All righty then, if anything this is the last of the trio I'm going to upload. With this I'm up to speed with what I had planned in writing. Just minutes ago I wrote the saddest part I could and it gave me the feels T-T

Never thought that scene could be any sadder and alas I was proven wrong.

Now thank you all who have been reading up till now :D I have all you to thank for continuing to support me with this rewritten project!


Chapter Twelve

Reunion


Break didn't waste a heartbeat and quickly guided me through the back garden of what he had now informed me was Pandora Headquarters. I didn't understand why any of us had landed here when we had entered Cheshire's at very distinct places. Break wasn't much help either at explaining since he was so concerned with Sharon's safety. And quite frankly, so was I.

But my nerves were getting to me and they were making me babbler way too much for my own safety.

"Where are we going?" I questioned raising my voice as I followed behind him. "What about Oz and Alice? And Gilbert too!"

"Would you mind shutting your mouth for one second." It surprised me that he had snapped at me and it actually made me jump a bit at that. Regardless of that, though, I agreed to his terms and followed quietly. Finally, he turned to me and shoved me behind some tall foliage startling me with the sudden action. He didn't say a word but he did place a finger on his lips, indicating me to remain silent. I nodded once before he continued on. He went on a few feet, a bit too far since I had to strain to hear the voice that spoke from where I was.

"Hello. You're early."

Vincent?!

"Only this place is planted with black roses in the inner parts of Pandora," Break's voice spoke loud and clear and was far easier to hear. I tried budging through the leaves of the foliage to get a look at what was happening and luckily found a small hole from which I could watch from afar. Vincent was just sitting languidly while cutting off black roses from the bush in front of him. "I have to thank you, Master Vincent. After all, you 'decorated' my room quite splendidly."

Vincent. He must be the sewage rat that he mentioned before. It would be like Break to call him that, now that I think about it. He's never liked him. Neither have I too.

"Let's stop the nonsense and get straight to the point." Break sounded pissed off. "The timing isn't so bad, either. Since Pandora's attention is more focused on Oz, Master Vincent, how about returning Milady Sharon to me."

Vincent chuckled a bit before answering him. "You don't have to be so nervous. I haven't killed her." Saying that, he stood up from his sit and came close to him. "There's just something that I want."

"Sorry." Break grinned disdain towards him. "I doubt there's anything of interest for you that I posses."

Vincent laughed slightly and sent chills down my spine. "Lies. Mister Hatter is such a liar. You snatched it from Cheshire, didn't you? You surely have it—" he suddenly snatched Break's arm that I had seen him fiddling with before. When he pulled it towards him, I heard the jingling of a bell. What the hell was that? "Alice's memories."

"Alice's?!" I whispered a bit louder than I intended. Suddenly, I felt a presence behind me and before I could react I felt the coldness of a steel blade against my throat.

"Speak and it'll be your last." It's that boy. The one from back at the desert. The Baskerville.

"You give me that which you've sought for and want most—" Vincent called catching my attention. "And in exchange, I'll hand over your dear Sharon. How does that sound, Mister Mad Hatter?"

He's extorting Break with Sharon!? That's it. I won't hold back now. Chronos!

"Got you."

That instant I felt the hand that held the blade against my throat stiffen for the slightest second. That gave me enough time to push it and him away from me but it also caused me to become exposed. I stumbled on my feet but was caught by Break's back against mine. When I glanced up to face the boy, he had already vanished.

"You don't seem to understand the concept of a stakeout," Break's voice was so full of sarcasm and annoyance that I almost didn't bother to answer.

Almost.

"Well, you can't complain much when you have a knife against your throat, I suppose," I reply with a slight nervous chuckle.

"Ah, Miss Claire." I seriously wanted to puke at him pronouncing my name. It just grossed me out completely. "You're a very sneaky girl, you know?"

Giving a grin his way, I step aside a little from Break. "Now, Master Vincent, are you sure you didn't bite your tongue saying that?"

"Don't fall for the taunts." Break's reminder brought me back to what I was facing and that I couldn't play around with this guy.

