Chapter Text
Kyana felt her wings falter, but she could stop. It would soon be day and she had heard someone utter the name of one of her soulmates. She had to hurry before the sun breached the sky. She had to hurry before she lost track of her soulmate. Kyana heard the name again and her wings felt as though they would shatter as she forced herself to be faster.
She saw a building, a home. As she flew closer she saw more, eventually leading up towards tall buildings. They weren't as tall as those "skyscrapers," but tall enough to be the sign of a city. A neighborhood on the outskirts of a small city then, that would easy enough to adjust too.
She fluttered down towards the house where the voice repeating "Dani" in a conversation spoke. She landed in the his garden, hiding in flower bushes to listen. "Dani, please pick up the phone.." The man muttered to himself, pacing across a tile floor.
Kyana knew, vaguely, what a phone was. She had seen ads as she flew and heard a million conversation too, so she didn't move from her spot in the bush. She heard a click from his phone, followed by a voice. "Finbar..? What the hell, man? It's 6 am.." Somebody on the other side of the voice questioned.
Kyana found herself immediately ecstatic, not only did this man know one of her soulmates, he was one of them. She fluttered her way onto his windowsill, trying to get a good look at Finbar.
Oh!
He was so tall! Bald! Had a slight beard! Dressed like a grandfather despite looking like he was only in his late twenties, maybe thirties. He was surrounded by magic, he was practically made of it! The magic was also untamed, following around him not due to force or intention, but fondness. Finbar being well liked by magic made Kyana feel quite happy.
"Dani, what did you do to my coffee grinder?" Finbar said through the phone to Dani, still pacing around his kitchen in frustration.
"You said it was grinding well anymore! I fixed it! And now, if you wind it, it grounds on it's own!" Dani replied, seeming quite pleased with herself.
"I'm fine with that part, that's fine! I'm upset that it now makes my coffee taste like oil, and I can't find where the oil is the clean it off!" Finbar replied, pausing by the mentioned coffee grinder and scowling at it.
"Oh.. oops." Dani said with a chuckle. "I'll come by after work and take it apart to clean it! It'll be fine! You can watch me the whole time!" Dani assured, still chuckling about something.
"Fine, fine.. but you have to wash your hands before washing the pieces and wash your hands again before putting it back together. And your tools!"
"I got it, I got it.." Dani grumbled. "Can I go back to bed now?" Dani asked.
"Yes, you can go back to bed. Sleep well, Dani." Finbar replied, and Kyana heard another click from the phone. Finbar set his phone down carefully and turned towards his sink with a sigh, only to spot Kyana on the windowsill. "Oh.. hello there.." Finbar spoke softly.
Kyana decided this would be the best way to meet him right then and there, and then she'd also avoid the sun. She bonked her head against the glass to keep his attention. Finbar slowly opened the window with one hand and grabbed a dish towel with another. "Are you hurt, sweetheart? It'll be alright. You don't look like a local bat, you must've traveled far." Finbar scooped her up with a dishtowel and wrapped her bat form in it.
Kyana let out a happy sound at him, letting herself be held gently in one hand. "Look at you.. golden little nose and white fur.. you definitely aren't local.." Finbar whispered to her. "I recognize your species.. oh, what are you doing in this country? You are far from home, little angel." Finbar cooed and Kyana decided to just sink into the towel. Maybe she didn't need to reveal herself for another few minutes.
Finbar moved quickly, pulling a small box of some kind out from under a counter and placing several clean dish towels in it with his free hand. "Here you go, little angel. Get comfy. I'm sure you're hungry." Kyana was set down in the box, and as Finbar moved to go grab something from a fruit bowl, she noticed three names in gold on his arm and one in silver.
Dani, VR-LA, and Kyana. Her own name was written like something you'd see on the formal documents of her era, was it perhaps to represent her age? Dani and VR-LA were the same as on her own arm, completely identical. The silver name was Elyse, written in a curling font, surrounded by twisting grape vines. It was quite beautifully written.
Kyana adjusted in her comfortable little towel box and watched as Finbar cut out slices of a pear. "This should be safe for your species, but it's probably sweeter than your used to." Finbar whispered, setting a bowl of pear slices down next to the box. He took one out, and held it out to her. Kyana knew this wouldn't fill her stomach, but being fed by her soulmate would certainly feed her soul, so she happily chomped down on the pear. "Oooh.. look at your little teeth, aren't you so cute?"
She finished the pear, immediately being offered a second slice by Finbar. She happily chomped down that that one too, promptly refusing the third one when Finbar offered by not biting at it. "Okay, so, now I'll have to call around to see if any place can take you.." Finbar said, turning to grab for his phone. Kyana wrestled her way out of the towel, fluttering her wings to fly off the table. "Oh.. no! No! Don't fly! I can't lose you in my house, little one!" Finbar yelped, dropping his phone and trying to grab a dish towel as Kyana promptly landed on the floor.
