The Vampire & Her Witch

"The villa," Samira said as she fumbled with the ring of keys, trying to find the right one to open the captive woman’s cell. "The villa under attack. I, I don’t know which ’clan’ these giants are from but they’re breaking down the gates and I don’t think Sir Cathal can do anything to stop them," she said as she pulled the iron door to the cell open at last.

"Pass me Saku and put this on," she said as she entered the cell to set the dress and cloak next to the captive woman from the Heartwood clan. "I, I don’t know if the dress will fit you, but it’s loose and baggy enough for me," she said, gesturing to her distended belly. "And it’s warm."

The dress was more than just warm. It was a breathtakingly beautiful dress made from layers of deep blue silk and trimmed with white seal fur in a way that gave the impression of cresting waves on the ocean shores.

For a moment, Noomi hesitated to touch it, reflexively flinching away from it in fear that she would stain such a beautiful garment with the filth of her unwashed body. But practicality asserted itself quickly enough as she clutched the beautiful fabric and felt greater warmth from it than almost anything she’d touched in weeks, if not months.

"You think we can escape?" Noomi said, using the cold, stone wall to support herself as she stood before passing her sleeping child over to Samira. Ever since the other woman had smuggled her a stick of firewood to carve into a weaning spoon for her infant son, she’d lowered her guard against the human she’d once called her ’lady jailor’ and by now, she didn’t feel the slightest hesitation in letting the other woman hold her son.

"We won’t be able to run fast with you like that," Noomi pointed out, gesturing to Samira’s belly. "Your child may come any day now. A month at most. Rushing about may bring him early," she warned.

"I, I know," Samira said as she wrapped Saku in a small, fur blanket against the chill in the air. It would be even colder once they were outside but at least it hadn’t started to snow yet. "I, I won’t lie to you. I think the de, er, the Eldritch people who are attacking the villa might capture us when we try to escape. If they do..."

"You want me to tell them that you’re my friend," Noomi said as she stood, wrapping the fur trimmed cloak around her shoulders and twitching her whiskers at the human she’d never thought she’d apply a word like ’friend’ to.

If Samira was right and the people attacking the villa really were from a friendly Eldritch nation that would see Noomi as one of their own rather than as another foe to defeat or prize to capture, then having a member of the Heartwood Clan claim friendship might just be enough to preserve Samira’s life.

Of course, the reverse wasn’t true at all. By letting Noomi out, Samira was taking a tremendous risk. If the humans won the battle, seeing her helping a ’demon’ to escape would likely spell her doom. Just by coming here, Samira was not only giving Noomi a chance to escape, she was gambling that it would be safer to be with Noomi and the Eldritch than remaining locked safely in her own room and hoping that the humans would win.