Painful Hunger

Quiet, the house is too quiet.

I opened my eyes and heard nothing. By now Aurora would have begun cooking and the house will be filled with sounds of her running around with pots and pans.

I slipped out of my bed and made my way to the kitchen, slowly and carefully. But it was empty.

"What do you think happened?" I asked Kefi.

"Like I know. I wasn't here with her."

"What's wrong? You're more cranky than usual." I walked around the house to her room.

Still not there.

Where could she be?

"Cranky? What am I, an old lady?"

"Given your age, yes."

"You're such an annoying kid."

"Better an annoying kid than a cranky grandmother. So what happened? Sleepless night?"

Kefi sighed and replied, "Something like that. You see, there are times of the month where I feel extremely groggy and tired waking up if I didn't eat the night before. Though, the medicine she gave me helped a lot with my hunger. Otherwise, I would have gone on a rampage last night."

"Rampage meaning?" I opened every door I passed, and looked in them for Aurora, still turning up short.

"Headlines will read: Ten killed, seven injured. A beast with the cravings of an animal sighted. Something like that. It has happened before and will continue to keep happening. You should appreciate me, Meraki. I am struggling so much to quell my hunger just so that it doesn't throw your plans off." She stopped and grabbed onto the curtains, wrapping them around us then dramatically leaned against the window stilt.

"Didn't Aurora give you the pills? You said that it helped." I got up and tried to untangle myself from the curtains.

"You don't know how much I'm suffering." She rested her hand against her head, back against the wall. "If you are given supplements instead of real food, sure your body will get the needed nutrients but will it really be healthy? Will it be enough? Tell me."

"I don't think so."

"See, you understand what I mean. So hurry this up. For your sake as well, I don't know how long I'll be able to control myself either. And we wouldn't want it to end this fast, now do we?"

"Fine. I'll try talking to Aurora again. Isn't that her?" I looked out the window and saw her carrying something over her shoulders as she made her way to the house.

"What is she carrying?"

I tried to run to the door but because of the curtain wrapped around me, I tripped and fell, bringing the heavy cloth down with me.

"Ouch."

"Why are you in such a hurry, Kefi?" I mumbled, rubbing my sore elbows.

"I smell blood. Oh, the beautiful aroma." She picked us up and, without bothering that we are still wrapped in the curtain, ran.

"Kefi. Wait."

"I am a creature that feeds on blood, fear and custard. I haven't smelt blood that isn't ours in so long. I really can't control myself anymore."

By the time we reached the door, Kefi was salivating and it took everything in me to take back control of my body.

"Miss! I mean, Meraki! Look who I brought. Is that the curtain?" Aurora entered the door and dropped a body on the ground.

It's a boy of about twenty years, caramel brown hair and extremely dirty. His hair covered his face just as dirt and sewage smell covered his body.

This smell threw Kefi off her urge, but it is still there and could resurface any minute.

"What is this, Aurora?" I hissed out.

"I caught him trying to enter the gate while I was out to get groceries."

"Why did you bring him here then?" I gripped the cloth on my chest and crumpled it.

"Oh, he stabbed me and I accidentally knocked him out. I didn't know what else to do so I brought him here." Aurora smiled, holding the bags of groceries.

"Stabbed?!"

"Yes. Wanna see?" She placed the bags on the floor and showed the blood-stained shirt.

Suddenly, I had more control over my body again.

"Kefi?"

"I am not going to harm an ally. You, wash up and heal yourself fast." Every word she spoke came out like it hurt to speak.

"Ok. I will was this boy up too." Aurora was gone in a flash, taking him with her.

The moment she was out of sight, I collapsed to the floor, heaving and sighing. Painful urges filled me up.

You are a creature that feeds on fear and blood. Refusing to take any will kill you. The medicine can only do so much.

Who is this other voice in my head?

"I know!" Kefi gasped, clenching her teeth. "But I can't. Not yet. Not yet."

Kefi.

"I will blackout for a few minutes, Meraki. Can you run to the room and take the medicine? Remember, you have to eat it before I wake up. Every time I wake up, I get hungrier than before."

"Ok."

"On three. One. Two. Three."

I felt Kefi's presence completely disappear and it almost me panic but there was something else I needed to do first.

I ran as fast as my legs would carry me. I lost too much time untangling myself from the curtain so I needed to hurry.

Bursting into my room, I could feel Kefi faintly.

