Fondest Dreams Ch. 05

Written by lilgirlsix and Archangel_M

Edited by Doctime

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lilgirlsix: Every chapter I fall more in love with Willi. Wish I was Zsálya. Oh wait, I am ;)

Another thank you to Doctime for his help and suggestions.

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Archangel_M: This chapter is one of those cases where I have these amazing images in my mind, and I hope that I managed to convey some part of them onto paper. Electrons. Whatever. Enjoy! ^_^

The music suggestion is "DuClare Chateau, Part 1" by Ion Storm. (That's a game studio, not a music group.) It's from the OST of the game Deus Ex. You can find it pretty easily.

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{Language Note: Hungarian dialogue is in plaintext, <and German dialogue is in carrots.> Thanks once again to Fräulein Anne for her help with the German!}

February 17, 1858

The past several weeks had been a time of joy for both Wilhelm and Zsálya. It seemed that their lovemaking became more wonderful with each passing night, and they had also enjoyed many long conversations about everything and nothing.

Amazingly, Zsálya had been almost happy in the waking world since that wonderful night. Whenever the visions became too much, she would just close her eyes and imagine Willi's arms around her, his lips upon hers. It did not diminish the horror of what she saw, but it made life bearable. Orsolya, Guillame, and her father and grandmother had all noticed Zsálya's change in attitude, and though none mentioned it to her, they all rejoiced. However, only Leona knew the true reason for Zsálya's little smiles to herself.

If Zsálya had been happy, Wilhelm had been exuberant. His reputation in the Order was as a humorless loner, unfailingly kind but rarely smiling, always buried in his books. These past few weeks his brothers and sisters in arms had been astonished to find that Wilhelm had become a whirlwind of smiles and energy, breezing through even the most thankless of tasks without the tiniest gripe. It was generally concluded that the Little Eagle (as Wilhelm was known with backhanded affection) was in love, and speculation as to who he was in love with was rampant on Thule Island. Nobody had questioned him directly, mainly because the increasingly wild guesses were excellent entertainment.

The speculation would have reached a fevered pitch if anyone had seen the new scar at the base of Wilhelm's neck. In the course of their second night of lovemaking, Zsálya had bitten Willi. Hard. While unexpected, it had not been a great shock given all that he knew about Weres. The real shock had come upon his waking, when he had found a deep, bloody bite mark in the flesh of his real body! Willi had finally concluded that, in the high emotion of the moment, his mind must have somehow made Zsálya's bite real. Though painful, it had healed well over the course of several days and left a properly shaped scar, to Zsálya's unending delight. He had not, of course, become a Werewolf, nor had they formed a mating bond. However, Willi found that he was proud to bear his kleinen Wolf's mark. A pity that his habitual high collars hid it from everyone, but he was much too busy to care about his wardrobe.

But today, a long way from Thule, Ártur had officially announced that Orsolya was pregnant. While she was overjoyed for her sister and Guillame, the news dealt a serious blow to Zsálya's newfound contentment. It was a harsh reminder of her knowledge that she would never have cubs of her own. Like all Weres, Zsálya wanted cubs more than anything, and the knowledge that she would not had been one of the heaviest weights upon her soul these many years. Though she managed to keep smiling for Orsolya's sake, Zsálya's heart physically ached as she thought about the cubs she would never bear.

She would talk to Willi about it tonight, Zsálya decided. The subject was not forbidden, after all, and he always seemed to know exactly how to make her feel better.

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Another development over the past few weeks was that Willi and Zsálya didn't bother imagining clothes for themselves anymore. They had no more need for modesty, and both were immune to the cold for different reasons. The only 'visitor' to Zsálya's dreamscape was der böse Wolf, and now he rarely lasted more than a few moments before getting daggers in his eyes.

And so it was this evening. The routine of greetings, hugs, and wolf-slaying was complete, and Zsálya was safely enfolded in Willi's arms. After a moment, she looked up at her human lover and declared: "Willi, I am troubled."

Wilhelm blinked twice. Usually getting Zsálya to speak about something bothering her was like extracting a stubborn tooth. Though this was a surprise, he was very gratified at the trust it implied. "Troubled by what, mein kleiner Wolf?" he asked, stroking her long black hair.

