For there is no friend like a sister in calm or stormy weather; to cheer one on the tedious way, to fetch one if one goes astray, to lift one if one totters down, to strengthen whilst one stands. - Christina Rossetti
You should be able to follow this without much help, but in case you haven't read one or the other of these niche fandoms:
Summary of Dreaming of Sunshine: The main character, Shikako, is reborn from our world into the world of Naruto. She is Shikamaru's twin sister, of the Nara clan, so she can manipulate shadows. She also has a connection to the god-entity Gelel, which she communes with from a stone she wears as a necklace, and whom she can find by following music she can hear.
Summary of I am a Child of this House: Estelle is a reborn woman from Korea who was horribly confined and abused by her mother. When her father- the terrifying Duke Castielo - learns of her existence, she is quickly brought into his household, and educated as a Lady, while also slowly unravelling the secrets of her Family's line, of magic, and of the country itself.
Chapter 2
Something was wrong with her sister.
In that box, inches from death, her sister had done the impossible. She had twisted the suffocating darkness around them to her will, and used those black ribbons to free them. From the water, from the darkness, from the chest… from their mother. In those moments, her sister had been… overwhelming. Indescribable, almost.
Though she knew she couldn't hear anything over the storm, it was like a concert of sounds and voices all speaking and singing at once. If she listened closely, her sister's voice echoed through all of them.
Powerful. Confident. Unstoppable. For a few brief moments, the world belonged to her sister, and it was a place fear did not exist.
But then they had escaped. Her sister had released the shadows, unable to control them any longer by her own admission. And with every step they took away from their home, it got worse. Her older twin took the lead as always, but it seemed she was running on instinct. By the time they had gotten to a place her sister had dully deemed "safe," it was hard to remember those moments of power at all. They had huddled together in this abandoned hut, and she felt , more than heard, the last of her sister's voices fade away.
Seeing her sister now, pink eyes vacant and blonde hair tangled around her ears, she looked like a broken doll, lifeless and limp against the brick wall of their shelter.
"Sister? Sister please, this isn't funny!" Her scraped palms ached as she shook her unresponsive sister gently, her voice cracking from the pain.
"Please, please don't leave me. Sister I love you!" Pushing her face into her sisters neck, she sobbed pitifully," Please don't leave me all alone…"
Warmth pooled by her knees, startling her into looking down at her sister's hands. Blood slowly oozed from her nails and palms, with wood chips sticking out of her palms.
"Blood…" she whispered, slowly reaching out to wipe her sisters hands. Just before touching them, she froze as a stray thought crossed her mind.
'Wait. I remember something about this...in Korea my mom, she had placed me in that special course…. I learned something about unresponsive people...' Clutching her head in pain, she forced herself to try and remember those faded memories.
To be completely honest, she didn't like remembering anything besides her parents from her past life. Those memories had kept her sane while trapped inside that box, and had entertained her sister on really bad days. It was only for those reasons that she kept a strong grip on those memories… but everything else had her heart screaming in grief. Thoughts on who she was — Seo Young — her dreams and goals — she wanted to be an artist, but had little talent for it — they just reminded her too much of what she had lost -friends, lovers, careers, culture, languages, whywhywhy!?
Shaking her head like a dog, she tried again to force herself to remember. This wasn't about her, it was about her sister who needed her help. Her sister who was staring blankly, practically unconscious, at the wall. If only she could remember what she had been taught she might be able to help her!
Memories slipped through her mind like sand between her hands, as she strained to recall anything, so long as it was useful, to help her.
'Her body is so cold...That's it! Body Heat!' Smiling wildly, she carefully pulled her sister into her arms and tried to cover her body as much as possible. Rubbing at her sister's arms and legs, she carefully avoided her bleeding hands and nuzzled into her neck.
'...Mom used to sing a song to me when I was sick,' she thought, cuddling her sister closer, 'So maybe…'
Combing her fingers through her sister's hair, she started to softly sing.