"Please Mister Hatter, taunts?" Vincent laughed at Break's apparent misunderstanding. "I would never. I did, however, foresee her interference and have prepared thusly." At saying that, I noticed something charging at me from my peripherals and managed to dodge it by moving back. But apparently that's what they had wanted for me to do since more of the things that had attacked me were now circling me perilously. They were like hounds or wolves but much less...alive. Their skin was hanging on bare bones. Some even had no eyes and had large holes in them. What the hell were they!? "These lovely pets are presents from the one that left. As a reminder that you should always be on your toes. Any hesitance—" one of the wolves launched from behind me and caught the side of my abdomen almost throwing me off balance. "Will cost you."

"Claire!" Break yelled out in concern.

My hands immediately went to the wound. Shit, that thing literally took a chunk out of me! I was trying to put pressure on it but the wound was too large and much too deep for that too work. The warm blood was quickly seeping onto my hands and dripping now my body. In no time flat my vision started to wane and my knees had grown so weak that I couldn't keep standing and fell to the ground barely hanging to consciousness.

Damn, at this rate I wouldn't survive it. I had to stop the bleeding.

"Chro...nos..." the words were barely a hiss as it took so much strength to make his powers work. He didn't answer, or I was already so far off that I didn't hear him but the time around my wound stopped, halting the bleeding as well. But that last bit of power that was keeping me awake disappeared with that one act and left me to be devoured by the darkness that overwhelmed my eyes.


When I woke up, my head was killing me. I couldn't even inhale without it throbbing achingly. And as I laid in bed trying to lessen the pain, I remembered about Vincent, Sharon, and the attack that happened. That made me jump to a sit but I quickly regretted that choice for a throbbing pain hit my right side and made me hit the bed faster than I could start complaining.

"You shouldn't move so suddenly. You'll reopen your wound." I turned my head at the sudden voice that called to me and watched as Break entered the room that he most likely had placed me in after I fell unconscious. He was dressed in his Pandora uniform but without his coat and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. On one arm, he held towels and he held a jug that seemed to be full of boiling hot water.

With his help, we managed to get me sitting on a chair for him to tend my wounds. My body felt heavy, like wet wool. So, his help was very much appreciated. He told me to raise my shirt to show him my injury and after much debate and hesitance I did as I was told. I noticed for the first time that my abdomen was bandaged and dyed the red of my blood. He undid them and we both stared at what I was sure couldn't be normal.

"Your wounds heal pretty quickly for having been tended only a fore night ago," he commented and dampened the towels in the water. Carefully as he could, he began cleaning away the stains that the dried up blood had left. My skin, still tender, was very sensitive. Plus the water wasn't just tepid. It was boiling and it made it sting that much more.

"What happened with Sharon? What did you do with Vincent? Where are Oz and the others to—augh!" I yelped at him putting too much pressure when cleaning it.

"Let's do one thing at a time." That quieted me for the time it took for him to clean and bandage my abdomen back. Once that was over and I had put my shirt down and returned to sit on my bed, he began explaining what had happened while I had been out cold. "Milady is fine. I managed to take care of her ailment before it worsened and she is currently resting in her chambers. As for the sewer rat, I had no choice but to comply to his demands in exchange for her."

"But Break—" he halted my empathetic remark with his raised hand.

"Don't." He placed the things he used to tend me with aside and continued, "On another note, it would appear that Oz-kun's presence is well known in Pandora now."

"They know he's alive?"

"And kicking. But for now, since he is the descendent of one of the Four Households there's not much being done about his situation. I doubt they'll do anything. At least not as long as Oscar-sama has a say." He sighed and began putting his sleeves down. "Your wounds are cleaned so you should rest."

I glanced down knowing that he was leaving and that I needed to do something. I needed to tell him about what I saw. "Break, wait. I...have something to tell you." It took me sometime but in the end I told him everything that I had witnessed at Cheshire's lair. About Jack. About the little boy Cloude and myself. And about that woman, Edea Florence.

Break simply stood aside listening as I explained everything and only nodded when I finished. "If there is any truth to those events then it could be possible that you and that boy were actually siblings. But what I'm more interested in that woman you mentioned, Edea Florence."

"I do too but I have no idea who she is," I confessed bringing my head down. "But every time I think about her—" I gripped my chest lightly for I was feeling that same thing right as I spoke. "My heart aches."

"Mm," he mumbled but said nothing else until he gathered everything he had brought. "I have some idea as to where to start looking. For now, it is in your best interest to hang on to Alice. It would seem that wherever her memories are, yours are attached to them as well."