She's starting to wake up. Where did she keep the pills again?

I looked around my room, throwing everything to the ground. But I couldn't find the pills.

Where are they?

I opened all my drawers and threw my pillow along with the covers to the floor.

Meraki?

No. Don't wake up yet.

"What's wrong, Miss? What's happening?" Aurora entered the room in a bathrobe. Her hair still dripping wet.

"Aurora, pills. I need the pills. Now." I grabbed her. Never have I heard myself sound this desperate.

Even Aurora was in shock seeing me like this, but she quickly jumped into action.

"Stay here. I still have some in my room." She ran out the door and the urges came back stronger than before.

"Meraki. You didn't eat the pill?" Kefi gasped out, falling to the floor.

"Aurora's bringing it." I too started gasping. It's getting harder to breathe.

"Miss!" Aurora burst in, alarmed.

"Aurora. Where are the pills?" Kefi shouted, her hands tearing the bed sheets on the floor.

"They're gone. I don't understand how. I kept them in my drawers. Nothing's there."

My body slumped to the ground as I let out a cry of pain. Scales appeared all over my face and arms as I buried my head in the pile of cloth on the floor.

"No way. Miss, the symbols on your back … they are rusting away."

"That would explain this. Ugh."

"Miss. I will go get another more. Wait here."

Kefi grabbed Aurora before she could go and looked at her, pleadingly, "Please, stay here. If anything happens I want you to draw that symbol."

"But, that symbol is-"

"Promise me!" I shouted, frowning at her. "I don't know the symbol, Aurora. But do as she said. Ok?"

Aurora turned her head away, she looked so much in pain watching me be like this.

"Aurora." I hissed out. "Promise."

"Yes!"

"Good." I smiled at her, this made her cry, holding onto me.

I'm sorry, Kefi. I didn't know you were going through this much pain. I should have been more observant to both you and Aurora.

Stop behaving like we are going to die. Sheesh. Too dramatic this kid. I ain't giving up just yet, so you'd better not too.

Fine. As long as there is no blood, we will be ok.

Just then a strong smell filled our nostrils and we grabbed onto Aurora tighter.

The smell was so strong, it practically suffocated us.

"Miss. What's wrong?" Aurora asked, seeing how we grabbed onto her.

"If she wants blood that much, why not give it to her?" We turned to the voice coming from the doorway and there was the boy, bleeding from his hand.

"What do you think you are doing?" Aurora shouted at him.

"Aurora." I choked out, drawing her attention again.

My legs have turned into a snake's tail, swishing around and growing longer every second that passed.

"Miss." Aurora turned back to the boy. "Get out of here! She will kill you!"

"Let her kill me! I have ingested poison, she will die with me." The boy shouted, full of spite.

"Why would you do that?"

"Her kind killed my entire village. I am just getting revenge!" He shouted cutting himself more with the knife he held.

"Stop it!"

I let out a scream and my entire body turned into a snake. Growing in size, I hissed and grabbed him with my tail. Destroying part of my room while doing so.

I couldn't think straight. I just wanted to feed. I could swallow him with one gulp. His blood smells so good. Come.

"Meraki!"

I paused as he was about to enter my mouth. I was about the size of the room so I struggled to find the source of the voice.

Aurora stared at me, hope in her eyes.

"You're not going to end like this! You still have to avenge your family or are you going to let them go free? That way they can do the same for other people?!"

"No! Eat me." The boy shouted, trying to counterattack Aurora's words.

"Your kind can't control themselves right? This much blood should be enough to drive you crazy. Why are you hesitating?" He shouted, cutting himself more.

No. Not like this. No. Kefi, you wanted to see this to the end. This isn't the end yet.

I screamed again and forced myself to turn back, dropping the boy into Aurora's arms.

Even as I turned human, the urge didn't die down so I was having a spasm on the ground.

"Miss." Aurora ran to me but I held my hand up.

"Symbol. Aurora." I chocked, as pains filled my body and I tried not to turn back.

"Miss."

"Now!"

Aurora took some of the blood from the boy's arm using a torn cloth and began drawing with it. She drew on the ground around me as fast as she could while my legs turned to tail again.

"Hurry!"

"Done!" Aurora began murmuring under her breath and the symbol slowly began to light up, burning my skin.

"Aurora," I called out to her. "Don't let him die."

In a burst of white light, I lost my consciousness. Finally, the pain is gone.

Damn, I'm exhausted.