The hour had grown late. Dinner was as delicious as ever. Milo had taken the opportunity to cook more ginyol for Cassandra; celebrating her final night here with her favorite meal. It was a bittersweet event, as the looming truth of her imminent departure contrasted with the smiles and laughter that she and everyone else at the table shared. It was like a moment that they had all been fighting for – an evening being a true family.

And now – it was almost all over.

She wanted to relive it, but her duties pulled her closer to the window that Lia could create to her world. So much had happened in the last couple of days. She would be lying to herself if she said that part of her didn't want to stay and build a life with these people. The realm she was born in seemed so uncertain. Locwitary held the promise of prosperity when all she had ever known was despair and ruin.

There was so much to gain from this world that she found herself debating whether or not hers held anything worth fighting for. That was when she would remember that it wasn't the world – but the people.

Bela and Daniela had not been allowed to discover the truth. They died as the slaves they were programmed to be. Cassandra wanted to return so she could free them from Alcina's bindings and undo everything that Castle Dimitrescu had done over the years. If she could rescue her sisters and the servants that remained, then maybe her bloody past could be redeemed.

She may not be able to save everyone she had killed, but if she could save some, then it was a start.

Everything was happening so fast. Between the revelations Lia had shown her and the sudden breakthrough in the fawn's efforts, Cassandra hardly found time to plan how she was going to go about this. She had no idea what she would do if things went south. The science of realm-crossing was nearly non-existent. The number of possibilities of what she could be faced with seemed endless.

Would she have her powers back? Would they help given her natural vulnerability to the freezing cold that her land was known for? It was all down to a gamble as she could only hope she was dealt a good set of cards upon her return.

Leta was already in bed by the time she and Lia found themselves upstairs. The fawn had offered to walk her to her room, but their earlier conversation about Lia's crafts had taken the stage. Tomorrow was going to be a hectic day, and Cassandra anticipated that she would be leaving as soon as they returned from the festivities. With the castle quiet, this would be the last time that they could share a moment together.

Lia led the way through the darkened halls; her hand glowing a bright blue to light the way. "How was dinner?" She asked as Cassandra approached her from the right, keeping up with her deliberately slow pace.

"I'm going to miss ginyol when I return," she replied. "I'll have to search for something else comparable."

"Maybe I'll allow a few of the animals to cross into your world with you. You can raise them and farm their meat for whenever you're hungry." She shrugged her shoulder with a slight hint of amusement in the way she spoke, "But, knowing your appetite…"

With a chuckle, Cassandra turned to Lia with her eyebrows raised. "Oh! What does that mean?"

The fawn giggled back as they rounded the corner further down the narrow hall. "It means whatever you make of it."

"Well…" Cassandra returned with a sly remark of her own, "I would love to bring some fruits from my world to yours, but I fear Locwitary would know nothing of their taste…assuming you got to them first."

"You got me," she laughed, gently smacking her friend's arm as their pace slowed even more. Lia took a prolonged, yet moderately loud breath. She wanted to cut the air and retrieve the reality from their enjoyable conversation. "It's going to be so strange walking these halls once you leave. Funny, as I've spent half my life here, and you've only shared just a few days of it."

The fawn brightened the glow of her hand as the halls became increasingly dark. "How I've gotten so used to you in that short of a time…"

"You're really going to miss me?"

"Of course." Lia held a slightly somber composure, yet, she tried to sound content. She did not want to play the part of the sorrowful woman with a heart of love. She had made her interests clear to Casandra, and at this point, there was no use in enforcing them. "We all will."

"As I will miss you all." Cassandra kept her eyes down as she said that, knowing how true those words indeed were. Part of her felt selfish for wanting to leave a group of people who had done so much for her. It made her question her own ambitions, but she could not turn her back on Bela and Daniela like that. Lia and the others would understand – which they already did.

"They say the best things in our lives do not last forever," Lia stated.

"I've heard that from so many sources throughout my life."

"Then it is quite factual." Lia dimmed her glow as they neared the entrance to her room. She turned her hand around in the air and rotated the door handle with the aid of her powers. The two ladies passed through and before Cassandra knew it, she was front and center to all of Lia's creations.

True to her word – the room was filled with various works of art.

