"…I see. This is troubling news, to be sure."
"Indeed it is. And the more I learn of these mysterious disappearances, the more I begin to find traces of this… bizarre cult, the likes of which I've only seen-"
"You need not remind me…"
"Right, my apologies… I should know better than to bring up that old incident."
…
"It's been an exceptionally difficult week, hasn't it? Are you feeling well, brother?"
"I'm quite alright… There's nothing you need to worry about. If anything, I'm more concerned with-"
"Nonsense! It is my duty as the elder brother to lend you my aid when you clearly need it most!"
"Being born mere minutes before me hardly qualifies you as the older brother, Abel…"
"But of course it does, Alec! You should know better than to doubt your dear brother's infinite pool of wisdom!"
…
"I at least know my little brother well enough to know that you wouldn't drag me all the way out here for a simple elbow to lean on, am I correct?"
"I believe the saying was a shoulder to lean on, brother…"
"Ah, a paltry difference!"
"You never change, do you, Abel? I almost envy that carefree spirit of yours."
"Don't be so down, brother! You could probably use a bit of my optimism yourself, you know?"
"Perhaps…"
"…I came running the moment I heard what happened to Bernadetta. "
"Of course you did…"
"Is she-"
"The girl's condition is stable. She'll live."
"I'm relieved to hear that. I can hardly imagine what could have been running through the poor lass's mind during that fateful moment... these have been nothing short of turbulent times for all of us."
"The girl brought it upon herself. There's really no need for you to bother yourself with her."
"Brother! How could you say such a thing so casually?!"
"You don't get it, Abel. You never understood the true gravity of our situation."
"What's so hard to understand about her being your own flesh and blood? Bernadetta is a dear member of our family, and I could never see her any other way."
"But that girl… that demon has been the source of all our troubles… after all this time, can't you see that?"
"Now you're just being preposterous, Alec! I've told you time and time again; whether she has a Crest or not, your daughter is the precious key to our family's bright future! Don't you remember the promise we made when we were children?"
"Of course I do! I still hold on to our shared dream to this very day… but I fear I may have lost my grasp on that dream long ago… damn it all."
"Whatever could you mean by that?"
"Think about it, you fool! We've shared in the same hardships for so long… yet for all my tireless efforts; I could never measure up to the success you've attained! The people adore you but loathe me with all their being. You bestowed your very title unto me out of pity, but in my hands, our land only sunk into further disarray! And the disasters that fell upon me only magnified when SHE came into the picture…!"
"Alec, cease this nonsense! I gave up my position for you because I believed in you, and I still do to this day! You can't simply blame all your shortcomings on your own flesh and blood-"
"How can you still not understand?! Even as we speak, that damned girl is living off a life of luxury most can only dream of as she leeches off my hand with nothing to thank me for it…! And now that you've dug your nose into places you don't belong, I've left with no choice but to... gah… Perhaps everything would be better if our positions were reversed…"
"Well, perhaps I would understand if you'd simply take a moment to communicate with your brother!"
"I suppose you may be right for once… Abel? Would you be willing to do one last favor for me?"
"Anything, Alec… Just please, tell me what's truly on your mind."
"…I only wish that things could have been different between us. That this cursed daughter of mine had never been born…"
"Allocer…!"
"Abelard, please, turn around a moment… this rather difficult for me to say while you're staring at me so intently…"
"Of course… just know that you can always look to me for aid in your darkest hour..."
"What did you… ah…?" Bernadetta fearfully muttered in her sleep, giving great alarm to the watchful professor lying by her side as her body violently jerked against his without a moment's notice. Seconds later, before Byleth could even begin to process his pupil's latest unconscious outburst, the timid noble jolted awake with the most agonized scream either of them had heard and tumbled out of her bed in a frenzied panic, making impact with the floor below with a resounding bang.
"Agh…! Bernadetta, what happened?!" the ex-mercenary called out in concern as he watched the girl in question frantically reach for her back in a state of utter hysteria.
"I… I have no idea…!" Bernadetta gasped in reply, frantically rummaging her hands behind her back as if an insect had crawled onto her body in her sleep. "I… I think I just got stabbed!"
"Come again?!" Byleth immediately shot up at the prospect of his student coming to grievous harm. "But how could that be possible…? I know for a fact that we were the only people in this room for the entire night!"
"I don't know… I don't know what's going on anymore!" the violet haired recluse's eyes darted all across the room as she continued to search for any physical signs of her injury. "By, I need you to check my back for me! Just lift my shirt up for me and tell me if you see anything wrong!"
"Now hold on just a minute…!" the hardened swordsman visibly recoiled at his student's brazen suggestion. "You know I can't just… it would be highly inappropriate for somebody in my position to even consider such a thing…"
"Bernadetta, before you fluster your professor any further, I need you to stop and focus for but a brief moment..." the voice of Sothis weakly, yet sternly called out from within the depths of the girl's mind.
"Sothis… you felt this too, didn't you?"
"Of course I did. We share the same sensations after all." the short statured Goddess was quick to confirm her host's concerns. "I must admit, I am just as perplexed as you are. That pain was every bit as real as you imagined it to be, yet visibly, both of our bodies were left undamaged in the ordeal…"
"Y- you're right… I don't know what's going on with me anymore…" Bernadetta's eyes anxiously widened as she turned her attention to her bedside companion, who had fallen into an uncomfortably deep silence. All the while, the latter seemed to actively avert his gaze from the younger girl with a mixed impression barely visible on his dimly lit face. He seemed to be engaged in conversation with his version of Sothis as well.
"Uh, By, I think I'm okay now!" the girl hastily reassured in a vain attempt to assuage the professor's worries. "I know this might sound like I'm making things up, but I swear... I don't feel any blood running down my back, yet I could recognize the feeling all too well… you might not even register it at first, but when the pain comes, it just rushes over your entire body like a gust of searing wind… it's weird, though… the pain usually doesn't improve this quickly."
A pained sigh escaped the professor's lips as he continued to listen to his student's disturbingly detailed descriptions of the pain she'd just experienced. "…You had another dream last night, didn't you? You were mumbling in your sleep again; and rather loudly at that." Byleth hesitated to ask.
"Was it that obvious?" the confused girl awkwardly questioned, still not sure what to make of her unique situation. "Well yeah, I think so… but this was like none of the dreams I've had before. I could hear my uncle and the Count's voices as clear as day, but everything was so blurry, I could barely see what was going on… and right when the dream came to an end, that was when I felt-" she continued to explain, only to find her story inexplicably cut short when a familiar rush of colors swept past her eyes. The next thing she knew, she found herself sitting up on her bed once again, and her companion's arms protectively wrapped around her in a tight embrace as the room around them seemed to darken even further.
"…What in the world has gotten into you, Byleth? More importantly, why is my past self allowing this to go on unimpeded?" Sothis wondered aloud as her host unconsciously gave herself into the caring embrace of her heart's desire.
"You should never have to suffer like this…" Byleth quietly muttered, eliciting a gasp of surprise from his lilac haired protégé as the latter realized that the two of them had leaped back in time once again.
"By, I- I swear I'm fine now…!"
"No, you're not. Try as you might to hide it, you've been visibly unwell and mentally unsound ever since you set out yesterday." the professor firmly shut down Bernadetta's attempts at false reassurance. "It's already been decided. For your safety, I cannot permit you to aid in our class's investigations any further."
"B- but why not?! I mean it, I'm not sick, or crazy, or anything like that!" Bernadetta was quick to protest. "There's still so much I can do to help, and everyone will have to work harder to make up for-"
"I will simply take up your workload in your stead. It's hardly any trouble for me." Byleth firmly cut into the girl's protests as he morosely broke away from their brief embrace to look her directly in the eye. "As far as everyone else is concerned, you'll be sick in bed for the remainder of the week."
