Yes, I know the last chapter was a bit short, but this one is longer. This chapter tells how Carrie contracted Raven and it also reveals another secret about her. Read to find out! :) Oh, and if you haven't read Retrace 64 yet (although I suposse the majority has already), there is a bit of a spoiler. Just saying ahead of time.

I do not own Pandora Hearts in any way.

Chapter 14: True Secrets

The first feeling I got was that I was laying on something soft. My eyes didn't want to open, but I willed them to, against the fact that I was too tired to. As they fluttered open, I found that what I was laying on was a bed and pillows, a quilt was wrapped around me, and I was dressed in my pajamas. My eyes drew their attention back to the ceiling, making me aware that I was laying on my back.

Somehow, I was back in my room, and there was only one question on my mind. 'How did I get back here?'

I remember standing in a clearing, those three people holding Leo hostage, I remember my throat hurt because of how loud I screamed and...

Wait, Leo! I totally forgot about him! There was a dagger, and she was pressing it against his throat, making blood flow.

'I need to find him.' I did see him in that black place before, but I need to make sure he was really okay, and for all I know, that could have been a illusion.

"You shouldn't really try to get up for a while." A voice softly said as I struggled to sit up.

I turned my eyes towards the direction of the voice, only to see Leo standing as few feet away. In his hand, he held a book and there were a few bandages wrapped around his neck, a faint red stain there.

"Leo." I sighed in relief. "You're alright."

"Of course I am. I'm just lucky I was able to get you back here."

I was a bit surprised. "You? All by yourself?"

He shook his head. "No. Your phone rang a few minutes after you fainted. It was your sister and I told her what happened. She came along a few minutes later after I got you out of the woods."

"Okay. But wait, what happened there? I don't remember."

"You don't?" He asked in confusion. "All of that, you have no recollection?"

I turned my eyes away from him. He seemed to read the look on my face as I lay back down, closing his book (marking the page first), walking over to me and sitting down on the bed. He readjusted his glasses, and opened his mouth to say something, but he stopped, as if he words wouldn't come out.

"In short, you rescued me from those people," He said slowly. "With the power of Raven."

My eyes widened. "R-Raven?"

"Yes. But, I don't think you were aware of what you were doing when you were using its power. I don't even think you knew that you possessed Raven."

"No, I never knew." This sounded impossible, I don't have a Chain, I never have. I thought back to that place I was in before I woke up here. That bird I talked to, it was a Chain...it was Raven. There, in those orbs of light there, I could see myself fighting them, only, I never realized it then.

"Why? Why would I have Raven?"

"I don't know. But," He paused, trying to find something to say. "The contract's not an illegal one I hope."

I nodded, closing my eyes for a brief second. "Only one way to find out."

With my tiered hands, I pulled down a bit on my pajama top, this being the only way to check for the incuse; the seal of an illegal contract. I looked down at where I pulled down the top; there was nothing there.

I let go of the top and let my hands fall back to my side. "No incuse."

"Good. Still, it's strange how you have a contract with a Chain like that." Leo said. "Raven is one of the legendary black winged bird-like Chains, said to be able to crate pathways to the Abyss."

"Yeah, and there's five of them. I guess I have one of them now. But those people are searching for them, and now they know I hold one. I wonder though, were are the others?" I looked over to Leo, remembering the notes about these Chains, and I knew about a certain one that was said to be the most powerful of the five. "You still don't have Jabberwock, do you?"

His body seemed to tense when I asked him this. "No. Otherwise...the incuse would still be on me."

That officially caught me off guard. "Incuse...? Your contract with Jabberwock was i-illegal?"

He looked away from me, as if regretting saying it. "It was, but it's gone now, I can't even sense it's energy anymore, nether in or around me."

"Oh." I looked up at the ceiling, trying to think of anything to say, but I couldn't. I just lay there, Leo sitting beside me, and both of us at a loss for words.

Carrie's sister arrived back from town an hour later, the reason being that she had gone to fetch some tea because we didn't have anymore. She looked relived to see her younger sister awake again. After making the tea, Sasha asked me to take it to her.

"I brought you some tea." I told her. Carrie was now sitting up, her back resting on some pillows propped up behind her.

