Hours later, after everything had been done, even Cal could pick up on that heavy metallic scent that lingered. It was strange to suddenly wake up, to come into this new existence and try to get some sort of a grip on the new senses that left you feeling a bit bombarded – lights were brighter, sounds were louder, the slightest movement came at a speed he wasn’t used to and the smell… Even he could pick up that faint hint of decay in what lingered of his own blood, that slow little twinge of death that had been sinking into him since his episode in the bathroom weeks earlier. Jaida had been there when it had all finally ended, when the last of that searing pain had faded off for good – she’d looked a bit paler than usual, sitting on the side of his bed, silently offering up a bag of blood. The fridge had been stocked with every type you could get your hands on and she’d patiently warmed each one, handing it over until they found the one that appealed most to Cal and then he drank his fill. Already the lessons were beginning, as Jaida and he began discussing how he’d need to find food, how often he’d need to eat, what the best way to go about sinking his fangs into someone was… Until he had a live source, she couldn’t teach him how to listen to the heart beat slow, how to keep from inadvertently draining someone, but they had time for that. Getting him through that initial hunger period removed a large portion of the early risk; newly turned vampires could easily go into a feeding frenzy without even realizing it. Jaida wasn’t going to let him too far out of her sight for a while now – she wasn’t going to be one of those Sires that left him to fend for himself – but she needed time to recover. By the time she left Cal in Dom’s care until she’d rested, the young vamp was well-fed and calm, sitting in his darkened cell as he tried to acclimate to his new self.
He could smell someone nearing his cell, their scent different than the one that Dom carried that he’d already grown accustomed to – this one was lighter, softer, more feminine but still with a twinge of wild… It made sense once he heard Juniper’s voice, the door to his cell swinging open as she gained access to his room. Of course she would smell a bit like Dom, they were both weres after all. Rising slowly from where he’d been sitting on the edge of his bed, Cal found that it took a bit of concentration not to move too quickly to where she stood – he didn’t want to frighten her. Juniper had said she was alright with this decision, that she’d wanted him to do it, but he knew she hadn’t been completely sure of it. Becoming a vampire had been their only option, really, but it didn’t mean that she was going to respond positively to seeing him like this now. What if she didn’t want him like this? Jaida had joked that he really was meant to be a vamp, that his dark features made a striking contrast with his new, paler skin. “Jun?” He sounded the same at least, stepping closer until she was a few feet away, reaching out to lift the dimmer on the room’s lights just a bit, enough so that she could just make him out. The sudden increase made him blink owlishly for a moment, dark eyes adjusting. “It worked…” Obviously – it probably didn’t really need to be said, but… He tried a reassuring smile, tight-lipped to hide those new fangs, shifting on his feet to shove his hands into the pockets of his jeans. Jaida had made him shower and change after everything, to wash the scent of blood and death off of him. It felt odd to be up and moving, to not be out of breath or nursing an ache in his chest. Ironically enough, it felt like life.