"Wha- no! I can't do that! That's completely unfair to you!" the regretful Bernadetta's protests promptly rose in severity. "I can't just sit here alone all day, knowing you're off risking your life in the middle of this epidemic!"
"This is for your own good; there is so much going on that you simply don't understand. So long as these visions continue to plague you, you'll be much safer here-"
"You're right, I don't understand! But I'm the only one who can, and I didn't come this far just for everyone I know to tell me to stop trying!" Bernadetta angrily rebuked, eliciting a shamed grunt from her teal haired professor. "And what's this about visions? Is this about those weird dreams I've been having for the past few days? If you know anything about them, I beg you-"
"No… no, it's nothing you need to concern yourself with." Byleth promptly shook his head in denial as he hastily rose from the bed in an effort to deter his student's suspicions. "It's just as I've already told you: dreams are little more than abstract glimpses into scenarios that never have and never will happen."
"Stop lying to me so casually! It's hard enough for me to make sense of all this without you hiding things from me too!" the ever anxious time traveler sharply tugged on her teacher's arm the moment he attempted to step away from their conversation. "This is so unlike you… don't you trust me at all?" she desperately pleaded, leading into another awkward silence between the two as Byleth painfully averted his eyes from his impromptu interrogator.
"…I do. And it is precisely because I care about you that I am unwilling to expose you to any more misery than you've already endured." the ex-mercenary softly muttered, barely able to hide the look of shame on his face as he stared back halfheartedly. "I'll need you to trust me as well. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a few preparations to attend to before the day starts properly…"
"Wait! J- just think about this for a moment…!" Bernadetta pleaded once again, yanking on Byleth's arm even harder than before when the latter attempted to wrest himself free from her deceptively strong grasp. "Can you at least stay with me a little longer…? I just- we're both neck deep in the middle of unexplored territory now. All this time, I've felt secure knowing exactly what the future would hold throughout the school year, but now that everything's being turned on its head… I don't even know what to believe anymore. I don't want you to do anything dangerous behind my back. I don't know what's going to happen if either of us makes even a single false step here, and that scares me more than anything else… I don't want you to leave me alone again."
"Everything is going to be okay… I promise." Byleth solemnly muttered as he slowly drew himself in to wrap the young girl in another warm embrace. "I'll be here as long as you need me to…"
"If you really meant that, you'd stay with me forever…" Bernadetta weakly buried her head into her professor's embrace with a sigh of defeat.
"I'm afraid that's not quite on the table for us… but perhaps if everything plays out just right…"
Before long, Bernadetta found herself restlessly pacing back and forth within the suffocating confines of her old room as the rays of the morning sun began to shine down upon her. Truth be told, this was precisely how she used to spend much of her time in the days of the war. At her own request, she would while herself away in the relative safety of the monastery while Byleth and her classmates were off scouting for information or fighting in skirmishes, only contributing when her aid was needed for the most crucial advances of the war. The very thought of her past negligence filled the girl with an immense feeling of guilt as the girl found herself repeating those same mistakes once again.
"…I hate having nothing to do. It gets me thinking too much."
"Then do you not think your time would be better spent taking decisive action than lamenting over every last decision you've made in your life?" the voice of Sothis wearily rang out, no doubt frustrated by the repeated necessity to drag her host of the pit of her own despair.
"I'm practically under a glorified house arrest, Sothis!" Bernadetta loudly snapped back, sharing in the tiny Goddess's overt irritation. "What do you want me to do, waltz right out the front door and hike back to the nearest village by myself? If anyone catches me, they'll lock just lock me back in here and throw away the key for good measure!"
"You could start by dropping that disrespectful tone of yours." Sothis sharply countered. "If you can no longer support your comrades in their primary objective, perhaps there are other matters you could look into without their aid or knowledge."
"And how am I supposed to do that?" the violet haired recluse paused in her tracks to open her bedroom window for some much needed fresh air. "I'm the only one in the dark here, and I don't have a light to find my way out… By… you were never this overprotective before…"
"Clearly, you've not been paying enough attention to your betrothed in our original time. This behavior of his is hardly unprecedented."
"W- what are you talking about?" Bernadetta's cheeks lightly flushed in embarrassment as she questioned her companion's sudden claims. "Byleth never-"
"I know the inner workings of your professor's mind better than even the man himself. There was never a moment that passed by without him internally agonizing over your safety; all the while, you enabled him to spoil you as if you were some sort of overgrown child."
"Spoiled, huh?" the guilt ridden recluse quietly parroted, taken aback by the frankness of her companion's claims. "I never thought about it like that. I must have been too self-absorbed to-" Bernadetta's head promptly sank in realization, only for her moment of self-reflection to be cut short by a loud series of bangs from her bedroom almost shrill voice that followed was a sure indication of the identity of the ill-timed interloper.
"Bernadetta von Varley! Your sins are innumerable-"
"I know it's you, Monica. Just give me a second, alright?" the young Varley flatly interjected, thoroughly unfazed by the redhead's attempts to startle her as she unlocked the door to find the girl in question bearing an elaborately designed tray full of tea equipment in both hands and a mildly demoralized expression spread across her face.
"Aw, you're no fun, Bernie!" Monica shot a disappointed look at her fellow student as she proceeded to place her tray down on the nearest dresser. "And after I went through all this trouble to bring you breakfast too."
"Ha, sorry." Bernadetta let out a light chuckle at the girl's lively antics. "I guess I really could use a pick-me-up right about now, considering how I skipped out on dinner last night… again. That does smell awfully appealing now that I'm on an empty stomach."
"You really need to shake off that habit of yours, but I'm sure this'll fill you right up in no time. Monica added with a disapproving shake of her head as she bent down to snatch a small handful of pastries off the tray for herself. "This exclusive Hresvelg blend was imported straight from the imperial capital, you know? And these specially baked cakes are simply divine!"
"Well gee, I wasn't expecting anything this fancy so early… you'd better not eaten most of this on your way here, though." the young Varley sternly eyed down her compatriot while the latter proceeded to messily scarf down the cookies that were originally meant for her consumption.
"Aw, come on, I swear I'd never do such a thing!" Monica protested unconvincingly between bites.
"Should I even ask why you're the one bringing me breakfast in the first place? It was usually Rowan that brought me my meals while I still used to live here."
"Oh yeah, I guess you haven't heard yet. That old butler of yours has been kept busy prepping the manor for new arrivals all morning." the Black Eagle informally explained before forcing the concoction of baked sweets down her throat with a loud gulp. "This Varley plague has created a whole lot of unlucky orphans over the past couple of weeks, and Flayn's hoping to give them all a place to stay while she's still organizing their transfer to Garreg Mach. You can bet your old man was pretty peeved off when Flayn made the request."
"I guess he never was the charitable type… it's a good thing Flayn-or at least her brother can pull rank on him." Bernadetta unconsciously smirked at the thought of her father's helplessness in this situation before directing her attention back towards Monica, who continued to awkwardly linger in the room with an unnerving smirk of her own.
"…So, do you have anything better to do, are you just going to stand there and watch me eat?"
"Don't you wanna tell me about what you learned last night, Bernie?" Monica suddenly asked, now suddenly lacking the playful tone she always leaned on so heavily.
"Last night…? I- I don't know what you're talking about-" Bernadetta instinctively denied the redhead's inquiry, only to freeze on the spot when the latter leaned forth to place a hand over her shoulder.
"Look, as fun as it is to play the whole feigning ignorance game with you, I'd rather cut right to the point." Monica calmly stated as she, without warning, proceeded to swiftly run her other hand across her face to reveal a single in-like streak in the shape of a teardrop beneath her left eye. Within moments, the girl's skin turned an unnatural shade of white, and her signature red hair seamlessly shifted into a brighter orange hue that Bernadetta recognized all too well. "Ah, I was getting so tired of waiting for you to put two and two together. Us half breeds have gotta stick together, you know?"