"Thanks." She replied taking the cup from my hands.

I sat down beside her again. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, I am." She said after taking a sip of tea. "You know, I've been thinking."

"About what?"

"Well, If Raven truly is my Chain, and the contract is legal, then shouldn't be contained in a blood sealing mirror?"

"It is." A voice spoke up. I turned my head to see Sasha standing in the doorway, a pendent dangling from her hand. The pendent looked like a mirror, and inside it, I could faintly see a circular type of seal.

"That is..." Carrie started.

"A blood sealing mirror." I finished for her. She remained silent for a moment as she looked at the object that dangled from her sister's hand before speaking.

"So, I do have a contract with Raven." She began again. "And...you knew about it."

Sasha sighed, putting the pendent in her pocket. "Yes, I knew."

"Why did you hide it from me?" She demanded, her voice becoming more tense. "And, more importantly, why can't I remember making a contract with it?"

"She's right." I said, realizing her point. "How can she have no memories of making a contract with Raven? The only Chain I'm aware of that can erase and alter memories is Humpty Dumpty."

I closed my eyes for a brief moment, knowing my voice had a slight strain on it when I said that name. I hated saying that, reminding me of those painful memories and that long moment that meant certain death for him; Elliot.

"Yes, you are right. But," She paused and closed her eyes. "That's not how it happened."

"Then how did it?" Carrie asked in a low growl.

"It all happened two years ago." She explained. "We were out near Reveil, when we happened to discover a little house. You, being as curious as ever, convinced me to explore it with you. We discovered an underground passage, which lead us to a room with a large door, well, it appeared to be more like a tomb. You went up to touch the door, and I tried to stop you because I had a bad feeling about that place. That's when it happened."

"A door, huh?" I wondered. "And inside must have been Raven then."

"Correct. We were transported to a strange place, then everything seemed to move by in a flash. There were chains everywhere, trying to attack us. One of them almost got me, if it wasn't for you, Carrie. You yelled at it to stop and leave us alone, but then they turned on you, slashing across your shoulder and part of your neck as they binded you in chains. I was knocked away by a mysterious force and a voice rang out 'You are qualified.' The chains tightened around you to the point where you passed out."

"How come I don't remember any of this." Carrie interrupted. "Well, yes, I know we found a place like that, but, I still don't know anything of this place that we were transported to."

"Carrie, clam down." I said to her. "I'm sure she's getting to that part. Try not to be too impatient."

"I'm getting there." Sasha continued. "Two eyes of a bird appeared, it's feathers everywhere. It told me that she is qualified to be its contractor, but I knew that would make her an illegal contractor. However, it said I have a certain object to make it legal."

"The blood sealing mirror."

She nodded to me. "Instead of Carrie drinking the Chain's blood, I let the mirror soak in it, then the contract was complete. It released Carrie, and when I asked for a name it replied, 'Raven'. At that moment, we found ourselves back outside the door. I realized what just happened and I took her back outside."

"Ah! That's right!" Carrie suddenly exclaimed. "I woke up in the carriage and you told me something from the ceiling fell and hit my head, making me pass out. But in truth," Her eyes narrowed. "I had just contracted to Raven and you weren't telling me that."

"Carrie, please understand that I-"

"I've had Raven inside me for two years and this is the first time I've used it's power and you decide to tell me now?"

She sighed. "I couldn't, not yet anyways."

I looked back at Carrie, her eyes still showing hints of confusion, like she still couldn't believe it.

"So the pendent you gave me on my birthday of that year, it was the blood sealing mirror. Yet, Raven somehow twisted my memories so I never remembered forming the contract."

"Chain's powers can evolve too, given time. They can form new abilities for example, but, the mirror still requires great care. If it is broken, you would lose the contract with Raven."

"But, such an amount of power, like during tonight, isn't it limited?" I asked.

"It may not have changed much, but that's one thing that has." Carrie answered. "The limit of power that can be released slackened about 70 years ago, allowing more power to the contractor if needed."

"My guess is that the power was drawn out by her mutual feeling to protect you in that situation." Sasha inquired, directing this answer towards me. She then looked back at Carrie. "Anyways, I'm sorry, but I figured you'd figure it out eventually and it was only a matter of time before you would first release its power."

