~O~

Hungry Heart

"Alcina."

Hilda was there, leaning over her with a warm smile.

But she wasn't. It was just Alcina laying in her bedchambers alone, staring up at the ceiling as she listened to the crackling of fire nearby. Everything was colder tonight and the castle had been reduced to silence. Not even the screams of nearby maids would comfort her. Her mind was just on Sofia and what she was enduring alone. Who would she even pray to? Why would she even pray? Sofia was not a woman of faith, she knew that.

She missed the old woman's guidance. Hilda had always known the right things to say. She knew exactly how to make Alcina feel hopeful, in a way.

But even that was taken from her. Like everything else; she was simply doomed to lose the things she loved. That was her life.

Alcina called for the maids to prepare her and she made her way into her family crypt, to Hilda's coffin where the old woman had been placed. She absently ran a hand over the family crest on the coffin lid and smiled sorrowfully.

"Hilda. What must I do?" she sighed. "Where do I go from here?"

Silence, of course. Just the gentle wind outside.

"I know I must be strong," Alcina continued, quietly, "I know that I must believe Sofia will survive. I know I must be strong for my daughters. But there is only so much strength one can have before they fall apart. How? How much I find strength? God, I wish that stupid man thing hadn't killed you. I truly need your guidance, old woman."

Hilda was gone. She had to accept that. She had to move on.

But how could she? Sofia was most likely not surviving the process. Miranda was cruel to do this to her, simply to prove a point.

And Miranda didn't contact her for days to come. No news. Nothing of Sofia's progress or failure. It was more than she could bear. Her daughters had grown anxious in the passing days as well and they hunted at the edge of the village, bringing her fresh meals to help ease her mind. But none of them comforted her and she felt the dragon twisting in its cage. It wanted out. It wanted to tear into Miranda's lab and take Sofia away.

Whatever's left of her.

It was cruel, but the mocking voice in her head was right; she'd seen the results of the experiments and what could become of them.

She saw a memory in her head quickly dart in the corners of her mind; laying on the table with her own head split open, the Cadou wriggling about to be free.

No, no she couldn't think of Sofia like that.

That early morning, her phone had rang loudly, snapping her from her thoughts. She quickly reached for it, but stopped in an effort to seem less eager than she was. Her stomach felt icy, filled with the nauseating thought that Sofia was dead. That the experiment was a failure.

"Mother Miranda." she said, quietly.

O

Walking to the lab terrified her with each step.

Miranda was there with a smile on her face, but she saw no signs of Sofia. Mother Miranda looked pleased, but Alcina knew what that could mean. It wasn't always a good sign.

"Mother Miranda." Alcina said, carefully.

"You've come." Miranda chuckled. "Sofia is finished."

Alcina blinked, eyes widened in horror as she suppressed a strangled noise in her throat. Miranda grinned wider at that, amused by it. "Oh no, don't mistaken my words, Alcina," she continued. "I meant, she's ready to wake."

Alcina tried to force a laugh, but it was strained. The dragon behind the bars wanted to rip Miranda's throat out with its teeth.

"Where is she?" Alcina asked.

Miranda hummed a small note and made her way to her table covered with a blanket. A human shape rested beneath it and there were thick coils of chains that were binding something beneath it. It made Alcina's heart grow icy at the sight.

"Sofia is quite a delight. I understand your allure with her," Miranda told her. "She's been a great help to me. I couldn't have asked for a better specimen. You don't understand the wall I've constantly found myself running into. But Sofia molded to my hands. She did whatever I asked of her without resistance. Well, besides the constant screaming. But one gets used to that."

Alcina swallowed thickly. She was shaking. "May I see her?"

"Of course!"

Miranda pulled the blanket aside and Alcina nearly choked down a gasp.

Sofia was bound to the table with chains, her chest riddled with scars from the surgery - the Cadou was clearly implanted there and her flesh regenerated it quickly. Her skin looked paler, her eyes closed and her hair in messy ribbons around her head. She was barely covered in a hospital gown. Her fingers ended in solid black nails. They looked harder, nearly clawlike. Not much had physically changed, but the scent of her - the familiar warmth that always called to Alcina had been altered. It still existed, though it had traces of herself now.

