Jane stepped out of the Bentley, it was around eight in the morning of New Year's Day. Unlike most of her friends who were probably having a hangover after the ball drop last night, Jane had spent the evening driving from the last mental ward been to. After going to Exeter she found out that though her mother did consider checking in the place the doctors told her she was fine and not really suffering from anything mental, thus she wasn't placed under their care.

And it was from this that she had put it upon herself to start looking into every mental ward she could find within the English Isles. She assumed her mother wasn't in London seeing as it would be easier to track her with that, and of course her father had several doctor friends who would tell that his wife has now become their patient.

There weren't that many psychiatric wards outside of London, but they were very far apart from each other and Jane had spent the entire week checking up on every one of them. This particular one, Cheshire County Asylum, was the eighth one she'd been too, and it was also going to be her last. There may be some other asylums out there but Jane was already very tired, she also felt bad for making Merida go through the trouble of taking care of her father when she could be enjoying her break, which would be starting next week actually.

So if her mother wasn't found here then that meant she didn't want to be found.

Cheshire County was founded in 1871 and it covered a large area in Victoria Road. There lot composed of a series of buildings that were there since the hospital opened and were very well maintained. Most of the buildings had red brick walls and beige green roofs with the windows freshly painted in white and the doors were painted black.

From afar the asylum looked like a tiny village of its own due to the various building structures spread out in the land. There was one clock tower, a warehouse, five other towers, the main building, two apartments that housed the patients and a tiny guard house out front.

Jane walked through the damp grass going to the main building, it had recently rained in the area and there were still a couple of dark clouds above. She was currently dressed in a pair of faded corduroy jeans, a pink knitted sweater and a pair of brown hiking boots and her hair was made up into a messed up bun.

There were a couple of people in the grounds who stopped to look at the new visitor. The patients were all dressed in white ensembles while the care takers wore pink or grey, at first Jane found the patients to be very frightening (until now actually) and would shiver when she felt their stares on her. Though after a while she was slowly getting used to it, she still couldn't help but be wary of what these people could do.

When she entered the large main building, which appeared to look like a barn, someone had tapped her on the back. Jane then turned around to see a short elderly woman with short dirty blonde hair, blue eyes and wearing a pink dress underneath her white apron.

"What can I do for you dear" the woman said in a sweet voice.

"Oh pardon me" Jane did a curtsy "I was wondering if you could help me look for someone"

"Is it one of our doctors?"

"No a patient" Jane brought out her phone showing a picture of her mother "Her name is Anabelle Potter, though she might be using her maiden name George"

The elderly woman took a close look at the picture "Well I've been in here for quite a while and it's hard to remember patients because they come and go in this hospital, the only ones I remember are the ones who stay here as long as I did" she hummed "She might be a new patient though, let me check the records. Why don't you wait in here while I go and check?"

As the old lady went to the records room at the back Jane decided to do a little checking up of her own with her father. She pressed number one on her speed dial and placed the phone on her ear. The phone was ringing but no one was picking up. She had tried again only to produce the same results; it was by the fifth attempt that she decided to ring up Merida instead.

It was by the third ring that Merida answered.

"Is father alright?" Jane asked "I tried calling father but he doesn't seem to be picking up"

There was a clang sound herd "Oh, he's asleep, got tired from home decorating"

At this Jane raised a brow "Home decorating?"

"Uh . . . yeah . . . we redecorated the dining room . . ." the Scot did an awkward laugh "It was supposed to be a surprise . . . whoops"

Jane closed her eyes "Just the dining room? And what was that sound I heard?"

"Oh that?" Merida paused "Oh . . . I kicked on a can of paint, don't worry it was empty. And yes just the living room, do you think I'd like redoing your house?"

"So . . ." Jane opened her eyes "So spent the New Year's eve redecorating?"

"Uhh no . . . went to a party with Anna" Merida then changed the topic "Exactly when are you coming back? Classes start next week."

"I thought you already got all your stuff from home?"

"I did but don't you have to get ready as well?"

