I've been wondering what would happen if Zuzana went to Karou and asked to be resurrected a chimaera. I've given this a bit of a plotline, but its mostly to satisfy my curiosity. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or rights to Daughter of Smoke and Bone. That would be too awesome.
Zuzana stomped to Karou's tent, her heels sinking into the soft rain-soaked ground. A new storm had just swept through the chimaera encampment, and with it Zuzana resolve was newly strengthened. It had been three weeks since the attack of the rogue Dominion, three weeks since Mik had died. Now, in his new body, Mik couldn't even face Zuzana. He blamed himself for needing a new body in the first place, and he was ashamed of his chimaera form. Karou had done her best to give him a body that would be similar to his old one, making it high-human and making the hands human so he could still play violin, but that's where the similarity stopped. His face, voice, and form were completely different. Karou had gifted him bat wings so he wouldn't loathe his body, but his legs were now covered in short, golden fur that resembled a lion, his feet were padded lion feet with wicked claws. His torso was covered in a smattering of golden hair as well, and his head had a wreath of reddish hair resembling a mane around it. His face was dark, his skin had completely changed to a rich brown, and his light blue eyes stood out from his face in a striking contrast. To top off his new form, he had a lion's tail, and his build was firm and well-muscled. He looked like a kind of exotic lion god, sent down among the chimaera. He could have looked almost regal if he didn't wear his skin with such disdain. Zuzana had tried a dozen different times to help him be comfortable in his new body, but he had avoided her at all costs. He spent all day helping glean the souls from Brimstone's cathedral, never stopping until Zuzana was long asleep, lost in a dream world where Mik was still hers. Zuzana needed Mik like she needed food and water. He was as essential to her survival as breathing, and now he had removed himself completely from her life. Zuzana had a crazy idea to get him back, but she would need Karou's help.
Storming into Karou's tent, Zuzana cleared her throat loudly, drawing her friend's attention away from the necklace of teeth she was stringing. Karou brushed a strand of azure hair from her face before saying "Zuz, what can I do cor you?", not taking her attention away from the teeth.
"I need you to ressurect me" Zuzana said, not bothering with niceties. Karou froze, and she slowly set down the teeth, turning around to face Zuzana. "Mik won't see me ever since he was resurrected, and i am going crazy without him. If you give me a chimaera body, he won't be ashamed of himself anymore. We can be together , I need my fiance." Zuzana could feel the tears building behind her eyes, the pain of losing Mik and the hope of getting him back were too great. Her rabid fairy attitude disappeared as she looked pleadingly at Karou. Karou let out a deep sigh. "Zuz, I would love nothing more than to reunite you and Mik. But I have to think of my people first. We lost soldiers too in the Dominion attack, not just Mik. I was selfish to ressurect Mik first. I can't waste more teeth when they aren't needed. And if I take away your human body, it will be even more difficult fo gather teeth from Earth. I have no one else I can rely on to collect teeth for me, now that Mik is no longer in human form, and I can't afford to leave and see to it personally." Karou reached out a hand to pat Zuzana's shoulder. "I'm sorry. It just can't happen yet." Zuzana jerked away from Karou's touch. She turned her back to Karou, concealing the tears that streamed down her face. "I thought you would understand, Karou. Mik and I may not be cosmically attracted too each other and crossed over two worlds and two lives to find each other, but I love him just as much as you love Akiva." Karou flinched at the mention of Akiva. She hadn't heard from him in months, ever since he left with the Stelians, and she missed him with every fiber of her being. Steeling her resolve, Karou put on her mask, blocking her pain. "I think you should leave, Zuzana." Zuzana turned back to face Karou, betrayal written on her face. She had hoped Karou would help her willingly, but she had prepared for if Karou refused. Slowly reaching up her long sleeve, Zuzana pulled out a knife. She held the blade between her hands. "You know, Karou, I had hoped to avoid this. But now, now I will have to do this the hard way." Zuzana raised the blade to her throat. "I'm sorry it came to this." With that, Zuzana slit her own throat.