Her bed was just like Cassandra's; low to the ground with a thick fur blanket and stitched-up pillow. A wooden dresser and nightstand were close by. On top of the small table was a collection of books similar to the one she often paraded around. Across the bed was a small wooden table that was host to art supplies and paper, as well as yarn, sticks, and assorted fabrics. Elsewhere, various tables were set up that housed the many different projects that she had worked on over the years.

The layout was nothing complex, but it signified the frequent occurrence of her dabbling in such hobbies. It was a beautiful scene to look at, which made Cassandra find additional admiration for how gifted Lia was.

The fawn was an artist at heart. Her drawings and paintings were so well-done; utilizing a vast array of colors splashed across the canvas, creating blurry – yet defined – images of Locwitary and its inhabitants.

Herds of animals that Cassandra had never witnessed before, gazing upon the field as flocks of bluebirds flew in the air. Communities of what seemed to be fawns gathering and performing day-to-day tasks. Simple graphite sketches of various forms and textures; depicting models of the human form in the backdrop of a dark background.

Lia had been so reserved that she neglected to highlight her extraordinary talents. Cassandra had never seen such amazing artwork before, and she admired the fawn's skill to the fullest.

"Your drawings…they're amazing!" She exclaimed.

It provoked a shy laugh from the woman with green eyes. She covered her mouth, almost embarrassed to have to address them. "I try my best," she said, shrugging her left shoulder as she stood at the side of the door with her hands cupped together.

The smell of the room was a fresh scent, mirroring the pine aroma that often accompanied her presence. Cassandra's eyes turned to see cups of burning sticks wrapped in a cloth, coated with an odd substance. The light grey smoke that slowly arose from the embers exuded a unique smell, adding to the aesthetic of a beautiful young artist.

Lia certainly enjoyed the environment that she worked in – as she made this room hers.

"Everything in this room is," Cassandra added as she slowly approached another nearby table that displayed some of the fawn's crafts. "I've never seen anything so lovely before. All of these!"

She focused on the figures constructed from strings and sticks, which were elegantly prepared with hours to back their construction. Nothing in here appeared simple. The signs of effort were visible on every inch – detailing the devotion that her friend gave to each piece of art. The yarn strings circled the limbs and heads of certain subjects perfectly, colored with neatly applied shades of paint following the attachment process.

The brunette couldn't imagine herself having the patience to construct such items, as she would have tossed her work into the trash after a short period of frustration. Lia's fortitude shined in many ways, as it could not only be measured in her determination to meet the expectations of others. She was careful in everything she did – not taking action until she was one hundred percent confident that it was the correct move.

That explained why she had kissed her. Lia was never reckless in anything she had done. Even her worst actions were born from her beliefs that they had meaning and place. Impulse was not in her nature. Such a precise mindset spoke of a careful woman who wanted things to work out perfectly. The more Cassandra thought about it, the more she realized how much trust was put into their friendship.

Lia was a woman who juggled her standards and her wants. It seemed like the emergence of her affection for the brunette kept her on her toes at times, placing her in situations where she never had a definite answer for the outcome. It brought about a genuine part of her persona – one where her true emotions came out.

She hated to believe that Cassandra was so bloodthirsty when it came to confronting Alcina. She wanted a better woman to stand by her side, and the idea that she was not came off as heartbreaking. Alone in this room now, settling into the quiet moment that life had given them, Cassandra idled in the peace of this sobering night. The candles alit in Lia's room heightened the tranquility of the space she resided in; their vibrant orange glow was as nurturing as the blue fire she created.

Lia stood around the doorway as she watched Cassandra move about. It was like she was waiting for the brunette to ask something first, but still had so much that she wanted to say about herself. She waited until her friend became fixated on a small figurine made of twine and wood. The body was wrapped in a piece of grey fabric that was supposed to re-create a gown. The feminine figure of the six-inch tall doll mixed with the characteristics of Lia's culture gave away that this was supposed to be a fawn.

"Is this you?" Cassandra pointed at the figure, hesitant to pick it up.

"No," Lia answered as she walked up to the small table. "This is the first figure I made when I arrived here. It's my mother."

"Oh…" Cassandra's eyes lowered, knowing the tragic truth that surrounded its creation.