Jane sighed "I guess you're right. I'll probably be back . . ." she was cut off by a racket in the records office.

"MISS PRICE!" a shout of a man was heard from the room "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"I'll call you back" Jane hung up and went for the office opening the door. In there she saw the old lady holding up a stick against a dark skinned man who was wearing grey scrubs.

"STAND BACK!" the woman held her stick "Or I'll cast a spell"

"With a twig?" the man sighed "Ok Miss Price just drop the paperwork and your wand"

"Isn't she a receptionist?" Jane asked which made the other two in the room look at her.

At this Miss Price tried to make a run for it by attempting to escaped by the tiny window in the room. The male nurse saw this and immediately grabbed the old lady's arm, he then turned to Jane "She's a patient, though she used to be a receptionist until her husband's death, now she thinks she a witch with three foster children"

"Unhand me Colonel Heller!" the old woman tried to fight back.

Jane flushed in embarrassment; she couldn't believe that she'd been had by a crazy woman.

/

It was an old tradition for the Chernabog's to attend morning mass at the start of the year. It was custom which Vlad Chernabog wished not to break, seeing as he only came to church twice a year.

Cruella was still in bed as she was still recovering from her recent heart attack, Hans initially didn't want to come but he figured he should thank the good Lord for ensuring that his mother was still alive.

The mass was due to start by ten and the father and son had come just in time. The two were seated on the third row from the back on the left side of the chapel, for a Thursday the place was quite full.

It was quite uncomfortable for Hans to see his father sing along to all those hymns like he knew them by heart; it was hard to believe that this was the same man who slaughtered his brother and his family.

In the midst of singing Angus Dei Hans noticed a familiar figure that was seated right in front row of the church "That idiot" he muttered.

Vlas looked at his son "Why aren't you singing?"

"Sorry father, I'm not familiar with the lyrics" Hans continued starring at his cousin.

Hans didn't know if his father saw his nephew as the mass went on. The priest gave out his New Year's sermon which he talked about spreading a bit more mercy and forgiveness in these grieving times. Vlas was listening to the man speak very intently.

"Excuse me I have to use the restroom" Hans then quietly stood up and went for the toilets in the back of the church. He entered the empty restroom and went straight for the sink; he immediately washed his face and stared at his reflection in the mirror. "That man has no conscience" he panted.

The door opened and another man walked in, from the mirror Hans could tell who this person exactly was. The Scandinavian remained silent as the man whom he was staring at earlier was relieving himself. He could have left at that moment but for some reason his feet were still rooted to the ground.

Hans washed his face again only slower, rubbing his face several times as though the more times he would wash himself he would be cleansed of all the sins he'd done. But he had no sin to atone; well he didn't have one yet. But didn't he hurt Anna? That could be a sin lying. You were thought from when you were a child by your parents and the Sunday school teacher that lying was bad, then why do people do it? It's basically one of the most broken commandment ever made, not one day could go without you saying at least two lies.

If there was one other person he knew who basically lived through a lie it would be the person right next to him right now washing his hands.

Hans lifted his face from the sink; he face was wet, covered in both water and sweat. The church wasn't that hot, it was actually quite cold; it was always cold in London.

"Did he see me?"

Hans turned to Arthur Pendragon who was still washing his hands.

Not looking at Hans he asked again "Uncle Vlad, did he see me?"

Hans turned back to looking at his reflection "He probably did, you choice a noticeable spot"

"All the back seats were taken" Arthur shook his wet hands then took some napkins from a dispenser.

"I assume the woman in a veil next to you was Elsa" Hans said.

"She sticks out no matter what she does to her hair" Arthur wiped his hands. "How is Aunt Cruella"

Hans straightened "She is in bed recovering" he then later added "She appreciated the flowers you gave her"

"I could have visited" Arthur faced his cousin "But there was a lot to do"

All of a sudden Hans couldn't take it anymore and pushed Arthur against the wall holding his neck with his hand. "What do you want Pendragon?" he hissed.