"Y-you're…!" the fearful recluse slowly backed away from the newly transformed Agarthan as she struggled to form a proper response. Realizing how useless it would be to continue to dodge the ensuing conversation, Bernadetta swallowed a large lump in her throat before she dared to open her mouth again. "So… you too, huh? You're… well, you know."
"Ayep. It sure took you long enough to find out." Monica let out a light chuckle in an effort to help ease her friend's rising anxiety. "You know, I never thought I'd run into anyone just like me back at that old academy, but as soon as I found out about you-"
"W- wait, you knew about my bloodline all this time?!" Bernadetta exclaimed in a loud panic, now utterly horrified by the implications of the psychotic Agarthan's awareness of her. "W- why… how did you even figure that out before I could?! And for how long?! How many people did you tell -"
"Relax, Bernie! I know better than to yap on about someone's deepest darkest secrets for the entire world to hear; especially not another half breed like myself."
"Okay, but how-"
"Isn't it obvious? I might have had a little help on the matter, but the answer was in your blood the entire time!" Monica nonchalantly continued on as a mild look of embarrassment formed across her pale face. "Boy, I really dodged a bullet when I was first called in to 'take care of you'. You're lucky you're a competent fighter, you know?"
"So that's why you wanted to get closer to me after you tried to ambush me in that forest…!" Bernadetta instinctively wrapped a hand around the back of her neck, mentally berating her own lack of foresight as her eyes rapidly darted all around the room in search of a means of defending herself. "So… now what? You've probably here to kill me now that I know too much, aren't you? I- I'm warning you, I'm not going down without a-"
"Hey now, we're better than those inferior beings, Bernie." Monica promptly retorted, sporting a greatly offended expression as she proceeded to inch closer towards her fellow half breed. "We don't turn on our own kind at the slightest inconvenience."
"Inferior beings? You don't mean-" the lilac haired recluse quietly asked, unsure what to make of the other girl's dramatic shift in demeanor.
"Who else could I be talking about? You've seen exactly what happens to those of us who try to live out in the open, right?" Monica sharply reminded, looking as if she were attempting to hold back tears for a brief moment as her physical form reverted back to her more familiar redheaded disguise. "I think it's all pretty stupid. We look just like everyone else, don't we? Yet when we're not being looked down upon by our own people, those inferior beings are actively hunting us down like mindless beasts! It's like there's no place for us in this world!"
"I think I understand how you feel… I'd be lying if I said I never felt alone in the middle of this vast, unknown world we all call home." Bernadetta sorrowfully admitted whilst her fellow half breed silently walked by to peer her head out the open window, taking in the rays of the morning sun in all its glory. "But still, I don't think it's right to look down on everyone else just because they're different from us. You've spent a lot of time with Byleth, Claude, Flayn, and the other students, haven't you? You should know what they're like, and they're not out to hurt us or anything."
"I'll admit, it's actually been fun hanging around you guys all this time…" Monica reluctantly acknowledged, breathing a loud sigh out the window before turning to face her fellow half breed with a serious expression on her face. "But tell me, how fast do you think their views of us would turn if they knew what we really were? Even if they did accept us, a few good apples aren't enough to make up for the rotten tree they've all fallen from."
"That's…!" Bernadetta opened her mouth to object; only to find herself unable to refute the redhead's piercing argument. "W- well, what makes you think our 'own' people are much better? You should know all about how they've terrorized Fódlan throughout the years, and the countless lives they're still claiming to this day!"
"I don't know much you know about the Society, but they're the ones that have our best interests at heart, and that's what matters most. At least, that's the only thing I know for real." Monica added under breath, looking unsure of herself for but a brief moment before finally walking away from the open windowsill. "There's a storm brewing, Bernie, and you need to know who your friends are before it strikes."
"…I know exactly who my friends are, Monica, but I think you should take your own advice too. Even I could tell the people you're working under don't care about you as an individual."
"Ah, you have no idea what you're talking about…" Monica swiftly averted her gaze from her purple haired friend as she uncharacteristically stuttered out her response. "I know you've probably had this drilled into your head by now, but you'd better make sure no one else finds out about your bloodline. Not just for yourself, but for everyone you care about too. Now if you'll excuse me, we both have plenty of things to take care of."
With one last cursory glance towards her fellow half breed, the Agarthan assassin hastily abandoned the room without another word, leaving Bernadetta alone to ponder over their conversation in contemplative silence.
"That hapless girl has no comprehension of the ill fate that awaits her."
"Yeah… everything about her is starting to make a little more sense now, but that just leaves more questions in their wake." Bernadetta solemnly agreed with her godly companion's grim observations. "Well, I guess I'd better not let my breakfast go to waste. Whatever's left of it, anyway."
Putting aside the convoluted web of mysteries she had entangled herself in, the girl simply sighed in exhaustion as she allowed herself to be drawn in by the sweet aroma of the Hresvelg blend that was prepared for her.
"I'm surprised this thing is still steaming after all this time…" the girl noted aloud whilst she poured a large cup of the drink for herself, even recoiling in discomfort from the intense heat emanating from the tea.
"Perhaps you should consider checking inside the second drawer from the top, there? You may find something that will better suit your dignified senses."
"Who just said that?!" Bernadetta's body jolted up in shock as a familiar, menacing voice emerged from within her mind, nearly causing her to spill her tea over in the process. In short order, the girl's eyes widened in realization the moment she recognized the source of the sudden disturbance. "No… no, no, no, I already did exactly what you asked! What else do you even want from me?!"
"Please, control yourself, Bernadetta. No matter how compelling that silver tongue of hers is, you mustn't allow her to get under your skin." Sothis urgently warned as the voice of Lilith let out a quiet, yet bone chilling laugh from within the depths of the frightened recluse's mind.
"Oh, what could possibly be the matter, Bernie Bear? You were so assertive speaking to Kronnie just moments ago, yet a disembodied voice in your head is enough to scare you out of your wits?"
"Shut up! I don't want to talk to you right now! If you're here to give me another Agarthan history lesson, I'm not interested!"
"Come now, even you should understand the importance of knowing one's own history, yes? I'm sure the discovery of your true heritage must have been remarkably enlightening for you. You must be eager to learn more-"
"Like hell I am! I'd rather have gone the rest of my life without knowing any of that…!"
"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you. You're far from the only one who would stand to suffer from your ignorance… why, you haven't even told your dear professor about yourself, have you? Such a selfish, selfish girl."
"I'm not… I-I swear I intend to tell him eventually…! I just…"
"You're what? Too scared to see how your beloved's view of you would magically change once the truth comes to light? I can't say I'm surprised… but it would be foolish of you to keep running away from reality forever. Ignorance is worse than death, Bernie."
"Ignorance is worse than death, huh?" Bernadetta found herself pondering over the witch's thinly veiled warning out loud. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Lilith's words ultimately rang true, as her earlier guidance helped push her towards the truth she'd been searching for so desperately.
"…It pains me that I cannot fully listen in on this conversation, though perhaps you should humor the witch's request for now. This may be the only viable lead we have at the moment, but be alert. We may very well be walking right into a deadly trap."
"You don't need to tell me twice. I'm taking every word out of this witch's mouth with at least a dozen grains of salt." the ever anxious time traveler nodded in agreement with Sothis's words of caution as her gaze slowly turned in the direction of drawer Lilith had directed her towards. "Then again, there can't be too much harm in opening a simple drawer… Right?"
