Floraline

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Professor Layton. If I did, Descole would have his own spin-off.

Author's Note: Well, the movie Coraline is playing on TV right now, and I'm currently really into Professor Layton and pining for Mask of Miracle. I've seen the movie before, but just it being on is making me combine the two mentally. I thought of Flora for the title role because she is a character that doesn't get much attention or stories, and she is always left behind. It's easy to see her as frustrated as Coraline is with her life. This really made me want to write this story, along with the idea I had for the "Other Mother". I hope you all enjoy it. And FYI-My computer went crazy and deleted ALL of my Word files. Thankfully, I had most of them backed up, but I lost what I had of this one completely. So, I'm rewriting it all over again. Please review! And feel free to let me know if you want to IM and talk about Professor Layton! I'm also currently looking for someone to co-write a fanfic or two with me.

Chapter One

Alone

Once upon a time, in a curious little village, there lived an equally-curious little girl named Flora.

Poor Flora had lost her parents when she was just a child, and at the request of her father, she had isolated herself in a tall tower that loomed over the rest of the village. Her father had set up an elaborate system of puzzles and riddles that needed to be solved before one could gain entry to the tower. This was to protect Flora and make sure only someone with intelligence and determination could reach her. There would be one last test after that, involving a birthmark of Flora's, which would only appear when she laughed. For only a person who could make Flora laugh would be worthy of becoming her new guardian, which was the point to everything.

With the promise that she would one day be found and loved, Flora had stayed within the tower, all alone. The years passed, and she grew from a precocious little girl to a very sweet, naive young woman. Even though she had faith in her father, she had started to fear that no one would ever come for her.

And then, he came…

Professor Hershel Layton, archeology teacher, lover of puzzles, and true English gentleman. With his keen intellect, he had managed to reach the tower with his eager young apprentice, Luke. He was a kind man, and he had saved Flora many times before the day was over. For the first time in years, she had laughed, all because of him. She had been all too happy to leave her little village behind and go with him.

From that point on, Flora had been certain her life would be one of warmth, family, and adventure.

But life has a funny way of turning out differently than you could ever imagine…

"Good morning, Professor!"

It had been less than a year since that fateful day when the good professor had found Flora and agreed to become her new guardian. They lived together in a simple, comfy house, and while it was not as luxurious as what she was used to, she was fond of her new home. And seeing the kind smile of the professor everyday only made it that much better.

Well, almost everyday…

"Good morning, Flora." Professor Layton said, smiling in that way that warmed her heart and made her want to smile even more than she already was.

"I made you breakfast!" The professor had done so much for her, Flora had taken up doing all the cooking as a way to thank him. Unfortunately, having lived a life of luxury before coming to stay with him, she had no experience, and unbeknownst to her, what she made was rarely edible.

Eyeing the…pancakes-he assumed that's what they were, though he'd never known pancakes to have eyes,-Layton did his best to hide the nausea creeping up from his stomach. After all, a gentleman did not insult a lady's…cooking.

"Aren't you going to eat them?" Flora asked, completely unaware of his discomfort.

"Uh, w-well…" It was all the professor could do not to let out a sigh of relief when the doorbell rang. "I'll get it!" he said, a little too eagerly. He left the room and returned a couple seconds later with Luke.

Though she had hoped to have some time alone with the professor, Flora politely hid her disappointment and smiled at him. "Hello, Luke."

"Hi, Flora!" the thirteen-year-old greeted, before suddenly wrinkling his nose in disgust. "What's that smell?"

"Hmm?" Flora looked puzzled, her eyes scanning the room. "I don't smell anything."

The professor cleared his throat quietly to get Luke's attention, then quickly glanced at the table. Luke took one look at the food placed there and paled, only to be nudged by the professor in time to prevent Flora from seeing this. He smiled nervously at her. "Ah, never mind! I'm sure I was just imagining things!"

"Oh?" Flora thought he was acting rather strange, but that wasn't really anything new.

Professor Layton cleared his throat again, quickly putting on his coat and scarf. "I'm sorry to dash off, Flora, but there is some important business Luke and I must attend to. Come along, Luke!" Without another word, the two dashed out of the house in a most ungentlemanly fashion, not even hearing Flora as she called out after them.

"Alone again…" Flora sighed wistfully, looking at the abandoned breakfast she had worked so hard to prepare. This was hardly the first time the professor had run off like this, leaving her to eat alone. She hated the silence of it, and she honestly wasn't all that hungry anymore.

With a sad look on her face, Flora slowly went about cleaning up. Though she tried her best not to dwell on it, her mind kept drifting back to the professor and Luke, wondering what they would be doing today. They usually had such grand adventures and were sometimes gone for days at a time. She didn't think this would be one of those times, but she couldn't be certain anymore. In the past, he would always tell her when he was going far away and might be gone a while. But after several instances of her following him and getting caught up in dangerous situations, he had stopped doing that.

For someone who was always such a gentleman, it never even seemed to cross his mind how much she hated always having to wonder whether or not he'd be coming home each night. She never knew where he was and had no way of getting in touch with him if there were an emergency. But that wasn't even the worst of it. The worst part…

…was that she was alone.