"Her heart, can you hear it?" Miranda said, with a sigh of pleasure. "It's stronger than I thought. Your little pet surprises me. I expected her to die with the first cut I made."

Don't say that.

"Regeneration?" Alcina questioned.

"Rapid. Not quite so as yours," Miranda explained, with a grin, "But quick enough to suit her needs."

Alcina leaned down a little, listening closely for the thudding of Sofia's heartbeat. It was there, stronger than she'd ever heard it and faster. She wanted to be the first thing that Sofia saw when she awoke from her transformation, whatever that would be.

The slightest twitch in Sofia's fingers made Alcina's heart stop for a second; Sofia was waking up. When she finally opened her eyes, they were blood red.

Miranda watched the sight of Sofia stirring with awe; the woman seemed disoriented, her expression twisting slightly. She began to feebly tug at her restraints.

"Sofia." Alcina leaned forward, cupping her cheek with one hand. "I'm here, draga. I'm here."

She expected anything really. But she didn't expect the first thing that Sofia uttered was a gut-wrenching scream.

O

Sofia tugged violently at her restraints, her mouth opened, her teeth flashing with saliva spraying in every horrid shriek that burst from her lips. Her red eyes were wide, unhinged and starved. It was a startling change to the quiet, passive woman she had been before. But this should have been no surprise; the first awakening was always the worst of all, and she knew of the agony that Sofia was surely in. Though it was certainly a delight to Miranda, who watched with amusement as Alcina gripped Sofia's shoulders in an effort to steady her.

"Sofia, be still!" Alcina hissed, with a sharp grunt to follow.

The first change and awakening shredded through her link like a slash of her claws through flesh. The creature placed in Sofia called to hers; it recognized its mate, seeking it through the confusing twists and red haze. But it was caught in a torrent of blood and pain, struggling to free itself from the horrors of its new life.

Her scent would help bring her back and remind her of something familiar. It was the way she'd awoken to Hilda. It had to help Sofia.

A deep, terrible growl burst from Sofia's throat and her claw-like hands dug deep into Alcina's shoulders, slicing her skin and drawing blood. Alcina could endure the agony of it, but the thought that Sofia could hurt her...

Blood. The woman could make her bleed?

Miranda was grinning widely as she watched. "She draws your blood!" she exclaimed, with delight. "The creature can wound you! How delightful!"

Alcina ignored her. She simply endured the slash of pain through her head and shoulders, watching Sofia's feral, wild expression. It tore at her to see her this way.

"Draga, feel me," she breathed, her face dangerously close as she held onto Sofia's struggling form. "I will guide you through this dark."

Those teeth, sharp like knives clicked in Sofia's mouth; her angry eyes locked onto the woman holding her, nostrils fluttering. She snarled softly, leaned forward and sniffed the air around her and Alcina had remained perfectly still, knowing the slightest movement would be the end of her face. And as she knew, Sofia could make her bleed.

Of course she could.

The sounds of Sofia sniffing were the only noises in the room. Her eyes were nearly black pools, her sharp teeth bared as she studied her with the ravenous glare of a starved animal. Her claws reached up to Alcina's face, her growls softening somewhat as she wrinkled her brow, staring at her with an animal-like confusion. The sharp tips of those dangerous digits lightly scraped across Alcina's cheeks, but did not slice the skin.

Mine? the voice questioned, from somewhere through the ribbons that tied them.

"Yes, little one," Alcina breathed, with an anguished smile. "Find my voice."

Sofia blinked, hissing lowly. She continued to sniff her, look at her. "A...Al...ci...na?"

A breathless laugh exploded from Alcina's lips. She couldn't help it.

Sofia groaned, leaned her head back with a pained hiss. She tugged harder at her restraints and one chain came loose. The flesh of her arm suddenly erupted, forming a wing up to her shoulder. Miranda's eyes widened, astonished and Alcina looked just as stunned.

"Sofia!" Alcina gasped.