…
"What in the… how stupid do you think I am?!" Bernadetta furiously exclaimed as she reached into the drawer to reveal a small packet filled to the brim with an almost clear, white powder. "Do you honestly expect me to poison myself on the spot just because an imaginary voice told me to?!"
"If you'd settle down for just a second, you may find this display isn't quite what it seems-" the voices of Sothis and Lilith unknowingly spoke in unison, which only served to further alarm the frightened recluse.
"Oh, I think I know my plants well enough to recognize something that would kill me when ingested!" Bernadetta sharply rebuked, wasting no time snatching up the mysterious substance with the intent of dumping the contents out of her room's open window.
"Recall, if you would, the conversation you had regarding your connection to the Morning Star with your mother last night."
"The… Morning Star?"
"Yes, that's the title we Agarthans refer to Sahrius as: a shining beacon that will one day lead us out of the shadowy depths we've been cast into. I'm sure you must already realize that the good Countess has yet to tell you everything she knows."
"Well… yeah, I can't say I'm surprised. I figured that woman would sweep the truth under the rug to protect her husband's reputation. And she clearly wanted to distance herself from that insane cult she ran away from too..."
"Cult is a rather strong word, don't you think? We'll attend to the matter of your father in due time, but I must assure you, the gifts passed down through Sahrius's bloodline are all too real, and tantalizingly scarce at that."
"Gifts? The only gift I inherited from this supposed dead god of yours is a massive target on my head!" Bernadetta fiercely retorted as she finally approached the window. "It's just like I've been told; my bloodline really is cursed!" the girl concluded, precariously hanging the bag of mysterious powder over the ledge. However, as much as she wished to rid herself of the toxic substance then and there, the sight of a curious, pitch black butterfly on the windowsill quickly captured her attention instead. For reasons unknown, the very sight of the winged insect nearly made the student sick to her stomach, forcing her to retract her arm back inside as the voice of Lilith flared in her mind once again.
"It is vital that you come to understand this gift, no matter the hardships that come with it. Consider for a moment; what you see as a great curse is the only chance you have into discerning the truth you so desperately seek. Aren't you the least bit curious about the strange, lifelike dreams you've experienced throughout your life? Even a simpleton should be able to draw a connection between those visions and the tales of the Morning Star's powers."
"H- how do I know you're not making this up…?" Bernadetta hesitantly asked, her heart suddenly racing at an uncomfortable pace. If she could see the witch's face right now, it would almost certainly be staring down on her with a condescending smirk. "I paid enough attention last night to know that Sahrius had the ability to see into the future. I may not have recognized every last detail I've seen, but I clearly remember seeing events that already took place on several occasions…"
"The flow of time is hardly limited to a single direction, mind you. It's more akin to a spider's web; a vast, intricate framework of interconnecting paths and divergent possibilities. The visions you've seen are no mere illusions, but rather one-way windows, allowing you to witness moments that would otherwise be lost to history. You can re-experience cherished memories cruelly robbed from you by the passage of time, or see the world through the eyes of another."
"So… for instance, I could go back and speak with my uncle again just before he died?" Bernadetta nervously asked, her eyes widening in realization at the implication of the power hidden inside her. "Can I even control what I see?"
"By all means, that sounds like the perfect place to start. Just be aware that you cannot act, only watch."
"But how do I know you're even telling me the truth? There's no guarantee-"
"You're right; there is no guarantee any of this is true. It's a smart move not to immediately take such outrageous claims at face value. It's better to see the truth with your own eyes than to blindly rely on the words of others, wouldn't you say?"
The witch's words weighed heavily on Bernadetta's soul as her gaze warily wandered throughout the room, deliberating whether or not to mix the seemingly toxic substance in her hand into her cup of tea.
"Permit me to ask: What is it you desire to accomplish once this story of yours comes to a close?"
"E- excuse me?" the lavender haired time traveler muttered aloud, taken aback by the unexpected inquiry.
"You've no need to hide your utmost desires from yourself. You long for brighter, simpler days, long lost to you by circumstances out of your control, yes? Even now, it seems your battle against fate has been an uphill one thus far."
"Wh- what does any of this matter to you…?"
"You tell me: can you look yourself in the eye and confidently say you've done everything in your power to fulfill your dreams? Or have your actions-or lack thereof-only served to hinder the purpose you and your loved ones have struggled so arduously for?"
"I-"
"I think we both know the answer to that already. It's not too late to change, though. I, for my part, am entirely willing to help you reclaim the time that you have lost, and so much more."
The stunning accuracy of Lilith's evaluation left Bernadetta at an uncomfortable loss for words. By this point, the overbearing condescendence in the witch's voice had long been replaced by one of alarming compassion. The sheer contrast of the situation only served to terrify the girl more than a showing of pure malice ever could.
"The fruit of knowledge lies in your hands. What becomes of your fate is up to you now."
"…Okay, fine. I still don't trust you, but I'm going to take a chance on this." Bernadetta finally relented. As much as it went against her better judgment, the girl obediently returned to her desk and emptied the contents of the suspicious packet into her tea. "…I'm going to look like the most gullible fool on the planet if this ends up killing me."
With the dubious concoction finally complete, the would-be seeress spent a few tense moments blankly staring into the pit of liquid darkness presented to her before finally swallowing her fear and downing the drink in one fell swoop. I took but an instant for a vivid wave of exhaustion to wash over her entire body, leaving Bernadetta with only a few precious seconds to weakly hobble to the edge of her bed before her consciousness forcefully faded away from her.
When she next opened her eyes, Bernadetta was understandably shocked to find herself tightly tucked underneath her blankets once again. What's more, the morning rays of the sun outside her window had been inexplicably replaced with a crashing torrent of rainfall pouring down on the manor from every possible angle. Stranger still, a simple downward glance would reveal that she was no longer dressed in her usual academy uniform, but rather a snug violet nightgown she instantly recognized from her old childhood days.
Naturally, her first instinct was to get up and examine the state of the room for herself. For all she knew, many hours may have flown by since she passed out against the side of her bed, leaving one of the manor's servants or her fellow students with enough time to discover what had happened and give her a proper place to sleep.
Yet true to Lilith's word, Bernadetta found herself unable to perform even the simplest of movements, or even utter a single sound, leaving her to simply stare blankly at her surroundings as a dull, yet constant headache seemed to plague her every waking moment. It was a surreal experience, to say the least; to be trapped in one's own body, yet lack the ability to properly command it.
After what felt like an eternity of agonizing numbness, however, the monotony was suddenly broken when the door to the bedroom seemed to open of its own accord, revealing a dear figure that Bernadetta had not laid eyes on for the longest time. Though the older man's mane of dark purple hair had clearly been drenched by the shower of rainfall raging on outside, his kindly demeanor was all too recognizable to the bedridden girl awaiting his arrival.
"Uncle Abel! You're back!" Bernadetta's voice called out, sounding slightly more youthful than she was normally familiar with.
"Ah ha ha! I'm sorry to disappear on you for so long, my little princess! I understand you've been feeling under the weather for quite a while… pun half intended. I'm afraid my travels have kept me busier than ever as of late, but I do believe I've brought a little something that might help make things up for you-"
"Is that what I think it is?!" Bernadetta's eyes eagerly widened in anticipation as her uncle began to reach into his personal satchel.
"Ha ha, your eyesight is sharp as ever, I see! Indeed, I've finally come across the missing entry of our favorite adventure series: Balduq's Prison! You know, there just happens to be a character in this story that reminds me a lot of you-"
"Uncle! You promised you wouldn't read ahead again!" Bernadetta slammed her hands down on her blanket in frustration. "We were supposed to read through the next Travelogue together!"
"Ah, caught blue handed once again. I can never quite seem to help myself, can I?"
"I think you mean red handed, Uncle…" the bedridden Varley privately noted as Abel let out an amused chuckle at her disappointed antics.
