The Changelings Chapter Two Safe and Sound Based of the original concept by Simpleswede: https://www.deviantart.com/simpleswede —————— The birds chirped and a bed of beautiful flowers was being stirred by the breeze. Among the flowers, a young fairy peacefully slumbered. She had short spiky hair the color of polished copper and from her shoulder blades sprouted two big wings like those of a dragonfly, fluttering slightly as she dozed. Aside from a single slipper and a satchel made from green leaves, the fey was as naked as the day she was born! The fairy had now returned to her home, the Enchanted Forest, The Realm of the Fey Folk. In this realm, the fairy was now the size of a five foot woman and her build would be dainty. Except for one thing... The slumbering fairy was pregnant and not just a cute little baby bump. It was a big...Big, belly! Erupting from beneath the fairy’s sizable bust and it did not look like the fairy was pregnant with a single infant. It looked like the fey had swallowed a full grown northman. A vast, shiny orb that towered over the fairy’s reclining body that was actually pregnant with eleven full-term infants. If that number was not impressive enough, those infants were not even hers to begin with! No, these infants had been offered up to the Fey Folk of the Enchanted Forest. In past ages, the fairies would have simply spirited away any infant they chose. Then, The Bargain was reached: should an infant sadly find itself unwanted, it was offered to the fey folk in exchange for bountiful harvests and healthy livestock. Since the fey folk are magical, the only way that human infants could be taken to the Enchanted Forest was to be magically absorbed into the fairy’s own womb. Speaking of new homes... One of the repossessed human infants decided to explore it's new surroundings and pressed out one its limbs. A small bump appeared on one side of the fairy’s massive belly. The slumbering fairy stirred but continued to slumber Around her, the Enchanted Forest was beginning to awaken. The fairy's return had been less than graceful. The result being her soft skin splattered in mud. As the sun rose, it started to dry and pull on her skin. The unconscious fairy started to itch. One of the adopted unborns kicked a patch of mud. Flakes fell back unto the flower bed. Cassandra moaned and stirred her head, rustling the flowers. The awakening forest was beginning to notice the significantly bigger fairy in their midst. A few colorful butterflies, mirrors of the mark just underneath Cassandra's navel, made their faint landings on the massive sphere. They flapped their delicate wings and crawled their little legs across the vast expanse of skin. As if attracted to the insects, a bluebird and a butter yellow canary fluttered down from the tree causing the butterflies to scatter. The unborn children kicked and punched at the feel of little bird feet. The birds chirped indignantly and flapped their wings. The feel of feathers tickling the smooth as silk skin was what finally pulled Cassandra from the Land of Nod. “Mmmm” The fairy moaned as she lifted her head. Eyes still closed, Cassandra smacked her lips and flattened more flowers after stretching her limbs as far as they would go. Cassandra grunted and let out a breath. Her morning stretching was impeded by a tremendous weight upon her torso. Cassandra's eyelashes fluttered and her vision focused on the massive pale orb blocking her view of her toes. Cassandra blinked a few more times before her mind fully woke up. The fairy giggled at her own silliness. “Oh that’s right! I’m pregnant!” Her glee was audible to all the forest creatures in earshot. With an excited grin, the fairy buzzed her wings as she pulled her heavy body into a sitting position. The flowers tickled her soft skin. Cassandra grunted as she shifted her cargo to rest between her legs. Cassandra sighed as she looked upon her huge, perfect belly. “I’m pregnant...” This time more softly. She placed a hand upon her taut belly and gently rubbed it back and forth, feeling the humans-  No. Her children move inside her. These babies were Cassandra’s now. All claims to their former life relinquished upon the placement of the oak branch. They were hers...now and forever. “Good Morning, Little Ones.” Giving her belly a pat. The fey giggled as she felt a series of kicks in response. “Wow. That was some adventure last night wasn’t it?” She stretched her arms up high before wincing and falling back