Chapter Text
Daughters
Part 1 - Bela
At forty four years old, the last thing Alcina Dimitrescu ever thought she would be, was a mother. And yet this exact thing has happened, thanks to Mother Miranda.
It has been six days since Mother Miranda came to her with the cadou parasite and the intention of using it to create others. Though she herself was no use as a host for Miranda’s daughter, Alcina provides the corpses of three deceased maids for the experiments. It has been an interesting experiment to watch. The parasite presents itself as a cocoon of flies before returning to their original shape. Now they sit in front of her, eyes wide, staring at her.
She has already decided on names. Bela, Cassandra, and Daniela. As well as names, she approached the merchant that recently set up shop outside the castle and bought each of them a necklace. They are grand pieces, sparkling in the light, the gemstones casting their colours onto the carpet. Such is the least they deserve in their places as nobility over the village. The necklaces represent their status as Ladies of the castle.
“Are you our mother?” the blonde, Bela, asks.
Alcina pauses before answering. “Yes, I suppose I am. I am your mother, you are my daughters.”
She tries these words out in her head, repeating them until they feel natural. At forty four, Alcina Dimitrescu is a mother.
~~~
In the first few days, her daughters explore the castle. They wander from room to room, up and down the corridors, occasionally following the maids and servants. Alcina watches in amusement, the staff have already been made aware of the newest additions, though they are nervous while carrying out their duties. She takes pity on one particular maid, surely the most competent of her entire staff, that Bela has been following for most of the day.
“Bela, dear,” she calls. Her daughter stops immediately and turns to face her. “Would you not perhaps prefer to explore on your own?”
The maid takes this chance and scurries off to another room.
“I thought the house staff would know the layout,” Bela answers with a shrug.
“Yes, but you are above them. The master of the house does not wait on the servant.”
Bela says nothing for a moment. “Then, may I follow you, Mother?”
Alcina nods then gestures for Bela to walk beside her.
She heads for the wine room, retrieves a bottle and takes Bela down the stairs into the main foyer. There she finds glasses, picks out a comfortable chair. Bela lasts a few minutes before she is on her feet once more, walking across the hall, eyes fixed on the ceilings. She wanders off, up the stairs, then back down again. She returns to her chair, sips at her wvne before she is off once more. It amuses Alcina to no end to watch her daughter, a few times wondering just where Bela will pop up next. Once this has lost its novelty, Bela returns and sits down.
Alcina pours a fresh glass of wine. “Am I given to understand your curiosity has been sated?”
Bela nods. “Yes Mother. At least for this area.”
Alcina raises an eyebrow. “Oh? And where might you wish to wander next?”
“What else is on this floor?”
Mentally, she walks through the ground floor of the castle, checking off the various rooms. She stands up from the chair, pouring herself another glass of wine. “Finish that,” she tells Bela.
Her daughter does so, waits until she’s poured another glass then gestures for Bela to follow. They walk through the main hall, footsteps echoing, and into the corridors heading toward the dining room, kitchen and opera hall. When they reach the kitchen, Bela seems entranced by the servants working.
They go back and forth, preparing food, going from the pantry back to the kitchen, though one leaves and returns empty handed. Bela glances to her then makes a beeline for the servant. Alcina watches her daughter as Bela drags the servant back into the pantry and stays there for some time. After a few minutes, Alcina goes to retrieve Bela.
She finds her daughterwith the servant, a piece of paper and a pen in Bela’s hands, while she writes down everything on the shelves. She looks to the servant by way of explanation, though the servant can only shrug.
“Bela, what are you doing, dear?” she asks.
Bela looks up. “I was taking stock of this pantry, Mother,” she replies. “It seems we’re missing a few items.”
“Missing?” She looks to the servant.
The servant, now rapidly going pale at being fixed with her mistress’s gaze, nods. “We haven’t had a chance to shop for them, my Lady.”
“Then you know what to do,” Bela adds, thrusting the list at the servant. She turns back to her mother. “I believe I’ve found how I can best assist in the running of the castle.”
She looks proud of herself, a smile on her face. Alcina smiles too. “If that is what you wish to do, then I will not stop you,” she tells Bela, and turns to leave, letting her daughter continue the inventory.
~~~
Over the new few days, servants come and go, each carrying a bag full of grocery items. When asked of these, they tell her Mistress Bela made up the shopping list and gave them the money. Bela has quickly integrated herself into the daily running of errands and work to keep the castle ticking over. Indeed, Alcina already cannot imagine Bela not being there to oversee it.