With an apologetic bow, the older noble gently closed the door behind him before proceeding to comfortably stride over to his ill niece's bedside. "Now before we begin, I simply have to know; how many good friends have you made for yourself since my last visit? It's been so long since we've last seen each other, I'm sure you must have quite a few stories of your own to share, eh?"
Though her uncle's question was perfectly innocent, Bernadetta's spirited demeanor seemed to instantly fade the moment it was presented to her. "I- I don't want to talk about that right now… let's just go ahead and dive right into the new book. I'm sure that'll be a lot more interesting than listening to me talk about my boring shut-in life, right?"
"Now, now, your discerning uncle's eye can tell there's something bothering you, Bernie." The older noble was quick to pick up on his niece's inner turmoil. "You know you don't have to be afraid to tell me anything. If you're hurt at all, please don't hesitate to-"
"N- no, I'm fine. It's just…" the bedridden Varley weakly stammered, too afraid to look her uncle in the eye. "I've tried… I really tried to follow your advice, but I just don't see the point of any of this."
"Ah, I see…" Abel quietly whispered to himself, adopting a grim expression as he instantly perceived the intense pain his niece was desperately hiding in her eyes. "If you don't mind me asking, would you be willing to tell me what happened? Has my brother been giving you a hard time again? I'll be quite sure to give him a piece of my mind in due time."
"Well… It's not just one thing, Uncle… if anything, I think I might be the biggest problem here."
"Come now, I'm sure that's not true at all." the older noble was quick to refute his niece's claims with a disapproving shake of his head.
"Then why does it feel like the whole world is out to get me?" Bernadetta instantly rebuked, further averting her gaze in the hopes of hiding the stream of tears forming in her eyes. "I know you've always wanted me to get out and see the world for myself, but whenever I step out of this room, I'm just inviting pain to come out and follow me wherever I go. I've tried to make friends as you asked, but they always end up hating me or getting ripped away from me…I'm just too different from everyone, and even then, if they're not with me forever, what's the point of getting close to anyone?"
"So that's how you feel, is it? Listen closely, Bernie: it's true that no matter how much you care or love for someone, there inevitably comes a time when life will pull you apart." Abel grimly admitted. "You may not even get the chance to say goodbye to them. But that's no reason to avoid people altogether."
"Then why bother… doesn't it hurt to lose the ones you love? The only companionship I need is from the lovely casts of characters in the books I've read. I know I can always come back to see them whenever I want… I don't want-"
"You don't want friends that won't be around tomorrow, is that it? I'm afraid I don't quite see things the same way." the wandering noble gently disagreed as he slowly bent forward to wrap his young niece in a familial embrace. "The joy that comes from merely spending time with those you cherish far exceeds the pain that comes from losing them. And if you can find it in yourself to open up to others, you may find you have more common than you may think."
"But you still have to live with the knowledge that they'll leave you alone someday…"
"Then instead of despairing over something you can't change, you should enjoy the time you do have to its fullest extent. And when the time does come for you to go your separate ways, just know that you're not at fault for what happens."
"…Do you really think I can do it? It's not like I have any friends to speak of right now."
"If anyone I know is Abel to live up to the task, it's absolutely you, Bernie! Ha ha ha ha ha!" Abel confidently reassured before erupting into an uncontrollable fit of laughter from his own joke, one that quickly proved infectious as Bernadetta joined in on her uncle's amusement.
"My, what a touching memory; it almost brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it."
The voice of Lilith rang out from within Bernadetta's mind as the girl drowsily awoke from her trance-like state. Much to the lilac haired noble's dismay, she was no longer reliving the time she spent with her uncle and was firmly back in the present day, still uncomfortably leaning against the bottom of her bed. The morning sun was once again shining upon her room, not a single soul was in sight, and it seemed as if no time had passed at all since the girl had fallen asleep. "That was completely unreal. I've had dreams like this so many times before, but they were never this… clear."
"Well, it's nice to know you enjoyed this little experience. The sensations, the words, the feelings… I trust you should need no other proof that all of this is real."
"This is still so hard to believe, but yes… I remember the conversation I had with my uncle clearly. That was… that was the last time I ever saw him before he died." Bernadetta bitterly reminisced as her gaze instinctively wandered to the bottom of her bedside. A large pit began to form in the girl's stomach as her mind wandered dangerously close to a chilling conclusion. "So then… then the dream I had this morning must have been…"
"I'm sure you don't need me to spell out the obvious for you. Though with your inexperience, it's hardly surprising that the ensuing vision was a total blur; a typical result that comes with witnessing a person's final moments, mind you."
"And when I felt that dagger wrench its way into my back?"
"Indeed, as you've painfully learned, the sensations you experience during your visions are an uncompromising double edged sword. Both the pain and pleasure of your subject are yours to bear, whether you like it or not."
"So that's it." Bernadetta wearily rose up from the floor, visibly struggling to comprehend the events of the two visions she had seen recently. "I always had this sneaking suspicion in the back of my head… it was around half a year since I last saw Uncle Abel when I was told a group of bandits had killed him on his travels…"
"Well, then? What do you plan to do now with the knowledge you've garnered?
"I- I don't know… Am I just supposed to convince everyone that an important governmental official murdered his brother in cold blood just because I saw it in a dream? They'd think I'm more insane than I already am from hearing your damned voice in my head…!"
Bernadetta allowed her gaze to aimlessly wander around the room in search of the slightest sign telling her what to do next. Though the girl knew deep down that she had no involvement in the incident that took her uncle's life, a much larger part of her couldn't help but feel an overbearing sense of responsibility towards the tragedy regardless.
While her mind continued to wander between the pair of visions she'd experienced, a sudden surge of recollection seemed to spark within Bernadetta's body. Ever mindful, the girl cautiously strolled over to the other side of her bed, bent down, and placed her hands over a subtle indentation on the wooden frame, pulling back to reveal a secret compartment containing a massive collection of novels lying within, just as she remembered them. Chief among these books was a proudly displayed series of travelogues from a famous crimson haired adventurer.
"Yes, that's right… You always used to dream of marrying someone like Adol Christin growing up, didn't you? A man of few words, yet also an incredible source of kindness and inspiration."
"Ah, shut up…! Stop pretending to know so much about my personal life!" Bernadetta instinctively protested, her cheeks growing hot from the now teasing voice prodding her mind. "B- besides, I was young, and lonely, and Adol's just a fictional character… that doesn't actually mean anything!"
"Oh, settle down, you. It's a childish prospect, yet there's just something remarkably precious about it. In fact, doesn't Adol's character sound an awful lot like someone we both know dearly? In the end, it seems you still pursued that childhood dream of yours to its logical conclusion… but it was never meant to last, was it?"
"S- stop… you can't know anything about that…! If this was all just some elaborate scheme for you to mock me, I don't want any more part in this!" Bernadetta frantically demanded as she forced the compartment shut with a resounding slam.
"If I wanted to embarrass you, I'd direct your attention to the location of the numerous obscene novels you've written involving yourself and-"
"No, no, no, no, no…! I can't hear you!" the self-conscious time traveler hastily cut in, even physically bringing her hands to her ears in an attempt to drown out the witch's voice prodding her mind. Much to the girl's surprise, her last ditch maneuver actually seemed to work, leading to a period of unsteady silence as Lilith's voice seemed to vanish altogether.
Whatever relief Bernadetta may have felt from the disappearance of her mysterious tormenter swiftly vanished when a loud slam of her bedroom door promptly threw the girl out of her panicked stupor. Too startled for words, the violet haired noble hurriedly paced over to the forcefully shut door, paying no regard to the specially prepared meal still remaining on her desk as she cautiously leaned her head into the hallway to investigate the source of the racket.