onto one hand with the other rubbing her throbbing head. “Ugh. Yes indeed.” Cassandra groaned as her head pulsed painfully. A side effect of both the lightning dust as well as the fading adrenaline rush. The result was a little bit of a hangover. “Azalea tried to warn me about lightning dust. Especially when on the Belly Brigade” Her hand returning to her belly. “Girl, You are going to get an earful from your sisters.” Her babies seemed to respond with a flurry of punches, causing her to wince. There was an intensity that had not been there before. “Don’t worry darlings: No more lightning dust. Thanks to you, Azalea and the others won’t let me near the- Cassandra trailed off as her hand met something harder and crustier. Frowning, Cassandra pulled her hand back and found her fingers covered with dirt. Cassandra frowned at her fingers, Cassandra gave her body and belly, mostly her belly, a closer look. Her belly itself was perfect. Smooth and shiny without single stretch mark to mar its surface. The underside was a different story. Scuffs and scrapes did mar the surface along with recently healed scratches. Dirt, leaves and crushed flowers were also stuck by the mud. Cassandra became more aware of the twinges and stings on the rest of her body. There was grit and pond water in the valley between her breasts and the fey felt a spot of pain on her left butt cheek. The cheeks on Cassandra’s face reddened with pain and mortification as she remembered her rather rough landing with more detail. Cassandra’s hand covered her eyes as she remembered the heart stopping scare she'd had upon landing. Once again, Cassandra leaned forward, pulled in her legs and wrapped her arms around her expanded womb. Closing her eyes, she pressed her long ear to the surface of her belly. Her own racing heart slowed as she heard her children’s heartbeat. Cassandra knew and would often be reminded that she had taken too many risks by absorbing eleven infants. As she sat beside the pond, cradling her huge belly among the flowers, Cassandra knew it would all be worth it. “Don’t worry. No more rough landings." Cassandra's lips moved against her skin. “You’ll be nice and safe for a century or two while you gestate. Plenty of time to get to know each other!” Cassandra giggled and wiped her face. She frowned again as a patch of dirt moved from her hand to her face. She looked over to the pond she had ungracefully landed in, the night before. A bath sounded really good right now. “This time though, I actually want to be in it.” Cassandra tucked in her feet, still wearing one slipper, and laid them flat on the ground. “Hupp!” The fairy pushed up with her legs but the immense weight of her newly acquired belly left her straining. “EEERGH” The muscles in her backside bunched as the fairy tried to lift her cargo. “Oof” Cassandra fell back on her rump with a soft thud. She huffed and scowled at her belly before giving her head a thump. “Ugh, another side effect of lightning dust: scrambled brains” Cassandra closed her eyes. Behind her, the dragonfly wings spread out wide. Silently, they began to undulate. Almost unseen in morning light, golden dust began to drift from their gossamer surfaces. Eyes still closed, Cassandra raised her hands and clapped her palms together. At the sound, the cloud of fairy dust descended and enveloped her humongous womb. The butterfly sigil on her belly’s underside glowed slightly in response as the magical substance was absorbed into the tightened flesh. The sparkles faded and Cassandra’s lips perked into a slight smile as the tremendous weight on her torso slowly lightened. “Okay!" Opening her eyes. "Let’s try this again!” Bracing her hands and feet on the ground, Cassandra took a deep breath... “and heave!” Cassandra pushed against the ground and this time, her belly didn’t pin her down. The fairy rose to her feet and gasped. “Woah!” She buzzed her wings to keep her balance as her mass settled. Her children stirred as they too settled into their new position. “There, There” She whispered. "Calm Down" Now that the weight problem had been solved, Cassandra realized that mashed mud and plant matter was still stuck to her body. Some of it was actually dripping off! “Yuck!” The sparkling water in the pool looked more inviting than ever. This time, the fairy could actually enjoy the water. The pregnant fairy took a tentative step forward, one on her hip and another on the small of her back. Lightened as she was, caution was still required.  “Carrying precious cargo after all!” Looking down at her belly. But the belly was still heavy and felt heavy. It still had mass after all. The magic was just enough to allow her to walk and to breath. Cassandra gave her wings a sideways glance. She didn't think she was ready for flight yet. . Moving ever so carefully, the extremely pregnant fairy waddled over to the shimmering surface of the pool. “Oh this bath is going to feel so good! I’ll get us nice and -ugh!” Cassandra was cut off and nearly sent back unto her rear as a hard fist or foot hit her hard in her stomach. “Gah!” Cassandra started before another foot or fist hit her in the bladder. Cassandra huffed and puffed and spread her legs as her unborn children began to squirm and fidget all at once. “Oof! Ah!” The fairy grunted and was nearly thrown off balance as bumps began to appear across the expanse of belly. Another errant limb impacted her sensitive insides. “What’s with you!?” She asked her rambunctious brood. “Is this because of the lightning dust?” clutching her twitching belly. “Because of it is. I promise no more after-“ Promises were suddenly cut off as something rose from inside her like the slow roar of a hibernating bear. ‘Gggroowlll’ The agitation of her babies was indeed due to the lightning dust. More specifically, the side effects. I.e: a deep...gnawing... “Hungry...” The fairy’s voice came from her mouth in a moaning drone. Her compacted stomach gave its own concurrence with another deep rooted growl. Suddenly, all thoughts of bathing were demolished. The pond would serve a different purpose now.  “Foood...” Cassandra now had twelve stomachs and she needed to fill them as quickly as possible. Giving her heavy body a burst forward, the pregnant fairy crouched on the shore of the pool. A frog was contently croaking away perched on a lily pad. Its eyes widened comically as the tremendous form of Cassandra blotted out the sun. It quickly hopped into the water for safety at the sight of Cassandra’s hand reaching for its lily pad. The fairy unceremoniously yanked the plant up by its waterlogged roots. Lily pads were edible but not very commonly eaten.  Cassandra was drooling at the sight of the fresh foliage. Disregarding all her lessons on table manners, she crammed the nymphaeaceae into her mouth. It wasn't very good. In taste or in texture, but the fairy eagerly chewed and swallowed it. The infants inside her seemed to intensify in their kicks, sensing the incoming nourishment from their new mother. Before the first lily pad was swallowed, Cassandra had already grabbed another one. Her belly visibly shifted and twitched. After a while, the acidic, veggie taste was beginning to get to her. The lily pads had only just dulled the hunger that was gnawing like the void. Almost at the exact moment the last bit of plant matter was swallowed, Cassandra's babies once more began their angry assault on her insides. “Urf. Easy little ones!” Wincing at every angry kick. The fairy reached for the waters but her hand only met water. Turning her gaze from her twitching belly, she saw that all the lily pads that had once grown in this part of the pool had all been turned fetus fuel. She spotted more at another part of the pond, but memory of the acrid taste as well as the irritated croak of a frog that was sulking on the shore changed her mind on that front. “Come on babies. Let’s find some better food!” The said babies were too impatient, immature, or just too darn hungry to understand. Cassandra gritted her teeth as tiny hands and feet took out their anger on their loving, selfless parent. “The burden of motherhood” Cassandra muttered to herself through gritted teeth. Even though she could walk with her big belly, it was still not a light load. Her wings buzzed again, casting ripples into the pond as she found her balance. The hungry infants jostling inside the massive sphere did not aid the fey in her task. Cassandra let out some noises that were rather unbecoming of a graceful, magical, fairy. Her hands flew about her enlarged form, struggling for purchase, but the belly was as smooth and taught as a fresh watermelon. Cassandra had to settle for pressing a hand to the small of her back again and the other on top of her womb. One of the infants kicked, causing a pronounced bump. Cassandra furrowed her brow and scowled “Alright! I’m going, I’m going!” ‘You ungrateful brats’ she recited mentally. Yet another burden of motherhood. The