With the addition of the Duke, the merchant she bought the necklaces from, Bela is barely away from the room he is sequestered in.
Alcina heads for the room, with the intention of acquiring items for Cassandra. She enters, one hand on her hat to keep it in place and finds Bela perched upon the desk, typewriter discarded on the floor. She sighs quietly.
“Bela, dear. Do try to respect the furniture in future,” she chides.
“Yes, Mother,” Bela answers, hopping down and sits on the chair.
“It is a pleasure to see you as always, my Lady,” the Duke greets her with a small bow. “Tell me, how may I help you today?”
She returns her attention to the merchant. “Do you have anything pertaining to knights or swords?”
The Duke turns to his stock, rifling through the drawers, desks, boxes and bundles. He presents two ornaments, wrapped in cloth, of knights sat atop horses. Alcina unwraps them, runs her fingers across them, then picks each one up. She nods. She fishes the money out from the pouch at her waist and hands it to the Duke.
“Your daughter is fond of the knights and their steeds?” he says, waving to the ornaments.
“Fond of them? Cassandra doesn’t stop talking about them,” Bela tells them. “The other day she chased me down the hall with a sword from one of the suits of armour!”
Alcina bites the inside of her cheek to keep from sniggering. The Duke covers his mouth, trying to disguise the laugh as a cough. He fails rather badly.
“Did she at least return the sword?”
Bela shakes her head. “I think she took it down to the dungeon with her. She’s been spending an awful lot of time down there.” She gets up from the chair, leaving the room with a wave over her shoulder.
Alcina also leaves, heading down to the dungeon. Her footsteps echo on the stone stairs and she can hear the grunts and shambling footfalls of the Moroaica. She reaches the basement floor, stepping into a pool of blood. She looks down ad finds it holds a trail to follow. She does so, through the various cells, batting Moroaica out of the way. She comes upon her daughter, covered in blood, the wayward sword still in her possession.
“Cassandra,” she says.
Cassandra turns to her. “Oh! Hello Mother.”
“Hello indeed.” She glances to the sword. “I see you’ve grown a fondness for the blade.”
Cassandra looks down at it. “This? I found these creatures down here, Mother! I didn’t know what they were.”
This is on her. Alcina forgot about the wandering husks that would mull around the dungeons and cells. Occasionally they found their way upward, invading the courtyard and some of the grounds. It stood to reason at least one of her daughters would come upon them. She should really have armed them with weapons.
“Come along, dear, we’ll take you back upstairs,”
~~~
It is almost her birthday, something she has, for the most part, kept to herself. Since being bestowed with the gift from Mother Miranda, Alcina has taken less and less notice of the day. She has nothing in particular planned, preferring to spend her time bottling the wine.
Her daughters have other ideas however.
There is a suspicious lack of either Bela, Cassandra or Daniela, all of them conveniently absent. She knows they are in the castle somewhere, having heard the odd buzz of flies. The maids and the servants have been back and forth, the maids tidying the rooms, continuing with the general upkeep. None of them have seen her daughters either, except briefly in the morning.
The Duke is not due for another few days, she knows, and Bela barely acknowledges the room’s existence when the merchant is not visiting.
Alcina tries their usual haunts. For Bela, if the merchant is not visiting, it is the kitchen and pantry. She regularly inspects both rooms to ensure the kitchen is stocked with everything they should ever need or want.
Cassandra, the dungeon. Her middle daughter does sweeps to clear out the Moroaica and is the main source of the blood needed for the wine. Cassandra is not there.
Daniela also favours the kitchen, pestering the cooks and getting in Bela’s way. The youngest and eldest of her daughters frequently got into spats, particularly on the days when Bela did stock takes.
She decides to wait, heading to the main hall with her book and wine. It is the room with the best acoustics of which to hear if there is any life on the upper floors.
It is hours before she hears a fly buzz. She looks up and finds a cloud of flies hovering at the bannister. It forms into Bela. There are more flies, and her sisters appear at either shoulder. Daniela rushes down the stairs, takes her hand, and pulls Alcina to her feet.
“Daughter, why the desperation?” she says, letting herself be dragged up the stairs to join Bela and Cassandra.
“We have something for you,” Daniela tells her with a grin. “Come see.”
Daniela continues to guide her and they stop at Alcina’s bedroom. Bela opens the door then steps out the way. Alcina goes into her room nd on her bed, waiting for her, is a new cape, a brooch of three roses and a pearl necklace. She puts one hand over her mouth, tears pricking the corners of her eyes and she turns to face the three.
