Author's Note: Hello everyone! First, thank you to those who view and favorite/follow my RE8 fanfic =) I've been kind of slacking off just a bit because I got back into playing FFX (old, but a classic for me that I hold near and dear to my heart) so my attention has kinda been diverted, but I'm still writing when I tell myself to stop playing xD
A shoutout to Auburn4000! They have an amazing Heisenberg fanfic (though it's on pause for rewrites) that I'm obsessing over called Maiden of War. Their story is so beautifully written and I admire it so much. There's not much Heisenberg fics on the site, so I'm happy I stumbled across theirs. If you haven't already read it yet, you should definitely check it out. Maiden of War by Auburn4000!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Resident Evil Franchise, all rights belong to Capcom! Any grammatical errors that you find I do apologize and hope you can forgive me. Happy reading everyone!
That day, after the first meeting I had with our siblings, Mother Miranda had taken me toward the Western region of the main village, the place that I later would call my home. As we walked together side by side, Mother Miranda was giving me her version of a tour, pointing out the places that we passed, the people to look out for, those that would help me should I find myself lost, and very briefly the two of us had greeted Luiza's parents.
Gosh, where had the time gone, I remember seeing little Luiza hiding behind her mother while Mother Miranda conversed with Luiza's father. She was peaking out from behind her mother's leg and when her eyes met mine at first she had hidden further behind her mother in fear. My first reaction was to give her a welcoming smile and wave in her direction, in return, Luiza had given me a shy little wave before returning to her hiding spot. I gave a silent giggle, my reaction seeming to ease Luiza out of her hiding spot, but before I could formally greet her Mother Miranda had placed her hand on my shoulder and began to lead me away.
Past Luiza's house there was surprisingly a tiny village, at that time there weren't any fences that blocked the path to access the road to my village, it was more of a place where if you knew it was there then it was easy to find it a second time. It was smaller than the main village, and with fewer people too. They had all bowed in respect when Mother Miranda had approached, and the leader of this tiny humble village had stepped forward.
Ianto, back then when we first met, was a strapping young man, though he has aged throughout the years he's still as strong as I remember him all those years ago. I also remember the look of disgust and disdain when Mother Miranda had ordered them to build a house for me to live in, it went unnoticed by Mother Miranda, but I saw it. Though at that time I didn't know what the look was for, I was simply curious and amazed at seeing other people for the first time that wasn't Karl.
The villagers had agreed, begrudgingly, and they had informed Mother Miranda that there was an unoccupied house that they can prepare for me. With a few touch-ups, they would have it done within the month.
To Mother Miranda that was an acceptable response.
Just as quickly as we arrived, we left, and Mother Miranda informed me that I'm free to choose where I go so long as I juggled my time with my siblings. Mother Miranda kept implying and repeating that 'family is important'…but at the time I didn't want to get to know our siblings.
But…I suppose if I wanted to spend the majority of the time with Karl then I had to appease Mother Miranda and abide by her conditions to get what I wanted.
"This castle has been in my family for many generations-" Alcina proudly prattled as the towering woman led Selena around every single part of her castle, not at all bothered that Selena wasn't responding, but simply listened as Alcina gave a history lesson of the castle.
"This castle is so big, how do you not get lost?" Selena had asked as she began to lag behind Alcina. One, because Selena kept stopping and looking at the large portraits hanging on the wall and the stone busts in awe. The second reason is the most obvious one: to match Alcina's stride Selena would take ten steps to Alcina's one…a slight exaggeration but the fact remained that Selena would still need to take more steps to keep up with Alcina.
"Years of roaming these halls my dear, daily repetitive routines make it easier to remember the layout." Alcina smiled down at Selena, having waited for the girl to catch up to the woman. "Are you certain Selena that you don't wish to stay here with me? I always wanted a little girl to pamper and dress up in beautiful dresses. I promise that you will want for nothing, we'll have so much fun together!"
"I'm…" Selena shuffled from side to side, nervous under the tall woman's amber eyes as Alcina bent down on her knees in an attempt to be at eye level with the teenager. "Your castle, it's different from Mother's laboratory, it's…beautiful and I like being here."
"That's excellent news! I shall tell Mother Miranda-" Alcina was bouncing at Selena's response, but the young girl reached out to grab Alcina's hand, preventing the tall woman from leaving.
