Hello, and welcome to the final part of the XANA's Daughter series. Thank you for staying with this story so far and seeing it to it's- hopefully- dramatic and enjoyable end. Just a word of warning...Magenta, Aelita's XANA- created clone, a is a twisted thing, and in this last section, it shows all the little more. It's rated T for a reason. Please to enjoy, and thank you!

Was she dead?
She couldn't tell if her eyes were open or closed.
Was the death this floating feeling?
But there was sound.
At least it wasn't silent any more.
A soft hum, whispers echoed in the back of her head. An emotion rose slowly with them, like fog.
Had she killed them?
A murmur of pain flashed through her mind at the thought. How...how could she...
More voices hissed at her, bouncing around against the quiet like the sparks that had danced along her skin, in her eyes, in her heart.
Those sparks killed them.
No. Shut up. Something inside her clenched. The emotion brought bile with it, slowly tearing at her throat.
You couldn't control it. Worthless, useless, stupid little fool. You lost control.
The hissing voice laughed softly, cruelly, as other voices babbled at her in soft panic.
And now they're gone.
Gone.
And now you've left the door open. They're coming again. The monster and it's daughter. Wake up.
They can't be gone.
Wake up.
"Aelita?"
Wake up!
Horror constricted her chest, guilt and anger choking her.
"Aelita!"
Another voice, different, in her ears. Oh please. She grasped on to it, pleading. They can't be gone. Please.
"She's not breathing, something-"
"J-Jeremie?"
Her eyes flashed open just as the voice registered in her memory. Gasping, she sat bolt upright, coughing.
Something was hitting her hard on the back. Her eyes pouring tears, Aelita flung her hands out, covering her head.
"Princess, please, please, breathe!"
Another voice, another hand on her back. Her eyes opened wide, and the coughs froze in her throat as she spun.
"You- you're not-" Staring at the startled faces of Jeremie and Ulrich, her coughs erupted again. Gasping, she watched as other figures hurried towards her. "You-u're alive?"
From the other side of room, leaning against one of the scanners, Odd raised an eyebrow and exchanged glances with Yumi, who was standing just behind Ulrich.
"Uh, Princess..."
Aelita shook her head, covering her face with her hands. "I- I lost control, Magenta said-"
"You'd believe that half-byte thing over your eyes, Princess?" Ulrich asked, reaching out to pat her shoulder gently.
"It'd take a lot more than that sparks show to delete us."
"Devirtualized, maybe," Odd muttered, and Aelita's eyes widened and she looked up, the guilt flooding back.
"I- I devirtualized you?"
"Aelita-" Jeremie shot a glare at Odd before turning back to her with a gentle smile on his face. He had been sweating, she realized, and his face was white as a ghost. The guilt came again, clenching her heart.
"It was rather impressive, actually," Yumi said quickly, coming closer to pat her hand. "We were more worried about you anyway. You-"
"Lost control." Even to her own ears, her voice sounded strangled, false, strange. The bile from before rose again, and gasping, she buried her face into her hands again. "She was right. I'm stupid, and useless, and-"
"Stop that."
Jeremie's voice was suddenly, surprisingly stern.
"Aelita, how many times have we screwed up and hurt each other?"
Aelita started to shake her head, unable to look at him. "This is different-"
"You know what," Odd interjected quietly. "You're right, Princess. It is different."
"That wasn't even your fault," Yumi added, her voice gentle. "XANA's the one who stole your powers, remember? Did you say he was messing with them?"
"I lost control," Aelita murmured, barely hearing her friends. "I should have had better contact and control with them in the first place, then it wouldn't have happened."
"Aelita-"
"It's my fault!" Grief, guilt and horror bit into her heart. Gasping, Aelita flung herself away from them, landing on the hard metal floor. Barely noticing the cold and the pain, she raced blindly to the elevator.
"Aelita!"
Her friends shouted out to her, but the doors shut with a clang before they could reach her. Her heart in tatters, Aelita leaned against the wall, shaking violently.
Laughter echoed softly in her head.
That's it. Run away, just like always do, little sister.
Aelita let out a strangled sob, clapping her hands over her ears. It did little good.
You're right, you know. Pathetic, worthless. You almost killed them. But no matter. I'll have them soon enough.
"Shut up!"
The elevator door open and Aelita stumbled out, her head pounding. The voice hissing in the back of her mind.
You'll just lose control again. You'll lose them, yourself. My father awaits, you little sister.
"No...you can't...you're just a monster."
So are you. Both created by father's who never wanted us.
"I'm human, I'm real, you're just-"
You, dear idiot, are as inhuman, unreal, as monstrous as me. We're a dual image of each other, a tainted refection. One and the same, but weak and strong. I will be living, and finally have that dear, sweet boy you cling to.
And, you dear fool, will be gone.
"NO!"
Half blinded, Aelita flung herself against the wall. Was she still on earth? Everything seemed to so strange, shadowed and fake. Magenta was laughing, shrieking.
He is mine.
Gasping, sobbing for breath, Aelita's head flew up, and met her own gaze in a dusty mirror hanging lopsided on the wall. Where her eyes always that red? Her skin that white?
This is you. This is me.
Magenta was whispering now, smirking at her through Aelita's own refection. Aelita watched, dull horror barely touching her now through the tears still streaming down her face. White and black eyes, insane pupils, smirking black lips.
He is mine.
In her mind, Aelita could see him. Jeremie. Blue eyes wide with fear, glasses broken.
A soft sigh echoed in her head. For a moment, Magenta's voice gentled slightly, as if she too, could see the young genius in Aelita's own mind.
I will have him. Always. Mine. My slave.
The laugh came again, the hiss.
The black lips smiled again, the white hips, barely clad in the ripped tattered red skirt, swayed suggestively, grossly, and bile rose Aelita's throat again.
He's so sweet and innocent.
A black tongue traced the twisted, smiling lips.
And he's mine. He'll forget all about you, little sister. Pathetic, foolish, murderer.
"They're not-"
You lost control. They almost died. All thanks to you. Pathetic little sister.
"No! No, shut up! SHUT UP!"
Screaming, Aelita flung herself at the smirking image before her. Her fist hit the glass, shattering the mirror into thousands of pieces.
The back of her mind, Aelita thought she heard a sudden cry of surprise, of pain.
Her fist bleeding, Aelita stared at the hole where the mirror had been. Her lungs screamed for air, her head throbbed along with her heartbeat.
Her eyes slowly sunk to where the glass shards of the mirror lay, scattered on the floor. PIcking up a piece, she stared into it.
Her own eyes reflected back to her, wide, shadowed, full of tears.
"Well. That's one way to get seven years bad luck," remarked a gentle voice from behind her.
Aelita whirled, almost falling into the broken pieces of the mirror. Glancing up, she looked into Jeremie's eyes. A single tear dripped from his cheek, hitting one of the shards of glass. Smiling warmly as she stared up at him, Jeremie reached a hand out to her.
A soft sigh echoed in the back of her head, but Aelita ignored it.
"Jeremie, I-" Hesitating, she reached out and took his hand. Warm, gentle. Real. The guilt, the fury, the fear faded slightly, and she stood slowly. "The others, they're really okay, what about-"
"You're bleeding." Jeremie gently swept a thumb of the cuts on her hand, clearing of the dried blood. Aelita winced slightly, accepting the pain.
"That's real too," she murmured, her eyes glancing back at the pieces of glass on the ground.
"Aelita?"
She raised her eyes to his again, and felt her heart lighten slightly. "Lets go home, Jeremie."