Sofia stared down at her winged arm in confusion, beating it a few times before she spat out viciously, the other arm erupting in the same way and shattering the chain to bits. She flapped her wings several times and her legs tore the chains before she struggled to escape.

"Sofia, stop this!" Alcina shouted, seizing her leg.

Sofia gave frightened whimpers and moved faster than either woman had ever seen before; it was like the Dimitrescu daughters moving as flies, but Sofia moved with the speed of a bullet, crashing into several shelves in the process and knocking several objects to the floor. Her wings had grown tangled into her body, but she seemed desperate to leave, almost terrified of her changes.

Once she reached the door and opened it, she was welcomed with sunlight and a piercing scream burst from her throat, loud enough to wake the dead and straighten the hairs on Alcina's head.

Smoke billowed off of Sofia's flesh and she immediately recoiled back into the shadows.

Alcina quickly made her way to her side and Miranda approached, regarding the sight of the taller woman pulling her close.

"Hmm, patient suffers from Solar Urticaria," she mused, moving to a nearby table to take notes. Random portions of her dialogue went on nearly unnoticed by Alcina. "Possesses the ability to mutate limbs for flight. Primary abilities reflect that of evasion..."

Sofia was shaking, quietly whimpering in Alcina's arms. The taller woman stared at the skin of her face that had been blistered from the sun. It was gradually beginning to fade from her natural regeneration, but her red eyes did not. She looked hungry, frightened and angry. She'd never seen such emotion on Sofia's face before.

"Don't worry, my darling..." Alcina sighed, glaring toward Miranda as the woman made her notes. "Don't worry. We'll get you home."

O

Carrying Sofia back to the castle wrapped in a blanket was the simple part.

Explaining everything to her daughters had been difficult.

Daniela had marveled over the sight of Sofia's red eyes, earning a frown from the woman. The maids had hurried to tend to her in the bath while the Dimitrescu family observed. Sofia was licking the roof of her mouth, looking around in a confused daze.

"So, she's like you now, mother?" Cassandra asked. "Like us?"

Alcina couldn't look away from Sofia. She looked utterly helpless and lost. "It would seem. Mother Miranda gave me permission to bring her home."

Miranda had wanted to perform more tests later, but had given Alcina a chance to comfort Sofia and feed her properly. She knew that it had been a way to keep her pacified for what had become of her and what she'd suffered, surely.

Daniela leaned close, studying Sofia's blank expression. "Well, we're so happy to have you here with us again." she told her. "We were all worried, you know?"

Sofia looked at her, shaking somewhat. The sharp points of her teeth glistened in the dim light of the room. "H-Hungry..."

"Of course you are," Alcina smiled at her, then to her daughter. "Bela, would you be a dear and bring her a morsel? Something fresh? She hasn't eaten anything since her transformation."

"Yes, mother." Bela nodded, immediately disappearing from the room.

Sofia looked down at her arms, mystified by the way the flesh of her wings had vanished back into them when they'd made their way back to the castle. Cassandra and Daniela had held her and she reached a shaking hand up to hold onto one of their arms. Alcina had watched with a relieved smile on her face.

Once she was properly clean, the maids dressed her in a robe and she was led out of the room by Alcina, who held her hand gently. Sofia blinked a few times, her breathing quickening as she seemed intrigued by the various smells around her. The woman had calmed considerably since returning to the castle, but her smaller form continued to tremble.

"You smell it, too?" Alcina questioned, "Your senses are awakened in ways you've never experienced, my darling. You will see things you've never seen before as a mortal."

Daniela grinned excitedly, tugging at Sofia's other arm. "We can hunt together now!"

"One thing at a time," Alcina said, smiling at her excited daughter, "She's still new to this. We must be patient with her. She must eat."

Bela was waiting in the dining hall with a fresh heart on a plate. She beamed, her mouth and hands bloody, which earned a funny look from Alcina.

"Did you get that fresh?" she questioned.

"Yes. Of course." Bela told her, grinning brightly.

"Good. A fresh heart is a good first start." Alcina looked down at Sofia, who shook, her mouth watering at the smells. "Now, darling. Take slow and steady bites. The warmth will help."