dark thoughts slowly receded though as Cassandra walked through the Enchanted Forest. Her earlier consternation melted away as she took in the rich life of the forest. Even if the movements in her womb caused her big breasts to jiggle and bounce on her chest. The sun cast its golden light through the branches, thick with broad green leaves. Flocks of sparrows, cardinals, blue jays, and ravens flew back and fourth from nests filled with eggs. Cassandra’s mouth watered at the thought of eggs. Cracking them open in the spicy confines of Toula’s house, the yolks cooking as freshly made cheese from the nursemaids sprinkled on top along with freshly pickled onions and peppers and just a toss of freshly ground spices. Cassandra groaned as another growl from her stomach rippled through her inflated form. It was so loud and intense that a pair of squirrels actually scurried in fright from underneath the raspberry bush. The lily pads had long since been processed and the gnawing emptiness had returned. The babies were doing their best to remind their mother of this. Cassandra winced and rested her belly on the ground. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry!” Cassandra told her belly, stroking as much as she could reach. “I promise! I’m going to get some- Raspberries!” Cassandra finally noticed the bush that the squirrels had abandoned. A medium-sized bush filled to the brim with wild raspberries. Cassandra started towards it. “Woah!” She flapped her wings to halt her forward momentum. Her hunger was so intense it almost made her forgot the eight-foot, flesh colored balloon that was attached to her waist. Said balloon almost flattened the raspberry bush. “Going to have to get used to you all being with me all the time!”  Cassandra, chuckled as she patted her gigantic gut. Her little ones were not amused and continued to trash inside her. Cassandra could feel another growl building up and her rational mind beginning to disappear. “Only pregnant for a day and already feeling the cravings!” The still naked fairy came to rest beside the bush and eagerly plucked the ripe berries. Just like with the lily pads, they were into her mouth. Perhaps it was cravings or the deprivations wrought by the lightning dust, but the berries seemed especially delicious today. “Yum!” cried out Cassandra. She used her belly to brace herself on the ground keeping one hand on its smooth surface as she devoured berries. “Mmmm, So good!” said Cassandra through masticated fruit. Red juice ran down from her lips, down her chin to pool in her cleavage. She didn’t care. The tangy tart flavor of the berries was all that mattered to her and her brood. Her mission hit a snag when her sticky hand only met leaves. That side of the bush was picked clean. There were plenty more on the rest of the bush but they were out of reach. Cassandra huffed, causing a splatter of red juice to coat her breasts and belly. She swallowed and prepared to move her bulky self to the other side of the bush. One infant kicked her sharply causing to grunt once more. The resulting impact jogged her sluggish memory. Cassandra blinked then sighed..her pointed ears drooping “Silly me! Again. Definitely no more lightning dust. It makes you stupid!” She smiled softly and caressed the location of the kick. “I get the feeling the you’ll be the brains of the bunch. There was a caress from the other side of the uterine wall. Cassandra’s eyes widened before welling up with tears. She had made a connection...She reached up, kissed her palm, and rubbed it on the spot once again, where her gorgeous child was nestled safe and sound. Cassandra's lips parted- Only for the moment to be shattered by a flurry of impatient kicks from the surrounding amniotic sea. Cassandra huffed. “Impatient are we?” She resisted the urge to the thump them back, instead reaching around for some of her magic dust. The fey’s hand groped around a bit but her satchel was nowhere to be found. Cassandra frowned then remembered the rather rough landing and how her satchel had been left behind near the impact crater. Cassandra sighed and flapped her wings and just managed to lift her feet off the ground when a wave of dizziness nearly sent her sprawling...again. She groaned and pressed a hand once more to her spinning head. “Okay, definitely no flying for a while.” Her satchel would have to wait. Thankfully, Cassandra was back in her homeland. The Enchanted Forest was suffused in magic. Cassandra flapped