Breathing a sigh and lamenting about the past, Lia shrugged her shoulder and leaned her back on the table, supported by both her palms. "I know it isn't my finest of work." She parted her lips just a little as she glanced at the failed resurrection of the woman she had held so dear as a child. There was no reaching back and saving her deceased parent. Cassandra may have had another shot to change things, but the fawn would have to take life the way it was. With a hum, she turned her complete attention to the brunette as she gravitated toward one of the better things that she had left. "I'm still proud of it. Art was…never really my thing before I lived with Milo. Poils have more options than we do in that regard. I guess I just found my medium."

"I wish I could create some of the things that you have made." Cassandra looked around the room again. "You have so many talents."

"Do you think so?" Lia could feel how comfortable she was becoming around her. Cassandra's encouragement sparked the desire to kiss her again, but she held back. She had to be tame and allow the evening to be what it was. She wanted to fully embrace the way this interaction made her feel, but sadly, it was not meant to be.

"I mean…" Cassandra let out a laugh. "I always imagined that you were some prude bookworm."

Lia's eyebrows raised in a flash as she let out an entertained, if not slightly offended, smile. "Oh…what gave you that impression?" She immediately retracted her words, waving her friend off so that she did not try to answer. "Never mind, I know what you mean. Look, I don't prefer to go around telling everyone about myself. Sometimes, it's better to just keep people at a distance. It invites too many questions that I often do not want to answer."

You sound just like me. Actually, that was me.

"But, are you happy with that?" Cassandra toned down her light-hearted attitude, shifting gears to a more direct viewpoint.

"No." Lia picked up the figure of her mother. "Life was quiet, and that was enough. But…sometimes my thoughts can get too loud, and when it's just me…it's never good."

Cassandra looked on as Lia's thumb brushed against the yarn hair tied around the craft's circular head. She could see how much the fawn had always wanted to interact with others. She herself knew firsthand how crippling isolation could be. While Lia's was more voluntary, she gave off hints that she was envious of what others around her had.

You felt alone without your mother, didn't you?

"You know…" Cassandra brushed her finger along the rim of her braided locks. "I didn't mind the quiet of my castle every now and then. I had my space, but even with my sisters, I always found myself wanting more. I guess it's only natural to want to seek new people out."

Lia set the replica of her mother back down on the table. With an affirming nod, she lifted her head and gazed at the woman by her side. "Being alone does get to you after a while."

"Yeah," Cassandra replied. "It took me a whole bunch of years before I finally realized how bad it was. Took me even longer to admit to myself that I was unhappy."

"I hope that when you go back home, you find the happiness that had been taken from you."

"Thank you," she mimicked Lia's posture; resting her back against the table's edge – palms pressed against the seam of the wood. "I know what I have to do when I get there. I just don't know how I'm going to do it. Bela and Daniela need me and I must be there for them."

"I worry about Alcina." Lia recognized the seriousness of Cassandra's situation, believing that her friend was destined to clash with a tyrant of unimaginable cruelty. "Please, be careful. I don't want her to hurt you."

With a sigh, Cassandra looked ahead at the window on the other side of the room, where the nighttime sky was in full view. "As long as I play the part of the obedient daughter, she'll leave me alone. I'll act as ignorant as she expects me to be. She'd rather have an idiot under her care rather than someone who knows the truth. The only ones I need to convince are my sisters. The servants, well, I'll have to be their advocate. I did the most damage in the past, so I'll have to ensure that they stay safe. If I'm not killing, then there should be no deaths."

"Just be careful." Lia's words sounded like begging. She knew of Cassandra's weakness to the cold, evidenced by what she had observed and been told. Such a thing was open for exploitation in a land of ice. It seemed only fitting that a lady so pained by the Icey touch of winter would find friendship in a woman gifted with fire.

"I would not condemn you to a lifetime of worrying about me, Lia." Cassandra tried to lift the fawn's spirits, remaining hopeful that she would approach her mission with the right mindset.

"Worrying is the cost of friendship," Lia remarked. "I care too much about you to not."

"You're a naturally caring person."

"Such is my curse," she said with a laugh.

Cassandra turned her head to the replica of the fawn's mother. "May I?"

"Sure." Lia smiled as she handed it to her.

"What was her name?" Cassandra studied the figure, noting how similar it was to Lia – despite the overall simplicity of it. She could imagine her friend had taken many of her mother's traits.