"I like being here, but I don't think I can live here…Sister Dimitrescu." Selena mumbled causing Alcina to stare down at Selena for a second before letting out a dejected sigh. Alcina reached out to pat the girl's hand before standing back up to her full height.
"Please call me Alcina." Alcina began to walk away, though this time it would seem she noticed the difficult time Selena was having keeping up with the tall woman for when Alcina continued the tour she had slowed her pace.
"Sister Alcina?" Selena spoke up after the two of them ended up in the courtyard of the castle, the two of them standing just under the gazebo as Selena began breathing hot air into her cupped hands to keep warm. "If you want a little girl to pamper and dress up…why don't you just have one?"
"Adult issues get in the way and more complications arise, nothing for a child such as yourself to worry about." At that question, Alcina had let out a huff, being as vague as possible since a child wouldn't understand the situation she was in…not yet at least. Alcina's body was now frozen in time, the possibility of having a child consisting of her own DNA was not possible, not anymore. But such a burden shouldn't be exposed to a child, was what Alcina thought with a heavy heart before smiling down at Selena. "I have other responsibilities to take care of, just as you will when you're older…things to do for Mother Miranda. If we don't do them then Mother Miranda would be greatly upset with us." Amber eyes staring down into ruby reds. "And we wouldn't want to disappoint our Mother do we?"
"No…" Selena mumbled as she thoughtfully began to stare at the surrounding plant life littering the courtyard, concentrating on one single leaf, before speaking up to break the momentary silence. "I hope you can one day have a little girl to dress up and spoil."
Alcina was caught off guard, staring down at Selena in bewilderment and touched, to say the least at the innocence the girl had before reaching down to caress the side of Selena's head. "Come, there is another room that you must see."
To the Northside of the courtyard, there was a door with the insignia of a flower and a sword. When they reached the door Alcina had bought out a key that matched the insignia, opening the door and allowing the two to enter. And of course, Selena stared at the foyer in awe, confused at what she was meant to see here other than a giant staircase that led to the upper floor.
"This way," Alcina called for Selena's attention, beckoning the girl to follow through to the door to the right, and when Selena walked into the next room her eyes had widened significantly. "this, here, is the Opera Hall. Back in the day, my family would host such magnificent and extravagant galas with live music echoing throughout the Hall. This room would be filled with people dressed in outrageous outfits, which when I think back on it now, what were we thinking wearing such outlandish things."
While Alcina had begun to once again go on a tangent, retelling the history of her family as well as going more into depth about all that had happened and what had taken place in this very hall. While Alcina began to talk Selena had gone to the stage area where the large red curtains were drawn closed. Selena stared up at the high ceiling, mouth slightly parted in awe, that displayed the large chandelier hanging overhead.
But then…Selena couldn't help but think how lonesome it must be to stay in this large castle, and when she turned to where Alcina stood she couldn't help but feel sad for the woman. Selena wished that she could help Alcina by staying here with the tall woman just to fend off the emptiness the castle exuded, but Selena felt that even she would feel quite alone in this castle. There was only so much the maids could do, and with the brief encounters Selena had with those that resided in the castle, she knew they wouldn't even talk to her on days when Alcina would be busy.
While Selena's eyes roamed about the room her eyes suddenly settled on the large grand piano that was placed in the very center of the room. Selena was mesmerized by such an instrument, having not seen such a thing before and not quite knowing what its purpose was for, but she had felt a sudden pull to the instrument. It was as if the grand piano was calling out to her, and Selena couldn't help but answer the call. Without her realizing it her feet began to walk toward the piano, and when she was in arms reach she had reached out to run her fingers along the black and white keys. When she had pressed down on one of the white keys it created such a beautiful noise, the resonating full sound of the note blossomed and echoed around the empty room. Selena was so hypnotized by the note that she failed to realize that Alcina had come up behind her.
"No one plays it anymore." Alcina cut in, breaking the spell that had entrapped the young girl as Selena pivoted on her feet, turning to look up at Alcina in surprise mixed with a slight fear that she had done something wrong by touching something that wasn't hers. Alcina simply brushed it off and smiled fondly at the piano. "My father loved to play…he was the last person to play this thing. I never bothered to learn." Alcina reached out to press on a different note creating the same blossoming note, just at a different octave. "But even if no one plays it anymore I still have someone come to give it a tune-up. Such a beautiful…old instrument shouldn't be left to collect dust and deteriorate at the hands of Father Time."
