Archive of Our Own ^beta

“You feeling all right, Boss?” chirped Tao as he tapped away on his digital notepad. Frankenstein made a vaguely annoyed sound from the pile of blankets he was under. It was the day after the full moon, so Frankenstein was bedbound from anemia after giving his blood to Raizel, and he was frustrated about it. Of course he didn’t regret it, and he knew he should have more patience, but he just had too much work to do to waste time lying around in bed.

“I’ll take that as a no,” said Tao, nonplussed.

“Obviously,” grumbled Frankenstein. 

“You know, I was wondering if there was a better way to do this,” continued Tao, handing his digital notepad to Frankenstein, who reluctantly emerged from his blankets to look at it. 

“Hm? Transfusing your blood to me?”

“Well, you said that we can’t give our blood to your Boss, because of some Noble stuff. But you’re an AB positive, and Takio and I are both O negative, so there’s no reason to think we can’t donate our blood to you. ”

“Hm…” Actually, Tao had a point. He’d modified his body until it was barely human, but despite all the parts of his DNA that he’d screwed with, his blood type wasn’t something he changed. He had worried that his blood was contaminated with Dark Spear, but lab tests and Raizel’s testimony showed it hadn’t. If his blood was really human, then perhaps such a simple method could work after all.

“A blood draw can be difficult to withstand, even if we do it in the lab,” warned Frankenstein. “There’s no point if I recover faster only for you two to become bedbound instead.”

“Well, it’s about sharing the burden, right? 250 mL is practically nothing, and if Takio and I both do it, we can give you a full unit of blood. That should shorten your recovery time down to an hour, and Takio and I would only need to rest for, like, thirty minutes.”

He had to admit that Tao made a pretty compelling pitch. “I suppose we can give it a try.”

“Great!” Tao took the digital notepad back from Frankenstein, typing a few more things on it before slowing down, looking up at Frankenstein. “Um, Boss, not to put my nose where it doesn’t belong, but…”

“What?” asked Frankenstein begrudgingly.

“Does the whole blood thing have to be at the full moon? Can’t you give your Boss blood once a week or something, so you’re both not as sick?”

Frankenstein sighed. “It’s kind of you to think about something like that, and I don’t think you’re wrong. We’d both probably be less sick if we did that. It’s just… it’s really difficult for Master to take blood from me. Not physically, but emotionally. He feels overcome with guilt every time. I just can’t subject him to that more often than he already has to…”

“I… I didn’t know that,” said Tao quietly. “I get it.”

“Anyway, thanks for your help, Tao,” said Frankenstein. “Your blood transfusion idea wasn’t half-bad. You can start next month.”

“Wow, thanks. Happy to help, Boss, don’t mention it.”

Frankenstein closed his eyes, pulling Raizel close and letting out a soft sound as he enjoyed the feeling of those slender fangs in his neck. The flow of blood was slow and almost listless as Raizel drank from him. He felt the soft press of Raizel’s lips against his neck, and then it was already over. Frankenstein glanced up at him, assessing his health. Unfortunately, Raizel looked about the same as ever. It was hard for Frankenstein to breathe, and not from the blood loss. Raizel had taken less blood than last time, and it wasn’t on purpose. He just… had less time left, and his body needed less energy to sustain itself…

The end was coming soon, and they all knew it. There were only a few of those Union bastards left alive, but they were the cruelest and most cunning of the bunch. Whether the household, the Earth, and Raizel would live or die would all be settled in the coming months. One way or another… everything would be over soon.

Raizel pressed his forehead against Frankenstein’s. “Thank you, love. I’m sorry. Rest well.”

“Yes, Master. Please, don’t apologize,” murmured Frankenstein.

He was too tired to think about it much longer, his mind enveloped by the familiar fog of fatigue. Raizel helped him to bed, kissing his cheek tenderly and helping settle him in with blankets. Soon there was a knock at the door, followed by Takio’s voice. “Sorry, can I come in?”

“Yes,” called Raizel.

Takio hesitantly opened the door, carrying an IV pole behind him. The blood bag was freshly taken from cold storage, hanging in place and ready to be used. “Hey, Boss and Sir Raizel. Everything’s ready.”

“Thank you, Takio.” Frankenstein felt a surge of fondness seeing his kid. They were all hardworking and persistent, always doing anything they could to help. After such a short time, it now seemed unimaginable to handle things alone. “Do you need help with the cannula?”

“I’ve got it.” Takio placed the IV with confident precision, having learned from Frankenstein earlier. Frankenstein of course didn’t flinch and hardly noticed its presence at all, but Raizel looked a bit surprised. Right, I suppose it’s a bit off-putting to watch for the first time.

“Don’t worry, Master,” Frankenstein assured him. “It’s a medical procedure that will help me feel better. You can head downstairs and I’ll be there soon.”

“You will?” asked Raizel worriedly. Raizel was used to Frankenstein needing at least a day of rest, and he was initially worried that Frankenstein was pushing himself too hard until he explained the plan that Tao and Takio had come up with. The two had prepared in advance; Frankenstein had drawn their blood yesterday morning, keeping it in storage until now. As planned, the two of them were quite healthy and hardly needed any rest before feeling like their usual selves.

“You can thank them for this,” said Frankenstein affectionately as Takio turned the dial to begin the transfusion, setting a moderate rate. Several expressions passed through Raizel’s features, surprise first, and then relief. His Master was so kind as to worry about him.

“Thank you for looking after him,” said Raizel to Takio, who turned a little pink from embarrassment. It was hard not to be embarrassed by the praise of someone you looked up to.

“It’s nothing,” said Takio modestly. “Frankenstein has done so much for us, so we just wanted to do the same.”

“Then I will leave you in his care,” said Raizel solemnly before leaving. Frankenstein leaned back and closed his eyes, trying to rest for a while. Takio opened a book and sat patiently at his bedside, keeping watch on the IV rate out of the corner of his eye. The full dose was administered by the end of the hour, and Frankenstein felt like life was being literally dripped into his veins. The transfusion cleared away all the dizziness and exhaustion, making him feel like his very essence was replenished.

He was truly grateful. His children had grown over the past year, becoming stronger not just in body but mind. They learned to care for one another and receive care in return. And their hard work gave Frankenstein and Raizel the gift of time, the most valuable one they could receive. So this was what it meant to have a family— to depend on one another and be depended on, to give support and receive it, to love and be loved.

“You should be all clear,” said Takio as he disconnected the line. “Feeling better?”

“Much better. You did a great job. Thank you,” said Frankenstein, patting Takio’s shoulder fondly, which made the young man turn pink again. 

“It’s nothing at all. I’m just glad you’re okay.”