"Lirria."

"That's a beautiful name."

"Thank you." Lia stepped away from the table, moving over to the stacks of drawings and paintings she had worked on over the years. Her hand brushed against one of the dusty papers, clearing the particles off as it swept across the top.

She picked it up, blowing the rest of the coating away with a deep breath. The image of a woman with blue wings in the sky was etched in a cross-hatched pattern; lines dashed across that mixed with the clouds around them. Below were the simplistic bodies of an older and younger woman – her and her sister.

The fawn smiled as she looked back on a drawing that had meant so much to her during those troubling years. Her imagination was the one thing that kept her together, besides the infant sister she had to raise. "She was a beautiful woman." Lia set the paper down, staring at the view of the outside world past her window. Another night further away from that day; where Locwitary pressed onward as it continued to shape its future with the dead having fulfilled their part of the cycle. "I think she would have been happy to meet you, Cassandra."

"What makes you say that?" The brunette found herself curious.

"She valued the devotion to undo one's wrongs." Lia peeked at the stars above that could be seen in the vast distance beyond the mountains. "She said she always felt that one day, Locwitary would see a bringer of carnage whose redemption was found in peace. She was a spiritual woman, and she followed the elders' stories about such prophecies. One thing about prophecies, Cassandra, is that they are only a base prediction, and we are left to discover them for ourselves."

"She believed that someone like me would arrive in Locwitary?"

Lia stood quiet for a second, as she put greater thought into the meaning of it all. "No. I don't think any fawn could have foreseen you coming here. I think you fit the description, however, and that's what makes our prophecies so interesting. She would have loved to see you filling that role, as you have grown such a kind heart, that even I wish to tell her about it when I see her again."

"Your mother raised a perfect daughter," Cassandra walked over to her and glanced at the sheet of paper she had set down, seeing the artwork of the life Lia had wanted to return to. "And you raised Leta; another perfect daughter for her. She would be so proud."

Lia kept her eyes on that decade-old sketch, wishing that she could go back in time and tell her teenage self that everything would have been alright. That she didn't need to cry and feel hopeless, as there would come a time when everything would be made right and well. Instead, she smiled with a low breath and shined her green stare at the woman who had validated everything she had hoped for in her new life. "She also would have loved you because of what you do. Locwitary needs more people like you. She believed in the better future that generations of us had hoped for. No more killing. No more pain."

The fawn rested her fingers against the drawn wings of her mother in the sky. "This world will get there someday. I can feel it."

Cassandra took the moment to reflect on all the things that she had in her head. Locwitary held such a rich history that she had yet to understand, but the fawn's hope that things were beginning to look up brought a comforting notion that the brunette was leaving at the start of a new beginning for everyone there. She wanted to do the same thing for her world, but, it was a world that she did not understand too. It seemed like changing it would be impossible. The only thing that mattered were the people inside her castle and her village – as they had always been her world.

"All it takes is a little extra good to make everyone's lives better," Cassandra quipped as she moved over to another shelf that Lia had nearby. The fawn nodded without reply as she followed her along, coming to a stop beside her as she glanced at yet another project that sat there.

"Huh?" Cassandra raised an eyebrow as she spotted a figure beside a candle that sported an uncanny resemblance to herself. She picked it up, bringing it closer to her eye as she inspected the tiny model. Wrapped in dark fabric and tied with white yarn, the shape of the item mirrored her dark robes. The head was covered with an overlap of the same cloth that formed the skirt, while the face had been neatly detailed with a deep ink – the eyes colored with a bright yellow.

They were large and round, in contrast to the mouth which was drawn small. She found it to be cute, but nonetheless, she was perplexed as to why a figure of herself was found among the others. "Is this supposed to be me?"

Lia was hesitant to answer at first. Maybe she was embarrassed, Cassandra thought. The sudden discovery of the figure would have been a good cause for such a reaction. Unwilling to lie, she rolled her lips and lowered her eyes. "Yes. I meant to have it completed before the end of tonight, as I wanted to gift it to you before you left, but I was having too much fun with you and my sister. It was to be a token of our appreciation for everything that you've done for us, and…I guess I wanted you to always remember me."