her wings again and collected a mound of sparkling golden dust in her palm. She plucked a leaf from the bush that had wedged under her left breast and crushed it into the dust. Her stomachs were about to growl once again when the fey released the dust. It settled over the raspberry bush. The charmed berries all detached themselves from the stems and flew towards Cassandra. Cassandra grinned and opened her mouth. Her cheeks slowly filled with the succulent red berries till they bulged like a chipmunk's. “Or a night of oral fixations with Belen...” The thought made the fairy’s cheeks go as red as the berries she was chewing. The juice trailed down her chin and landed on her  breasts before slowly trailing downward. “Woof! Down girl!” Waving herself with a hand. She swallowed a mouthful of berries. “Gotta get the little ones fed first before...other things.” A bit of chewed berry flew from her mouth landing with a soft splat on the vast curvature of her belly. As if to emphasize the point, a few hard thumps sounded from within. “Alright” Swallowing the last of the berries and licking her lips. She looked over at the bush. As expected, the fairy dust had picked the bush clean. Hefting her colossal stomach, Cassandra walked deeper into the forest, licking her fingers. The ferns and grasses parted before the huge, pale protrusion like a vast whale swimming through a reef. Unseen by the fairy, small rodents and the occasional rabbit ran for their lives as the impossibly large mass was impossibly propelled through the lush forest. The fairy had no time for forest creatures right now. Cassandra had her own little creatures to worry about now “Hmmm” Cassandra sucked on her fingers as she scanned the forest, searching for further sustenance. The grass tickled the underside of her gargantuan belly and Cassandra stifled the urge giggle. This was no laughing matter! “Ugh! Usually is seems like there is a walnut tree or tomato plant every five feet but now! Only ferns!” Cassandra’s roving gaze then fell upon a fallen trunk. Its surface was covered with an array of white mushrooms. The fey’s eyes lit up. Being connected to the Forest, Cassandra instinctively knew that those mushrooms were safe to eat. Grinning, she moved into position like a massive ship pulling into harbor and quickly ripped the mushrooms from the fallen trunk. The helpless fungi were perched on the immense shelf of her belly and eagerly devoured. While she ate, her thoughts drifted back to her previous conundrum. “Then again” She said between mouthfuls of mushrooms. “I spend most of my time flying.” She glanced up at the clear, blue sky, puffy clouds lazily drifting by. Cassandra then looked down at the vast expanse of stretched skin. Cassandra sighed, causing her wings to droop slightly. “Eleven” Eleven pairs of feet told her that zipping across the Forest on wings of fairy dust would not be happening for quite some time. The fairy walked and ate more mushrooms. Her belly passed under a willow tree. Its drooping leaves drew a feather soft touch across the silky, smooth expanse of belly. Cassandra’s wings shot straight back up and gooseflesh erupted over her body. Her exposed nipples hardened in spite of the warm air. The pleasure rippled up and down her body and Cassandra let a half eaten mushroom fall from her fingers. “Soooo worth it!” The fairy caressed her stuffed belly and moved back and forth under the willow branches. The fey felt a different kind of hunger building up inside her, something Cassandra had wanted to unleash ever since she gotten her first baby. "Flying's overrated anyway!" A sly look came over her face and her hand drifted down from her belly and unto her thigh. Then rising higher. In the ever empathic ways of children, several of the unborns decided that now would be a good time to get some exercise. Cassandra's other hunger was smothered as her insides became throw pillows. Cassandra huffed. “Okay, Okay! Mommy gets it. Food first, orgasms later.” The old hunger was starting to return. The morning sun was beginning to turn into a noonday sun and was making it rather warm for the fairy in spite of the persistent shade. Cassandra’s cheeks were starting to redden and beads of sweat were beginning to pour from her pores, causing her belly to glisten in the sunlight. In spite of still being in the grips of hunger, Cassandra let herself smile. This has always been her favorite part of being pregnant: just basking in the soft grass, with the light of the sun warming her vast belly, feeling her children gently moving as they too enjoyed the warmth. Said vast belly, visibly lurched to the side. A flurry of tiny but hard fists beat down on Cassandra's stomach which then took its turn to clench like an angry fist around her partially digested lunch. The fairy attached to the accoutrements gagged, winced and went limp over her womb. Small but hard feet kicked through the stretched skin against her face Cassandra shook her head but got the message. Basking would have to wait. Cassandra kept walking or waddling in search of food.  