”What did you say?”, the Countess asked with a perplexed expression, but Melisande was already asleep. Alcina felt a comfortable warmth in her chest. It was making her heart beat faster and for a second she thought these words were never said and she had just imagined them. Slowly she sat down again, brushing over Melisande's soft skin. She had never dreamed of hearing those words again. If she was honest to herself, the lady did not even know when she heard those three words the last time. It must have been back then when she had been still a human, before all the pain, all of those cruel experiments, before her heart, her mind was drowned in darkness and hatred. A hatred she never was able to control. It had made her mad, cruel. No one loved her, they said it because they were terrified.

When Miranda had made experiments with those three innocent girls she felt something like love for the first time since her turning and she loved her daughters deeply. She would kill and die for them, but this was a mother's love.

She bent down, leaning her forehead against Melisandes. A tear formed in her eye. This was a different kind of love and it made her heart feel so light like a feather in the wind of a warm summer evening. Alcina never realized that she was capable of feeling such a pure love after Miranda turned her into whatever she was now. Yet she sat here by a woman she felt this true love towards and this woman just made her the biggest gift in the world. She gave her a daughter. A lovely little being, so fragile and yet so beautiful and strong. And although Saiya was just a few hours a part of this world, she already had stolen a big part of Alcinas heart. She was her fourth daughter and she would protect her and Melisande from any danger, no matter the cost.

"I love you too, my dear, more than I could ever express. I will protect you from Miranda and we will heal you from that disease, so you can watch our daughter grow up...I promise."

When she finally left the room and got back to Saiya she found her not alone, but in her uncle's arms surrounded by Daniela, Bela and Cassandra who all looked completely fascinated by that little human being. They did not notice that their mother entered the room and just continued looking at the girl. "So fragile", Cassandra stated, but smiled and stretched a bit to look over her sister's shoulder. "Yes and so tiny. Yet I am surprised that her head was able to fit through… you know what I mean.", Daniela said and slowly stretched out her hand to brush over the golden hair. "So soft." Bela smiled the brightest and leaned her head on her uncle's shoulder, carefully tickling the baby, who laughed with a loud and light voice. "She will be beautiful", she said. Heisenberg was quietly staring at the girl in his arms. If you would ask him, he would never admit that he was feeling proud that he had been the one who had welcomed her into this world. "Glad you made it, little princess", he mumbled barely. Alcina smiled to herself thinking that her "brother" could be caring and loving at times although he would never admit it, but she knew it. 'He is not a bad guy', she thought, but she would still keep an eye on him and her baby daughter.

"I see you have already met your little sister, my dears?", the Countess said and bowed down to give each of them a kiss on their cheeks. "Yes mother and she is beautiful!", Daniela claimed with sparkling eyes. "How is your lover doing?", Heisenberg asked with a deep voice and laid the baby back into its crib. "She is alright. Just tired of course, this birth was horrible",she took a deep breath and sank down onto a chair. She was exhausted and tired herself, yet she was not able to close her eyes. There was something that made her mind restless. With a wink she sent her daughters away. One to check on Melisande, one to prepare a cup of tea for her and one cup of coffee for Heisenberg and one to bring extra blankets for the baby.

It was silent in the room. Heisenberg drank his coffee while staring at the ceiling and Alcina had little baby Saiya in her arms, which looked kinda funny, because she was so tall. "Have you heard anything from Miranda?", she finally broke the slightly uncomfortable silence. "Wondered when you would ask.", he stated a little harshly. He approached her and sat down at the table with her, looking at his niece for a fraction of a second, before turning his attention back to Alcina. "Angie called when you stayed with Melisande. She told me that this bit-", he started, but saw Alcina glare at him and then at the baby, "-sorry. She told me that Miranda had left the village in rage. She visited Donna and tried to figure out who Melisande really is and why a newborn is more powerful than she is. Donna refused to answer and she got hurt a bit." Alcina gasped for air in dismay. "What?!", she tried to be as quiet as possible as Saiya started to get sleepy again. "No worries, no worries!", Heisenberg tried to calm her down and lifted his hands. "Angie took care of her and she is alright, but Miranda is nowhere to be seen."

Alcina did not know if this was something good or bad. Why had Miranda left the village after the birth? There was only one logical reason: She was up to something.

Heisenberg left the castle after another two hours, but placed a few lycans on the castle's grounds in safety of the Countess, her "lover" as he called Melisande and her newborn. He assured Alcina that he would inform her immediately should he find out what Miranda's location was. The both of them did not trust the peaceful atmosphere which laid over the castle like a mist devouring all worries within. They knew she would come back and they knew that she was after the little girl which was by now one of Alcina's heirs. The Countess believed that it would not take the jealous witch a week before she would set everything on fire.

Nonetheless Alcina wanted to celebrate the birth of Saiya. She wanted to show the love she had for this little girl and her mother and so she decided after a week, when Melisande was already so much better, that she would invite to a ball. A great masquerade full of pomp and luxury to honor Melisande and her daughter Saiya. Everyone was invited no matter which status. Alcina wanted this masquerade to be the greatest ever held in the history of this village and that she achieved.

The entrance hall was decorated with golden and silver flowers, with pearls and rubies, which were shimmering like stars under the golden light of the chandeliers candles. The stairs and floors were polished to a high gloss, they seemed like mirrors. The castle was glowing out of beauty. Alcina believed that it never looked this beautiful before.