The brunette's parted lips pressed to a curve as her grin lifted up the corner of her cheek. Her chest bobbed with an involuntary giggle. The gesture was so unexpected and sweet. "I will never forget you, Lia, just as I promised." She held the figure closer to her chest as her eyes returned to the shy fawn. "But, I would gladly accept it."

Lia's eyes returned to her in an instant. It was like she was still surprised to hear such acceptance. Her stare moved to the figure in her friend's hands, while her mind considered what drove her to want to make such a thing in the first place. Her focus on it inhibited her ability to hide the slight despair on her face as she sat there, which Cassandra easily took notice of.

The brunette decided to ask the burning question, "You still wish to be with me, don't you?"

Lia's eyes quickly darted back up, but as soon as they did, she let go of trying to hide it. "You know that I do," she replied with a sigh; bringing her lips to a tired smile. "There's just something about you that I like. Something that I want that I've never had before." She laughed a little as she stewed in her conquests. "I'm sure that I will find someone else as my life goes on. I'm still young, but…ah…"

The fawn shook her head. "I don't believe that I will ever meet another person like you, Cassandra. Whoever is gifted with your heart lives a life that I envy."

She's so passionate.

"Lia, I…" Cassandra didn't know what to say.

"It's okay." Lia kept that warm smile on her face, reassuring the brunette that all was well. "I'm mature enough to understand that things are what they are. I'm still learning about myself. I can sit in this castle and read books all day, but evidently, that has not taught me the things that I needed to learn."

Her fingers found themselves against the top of the figure's head, as she reached over to admire her handiwork. "It's a rather funny thing, actually. I thought I knew myself well. Quite a peculiar last few days it has been, but, I would happily live them again – even the bad ones – because the good you bring is just so compelling."

Cassandra's lips moved but nothing came out. All she could do was listen, allowing Lia to retake hold of the small replica of herself as the fawn let her heart open on full display.

"To see someone who has pulled herself away from such hatred and violence, turning to a path of good is something that I once imagined existed only in stories." Lia rotated the craft, gazing at the face that she had painted on it. "To see a woman I hated so much finding the strength to forgive my own misdeeds made me wonder how great her capacity for love extended. I fell for her embrace as easily as I had fallen into my wrath. I never had someone hold me the way that you did, and I never held another as I have held you."

The fawn's smile broadened even further as she closed her eyes and let out a breath. "I guess some feelings that I've always kept inside me through the years came out at that very moment. Ah, such a rush of emotions that I am struggling to crawl out of, but the desire is sweet and tempting. The way that you made me feel about myself has helped me a lot."

She turned her gaze back to Cassandra. "My mother always said that love empowers us; that those who love do not seek to put the other person down, nor bid for their failure. She tried to teach me to steer away from anger, as it diminishes love's hold. I felt like I had failed my mother for a long time, but when you pulled me away from what I could have become, you brought me closer to her."

A sudden tear fell from Lia's eye. "I am always going to be thankful for that. I wish I could keep you in my life and give you all the love that I can conjure. You bring out the best in me, Cassandra, and it makes me so happy." Her voice began to shake, "Why would I ever want to part with that?"

Cassandra took her in and hugged her. The fawn wrapped her arms around the back of her neck, resting the side of her face along the brunette's cheek. A soft break of a cry flowed from her mouth as she inched closer to her. Lia knew her boundaries, but she wanted to teeter on the edge.

To be held by the woman that she cared about so fondly was too enticing. She lived in the moment, basking in the soothing nature of Cassandra's compassion.

"It's okay, Lia." She did not want her to cry, but this night was to be their final night together. A dark sky of goodbyes that would close off this brief chapter in her ever-lasting life; one in a distant world where the impossible stood a chance.

Cassandra found herself holding the woman tight. There was a way they stood together that called to her. This was a true bond between two ladies who had only shown one another a glimmer of their true selves. Lia had held so much back throughout her years, scared to come out of her shell into a world that she sometimes did not understand.

A world that she wanted to believe was kind, but one that she had seen enough of to be afraid. She was a woman who had been on the path to a pre-written life, before tragedy turned the page and blotted the ink. A bird who had grown every feather that she could, but had never learned how to fly.

The way she joined herself with Cassandra showed how she wanted the otherworldly woman to be her air. Like her friend, she hated being grounded in her walls. She needed to take flight.