Arthur held Hans' arm "That's a very general question"

Hans tightened his grip "No playing games with me cousin"

"You're . . . prro . . . voking . . . violence" Arthur managed to wheeze out "In . . . the . . . house . . . of the Lord"

Hans threw him to the floor and brought out a knife "We're all hell bound"

Arthur was coughing on the floor "You're . . . losing it" he croaked.

"I am not losing anything against you!" Hans grabbed Arthur by the collar and lifted him up.

Arthur eyed the knife "You can't kill, you think you can but you can't"

"I only went easy on Anna" Hans lifted the knife "If I killed her then nothing would come out of it, I just wanted to scare Elsa"

"She's marrying me not you" he looked at Hans in the eye, and then something clicked "You're in love with Elsa"

Han's grip on Arthur's collar loosened.

"Atop of everything that's happened" Arthur glared "Unbelievable"

"I'm going to paint this bathroom with your blood if you keep saying that" Hans pointed the knife on his chest.

"You can't do it"

Hans grip on the knife tightened "I can, remember when I tried to drown you in the Bath?"

"You can't do it"

"STOP SAYING I CAN'T!" Hans yelled.

"You won't" Arthur whispered.

But he did.

/

Tiana was dragged by her friend Charlotte to have brunch with a friend of her father's. They were currently walking up the steps of the large mansion of their host.

"Are you sure it's alright if I joined in?" Tiana asked as they walked. "I hardly know them"

Charlotte was currently dressed in a red turtle neck sweater, a white plated skirt that reached her knees and white pumps "Why do they have soooo many steps?"

Tiana on the other hand was wearing a black and white checkered dress with a grey blazer and black scarf with white open toed sandals "You're not answering my question"

"And you're wearing a boring outfit, so much grey" Charlotte wiped the sweat from her forehead "Of course it wouldn't be a bother, you should know that after all the dinners and lunches I tagged you along for the years"

Tiana sighed "But at least you tell me who the people we're eating with"

"Oh but it's a surprise" Charlotte giggled as they finally reached the top of the steps.

There was a butler present who opened the doors "Ah Miss Le Bouff nice to see you again" he then acknowledged Tiana "And you must be her friend Miss Briggs"

Both ladies bowed and they were soon escorted inside the large palace like house. Tiana whistled "I didn't know there'd be someone who'd have a bigger house than yours"

"I'm glad you appreciate the house décor" came a very familiar voice.

At this the hairs on the back of Tiana's head stood "Oh no. Oh no no no no no. He can't possibly be here as well"

"Naveen!" Charlotte went over the large man and gave him a hug "Or should I say Doctor Naveen" the girl giggled.

The man was wearing a white silk polo which showed off his large muscles and biceps "It's good to see you Charlotte"

Tiana on the other hand wondered what on earth did she do in her past life that she received such terrible luck now "Why . . . oh dear why?"

When Naveen broke the hug he also seemed surprised by Tiana's presence. Unlike Tiana though he welcomed the surprise in open arms, literally "Do I got a hug from you as well?"

"Now I would rather lick peanut butter from a hobos foot" the dark skinned girl crossed her arms "For hygienic purposes"

At this Charlotte gasped "Tia! Why are you so rude to our host?"

"Host?" Tiana did a dry laugh "You mean . . . you own this place?"

Naveen dropped his arms "Technically it's my father's property"

At that the younger Maldonia choose to make his appearance by running down the stairs and attacking Tiana with a sudden hug "Tiana!"

The frown that was about to form on her face was replaced by a smile "It's good to see you too Ralphie" she said crouching down and hugging him back.

"I see you seem acquainted with the Maldonia's" Charlotte blinked then smiled "Then I'm pretty sure they're alright you with tagging along for brunch"

Naveen didn't seem to like how friendly Tiana was to his younger brother compared to him "You do realize Ralphie is just a younger version of me"

Tiana looked up at the man "I beg to disagree"

"We have the same genetic make-up" Naveen smirked "Not unless you're the type that likes younger men"

At this Tiana stood up with a disgusted look on her face "You are indeed a pathetic man"

"Ok . . ." Charlotte tried to look for the butler who would help her diffuse a fight that was about to start "Umm . . . why don't we have some tea?"