The grand piano wanted to be played, and as if something had taken possession of Selena, she had moved over to sit on the bench. After a couple of adjustments, placing the bench parallel to the keys, Selena had felt she was comfortable enough and lifted her hand in the position above the keys she wished to play. Selena closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and as if her fingers had a mind of their own, they began to move across the keys.
To Alcina's amazement, with as much elegance Selena could offer, Alcina watched as Selena's hands started to dance against the black and white keys. Even if Alcina never played, she could recognize that Selena's playing still needed some practice to be considered almost perfect. Selena's skill was far from the music Alcina would listen to on her record player yet it was still a stunning performance, it was a tune that the tall woman could instantly recognize. It was part of a three-movement piece, the last being popularly known as Rondo Alla Turca, or the Turkish March, that had been composed by Mozart.
The longer Selena continued to play, the more confident the teenager grew for the light-hearted performance expressively grew when it repeated the familiar tune. The piece began to pick up pace, indicating that the song was coming close to its explosive end, such a performance that was slightly rough around the edges left Alcina speechless as she watched Selena play the final cord signaling the end of the piece.
A deafening silence settled around the room and when Selena opened her eyes she was met with a stunned Alcina whose mouth had dropped and was at a loss for words. After a couple of seconds, Alcina finally closed her mouth, taking time to process what had previously just happened and to make sure that what she just witnessed wasn't just a figment of her imagination. "Selena…I didn't know that you could play."
"I…I didn't know I could either." Selena honestly replied as she nervously looked down at her shaking hands. "I just…had the sudden urge to play. Was it good?"
"Good? Selena, that was amazing!" Alcina proudly praised as carefully lowered herself onto the short bench. "You should play for Mother Miranda next time."
"Would Mother Miranda want to listen to me play?" Selena asked as she cocked her head to the side.
"Of course, she would listen, why, I'm sure she would love it." Alcina smiled in assurance before motioning toward the grand piano. "Would you like to continue playing? We can stay in the Opera Hall for as long as you want. I'll have some of the maids bring us some refreshments and maybe you can continue gracing our ears with more enchanting melodies that may come back to you."
The two spent the majority of the day in the Opera Hall, Alcina had even left for a few minutes to retrieve some of her old record albums to share with Selena, and much to the older woman's surprise Selena recognized many of the pieces when Alcina played it on the gramophone. It was music that had triggered something in Selena, Alcina noted, that even if there were pockets of information missing in Selena's memories before the age of 10, the music seemed to have played an important part in Selena's younger years. What surprised Alcina, even more, was that the pieces Selena recognized, she had been able to replicate on the grand piano.
"I don't like it here…" Selena let out a meek grumble as she shuffled her way through the thick fog and foliage that led toward where she knew Donna's house would be. "why is the fog so thick…I can barely see what's in front of me."
Today, after spending a week going back and forth from Alcina's to Karl's factory, it was now Donna's turn for some…familial bonding. Even if Alcina was excited for Selena to visit Donna, pointing out that it was better than staying with Karl, Selena wasn't as enthusiastic about spending some time with Donna. Her first impression of Donna was of Angie popping in front of the blonde woman causing Selena to have a bit of a fright when it came to dolls.
A few times Selena had almost tripped over her own feet, a few times she had jumped over the sudden sound of a cawing crow that became startled when Selena got too close which then startled Selena. Sadly, it was an endless cycle of fright for Selena. Selena was hoping that she would come across some signs of life as she saw in the village….but she didn't, much to her dismay. At one point she ended up letting out a sudden yelp at seeing a grave with a skeleton sticking halfway out of the ground. This caused her to run blindly through the fog before stopping just at the edge of the rickety bridge that she needed to cross to get to Donna's house.
Now, aside from pediophobia (the fear of dolls), the thought of walking across the bridge that needed to be repaired ages ago caused Selena to discover and learn something else about herself. Though she wouldn't know the name until much later, this was the beginning of her slight acrophobia (the fear of heights). Selena could only repeat to herself not to look down and focus straight ahead as she walked across the swaying bridge. Selena felt her legs tremble beneath her as she gripped the ropes of the bridge tightly to a point where her knuckles were turning white.
