'...Is it mother?'
Zenith thought to herself as she heard the muffled voice.
Despite how disoriented the voice sounded, she was sure it was her mother.
'What is she speaking?'
Zenith tried to focus on her words.
She did all she could, but the voices refused to beco clearer.
After a while, she gave up on understanding them.
Instead, she looked around.
'Where am I?'
Zenith tried but an endless whitish foggy substance blocked everything.
No matter where she looked, it was nothing but fog.
Sighing, she tried to move her body, and surprisingly she could.
"Hello."
Her voice echoed within the place, like she was in a cave where the voices reflected back.
"Weird, I don't feel any pain."
Zenith mumbled as she examined herself.
Last she rembered, her entire body was burning as if placed in a furnace.
But...
It was entirely cool, and she felt even better than before.
"Hmm?"
She humd in confusion as she looked up.
A single white butterfly hovered in the sa hue of fog, roaming just over her head.
Zenith raised her hand as she let the butterfly sit on her finger.
"So pretty."
She whispered, trying to touch it, but the butterfly flew away.
"Should I follow it?"
Zenith considered it for a while before she eventually moved.
She didn't have a choice as there wasn't anything else to interact with.
The butterfly led her deeper into the fog while the voices of her mother started to lower down.
She now reached a point where she couldn't even hear Yennefer.
Zenith stopped, looking back.
The fear of the unknown started to creep under her skin.
But...
'Nothing will happen.'
But...
'Nothing will happen.'
She drew in a deep breath and moved forward.
The fog slowly started to clear up as she moved further.
Finally.
She reached a point where no fog blurred her path.
"...."
Zenith quietly looked at the endless sea of milky water.
No matter where she looked, it was nothing but water.
The white butterfly still hovered just above her.
With no other choice, Zenith moved forward.
Her ankle was imdiately subrged in the water.
"Huh?"
And in the next instant, a line ford, dividing the water into two.
Both the water twisted, trying to change its shape, and after a few monts, two different scenarios ford.
Right in front of Zenith's eyes.
'...'
Zenith cautiously moved forward.
First, she looked on her right.
A girl with long blue hair sat in the garden making different drawings.
Zenith imdiately recognized the girl.
"Avilea."
The little girl looked up as if she heard Zenith's voice.
But she quickly returned to her drawing.
Curious, Zenith moved closer to her, crossing the line.
She waited for anything to happen, but nothing changed.
Everything resud like she wasn't even present.
"Weird."
Zenith mumbled, squinting her eyes.
Just when she inched closer to the girl—
She heard a playful, childish voice taking her attention.
"....That voice."
Weirdly enough, Zenith felt the voice was quite familiar.
She moved towards the voice, crossing the line and arriving on the other side.
It was still a garden, but different from before.
And—
Her step halted as she looked at two children playing in a makeshift swimming pool.
"Look! Look! Az!"
A little girl jumped inside the pool as she looked at the boy beside her.
The girl wearing a hair clip had the sa features as Zenith, but she was the sa age as Avilea.
"Az?"
What took Zenith's attention was the boy she was playing with.
A short purple-haired boy with an innocent face.
Zenith moved closer, recognizing the boy. "Himl?"
Her heart skipped.
There was no mistaking it.
That soft, awkward smile and that cute face.
It was Himl.
'A mory, perhaps? Or a dream?'
Zenith moved closer to the two of them.
She crouched beside the pool, staring down at the reflection in the water.
But… there was no reflection of her.
The little Zenith giggled as she threw a handful of water at Himl's face.
"…So we really knew each other," she whispered to herself.
Curious, she tried to pinch Himl's cheek, but her hand moved past him.
So, instead, she focused on her younger self.
She pinched her cheek, and it actually worked.
"Huh?" The little girl looked back at Himl. "What did you do?"
"I did nothing—Zenny!"
The little girl didn't even listen to him as she launched forward.
"Zenny!"
The boy could only scream as the girl started kissing his face violently.
After thoroughly violating the boy, little Zenith giggled. "That's what you get for ssing with , shyboy."
"...."
While Zenith was speechless at her thug-like behaviour,
Little Himl quickly moved out of the pool as he rushed to the shade of a tree.
Zenith followed behind the boy, where another black-haired girl sat alone.
'Siersha?'
"What are you doing alone?" Himl asked as he sat beside the girl, taking out a towel from the bag.
"...Reading." The girl replied ekly while Himl stared at his fingertip. "...What happened?"
"Zenith grazed ." Himl whispered softly, squeezing his finger as blood dripped down.
Slowly, he extended his hand towards the girl. "Do you want to drink it?"
Siersha shook her head but kept on staring at the blood. "I have never drunk blood before."
Himl tilted his head. "Why? You're a vampire, right?"
"Mama said not to." She replied, shaking her head. "She said it's not good until—."
Her words halted as Himl pushed his finger inside her mouth.
She instinctively licked the blood, her eyes widened in surprise.
Himl removed his finger as the girl tried to suck more of his blood.
Tears filled Siersha's eyes in the next instant.
"W-why do you always bully ?" She whimpered, wiping her tears. "Mama said not to...."
Her voice died down as she started crying harder.
"There there." Himl moved forward, hugging the crying girl. "Don't be like that."
"W-why do you....."
She couldn't even finish her words.
"Stop crying." Himl mumbled, still smiling. "I will give you more blood if you do."
"...Promise?"
"Promise."
Siersha slowly wiped her tears.
"...."
Zenith couldn't help but feel awkward.
'Was Himl always so forceful?'
She didn't rember him being like that.
'....Or was he only like this with Siersha?'
