But Antoine was still living. He raised his hand, tried to cross a vampire... in grey like Daniel himself, his eyes looked painful and - forgiveness?! His fingers slid on the vampire's cheek in the last effort, a smile flashed on his lips, his eyes became sad and loving...
Danielle didn't dare, couldn't hope for it. Doesn't his brother blame him for his death? Couldn't he... forgive?! A bloody red tear slowly rolled down the vampire's cheek.
The fight no longer occupied him.
It was clear enough that people couldn't win. Carl alone would have been more than enough for a dozen soldiers. And there were were werewolves, and other vampires. One Lisette in close combat was worth hundreds of men.
Suddenly, Julia was next door. Her face was covered in blood. - Danielle, look out!
With one strong blow, she took down the already swinging soldier.
Danielle picked up Antoine's body.
- Who's that?
- It's my brother. Ju... I have to bury him myself so that Lisette doesn't get to...
Julia didn't have to explain. She knew, too, that Lisetta would just order the bodies to be dumped somewhere in the river. Or a ditch at all. Danielle couldn't do that to his brother.
She cleverly swung her hangman from another attacker.
- Come quickly. I got your back.
Danielle nodded and headed for the exit. Julia glimpsed near, fighting back, sometimes knocking people down with heavy blows...
Antoine was buried near the castle, behind the chapel.
It was physically painful for the vampire to approach the holy place, but for his brother he was willing to endure something different.
There, on his brother's grave, he swore he wouldn't commit suicide. Danielle thought it would be a betrayal to his memory. It was in Antoine's memory that he promised to live and paint. He kept his promise. And every painting he painted was a memory.
Then Lisette got him for leaving the battlefield. So did Julia. Antoine lay in a grave without even a cross. They had to leave the castle before the vampire hunters came.
Danielle was left to live. He traveled the world, drew, gave his paintings; then Lisette, who turned out to be Elizabeth, created her nest and called him to Russia. So began the forty years of hell.
Danielle wanted to kill himself. But each time he remembered Antoine and his death. And each time he thought, "A little more. I did so little for him. I don't want his death to be in vain."
It was a joy to meet a funny human girl. Julia. Almost like Julia once. Just as proud, just as fragile, just as shielding him from other people's evil...
Danielle wasn't making excuses. At first, he looked at her as the key to freedom. Danielle realized that thanks to her, he could free himself and travel the world again. Now he would have much more. There's so much beauty in the world that waits to be shown to people...
And then...
Then, when he put the first Seal, he somehow looked into the girl's soul. And he was gone. He was loved, and he was loved.
For the first time in his death, he wanted to live. And it didn't work out.
But it didn't work out that way.
Danielle was gone forever.
But the spark of his talent remained in Yule. If he knew his beloved even a little, she could make a fire out of it.
Then it will be possible that both he and Antoine did not leave in vain...
* * *
- Julia! Are you gonna wake up or not, you fungus?!
Valentin?
I opened my eyes and reached out. It really was Valentin. And he tried to shake me with his arms outstretched.
- Hey, what am I, a bottle of ryazhenka?
- You're worse, there was a deep conviction in the werewolf's voice.
- And if it's worse, especially with your paws off. What, you can't sleep anymore?! You bastards!
I didn't wanna wake up. What's so good about it? It's just trouble. But can you get rid of werewolves so easily?
- She is, and your dog is. Have a conscience! The guys have been driving you for half an hour, and you're still asleep.
- I had a lovely dream.
- What dream?
- Doesn't matter.
- Oh, I see. Erotic with Swordsman starring.
- That's not a guess.
- Membership or content?
I tried to kick a bad werewolf with my foot. Yeah, whizz-z-z. That cheeky guy was holding out my arms. Then he put me in the snow and bounced off.
- Have mercy, lady rat! Come, eh? My ass is freezing, and I haven't risked turning yet. I'll start waking you up in your hide, and I won't be able to hold on, I'll bite off a piece.