Had the environment not been so dangerous and frightening Selena would've stopped to admire the ravine that flowed beneath the bridge she was attempting to cross. But everything in this region seemed to spook her, so much so that at the slightest sway of the bridge, as well as her next step being met with nothing under her feet causing her to almost fall through, Selena had stumbled to regain her footing and taken off on the path. Never stopping until she made it to her final destination.
When Selena made it to the roundabout graveyard, Donna was waiting just outside the door dressed in her typical black dress attire with Angie sitting comfortably in her arms. The recluse woman said nothing, but Angie seemed to be the most excited to see Selena, not catching on to the frightful events that Selena had to go through just to make it on time and avoid making Donna wait.
"Welcome, Selena!" Angie waved enthusiastically. "We have so much exciting things planned for the evening! I can't wait to introduce you to all my little friends! We've prepared some delicious tea and cookies! You can try these chocolates we've acquired too! Show you around the family house-"
From the graveyard to Donna's house, Angie filled the silent void with her animated gravely talking. Angie and Donna didn't mind that Selena wasn't speaking, taking her silence as simply listening to every word Angie was saying. Such excitement was clear by the way the doll talked, and in Donna's own way, she was excited as well. Aside from visiting Alcina, and Mother Miranda rarely visiting the puppeteer, the two never had many guests and wanted Selena to feel welcomed enough that she would want to visit frequently in the future. At the moment though, after all that Selena had just gone through, Selena just wanted some sense of normality. Sticking close to Donna while also feeling conflicted because of her fear of Angie.
The door to Donna's double floored home creaked open, and the woman glided through the threshold of her house. Selena took a few seconds to look around the foyer of Donna's house. Compared to Alcina's castle this was like the opposite side of the spectrum, Donna's house seemed rather cozy was Selena's first thought as well as bright compared to Alcina's. Then Selena took a majority of it back when she entered the dining room to see a bunch of porcelain dolls displayed on the shelves, and such a sight caused Selena to freeze on the spot.
Now, Donna was the silent, quiet type, but she was perceptive. Donna notices the little things and she noticed instantly that Selena had failed to follow her completely into the dining room.
"Selena?" Angie croaked as Donna retraced her steps to stand in front of the frozen blonde woman, the doll tilting her head to the side as Angie jumped out and ran up to Selena. "Come, sit! We'll get the pretty teapot and we can have a nice tea party with our darling little sister!"
Selena nodded her head, silently shuffled to the dining table, and obediently took one of the offered seats. Once Selena was settled Donna had gone over to place Angie on one of the other empty seats before heading to retrieve the teapot and refreshments. With the two left alone in the room, Selena nervously fidgeted in her seat as she stared at Angie across from her before quickly averting her eyes away back to where Donna had scurried off to, wishing and hoping for her to quickly return.
When Donna silently returned she was met with the sight of Selena averting her eyes to the ground and took note that when Selena had tried to look elsewhere she would quickly avert her eyes. At the last aversion, Donna had followed Selena's previous line of sight and saw the possible reason for it. Donna's collection of porcelain dolls was the cause of Selena's discomfort.
Donna couldn't have that, she wanted to make a good impression with her little sister since she had such a hard time during social interactions to make any friends or establish close relationships growing up. And just because she struggled trying to communicate with others without Angie it didn't mean that she didn't want to form some type of connection with the people closest to her, or who Mother Miranda deemed part of their family. It was just difficult, what with all that Donna went through at such a young age, she was thankful for Mother Miranda's help and being given this opportunity to form a type of bond with her new family.
So, at that moment, Donna made a decision, to try a different approach when it came to Selena.
Without startling Selena too much Donna carefully placed the tea set on the dining table and made a sweeping motion with her hand. On cue, Angie and the dolls that were displayed on the shelves immediately began to move, floating around the room before settling in an organized manner in the sectioned-off area where a couch and a dresser were located to the right of the door they had previously entered from.