Her eyes swiveled in their sockets as they scanned. “Ah hah!” A rotting stump in a clearing was covered with even more edible mushrooms. They too met the same fate of their compatriots on the fallen branch. For some reason, their fleshy texture and bitter flavor was no longer an obstacle and Cassandra devoured them as eagerly as she would have one of Ophelia’s chocolate bundt cakes. “Oooh Bundt Cake!” A different kind of pleasure rippled through her body and her belly shifted in response. Cassandra’s adopted brood agreed with the prospect of a chocolate bundt cake drizzled with hot fudge and walnuts along with a generous dose of powdered sugar. “Oh Spirits!” Cassandra nearly teared up and stuffed another bland mushroom into her mouth and tried to imagine that it was a sweet-cake.  "I really need to get home." It was then that Cassandra realized something. Like an arrow striking her between the eyes, Cassandra realized that yet again, she had forgotten something else upon her return to the Enchanted Forest. “I love having all of you in me and all” She patted her belly and received a small series of kicks in response. “But maybe the humans could have paced themselves this Harvest Moon.” Trailing her fingers up and down the massive, peach colored dome. “You made me late and almost forgot our arrangement with the humans!” She thumped the taught skin with the heel of her palm. She stuffed a few more mushrooms into her mouth and received few sharp kicks on the upper side of her belly button. “Don’t strike your mother!” she scolded her children. “You are all going to have to learn this some day. So listen up!” Giving her belly a few pokes. “Along with standard protection from the blights, there is also a requirement for a more personal show of gratitude for helping us fey folk maintain our numbers.” Cassandra finished the mushrooms and looked around again. Her children were still urging her to get food but she also needed to find something else to- “Strawberries!” An entire bushel of plants were off to the side of the clearing. “Spirits! I love the Enchanted Forest”  Cassandra hurried as quickly as her immense bulk would allow. Drool was almost pouring from her lips as she reached out for the succulent fruit. By now her hunger had been sated enough that she had the foresight to grab a couple of leaves and stems along with the berries. So great was the hunger still that that she shoved the whole lot into her ravenous mouth, leaves and stems in all. As she chewed, a leaf escaped from the gnashing teeth and floated down to the skin of her belly. Peeling it off, she repeated the same steps with the previous bush and soon the strawberry plants were sparkling with fairy magic. Cassandra’s own eyes sparkled with delight as the air around the extremely pregnant fairy was filled with the floating forms of succulent strawberries. Her babies must have been equally delighted as bumps began to appear all over the otherwise smooth surface of her belly as they kicked and squirmed in anticipation. In the back of her mind, Cassandra knew she had to get back home and tell her sisters that she was okay. On top of that, she still needed to perform her Task of Gratitude. “Well. I can do one of those things right now!” Snatching another hovering berry and another, she messily chewed them and began... “Okay!” polishing her palms. “How did it go again?” Her mouth still full of masticated fruit. Between her words, chunks of strawberry pulp joined the purple spots coating the top of the belly the was starting to resemble a used placemat. She needed a visit to the baths. Cassandra plucked another strawberry floating in the air. Her task was a bit more hampered by all the maternal humors that were beginning to afflict her. She continue to chew and stroke her belly when her eyebrows shot up. "Now, I remember!" Cassandra closed her eyes and stretched