- I'm gonna rip my teeth out.
- Well, that's what I mean. I didn't want to take any chances. Let's go, huh?
I looked around. We were standing on the forest path. Next to it was Tanya's Sack.
- Where is everyone?
- In the glade. It's not on the road. And then, we have not only a joyful, but also a sad event today.
- What?
I don't understand anything. What is he talking about? What's sad? What's joyful?
Valentin noticed my bewilderment and was willing to make it clear:
- Today we are acquiring a new member of the pack. - Tanya unintentionally snorting. What about the baby? Well, pack, cock. It's not an appendix. - And at the same time, we have a serious tragedy today.
- What kind of tragedy? Somebody sick? Is someone hurt? What's the matter?
I wasn't asking out of curiosity - what if I could help?
- Nastia is pregnant. She's five months pregnant.
- You should be glad, I shrugged my shoulders. - What could be sad about it?
- Yes, there is. There's nothing to be happy about, - Tanya suddenly became unusually serious. - Yulia, why are werewolves contagious?
I shook my head.
- And who knows him. And why is that?
- Because there's no other way we can reproduce.
- What?
I don't understand anything. What, do they have total sterility and impotence? I don't think so. Well, then what? That it's not frigidity, that's for sure.
- Werewolves can have sex with people. And sometimes women even have children. But that happens a lot less often than usual. Let's say that if two healthy people are in the same bed, a woman can get pregnant in a month or two. And with a werewolf, it would take her at least five years to get pregnant.
- Is that always the case?
- That's the average time. Someone gets lucky in their first year, someone gets nothing in twenty years.
- That's lousy.
- It's just little things. You see, male werewolves have at least a ghostly chance of leaving their offspring behind. Although werewolf children may not inherit his abilities.
- Yeah. And then they can show up? Like the great-grandfather was a werewolf, the kids and grandchildren were lucky, and the great-granddaughter grew furry?
- Yeah, they might. It happens. And it's bad if the werewolf is a woman.
- Why would that be?
- Well, it's because. Wolf women are not frigid or sterile. But they don't have to worry about abortion, alas. You're a biologist, you know how pregnancy works.
- I do. So?
- We can't help but throw ourselves on a full moon. I mean, we're werewolves. We hold back as long as we can, but for three nights in a row, the moon rises and we become beasts in both shape and content.
Let's say I already knew that.
- So what?
- And when a woman throws herself over, she loses her child," Tanya ended quietly. - Not right away, the first months go well, but just from the fifth month and miscarriages begin.
- That sucks!
- Didn't you know?
- I wouldn't have known," I snapped at Leshka. - If I'd known, I wouldn't have asked, all right?
- Yeah, okay.
- And today, one of your girls...
- Yes. Nastia is one of the oldest foxes
in the pack. She's in her 40s.
- And today is a full moon," Lesha put in.
- And she is pregnant," added Valentin.
- Well, yes.
That's all I said. And werewolves should have problems, but nowhere else. Poor Nastia.
For some reason, I imagined this nightmare very vividly. How does it feel? To be pregnant, to bear a child - and know that you'll lose it anyway! I don't care. But then why torture yourself so much? Wouldn't it be easier to have an abortion or a spiral? That's the question I asked. Out loud.
- Because I want a baby. More than anything in the world.
The voice that said those words was a stranger to me. I looked up. What do you want? In the evening in the woods, whether you want to or not, and look under your feet, or the ground will disappear for a sweet soul. Power by force, and no one cancelled the snags yet) and looked back.
Oh, mommy! Aren't I stupid?!
I didn't even notice how we came out to the big field. There were people standing on the glade. Rows, circles, groups... It seemed like a lot of them, but I knew there were only forty-five foxes in our town. Slavka and Clara were standing separately. Next to them there was only one healthy werewolf. In my humble guess, he could make dumplings even from Schwarzenegger. And the bear could be taken down by one left.