Sofia eyed the heart hesitantly.

"Don't worry. It's not one of the maidens." Bela said, with a roll of her eyes and a smile.

Sofia swallowed thickly in response.

They took seats at the table and Sofia looked down at the plate, her eyes fluttering weakly. They watched her in silence, waiting as she picked it up in two hands, squishing the muscle in her grip and studying it. It looked far too big to belong to a human. When she brought it to her mouth, the women leaned forward, watching her sharply now. Neither one of them spoke a word and waited for her.

Sofia shuddered, blinking through the haze of pain. She opened her mouth, hesitated and shook somewhat before her teeth fixed into the heart, spraying blood across her chest and face.

The sight made the women watching smile broadly, satisfied to see her finally eating. Alcina's eyes softened as Sofia ate in silence.

Good girl.

O

It felt good to hold her again.

Sofia closed her eyes, putting her arms around Alcina's shoulders, nosing her way through her raven hair as they held one another. The familiar bedchambers had been welcoming from the dark, terrible lab below. Alcina had parted her robe to run a hand across the scars on her chest. It made Sofia shiver, close her eyes as she enjoyed the feeling.

"Do you remember much?" Alcina questioned.

Sofia shook her head. "No." she admitted. "J-Just little night-m...mares."

Alcina's brow wrinkled and she sat up, taking Sofia with her. She looked down at the woman, studying the changes, feeling the link between them from the Cadou clenching. Miranda had given her a familiar one, something she knew without knowing.

"Your wings," Alcina said, "I've learned that our forms reflect what we most see ourselves as. What made you imagine them?"

Sofia chuckled now, looking down at her hands. "It's... It's..." she struggled with the words, "S-Silly."

"Draga, I have spent days without you, concerned that you would fade away. I'd very much like to understand the logic in your choice."

Sofia frowned up at her. Then, she looked down again and laughed quietly. "D-Dream of...bat." she explained. "White bat. Big and...b-beautiful."

Alcina looked confused. She tried to understand.

"Bat." Sofia sought to explain better. "You."

Alcina laughed, wrinkling her brow. "Me?"

"Yes." Sofia blushed a little. "Sounds...s-silly?"

Alcina thought about it as she brushed a hand across Sofia's cheek, cherishing her. Her gaze softened and she shook her head.

"No, little one," she eventually said, "You seem to spend more time thinking of me to save yourself." A quiet sigh. "You claimed in your letter to me that you've given me nothing in return. But you're wrong. Very wrong."

Sofia furrowed her brow.

A sigh from Alcina, as if releasing a great burden. She couldn't speak the words as of now. Not right this moment.

She pulled Sofia closer into her arms, allowing for them to appreciate the feel of each other's bodies again. Sofia nosed her way across her skin, taking in the scents of the woman before her. Those sharp nails scraped across her back and Alcina sighed again, this time with want.

The noise drew a purr from Sofia, one she'd never heard before. It tightened the cords between them again and she felt the claws scrape harder through her robes, digging into her skin. Sofia looked up at her, pupils wide, red eyes darkening.

"Can...?" she began.

Alcina smiled down at her, lips parting beautifully. "Oh, yes, darling." she breathed, her voice dripping with honey.

Sofia moved up, mouth moving against Alcina's collar before her teeth bit down. It drew a sharp, inhuman hiss from Alcina and she seized; a bolt of lightning shot straight to her core.

The ferocity from the bite aroused her and she knew why those silly maidens had felt such in an act. The sheer intensity of Sofia drinking from her made her groan thickly, arms wrapping around Sofia's smaller form to hold her tightly and pull her down to lay on top of her.

A deep, alluring groan burst from Sofia's throat as she licked her wound and Alcina's fingers cupped her backside, delighted to find her already dripping wet. A whimper escaped Sofia and she twisted her hips up to feel those fingers better.

Their breathing was loud in the room and Sofia let out an indulgent moan when two fingers slipped deep into her. She jerked her hips back into them, fucking herself on her fingers while Alcina enjoyed the sensation of her tongue lapping at her wound and chest. It was rough, and a stark contrast to what Sofia was able to endure. But she didn't seem to be having issues with what was happening; she was enjoying it, evidenced by the moans and thrusts of her hips.

