“I’m special and beautiful snowflake,” she lisped in a little-girl voice, then burst out laughing at the incredulous look on his face. “Seriously? You really wanna know? You don’t just wanna try and eat me again?”
“I had no intention of eating you anyway, Miss Summers,” the vampire replied with a half-grin that turned into a wince. “I am genuinely curious. In four hundred years, I have never had such a thing happen before.”
“That’s because you ate really dumb people,” Dawn replied, stepping closer to him and into the light. She tilted her head up. “Take a closer look.”
The vampire eyed her, then bent to look at her neck. “What is it I am meant to be seeing?” he asked, then seemed to see it, judging by the whistle of a breath he blew out. “Istenem!”
“Isn’t it pretty?”
For her previous Christmas, she had persuaded Faith to take her to a tattoo parlour and together, they had got rings of crosses tattooed in barely visible, flesh-coloured ink around their throats, a permanent, indestructible barrier against the bite of all but the most masochistic of vampires.
“Very impressive,” the vampire murmured, shying back and eyeing her with a combination of interest and admiration. “When William said you were a friend of his, I wondered why. Now I can see it.”
Dawn grinned at him. “And you’re that Herbie guy, right?” She held out her empty hand for the vampire to shake. “He told me that you’d been looking after him.”
A brow arched. “Is it safe to touch any other part of you?” he inquired dryly, then motioned to his lips that were still swollen. “I would not wish to make the same mistake twice.”
Re: And the last two paragraphs of the scene:
“I had no intention of eating you anyway, Miss Summers,” the vampire replied with a half-grin that turned into a wince. “I am genuinely curious. In four hundred years, I have never had such a thing happen before.”
“That’s because you ate really dumb people,” Dawn replied, stepping closer to him and into the light. She tilted her head up. “Take a closer look.”
The vampire eyed her, then bent to look at her neck. “What is it I am meant to be seeing?” he asked, then seemed to see it, judging by the whistle of a breath he blew out. “Istenem!”
“Isn’t it pretty?”
For her previous Christmas, she had persuaded Faith to take her to a tattoo parlour and together, they had got rings of crosses tattooed in barely visible, flesh-coloured ink around their throats, a permanent, indestructible barrier against the bite of all but the most masochistic of vampires.
“Very impressive,” the vampire murmured, shying back and eyeing her with a combination of interest and admiration. “When William said you were a friend of his, I wondered why. Now I can see it.”
Dawn grinned at him. “And you’re that Herbie guy, right?” She held out her empty hand for the vampire to shake. “He told me that you’d been looking after him.”
A brow arched. “Is it safe to touch any other part of you?” he inquired dryly, then motioned to his lips that were still swollen. “I would not wish to make the same mistake twice.”