“Bela discovered it was your birthday soon, and we wanted to surprise you,” Cassandra says.
“I asked Duke to procure some items we thought you’d like,” Bela adds. “Daniela picked out the cape, and Cassandra the brooch.”
Alcina struggles to swallow the lump growing in her throat. So touched is she by this gesture and the thought put into it, she cannot speak. Instead she gathers the three into a tight hug before she tries the necklace on and pins the brooch to her dress.
~~~
As time goes on, Alcina and her daughters discover their weakness. With the changing of the seasons, the weather grows colder and her daughters suffer for it. To combat this, Alcina assigns several of the servants the duty of lighting fires, and to keep them lit. This works well, for a while, until cabin fever hits.
It is Bela she notices first. Her eldest spends her time in the dining room, watching the wind blow through the empty branches of the trees in the courtyard. She stands with a wine glass in her hand, her other hand pressed against the glass door. She frowns at it then heaves a large sigh.
To keep herself from wearying, Alcina finds Bela in the kitchen, in the pantry, continually making shopping lists for the maids. When she is not in the kitchen, she is with the Duke, perched on the desk, the typewriter on the floor.
Alcina goes to the room the merchant is in, Bela having left earlier. The Duke has a small book in one hand, a cigar in the other. When he hears the door, he quickly puts the cigar out and places the book down.
“Ah, my Lady,” he greets her, “I trust this day finds you well?”
Alcina nods. “Indeed it does. It is my daughter that I am not sure of. Has she said anything to you? I know she often confides in you.”
The Duke looks thoughtful, putting one hand to his chin. “She was lamenting over the weather mostly, that it was frustrating her.”
Alcina says nothing. She knows of Bela’s enjoyment of going into the village for shopping, as well as her hunts. In the latter seasons, Bela is barely in the castle, opting to hunt for fresh prey or to bring Alcina extra subjects for their addition to the wine that sells so well. However, she had thought Bela understood that neither she nor her sisters could dare chance going outside. Now she is not so sure.
She leaves the room, intent on finding her eldest.
She passes Cassandra in the armoury, her middle daughter trying on various pieces of armour. She is clad in a pair of iron gauntlets, a short sword in one hand, a helmet tucked under her arm.
Daniela is lounging in the library, laid out on one of the couches, holding a book above her head. She perks up when she hears the door and sees it is her mother. The book is discarded and she walks over to her mother.
“Is all well, Mother?” she asks.
Alcina nods. “I was looking for your sister.”
“Cassandra’s in the armoury, as usual. Bela, I believe, went to the opera hall.”
Alcina touches Daniela’s shoulder and gives it a squeeze. “Thank you, daughter.”
She leaves to head back downstairs, Daniela at her heels. Sh does find Bela in the opera hall, though she remains concerned. Bela is lying on one of the couches, staring up at the ceiling. She gets to her feet and greets her mother and sister with a smile.
“Hello Mother, Daniela,” she says.
“Mother has been looking for you,” Daniela tells Bela.
“I am fine. I was trying to find something to occupy my time.”
“Oh! Come with me, I’m sure Cassandra can find us something to do.”
Daniela takes Bela’s hand and all but drags her out of the room.
~~
Bela is missing.
While the weather has taken a turn for the better, the days are chilly and the nights are cold. It has been threatening snow for days, and now it has become warmer, tolerable that her daughters can go outside to the courtyard.
This is not enough for Bela, however. She wants to go further, she wants more and it is something of a flaw. It is a flaw that worries Alcina to no end and she is at the point where she is tempted to recruit a servant or two to monitor Bela’s movements.
Now, she is missing. Her sisters have not seen her, nor have the staff. The Duke, Bela’s friend and confidante, also has not seen nor heard from her, something that is odd in itself. Bela is forever hanging around the room, spending her time with the Duke on his weekly visits. When he is due to arrive, Bela checks and double checks the pantry to ensure there is enough food to put on a dinner for them all.
Now, Alcina cannot find her eldest daughter, and she feels a coldness in the pit of her stomach. It slowly spreads through her body, a feeling creeping across the bottom of her spine. Her stomach is a knot of anxiety that comes and goes in waves.
She finally finds a servant who has seen Bela and where she was going. It does nothing to comfort Alcina, if anything, it does the opposite. She strides through the castle, to the front door and the main hall.