"Orsolya is definitely pregnant. My father announced it to the pack today."

"Congratulations! I am happy for your family."

"Thank you."

"So, why is this troubling? I thought cubs were a cause for rejoicing, especially for an alpha's daughter."

"Yes, but..." Zsálya shook her head. "Oh, Willi! I want to have cubs too!" she confessed in a rush, wrapping her slim arms even more tightly around his firm body. "To know that I never will... it hurts, very badly."

Willi reacted automatically to Zsálya's tone, gathering her into his arms and cradling her against his chest. "You are still adamant about not finding a mate," he observed quietly.

Zsálya nodded, silent tears leaking from her closed eyes.

"I wish you would tell me why you believe this," Willi remarked, not expecting an answer. "Anyhow, I would offer to, ah, help... but that would not work in a dream," he continued, his tone playful.

Zsálya giggled despite herself. "You would be a wonderful father," she murmured. "But no, it would not work, even in the waking world."

Willi kissed Zsálya's temple and rested his cheek against hers. "You will have cubs, meine Liebe," he whispered. "Not in this life, perhaps, but in your next."

"What do you mean?"

"As I recall, Weres believe in reincarnation, ja?" Zsálya nodded. "Well then," Willi continued, "you will have another life once this one is over. And even if you are somehow cursed in this life—which I do not believe, incidentally—then I very much doubt you will also be cursed in your next life."

Zsálya started in his arms; that thought had not occurred to her before. Perhaps, in her next life, she would find her mate and bear him cubs. The thought warmed her heart, and she hugged Willi tightly. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Bitte," he replied with a laugh. "Now then, I have a surprise for you!" he told her, setting her lightly back on her feet.

"Really?" Zsálya's blue eyes lit up, and she smiled like a little girl on Christmas morning. "Whatever could it be?"

Willi had been spending his every spare moment over the past two weeks digging through Schloss Helsing's libraries, and he'd finally found what he was searching for. He'd been waiting to put it to use all day. "I have discovered a method for taking a person from her own dream, and into someone else's," he explained eagerly. "Specifically, I intend to take you into one of my dreams!"

Zsálya's eyes went wide as saucers. "You can do that?"

"I believe so," was the self-deprecating reply. "I have located a set of... instructions, I suppose you could say. Whether this will work, of course, remains to be seen. Shall we try?"

"Is it dangerous?"

"I highly doubt it. The worst that could happen is that I will leave this dream and you will not. In which case, I will simply come back."

"Alright then. What do I do?"

"Hold tightly onto my hands and try to clear your mind as much as possible."

The couple linked hands. Willi's eyes closed, and he took a deep breath. Zsálya tried to think about nothing in particular; she just stared around at the snowbound forest, enjoying its simple beauty.

Then reality popped like a soap bubble.

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There was no space. There was no matter. She had no body. She could perceive, but not with the senses she knew.

Zsálya had never been so befuddled in her life. She was still definitely herself, her wolf was still herself and Willi was still himself. Beyond that, however, nothing made sense. She could feel Willi right next to her, keeping her with him, but the feel of his presence was all she had to go by. That presence was the only thing keeping Zsálya and her wolf from panicking.

This must be the In-Between, Zsálya thought. So, this is what Willi meant when he talked about there being no words for it. She could perceive countless points of reality around her, stretching away to infinity and beyond. Each point was in constant flux, shifting crazily in ways that Zsálya could 'see' but could not begin to understand.

It was bewildering. It was terrifying. It was beautiful.

Her stay in the In-Between lasted but a moment, but it seemed an hour. There was another popping sensation, and reality returned.

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"My body is back!" Zsálya held her hands up in front of herself, working her fingers around to be sure they responded properly. She was naked, but whole, and standing on solid ground. Both she and her wolf heaved a sigh of relief. Then she looked up, and nearly panicked again.

Surrounding her was blackness. Not darkness, strangely enough, merely blackness. She could see her hands as clearly as in the noonday sun, and the rest of her body when she looked down. Her feet were definitely resting on something solid; it felt like stone. And there was not the sense of oppressiveness that she always felt in the dark. It was as if... "There is simply nothing to see..." Zsálya mused aloud.

