[OOC: For anyone curious, Wolfsnächte is German for wolf nights :) ]

The trip through the portal had almost made Cassandra pass out again, not from her current state but because she had never travelled through a portal before and it hadn’t agreed with her. When she and Serafina appeared in the real world from the portal it was into a… bed chamber? Cassandra looked around the room, it was far and away what she was used to seeing, this kind of wealth. The bed was huge! She gave a small sideways glance to Serafina as the Goddess helped Cass over to the bed and set her down in it. Despite the mess that Cass was covered in, the blood and mud, and Serafina was similarly filthy, but she didn’t seem to care.

Wincing in pain Cassandra grabbed her head as the headache increased and she flopped onto her side in the fetal position. The fever started to spike and she was shivering so bad it looked like she was having a seizure, yet that chew mark on her neck was starting to heal more and more as time passed. But soon time lost any kind of meaning to Cassandra as the fever reached its peak about twenty minutes after they had arrived.

In her delirium it was clear she was in the midst of fever dreams, she was muttering in her sleep, most of it incoherent. Names did come up, mostly likely her family, and she was going through pretty much every emotion possible in that time to. An hour later and the wound was nearly fully healed. She would be out of it for a while yet as the venom changed her body, and eventually her mind.

Things became much easier when Cassandra consented to Serafina taking her somewhere safe. Her reaction to finding out who Serafina was had been better than hoped for. There was a bit of disbelief, of course, but her comment on Death reassured Serafina that she was making the right choice in choosing to help Cassandra.

Serafina had supported Cassandra and the pair made their way through the portal, finding themselves in Serafina’s personal chambers. She had figured this would be the best place for them to go to get Cassandra through her initial change, as no one could enter the chambers without Serafina’s express permission. There were several wards in place to stop this from happening. She knew they were going to get things messy in there, considering they were both covered in blood and dirt from where Serafina had found Cassandra. This did not bother her, as she would easily be able to replace any linens that were ruined in the process. She also was not worried about any furniture or items in the room being destroyed, as she could easily replace those as well.

Once they had materialized and Cassandra had a moment to orient herself, Serafina placed the injured yet healing woman on her bed. Knowing that the fever was nearing its peak, Serafina wrapped her up in several blankets and had a basin with water and a washcloth brought to her. She dampened the cloth and dabbed at Cassandra’s forehead as she fell into a feverish sleep, staying by her side the entire time.

She could hear Cassandra speaking in her sleep but couldn’t make out anything she was saying. It sounded like it could possibly be names, but she wasn’t sure. It didn’t matter right now - she could learn more about her after the transition.

Some time had passed and Serafina could see that the chills had subsided somewhat in Cassandra, and now the wound on her neck was almost fully healed. In the meantime, she had some chains brought to the room. When Cassandra awoke, they would discuss what would happen before she shifted into a wolf for the first time. Serafina would offer to chain her to the bed, and use her influence to bring forth the wolf within Cassandra before the first full moon. Bringing on the change earlier than necessary would most likely be more agonizing for her, but it would give her a head start on learning how to control herself. Sometimes, the pain would be worth knowing when it was coming rather than just waiting.

What seemed like several hours had passed, and she saw Cassandra begin to stir. She had some food and water brought to the room in case she felt like attempting to eat something before they began what was sure to be a long and arduous process. Luckily for Cassandra, there would be a lull in the agony and pain before the transformation actually began.

When she noticed Cassandra’s eyelids starting to flutter open, she spoke to her softly, hoping that she was right in assuming she would not hurt as much. ”You’re waking up, that’s a good sign… but the road before us is still long and arduous. Would you like something to eat or drink? I’m not sure how your stomach is feeling, but I had some things brought up, in case,” she said.

After giving Cassandra a moment to eat or drink something (which Serafina would bring to her if she wished), Serafina spoke again. ”If you’re ready, I could tell you the plan I have in mind,” she said. ”I don’t know exactly when it would be time, but I’ve brought the preparations for when the time does come.”

As she started to stir, eyes fluttering open, for a moment there was a look of panic on Cassandra’s face. She didn’t remember where she was for a moment, the fever dreams still clung for a moment until Serafina spoke and Cass’ eyes locked onto the Goddess, using the words spoken as an anchor to real her mind back into wakefulness. At the offer of something to drink Cassandra nodded, her throat was parched again. After Serafina handed the water to her Cassandra drank deeply saying quietly. ”I don’t feel as bad as before.” Despite it being said in a near whisper, the level of fear in those few words was palpable. If she wasn’t feeling as much pain then did that mean the change was almost finished?