A tall, pretty woman in old blue jeans and a T-shirt was talking to me. Dark hair shattered on her shoulders, sharp, some bird features, bright blue eyes, skinny figure, on which the stomach stands out clearly...
- Anastasia?
- Yes. And you are Julia?
- Yes. Sorry, I'm sorry to hear that. I didn't mean to hurt you, I just didn't realize we were here.
- And if I hadn't heard, could I have spoken?
- Yeah, I couldn't stand the fox's indignant look. I didn't feel guilty. - I did not know, so I consider any questions from my side quite normal.
- Oh, normal?! - Anastasia got turned on. - Normal? Normal when you lose a child? When you realize that a new life matures in you, you feel it, you rejoice at every moment - and you realize that you can't deliver a child. You'll never be able to! Because you're empty! And it's all for nothing. And time after time, hope after hope... and every time it tears you apart! Is that okay?!
She stepped even closer to me.
- Stop the hysterics! - Valentine yelled, but he's late.
Nastia grabbed my hand and yanked at me abruptly. What she wanted to do, what I would do in return, what Valentine would do - everything remained unknown.
Because as soon as she touched my skin, a wave rose between us...
power
.
It was almost like Clara, only brighter, sharper, sharper... I got caught and carried.
Sync and corrections by honeybunny
spilled out, and Nastia choked on her like an inexperienced swimmer - sea water.
And I stayed on the crest of the wave.
Sync by n17t01
picked me up and carried me.
Now I
saw .
. Not just looking at the werewolves around me, but...
I did,
what they are, have seen the strong threads binding the flock, have seen the colorful glow of the Auras and the contours of their beasts ready to appear.
And it was so interesting...
The closest thing to me was Anastasia.
And she was the most interesting.
Pregnancy, which did not paint her in human form, turned suddenly bright flash in her aura. Blue, white, golden tones. A bright glow around her abdomen. And - love mixed with despair in such a way that it is not known what was more. She didn't just want a baby. She dreamed, loved, lived that child.
A baby?
I took a closer look.
Oh...
In the area of Nastia's abdomen, you could see
two
of light spots. I didn't know anything about auras, but I did manage to distinguish one from two. There were two kids. And they were quite reasonable.
That was the moment I became a fierce opponent of abortion.
What fool said it was just clots of cells?! Cell clots are clots, they're tumors, nodules, but not children. Even now, they were two identities. They thought, felt, they were... afraid...
I saw and understood it absolutely clearly. Like a multiplication table. They were... It was a dual feel. They were warm and cozy, they knew they loved and were already loved and wanted, which is more expensive than they are, for their mother there is nobody. And at the same time, they felt her fear and fear. And they felt that something was going wrong. It's not right. And it hurt and scared them, too.
And I felt sorry for them.
Do they really have to die?
The picture of colored spots and threads suddenly jumped even closer, brighter, clearer, sharper. And clearer.
Of course, women werewolves will miscarry. If children could change with their mothers, that wouldn't happen. But they can't yet. And the fox, the wolf, the hare can't stand human cubs - in the fifth month they become too big.
There are two choices. In order not to miscarry - either the children must become werewolves in the womb, or a werewolf woman must not change at least another three months. An eight-month-old child may well survive, especially if the mother has a C-section. And then, this baby is a werewolf. These are not premature babies of alcoholics and drug addicts. You can rip a werewolf in half. If your brain and heart are intact, you'll recover.
But what can I do?
I can't just close my eyes anymore. The death of these children will be on my conscience. Because I've seen them, and I haven't tried anything. But here...
what
I can do that-- question.
Damn it, my ignorance and my inability. I come home, I hang myself in a net. And I'll get out of it without getting all my questions answered. And in the meantime...
