Feral Bonds

Chapter 11

There was certainly food left over. The chef gave her a soft smile and handed her a plate piled high. Natania still found it odd that the vampire paid for a chef for his staff, but she guessed well fed feeders made better food.

Lily looked over her plate and hailed the chef for a second one. "Can you even eat?" Natania asked. She hadn't seen any of the vampires eating regular food

"I can," Lily answered, taking the plate from the chef. "It won't hurt me. But it offers the same benefits as if you were to go graze in the field like cattle."

Natania snorted, picturing a pack of wolves out to pasture. "So why the plate?"

Lily grinned at her. "Cause you can eat way more than that." She nodded at the plate Natania held.

Annoyingly, she was right. Natania finished both plates and a bit of another before her stomach finally shut up. She didn't remember ever being quite that hungry, but shrugged it off as a side effect of feeding vampires.

When she was done, Lily led her to the roof, to fulfill her previous promise of watching the stars. They settled side by side on a low sloped portion of the roof and Natania stared up at the moon, almost transfixed.

"I thought the whole moon obsession was reserved for the moon bound." Lily nudged her shoulder.

Natania laughed. The moon bound were the typical werewolves humans told stories about. Humans, bound to a wolf, with the power of a full moon. But they weren't wolves, just half beasts, half man, forced to turn into humanoid beasts every full moon. Their bite could turn others.

Natania was a beast bound, a wolf, in her case, bound to a demon. Aside from the wildcats, there were also coyote and bear versions of her kind. All similar, but ultimately having different abilities and strengths. Her species had originally been created by witches using the power of a human sacrifice, but some quirk of their nature allowed them to reproduce through regular means, so she had been born as she was.

"They don't get a monopoly on the moon," Natania argued. "Just because it doesn't give me power, doesn't mean I can't enjoy it."

"I'd probably do the same with the sun, if it wouldn't kill me," Lily admitted.

"You miss it?" Natania turned to her.

"Wouldn't you?"

Natania nodded, glancing back up at the moon for a moment, she had missed it. It had only been three months. What would it be like to be trapped in darkness for hundreds of years?

"I miss being warm," Lily continued. "Not that I feel particularly cold, mind you, but, you know what I mean. I don't generate any kind of heat." Lily sighed. "That's why we feed more than we need to. At least, that's why I do. The warmth."

Natania tilted her head, offering her neck. "My offer still stands."

"Don't," Lily said, rubbing her eyes. "I know you don't like it."

Natania snorted. "I wouldn't offer if it was that bad."

"I don-"

"Seriously, Lily. It's not a big deal." What was one more bite?

Lily clenched her teeth, but she moved so she was sitting behind Natania and dragged her into her lap. Lily was taller than her, so they fit together nicely. Natania twitched a little at the cold, but held her head still as Lily caressed the soft, unblemished skin between her neck and shoulder. Vincent's concoction had worked to remove Rigaldo's claiming mark, and the other scars he had left her. At least, the ones she could reach. She didn't want to ask the vampires for help. She'd left her battle wounds.