The Heart Impaled

Frida never slept, her tireless eyes watched Merina as she awoke startled at the sight of Vlad. He was still curled up and trembling. Hands locked in Frida's fur. "Vlad?" Merina asked hopping from her bed and going to his side.

Frida watched her with conflicted eyes.

"Your scars are gone!" Merina gasped touching him lightly. "Whats happening to you?" She asked a fright. Vlad turned away from Frida and looked into Merina's eyes. He took a knife and splashed the tent, he sat up and let the sun burn the flesh on his side, chest, and shoulder. "Stop!" Merina called out, Frida snarled at him and moved swiftly in front of the opening blocking the sun. "I met with the evil of Brokentooth" he said softly. Merina's eyes wandered to Frida in horror. "No, it was not her it was not a wolf...I merely said that it was, but it was something else" he explained.

"May God punish whomever had had this done to you!" Merina spat. Her eyes darting for a moment to the unmoving wolf. "This was my choice" Vlad spoke his voice steadily calming. "This...This is the strength you searched for?" Merina asked.

Vlad nodded pain still wracked in his body "Why?" Merina asked terror stricken. "Because I sent bodies back to Mehmed and not our son." He said. Frida's heart ached as she pictured Ingeras' face. She had to get out.

As Frida moved to leave Vlad reached for her interrupting his explanation to Merina.  "Frida stay!" He commanded as if speaking to a dog. Frida paused in step for a second before exiting the tent. Vlad watched her confused as her tail hung low and immobile.

Outside in the light of the sun. Frida walked among the rows of tents, unbothered by Vlad's people. She couldn't get Ingeras' face out of her mind, until that face morph. Not a blue eyes child with curly strawberry locks. But a hazel eyed child with a curly raven mane and Ingeras' face.

******

Dimitru spotted Vlad's beast padding along alone. Looking far more miserable than he'd ever seen it.  He left his compositions and went to the animal.

Frida felt a hand teach for her head and she stopped walking. "Hey there, what's got you down girl?" Dimitru asked patting her neck and stroking her head. Frida let him it felt comforting. "Not feeling well?" He asked. Frida huffed and shook out her fur as if wet and continued on her way she wanted to be alone.

She sat off alone in the shade of a tents shadow. Head resting on the ground. In the distance she could hear Vlad whistling for her. But she ignored him. It seemed as if she had dazed off for hours until small human feet entered her eyesight.

She trailed her eyes up to meet Ingeras' eyes "So there you are" he said plopping down next to her. Her pet her head and scratched her ears. "Hey what's gotten into you?" He asked, Frida didn't react trying her best to detach herself. Unsatisfied, Ingeras laid down on his tummy before her. "Are you sick?" He asked worried.

Frida couldn't do it, she licked his face all over, and his hair, like a mother reunited with her litter. Ingeras laughed and tried to shield his face. "Ok ,ok I see you are ok!" He said. He smiled at her patted her on the head and got up. "Papa is calling for you, mother says we have to leave with Dimitru soon to the Monastery, you have to stay with him" Ingeras said.

Frida gave a wolfish smile at how he talked to her without reply. "Come on, you've got to listen to papa, so he won't send you away" he said running ahead of Frida towards this father's tent. Frida lifted her body off the ground and made chase.

She caught him and flung Ingeras into her back. He held on tight as she ran cheering. Setting up he threw his hands in the air. "Whoooo! Haha yeah! Onward Frida!" He called out in laughs.

Merina at Dimitru's side talking spotted the two and shook her head with a smile. She wasn't sure about the large she wolf. But if Ingeras was bonding with it, she would tolerate.

Vlad could hear his son's laughter from within the tent. The sun had shifted causing a shadow over the tent allowing him to peek out. Still shaking a bit and in mild pain, Vlad chuckled at the spherical.  His smile faded as a faint headache throbed in the back of his head. The scene before him, he felt he had seen it before.

Before long, Dimitru and Merina had taken down the camp and lead the people on to the Monastery. Frida slipped into Vlad's tent assuming he was sleeping.

"Why didn't you come when I called?" Vlad questioned. Frida looked to him with unconcerned eyes "do know this, I am not a tamed animal...I am very much wild and will wander at times, even the most loyal dog does" she said curling up on the floor. "How can I come to trust you if you don't listen to me" he asked. Frida looked up at him lazily "I never said I wasn't listening, I heard your call, I just didn't come" she said.

Vlad frowned "that is what I mean" he growled Frida laid her head down "because you didn't need me then, you wanted me there but you didn't need me, this is a dangerous thing I am to be needed only" Frida said softly.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" He asked. Frida stayed quiet and closed her eyes. "You've always been a bit of a baby, if granted arms trusting enough, strong enough" Frida mumbled drifting to sleep. "What?" Vlad asked. "Hush, I'm sleeping" she grumbled.

Vlad got down on the ground near her to hear better "did you stay up through my sleep?" Vlad didn't get a reply. He shook  Her but she didn't budge. Vlad fell back and sighed into his fist. She was sleeping like a rock. He gave a short airy laugh as he looked down on the sleeping she wolf. Something about this too felt nostalgic.

He lowered his hand away from his mouth and watched her with a new formed frown. As he thought about it, never had he put faith in anything or anyone so blindly. But it felt like he had done it before.

Birds chirped outside drawing back Vlad's thoughts. "I should rest before the sun sets" he thought getting off the ground to lay I the cot. The pain in his body finally subsided, He stole one last glance at Frida before turning over and drifting to sleep himself.

Frida's dreams were plagued.

********

Frida found herself running in mortal form, her body covered in furs and skins and armour. She was tearing through the Forrest, behind her a pack of wolves. Ahead through the trees she could see a stone castle built in the mountains face.

As she neared it what she saw caused her to fall to her knees, hundreds of her kind in feral form bleed to death atop a Forrest of spears. In the midst of them, a fair woman with beautiful yellow hair, a man in dark armour at her side and in his arms lifeless...

********

"No!"

Frida's scream awoke Vlad with a start, he fell off of the cot stunned and crawled to her side. She now in mortal form clawed at the ground beneath her "no!" She cried again.

Vlad placed his hands on her shoulders and shook her "Frida" he called but that didn't wake her.

"You did this - is not - in hand my - dimir - Lucia!" Frida's cries were broken, but the respiration cracked something in Vlad's heart, it beat rapidly almost as if expecting something, he didn't want to hear anymore.

He shook her violently and was shocked at the fear in his own voice that he did not understand "Frida!" He yelled as loud as he could.

Frida's eyes shot open and a murderous growl thundered in her throat as in a blurred movement she woke, turned and pinned Vlad to the ground now in feral form once more. Her snarling maw inches from his face.

"Frida" Vlad breathed slowly looking into her eyes, but it was as if she was in another place, she snapped at him paws pressing down on his arms holding him in place.

"Frida" he called again, this time there was a change in her eyes and she let out a quiet whine.

Before his eyes she was mortal again and sitting on him her hands resting on his chest as if she had been pumping his heart back to life. Her eyes danced around confused before they met his. Vlad didn't move, he was far to perplexed to.

Frida coming back to reality around her, leapt off of Vlad and landed near the tent entrance. Vlad sat up "Frida?" He asked, she looked at him with eyes full of hurt, loathing and something else before exiting the tent.

Vlad's heart still raced in his chest. What had just happened?