The room fell silent once more as Sasha took the pendent from her pocket, put it on the dresser and left. Carrie breathed out a sigh after she was gone and took another sip of tea.

"You alright?"

She looked up from the cup, her eyes meeting my gaze. "I'm fine. This is just quite a bit of information I have to think over."

The morning came quickly the next day. I shifted under the covers of my bed, letting my eyes open and adjust to the light.

I yawned as I lazily walked down the hall to the staircase, but I stopped when I passed by a door that was open. Leo was sleeping on the bed with a book rested on his chest, rising and falling as he breathed. I smiled and walked in, noticing his glasses were on the nightstand next to him. Looking back, for a split second, my smile faded as I saw a flash of memory from when he was in the hospital. I willed the thought to go away as I looked on at him, my smile slowly coming back.

"You look so much like a child." I whispered, smoothening his hair with my hand.

I left the room and walked to the staircase, still thinking about how peaceful he looked. The thoughts about Raven and the truth of how this came to be my Chain were still lingering in my mind, but I had accepted this as the truth. I didn't really even think about it anymore.

As I walked downstairs, I saw Sasha walk through the door, a light brown box in her hands.

"What's that?" I asked her.

"Don't know." She answered, setting the box down on the table. "It just arrived today."

"Well, who sent it?" I had reached the bottom now and I walked over to look at the box on the table.

She glanced at the address on the box. "Um," She paused and turned up to me. "Duchess Nightray."

We stood there silent for a few moments, each unable to believe this.

'A package for us? And on top of that, from Duchess Nightray?' The question repeated itself in my mind over and over. To us, this was like a slap in the face.

"D-Duchess...Nightray?" I stuttered.

"What would the Nightrays want to give you two?"

"I don't have the slightest-" I turned to face that voice with surprise. Looking up at the staircase, I saw Leo at the top, his glasses back on.

"I heard you earlier." He said.

"Oh, I didn't wake you, did I?"

"No, I just fell asleep while reading last night." He answered, walking downstairs and coming to stand next to me. "So, what's in the box?"

"That's what we're going to find out." Sasha said, going over to the kitchen and getting a knife. Returning to the box, she cut the tape sealing it.

She took a deep breath, then unwrapping it. The wrapping revealed nothing more than a case. Sasha undid the latches, and I peered inside. What I saw was nothing more than a few items and something else that was wrapped up, and rather long at that.

"So what exactly-"

"Carrie, look." Leo said suddenly, reaching inside the case and taking out a photograph. "This is a picture of Elliot."

"Eh? Why would this be here?"

"Carrie, Leo." We turned our eyes to Sasha, her hands holding an open letter. "This is a letter from Duchess Nightray."

"Well, read it!" I exclaimed with anticipation.

"Okay." She cleared her throat and began. "To Miss Carrie and Sasha Strata. This would of been sent to you sooner, but I wasn't told about it till a few days ago. You know that I became the family head a year ago, and when I was told of this secret, I didn't understand at first why it was kept from you two, but I think you should know."

She looked up from the letter and at me. "A secret?"

"Keep reading." Leo insisted.

"You see, your parents were old friends of mine. After their death, I was given a letter than was written in advance that was meant for me. It said that if they died, I was to give to you a few keepsakes. Why you ask? Well, I didn't know what keepsakes they were talking about, but I later found out that they were things storied in this case. If you've seen the photograph I've included, then you should know whose things these are."

I stared at her wide eyed. "Wh-" Then I looked down at the case, at the item wrapped up. I picked it up and started undoing the ties and unwrapping it. Letting the string and wrapping around it fall to the floor, I looked at the black item in my hands.

It was a sword; Elliot's sword.

I closed my hand on the hilt and slowly drew it out. It made a slight clang as I removed it from its casing, holing it up and seeing my own reflection in it. I stared back at myself on the polished surface for a moment before returning the sword to its case and setting it down on the table.

"Sasha, what does the rest of that letter say?"

"Ah!" She turned her eyes back to the letter, having been distracted by the sword. "I have no idea why your parents kept this a secret from you, but I contacted one of your relatives about this, and they told me the secret that was supposed to be a cover-up. They may have told you that a music composition you received was passed down through the family after a lady of the Rainsworth Dukedom received this from a man of the Nightray Dukedom."