Kyana placed herself and wrapped her wings around her, shaking a bit before releasing the magic that allowed her to be a bat, willing herself back to her true form. With a "poof!" she turned back into a human, sitting criss cross on the floor. Finbar stared down at her wide eyed, dropping the dish towel and immediately grabbing a broom to wield like a weapon. Kyana stared up at him and blinked a few times before raising up her arms in surrender, making sure he could see the golden writing on her arm.
Finbar narrowed his eyes before slowly narrowing him broom. "Who are you?" Finbar asked, his grip still tight on his broom. Kyana decided to keep her arms up in the air.
"I'm Kyana! I'm a vampire! I'm searching for my soulmates! I heard you saying
'Dani' from miles away and rushed here in hopes it would be the same Dani! Then, she said your name! So, I'm pretty sure you're also my soulmate!" Kyana rushed her way through speaking and Finbar slowly loosened his grip on the broom.
"Why did you stay in your bat form so long, Kyana?" Finbar asked, doubt still evident in his voice.
"You were being sweet and I haven't had a pear before! I've seen em, but haven't eaten em!" Kyana declared. "I also needed a moment to comfortably leave my bat form." That wasn't necessarily a lie, form swapping was harder after a long flight.
"..I would've still given you the pear." Finbar said, slowly moving and picking up the tiny bowl of pear slices, offering it to her.
"No thanks! Human food isn't filling, and it's been long enough since I drank that I should avoid it! Also, the sun is rising, can we move to a room with curtains that actually block light?" Kyana asked, motioning to the window with cute, but see through curtains.
"Yes.., yes! You're right. We can keep talking once you are in less danger!" Finbar said, picking up his phone and leading Kyana to his living room which had dark green curtains. He pulled the curtains closed quickly. He still seemed a bit confused by the whole situation, but he at least wasn't afraid of Kyana for now. "So, uhm, Miss Kyana? Can I take a picture of your arm to send to my other soulmates?"
"Yes, of course! Check whatever you need about my arm." Kyana smiled at Finbar, careful not to flash her fangs at the man. Finbar gently took her arm, taking a photo of it with his phone and sending it as a message to three people. "Are you having them compare your name on my arm to how it is on their arms?" Kyana asked.
"Yes, I am. I'm still not quite sure if this is all real.. I'm sorry." Finbar apologied, anxiously glancing between Kyana and his phone before he got a sudden flurry of messages from the three numbers on his phone. "I have to respond to them, one moment.."
Kyana nodded and waited, letting Finbar text what were likely both their shared soulmates plus Elyse. She took a seat on his couch, watching as he paced and responded to each message. He eventually stopped as the messages slowed. "Right.. looks like you definitely are our soulmate. I'm sorry for being rude.. and almost attacking you with a broom." Finbar said, offering Kyana his hand to shake. Kyana eagerly took it and shook his hand.
"It's fine! I've received ruder greetings!" Kyana replied, still smiling without teeth.
"That's concerning." Finbar immediately replied. "I'm Finbar, as you probably already know. It's nice to meet you. VR-LA and Dani are both rushing over to meet you, according to their texts.." Finbar said sitting down next to her.
"Nice to meet you too! I can't wait to meet them! I've waited 500 years since my turning for your names to appear, y'know!" Kyana declared, seeing Finbar's eyes widen at the high number.
"500 years?" Finbar let out a whistle. "That's quite a lot.. how long were you searching for us?"
Kyana hummed in response, thinking momentarily before answering. "Well, I've wanted to meet you since your name appeared, but I wasn't allowed to leave the community of vampires I was in. When VR-LA's appeared, I was again stopped." Kyana explained. "I only managed to leave a few years after Dani appeared! So, I've been flying for over a month straight now!" Kyana declared, clapping her hands together.
"That must've been exhausting.." Finbar clearly had questions, but he also choose not to ask them. "I know vampires drink blood.. but, I don't think I can get you that. Are you thirsty? You said you haven't drunk in a while."
"I can hunt tonight, don't worry about me! I won't hurt anybody due to my thirst or anything!" Kyana responded, swinging her feet a bit.
"Hunt what exactly?" Finbar asked.
"Birds, rodents. I can get a deer if I try!" Kyana replied, and she saw a lot of tension suddenly leave Finbar.
"You can bring the bodies of anything big you find back to me. I used to hunt, so I can keep the meat from rotting out there." Finbar said, clearly more relaxed than he had been at any point prior.
Kyana couldn't hear as well outside her bat form, but she could still hear boots against stones for a moment before the front door burst open with a loud bang. "Finbar! Where is Kyana? Where is she? Where is our soulmate?" She heard Dani call, with her slamming the door behind her.
"Living room!" Finbar called, and Dani immediately began running again, bursting into the room with another loud bang of the door. Dani made direct eye contact with Kyana and froze. Dani looked like a pretty normal human woman, wearing a sleeveless sweater in the middle of summer. She had black hair with random, messy blue streaks, like somebody had pranked her in the middle of the night and couldn't finish the job.