"Wh- what the hell…?" the already on edge girl inadvertently muttered aloud upon catching sight of an eerily recognizable cloaked figure lingering down the hall. That small outburst was all it took for the latter to catch wind of Bernadetta's presence in turn. Swallowing a heavy gulp, all the girl could make of the uncanny visage was a menacing smirk as the figure slowly craned its head to look her directly in the eye.
Then, without so much as a single word, the cloaked figure abruptly broke eye contact from Bernadetta and proceeded to wander further down the hall, as if it were beckoning the apprehensive time traveler to follow after it.
"There's no way… how long could that witch have–are we seriously doing this again?!" Bernadetta mentally fumbled over her own thoughts as she, against her better judgment, nervously set off in pursuit of what appeared to be the same visage of Lilith she encountered back in Weiler. The girl made especially sure to remain quiet throughout the ensuing chase, so as not to attract any more unwanted attention while the cloaked figure seemed to lead her on a convoluted series of twists and turns across the empty halls of the Varley manor.
The pair's eventual destination left a sickening feeling in Bernadetta's heart the moment she stepped foot in the familiar hallway leading to her mother's room. Perhaps noticing this, the visage of Lilith turned to face her with another sinister grin before disappearing into the old, worn door the reclusive Varley always dreaded coming near.
"Not this… this is too much… why did you have to bring me here, of all places?" Bernadetta internally fretted, her feet firmly rooted to the spot as she hesitated to even lay eyes on the darkened room the witch had entered. Even standing in the general area of the old door was enough to draw forth years' worth of painful memories to the forefront of the girl's fragile mind.
"-etta..? Are my words even reaching you anymore?!
"Wagh-er, Sothis, is that you?!" Bernadetta physically recoiled at the sound of the Goddess's voice abruptly emerging from her mind once again. "Where in the world did you vanish off to all this time?!
"I could ask you the same question. You suddenly stopped replying to me again while you were still speaking with that witch."
"Wait, really? I-I can't believe I didn't notice anything… Oh, please tell me you at least saw the dream I had of-"
"Yes, yes, I witnessed that much with total clarity. The bond you had shared with your uncle was truly a touching sight to behold. The only question here is why the witch was so intent on showing you these visions in the first place…"
"Beats me… and from the strange way she led me around the halls of the manor without running into anyone, it's like she knows the exact layout of this place too…"
"Whatever the case, it's far too early to start throwing speculation to the wind. The witch disappeared into that bizarre room over there, right? Why don't you follow after her and see what she wants you to discover next?"
"I… I can't…" Bernadetta weakly shook her head in trepidation. "Whatever I see in there is just going to do us more harm than good."
"I understand that your experiences beyond that door were wrought with intense suffering, yet at the same time, these painful memories are clearly our only key to discerning the truth about your past."
"No one ever said the truth was always pleasant, huh? I guess I'd better get this over with…" Bernadetta meekly admitted as she reluctantly made her way into the lost corner of memories she dreaded so greatly. What lied beyond the door was a barren, run down space that seemed as though it had not been touched for years on end. The walls and floors ran amok with mold and cracks, the windows had been haphazardly sealed shut with a scattered array of wooden planks, and the visage of Lilith was nowhere to be found.
"Wh- where'd that witch go…? I swear, I saw her come in here with my own eyes-"
"Okay, I believe you! I know full well that you are the only one capable of perceiving Lilith's presence, but that's hardly important right now." Sothis firmly stepped in before her host could spiral into another panicked outburst. "What can you tell me about this…" the goddess's tone promptly shifted to one of abject disgust as a variety of rotten stenches invaded her senses. "What is this thoroughly unpleasant pigpen of a place?!"
"Well, I can't say I'm surprised no one bothered to take care of this hellhole for so long…" Bernadetta readily agreed with her companion's negative assessment of the abandoned room. Her entire body seemed to involuntarily shudder with every step she took forward. "This… this is where I was always taken to meet with the prospective husbands Count Varley set up for me. As you can imagine, I never wanted anything to do with them, so he'd often have to drag me kicking and screaming all the way here…"
"I see… "
"Some were right around my age, while others were clearly much older than me, but every meeting felt the same. I didn't love any of them; I hated being locked in this cramped space with some stranger I've never met before… Even back then, I could tell they didn't care about who I was as a person; only the family name I bore, and the Crest that came with it. I had no interest in being dragged off to some other territory by some random noble, so I always made it a point to make myself look seem as unpresentable as possible. It didn't exactly help the nasty rumors spreading about me, and dear old dad-in-name-only was never happy about the constant stream of rejections that followed… but it was the only way I knew to keep myself safe."
"Such a despicable practice… I know all too well how common arranged marriages are all throughout Fódlan, but this…"
"Yeah, well it gets worse if you can believe it." Bernadetta casually admitted, too deep into her tale of reminiscence to feel anything but apathy towards her previous situation. "This happened around two years ago… I was forced out of my room to meet another suitor as usual, but this situation was vastly different. As usual, the Count locked the door behind me as soon as I came into the room, but to my surprise, the suitor awaiting me was one I'd already met before. Only this time… he came bearing less than pure intentions for me."
…
The Goddess and her host fell into an uncomfortable period of silence as the latter's gaze slowly shifted towards a decayed bed lying in the distant corner of the room.
"You don't have to continue this story any further-"
"I can still remember it clearly…" Bernadetta carried on regardless of her companion's words of concern. "I was always afraid this could happen to me, but I never thought it could happen so suddenly… and the moment I saw blood, I just… I completely lost myself." The girl forced her eyes shut, clenching her fist tightly as if she were gripping a weapon while she forced herself to inch closer towards the solitary bed. "Looking back, I think that was the first time I ever personally took a life… and it was terrifying. You can probably imagine how furious the Count was to find the mutilated body of his latest suitor splayed across the floor too… Ever since then, he just seemed to completely give up on me…"
"Why feel so ashamed for striking out against a threat to your own life? It's only natural for all living beings to use any means necessary to protect their livelihoods.
"You... what are you trying to accomplish by making me relive my most hated memories?! There's a good reason I've tried so hard to forget about them!"
"You know you'll never reach the truth by sweeping your past under the rug, right? There is still so much you don't know about this world."
"But still-"
"Bernadetta, I think you should take heed Lilith's advice for now. Whatever her reasons, she clearly had a purpose for bringing you here."
"…Alright, I'll play along with you a little longer. So what do you want to show me this time? Somehow, I doubt I'll learn anything of value by reliving one of the many disastrous interviews I had to experience in this room."
"Has it ever occurred to you that your mother always resided just down the hall from this very room? She practically had a front row view to the torture your father put you through on so many occasions and allowed it to go on unimpeded while she leeched a life of luxury out his hands… does that sound alright to you?"
"N- no, of course not! I already figured this out for myself a long time ago!"
"So you have. Even still, that woman has dedicated an entire lifetime to keeping secrets from you. Why, with her limited knowledge of the dark arts, she even went as far as to place a magic seal on you in the hope of preventing your abilities from manifesting."
"I've already seen all the good that did for me… I'm not about to sleep on that filthy bed if that's what you're asking, though." Bernadetta hastily added, her gaze transfixed on the offending piece of furniture with a look of utter revulsion.
"Luckily for you, that won't be necessary. In the most ideal circumstances, you shouldn't need to knock yourself out to experience another vision."
"That's one weight off my shoulders. So… what should I do?"
"I'll need you to root yourself in one spot and center your thoughts on Allocer von Varley. So long as you don't end up disappointing me, the rest should come naturally."
"I have to focus on him…?" Bernadetta uneasily questioned, all too anxious at the thought of the unpleasant vision that was sure to come. "I guess I don't have a choice, do I?" the aspiring seeress let out a sigh of dismay as she closed her eyes, clearing her mind of all thoughts aside from her father just as Lilith instructed.