She throws open the doors, heads across the bridge and down into the village. Immediately the cold hits her, she feels goosebumps rise on her arms, and she can see her breath in front of her. This is the worst weather for Bela to go missing in.
Alcina looks to the sky, closes her eyes and changes her form. As well as having to consume blood to maintain her form, and keep her blood disorder at bay, Alcina and her daughters feed on the maids and servants. The powers have been passed to her daughters, and Cassandra in particular, takes great pleasure in extracting said blood for their meals.
Her form is huge and hulking, her current form little more than an afterthought, sat on top of the torso. She spreads her wings and heads for the village. If Bela is anywhere, it will be there, hunting down prey.
Alcina flies to the village and lands in the centre. She returns to her normal form, a tall woman, before she goes between the doors. The weather continues to get colder, her anxiety rising. She goes from house to house, barns, stables, anything. Anything to find her daughter.
Finally, in a shack of a house, she finds Bela, curled up and shivering. Alcina changes form once more, grabbing Bela without a word and flying back to the castle. Once there, she deposits Bela at a fire, sending various servants to bring food, blankets, whatever else she needs or wants. Alcina will deal with it in the morning, she has no energy nor willpower to deal with her.
~~
It is the next day and Bela has, so far, avoided Alcina rather well. She has seen both Cassandra and Daniela, however not her eldest. It is only later in the evening that Bela calls for everyone to join her.
The dining table is filled with plates containing various types of food. Alcina, Cassandra and Daniela exchange a glance, all of them wary of the food in front of them.
Bela gestures for them to sit. “This is an apology dinner, for disappearing as I did,” she tells them.
Alcina nods for her daughters to sit and the servants bring out more food. Alcina takes a fork, digs it into the food presented, eats it. It is too salty, too hot, the taste of copper or metal in general, overpowering. There is a brief respite when Alcina tastes herbs, but this is quickly overshadowed by heat and metal.
“This is very nice, dear,” Alcina says. She glances to Cassandra and Daniela.
Both sit staring at the plate in front of them. Cassandra gives it a tentative poke, as if expecting it to move. Daniela simply stares at it.
Finally they try to eat, both of her daughters managing to choke the food down. They are quickly excused, hurrying out and away from the dining room.
Bela comes into the dining hall and sits across from Alcina. “It was awful, wasn’t it?” she says.
“Oh no, my dear,” Alcina answers. “It was simply a bit…” She pauses. “Salty.”
Bela raises an eyebrow. “You do not need to be kind to spare my feelings. The food was terrible.”
“Of course not!”
Bel sighs. “I think I need a bit of practice.”
~~~
When Bela calls upon them again to try out the food she’s made, Alcina’s stomach sinks. She can only hope Bela has learned something more to cooking and food, how to spice a meat and compliment its flavour instead of drowning it. Regardless, she goes to the dining room, sits at the table and lets the servants place the food in front of her.
Bela stands at the door, eagerly watching her mother. It does nothing to help the waves of anxiety Alcina feels. She does not want to hurt her daughter, perish the thought. However, she is also anxious of the reaction she will receive if the food is less than satisfactory.
She takes a bite, then another. The food is most definitely an improvement of the last time she tasted it. She sees Bela’s face light up and Alcina continues to eat.
The next time Alcina and her daughters are called to the dining room, it is her daughters’ birthdays. Alcina has already handed out their gifts, as have Daniela and Cassandra. Bela has promised both gifts and a banquet.
She comes out of the kitchen, proudly carrying a plate. She places it on the table and takes the lid off. In front of them is a stew of some sort, meat, vegetables floating to the top. Alcina takes a ladle and scoops it onto her plate.
Much to her surprise the food is good. Despite the disasters that were Bela’s previous attempts, this has more than made up for her disasters.
Both Cassandra and Daniela are already onto their second helpings. Bela grins as she watches them. She disappears briefly, returning a few minutes later with gifts wrapped in tissue paper. No doubt she has commissioned the Duke to help her find these items, though it does not faze Alcina.
They finish the meal and spend the rest of the night talking, opening gifts, and generally enjoying each other’s company. When night falls and tiredness creeps in, her daughters excuse themselves. Bela stays briefly to hug her.
“What’s this for?” Alcina asks, returning the hug.
“For everything, Mother,” Bela says. “For indulging my fledgling hobby and encouraging it.”
“Of course I would. Any hobby you wish to partake in, feel free to request the items you need.”
The hug is squeezed tighter. “Thank you, Mother.”
~~~
“What have you done to my daughter?!”