Heavy rain lashed against the windows, the rhythm steady, insistent. The air was thick with the sweet scent of mountain flowers carried in through the open crack, blending with the dampness of the storm.
Ori stirred. The tapping of raindrops pulled her from the depths of sleep. Her eyelids fluttered open, and the world swam into focus, blurred at first, then sharper with each breath.
She lay in a wide bed layered with soft white sheets, the mattress cradling her like it belonged in some expensive boarding school. The air felt too clean, too fresh, carrying scents she couldn't place — the storm outside, flowers she didn't remember being near.
Her head throbbed, heavy and dizzy. She blinked slowly at the unfamiliar ceiling, her body stiff, as if she hadn't moved in days.
Suddenly out of blur and confusion Ori started to see edges of a person. She blinked a few times and image became more and more clear. At a small table there was a beautiful young woman sitting. Curly blue afro hair with a stylish buzz cut on a side. Dark skin in contrast with what looked like a terquiese glowing electric tattoo on her right cheek. She was smiling with genuine excitement wearing a kimono cut dark green dress. The woman was sitting though Ori could tell she has been waiting for her to wake for a long time.
Suddenly, out of the blur and confusion, Ori began to see the edges of a person. She blinked a few times, the haze pulling back, and the image grew sharper with each breath.
At a small table sat a beautiful young woman. Her hair was a striking blue afro, curls bouncing against a stylish buzz cut shaved neatly along one side. Her skin was warm and dark, the contrast broken only by a turquoise electric tattoo glowing faintly across her right cheek, like a current pulsing beneath the skin.
What caught Ori next were her eyes — bright red, gleaming like cut garnet in the dim light, alive with energy.
She was smiling with genuine excitement, eyes shining as though she had been waiting for this moment. A kimono-cut dress of deep green wrapped elegantly around her, loose fabric draping as she leaned forward slightly in her chair.
Though the woman was sitting, Ori could feel it — she had been waiting a long time for her to wake.
Great — here's the transition straight into dialogue, keeping the pacing smooth and Kleo's personality bright against Ori's confusion:
Though the woman was sitting, Ori could feel it — she had been waiting a long time for her to wake.
"Omg! No way!" the woman burst out, her smile widening. "My roomie is finally awake! Hey there, girl!"
Ori blinked at her, her voice rasping with sleep. "Where… where am I? I feel so… dizzy…"
"Oh, damn, I'm sorry!" the woman winced, then brightened again almost instantly. "Of course you're confused. Let me start over. Hi! My name's Kleo, and I'm your new roommate. How are you feeling?"
Ori pressed her palm against the sheets, trying to steady herself. "Hold up… roommate? What roommate? Where am I?"
"You're in our dorm room at the Veridian Academy, Snowflake," Kleo said brightly, gesturing around them as if the strange surroundings should explain everything. "You passed out a few days ago, and someone brought you here."
Ori's head snapped up, dizziness flaring. "A few days?!"
Her pulse spiked. A few days? I've been unconscious for days? What the hell did they do to me? She clutched the sheets, panic rising. Oh my God… I've been kidnapped, haven't I? Kidnapped and drugged and dragged to some creepy fake boarding school.
She forced herself upright, eyes scanning the room. It didn't look like any dorm she'd ever imagined—more like an expensive hotel suite. Tall windows stretched nearly to the ceiling, with more glass panels in the roof letting in the dim storm light. Two large beds, bookshelves stuffed with volumes and strange trinkets, a sofa and a beanbag in the corner.
It was beautiful. Comfortable. And completely unfamiliar.
"How did that even happen? And why bring me here instead of an actual hospital?!" Ori demanded.
Kleo bit her lip, expression softening. "There was… an incident. Someone attacked you. We're still trying to figure out the details, but don't worry—you're safe now."
Kleo leaned forward, her playful energy dimming just a little. Her red eyes flickered, searching Ori's face as if trying to measure how much she could handle.
"But…" she hesitated, her smile tightening at the edges, "there's something I have to tell you, Snowflake."
Her voice was still gentle, but every word seemed chosen, careful. "Just—please don't freak out, okay?"
Ori's stomach knotted. There it is. The big reveal. The part where she tells me I'm about to be sacrificed to whatever weird ritual they do here. She swallowed hard, forcing out the words. "What? What is it?"
Kleo drew in a breath, then let it out slowly, as though bracing herself. "You're not exactly the same as you were before," she said carefully. "You've been… transformed."
Ori blinked. Her laugh came out sharp, cracked at the edges. "Oh my God. Don't tell me I got kidnapped by a cult. Although wait—" the thought slammed into her mid-sentence, "cult members would never admit—or maybe even realize—they're in a cult."
Kleo leaned forward, her voice gentler now, every word measured, deliberate.
"No, no. It's nothing like that. Just hear me out… You are… a vampire now."
Ori's stomach plummeted. A rush of heat crawled up her neck, chased almost instantly by a shiver. Her skin prickled hot and cold, like her body couldn't decide which way to break.
"A vampire? Yeah, sure," she snapped, her voice rising higher than she meant. "Would you stop messing around and tell me what the hell is going on?!"
Her thoughts spun into chaos.
Shit… what if she actually does believe that? What if this is one of those weird goth teenage cults that hang out in cemeteries and do freaky stuff?
Kleo lifted both hands as though smoothing the air between them, coaxing calm.
"Please, just… breathe. I know this is hard to believe, and I don't blame you for being suspicious. But—don't you feel it? That dull ache in your teeth? The way every sound, every smell, feels too sharp?"
Ori swallowed hard, throat tight. The words struck too close. She hadn't wanted to notice. But… she did.
Ori swallowed again, the dryness in her throat scraping like sandpaper. She tried to ignore it, to push the words away, but now that Kleo had named them, the feelings refused to hide.
The ache in her teeth pulsed, a dull throb that made her jaw feel too tight. Every sound in the room pressed sharper against her ears—the steady rhythm of raindrops on the glass, the faint hum of electricity in the walls, even Kleo's breathing, quickened just enough to be noticeable.
And the smell—God, the smell. The storm outside carried in the sharp tang of wet stone, the sweetness of crushed mountain flowers, and beneath it all, something heavier, metallic, as if blood still lingered somewhere in the air.
Her hand trembled as she raised it to her lips. Slowly, cautiously, her fingertips brushed her teeth.
And then she felt them.
Not the blunt edges she had always known. Not human.
Fangs.
Sharp. Real. Unmistakable.