"Hello! I'm Kyana! You are Dani, right? It's nice to meet you! I've wanted to meet you for so long!" Kyana said, smiling without her fangs showing at Dani, careful not to freak this soulmate out like she had Finbar.
Dani relaxed a bit, although it was clearly forced, and walked towards where Kyana was sitting. "Hi. I'm Dani. Just Dani." Kyana felt Dani's eyes on her arm. Kyana didn't mind, it made sense.
"Hello!" Kyana said again, watching as Dani immediately sat down next to Finbar. "I should warn you, so I don't freak you out like I did Finbar by accident. I'm a vampire!" Kyana announced all too casually.
"You're a vampire? Like the real thing?" Dani didn't seem too stressed when Kyana nodded in response. "I think one of my coworkers is one too, but nobody is sure if they are messing with us or telling the truth."
"Oh! I hope I don't end up invading their hunting grounds then.." Kyana said, immediately concerned. She didn't want to fight somebody on her first day in town.
"Mandy just buys blood online, I think." Dani said, chuckling when she saw Finbar's tense expression. "Chill, buddy, Mandy won't bite you!"
"You can buy blood? Online?" Kyana asked, tilting her head at Dani.
"Uhm, yeah? I thought that would be normal knowledge for a vampire.." Dani said, scratching the back of her heard.
"I've never been on the internet. I've only just learned about it this month.."
"What." Dani immediately replied, seeming more shocked than she had when Kyana said she was a vampire.
Right at the moment, Kyana heard footsteps walking up the stairs of the porch. The door opened and somebody walked in. "Finbar? Which room are you in?" A voice called, and Kyana immediately got excited. The last of her soulmates! VR-LA! She would finally have met them all! She'll have completed her only goal!
"We're in the living room, VR-LA!" Finbar called, and Kyana heard VR-LA stepping down the hall before entering into the living room.
"Good morning." VR-LA calmly called. VR-LA looked like a very normal human, but he also had a prosthetic on his left arm and one on his left leg. Magic swirled around his prosthetics, neat and clean, like somebody had contained it there for his use. VR-LA's eyes were a vague brown, seemingly unexpressive as he looked over at Kyana and hummed. "And, you are Kyana, right?" He asked, slowly walking across the room to where Kyana was sitting.
"Hi! I'm Kyana! It's nice to meet you!" Kyana offered her hand to shake, and VR-LA took it, giving an oddly square shake. Kyana smiled up at him, again careful to avoid showing her teeth to her human soulmates. She knew they tended to scare her prey, so they'd probably scare her soulmates at first too!
"I'm VR-LA. It's nice to meet you too. I'm glad you found us. I've tried searching for you in the past, but found nothing on somebody with your name who had my name on their arm." VR-LA said, gently letting go of Kyana's hand. "Would you be alright with me sitting next to you?"
"Yes! Go ahead!" Kyana said, watching as VR-LA carefully sat down next to her.
"VR-LA. She's never used the internet before.." Dani said, seemingly still stunned.
"Oh?" VR-LA questioned, tilting his head. "That explains why I couldn't find anything on her."
"I think the more important thing is that little miss there is a vampire.." Finbar said, patting Dani on the back.
"Yup! That's why I never used the internet! My community didn't have computers or anything!" Kyana explained, swinging her legs as she looked between all of her soulmates.
VR-LA didn't look too startled by the statement. "That's a surprise, I didn't know my final soulmate would turn out to be a vampire." VR-LA looked briefly like he had something to ask, but he kept quiet after his initial statement.
"Well, have either of you eaten breakfast yet? I can make you both something while you talk to Kyana." Finbar offered, already standing up.
"Nope, haven't eaten!" Dani declared, leaning back in her spot on the couch.
"I have not yet eaten either, but wouldn't you rather get to know Kyana too?" VR-LA asked, only to realize that perhaps his phrasing would put pressure on Finbar. "Of course, you've had the most time with her already, based on your texts."
"I'll have plenty of time to get to know her while you both eat." Finbar said, patting VR-LA on the back as he passed. "And, I got quite the scare when she appeared, so I need a moment."
"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scare you! I thought that would be a more gentle introduction!" Kyana said, looking like she genuinely felt bad. "I'm not used to human interactions.." Kyana hadn't fed in a long enough time, so her cheeks couldn't flush, but she still looked quite embarrassed.
"You scared Finbar, how'd you manage that?" Dani asked, finally pulled out of her stunned state. It was clear it was with the intention of messing with Finbar in the future.
"..I'll go make breakfast." Finbar sighed and immediately left the room, walking down the hall to the kitchen.
"How'd you scare, Finbar?" VR-LA asked the second Finbar was out of earshot.
"Well, I.." Kyana began.