Work Text:
Chapter 1 - Awakening
It’s cold… I’m cold my eyes twitch beneath my lids as my mind becomes clearer, my fingers shift and I start to feel my eyes flutter open. I take a breath as I take in the dark drawings, crimson with golden accents. I blink again my eyes staying closed for a moment longer than needed then opening as I move my stiff joints. I slowly push myself up into a sitting position and look around I’m in a strange room as I take in the furnishings. I freeze its al completely unfamiliar yet strangely known to me. I touch my head as I hear the creek of a door to my right. I pause as I meet a pair of blue eyes and the girl before me blinks as a voice comes from behind her.
“Cardia? What’s wrong?” His voice was soft and concerned as he pushed the door further open. Recognition hit almost instantly with the light cascading across their faces and hearing her name. My lips part in surprise as I looked down at my hands. I flip them over and over they are slender and pale, still my hands but, how is it that I am here? “She’s awake?” His voice carries a heavy sense of shock and disbelief.
I don’t wait as I move to stand but stumble a bit and Victor rushes to my side to catch me. He helps me find space on the bed and I stare up at him still oddly calm on the outside as my heart hammers in confusion and the fear of how I am here. My first thought is oddly enough of an “Isekai” - perhaps I had been born into another world. My chest seized as I thought of my family and friends and I grabbed at my chest and winced softly only to realize I am wearing gloves and my chest is covered by a full fitted gown… I am in a similar outfit to Cardia’s in the opening only my outfit is black in white, beneath my shirt though… I feel tears prickly my eyes and I over my mouth with my other hand. I wasn’t reborn… I was recreated. I close my eyes to hide my tears.
I feel Victor stiffen beside me and I look up at Cardia, “We’re one and the same… aren’t we…” My voice falters as she sets down a tray with a cloth and some tools. She nods softly and walks over to me and I feel a soft sob bubble to my lips but I suppress the urge. “Who… am I?” I see her and victor look between one another, “I don’t know who I am… how I got here… anything… please…” I beg gently.
Cardia sighs softly and looks at Victor as he stood and moved to turn on the lights and I blink at the bright illumination of the room but Cardia looks at me. “I was told your name is Darcy…” She looks at me softly. “You’re my little sister, you were found with me in a house, we hadn’t moved in a very long time. What little I remember our father, Issac Beckford, brought you to me… you were suppose to awaken when the time was right, but father never returned and you never woke up.”
I try to think back, but all I can remember is darkness, maybe a bright light. I shake my head and look at Cardia, “Am I … toxic like you are?” She blinks in astonishment and Victor also looks confused.
“How did you know that?” He looked confused and I panic as I hold up my hands.
“I just remember a doll burning in my hands…” I speak slowly and the memory does come to me and I put my thumb to my lip chew on the glove at my nails beneath. A habit I still seemed to possess. I pause and look at Victor. “I-I’m not the same though.” I start to feel my memories come flooding back. It’s intense and all at once. I squeeze my eyes shut as it starts to become clearer as I try to remember.
~~~
“I can save her, let me do this you ran your test and had your fun Finis!” A makes voice is booming over me. I’m weak, I’m tired, I feel like I’m fading in and out.
“Another child to take on?” A boyish voice taunts and I feel arms loop beneath me and pick me up. I still can’t move but I know if I don’t I won’t keep going. My fingers twitch and I hear the boyish blog him a moment and then I can hear the smile in his voice, “Very well. A spare never hurts…”
I come back to the moment at hand and look up at a worried looking Cardia and Victor who are couch near my face. I jerk back away from them and blink. “I-I’m not the same…” I look between them. “Yes I was made… but I think I was… human once.” I can see a flicker in Cardia’s eyes, perhaps hope she too was once human. And perhaps she was, I didn’t know all the lore to this world only bits and pieces.
Before what I can remember of this life I had a world, one before, somewhere that had much more technology, something it seems was starting to take a turn here in this world but may advance differently. My world before this place was a work of fiction, an escape world for people who like me who would play virtual games and reach the virtual stories. All I knew was bits to this world I would have to keep those hidden, half truths would be my friend. I would let the know bits as needed but I had to keep my inner knowledge a secret or risk the very fabric of this reality. I’d seen how the ripple effect could work in shows and books, I wasn’t going to risk my existence or theirs. I would not be messing with the multiverse theory.
I shake my head and come back to myself as I look at Victor who’s speaking with Cardia and they both look at me excitedly and I blink a little, “What?” I ask curiously and Cardia smiles.
“We think you should meet the others, I will go tell them you are awake and Victor will gather some more of your blood for samples.” Cardia smiled then continued to explain when I looked lost, “Victor has perfected some containers and other tools that don’t melt when he touches us!”
“That’s quite a feat there sir.” I smile not yet sure how to address Victor but he smiles a slight tint to his cheeks and he rubs the back of his head, I can’t help but snicker at him. He is the adorable type.
“Just call me Victor, and it’s not that much of a feat. I just do what I can to help…” He looked over at a Cardia that was busying herself setting up the tray and I smile internally, I know I am now far enough along in the story to know who Cardia favors. I can’t help but feel a bit giddy at the knowledge that this is a Victor and Cardia timeline, while I liked Victor he wasn’t my favorite, though his route was very informative. I think back to all we had learned about Cardia and the Horologium and the fact that I remember she is in fact not human and never was… but for now I push those thoughts aside and focus on Cardia leaving the room and Victor walking over to me. I feel my breath hitch as I look at the needle and I can tell I go pale as Victor puts it away.
“S-Sorry I guess I’m not good with needles.”I laugh and move to lay back as he puts a cool cloth on my head as the door opens and I laugh as I hear the others already piling. “Well, seems you all have been waiting on me…” I look up as the rest of the house steps in. My eyes land on Impey who is leaning over Victor’s shoulder ogling at me as I lay there.
“What did you do to her Victor? She looks like she may have been better off staying asleep.” He mused as he watched me and I sit up and Victor puts a hand on my shoulder to keep me down. I gently brush him off as I speak.
“Victor did nothing wrong… I am just not used to needles when I am… conscious.” I smirk and Impey laughs as I lean around him and Victor and smile as a worried Cardia and the others who seem a bit more weary than Impey. Then again Impey will flirt with any female in the vicinity and I am a female. I push back my blonde curls and look at Cardia again. ”I’m fine… it was probably best I was out the other times you drew blood.” I gave a gentle smile and this seems to warm Lupin up just a bit.
“So you’re Cardia’s… sister?” He looked at me and I nod my head a bit then make a face and he arches an eyebrow at me and hold up a hand.
“Let me explain, it all comes back in bits and pieces.” I chew on my lower lip nervously as I think and look at the window as I try to piece the memories coming to me. “…I…” I feel my lips form a thin line as I start to grasp what’s happened to me.