Selena was startled at such an action as well as frightened at so many dolls moving on their own accord, but at the same time amazed at such a gift, the ability to move a large number of inanimate objects at once, such an ability similar to Karl's. And when the dolls settled, Donna had taken a seat across from Selena and began to make herself busy by pouring the both of them a cup of tea. When Selena turned her eyes back to Donna, the woman jumped in her seat in surprise before silently motioning toward the plate of cookies as well as the cup she had slid across the table.
Selena took the invitation, hesitantly reaching out to grab a cookie, and began munching away at the offered snack. The two sat face to face in the dining room, a painstakingly awkward silence settling around them with the only sound coming from Selena chewing her cookie and sipping her cup of tea.
"I…" Selena had tilted her head when she heard the smallest squeak come from under Donna's veil. So quiet that she wasn't sure if Donna had made the sound or if there was an actual mouse in the house. "…I-I'm hoping that you-you like t-t-th…"
Donna was stuttering through her sentence, and as seconds ticked by Selena could hear Donna's breathing become labored. Selena watched as Donna began to shake and her hand holding her cup clenched and unclench. Selena wasn't sure what was happening, but it reminded her about her time in Mother Miranda's laboratory when she was exposed to all those experiments. Donna was in distress but Selena wasn't exactly sure the reason why.
While Donna was panicking, trapped in an anxiety loop of wanting to speak but not having the courage to do so, Selena immediately got to her feet and began to look around for something that could calm the older woman down. Selena tried to think back on what calmed her down when she was having her own episode back in Mother Miranda's laboratory, but Selena doubted Karl would voluntarily make the trip to try and calm Donna down.
'What do I do! What do I do!' Selena was pacing, if the situation wasn't so serious, it would've been quite comical that such a young woman was frantically pacing around the dining room looking for something to calm the older woman down. And the only thing that came to Selena's mind made her shiver at the thought. Selena's eyes travel toward the corner where Donna's doll, Angie, sat stock-still on the couch by the window and Selena furiously shook her head. 'I can't do it!'
But when Selena's eyes landed on Donna's shaking body the blonde girl knew that she must do it even if she was afraid of Angie, it was the only solution Selena could think of. So, without tripping or slipping along the varnished floor Selena fast-walked up to Angie, gently picking up the pristine white doll, and headed back to Donna's side.
Selena couldn't stare into Angie's eyes, though Alcina had assured her that it was simply a doll that Donna uses to communicate with everyone, there was something life-like about the eyes that would stare back unblinking. The longer Angie stayed in Selena's arms the more her imagination began to run wild as she imagined Angie beginning to move and blink…without being puppeteered by Donna.
"Um…" Selena muttered when she was in front of Donna, catching the woman's attention. Selena wanted to hand over Angie as soon as she could while remaining respectful toward Donna as she held the doll in a sitting position with her eyes closed and placed it on Donna's lap. "if you're more comfortable speaking to me through Miss Angie…then please keep her close to you." Selena bashfully looked down to the ground. "I want Sister Donna to be comfortable talking to me…"
The fabric of Donna's dress began to ruffle before Selena saw Angie's white wedding dress in the corner of her eyes begin to move as Donna picked up the doll. Donna, through Angie, had reached out to gently pat the top of Selena's head as blank white eyes stared at Selena. "Little Selena, you don't have to be afraid of me."
Selena lightly flinched at Angie's raspy voice before slowly lifting her head back up with her eyes still squeezed shut. Selena didn't hear anything after that from either Donna or Angie, and it was only after she felt a slight tap to the tip of her nose did Selena curiously open her eyes to see that Donna had pushed her veil to the side. The veil still covered the right side of her face, but Selena could see the thankful smile and fear-filled, exhausted eye staring back at her.
Selena smiled back, still jumpy when Angie moved, but after giving it some time and the two of them sitting and enjoying the refreshments, Selena had gotten used to Angie. Even going so far as to allow Angie and Donna to dress her in certain outfits they had prepared for her. Selena realized that she had misjudged Donna and Angie, on face value Donna and Angie seemed frightful, but Donna was incredibly sweet and seemed to just want Selena to like her.
"You know, you kids should be careful when playing around in that factory." Salvatore sweetly advised as he reached over to one of the drawers of his work table that held a box of bandaids. Taking out a few strips before rolling back over in his chair to where Selena sat. "Not just because of the heavy machinery, but the possible stray sharp metal that could be sticking out around every corner. We wouldn't want any harm to befall both you and young Karl." Salvatore patched up the last of Selena's cuts and bruises before giving his stamp of approval. "You're good to go Selena."