She's right. Why would someone ever want to part from something that makes them happy? She's fighting a battle that she knows she will lose, but she wants me to win mine. All she does is sacrifice, over and over. She's willing to give up everything she wants in this world, just so I can hopefully succeed in mine. She calls herself selfish for wanting these things, but…she's the most selfless of them all.

Lia planted a kiss on her cheek, her hands tight against Cassandra's shoulders as she did so. Two seconds later, she pulled away, releasing another tear as she dipped her head and rested it out of view. "I'm sorry," she said close by her ear. "I know my affections scare you. I just needed that. Please, forgive me."

Cassandra knew that Lia wanted to pretend that this moment was what she wanted it to be. If the fawn could lock just a few seconds of it in her memory, then she could replay it in her mind forever. A taste of the drink that she felt she would never have. She continued to cling to her after she asked for forgiveness, still trying to bask in the final bits of their exchange.

The brunette did not say anything for a little while, nor did Lia. The two simply stayed there together, holding each other in the quiet, candle-lit room. Cassandra took the time to consider everything she had felt about their friendship, and herself. She wondered what the true reward of this bond was, and what she wanted from Lia.

She recalled the visions of her past. The puzzle pieces of an angry woman from a broken family, who had at least one friend in that village who seemed to have been there for her when darkness loomed. The images did not bring back the feelings that she must have felt inside her at the time. She only understood what she had seen – her emotions gauged by the expressions on her face and the words that passed through her lips.

The friend she had forgotten so many decades ago, but whose image she had kept in her mind after those visions were displayed to her. That was the puzzle piece that had no edges or shapes that allowed it to fit in. Something about it was strange. It seemed that even then, there was a part of herself that she did not understand.

She thought about her life in Castle Dimitrescu. There was no room for understanding in those days. All she was ever expected to do was eat, be presentable, and be obedient. Why would the middle daughter's personality hold any bearing on the woman who had stolen her? Alcina never talked about their futures. There was only the castle and the village alone. If she was to love, then it was to be the daughterly affections toward a tyrant of cruelty.

To even want someone else was as foreign as the rest of the world because her world had no room for it. As she breathed in the smell of Lia's hair, she smelled the scent of something that could never be found inside her castle.

I'm not in my castle anymore. I am not in my world. My biggest obstacle here has always been my attachment to it; thinking constantly of my return to those halls. I'm about to go back, and…and only now, I feel like I am here.

Lia removed herself from Cassandra, staring into her amber eyes with a solemn expression of contentment. She had her fill of the moment that she wanted, believing that it was wrong to take too much. "It is late, and I'm looking forward to tomorrow."

Her hands came off Cassandra's shoulders. "If you wish for me to walk you to your room, I shall. Please, take this figure with you. I feel my work on it is more than complete."

I guess it is time to leave.

"Of course," Cassandra said quietly.

With a nod, Lia waited for her to turn around before she followed her to the door. The crackling of the candle's flame was the only thing that was heard – save for the soft patters of their footsteps against the stone ground. Cassandra could see the exit growing larger as she inched closer to it.

On my way out through yet another door. What am I leaving behind?

She stopped just a foot before the door. Lia could be heard behind her, "What is it?"

Am I just giving up another part of myself?

Her thumbs rubbed along the bends of her fingers as they curled into her palms. She paused with a low breath, as if somehow, it was possible to steer herself away from what was about to happen. It was a momentary hesitation in truth – one last go-around to pretend that she did not feel the way that she did. Her legs were like cement, in contrast to the bullets that had they turned into when the chance to understand herself more had been presented.

She felt the fawn's finger tap her on the back of her shoulder when she did not respond. The indication that Lia was still there and that she was not alone was what propelled her to turn around. When she did, she saw the same woman standing behind her that she had witnessed before. The same one who had hugged her without letting go.

The one whose lips had been the first to touch her own – and inspired a tide of uncertainty that she could not accept without understanding. She had thought about it a lot since the encounter, and the unfamiliar grace of another's could not be forgotten. It drew her in, but she had worried about being swept into the ocean of her own impulses.

Now, she understood that she did not understand herself.

Cassandra said nothing as she gently, but swiftly, placed her hands on the sides of Lia's head and kissed her.

