Biting Alaric

The next day, Vespera still hadn't left her apartment. Alaric sat outside her door for another full day, fighting exhaustion and hunger. He was determined to wait just a little longer, hoping she'd eventually come out.

Without realizing it, Alaric dozed off. Vespera called Lysander to come get him. When Lysander arrived, he found Alaric not just asleep, but burning up with fever. The poor guy had been sitting in that cold hallway for a day and a night without food or water – of course he'd gotten sick!

Lysander had some friends help carry Alaric back to the Strider house. After running some tests and hooking him up to an IV with fever medication, Alaric finally woke up, groggy and confused. "How did I get here?" he mumbled, looking around his bedroom.

Zane, playing on his phone, smirked. "Bro, you've had a high fever all night. Even if you're trying to pull the 'poor pitiful me' act, you didn't have to go this far. If you fry your brain, Vespera definitely won't want you."

Alaric groa