"…thank you, Brother Moreau." Selena said, remembering her manners as Alcina had taught and instructed, expressing her gratitude for the help which caused the elder man to laugh.
"Dear, why don't you call me Sal. Moreau was my father's name, and Salvatore is a mouthful isn't it?" Salvatore groaned as he slowly got to his feet, placing his hands on his hip and stretching out his back, his body straining in protest after having sat scrunched over for so long in such a position. Salvatore went over to the sink in his clinic, giving his hands a quick rinse before patting it down with one of his cleaner towels in the room. "Care to tell me what you were doing to receive such a nasty cut?"
"I was helping Karl around his factory." Selena said as she hopped off Salvatore's old, worn-down examination table. "I can't move metal as he can and I just wanted to contribute something instead of being in the way."
"Well, if you insist on helping out around that old factory make sure that you disinfect those cuts next time." Salvatore shuffled over to his glass cabinet that held bottles of different types of medicine as well as packs of gauzes. After rummaging around the bottles for a few seconds the man finally found what he was looking for and handed it to Selena. "Use this and then wrap the wound. You can take what I taught you today and treat dear Karl when the time comes."
"Thank you, Brother Sal." Selena smiled, placing the bottle gently into the bag Donna had given to her the week prior.
"Well, since it's your first time here. Shall I give you a tour of the reservoir?" Salvatore suggested and Selena eagerly nodded her head.
You see, on her walk to visit Salvatore, the water that surrounded the village in this part of the region caught her attention. To her knowledge, it was her first time seeing such a large body of water, and even more so when it concerned the village in the middle of the lake. So, she was quite excited to be offered a tour of where Salvatore lived as well as why his clinic was located here.
"So," Salvatore cut in with his attempt at small talk, finding it easier to speak to Selena now that she seemed to be opening up to the older man after she agreed to kind of drop formalities with him. He would take Brother Sal over Brother Moreau. "how do you like living here?"
"I like the factory." Selena smiled as she continued to walk beside Salvatore along the shores of the reservoir. Fascinated by the bridges and walkways that connected all the buildings as well as seeing the many villagers walking along them with ease. "Everything is so different and new that I can't help but like it here."
"Good, that's good." Salvatore nodded before stopping on one of the piers to take a long deep breath. Salvatore reveled in these moments, moments when he wasn't doing things just to please Mother Miranda or keep up with his other siblings. He felt the pressure daily when he was constantly compared to Alcina and Donna, he just didn't feel like he was ever going to be good enough to stand among the rest, but he did try his best…even when he could feel his mind slowly descending into slight childlike tendencies. But even with all the bad that was going on with his life he still took the time to appreciate the small things, for example? He still loved to fish, still loved to stop and admire the wildlife that frequented the reservoir, and that subject that he loved he wanted to share it with someone. No one that was part of this family was interested in spending their free time to visit him and try out the hobby he was passionate about. He only ever saw Mother Miranda, Alcina, or Donna on the rare occasion if they needed something from him or wanted him to do something in regards to their current projects and even then…he had to go to them. No one ever wanted to visit a smelly fish village.
But Selena was the first to voluntarily agree to visit him, she seemed more at ease around him than she did with their other siblings Salvatore had noticed, so maybe she would be interested in his favorite hobby: fishing.
"Selena," Salvatore turned to where the young lady was standing who was gazing off across the reservoir and was instantly startled when the man began to suddenly address her. Salvatore held his hand out, palm facing downward, as he beckoned for Selena to shuffle her way over to come stand beside him. When it registered to Selena that Salvatore was motioning for her to come over she snapped to attention and eagerly ran over to where Salvatore was who was in the process of bending to his knees. When Selena stopped right behind the man, only then did Salvatore begin to speak. "do you like fishes?"
Selena stared at the back of Salvatore's head, and when he didn't hear a response, Salvatore turned to look back at Selena. Wide, red eyes stared back at him, blinking rapidly with a genuine smile on her face as she tilted her head lightly to the side. "…what's a fish?"