"Precisely correct." Willi's voice! Zsálya spun around to see him standing close by, hands clasped behind his back. "We are now in my dream. I simply have not dreamed of anything... yet."

"How is that possible?"

"A dream is actually a tiny piece of reality created by the dreamer's mind. It exists independently of our normal universe, and it is shaped by thoughts. If I were to permit it, you could shape the reality of this dream as easily as you can shape your own."

"But... I always dream of the forest."

"Yes, that is somewhat odd. But I suppose it makes sense; the forest is where you want to be, and so that is what your mind creates." Willi shrugged slightly. "With my abilities, and a certain amount of mental discipline, I can use my dream to show you anything at all. Well, anything that I know of," he amended. He came forward and took Zsálya's hands, smiling warmly. "I have wanted to show you the world ever since I met you. Would you like to see it?"

"Yes! Yes, I would!" Zsálya's eagerness was unmistakable.

Wilhelm chuckled softly at her sheer cuteness. "Very well, then." He released her hands and turned away, taking a step forward. "Prinzessin Zsálya, I give you: THE WORLD!" he declared, flinging his arms wide.

All of a sudden, a massive sphere was hanging in the nothingness in front of them. It was about as tall as an young pine tree, blue with pretty green and tan shapes. The green parts had white-tipped bumps here and there, and squiggly blue lines running every which way. It was beautiful, but Zsálya did not know what she was looking at. "What... is this?" she asked slowly.

"This is Earth, the planet on which we live. Or rather, what I believe it to look like based on many, many maps and my own experiences," Willi replied, turning back to face her. The sphere moved down and rotated, so that they were looking at one particular area. "Our planet is a spherical body of matter that moves through the void of space..." Willi began. He proceeded to give Zsálya a simple yet comprehensive explanation of the planet and its various features, which tied into many other things he had told her since they had met.

When he was finished, Zsálya felt that she understood what she was looking at. She finally understood what an 'island' was, at least. "So, which part of the world is this?" she asked, gesturing at the green patch—landmass, she corrected herself—which they were looking at.

"This is the continent of Europe," Willi replied. "It is where you live. According to the Order's records on the Vlkolak Pack, your lands are approximately... there." he pointed, and an irregular area of land was outlined in soft white light. A little point of red light glowed near the northern edge of the outline. "The white is an outline of the human nation of Hungary, and the red is your pack's land," Willi explained.

"That tiny dot is all of our hunting lands?" Zsálya was having trouble processing the idea that so much area could count for so little of the world.

"Yes. The world is a big place, meine Liebe," Willi added gently.

"So it seems." Zsálya was silent for a moment, studying the massive sphere in front of her. "Where do you live, Willi?" she asked, giving him a smile.

Willi took Zsálya's hand and the sphere shifted crazily, growing larger and rushing up at them. Suddenly they were standing on the sphere like titans, the red dot that signified the Vlkolak lands now a tiny red circle near Zsálya's foot. It took a moment for her to reorient herself.

Still holding her hand, Willi turned and walked north, stepping carefully over mountains and rivers like a cub avoiding fallen twigs. He stopped at the edge of the ocean, and Zsálya dipped a toe into the cold water. "We are standing on the mainland of Europe," Willi explained, "The country of Germany, to be precise. The islands of Great Britain and Ireland to our northwest, the Scandinavian Peninsula to our northeast. All the water between those three landmasses is the North Sea." He gestured to the expanse of water before them. "The island of Thule is very nearly in the center of that sea." He pointed, and a dot of golden light appeared in the middle of the water.

"That is very far away," Zsálya remarked, glancing back over her shoulder at her own home.

The human nodded. "Yes, almost fifteen-hundred kilometers from you."

"My goodness... people must have to swim a long way to visit you," Zsálya remarked.

Willi blinked a few times, then threw back his head and roared with laughter. Still chuckling, he turned to Zsálya and threw his arms around her. "Oh, my darling kleiner Wolf, forgive me. You did not know what an ocean is, so of course you have never heard of a ship."

Zsálya smiled softly, unable to resist Willi's good cheer. "You have mentioned that word before, but you never explained its meaning to me."