At this Ralphie gagged "Eww . . . tea is gross"

"No it's not" Charlotte interjected "You kids just don't appreciate the taste"

"I hate tea, especially green tea" Ralphie frowned "It tastes like bleh"

The butler then appeared out of nowhere "Why don't you wait for the Master and Mistress of this house outside in the garden"

"Yes that's a great idea" Charlotte clapped her hands.

"Well I like tea" Tiana said as the butler led them to the garden where there was a table set and probably where the brunch was to take place. "Especially green tea"

Ralphie was holding unto Tiana's hand "You're like big brother, he always drinks that horrible stuff in the morning"

Charlotte was currently wrapping herself on Naveen's arm "Oh really? I usually prefer Chamomile"

"Huh, I thought you were a coffee person" Tiana gave Naveen a side eye.

At this Naveen smirked "I could say the same for you"

/

"Ah, so you must be Jane" said Doctor Doppler, a slender tan man with brown hair and a physical birth defect that made his ears and nose look almost dog like. After the nurse, George, had informed the doctor that she was looking for her mother is hospital.

Jane took the man's hand "Thank you for entertaining me doctor"

"I must apologize for Miss Price earlier" the doctor replied "Though she may seem to be a normally functioning individual she has the tendency to return to her magical world that it's become a hindrance for her when she tried to apply for secretarial work"

The girl nodded they were currently in Doppler's office and Jane was having tea while sitting in one of the chairs in front of his desk "It's alright sir" she took a sip of her drink "I should be more wary next time"

"So you are looking for a certain Annabelle Potter" the doctor adjusted his spectacles.

"Yes, though I do have a feeling she's using her maiden name or an alias" Jane responded. "That's why I showed her picture"

"Can I have a look at her picture then while we wait for George" he reached over his hand and Jane handed her phone, he took a moment to look at the picture. "Great bolts of . . ."

Jane slowly rose from her chair "You recognize her?"

"Oh yes, she looks more presentable here" Doppler gave back her phone "And you are right she's under an alias, her name was said to be Bernadette Duncan"

The girl still held her phone and tea "So . . . what is she doing here? Is she crazy? Depressed?"

"She is depressed" Doppler crossed her legs and placed his hands on his lap "She was brought here around . . . three or so months ago by her sister"

Jane clenched her phone "Her sister?"

"Yes, if I recall she told me her name was Minnie?" the doctor looked up the ceiling.

At this George came into the office.

"Do you have the file for Bernadette Duncan?" the doctor asked.

"Umm well sir, after looking at the photos and seeing the woman in that girl's photo does look a bit like Miss Duncan . . . I didn't get the file" George explained awkwardly.

Doppler rolled his eyes "Don't tell me . . ."

"Are you giving out patient information without verifying?" came in a slender woman with cream skin with medium length ginger hair wearing a grey blouse, white capri pants and white heels.

"Amelia, why do you always butt in when it's your day off" the doctor looked displeased to see the woman.

"Because of the several times you've been defrauded" the woman closed the door so hard everyone in the room couldn't help but jump "Are you sure this woman is who she claims to be?" she looked at Jane.

Jane gulped as she looked into the woman's cat-like eyes, her pupils seemed to be green while the rest of her eye seemed yellow.

"Amelia stop scaring the young girl" Doppler was obviously exasperated by cat woman's antics "She's only looking for her mother"

Not looking away from Jane "Then we sound perform a DNA test on this girl and her so called mother" Amelia said.

"They look absolutely identical!" Doppler exclaimed.

"I am not taking my chances" Amelia turned away from the young girl and faced Doppler "We've already had that issue with the man who claimed to be Angelique's father"

The doctor sighed "If you insist"

"Good" she then turned around "George prepare the items"

"I'm his boss!" Doppler exclaimed.

"Delbert" the woman said in an intimidating tone that shut up the man as she left the room with George in tow.

There was a moment of silence before Jane asked "Umm . . . and that is?"