Salvatore couldn't help but laugh at such an innocent question. "I apologize, it had slipped my mind that you suffer from memory loss. Before the age of ten was it? Hm…maybe," Salvatore groaned as he eased himself further down onto the pier, having his feet dangle over the edge of the dock and patted the space beside him. "maybe we can figure out a reason as to why that is."
"Is it possible to fix my problem?" Selena asked as she took the empty seat as Salvatore nodded.
"I can't say if it's possible, dear, but we can at least try." Salvatore offered a smile in assurance. "Just as Mother Miranda, we all have been studying the effects of the cadou on a variety of individuals, no two were ever the same results. Now, I may just be a simple physician, but I would be willing to help you at least try to understand why as well as see if we can find something to help you reclaim your lost memories." Salvatore looked away bashfully, his body slumping in on itself as he began to twiddle with his pointer finger and thumb. "If you want to, of course."
Selena simply smiled at such a sweet offer, this elderly man who was now her 'older brother' wanted to help her even if they only just met a few weeks ago, and only spoke together face to face today. Selena also sensed that Salvatore wanted Selena to say something, she didn't feel like it was anything ill intent as if she should feel like she's indebted to him, but it felt like he wanted something much simpler. Some sort of positive reinforcement in exchange for him doing something good for Selena.
Selena smiled, and offered the sincerest "Thank you, Sal."
Acknowledgment, that was what Salvatore seemed to want, Selena realized as Salvatore smiled back before turning to look down into the large lake that they sat over. "Now, fishes. If you look down beneath us you'll see all types of fish that frequent this reservoir as well as indigenous to this area." Salvatore eagerly began pointing at the many fishes that began to swim below. "That one right there is-"
Selena just sat and listened, asking for clarification only on the things that she didn't understand, words that she didn't quite know, but most of the time she just allowed Salvatore to tell her information and facts on all the fishes in the lake without much interruption. Selena noticed that Salvatore was very passionate about fishing, even offering to teach her how to fish the next time she'd visit to which Selena excitedly agreed. That caused Salvatore to become more animated, more childlike, as he thought of the endless things they could do together, that he could teach her, the many hours sitting here at the dock fishing and helping her get accustomed to her new life.
Out of Selena's three older siblings, Selena felt the most comfortable in Salvatore's presence right off the bat. He was sweet, kind, and a bit on the innocent side but overall he just wanted someone to talk to. Selena noted that a lot of her older siblings, though Mother Miranda said that they were all a family, seemed quite lonely even if they had each other…and Selena wanted to help them any way she could to stave off that loneliness.
Salvatore and Selena just sat together on the dock, two siblings just enjoying the afternoon by the lake as the sun began to set.
"I trust your visit with our…'siblings' was just as enjoyable as the past visits." Karl mumbled in the room he had dedicated as his bedroom. The not-quite teenager, but not quite an adult, man was sitting lazily at this random desk he found and designated his, fiddling with a few fascinating metal pieces that he had found while exploring his family's factory a couple of weeks ago. At the time he had excitedly shown it to Selena when he discovered it and announced that he had big plans for this place.
Selena nodded her head as she lay sprawled out on her back across Karl's broken spring mattress. Her blonde hair hung over the edge as she stared up at the book she was holding above her face lent to her by Alcina the previous day. "Donna gave me more clothes."
"Donna…" Karl hummed from his spot, his hands stopping just for a second before going back to tinkering with whatever he was previously tinkering with before Selena returned to his factory. "is she the tall egotistical bitch or the one with the creepy-ass doll?" Karl questioned with little interest, and when Selena said that it was the later as well as scolding Karl for such language, Karl let out an overdramatic sigh. "She's treating you like one of her stupid dolls."
"They are our siblings." Selena defended as Karl simply scoffed.
"Doesn't give them any right to treat you like a toy, and we're not siblings by blood," Karl argued as he began to furiously jam a few of his metal pieces together. "I don't have to like them because Mother Miranda said that we're family."
"They're not that bad Karl." Selena huffed as she continued to read. "It couldn't hurt you to get to know them."
"If they're not that bad then why don't you go and stay with them until your place is livable?" Karl spat as he turned around in his chair to stare at the blonde girl in annoyance. "Leave me alone to play around with the machines in my factory in peace."
