410- The Hungry Beast Within
POV Viktor Averwyn:
I was alert, waiting for anything wrong to intervene. But there seemed to be no ill intent there. Both Alzira and the Roma were praying for the well-being of my most precious loved ones. Part of my fear for them began to diminish.
She placed coins in Seraphine's hands and told her to squeeze them. She made a small bundle of herbs and petals, adding spices like nutmeg and garlic. She tied it with a small cord and removed the veil from her head, looking into her eyes. She said softly:
"What you have goes beyond my knowledge, beautiful Roma, beautiful she-wolf. But we are very connected to nature, and for many centuries we have learned to tame wild animals, like horses. And others. Without aggression, with magnetism, the strength of the gaze. And you have that within yours. Your she-wolf will calm down now. And soon, the final solution will come from another like me and another like him." She looked at me.
Once again, I was surprised. It was as if she knew that Aldren and Elowen were working hard to help us.
"Keep this bundle always close to you, under your clothes, by your bed, in a pocket. And squeeze it when the she-wolf grows impatient. Remind her that she must wait for her time. So that you both can be happy together."
"Thank you." Seraphine seemed shaken and returned the coins to her. She rose slowly, more herbs falling at her feet. She turned to me. "Viktor, the mark has stopped burning. I don't feel the heat inside anymore."
Emotion mixed with surprise in her voice.
Perhaps it was some mental force, but I didn't even care. Relieved, I pulled her and kissed her lips, her forehead. I looked at the witch, and she smiled.
I smiled back.
(...)
POV Seraphine Valerian:
"That cannot be true!"
My Aunt Gretel screamed on the phone, desperate, when I told her part of what had happened and that I was pregnant. I tried to be as gentle as possible, but it was no use.
"Teo, you will be cursed just like him!"
"Aunt, you don't understand..."
"These creatures are like animals! They destroy and kill without mercy! My God, my holy Sara! Your father sacrificed so much to save you, and now..."
"I am saved. If it weren't for Viktor, I would have been dead a long time ago."
"If it weren't for him, you wouldn't even be in this situation! You would have a normal life, child!" She sobbed, crying heavily. "Your life here was good, surrounded by friends, ready to inherit my shop. And now... in the middle of that sinister forest, with a beast that could kill you at any moment and eat your baby!"
Her shrieks hurt my ears, and I pulled the phone away, for my hearing seemed much sharper and I still didn't know how to handle it.
Her words hurt me, for he was not like that. Knowing that the person I considered a mother feared and hated the one I loved made me sad. And those were the feelings that unsettled me.
For three days, since we returned from the Roma village, the beast in me had quieted down. Now, I was feeling the strange internal heat again, the burning in the mark. As if anger made her want to show her face.
Nervous and fearing for my baby, I took the little bundle Alzira had given me and squeezed it between my fingers, taking deep breaths, reconciling thoughts and emotions.
"Viktor is not like that. He is fair, he protects everyone he loves."
"Fair? By ruining your life? Putting a dog inside your belly?"
"He is not a dog!" I got irritated, putting my hand to my belly, squeezing the herbs harder. "Listen to what you're saying!"
"You don't know what your future will be like, Teo. They are not like us."
"No one knows what the future will be like."
"But in your case, it's worse! It's no use, I cannot accept this," she sobbed, devastated. "I fear for you. So much! And for that innocent who will be born among beasts and become one too. Child, come back now! It's still early; I'll take you to a clinic, and you can remove this..."
"No!" Nervous, I stood up, and the creature that was creeping into my blood seemed to stir angrily inside me. My eyes burned, and I knew I needed to control myself before I lost control completely. "Never say that again, Aunt. I love Viktor, I love my daughter. She will be born healthy. I want you here with me, I want you to see with your own eyes that I have never been so happy! I understand that you don't accept it, but do not insult them. Or me."
"Ah, child... I'm just worried. So worried."
She lamented further, made it clear that I could come home whenever I wanted, until I said goodbye and hung up, missing her, understanding her side, but devastated.
I went to the window, so the breeze would ease the inner burning, the strange anger that disoriented me. With the bundle between my fingers, I said a prayer, intoned an old Romani chant of protection, which I had read in books.
Slowly, my beast stabilized, until she disappeared. Only then did I breathe, relieved.
As Alzira said, I needed to seek balance. But it would not be easy to do that for nine months, especially when my emotions became unsettled. It was as if there was another personality being born within me, much more aggressive and instinctive.
When Viktor arrived, I was calmer and did not tell him about the conversation with my aunt. Just thinking about her brought irritation and hurt, and I did everything to contain that. I also didn't want to disturb him.