This time, the trance-like state Bernadetta fell into was quickly cut short by the sound of urgent footsteps racing down the hallway. When she opened her eyes again, the girl was surprised to find that she was the one racing through the halls of the manor. However, the distinctively male voice panting with every step was a clear indication that the time traveler was no longer seeing the world through her own body; a truly uncanny sensation, to say the least.
Within a few short seconds, the unknown body Bernadetta unwittingly played host to arrived in the hallway leading to her mother's room, where, of all people, a lone Agarthan dark mage clad in one of their signature bird masks seemed to be standing guard over a particular doorway. The words that came out of the host body soon after made his identity all too disturbingly clear.
"You there! I demand to be let in immediately! I will not have you desecrate my wife for another one of your maniacal experiments!"
"Count Allocer..." the solitary mage calmly stepped forth to address the distressed nobleman. "I believe we told you not to interfere with our proceedings while-" the masked Agarthan attempted to explain, only for the purple haired official to wordlessly shove him out of the way with an annoyed grunt.
Suffice to say, the thought of experiencing the past through her father's eyes was nothing short of bizarre for Bernadetta, but what lay beyond the door somehow managed to serve as a greater surprise for the girl. She instantly recognized the room as the same space her present self was witnessing these events from. Only, the room itself was clearly in much better shape than it was in her time, and even the door leading into it was still firmly attached to its hinges. More unexpected still, was the sheer abundance of dark mages flooding the entire room, all clad in the same distinct uniforms.
Chief among them was an unfamiliar, yet visibly striking woman who was quick to notice Allocer's presence the moment he barged into the strange convention of mages. She possessed a long head of hair with a unique rose-like tint to it, but what was most apparent was the revealing, low cut dress she proudly wore that greatly accentuated her unnaturally ample bust.
"What is the meaning of this madness, Cornelia?!"
"Why, if it isn't the false minister himself. What business do you have with-" the sultry woman greeted with a shrewd smirk, only for the furious Allocer to cut her short as he rapidly closed in on her.
"I've no interest in standing on ceremony, harlot. What have you done with Theresa?!"
"Never fear, Lady Eleanor is being safely attended to by our finest specialists as we speak." Cornelia calmly informed, directing the irritated nobleman's attention to the distant corner of the room, where the woman he sought was tucked comfortably in a large bed, apparently blissfully unaware of the assemblage of Agarthans surrounding her. As she saw her now, Bernadetta's mother bore the same shade of purple hair she knew from before her debilitating disease kicked in, and what's more, there appeared to be a large bump protruding from underneath the blanket where her stomach would be.
"You know that's not her name, snake." the count sternly reminded with a look of utter contempt. "What need does my wife have for your incessant meddling in the first place? With all due respect, Lady Cornelia, we've faced zero complications with her pregnancy thus far, and we'd much prefer to keep it that way."
"We have no intention of bringing harm to your replacement wife, boy. On the contrary, we simply mean to introduce a... special gift to the young lady, as a means of augmenting your upcoming birth."
"Then I command you to cease this absurd procedure at once! This was not part of our agreement! I've done more than you've asked to uphold my end to the bargain-" Allocer began to protest in an uproar, only to be promptly silenced when Cornelia reached out her hand to stroke the bottom of his chin.
"Hm hm hm. You would do well to know your place, child." the rose haired woman menacingly warned as she curled her fingers upward into the count's chin, allowing her long, pointed nails to dig into the nobleman's skin. "You of all people should know full well that your lofty position in life was only brought upon by us. And we can just as easily take everything away in one fell swoop." she continued, deliberately raking her fingers up the man's skin to draw even more blood from his person. "What's more... you're a complete and utter fool for believing you had the faintest chance of deceiving us."
"I've done nothing of the sort! You're in no position to be making threats over my family!" Allocer strongly warned as he forced the sinister woman's clawed hand off of his bleeding chin. "I've dedicated my entire life to building and restoring the Varley name, and I will not allow you serpents to jeopardize my efforts!"
"And you're in no position to be making demands over the people who hold your wife's life in their very hands." Cornelia severely warned, her gaze slowly shifting towards the slumbering Theresa with a look of utter malice.
"You wouldn't-"
"Do you truly wish to test us?" the Gremory mockingly challenged as Allocer's vehement expression reluctantly turned into one of apologeticness. "That's better. But your little outburst requires due punishment in turn. I shall henceforth add a slight addendum to our deal: I demand 1,000 new subjects for our experiments by the end of the Ethereal Moon."
"Excuse me?! I've already far surpassed your previous demands! What need could you possibly have for any more subjects?!"
"The pursuit of evolution is an unending struggle, Allocer... while we're at it, I may as well increase that number to 2,000."
"You twisted, conniving, black-hearted who-"
"Ah, ah, ah. I don't think it would be in your best interest to disturb your wife's slumber gith now." Cornelia amusingly warned, wagging her finger back and forth as if she were disciplining a naughty child. "Something tells me she would be less than pleased to find that you've been deceiving her as well. And for such a selfish cause too."
Realizing he had little hope of coming out on top of a battle of wits with Cornelia, Allocer hesitantly relented and directed one last, longing look towards the slumbering figure of his spouse. "So long as no harm comes to Theresa, I shall do as you please... I don't want to lose another wife and child."
"Rest assured, the young lady is in the best hands she could possibly be in." the Gremory confidently claimed with a semi sincere bow of her head. "You shouldn't look so down, Count Allocer. For if the stars align, the child you bear may turn out to be the key to bringing light to our people, and all of Fódlan."
Without any further words, the Varley noble dismissed Cornelia's detailed premonition with an apathetic wave of his hand and a disbelieving grunt before he departed the room, begrudgingly leaving his wife to the devices of her fellow Agarthans. Whether or not the Gremory's words held true, Allocer could not help but feel a great sense of disdain towards the thought of the tainted child that was sure to come as a result of the underground dweller's machinations as he set out to further cover the tracks he'd irreversibly stained on his road to prestige.
"O-ow..." Bernadetta instinctively rubbed the bottom of her chin in discomfort the moment the dream ended, still feeling the effects of Cornelia's clawed hand raking against her father's face.
"This is truly insane..." the voice of Sothis grimly commented in response to the revealing dream she and her host had just witnessed. "I had suspected that your father had been involved in any number of corrupt dealings, but to think that he had sold his very soul to the arch enemies of the very church he swore to serve for personal gain..."
"Somehow I'm not overly surprised..." Bernadetta bitterly remarked as her gaze began to wander across the decrepit room surrounding her. The difference in its condition between now and the time before her birth was like night and day, to say the least. "Sothis... do you have any idea who that Lady Cornelia was supposed to be? I swear I've heard her name somewhere before, but I don't remember running into her at any point during the war..."
"I'm afraid I may be just as mystified as you are. What I'm more concerned about is what that woman and her entourage of mages did to your clearly pregnant mother... the implications are truly vast, and unsettling."
"Then I'll have to find out more about her... she clearly has a deep connection with not only Count Varley's wrongdoings, but my own birth as well..." the newly experienced seeress confidently concluded as she hurriedly marched towards the door leading out of the cramped space she'd confined herself in, showing no interest in waiting for Lilith to prod her with another mocking lecture. However, she only managed to walk about halfway towards the exit before nearly collapsing to the floor in an exhausted heap, only barely managing to steady herself on her knees at the last possible second.
"Ah... Bernadetta... what is this feeling...?"
"You feel it too, Sothis? I don't know... I just feel so tired all of a sudden." Bernadetta weakly panted in response, no doubt just as dazed as her heavenly companion was in this situation.
"Ah yes, I seem to have neglected to inform you of a vital detail..."