"A ship is a wooden construct, built to carry people and goods across the water. Here, let me show you."

He took her hand and everything swirled around them again, like a maelstrom of reality. They were now standing on a stone seawall. An enormous river lay to one side, and on the other were a huge number of buildings, more than Zsálya could count, stretching away in a great jumble. There were at least as many on the far side of the river.

"Surely there cannot be a need for so many buildings in one place," she remarked, puzzled.

Willi squeezed her hand. "This is a city, meine Prinzessin. Hamburg, to be precise. Now do you see what I mean about so many humans living together in such a small area?" With a thought, Willi brought the city to life before Zsálya's eyes. She watched, fascinated, as dream-image humans bustled to and fro doing Ancestors-knew-what.

"...How?" she asked, after a time. To her surprise and gratitude, Willi did his best to answer her extremely broad question. She adored the way he always took her seriously, no matter how foolish or ignorant her questions or remarks were. His replies were usually very straightforward and clear, as well. This time, though, Zsálya heard his words but couldn't quite process the concepts, even as she saw the city in motion before her. It was simply too strange to her.

Sensing this, Willi concluded what he was saying and kissed her softly on the cheek. "Do not worry, Zsálya," he told her gently. "You have no need to understand this, at least not yet. You have no dealings with humans, or our cities. Most city-folk would have just as hard a time understanding how you and your pack live."

"What is there to understand?" Zsálya asked, without thinking.

Willi laughed again, giving her one of those smiles that made her knees weak. "Precisely what they would say," he replied. "Never assume that something is simple merely because you understand it," Willi advised gravely.

Zsálya thought hard about that, cocking her head to the side. "But I am a simple person... so I can only understand simple things..." she thought aloud.

Her human lover scoffed. "You are many things, Zsálya, but you are not simple. In point of fact, you are highly intelligent."

"Thank you, but I think you are speaking out of love, not from reality," she replied with a blush and a demure smile.

"I know many smart people, and I know many simple people. You are smart. Now then, ships." Willi proffered his arm, and Zsálya took it happily. He let the bustle fade away as they walked along the waterfront and onto one of the long stone walls reaching out into the river. When she asked what they were for, Willi told her: "they are called 'quays.' They give more space for ships to load and unload goods from. Here, look: this is a ship."

A very odd creation appeared, floating in the water next to the quay they were walking along. Zsálya ran to the edge and stared at it, entranced by its pure strangeness. "How does it not sink?"

Willi proceeded to explain about floatation, and pointed out what each part of the ship was for. The idea of the wind being able to move something so large seemed implausible to Zsálya, but she had faith that Willi wouldn't lie to her. When asked if this was the only kind of ship, Willi produced several examples, ranging from a little rowboat that seemed barely large enough for both of them to a massive warship that looked like a giant wooden wall.

"Therefore, moving people and goods by water is easier, and often quicker, than moving them by land," Willi concluded some time later. "So, do you wish to see my home?"

"Yes!" Zsálya exclaimed. "I would like that very much, Willi!"

Wilhelm's brow furrowed for a moment, and the young couple were suddenly clothed. Willi wore his usual attire, with a long green cloak atop it, and Zsálya found herself wearing a blue silk gown much like the one Willi had made for her the night after Guillame's arrival, with a soft blue cloak in the same style as Willi's. This dress was a bit fancier and more conservative, but it was just as comfortable. Less welcome were the white linen stockings and blue slippers that now graced her legs and feet. Not that they were uncomfortable, but Zsálya had always preferred to go barefoot. Accordingly, she thought them away.

Willi noticed this, and gave her a wry smile. "You may go barefoot if you wish, Zsálya. I must warn you, however, that most of the floors in dem Schloss are made of stone, and they are both uncomfortable and extremely cold for bare feet."

"Weres have strong feet, Willi." Zsálya twirled her way over to her lover and took his hands. "Shall we go?"

Willi raised her hands to his lips and kissed each one tenderly. "Of course. Our ship awaits!"

"What? You are not going to 'think' us to Thule?" she asked.

"The island and the castle are best viewed from the sea, at least for the first time. I do intend to shorten the journey considerably, though." He released one of Zsálya's hands and led her to the gangplank of a large schooner.