I'm not going to change the nature of the children. Yes, I know the anatomy well, but I don't know anything about the nature of werewolves. I don't think Nastia would be happy to have Siamese twins instead of decent kids or anything worse. But cutting the werewolf's connection to the moon for this month or moving her biological clock three days ahead...
Is it possible to do that?
The silver drawing on Nastia's aura was pulsating and trembling. Flashing lights and constantly on the move. It was familiar to me. That's what I saw at Tanya and Lesha's. Is that the same thing that's responsible for the transformation?
The hell it is. But it's possible to try it!
Somewhere deep down, a woman with animal eyes was mockingly grieving.
"Do you want this? "Do you want to help her? So she can have children? Okay. You'll have to pay..."
Do I want to?
Why, do you have a choice?
I reached out my other hand and covered the stains with a piece of my aura.
Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah!
That hurt.
I feel like I've had this mess on my skin squeezed out. With red-hot iron. But I gladly watched as the silver stains covered with a piece of something foggy white, and they faded and went out to a faint grey shade.
The patch was applied firmly, conscientiously and was not going to fall off the next week. From somewhere I knew that in eight days my patch would dissolve completely in Nastia aura and leave only a short memory. Maybe a little sad. Maybe a little anger or dislike for vampires. Not for long. It'll be over in two more days. But next month, the patch will have to be updated again.
I wonder if it can be done painlessly.
The silver drawing became like a few small dots with a light brush. And it wasn't glowing anymore. And it wasn't pulsating.
Well, that's good. The kids are safe for a month now. I've said that thought to myself about four times.
And then I let myself blink and fall out of a trance into reality.
As it turns out, my ass is on wet grass.
- Your zebra!
- Julia, what's wrong
?!
Valentine was next to me first. He pulled me away from Nastia (Nastia from me?) and put me on some legs.
- Easy, decorative bear, crush the hell out of me!
- I'll crush you, not crush you. You're gonna have to explain what's going on here!
- Yes, please, - gave the voice of Nastya, which no one ever bothered to put on his feet. And why did she become so polite?
Well, she deserved a little naughtiness.
- You'd get off the grass. You'd have caught the kids early.
- Kids? What kids? But...
I was happy to see the change of expression on her face. Shock, mistrust, joy, doom...
And it wasn't until she took off the grass that she was willing to answer.
- Right. You're waiting for the twins. And in three months, you're gonna be a mom. I can't tell you the floor. I haven't figured it out myself yet.
- Are you kidding me?!
The fox was just growling. Valentine cleverly moved me behind his back. I didn't fight back, I'd rip it, and it wouldn't blink.
- Do you think I feel better?! I'm losing two kids this time! Two of them! God, why would I do that!
The wail came out so penetrating, I felt remorse. And I sighed.
- Who told you you were losing a child? And two more? You're not going to lose anyone this time.
It's working. It's like a mug of ice water on a stunned cat. Nastia stopped and shaken her head.
- What?
- That. Who told you you'd lose them? Spit in your eyes. This month you won't miscarry if you go home right now and do something peaceful. And next time, we'll do it again.
- Uh, uh, uh... uh...
No one else was capable. Neither Nastia nor the other tails. I sighed and explained - loud and clear for the most brilliant and gifted of nature:
- Werewolves lose children because they can't change during transformation. So, there are two choices. You can try to turn children into werewolves already at this stage. But it's dangerous. The body's not fully formed yet. We don't need those consequences. Or we could cut off the werewolf's connection to the moon. On this full moon. Until the next moon. It's unpleasant, but possible. It's gonna feel really nasty. Boredom, boredom, bad dreams. But there's no need to turn. That's what I did. So, Nastya, you have to get out of here before the pack starts turning around. I tried, but in some situations, the blood can still take over. So for the next three days, bed rest with Ryazanov's old comedies. Or something humorous and not angry. Soviet-era cartoons are a good fit. It's about Winnie the Pooh. Or white horses. And the kids will love it.
Ring of Madness Page 93