"I'm not going to like what I'm about to hear, am I?" the violet haired noble snarkily asked, mentally bracing herself for the poor news the witch was about to deliver.
"Rest assured, this is merely a side effect of your inexperience as a seeress, but it bears apprising you of the situation. Each vision you witness can potentially inflict great physical and mental debilitation upon you, which only grows in risk with each subsequent vision you see in quick succession. Granted, your mental fortitude for this sort of thing is far greater than most prior candidates, who struggle to sit through even a single session, but even you have your limits."
"You seriously didn't think to tell me this until now...?"
"Consider this a valuable learning experience for the future to come. You still have much work ahead of you, but for your sake, I would recommend experiencing no more than three visions every day throughout your daily activities."
If Bernadetta could see Lilith in person right now, the latter would likely be giving an amused shrug in response to her visible misery. With a dismayed sigh, the anxiety ridden girl struggled to lift herself up to her feet and proceeded to clumsily hobble towards the door, only scarcely managing to reach her intended destination before weakly crumpling against a nearby wall.
"Gah... this is impossible... how am I even supposed to get back to my room like this? Maybe I should-"
"No. If you were to jump back in time now, that would surely alert Byleth that something is horribly wrong with you. I know you don't want to worry him any more than you already have." Sothis was quick to veto her host's decisions, much to their mutual dismay.
"Ah... what kind of mess have I gotten myself into...?"
Just then, when all hope seemed lost, an unlikely ray of light shined down upon Bernadetta when a particular house leader suddenly peaked his head in through the door.
"Oh, there you are Bernie. I couldn't help but overhear you scrambling around in here while I was passing by." Claude lightly greeted with a casual wave of his hand as the battered state of the barren space he stared into quickly took up his attention. "Man, I've gotta say... this place clearly looks like it's seen better days."
"That's putting it lightly..."
"So what exactly brings you all the way out here, anyway? This doesn't look like the kind of place I'd expect to catch you hanging around in."
"Ah, well you know. I was just, er... reminiscing over the past, you know?" Bernadetta awkwardly scurried to make up an answer, visibly gawking under her house leader's seemingly knowing smile. "Oh no... he hasn't been looking for me all this time, has he? Or maybe By left him around to watch my back while he's away... ooh, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad...!"
"Settle down, please. You'll only give yourself away if you keep panicking in front of him like that." Sothis sternly warned as the Golden Deer leader raised an inquisitive hand to his chin.
"Really now? Mm, you don't look much better yourself. Your face is turning seriously pale right now."
"Oh, uh, it is? I can't believe I didn't notice that...! I guess I'd better get some rest before this turns into something serious!"
"Hey, easy now!" Claude was quick to latch onto his fellow student before she could mount a sudden escape. "You wouldn't want to break something on the way back. Besides, weren't you supposed to be taking it easy instead of snooping around unattended?"
"Ah ha... maybe. Please don't tell the professor I was here." Bernadetta nervously pleaded with an awkward chuckle, prompting a similarly amused laugh from her fellow archer in turn.
"Relax, I'm no snitch. Here, I'll even help you get back to your room, free of charge."
"Oh, uh, thanks. I know better than to look a gift horse in the mouth." the physically drained recluse graciously took up Claude's offer, allowing him to throw her arm over his shoulder as the two students began the long trek to the opposite side of the manor.
"It's no problem at all. This is what friends are for, right? Besides, Teach'll probably throw a fit if he finds out anything bad happened to you while he was gone."
"Yeah, I know that feeling pretty well myself..." Bernadetta thought to herself as she slowly trudged through the empty halls of the manor. "So, uh... how goes the investigation on your end? Did you find out anything interesting?"
"I'd imagine we didn't come across anything you haven't learned already. Every person I've met along the way seemed to have nothing but bad things to say about this plague, your father, and... well, especially you." Claude informed after a small delay, prompting his lilac haired classmate to hang her head down with a hurt, yet largely nonplussed expression.
"I guess I should have seen that coming..."
"You know, I do have one bit of news I bet you'd be happy to hear: your old man actually left the manor on a private expedition earlier this morning."
"Wait, really?" Bernadetta's eyes slightly lit up at the revelation. "He almost never left home for as long as I can remember, at least not unless he had anything super important to take care of. "
"Well, the good Count did try to keep his departure under the rug, but with my expert peeping, I've found that he intends to meet with an important official all the way out in Faerghus of all places. From what I've heard, this mystery figure apparently played a large role in ending a similar epidemic that broke out in the Kingdom. With any luck, we might be out of here by the end of the week."
"Wow. That already feels like a large weight off my shoulders... Can you tell me anything else about this... plague doctor?"
"I'm afraid that's where my trail of information ends for now, but I'm sure we'll find out for ourselves in due time." the Golden deer leader nonchalantly admitted as his expression suddenly took a more troubling turn. "But you know, I just can't stop thinking about those nasty rumors I kept hearing while I was out on the field yesterday. I can't exactly claim to know much about your dad aside from the obvious, but it's pretty obvious to me that none of those folks knew anything about you as a person."
"Yeah, well I'm kind of used to people seeing me as a reclusive freak..." Bernadetta self depreciatingly admitted, leading to a short period of awkward silence between the two students as they continued t march down the halls.
"...You know, this whole situation reminds me of a story about an old friend I used to know. Would you like to hear it?"
"I- if you want." the tired Varley quietly responded, unsure what to make of her house leader's sudden offer.
"Alright, so there was this young boy who grew up in a faraway place. He looked and acted about as normal as any other person he knew, but there was just one underlying problem he had to face: he carried the bloodlines of two lineages that absolutely despised each other inside him."
"O- oh, I see..." Bernadetta's eyes widened in surprise as she picked up on Claude's underlying intentions. Truth be told, she had already heard snippets of the man's backstory from Byleth back in her original time, but as it stood now, this only served to make the girl fearfully question how much her fellow classmate may have discovered over the past few days.
"As you can imagine, the people around him came to hate his guts just for existing. It's said that his ancestors were responsible for some seriously nasty crimes in the past, but the boy himself had nothing to do with any of that."
"...I understand the sentiment, Claude, but I somehow doubt the Almyrans were responsible for threatening to wipe out all life on Fódlan on several occasions. There's a world's worth of separation between our situations." Bernadetta silently criticized, wisely choosing to keep her thoughts to herself as the half Almyran continued his tale.
"The constant abuse he received from others eventually got so bad, he fled his home to get away from it all, only to find that things weren't much different in his new home either."
...
"But do you wanna know what's kept him going for so long? He came to realize that these different groups of people weren't as... well, different as he was lead to believe. He met people that cared for and believed in him just like any regular person."
"How nice... that sounds like a genuinely moving tale..." Bernadetta halfheartedly agreed with her fellow classmate's message, if only so she could avoid rousing any more suspicion from him.
"I understand if you've got some secrets you want to keep to yourself; everybody does. But just remember that you don't have to be ashamed of your own background It's okay to be proud of what sets you apart from others. It's not like you're just some carbon copy of either your parents, right?" Claude firmly concluded, sounding suspiciously as if he had already told this story before.
"...Thanks, Claude. I'm actually kind of flattered to see that you believe in me this much."
"Well, why wouldn't I? And no, it's not just because I'm trying to get in good favor with Teach's favorite student." the yellow clad student jokingly denied, eliciting a genuine fit of laughter from his fellow half breed.
"Hey, I don't know if I'd go that far now..."
"After seeing the protective way Teach always steals glances towards you? I think I'm pretty confident in my assessment here." Claude heartily teased with a knowing wink.
Now thoroughly flustered, Bernadetta proceeded to keep silent for the remainder of the trek back to her room, all the while pondering over what her next course of action would be, now that she was armed with the proper knowledge of her own past.