Zenith felt sothing creeping in her heart.
Was it jealousy?
She wasn't sure.
"What are you doing!?"
A voice made her turn around.
Little Zenith rushed towards them, still wearing her swimsuit.
Zenith moved away from her path but the little girl still collided with her.
"Careful."
Zenith mumbled, grabbing her younger self from falling.
The little girl was imdiately stupefied while hovering in one position.
"Ahh."
Zenith quickly let go and the girl fell down.
"Are you alright, Zenny?"
Himl quickly ran towards the girl while Zenith backed off.
'No way.'
She rembered this.
In her mind there was a mory when this happened.
'...Can I interact with my past?'
Zenith thought, her body slowly moving back.
'...Then, maybe?'
She turned around and ran.
Crossing the line, she arrived where Avelia was.
But now she wasn't alone.
"What are you doing?"
A tall woman lood over the girl.
Zenith hadn't seen her but—.
'...She is beautiful.'
The woman had long blonde hair that touched the ground as she bent while her crimson eyes felt otherworldly.
Avelia looked up, a smile ford on her lips. "Inna!"
'Inna?'
Zenith thought to herself as she walked closer.
Inna picked up the little girl in her arms. "How many tis do I have to say to not call by my na."
"But papa calls you Inna." The girl replied, her voice mischievous. "And Inna is Inna."
"....Fine." Inna let out a sigh as she kissed the girl. "Call whatever you want."
"What about big breast—!."
"Do you want a slap?" Inna asked, pinching the giggling girl's cheek.
"When is uncle coming back?" Avelia asked, tilting her head. "And what about papa?"
"Your uncle will be busy for a few more days." Inna replied, looking at the garden. "Papa should be back by night."
Zenith started to walk along with them as it seed they couldn't notice her.
"Is it because of dumb mama?" Avelia asked, touching Inna's face.
"Yes." Inna replied, "and stop giving your mother nas."
"But she is dumb." Avelia replied, as if matter of fact.
"How is she dumb?" Inna asked, curious about her reasoning.
Avelia rubbed her face like she was about to say the dumbest thing.
"She says chocolate milk cos from chocolate cows."
It wasn't Inna who chuckled, even Zenith did the sa.
"She is really dumb." Zenith mumbled aloud. "Chocolate milk cos from chocolate trees."
Avelia's gaze shifted towards Zenith as if she heard her.
Her lips parted. "You are also dumb."
"Huh?"
Zenith stopped in her tracks as she heard her words.
"Wait, can you see ?" She asked, catching up with the girl.
But Avelia quickly curled up in Inna's arms as if she was afraid of sothing.
"What happened?" Inna asked, noticing her change in behaviour.
"It's the ghost." Avelia mumbled softly. "It's trying to talk with again."
Inna looked back and Zenith stopped in her tracks.
But Inna couldn't notice anything as she comforted the little girl.
"Let's et with your dumb mama."
Inna said cheerfully, taking a different route.
"She must be making snacks for papa."
Avelia quietly nodded her head without a word.
Zenith followed behind them, still in shock.
'Can I really talk with her?'
Even though she was only half sure it's true, Zenith still felt incredibly happy.
'Maybe, I can.....'
Her train of thought halted before she could think more.
Before she knew it, she stood close to an open kitchen in the garden.
"Dumb mama!"
Avelia jumped off Inna's arms as she rushed towards the woman.
Zenith's heart skipped multiple beats.
The woman was as beautiful as her, with long white hair tinged with a pink undertone.
"Who are you calling dumb?"
The woman glared at the little girl who started tasting the cookies she made.
Avelia only giggled while Zenith's gaze fell on the woman's stomach.
...It was bloated, which the woman supported with her hand.
'...Ahh.'
Zenith couldn't move as she looked at the woman who looked like her mature version.
Because....
....It was her.
The woman looked in her direction and smiled softly.
The world once again moved back to being foggy.
----
Zenith felt a pull on her body as she was being dragged back to sowhere.
She blinked.
Her vision changed.
"Ahh!"
Zenith quickly took a step back as she looked down.
Piles of dead bodies lay on the ground, they all looked different yet they all had the sa skin colour.
'...Demiurge?'
She thought as she looked around.
The moon was crimson like never before, shining its light all over.
A broken castle ca to her view and so did the thousands of bodies... hovering in the air.
She brought her hand to cover her mouth from screaming.
A condensed blade of mana was implanted in every dead body.
Soone was deliberately making it fly in the air as if a sign of warning.
A soft cry made her heart beat faster.
Zenith moved, following the voice with cautious steps.
She entered the broken castle, moonlight illuminated the place.
A boy with long pristine white hair with a purple undertone sat on the ground holding soone.
"H-Himl?"
Zenith whispered as she moved closer.
Her heart ached as she heard his soft sobbing.
But....
The ache soon grew as she noticed the woman in his hands.
Zenith's breath spiked and her body turned cold.
"M-mother?"
Her vision blurred as tears started to stream down her eyes.
"M-mothe—."
Zenith's words halted as she noticed soone else in the place.
A little girl.
Staring at Himl as well.
Avelia slowly turned to look at Zenith.
Her lips parted as she whispered sothing.
Zenith blinked once again.
---
"Zenny?"
A voice muffled in her ears.
"Zenny, wake up."
Zenith groggily opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was her mother and Himl.
Both in worse condition.
Zenith stared at them with a blank expression, her heart filled with emotions.
"You alright?" Himl mumbled, touching her face.
"Where...." Zenith began looking at him. "Where does chocolate milk co from?"
Her consciousness slipped away once again.
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