out her wings as far as they could go. She felt a pang and cracked open her eyes, spotting the few remaining strawberries still floating in the air. The fairy whined slightly and flicked her fingers. The hovering strawberries flew in formation into Cassandra's wide open mouth. Breathing hard through her nose, she swallowed the strawberries whole as they flew single file down her throat. “Whew!” catching her breath. “Okay. Focus Cassandra! Just one more thing to do and then you can enjoy being pregnant!" She closed her eyes again and spread her fingers wide. Dust flowed from the palm of her hands, this time of the purest white. The fey winced and grunted, digging into her reserves. Cassandra had used a lot more magic than she had meant to. Even after returning to her magical home, it was still difficult to summon more. “This will be the last bit of magic Mommy is going to be able to do for a while now.” Cassandra then smiled brightly. “But it will be ‘your’ first bit of magic!” Giving her huge belly a slight, magically enhanced bounce. Her infants stirred within, soothing Cassandra. The white dust cascaded down her arms and her wings started to glow with white light. Like a windblown gust of snow, the dust swirled around Cassandra’s expanded body. Across Cassandra’s belly, spheres of light started to glow under the taut skin: one for every child. The magic slowly grew in its power. Cassandra gasped as her belly visibly shifted from side to side as the unborn children became energized with magic. Cassandra felt a tear trail down her cheek. “Hush little ones” Cassandra gently whispered to her anxious children. “This is a part of what you will become...” The butterfly symbol under her belly button, nearly invisible most times, began to brightly glow. The swirling white dust began to coalesce into the same pattern. With a flex of her fingers, the fairy dust ceased its flow. One by one the spheres of light in her belly faded. The butterfly symbol glowed as bright as the sun. The magic intensified and Cassandra’s hair began to fly like she were standing in a strong wind. The magic reached it's crescendo and suddenly a swarm of pure white butterflies erupted from Cassandra’s belly and soared into the sky. Cassandra smiled and rubbed her belly, watching them fly away and disappear over the tree-line. Suddenly, Cassandra gasped and her knees buckled. Her belly fell to the ground with a ‘thump’ causing a ripple in the grass. Cassandra fell on top of the protrusion, smooshing her breasts up against her hard surface. “And thats that!” Cassandra gasped. “Mommy’s all tapped out” She rested her cheek upon her belly and her fingers traced circles on its surface, relishing the warmth and feeling of her children moving in its depths. While the weight had been negated by the magic, the bulk had not. Her waters sloshed inside, causing a flurry of kicks and somersaults. Her fatigue was still gnawing at her bones and her children were now having first dibs (rightly) on her energy. Aside from the belly lightening spell that was tied to the ancient magic of the fairy realm, Cassandra would not be performing magic until she had fully recovered, which wouldn't be for quite a while. Cassandra took another deep breath and sat more fully on her knees. She glanced over her shoulder where the butterflies had flown away. She turned her attention back to her belly and the plants now stripped bare of all fruit. “She had better appreciate it” Cassandra sighed and returned to tracing on her belly. She tried in vain to move but she was so depleted of magic that it was no use. “What now?” she asked her belly, before letting out a tremendous yawn. Her children couldn’t answer just yet. She settled for resting her chin on her belly. “I need to get back to the city. I need to get back to my sisters. They’re probably worried.” Cassandra then realized that she was still naked and many of her scratches still smarting. Cassandra sighed again. “I need to get checked out by the healers and I also need too - Ooh! Watermelons! In the distance was a grove of pale green, wild (as wild as the enchanted forest can be) watermelons. “And big ones too!” Summoning up a reserve of energy, Being under the Enchanted Forest’s sun and trees, the butterfly symbol glowed once more and Cassandra rose to her feet. She eagerly began to haul toward the precious fruit. “I love fruit!”  ##### Please Comment Please Watch Constructive Criticism Welcomed Commissions Always Open.