"So if I keep seeking out Alice's memories then—"

"You'll find yours by default." He headed over to the door with the used towels and jug. "You should rest for now. It is barely six in the morn, and I have other matters to attend to."

I nod and comply with his request. Just as I see him start to leave I turn towards him, "Break?" He tilts his head towards me letting me know that he was listening. "Thank you for everything." He gave me a quick smile and a curt nod before he left for good leaving me to myself.

Now alone, I went back to laying on my bed and thinking about everything that occurred. But soon enough those same thoughts drove me off into slumber.


"What the fuck is this!?"

"Relax or your wound will reopen," Break called hitting my head slightly with his hand. " Besides, you are dressed as a proper young lady and that is not proper lady's speech in the least."

"But why the hell am I wearing this?!" I screamed back holding onto the seams of the very short skirt they had put me in. He had called me later that morning for some emergency. What that stupid emergency had turned out to be was still a big blank to me but he had coaxed me into this God awful attire for it. It looked like some kind of uniform. It was mostly black and white, and it had a skirt. A fucking skirt. Yeah, if I sounded pissed off it's because I really was.

"Don't worry!" Out of the blue Oz's uncle, Oscar, got me and pulled me alongside with Alice to his side. I couldn't help but grimace for his brusque playing was hurting my injury. "We're going out for an important mission after all!" Again, mission that I had no idea what it was.

But even if I wanted to ask I didn't have time to for he rapidly got us into the carriage on our way towards wherever the hell we were heading. I remained quiet the whole time that he was explaining about some stupid letter from Oz's younger sister, Ada. But the more he dragged on telling us why we were here the more I dreaded hearing the truth. Just then Oz and Gilbert tensed up at hearing the last part of his explanation.

Wait. He was an overprotective uncle. The niece had said she was in love with someone. Ah, shit. Don't tell me...

The carriage stopped before a grand architectural building to which we all exited. Me, not willingly since Alice, who was being pulled around by Oscar, was hauling me around as well.

"We're sneaking into the school!"

"Are you crazy!" I yelled at the old man that brought us out here, dressed like this for this kind of madness.

"Now, now, Claire, calm down. There's no need to get so feisty about it," Oz said soothingly and placing a hand on my shoulder, trying to calm me in vain.

"Calm down, my ass!" I turned to yell in his face making him turn his head away. "Have you any idea what can happen at places like this!? If anything happens to you, Break will have my head in a silver platter!"

"Haha, true huh?"

"Don't 'haha' me, you asshole!"

"Now there," Oscar's arm went around my neck as he held both Alice and I in a death grip. "We have to do this the right way or it won't be romantic."

"Huh?" This man was seriously getting on my nerves.

"We'll get inside through this—a secret passage made by the Vessalius Family!"

"What are you Four Houses even doing with your freaking time!" I bellowed in anger at his playing around.

But nonetheless, he made us go through them and soon enough we found our way up into the school. I couldn't believe this, we were actually breaking into a privately own building! This was a crime all in itself. I was so distracted by my own ranting that I hadn't noticed that Oscar had gotten us spotted. Having no time to think, I ran away anywhere I could to lose the ones that were on our tail.

Soon, I stopped way out of breath and my side burning like the fires of hell. My wounds may heal quickly but that doesn't mean they don't hurt like a mother effing bitch. Once I had caught my breath and was sure that no one had spotted me, I took a look at where I actually had ended up. It wasn't as bad as I first thought. I was at a library and wow, it looked so much bigger than even the Nightray's and Fianna's combined!

Trying to relax for once, I walked down one of the aisles giving a glance at every other book to see what would catch my interest. "Oh." The whole shelves further in...they were filled to the brim with an entire series. Passing my finger across the spine of one, I read the title to myself, "Holy Knight? Oh, that's right."

I remember those books. Elliot loved to read them when we met. The way he talked about them, so fervently, I could swear he was in love with the damn book. I reached out and took a random volume from the shelf and opened it to a random page and read a little. Yeah, this sounded like that story that he kept mentioning to Leo and I back in the orphanage. And what was that servant's name...? Oh yeah, Edgar. Yes, I remember that Elliot hated him so much. Leo actually hated for me to even mention the character's name because it sent Elliot into a ranting frenzy. Mm, I loved seeing him all angry over a fictional thing like that. It amused me for hours on end.

