration took hold. Other than the sound of her music, it was a slow, agonizing minute before anyone spoke.

  Tab’s eyes slowly opened, and she looked up at Alicia, then Kat, then the camera. “Wow. That’s really something,” she said.

  “How are you feeling?” Alicia asked.

  Although it took a moment, Tab triumphantly held up a thumb. “Doing pretty good, Cherry Blossom. That’s a pretty wild side of Scarlet, wouldn’t you say, chat? How was the show? I was a little busy being an entrée to focus on much else.”

  Kat took a deep breath, then sighed in relief. Despite all her fears, she’d managed to keep Tabitha alive. She looked over to the computer to see what the chat was saying, and at the moment everyone seemed to be celebrating the successful bite. Some of them were commenting on how Kat’s demeanor had changed while she fed, others were asking for more reassurance from Tab, and some were asking who Alicia was, but no one was saying anything heinous.

  She was happy to have her guitar, it gave her something to hide behind as she watched Tab slowly recover. The Foxgirl had just finished off a small carton of juice and was sitting up, despite Alicia’s insistence that she continue relaxing.

  “Alright chat, I think it’s time to start winding down. It was tough to get Scarlet here to agree to a full hour, and I think I’ve pushed her hard enough. Although, before I sign off, how about a big round of applause for Scarlet! She was such a good sport tonight, and you all were so nice to her, so let’s make sure she leaves on a high note!”

  The confusion over what a digital round of applause might look like cleared up immediately. Almost the entire chat started posting applause emojis, and another huge wave of donations flooded the stream.

  Tab went through another minute of goodbyes and thank-yous, then finally signed off. The camera went dark, the chat began to thin out, and Tabitha fell backwards into Alicia’s lap again.

  “Whew,” the Foxgirl said. “That was… an experience.”

  As much as Kat wanted to run closer and hug Tab, she didn’t dare stop her Inspiration. “How are you feeling? Are you okay? I didn’t drink too much, did I?”

  “Calm down, Fangs, I’m fine. I’m breathing and talking, aren’t I?” Tabitha took another deep breath, wincing slightly as she readjusted the gauze on her neck. “I… I could feel when you stopped holding back. It was like the difference being seeing a storm outside your house, then opening a window to let it inside.”

  Kat kept playing, unsure how exactly to respond to such a statement. A few more moments passed before Tab continued.

  “It was incredible, but also kinda terrifying. I feel like I caught the tiniest glimpse of everything you’re constantly fighting to hold back. I could never fully understand, Kat, but—look, I’m trying to thank you, okay?”

  “So… we’re okay?” Kat asked nervously.

  “Cards on the table, I think I’m more scared than I was before, but I also see how hard you’re fighting to keep yourself in check.” Tab smiled, nudging Kat with her foot. “Yeah, we’re good, Fangs.”

  “I was ready to jump in if you fed too long, but you actually pulled back a bit earlier,” Alicia said, sliding closer to Kat now that Tab was holding the towel on her neck. “You did great, Kat, and I’m super proud of you.”

  A quick kiss from Alicia alleviated much of the tension in Kat’s shoulders. The three of them spent another half hour decompressing from the show, with Tab explaining that their audience was massive compared to how little advertising she did. Alicia shared her favorite moments and stressed to Kat that she’d been comfortable the whole time, even during the kissing. In the end, as the night crept ever later, the girls were forced to go their separate ways.

  In less than a day, they would be starting their descent into the Dungeon.

  "Look who it is! I've heard so much about you!"

  Tabitha? What are you doing here?

  "They said I could take a turn! Besides, most of this chapter took place in my house, so it only seems fitting, no?"

  I mean, yeah, you just caught me by surprise. Did Kat give you a song?

  "Whew, look at this place. You know, if you put up some curtains, a few pillows, this would be a great room for a cam setup. You ever consider streaming? Camming? And don't lie to me, I've got a sixth sense for these thing."

  Sure, I've thought about it, but it's not really my thing. Now, about that song...

  "Right, yeah, the music bit. She, um, gave me this note. Here you go!"

  ...Huh.

  "What?"

  This doesn't really look like something she would recommend. It also doesn't look like her handwriting, I've seen her notes before.

  "She was in a rush. Her and Alicia wanted to... y'know."

  There's also no comments about the song choice; she normally loves talking about that.

  "Right, uh, she said 'I wanted to switch things up 'cuz all that classical stuff gets kinda boring after a while. This song [expletive] rules and it's a great way to get hyped before a strea—' delve. Before a delve. She said delve."

  Uh huh. Sure she did. Well, I guess today's song is "Echo" by Outtrigger.

  "Ideally the Nightcore version, but the original is great too!"

  Really Tab? Nightcore? What year is it again?

  Tab?

  Aaand she's gone.

  Nyx <3