#taintedbloodlines // natalia & cami

[touchedbydestiny]

cont. from here (because the editor is broken) || @taintedbloodlines

          ten years? impossible. unless, of course, she somehow got frozen for the past decade but then it's unlikely that she woke up alone and still in transition. "are you sure about the date?", natalia questioned because she had never heard that it was possible to postpone a transition. it's a fixed number. 24 hours to make a decision, knowingly or unknowingly. but if the 24 hours are over and you haven't consumed any blood, then it's over for real.

          it made natalia ponder if cami truly got turned 10 years ago or if she had woken up from whatever slumber she had gotten into and then was turned. it didn't make any sense either way.

          nonetheless, the brunette quickly followed the disoriented blonde as she began walking. "i can understand that you're hungry but you have to wait until we find klaus until you can eat something. trust me, it's better that way." because if she consumes blood now (which is what her body truly craves) then the decision is final and natalia doesn't know if that's something she even wanted.

[touchedbydestiny]

            this woman didn't look good at all. almost as if she had just had some kind of breakdown. brown eyes studied the blonde attentively as she explained what was wrong. 

            "okay, first of all, focus on your breathing. inhale and exhale. try to calm down. and then try to remember the last thing you know." what @taintedbloodlines described could have many causes. perhaps it wasn't as bad as it seemed.

Cami kept taking deep breath, drawing the air into her lungs and she took stock of her surroundings. She found herself reverting to an old technique that she would have shared with her patients (5 things that you see, 4 things that you hear...). She pressed her hands against the brick of the building and forced herself to feel ever groove. She was okay, she told herself. Even if she didn't believe it.

Her eyes fluttered open at the sound of a voice. They were impossibly wide when they landed on the other woman. " --- I," she began. "...I don't know how I got here. Or even how long I've been here. My memory...it's all fuzzy..."

[touchedbydestiny]

              "i don't want to run in the opposite direction," natalia assured her although the whole scenario was truly bizarre. "it's just ... it doesn't make much sense. it would mean you've been gone for over ten years." which might be explainable if it weren't due the fact that she was in transition. and if the last thing she remembers already inclines that she had been turned, then it also wasn't anything recent.

              cami asked her a question and although it was an easy question, natalia was somehow ... uncertain. she couldn't say yes but she also felt like saying 'no' was wrong. how was that possible?

              "i don't think i know him..." natalia decided to reply before she gave an answer to the other question. "but i know that he can help you because of what you said." cami had known klaus and there was a good chance that he had known her as well. it should be up to him to deal with @taintedbloodlines in regards to supporting her transition – or not. it is no thoughtless decision.

She wasn't sure about much --- how she had come to be there in that alley, with the back of her throat burning due to thirst. But she was sure about this. The date. She nodded her head, jerking it up and down wildly. "I know how it sounds. I know..." she trailed off. "Look, I understand if you just want to run the opposite direction." She might have at one point in her life. Before she learned about the other side of things --- the darker side that had sucked her in.

That had killed her.

She took a deep breath, fighting against something that seemed so natural. She could hear heartbeats now, steady and strong, luring her in like a siren song. For a moment, she thought she would be the one who would run. She pictured it --- diving into the crowd and sinking her teeth into the nearest person.

Then she was honing in on Natalia. On her voice and how calm it was. "Right, Klaus..." She realized something. "Do you know him? Because you are so certain that he can fix this..."

[touchedbydestiny]

          it was not common for individual voices to be heard through a great flurry of voices and yet, this somehow seemed to be exactly what happened because unexpectedly, natalia picked up a voice asking for help. the brunette followed the direction from where the voice seemed to originate only to find a blonde woman who seemed … frightened? confused? overwhelmed? natalia couldn't quite tell.

          "hey," natalia approached carefully, her tone soft. "can i help you? do you need anything?" || @taintedbloodlines

( anyone want a little resurrected Cami O'Connell? )

There was a searing pain in her head and she pressed a hand to her eye as she stumbled forward. Everything was familiar, but not. Like it had all shifted slightly while she slept (little did she know just how long that sleep was; how permanent it was supposed to be). She turned the corner and found herself on Bourbon Street. The sound of those out enjoying themselves was too much and she turned, stumbling back into the darkened alley she came from.

(but how did she get there in the first place?)

She took a deep breath, leaning against the wall. "Someone help me..." A plea meant for no one in particular, just someone to ground her in her current state.

[touchedbydestiny]

            it was good that the woman followed her advice and focused on her breathing. usually, that helps when one is mixed up. it also often helped natalia. she had assumed that thinking of the last thing she remembered would soothe the blonde but somehow, that didn't seem to be the case. natalia was a bit puzzled when @taintedbloodlines stared at her arm and said that something was gone. what was gone? why was it important?

            but the more this woman said, the more pieces were put together. oh. what an unexpected turn. "hey..." natalia reached out and softly touched the stranger's shoulder. "are you sure that's what happened? sometimes people experience things that aren't real but feel real. kinda like a nightmare."

            she really hoped for this woman that she wasn't in transition of becoming a vampire. "i'm natalia, by the way. do you want me to bring you to a doctor to check you out?"

It helped to have a voice to latch onto. Something to keep her grounded. She gave herself a moment, continuing to take stock of her surroundings. She did as she was told, breathing in through her nose and out through her mouth.

Then she thought of the last thing she remembered.

With a jolt, Cami pulled up the sleeve of her shirt, expecting to see Lucien's bite marring her skin. "It's gone..." she whispered and then looked up. "I was hurt. I was on a bed and I was in so much pain. I was dying..." She frowned as the realization hit her. "I should be dead. I died."