"Hey doggie, don't bark! Our baby sleeps so well. Hey chickie, don't bark! You'll wake our child's sweet sleep," she crooned, ignoring the tears silently falling from her eyes. "Hush, hush, our baby, our baby sleeps so well."
"A baby more beautiful than the moon. A baby more beautiful than the stars." She couldn't help but think about how mesmerizing her sister had appeared as she held her hand in that wretched box and told her everything would be ok. The lightning had flashed, and allowed her to see her sister's eyes burn like rubies, her hair sparkled like spun gold with water droplets shining like diamonds weaved in. She looked like one of those angels in the museums back in Korea; those western angels with swords, who slayed demons and attacked the wicked. My angel sister.
"Hush hush our baby, our baby sleeps so well."
She looked like an angel, even now. A fallen angel, or a beaten one, but an angel nonetheless. Blessed, and certain to recover. She must.
'I truly am so lucky to have her as my sister in this life. Without her, I would have probably given up and just let myself fade away into nothing,' she thought, eyes slowly closing as the exhaustion of the day drained her energy.
"A baby more beautiful than flowers. A baby more precious than gold." That is what her sister means to her, a ray of light in this dark and foreign world. More precious than any piece of jewelry that woman had flaunted and mooned over.
Her hand slipped from her sister's hair, as she quietly mumbled the last line of the song before falling into a deep sleep.
"Hush hush our baby... our baby sleeps so ...well."
Morning came far too soon. The storm had ended, and the sun was shining. She wasn't used to having so much light in her eyes, but she couldn't sleep more no matter how tired she was. She didn't want to sleep more, really.
In the morning sun, she could see that her sister was awake. Her pink eyes were still dull, unresponsive, but if her older twin could be awake after everything they went through, she could too.
Another thing she noticed, now that she could see much better than last night; her sister's hands were much worse off than she had realized. The bleeding was mostly staunched, though there was plenty of it staining her sister's skirt, but the wounds themself… they were dirty, and the skin around them were inflamed.
Something pinged in her memory of that life she wanted to forget. A word said with deadly seriousness: infection.
She grabbed on to that word, tugging at the memories of her other self's life, straining to recall anything about open wounds. A short memory, eventually, came to her; she had taken a short first aid seminar to fill a requirement in high school, and scrapes were one of the first things covered. Unresponsiveness was more difficult.
"I need… alcohol for the cuts, and clean bandages."
She would need to prevent infection. That's the most important thing, especially now that the bleeding had slowed some. She didn't know what sort of medicine this world had, and even if these people were incredible doctors, she doubted she would be able to access it. If her sister's bloody splinters became infected, she would likely lose her hands, and maybe even her life. That was not acceptable.
Looking around the abandoned building, she quickly spotted a clean looking piece of fabric hanging from an old curtain rail. It was a bit dusty, but a some quick shaking helped. Only the one side needed to touch the wounds, anyways, and the bottom of the cloth was dust free. It was better than her soaking, blood-and-sweat stained dress, at least, and she wasn't exactly spoiled for options.
She quickly took her sister's hands, gently wrapping them in part of the cloth. She hoped that would reduce the bleeding, for now.
Her sister didn't react to her actions.
Next, she needed something to clean out the wounds. Clean water would be acceptable. Alcohol would be ideal.
"Looks like I'm going to have to leave you here for a bit sister. Don't worry, I'll be back soon."
Kissing her sister on the forehead, she made her way out the hut and into the nearby town.
Stealing from an apothecary was surprisingly easy when you're three years old. Not many people had paid much attention to her, as she stood close to another family and had hidden her dirty appearance by standing behind the parents the whole time.
After grabbing what she needed from the nearby shelves, she had waited for the perfect moment to sneak out the window and make her way through the market.
'Maybe I should find sister an apple to eat? I think there was a saying regarding apples and doctors…' she mused, making sure to stick from family to family and act as natural as possible.