The doctor sighed "My wife, she used to work in the military so she's quite . . . stern"

/

Arthur could only see flashes.

Hans sweating and shaking holding the knife against him.

The tiles of the bathroom floor slowly being covered by his blood.

Panicked look of the people who found him.

Paramedics trying to stop the bleeding.

Elsa screaming at him.

Hospital ceiling.

White ceiling.

White.

Black.

Taran laughing covered in mud.

Merryweather wrapping him in a blanket.

Eilonwy trying to train rats.

Kronk baking them pie.

Kaye chasing him after messing up his golf clubs.

A young Elsa drawing on the window.

A young Anna running around in the snow.

Kuzco dressed like a ghostbuster.

Ector giving him a lecture.

Merida throwing peanuts at him.

His father reading him another story.

His mother's smile.

Black.

White.

/

Tiana was having a wonderful time having brunch with the Maldonias. Lila and Brahma Maldonia were polite and engaging hosts not minding Tiana joining in with their brunch. The madam also thanked the young chef in making on somehow making Ralphie more disciplined as he was known to actually be quite troublesome to his parents.

"Sometimes I wished Naveen could have been a girl" Lila stopped her son was saying something "Having an older sister in the house makes keeping on little brother's a bit easier."

Brahma gave a loud laugh "Well but we got stuck with Naveen anyway"

Tiana couldn't help but chuckle at how his parents were somehow embarrassing him by wishing he was a girl.

"He can't be that bad as a big brother" Charlotte spoke defending the man "I mean, he needs an older brother to look up to"

"If only Naveen could be a proper role model" Tiana muttered, sadly for her the madam heard her.

The older woman smiled "It seems Naveen you've displeased one woman, there goes your perfect record"

"Mother please, all you've done is throw stones at me all brunch" Naveen groaned. "I'm already in medical school and I'm due to graduate by fall"

Brahma took a sip of his wine "Well despite everything I'm glad you even survived, not that I undermine you son but just getting you to kindergarten was a hard enough chore"

Naveen rose from his seat "Excuse me I need to use the toilet"

Lila turned to her husband "I think we may have gotten a bit too far with the teasing" she whispered.

"I think I'll use the bathroom as well" Tiana rose.

"Oh I'll come . . ."Charlotte was about to stand up but was cut off by the lady of the house.

"So Charlotte how's your father's business going?" the woman asked.

Charlotte knew it was rude to leave so she decided to entertain the woman. Tiana just smiled at her friend before being guided by the butler of where the bathroom was.

After using the toilet Tiana was going to go back to the garden but was stopped when she saw Naveen seated at the porch with a sort of somber expression on his face.

"Hmph, who's mighty now?" Tiana crossed her arms. She stood behind the door going to for the porch and she was sure that Naveen wouldn't have seen her. As she stood there though she had a feeling that the teasing his parents made earlier had struck deeper than perceived. Before Tiana knew what she was doing she opened the porch door.

What are you doing Tia? He's an egotistical jerk who just got the proper whipping from his parents. He probably deserved that so why do you feel so sorry for him? These were the thoughts that were swimming around her head.

She sighed and was already beside the lounge chair Naveen was sitting on "So . . . you seem to a quite a proper child"

Naveen didn't seem surprised by her appearance "You could say that" he snorted "I was the perfect model of a good little boy"

"And how can you say that?" Tiana crossed her arms.

"Being raised in a wealthy family has it perks, though there are also their downsides. My parents were hardly home and I spent most of my younger years being surrounded by servants who would do my every whim without question." Naveen smirked "And as you can tell that can bring in a lot of issues"

Tiana looked at him "I'm surprised you have the hindsight to reflect upon that"

The man shook his head "Well as grew up I became a little more reckless, throwing parties from here and there, spending money on my friends and girlfriends, and getting into jail a lot. Yup the tabloids especially loved that last part." he then sighed "The last straw was when I abandoned a rare crocodile in a hotel room in Vegas. My parents threatened to cut me off if I didn't get my act together and my dad made me work for his company, as a janitor."

"Wow" Tiana whistled.