"Are you jealous that I keep going to visit our siblings?" Selena cheekily asked, the smile on her face indicating that she was teasing her best friend who started to stutter as a few of the pieces he was playing with rolled off his desk. "I want to understand the concept of family that you always talked about, and because Mother Miranda said I must if I want to stay here, but I come back because my best friend lives here. And I'd rather stay with someone I've known my entire life than live with someone I've only known for a few weeks." Selena turned over onto her stomach to look at Karl. "I prefer being here because you're here."
Karl's cheeks began to redden by the second as the two held eye contact before he quickly averted his eyes. "I think I preferred you when you were silent." Karl mumbled, but there was no ill intent behind his words if the dust of red on the tip of his ears was any indication. Karl was silently happy that Selena enjoyed his company above the others.
"Karl, what are you working on?" Selena asked, not being able to sit quietly anymore, fidgeting on the bed as she pushed the book she was reading to the side so that her full attention was now on her friend.
"Glad you asked." Karl proudly proclaimed as he got up from his seat and walked over to the bed, pieces of metal floating behind him as he went before flopping down unceremoniously onto the bed when he was close enough. The sudden weight caused Selena to giggle as her body bounced a couple of times before settling beside Karl's body. "You see this thing here-"
Selena listened intently to Karl's explanation, not quite understanding all that he was saying, but she would listen either way, hanging on to his every word. Their bodies were leaning onto each other as the two young adults laughed at something Karl had said about his recent creations, too lost in their little world to care about anything else other than that they were finally free from the laboratory to do as they please.
"I have also been practicing!" Karl chuckled as he lifted his hand, palm facing upward, and as his hand closed into a fist the rolling chair answered Karl's summons, before abruptly stopping just at the edge of the bed.
"You've always been able to move large objects such as a chair." Selena argued with a roll of her eyes causing Karl to nudge the woman in the shoulder just a bit causing her body to jostle to the side.
"Get on it stupid." Karl smiled as Selena couldn't help but sigh and go along with whatever Karl was planning.
Selena went over to sit on the cushion, lifting her legs so that her feet rested on the base of the chair and waiting patiently for whatever Karl wanted to do. Karl simply smiled, unclenched his fist, and at the flick of his wrist the chair began to move, but not just backward, it began to roll quickly around the room.
Compared to before when Karl was having difficulty moving larger and heavier objects, with practice he was now doing it with ease as well as with someone on top of the object giving it extra weight. The two young adults laughed as Selena enjoyed the pleasant ride around the room provided by Karl's ability.
Sure, they were adults, but that didn't mean they had to always act their age, especially when it was just the two of them alone together.
Those were the moments I held most dear to me. It was the only memories I have of what a real family could've been even if they weren't related to me by blood. Who knew that by looking through this old book it would make me feel so…upset. Through all the bad that's been happening, the downward spiral, I had to wonder where things took a turn. When did we stop having these precious moments? It could've been bad from the start, we were told we were all one big, happy family so we all just played the part in that moment to appease Mother Miranda. Or, maybe it was I who was too blind because I wanted that type of family to a point that I would've turned my back to all the wrong that was going on under my very nose. Unconsciously turned away just so I could continue staying in this happy familial bubble.
Donna had done well capturing these moments that I distinctively remember telling her on the many occasions I had gone over to her home for tea time.
Through the interactions with my siblings, I began to view the world differently, whoever I was in the past was gone, and in her place was the Selena that only knew this village and its people. I soaked up all the knowledge I could and became a different woman compared to the scared little girl that was held behind bars. I was having fun, growing and maturing, with my best friend at my side. His factory was truly amazing, but before I could relish in this newfound freedom we had I was then told by Mother Miranda that my house was done.
It was time for me to take on the responsibilities that were expected of me as the Lady of my domain.
More flashbacks! This time of Selena's first impression/interactions with her older siblings. I'm hoping for this to be me setting the stage before intertwining things that'll lead to the current moment where everything finally takes place. Gotta know their past to understand the present right? I hope what I'm doing makes sense lol but it'll all be worth it in the end.
If you are enjoying my story and looking forward to more chapters then leave a nice little review, favorite, and follow to let me know =D though it's not mandatory, it's greatly appreciated. Thank you everyone for reading! Sending lots of positive vibes and big hugs your way! See you in the next chapter!
-SO