"Lacie." Leo said.

"Yeah, that's what are parents told us."

"This letter says differently." Sasha said, getting back to the letter. "It was passed down through the Nightray family."

"Wait, Carrie, if that's true, then-"

"And they may have told you both that you are related to Sharon Rainsworth. No. In truth, you two are direct descendents of..." she paused, her eyes growing wide and looking up from the letter to me. "Elliot Nightray."

The room fell silent, the only thing being heard was the chirping of birds outside. No one said anything to each other, and we had a right to. I was utterly stunned, unable to believe this truth. I had grown up, always assuming that what they said about being descendents of Sharon Rainsworth were true. No, it was a lie. All along, it was Elliot we were descendents of.

'All this time, and they decided not to tell us.' I thought bitterly.

Sasha slowly looked back to the letter, reading the last few lines. "This is the truth, and you deserve to know. Sincerely, Duchess Hannah Nightray."

She put down the letter and Leo looked through some papers in the case. I glanced over to them and saw that they were music sheets. There was also a photo of Elliot and his siblings, obviously taken before the whole Headhunter ordeal.

"That might expain why Raven said you were qualified." She inquired. "Maybe Raven already knew this and choose you because of our now known liniage."

I sighed, trying to comprehend all this.

"So that's why you look like Elliot." Leo said, putting a hand on my shoulder.

I shrugged it off. "Yeah, and that's the only reason you're my friend."

"Huh? No Carrie, I-"

"Shut up!" I snapped. "My parents kept this a secret from us, and now that I know, I know that's the only reason we're friends!"

"Carrie, it's not like that. Just listen for a second." I could tell the tension in his voice was rising, but I didn't care.

"Don't give me that when you keep denying. How am I supposed to believe that as the truth? You are only here with me because I look so much like Elliot!"

"Why don't you shut up and listen?" I froze, looking at Leo, his fists clenched. "Just assuming things like this makes you annoying! I heard you say it yourself to those people and yet you contradict your own words. It just proves that even you don't understand his death! If you're so smart, why don't you try and understand those things before you throw out accusations?"

"Hey, I'm not the one at fault here!" I yelled back at him. "I'm only saying what's true. You don't even understand me sometimes, just stare off into nowhere!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" He sarcastically said.

Now he was really ticking me off. "You know very well! And I do not automatically assume things!"

"Just because you look like him doesn't mean anything at all!"

"Enough you two!" Sasha's shout reach above our bickering and made us both stop and turn to her. "Look, Leo. She's well aware of what happened to him, it's just that this new information is a bit too much for her right now, so just give her a chance to try and understand it." She then turned her attention to me. "And you, Carrie. Sometimes, you do assume things too quickly, and It doesn't matter if you look like him, that's not why he's your friend. It's only because you are you." She paused and came around the table towards us. "You two are friends, and that's that."

I looked at Leo, my anger cooling down. Even though we had been practically screaming at each other only a moment ago, I felt like that wasn't the right thing to say.

"Leo, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that to you."

He sighed, readjusting his glasses. "It's been a while since I was like that, but, I'm sorry too. Also, what I said is true. Just because you look the same as Elliot, it doesn't change anything. I'm not your friend for that, it's because of your character as a whole; it makes me happy."

"Thanks." I held out my hand, and we shook hands, forgiving each other.

"Alright, now that that's said and done," Sasha walked into the kitchen and got various food items and laid them on the counter. "Who wants breakfast?"

"That sounds great, Sasha." Leo said, putting the contents of the package back into the case, sealing it. "I'll just put this in the library of that's okay with you."

She nodded and he picked up the case and took it to the library. While he walked off, I thought about Sasha, all the things she said.

'I've never heard Sasha sound so reasonable.' I thought. 'I'm...really glad she was here.'

"Hey, Sasha?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks." I said with a soft smile.

She smiled back at me. "No problem, Carrie. And you know what? I think you have a bit of Elliot's personality in you too."

I let out a small laugh at this. "Yeah, I suposse that's true."

Well, that last part was interesting. Hopefuly, I'll get more reveiws, so plz feel free to leave one.