It didn’t sound like it by the way that Serafina was talking of a plan if Cass was willing. The red head’s eyes darted from Serafina and around the bedroom and spotted the chains, her eyes widened slightly and flicked back to Serafina again. ”What’s you plan?” She asked carefully.

Cassandra didn’t react so she didn’t notice, but her left eyes for a moment shifted from dark brown to amber and then back again, a second later her right eyes did the same. Her breathing had settled for now, but when she inhaled it was always through her nose in a steady intake like she was scenting the air for something. It was a small hint, but it did mean that the lycanthropy was now into her mind and more pain and suffering was to come before this was all over.

Cass could only sit up in the bed and wait to hear what Serafina’s plan was, a plan that seemed to involve chains.

Serafina took it as a good sign that Cassandra wanted to drink some more water. However, she frowned a bit when the woman said she did not feel as bad as she did earlier. ”I’m afraid that’s a bit of a double-edged sword, you feeling better,” she said. ”On one hand, it means that my blood - that’s the vampiric blood in me - is doing its job coupled with the lycanthropy running through your veins now, in accelerating things,” she continued. ”On the other hand, this is what some may refer to as the calm before the storm. Things seem like they are getting better, when in reality they are going to get much, much worse.” Her words were certainly blunt, but there was a certain sympathy to her tone of voice as she spoke. She did not want to frighten Cassandra, but she certainly didn’t want to lead her astray and into a false sense of security, either.

Her face looked rather blank as Cassandra eyed the chains and asked her what her plan was. ”Ah, yes, the chains,” she began. ”Well, as the change progresses, I’m going to have to restrain you. You are going to feel as though every bone in your body is breaking… well, essentially they will be, the first time you change,” she said. ”Honestly restraining you will help keep you safe, as you won’t be free to writhe about and possibly injure yourself,” she added, trailing off at the end as she noticed the subtle change to Cassandra’s eyes. ”Also, you’ll probably try to eat me, and that would just be annoying,” she added with a laugh as she chose not to bring up the changes in her eyes as it seemed she had not noticed. It seemed as though she was attempting to lighten the mood.

Next, Serafina noticed the changes in her breathing. ”If you’d like, after the lycanthropy has fully seeded itself in your body… I can force your first change. We could have it be in a controlled environment, and it would be much safer than if you waited for it to happen on its own,” she said. ”It won’t be fun either way, but having it in a controlled environment would stop you from accidentally hurting anyone unintentionally,” she added.

Turning slightly, Sera reclined on the bed beside her. ”You know, turning into a wolf can be enjoyable once you learn how to control it. And once we get you through your first change… if you’d like, I can show you the ropes, so to speak,” she added. She knew there was a long way to go still, but giving Cassandra something to look forward to might help her, at least mentally. ”What do you think?” she asked.

”I see.” Cassandra replied looking down at her hands as Serafina explained that her feeling better would only mean that things would get bad again. She wasn’t out of this torment yet and probably would never be, at least that’s what Cassandra thought anyway. Serafina went on to explain her plan and what the chains were for, to keep Cass retrained while she was changing in order to protect herself from herself and keep from trying to eat Serafina. However, despite the Reaper’s attempt at lightening the mood a thought ran through Cass’ mind and her eyes widened again. ”I, I’ll want to eat people?!” That thought almost made her sick to her stomach and she curled into herself more.

As that passed and Serafina posed the idea of forcing the change for the first time right away, then it could be done in a controlled environment where Cass wouldn’t be able to hurt anyone. Cass nodded her head. ”That, that sounds like a good idea.” Or at least she was trusting Serafina enough to believe that what she had said was a good idea, and it did honestly sound like one. Cass could never live with herself if she killed someone while she was out of control of herself.

As Serafina reclined next to her and spoke Cassandra focus was lost on what the Reaper was saying at something new clicked in her mind. It was starting to register the heightened sense of smell, and of everything that she was able to smell in the air it was Serafina that was standing out the most. Cassandra looked back to Serafina again as she asked what Cassandra thought and Cass looked away for a moment. ”I think.” She began getting closer to Serafina as she spoke but still looked away.

Suddenly Cass moved in close to Serafina and wrapped her arms around the Goddess and pulled her close, eyes amber once more, and Cass had her face into Sera’s neck as she inhaled deeply. ”You smell like food.” She half growled and inhaled again before pulling back from Serafina, almost pushing her away, her eyes back to human again as she panted. ”I, I’m sorry.” She croaked and curled her knees back to her chin again and flopped onto her side on the bed. Maybe the chains were a great idea after all.