A faint voice caught her attention, as she noticed a glowing stone on a sword in a blacksmith's shop. It seemed to echo in a barely understandable but strong tongue, as the stone sparkled in the sunlight. Drawn to its beautiful voice, she listened to it spin tales of far off adventures and victories against foes. It reminded her a little of the stories her sister used to tell her when they were smaller and stuck inside that chest…
"What do you remember?" Her sister had asked one night, when the moon was full and peeked through the cracks of the lid.
"Beautiful large buildings with lights that sparkled like stars. Delicious cookies and sweets, with a sweet fluffy puppy." she had replied, blinking back the tears that had threatened to spill.
Her sister had reached out in the darkness and gently, ever so gently stroked her hair as she had whispered, "Anything else?"
Like damn bursting, she had sobbed out, "...Kind parents who loved me." Before spilling her parents story.
It had felt like hours had passed, with her sister listening patiently as she had told her every little thing that she could remember about them. Now that she had allowed herself to remember them, that was all she wanted to talk about when mentioning her past life. Her sister was so patient and understanding, even then. She had cuddled her close and just listened till her voice had gotten sore or that woman had screeched at them to shut up, kicking their little box in anger.
"What about you sis? What was your family like?" she had whispered, curious to know more about these warrior people, that had trained and raised her sister.
She recalled how the shadows had seemed to deepen around her sister's face, as had slowly and quietly described her previous family. A loving but lazy father, a bossy yet kind mother, a well meaning but smothering twin brother and an energetic younger brother. She had friends too, who had been as close to family as possible.
"He had the same shade of blonde as us, with eyes more blue than a clear sunny sky. His name was Naruto, and he was the brother I chose." Her sister had sounded so wistful, it had made something ache inside her.
"Just him?" She had asked, unable to keep her curiosity to herself, now that her sister was in a sharing mood.
"No. I had two more siblings, that I had picked and pulled into my family. One was much older, with hair silvery-white and dark deep eyes. His name was Kakashi and he was brilliant but a lazy pervert too. My last brother was the same age as me, with hair and eyes as dark as coal…"
She had never heard her sister speak so fondly, as she listened to her describe each and every family member and friend. That was the first and only time her sister had spoken so much about the people that she had left behind.
It had left her feeling humbled at the trust and love her sister had shown her by revealing so much about whom she had been. She had sworn then and there that she would do everything in her power to be there for her sister just as she was there for her.
Snapping out of her daydream, she realized that an older man had been staring at her from window reflection. His face was white in shock and he seemed to be entranced at the sight of her. Making her way quickly through the thicker parts of the crowd, she began to run back to their hideout. She had a bad feeling about this man and wanted to get back to her sister as soon as possible. Sneaking under an arguing couples legs, she appeared to have lost the man in the crowd. Smiling triumphantly, she raced out of the town and towards the abandoned little hut, certain that soon everything would be alright.
"What did you say?"
Rolf slammed his tankard back down on the table, and looked the man who doubted him right in the eye.
"I told ya! There was a lil' girl on the street that had pink eyes."
Half the bar made noises of skepticism or disbelief, but no one turned away as he recounted his story again. Rolf's tankard was filled when he lifted it again, but no one asked for his coin. Not when all anyone wanted was for him to continue his story.
"I know what I saw! It was jus' a lil' girl, barely more than a babe, in a scrappy brown dress. Coulda been any urchin off the street, though with that golden hair… well, I can't see her being left on the street for long, ya know?" The men around him jeered, and Rolf basked in the way the room hung on his every word, and for riled by his little 'jokes.'
"But then, well. She steps out of the crowd, right? Much more noticeable than when she looked like she was with her family. And she stares at those magic jewels ol' Haygar has been trying to pawn down on Black Street. I can't help but look at th' little princess, and as soon as I did, well. Eyes half as big as her face, that one. How could I not see the pink? 'Bout tripped over mine own two feet, I was so shocked. Shame, too. She noticed me, and scampered off before I could catch her."
The crowd murmured in disappointment. Story ended, someone worked up the courage to speak up.
