A/N: Thanks to CanaceErinn for being the best beta in the world!
Walking swiftly across the park, Mimi thought about the previous day's happenings. The breakup of the sisterhood…of friendships that were thought to last forever. She already missed Jenay, Marcy, and Raissa, who she viewed as sisters and not just friends. The more she thought about them, the slower her steps became. At one point, Mimi almost came to a complete stop in the center of the park, staring off into space and thinking about her girls. Sniffling and bringing a finger up to wipe away a stray tear, Mimi clutched her purse and hurried along the winding path.
Straightening the chain mail that covered his head, Baldwin glanced down at the mask that rested on his sideboard. The mask that defined who he was to anyone that he came in contact with. He knew that most people thought of that mask as cold and unfriendly, but in truth…he was not unkind or cruel to anyone, unless such behavior was needed.
"Why did this have to happen?" Marcy muttered under her breath as she strolled down the street to the grocery store. "All over a stupid argument that didn't matter to a row of beans. The sisterhood is gone forever because of some damnable bickering!" With that thought, Marcy became determined not to let this be the end of the sisterhood. Somehow she needed to get all of them back together again…but how?
Walking to the large window on the eastern side of his innermost chambers, Baldwin looked down on his kingdom with loving eyes. He wished with everything he had that he could go down there and stroll among the people. Holding the mask in one hand, Baldwin placed his other hand on his cheek and grimaced. He knew that would never be a possibility, as long as he suffered the devastating effects of the leprosy…something of which he would eventually die. More than anything in the world, Baldwin wanted to feel the touch of another…male or female. He longed for human contact just for a moment in his life. Of course, that would never happen. It was simply a notion, a dream, that he had to let go once and for all. Forever.
Fingering a picture that had been taken the month before, Jenay looked at each girl in that eternal pose. As she looked at the happy faces gathered at the movie theatre, a single tear crept out of the corner of her eye. Sparkling in the light from her desk lamp, the tear streaked down her cheek and fell gently onto a piece of paper. Jenay looked down to see what had gotten stained by her sadness. Written in her most elegant handwriting, accompanied by a sketch she did of the girls, was the official certificate that had been presented to each member of the sisterhood: The Sisterhood of Mad Pervy Baldwin Love welcomes you (insert name here) to the circle. Accept this honor with pride and never let it down by breaking the circle. She had let the sisterhood down by disbanding it once and for all. How could she ever look the other girls in the face ever again? That is…if she ever saw the other girls again.
A knock came through the door to the chambers. Hurriedly, Baldwin placed the mask over his deformed face and bid the person enter. Cautiously opening the door, a servant brought in his afternoon tonic and water. Before Baldwin could issue his thanks, the door was silently shut and he was alone once more. Sighing, he took the glass in hand and swallowed the medicine that was supposed to help heal him…but it did not. Even the servants did not want to be around him any longer than was necessary to prevent a reprimand. How could he ever dream of anything more? More importantly, how did he let himself become obsessed with the idea of touch? In all of his years with the leprosy, it had never bothered him before. Why now? Shaking his head and slowly removing the intricately carved mask from his face, Baldwin sat silently by his window…trapped in a deformed and miserable fate.
Raissa sat straight up in her bed that afternoon. Taking a nap before going to her part-time job, she had been awakened by the dreams swirling and spinning in her mind's eye. She had seen a clock…a picture…even sand. Not having a clue what these items meant together or even separately, her dream self walked through an undefined, gray landscape, only coming to a stop when she almost fell off an unknown cliff. Turning around and running away from the edge, Raissa did not see where she was going…unbeknownst to her, the landscape kept changing and altering to keep her guessing. It was almost a desert of nothing but grayness stretching on forever. Arms pumping at her sides, Raissa ran through the gray land and tried to find an ending, anything to let her out. Turning more and more quickly, Raissa spun herself into a circle, becoming more and more desperate to escape the dream world. Finally when she could take no more, she collapsed in a heap onto the gray matter under her feet.
All of these contemplations would eventually weave together into one, coherent thread…yet, the girls did not know this. Nor should they, as it would destroy the forces that were working jointly to restore that which was once whole.