Life constantly begins in the Dream. Hunters die and are reborn, and echoes are channeled to improve skills so that hunters may save yet more lives. It has an unbreakable connection to each hunter, and no other place will feel like home.

The Old Workshop, too, has an irresistible draw. Isolated, safe, sheltered, comfortable. An umbilical cord, attached to the mind of each hunter, tethering them to sanity by offering a mother's haven.

It is here that the Hunter and the Doll retreat to.

The moment the fire is lit, the two are upon each other. The animalistic needs from their previous attempt have drained from them, leaving nothing but gentle affection.

In a flash, her clothes are off, and she stands by the fire, it's glow illuminating her tall, slender body. Not for the first time, the Hunter blows a breath of disbelief; disbelief that he could have someone so gorgeous to love him. The Doll walks forward and embraces him, her breasts laying against his neck and shoulders. He leans into her décolletage, breathing in her scent. It's much different from her original body's scent; instead of ink, smoke and lilac, it is instead a mixture of leather, perfume, and the indescribable, irresistible smell of woman. The Hunter breathes in deeply, his body slackening against the Doll, the bliss making it difficult to stand.

Wrapping his arms around her neck, the Hunter brings her down to his lips, eagerly slipping his tongue into her mouth. He pulls down to the ground, the tall woman toppling onto him but never once breaking the kiss. The Doll places her hands on his shoulders, pinning him to the floor as she grinds against him. After what seems like no time at all, she pulls away, a strand of drool between them. Her hands move from his shoulders to the buttons of his jacket, her long, slender fingers making quick work of it, along with the rest of his clothes.

Once the both of them are completely naked, she straddles him, leaning in to embrace him.

"Wait!" The Hunter says. "It's your first time. We should be careful. I don't want you to get hurt."

The Doll smirks. "I shall be fine. It is my first time, but this body's hundredth."

Her face twitches, and she cries out as her own fist connects with her cheek. Face twitching once more, she sucks in air through her teeth. "Vile wench," she curses.

"No matter. She is not the one with such a wonderful hunter~. Now... Where were we?"

With one quick movement, she lines up with his length and plunges down. The both of them gasp and hold on place, backs arched, mouths open. The Doll emits pleasured whimpers, curling forward to rest her head against his chest. The Hunter, seeing an opportunity, gives a quick, short thrust. The Doll goes limp, falling on top of him.

The Hunter lifts up his knees, pushing her up to rest on them. As soon as she is settled, he wastes no time thrusting into her viciously, smirking as she moans lewdly. He sits up, moving his legs so that the Doll lays on the floor. Grabbing her by the hips and lifting them, he slides his member into her again, the both of them moaning freely now.

Deep in the corner of her own mind, Maria bites her finger. Gods, it's been so long, she thinks as her thirst for sex is sated. The Pleasure runs through her just as intensely as it does for the Doll. Still, it feels off. Unearned, intrusive. The pain of seeing the lust and love he has for the Doll hurts enough to break through the haze of pleasure.

She had tried to win the Hunter, and she feels lousy for it. Could she truly blame the Doll, given her situation? She can't, but that doesn't change her feelings.

Maria had never had many friends. The Cainhurst way was of nobility and suspicion as much as it was of nostalgia and bombast. Instead of playing with dolls, young Maria had been given a needle and thread. In place of scuffles in the courtyard was passive aggression and snide remarks. Instead of living was the life of someone else, someone noble. Even after joining the hunters, her dedication to training left her with scant few friends.

Until one was literally delivered to her doorstep. One so isolated and lonely as Maria had no chance of keeping her feelings in check.

The Hunter thrusts once more, the ensuing bliss drawing her from her stupor.

'Outside' as it were, the Doll yelps, clinging to her lover for dear life. She clenches her inner walls, and the Hunter grunts in pleasure, slowing his pace to keep his peak at bay.

The Hunter pulls out, hauling her up as he stands. "Good Hunter, wha- AOH!"

He lays her on her side across the memory altar, lifting her leg up and clinging to it tightly as he pumps into her once more.

The Doll cries out again as the Hunter reaches her deepest, most intimate area. She scrunches her face up, tightening immensely. The Hunter groans, tightening his own grip as he thrusts into her even harder. In an instant, hesitation, consequences, and restraint vanish as his most primal urges take over. Millions of years of evolution cause his subconscious to take over, control removed and replaced with blind, frenzied lust.

The Doll lays on her back, leaning up slightly to embrace the Hunter. Inexperienced as she is, she can tell that they are both close to release. Mere minutes pass, feeling like both an eternity and a single second. The Doll's heart pounds in her ears, and a frightening wave of pleasure looms overhead.

The Hunter's pelvis brushes against her most sensitive of spots, and it crashes down onto her. She grips the Hunter painfully, and her legs straighten while her toes flex and curl, sreaming in pleasure all the while. Her womanhood clenches along his length, the silky fluids pouring from her easing his thrusts. Her body's encouragement pushes him over the edge, and he pumps one last time, burying his member in her to the hilt as he presses it's head against the entrance to her deepest, most sacred part.

The Hunter groans savagely, and the Doll locks her legs behind his back and pull him in deep, kissing him while they peak. The Hunter clenches, finally climaxing, filling her with his seed. Her mouth opens in a silent scream as the warmth coats her insides. She can hear blood rushing in her ears, and her mind goes numb with bliss. Her womanhood undulates along his length, drawing the last of his essence out from him. The both of them go slack, their sexes pulsing as their heavenly reward flows through their brains.

A pulse, a whisper, inhuman mutterings, and the woman gains two eyes on the inside.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Nearly a week after their first union, the two lovers lay together fervently, the Doll snatching Maria and whisking her away to the Old Workshop to use their body for lewd purposes.

On the seventh night, Maria sneaks away to Yharnam in an attempt to liberate her wild curiosity.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After hours of wandering near the edge of the city, Maria finally finds the sign she had hoped would exist.

~Iosefka's Clinic~

Maria grins. She knew that little snot would

grow up to be a fine doctor.

Pushing past the creaky gate, she climbs the bloodstained mahogany stairs, stopping at two large double doors.

Having heard her footsteps, a figure approaches the door.

"Hello?"

"Iosefka, it's me. Maria."

The doors fly open, and a beautiful young woman in a white dress flies out wrapping her arms around her. "Lady Maria!"

Maria squeezes her, ruffling her hair. "Alright, let go, ya' little brat."

Iosefka pulls back, giggling. "How? You look as if you haven't aged a day, let alone twenty years!"

"First, I need a favor..."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After a brisk walk through the square, Maria returns to find Iosefka stowing her microscope and cleaning the slide with the elder womans blood, seemingly successful in fulfilling her request. Iosefka gives her a nod, her expression unreadable.

Maria pales, a range of emotions swirling through her. "Are you certain?"

"The test leaves no room for errors. There are minute traces of human chorionic gonadotropin. I don't know how you may feel about this, Lady Maria, but the results are absolute. You are pregnant.