Karou watched in horror as Zuzana's body fell, blood pouring from the neat cut in her throat. As her body finished its descent, Karoi sprang into action. She wouldn't have long before Zuzana's soul began to disappear. Karou searched her tent frantically for a thurible, but they were all occupied with souls from the cathedral. All the spares were being used already. "Damn you, Zuzana." Karou stopped her searching, realising she had no choice. She was not going to lose another friend. Hands shaking, Karou quickly assembled a necklece and conjured the body. Opening her senses, Karou sensed Zuzana's waiting soul. It felt wild and thrilling, like an adrenaline rush or a rollercoaster, unstoppable and untamed. Zuzana's soul was a thing of wonder. Resting the incense on the body, she lit the cone and waited expectantly. Slowly, the body in front of her began to move, the chest moving up and down as the first breath entered it. The eyes flew wide open, and it sat straight up. Karou rested her hands on the shoulders. "Zuzana?" She asked, hoping it was indeed her friend inside this new body. "Karou." Came the new voice, rough and rasping from a new throat. Karou let out a sigh of relief, then smacked Zusana across her face. "Ow!" Zuzana said, the pain sharper in her new form. "How could you do that to me, Zuzana? What if i had lost you? How could you be so selfish?!" Karou softened the blow of the words by wrapping her friend in a bone-crushing hug. "I'm sorry, Karou" Zuzana rasped," I just had to. I couldn't think of another way." Retracting herself, Karou brushed the leftover incense from her clothes. "I suppose I'll forgive you, eventually. Now go figure out your body and go find your fiance." Smiling, Zuzana stood on shaky legs. Walking slowly over to her old body, Zuzana took off the engagement ring Mik had given her from the body's finger and slipped it onto her new one. It was strange to look down at herself, covered in blood, eyes dull and wide open. "Wait." Karou said. She pressed something into Zuzana's hands. "Take a look." She said. Zuzana looked st the object. It was a handheld mirror. She raised the mirror to her face and gasped. Gazing back at her from the mirror was a completely different person. Roughly about the same size and shape of her old body, her new face was covered in pale skin, white as moon beams. Her eyes were a bright green, vibrant against her skin. Raised behind her were two feathery wings, roughly that of a n owl. Her hair had been changed to be a pale blonde, almost as light as her skin, and from the sides of her head stood two pitch black ears. Her arms were covered in black fur, reaching her hands which, while thankfully human, were covered in a layer of black fur and had wickedly sharp retractable black claws, similar to a cat's. Her torso was human, so she was thankfully high- human like Mik. Her feet were also feline, the same pitch black of her arms, and her feet were like a cat too. Also, jutting from the back of the pants Karou had given her, a furry black tail twitched. Zuzana turned to look at Karou. "You made me feline like Mik." It wasn't a question, and Karou only nodded in response. A small smile flitted across Zuzana's mouth. Testing the strength in her new body, Zuzana could feel the power in her new body. She could also tell her senses were very improved. Curious, Zuzana sniffed the air. She could smell many scents, but one stood out to smelled like Prague, like the fresh fallen snow, pure, sharp, and crisp. It also had a hint of wood to it, like Mik's violin, and undeniably warm. Following the scent, Zuzana was led to a tent on the outskirts of the camp. Ducking under the flap, she saw a muscular back facing her and a mane of red hair.
"Just leave the thuribles there, Amzalog. I'll start my shift in one minute." Mik was clearly expecting someone else. "Sorry to disappoint", Zuzana said, her voice almost a purr. Mik whipped around. Zuzana enjoyed his look of perplexity. "Um...who are you?", he asked, and Zuzana had to suppress a laugh at the sight of his confused face. "Really, Mik, I thought you would at least be able to recognize your own fiance." Saying that, Zuzana held up her left hand, flashing the engagement ring. Mik's face cleared, and paled in the same instant. "Zuzana. What have you done?" Zuzana felt a rush of fury inside her. "The only thing I could do to be with my fiance. I love you, Mik, and if that means I have to get a new body to be with you, so be it." Mik slowly stood up and walked to Zuzana. Her heart fluttered in her chest. Mik wrapped his arms around her small waist, and drew her into a bone- crushing embrace. "I love you, Zuz. I'm sorry I was such a jerk. Never again." With that, he tilted Zuzana's chin back and kissed her, pouring all his love and awr of her into that one kiss. 'This is where I belong' Zuzana thought before losing herself in the kiss.