notes: suddenly, replicas. thousands of them.
i own nothing.

Oubliette

"Ion! I'm so sorry…!"

"Don't worry, Anise…"

"I…no, but Ion…!"

"Thank you…for everything…my most…c h e r i s h e d …"

"NO!"

She's really starting to hate the mornings.

.

Anise wakes up; heart pounding, forehead sweating, and her throat dry as if she'd spent hours screaming…just as always.

The girl lay in her bed as she waits for her heart to calm down and her eyes adjust to the light. She reaches up and wipes her damp brow with the back of her hand, pushing the image of a certain dissipating Fon Master out of her mind. As soon as she feels comfortable getting up, the girl glances over to her inn roommate of the night.

"My, you're up awfully early Anise, is everything alright?" Natalia asks, tilting her head to the side curiously.

"Y-Yeah," she replies, grabbing Tokunaga from over the top of the nightstand. "I'm doing just fine."

"Are you nervous?" The princess gives a sympathetic look. "Today is the day, after all…"

"Of course not!" Anise says, laughing. "I'm shaking with anticipation! We're going to finally kick Van's ass and end everything he's done wrong!" She pounds her fist in the air with some forced enthusiasm, her voice far louder than it should be.

Natalia smiles and gives a giggle, holding her dainty fingers over her lips. "I see. Well, let's do our best then, shall we?"

.o.

"Ion, I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry!"

"Everything is alright, so don't feel sad."

"No, it's not! Ion! Ion!"

"You don't have to worry about me anymore, Anise…and now it's time for you to die."

"No…please…I'm so sorry…"

Maybe if her throat isn't so dry, she can scream.

.

Her eyes shoot open, mouth agape and her cheeks far more wet than they should be. Her heart is pounding drum beats into her chest; her fingertips are colder than ice. It was the exact same nightmare as usual, but…

"…S-Sync…"

The name bites poison into her tongue, and Anise shivers. It had only been days since the group traversed through Eldrant and defeated the group of tragic enemies, and already it was starting to affect her nightmares…as if they weren't already bad enough.

She shakes her head and grips the roots of her hair; Sync and Ion were different people – entirely different people, just like Luke and Asch were…why did it have to be his face?

Anise draws in a deep breath; the familiar warm air of Daath sweeping into her lungs does nothing to comfort her. She exhales. It feels far too nice.

"Anise?" her mother's voice softly brushes against her shoulder, concerned. "Anise, is there something wrong? You said someone's name just now…" Pamela steps into her view, her appearance heartrending.

"I…" It takes a moment for Anise to become aware of her surroundings. Her eyes widen. "O-Oh, yeah! I'm fine!"

"Anise…" the woman sits down next to her daughter and Anise leans in from the new weight. "Please talk to me if you ever need someone to listen…your father and I both love you very dearly." She strokes the top of the girl's head. "You've been through so much in this last week…"

And as Pamela wraps her arms around Anise's shoulders and holds her close, the girl feels a lump rise in her throat before swallowing it down. She closes her eyes, and the background noise becomes blurred humming against her ears.

.o.

"I…Ion…Ion, I'm so sorry…"

"Thank you for everything…my most…"

"Ion, no!"

"Anise, why are you kicking me?"

"Because, I – !"

But of course it isn't his face.

.

"Anise…"

The Fon Master jerks awake, sweating profusely and gasping in air. In retrospect, it was incredibly foolish of her to think that the nightmares would cease, even after all these years…

Her name is quietly repeated, and she turns to the direction of that painfully familiar voice – she lets out a breath of stale air upon seeing him.

"Why…" Ion – no, it's Florian, of course it's Florian – is standing over by her bedside, his expression somber. "Why are you kicking me?" He brings his hands up to his stomach defensively – almost pathetically.

Anise opens and closes her mouth, confused. After a moment she realizes that her covers are on the floor, her legs exhausted. She connects two and two together.

"I…I'm sorry, Florian," she says as she reaches down and pulls the down blanket up to her lap. The cloth brushes against the replica's fingers, and his glance drops to the floor.

"Do you not like me, Anise?" he asks, his voice wavering and apprehensive. He softly strokes the stitched lining, keeping his eyes on the tips of his shoes.

"I…no, of course I do! I like you a whole lot, Florian!" Anise assures, reaching out and taking the innocent replica's hands into her own. "I was just having a bad dream…I'm really sorry I kicked you…"

Florian's fingers gives a slight twitch at the girls touch. He blinks, and raises his head up to look at her through forest green bangs. "Oh…was it…really scary, Anise?"

"Yeah, well," she gives a shrug of the shoulder, pushing the embarrassing memories out of her thoughts. "I guess it was scary, but…" She softly squeezes the boy's hands. "But I'm feeling a lot better. With you here, and everything…" She doesn't let go of him. "You always make me feel better, you know…"

A moment passes, and Florian returns the squeeze before beaming. He brings their hands up to his chest and he bounces – a childish form of dance, but it was what made him Florian, anyway.

Anise smiles back, her eyes bright and the air tasting fresher than it has in years. She stands up and starts bouncing with him. A silly act for the Fon Master to do, but this time she will make an exception.

Maybe…mornings weren't so bad.

End