"Yup, it was terrible because I hardly knew how to work the vacuum cleaner let alone do actual labor" Naveen continued "He even let me sleep in the servant's quarters for a year. I kinda learned my lesson there and decided to take my studies seriously, you could say I was finally turning into the proper son they always wanted, or as I thought."

Tiana raised her brow "As you thought?"

"One day I came home from school I overheard a conversation between my parents. They were talking about how they wished they could have a properly poised daughter like Charlotte LeBouff."Naveen's sad expression returned "This isn't the first time my mom said something like this as when Ralphie was younger she would tease him as well, but as I heard them talked it felt like . . . they regretted that I existed. It was more than being disappointed in me but it felt like they were sad that they ended up with someone like . . . me."

For a moment Tiana didn't really know what to say. Why is it that all the rich people she knew had some sort of problem? Well except Lottie, the only problem she had was what to wear.

"I really don't know what to say to all that" Tiana started "I mean, your parents were just really been disappointed at themselves for not being the perfect parents"

"Well I kinda forgive them for that really" Naveen said "But sometimes when they joke stuff like that it kinda makes me feel . . . bad."

Damn you're feeling sorry for him, Tiana looked at his face, And he just had to look cute when he's sad unbelievable Tiana of all the rich brats you're staring it's this guy.

The girl took a deep breath "Then you'll just have to prove it to them that you are a great person, I mean you choose to become a doctor, you chose to save lives. And if you go the extra mile and I dunno volunteer in Uganda for free then that just shows how selfless you are, or how much you want exposure but yeah that depends to you."

For the first time Naveen looked at her "I'm sorry but I seem to not have asked what you're majoring in?"

"Oh Business" Tiana lifted her fist "I plan to open up a successful restaurant chain that will transform New Orleans cuisine. It's my first step to become a restaurant tycoon."

Naveen chuckled "You've got some dreams"

At this Tiana blushed "Uh . . . yeah" she shook her head "It may seem like a joke to you but I'm telling you it will happen."

"I'm not laughing at your dream" Naveen explained "I just find your enthusiasm amusing, you do know that the business world isn't all sunshine and rainbows"

Tiana lifted her head "I'm prepared for that, that's why I'm studying business"

"You know honestly one of the reasons why I decided to become a doctor was because I knew I wasn't the competitive type" Naveen shrugged "Sure I won't be the next one in line when dad hits the bucket but I really don't think I'm the right person for the job. Business is such a ruthless course that it's either kill or be killed, and I don't want any of that. At least when you're a doctor the only thing you're fighting is whatever disease your patient has."

Tiana looked at the man again "Hmm, you seem to have more depth into you than I originally thought"

Naveen laughed "I don't blame you for thinking of me as a shallow person." He then did his usual million dollar smile "But you have to admit I look good while doing it"

Tiana rolled her eyes "Ok the blooming respect that I was going to have for you is now gone"

"It's not respect that I'm after" Naveen stood up, grabbed her hand and kissed it "But it's a start"

Tiana looked away "You've got a long ways to go pal"

/

The DNA results would not come within the week, but since Dr. Doppler seemed sorry for her (and he thought that his wife was little too paranoid) he decided to sneak Jane to see the so called 'Bernadette'.

They were walking in one of the housing units were she met a couple of pentaplets (?). These siblings according to Dr. Doppler were a famous American boy group called Sev'ral Timez. The five boys may look fine, except for the fact that they acted like wild animals.

"They've been caged by their manager" explained the doctor to Jane "They are very talented singers and dancer but they have no idea on how to do basic functions like eating and cleaning one-self"

Jane nodded as they went on ahead down the hall until they finally reached Bernadette's room.

She bit her lip as she stood in front of the door, after all her searches she had finally found her mother, though at the price of leaving her father alone during the New Year at the care of someone else. She had begun to wonder, was this all worth it? Her mother had never been a stable figure in her life, the woman seemed to always be gone as Jane grew up. Jane may have grown with two older sisters but during her pubescent years she never really had a female figure to look up to, her dad was all she had to be honest.