The fawn's already parted lips offered the perfect canvas for hers to paint. Cassandra's crimson seams mashed with the thin, pink borders of that intoxicating smile. Lia's mouth moved around – a mix of shock and replication. After a few seconds, she removed herself, allowing her friend a chance to breathe. Both women had their eyes wide open, and the brunette saw the fawn's green irises staring back at her. Lia slowly brought her shaking hands onto her friend's wrists; her respirations running at a fast speed.

"What…what was that?" Lia did not know what had happened, even though the action was clear as day.

"I…" Cassandra licked her lips and rolled them inwards, still processing everything that she had just committed. "I don't know."

"But, you said you –"

"I know what I said." Cassandra kept her hands around the sides of Lia's head. Her fingers shuffled around those long, wavy curls of light brown that had always captivated her. "Look, I don't know everything about myself, but what you did earlier, it got me thinking." Her left hand lowered, allowing her thumb to rub itself along the fawn's soft cheek. "I was scared because I don't understand who or what I am, but with you, I understand that I want the same things in life that you do. And, Lia, I want this. I want you."

With her lips still parted, eyes moving all over Cassandra's face, Lia gave herself only a second before temptation pulled her under. It was the calling that she had thought would never happen, but the one that dropped a lit match on top of a planet of gasoline. She immediately brought her face forward and returned to kissing her.

The two women stood tall as they wrapped their arms around each other, caressing and gripping their bodies as their lips pressed harder. Lia enjoyed the lush, juicy mouth of her friend, savoring every atom of her composition as her skin met with hers.

Cassandra fought with closed eyes to land direct hits on those small lips in front of her. She inhaled the taste of the woman's breath, coupled with the sweet scent of her skin, and the calming drift of her hair. Lia's thin body encapsulated hers, tightening around her waist and hips like a hungry python.

Time was lost as they made up for a lifetime of running away from themselves. The ladies moved away from the door and back towards Lia's bed. Anything in their way was quickly moved aside with a swipe of the fawn's hand – her powers doing her bidding for her. Cassandra sat on top of the soft mattress, while her friend took her spot on her right.

Lia did not hesitate to return to kissing her; lungs full of air to the point where she could hold out some more. Cassandra drifted her pecking to encompass the skin on her cheeks, where she trailed her hand around the back of the fawn's right ear, lowering it down to the side of her neck.

The brunette felt her companion's hand against her cheek as well. Its blue glow matched the warmth that came from it. The way she held it in place was not new. She already knew what was happening. "Lia…you don't have to."

"I just want to be sure this time," the fawn replied nervously as she scanned for the emotions that she expected to detect.

"You were right the first time."

She smiled as soon as she heard that. "I was hoping so."

"So…" Cassandra paused and breathed in. "Where does this all go?"

"That's what I was searching for." Lia bit her lip as she lowered her eyes to Cassandra's body, still concealed under that soft, grey gown she had given her. "I would be lying if I said that my wants and yours were not the same."

Yeah…I think you're right.

"So, we are going to do this, then?" Cassandra rotated her body to face Lia's as they both sat at the edge of the bed. Her willingness was only encumbered by her lack of confidence.

Lia reacted the same way; still shaky as she spoke but aware of what she wanted, nonetheless. She understood that this was new territory for both of them, as did Cassandra. "If you choose to allow it, we may."

"Do you want to?"

Lia's smile returned as she nodded in acceptance. Cassandra breathed again, nodding back.

I can't believe this is happening.

Lia offered a bit of encouragement that hoped to reduce the barriers that inhibited the brunette's potential. "I want to do this because I want my first – if not only – partner, to be you. I want you to have me."

Cassandra's voice grew shaky as well, "Yes, me too. Just you. That's all I want."

Lia's hand rose to grip the collar of Cassandra's gown, gently pulling it to the left and exposing her upper shoulder. The brunette briefly raised her hand to halt the act, but lowered it as soon as she realized it had come up. Lia opened up her hand and allowed the gown to slip from her grasp.

"Is everything alright?" She asked Cassandra.

"I'm alright, just nervous," she replied. "I've never done this before."

"Neither have I," Lia said. "I know nothing about what we are going to do." She smiled as her hand returned to the edge of Cassandra's collar. "Shall we learn together?"

With a soft voice, Cassandra's lips parted as she agreed. "Yes."