Sofia uttered a sharp groan in her wound when she trembled, jerked a few more times and finished against her hand.

Alcina sat up on one hand, removing her fingers from the woman below her which earned an unhappy growl from Sofia's lips. It made her grin and laugh thickly, propping herself up on one hand and cupping Sofia's cheek with the other. The sight of her blood on her lips made her look utterly irresistible.

"Turn." she ordered. "Lay on your side."

Sofia did as she asked and laid onto her side. Alcina took one leg, adjusted herself so that she brought the woman's center up against hers. It did award her with such a lovely sight of the woman below her and Sofia gripped the sheets when she immediately set a rhythm. It wasn't as much as using her fingers, but it did rub her clit flush against the heated, soaked center of the other woman so wonderfully.

Sofia breathed her name against the sheets, her claw-like nails nearly shredding them to bits. The way it was uttered so softly, so adoringly spurred her on. To think she'd thought she would never hear such a loving voice from her again.

A low snarl rose from her lips as she gripped Sofia's ribs, rocking herself harder into her. Such roughness should have hurt her, but Sofia only uttered low, indulgent and happy noises. The way she bit her lip, taking the brute force against her and eventually opened her darkened eyes to look up at Alcina, there was no hope for her.

She finished with a deep, rich carnal growl, dipping forward after several following jerks against the smaller woman. Sofia whimpered and jerked, delighted by the sensation of her release against her. Alcina didn't wait to pull herself away, dip her head to make several passes of her tongue against her sensitive folds. Sofia squealed softly from the stimulation, earning a chuckle against her.

And she brought her over the edge again.

The entire evening spent finishing one another longer than she'd ever been capable of doing with someone human. Sofia could handle her in the bedroom without worry of being harmed by her strength alone. And Sofia offered her scratches and bite-marks of her own.

"My, oh my," Alcina breathed, kissing the back of Sofia's neck as she draped herself across the bed on her belly. "It's been quite some time since I've been worn out."

Sofia grinned up at her. "Oh?"

"Yes. Of course, I rarely get to share my bed with another immortal." Alcina said, nosing the space beneath her ear.

Sofia looked absurdly proud of herself, albeit still somewhat shy. Alcina was, in part, glad of that not changing about her. Even her speech had remained the same and she enjoyed that as well. Parts of Sofia were never meant to be changed. Those parts were hers alone and Mother Miranda had no claim to them. She wouldn't.

Alcina ran one hand across Sofia's arms, feeling for the little giveaway of her wings. She felt tense ridges of muscle beneath her wrist and little indentations of scarring.

"You will be able to fly, just as I do." Alcina assured her, with a warm smile, "Imagine it, then. To be able to soar the skies together."

"At night." Sofia pointed out, with a small note of disappointment.

"Yes, but the night is full of life and it is a world all its own." Alcina continued, with a gentle kiss to her cheek. "You will see. The sun may not be entirely lost to you. We will find ways around it. We always do, don't we?"

Sofia nodded in agreement.

Alcina sighed, scooped her up into her arms so that they could properly rest at the pillows near the headboard. Sofia lifted her arm and the flesh of her wing emerged. It earned a small laugh from Alcina as she looked up at it; she noticed little red veins and the skin appeared to be almost see-through.

Sofia looked up at her wing with a small note of curiosity. "I...I just think of fly...flying," she said, "And it...happens."

A soft smile lit Alcina's lips. She had much to learn, but she was willing to spend eternity teaching her little hummingbird.

Sofia draped her wing across Alcina's body and the taller woman felt warmth radiating from it. Sofia's body still felt hotter than humans; perhaps it was the type of Cadou that had been given to her or just their own physical escapades. Still, she drew comfort in it.

A finger stroked Sofia's cheek, cherishing her.

She closed her eyes, waiting for Sofia to vanish from her sight.

But the woman was still there. She would be for a long time. Alcina would make certain of that.

The two held one another and drifted off to sleep.