And that was why she was here, that was why she spent the past week looking all over England for that woman. The love for her mother may be wavering but the love for her father was strong enough to make her do this. After all like Jane, Archimedes loved his wife more than anything in the world.

Dr. Doppler knocked on the door "Bernadette, there's someone who wants to see you"

There was no reply.

"Bernadette" the doctor tried again but got the same results "Well then, good thing I got a key from George"

Jane clenched her hands.

After successfully opening the door the two both entered.

The room was irregularly shaped almost like that of a parallelogram. On the left side of the door was a desk with a chair that had been knocked over. There was a bed bolted to the wall on the left side of the room, it was covered in beige sheets and had a purple notebook placed on top of the pillow. There were several potted plants in the room: one on the right side of the door, one next to the metal closet and one on the left side of the bed. On top of the wooden dresser was a vase full of white roses.

What caught Jane's eye was the trashcan in front of the window that was full of crumpled pieces of paper "This is my mother's room?" she asked.

"It is" Dr. Doppler picked up a picture frame that was also knocked over on the desk, his eyes widened looking at Jane and the photo "So you are indeed her daughter".

Jane took the frame given to her and she gasped. It was a family picture taken five years ago; she was around fifteen or so. They were having a vacation in Madrid and the picture was taken in front of one of the many churches in the city.

She remembered that day as it was the last time she had actually bonded with her mother. She remembered that morning she was awaken by her mother and she asked if she wanted to have breakfast in one of the nice bakeshops she found, after eating they spent a lot of the day sightseeing and even a bit of shopping which Jane enjoyed. They then met up with her sisters and father who also spent the day together and they took this photo there.

It was that last vacation was where they were an actual family. It was a moment before her mother had grown suddenly distant.

She stroked the picture as though doing so would let her relive those beautiful memories. "What had happened to you mother?" she didn't realize that she had asked out loud.

The doctor could not help but feel sorry for Jane, part of him wanted to tell her that it was alright but the other wanted to tell her what she had learned from the patient. It was a disappointing truth that Jane didn't seem ready for.

"Dr. Doppler! Dr. Doppler!" a slender nurse with chopped blonde hair and blue eyes, that she almost looked an angel, barged in the room "It's Bernadette!"

The two jumped at the nurse's sudden appearance "Angelique what is it with your panicked yelling?"

The nurse took a deep breath before saying "Bernadette tried to drown herself"

Jane dropped the picture frame which broke into several pieces.

/

"I have a confession to make father"

In a small enclosed room Vlad Chernabog spoke to the man behind the screen.

"And what is that my son" the holy man replied.

"I have made several mistakes the past year" Vlad started "I had distanced myself from my already detached son, I left my wife alone leading her to her heart attack and I had threatened my one and only nephew"

"I have long ago realized that I will never become a fit father as my late brother, though I know the importance of a family. I know that there is loyalty in the blood and one must ensure that you bring home pride to the family name and not shame" the man paused "I am well aware that I have disillusioned myself of what is greater in this short life that we have"

The priest remained silent as they were always trained to.

"Change is something I wish I could do. It is something which would end a family quarrel that has stemmed for generations, it is something that would put everything to peace. I believe that would be my family's wish" again Vlad paused "Sadly, I have already gone to a point of no return, I have done the irrevocable, my actions can no longer be redeemed nor taken back. Once I have set on that path which I have taken so long I must never look back for it will be my downfall. Forgiveness is something that I cannot achieve but I still ask for it father, I may be a man of several faults but I still deem myself as a human being aware of all my wrongdoings. And I hope the Lord will have mercy on my victims, past and future, that is the only form of mercy that I could give them."

And with that the aristocratic man left the confession room not looking back, but he could tell that the priest was doing some small prayers asking for one last time to save his already hopeless soul.

/

Happy New Year wooo . . . Technically finished this on the 30th but as you all know I don't have internet at home and just published this thing now.

I'm really sorry about the basically two month delay of this chapter, I had several re-writes of this one and even removed one scene with Arthur here.

For all the readers who still read this thank you.