With that, Lia brought her lips back onto hers and the two found themselves locked once again in their embrace. Neither was the first to invite their tongue into the clashing of passion, as both instinctively found themselves swathing in the heat of the moment. Cassandra felt her heart raising with a melting pot of excitement and anxiousness swirling inside her chest. She could feel Lia prying at her clothing, and in return, did the same to her.

Feelings that she had never felt before brought forth anatomical responses that she had never thought possible. As her gown was removed and her nude body was allowed to breathe, she saw Lia's eyes marveling at the sight in front of her.

The woman eyed Cassandra's breasts, the dagger's scar encircled around the left. She leaned forward and pressed her hands against them, separating them so that she may kiss the closed wound. A radiating warmth was sent across the brunette's chest through the fawn's touch, leading to her raising her head toward the ceiling.

A soft moan was all she could let out.

Lia removed her cape and gown with the aid of Cassandra, who gazed at the slim body of the woman who had been the first person she met in this world. Had she only known the experiences that the two of them would share…

She had bitten into the bodies of many women throughout her days. The taste of skin was nothing that she did not know. The feeling of muscle and bone under her palms as they shaped the beautiful sculpture that was the female body was ingrained in her mind. But, it was the consent of the opposite party and the reciprocation of every act that made it all different. She had never had a woman beckon her touch, moving closer to her, just to hold her tight and ask for more.

As Cassandra crawled on top of her, she could feel the warmth of Lia's inner thighs as they molded around her hips. The edges of the fawn's feet traced against her calves, slowly moved upwards before her legs locked themselves around the brunette.

Lia kissed the woman who hovered above her. "Don't go," she spoke softly. "Please, stay with me. You have a place here."

Cassandra felt a stone grow in her heart. She knew what she needed to do back home, but this place had become a home to her. It tore her soul apart, especially in the middle of the most exciting night that she had ever had. "I can't leave my sisters behind. I need to save them. I wish everything was easier."

"I know…" Lia's sadness emerged, only for her to wash it away as she kissed her again. "Then, may I have a lifetime with you tonight?"

"All of it."

Their lips rejoined before Cassandra lowered her head and unleashed her desires upon Lia's body. It would be a timeless sequence of affection, mixed with the power of lust. There was no lull in their activities, as their interests in one another stayed at their peak. A fire whose flames did not dwindle during a windy night.

Neither was prepared for the sudden rush and release of everything that was built up inside them, only fighting to suppress their noises, should they grow too loud. The fawn's powers took to new heights as they aided in the senses that she could unlock, creating a blue aura between both their bodies. The act of the two enlightened the previously carnivorous woman to a new taste of flesh that she had never sampled – one without blood. The biting had not been limited to just her.

Their adrenaline would run until they had both found exhaustion in ecstasy. As the candle lights faded in the background during their recovery, Cassandra rested her head on Lia's pillow; the fawn lying by her side. Sleep would come soon enough, but in those final moments before she drifted off, she had never felt happier.

She had never known this kind of love.

NOTES:

Hope you all enjoyed this chapter!

This is one that I've had in my head for a while. We've been beating around the bush for quite some time, but with her time in Locwitary coming to a close, Cassandra could not allow herself to let this go. There is a lot of beauty in this, as Lia truly becomes the pathway to second chances for Cassandra. There were hints of her attraction to another woman in her past life, but after all of it has left her, she can still find love – even if in another universe.

Romance is not the focal point of this story, but this is another way Cassandra is discovering herself. She's no longer the trapped daughter that she was forced to be, and the woman that was lost has been given new life. Lia is the same way, as she has struggled with the walls she's held so high, only to allow one person to successfully climb over them. Their dynamic has been a driving force throughout this whole journey.

Where do we go from here? This is the official start of Act 3. I will not spoil what the last fifteen (or so) chapters will hold, but expect this story to subvert expectations. It's going to be one wild ride.

Follow this story on Archive of Our Own to see the beautiful art piece of Cassandra and Lia that was created for this chapter!

The next chapter will release on the 25th. Let the festivities begin…

Hope you all have been doing well since the last posting! I love reading all your comments, and I'm always trying my hardest to remember what you want as these chapters go along. You have been so awesome since the start of this story! Wishing you all a wonderful start to your summer and that life is as fair as can be! Seriously, you all are so great! Stay safe! 😊