"Ya couldn't possibly have seen right. The only people with eyes like that are his Lordship's family. No way that demon has a little blond girl running around. The duchess has been dead for far too long, and you want me to believe that cold bastard took a mistress?"
"Besides, everyone knows the Duke's family always has black hair. And only black hair."
The two men who challenged Rolf were sitting near each other in the crowd, and leaned closer to be able to clink their drinks together in agreement.
"That's not true! There have been mixes with humans before!" an older man shouts from across the bar. "It was a big uproar in the palace when one showed up, back when I worked there as a youth, 'cause the boy was eligible for the throne. Some big fight happened between the noble lords an' the wizards an' the emperor. The kid died young though. Very mysterious circumstances." The old guard's voice turned melancholy at the end of his statement, though the rest of the pub's mood held.
The muttering grew louder around the bar. Some are disgusted by the idea that those demons could procreate with innocent human women. Others rolled their eyes at the idea the duke was a demon at all. Still others debated what it would be like to have a half demon as emperor. More than a few loudly proclaimed this whole discussion was bunk, as Rolf clearly hadn't seen the child properly.
Rolf was just about to stand up and defend his story, when a hand clamped on his shoulder. A plain looking young man was at Rolf's side. He leaned close, so only Rolf could hear him.
"I believe you. And my master would too. Would you like to come with me, and earn some coin for your tale?"
"What did you say?!" Lord Martin demanded of his grubby informant. The man repeated himself, confirming that he had not misheard.
"Are you sure? Completely sure?"
The man nodded.
"Woulnda come if I wasn't."
Lord Martin grimaced. He knew it was the truth. Too much was at stake, delivering such a rumor to his household in broad daylight. The Lord payed off the informant, his mind already thinking five steps ahead. Snapping his fingers for his scribe, he bade the boy to start writing out letters.
"Send a letter to the wizards, they must be notified. Also make sure that Count Cervan doesn't find out about this. Knowing that old fool, he'd go tell Duke Castielo before we could even finish gathering the man power necessary to find it."
Striding back into his office, he began to scheme to ensure that he could get one of his sons as a candidate to attempt to impregnate that child when it's of age.
"The power of the Castielo bloodline would rise my own family to heights unimaginable. I must get that girl!"
Down by the gates of his mansion, watching from the shadows, a young man in a brown cloak smirked as he heard the news of a pink eyed child wandering the streets unprotected. Whistling a merry tune, he casually made his way back into the markets, certain that things were going to get very interesting quickly.
"What did you say?!" A silver haired wizard slammed his hands on a cluttered desk as he stared incredulously at the page before him. "A mixed Castielo child was spotted?!"
"Yes. My Lord bid me to notify you as soon as he received the word."
The wizard chuckled softly, before belting out his laughter in joy.
"Finally! The moment we have been waiting for has arrived! The power and secrets of the Castielo will be ours to discover and explore. Ohhh our Lord will be most pleased with such a sacrifice."
Making his way to the window, he scribbled a note on a piece of parchment before tying it to a raven and throwing it into the air.
"Ahem. Now then, who was it who bid you to come again?" He coughed, trying to regain his composure and be the refined wizard everyone thought him to be.
"My Lord Martin, sir."
"...Lord Martin eh? Well I can't deny he has certainly done us wizards a favour...so what does your master want boy?" The wizard rubbed his chin absently, wondering what kind of favour that noble was angling for.
"A chance for one of his sons to pass their seed unto the child, and to keep the result of that union for their family line, sir."
Smiling broadly at the words, the wizard leaned back into his chair, as he started to write down his ideas for what kind of experiments they should start with once the child was in their possession.
"...Well should she survive to a child bearing age, I can't see why not to grant his wish. Tell your Lord we have a deal; he helps us catch that child and his son gets a chance to impregnate the mixed breed."
"A pleasure doing business with you, sir. My Lord will be most pleased."
Pouring himself a glass of wine, the wizard smiled as the page made his way out of the room. Soon, very soon, all his theories and plans would be all that much closer to reality.
End of Chapter 2