It was a night full of stars and a full moon without any clouds. The carriages from Lord's and Lady's from unknown countries stood in front of the castle when their owners entered the castle, stunned by the luxury, the gold and the warmth the castle had. They all wore their most expensive dresses and suits. Masks covering their faces, one being more extravagant then the other. Feathers, gemstones, gold, silver, exotic fabrics in all different types of colours. The castle was filled with voices, people enjoying themselves, laughter and of course gossip. There was no masquerade without gossip.
When Daniela and her sisters welcomed the guests in their dark dresses, with the silver coat of arms of their house, with black feathers in their hair and black masks on their faces which were decorated with rubies, they listened to some of the gossip. A lady for instance chatted with a friend of hers over the dress of the woman in front of them, claiming how ugly it was. "Does she really think she looks better in that lemon green dress?", Cassandra asked. "She looks like a fat frog, doesn't she?", Daniela answered and the siblings started giggling.

In the lady's private chambers Alcina got ready. She wore a red dress with white lace on the sleeves and cleavage area. She hummed lightly when she put on her lipstick and checked her reflection. 'Well then', she thought, 'Let's welcome the guests then, shall we.' She rose from her seat and turned around only to be stunned by Melisande who just entered the room. She was dressed in a creamcloloured dress with withe flowers on her left shoulder and red lace on the skit. She wore the necklace Alcina gifted her as well as golden earrings and pearls in her hair. She smiled lovely as she approached Alcina. A white mask on her face, covering her eyes. "Saiya is sleeping. I swear she eats more and more per day" Alcina chuckled and gave her a kiss. "You look stunning, honey." "You too." Alcina smiled at her and got to the bathroom to get her favorite perfume. While she was gone Melisande looked out of the window down to the entrance where a black carriage stood. A woman in a black dress with silver embroidery came out of it. Her blonde hair was decorated with black obsidian stones and wore a black mask with silver symbols on it. She thanked the coachman who had helped her out of the carriage. When she was about to enter the castle she suddenly stopped and looked up, directly at Melisande who got shivers down her spine from those cold light green eyes.

"Are you ready?", interrupted the voice of Alcina Melisande's thoughts. The lady kissed Melisande's neck a few times before they left the room. When they stood at the top of the grand staircase leading into the main hall, they saw Heisenberg approaching them. He was something like the security here, making sure everyone was safe. Melisande had only met him once, but she was sure that seeing him in a suit was a rare occurrence. His suis was black and the buttons golden, his hair combed and on his head he wore a new black hat as well. He did not bother to wear a mask. Alcina chuckled. "Where did you get this from?"She gestured up and down his suit. He smiled proudly,"Donna.", was everything he said before he bowed lightly to Melisande. It was more a nod, but Alcina accepted it. "Nice to see you again. Hope you feel better now." Melisande smiled warmly and took his hand in hers. "I am alright. Thank you, Mylord, for all your help." He seemed a little irritated with her gesture, so he just nodded and made a waving gesture with his hand as if to say "No problem."

Alcina glared at him before turning to the railing. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I welcome you all to Castle Dimitrescu to celebrate the birth of my fourth daughter…" While Alcina held the welcoming speech Melisande noticed Heisenberg scanning the crowd with his watchful eyes. "If you see anything suspicious, inform me.",she whispered in his ear and he nodded. "... For now I wish you a delightful evening", Alcina ended her speech and music began to play.

"Dance with me, my dear.", Alcina said and held out her hand for Melisande, who was of course the topic of the evening. Not only because of her relationship with the Countess, but because of her looks and the fact that Noone had seen her before.

To dance with Alcina was easier than it seems. Yes, she was quite tall, but she was a great dancer which made it so much easier for Melisande. "They look jealous.", Alcina whispered. "Why that?", Melisande asked and looked around. "Because of your beauty, of course and because your body looks perfect even though you just gave birth a week ago", the lady chuckled.

After that dance Melisande was invited to "dance" with the three daughters of Alcina. They were just whirling around, grabbing another by the hands and turned around and jumped. It was a lot of fun and they laughed a lot, although not all guests enjoyed their "loose manner", but Alcina did not say anything. She just enjoyed the sight of her daughters being so happy with their… their stepmother. She smiled at the thought. When the song ended they ran to the side of the dance floor, laughing and being out of breath.

Melisande skipped a song to check on her daughter. She was sleeping perfectly calm in her crib next to Alcinas and her bed. Carefully not to wake her, she brushed over her daughter's cheeks. Her heart was full of love for this girl and was sure that she would live and not die because of her magic. Saiya was strong and healthy. A perfect little girl. She whispered a soft "I love you", before returning to the ball. She stood next to Heisenberg, who was still watching the guests closely. When she looked up to him, she had an idea. "Would you mind a dance?", she asked him. Startled, he looked down, completely confused. She chuckled, took his hands and dragged him onto the dance floor. "Dance with me, Karl Heisenberg."
At first the lord was a bit stiff, he was not much of a dancer, but soon enough he surprised her by being a solid dancer and he also seemed to have a little fun dancing with her. "Can you promise me something?", she asked him middance. He raised an eyebrow. "Will you have an eye on my daughter when I cannot?" She made a turn before looking back into his grey eyes. "I will.", he said without asking any more questions.

The castle's bells were announcing that it was midnight, but the atmosphere in the castle was at its best. The people were laughing and dancing, having fun. Alcina was sitting in an armchair, drinking wine and talking to Donna and Angie. Melisande was most of the time with the daughters or Heisenberg, but in between two songs she was alone. "May I ask for this dance, Madame?", a voice asked behind her and she turned around. It was the lady she saw earlier at the entrance. Her pale green eyes seemed to look deep into her soul. "Of course.", she said and took the lady's cold hand. Something at this woman told her that she knew her and soon enough she would know why…