Having lost both of her parents so young and spent so many years living in isolation, the one thing Flora hated more than anything else was being alone. When the professor was gone, she felt like she was back in that lonely tower again, waiting an unknown time for someone to come for her. He was, essentially, all she had, having left everyone else she knew behind in that little village so far away.

It might have been better if Flora at least had some friends she could talk to or visit, but she did not. She went to school, but spending so long hidden away in a tiny village and living with more riches than most could imagine had made her what most of her classmates called "unusual". Despite her best efforts, she just couldn't seem to connect with any of them.

Currently, Luke was the only person she would consider a friend, yet she knew he cared more for the professor than her. He only came by to see the professor, and she couldn't help but feel a little jealous when ever the two of them went out together for what would surely be an interesting day.

Flora always felt guilty for feeling something as petty as jealousy-especially since, in spite of all she lacked, she still did have a lot more than some people,-but she just couldn't help it sometimes. Like her, Luke had left behind the small village where he had grown up. But he still kept in touch with all his friends, and some of them had even come to visit recently. They had laughed and looked at old pictures, while she had just stood off to the side, awkwardly. His parents had been there too, and while she had tried to instead focus on them, she ended up feeling worse than ever after seeing how nice they were.

She could barely even remember her parents, but she wanted to believe they had been nice, loving people. It wasn't fair. Luke still had both of his parents… Why did he need to have the professor, too?

Even though such thoughts were surely justified, they made Flora feel bad. She was being selfish, wasn't she? The professor was not hers. He'd had a whole life of his own before she'd been thrust into it, and while he had happily taken her in, maybe he had hoped she would have chosen to stay in the village where she had been raised. After all, who would think that a young girl would choose to abandon all she had ever known to become the ward of a complete stranger?

As she wondered if it was possible the professor really didn't want her around, Flora did the dishes. Distracted by her disheartening thoughts, she was barely aware of the water scalding her hands or the too-strong fruity scent of the soap… The only thing she noticed, was just how quiet the house was.

Feeling more restless than usual, Flora found herself doing something she hadn't done in ages-stayed up well past her usual bedtime to wait for the professor to get home. Since she usually had school in the morning, and since there were many times he did not come home until past midnight or simply did not come home at all, she had given up on what had previously been a daily ritual for her. But tonight, she desperately needed his company. To see his face and hear his voice…

Flora curled up on a sofa in the den with one of her favorite books, Alice in Wonderland. She loved the idea of a young girl leaving behind her boring life and having her own little adventure in a bizarre, but intriguing world. Pretty soon she was imagining that she was that girl in the story, seeing the most unusual things and meeting the most extraordinary people, just like in the tales the professor and Luke would always tell her when they got back from one of their many adventures.

The teen got so caught up in her make-believe adventure, that she didn't even hear the front door closing or notice the professor coming into the den. She didn't even hear him the first time he said her name. It wasn't until he shook her shoulder gently that she snapped out of her trance and looked up at him in surprise.

"Professor!" she shouted with glee, jumping up and hugging him. The book combined with his return had done wonders to lift her spirits.

The professor chuckled as the force of her hug sent him stumbling backwards, nearly knocking him over. "What are you doing up so late, my dear? Were you waiting up for me?" There was a look of concern on his face. A gentleman must never keep a lady waiting, after all.

"O-oh, no, of course not!" Flora didn't want him to be upset, and she didn't want to seem clingy. She smiled, her cheeks red. "Did you and Luke have fun today?"

"We tackled a most intriguing mystery." he told her as she followed him out into the hall. He took off his coat and scarf and hung them up. "I'm sure Luke can't wait to tell you all about it." He didn't ask her how her day was or what she did, and this made her feel sad.

"Can't you tell me, Professor?" Flora usually didn't like hearing about his and Luke's adventures, since it just reminded her what she was missing out on. But right now, she just wanted him to spend time with her. She would have even asked him to tell her about his archeology work-which she found incredibly boring,-if it meant he'd spend more than five minutes in the same room with her.

The professor smiled again, touching the brim of his top hat. "Now, now, Flora, a true gentleman does not deprive his young apprentice of a chance to impress a young lady."

Flora was pretty sure he'd just made that one up.

Professor Layton took her book from her and closed it, placing it back on the shelf. "I think it is time for both of us to get to bed, my dear."

Flora's heart sank. "Yes, Professor."

He smiled, not noticing her unhappiness. "Goodnight, Flora."

"Goodnight."

The professor left the room, and Flora fell back onto the sofa, her head hanging. It was always Luke who recounted their adventures. Her guardian might laugh or make a comment or two, but that was it. He himself would never tell her about what they did, even when she begged. And aside from "goodnights" and "good mornings" and "hellos" and the dreaded "goodbyes", he rarely exchanged words with her at all. He never spoke with her the way he did with Luke.

Flora could feel the tears brimming in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She would not cry. It made her feel more weak and pathetic than she already did, which was something she just couldn't stand.

Especially since there was no one there to comfort you when you cried alone.

And even with the professor just upstairs, Flora knew that was still…

…so very much alone.