Love Bite Will your mommy get mad if I give you a little love bite she giggled as she kissed me hard on my mouth and my cheeks my forehead my chin neck nose her teeth nipping everywhere cold and sharp My mommy's dead I said marveling at the glow of her death=pale cheeks searching for the sparkle of life missing from her bottomless eyes knowing that I never would and that in the end it wouldn't matter anyway I know she said and the giggle became a cackle then a jungle roar spilled from her ever-bloodier mouth and I watched the tiny drops as their garnet gleam faded as they dried and died seeping into the wrinkles of her lips I love you I said and laughed because I didn't really love her so much as I loved what she was and I panted as my blood raced at the thought of what she would help me become (first publication: Asimov's, February 1997)