I placed the book back and ran my finger down another volume. The more I glossed over the volumes, the faster my smile disappeared. Soon, I stopped in my skimming and glanced down. It was hard to admit this since it had been me who left but I really miss them: Elliot and Leo.

"Hey, can you feel that?"

"Huh? Feel what?" I whisper to Chronos as I continue to wander aimlessly through the library.

"I can't pinpoint it very well myself but it reeks of blood."

Unconsciously, I patted my side and grimaced at the reminder. "That would be me."

"No. This isn't you. It's something else. It's close too."

With that, I decided to follow as he leaded me outside of the library following this scent of blood that he had caught. He guided me through some more hallways, some where I had to act as natural as I could to avoid being noticed, and finally ended where he said it was more prominent at: a dead end.

"Nice job, genius," I growl with a click of my tongue.

"Don't criticize! When have I been wrong?"

"Well, there was that one time when—"

"Don't answer!"

I cringed at the loud noise in my head at his screaming. "Don't freaking yell. I can hear you perfectly, damn." Heaving another sigh, I turned to go intending to search for the others. But when I stepped, I felt no ground. And before I could stop myself, gravity had done its work and brought me done the hell hole I had fallen through. I lost all air in my lungs at hitting solid ground after the long fall. Grabbing at my aching side, I got up with more pain than before. At looking up, the little passage that had opened and from which I had fallen was now shut closed. With that being the only light gone, I was now standing in pitch blackness. The hole from which I fell...it must be another one of those secret entrances like the one Oscar used to get us in. I glanced around and I swear I could feel my nonexistent claustrophobia kicking in. The corridors were narrow barely letting me and possibly another walk side by side. But I was alone and to either side of me were open ways to which I could go. But they were all pitch black as well.

"Claire?"

"Eek!" I cringed down at the sound and curled into a ball.

"Claire! What's the matter?"

"G-Geez! It's only you." Without another word I got up and placed a hand on the wall nearest to me to keep my bearings. "Don't yell out of the blue."

"Are you...scared?"

"W-What nonsense are you spouting, you dumbass! I'm not scared!" Saying nothing else, I began hugging the left wall and walking along it. I heard somewhere that if you're ever lost in a maze that if you walked along the left wall you would eventually find the way out. With that in mind, I continued my way with slow and careful steps. Yet, it wasn't really giving me much hope about getting out. No matter how much I walked the darkness didn't fleet. I hated the dark.

I didn't know how much time have passed but it must have been quite some time because my stomach started rumbling. "Shit... I might be a little lost here."

"A little?"

"Don't sass me," I reprimand him and he remains quiet for it. Frankly, I would have loved it better had he kept talking. Even if it were nonsense babble. But because of the silence, I clearly caught the sound that suddenly came from somewhere in here. "What was that?"

"What was what?"

"That noise?" Keeping that in mind, I went the way from which I heard it. For some reason, my breathing was getting ragged and my throat felt dry. I wasn't feeling up to this anymore. I just wanted to get out of here.

Then I heard it.

"Noisy!"

Oz. It was Oz's voice. He was here... I wasn't alone! My body began moving on its own, mindlessly following after his voice.

"Hey, Claire!"

What a relief. I'm not alone. I had to find him. As long as I could find him—anyone!—I would be fine! I wouldn't be alone anymore in this darkness.

Being here was hell. The faintest candlelight showed me a silhouette. Thank God! I just didn't want to be alone anymore. I reached out towards him.

So please...

"Don't leave me alone!" I cried unconsciously and holding onto his arm tightly with both of mine. Not caring if tears were showing at the brims of my eyes, I glanced up to Oz in relief. But that relief turned into shock before I even noticed because the moment I looked into their face—

This wasn't Oz.

"Elliot...?" I whispered in utter disbelief. And apparently so was he, his expression surely a reflection of mine.

"Claire?"


A little shorter than usual I see. Ah yes. I just noticed that this triple upload ended on a cliffhanger x3 Sorry!

But I'm keeping a good pace with writing so hopefully you'll get the continuation of this vey soon :D For now please keep tuned to this story for the next chapter :)