Chapter Text
Pure
Part I
Mina Carolina/Annie Leonhart
'No hard feelings, right?' He asks her, mouth in a thin line and gray eyes emotionless.
She doesn't answer him, simply stares.
He doesn't seem to care about her silence though as he runs his hands over the hilt of his weapon. The blood on his pale face slowly begins to become less and less visible as her consciousness ebbs away. And then he looks at her directly in the eyes, his expression a mix of contempt and finality.
And if she looks closely enough; sorrow.
'I can't have you going back on your word after all.'
He seems so tall then. Like a giant. Like a titan. And Annie wonders how he can be so much like a god when he's no less flesh and bone than she.
'We..ll..." Annie thinks faintly, the light of the sky hurting her eyes as she lays at her executioners feet. 'He is...humanities stron...gest...f..or...a r...eason...'
She wants to smirk at this, but does not have the energy to do so. She doesn't have the energy or willpower to do anything but lie there. She feels weak. And so all she can do is wait.
Wait for the inevitable.
Even as he raises his blade, she can't bring herself to speak. Or move. Or even do anything beyond staring into his cold silver eyes before he strikes.
She wants to tell him to wait...but she can't. She wants to brace herself...but she doesn't have the strength. She wants to prepare herself for the oncoming blow.
But his earlier question was rhetorical when he asked for no hard feelings, and she knows that he had no intention of letting her fight back.
Shiiiing
Her blood is like a wave of silk parting as if the red sea itself. The liquid rises in a whirl of red before it vanishes from her view. She only feels the pain for a millisecond, though no sound leaves her lips. Nothing in her expression changes as her eyes dilate rapidly until there is no more blue to be seen, only deep, deep black.
The smiling face of a beautiful girl in white is all she can think of then. The swaying grass around the barracks, the place where they had first met, surrounding her slender form. The girl pushes a strand of brown hair behind her ear and leans down, and Annie feels her eyes burn as the memory clouds everything else out.
'Hi...' The girl says shyly, her bright sparkle filled eyes the last thing Annie thinks of as she slowly begins to die. 'My name is Mina, do you need a hand?'
And then, her body. Head partially gone, hips twisted one way and torso the other. Dead. Dark hair flayed out around her. Dead. Arm stretched out towards her, skin pale white and blue.
Dead.
She wants to cry then, the pain flying through her like a gunshot. She feels like shit. Her head hurts. Her heart hurts. It's as if she's in that place again, standing over a sea of bodies. She wants to fall to her knee's, but she frozen.
Bang.
'I'm...so..oh....'
Bang.
'..soo...orry....'
Bang.
And then the world is black and empty.
The man above her watches silently as a lone tear streaks down her face. It is quiet for the longest time as he stands there. Eventually the man sighs deeply and approaches. He sheathes his sword and kneels down, fingers brushing the tear away.
When he leaves that place, there is an Aster Tataricus lain beside the girls body.
Until we meet again.
...
She's falling.
She knows this, even though she can't see. Because the pressure on her form is intense and feels like wind and is pushing upward. And she's felt the sensation of falling many times before.
There's light somewhere, but she can't find the source because her eyes refuse to open.
There's a distinct feeling of loss in her chest when she realizes it's because she doesn't have eyes to open in the first place. There's a hollow space where her heart used to be. There's air where there should be a body. A soul where there should be flesh. It's all so different.
And then she feels it.
The feeling of cold air washing over her. Of fire and ice and sand on her feet, of sunlight and darkness. Of feeling empty yet so full of air and light. There isn't anymore pain, and yet the first time she manages to gain true awareness is when she feels more panic and fear than she's ever felt in her entire sixteen years of existence.
And she wonders what is going to happen to her, now that she's been freed from the burden of living.
"I can answer that question." A soft, willowy voice answers her. Though she never opened her mouth to ask anything, didn't even know if she still had a mouth to speak with.
She wants to turn towards the source of the voice. But she has no control over anything here, wherever here is. And so she is stuck grasping for something, anything, to give her a sense of balance. There is light beyond the darkness, and she can't reach there. But she knows deep in her subconscious that once she reaches there, she'll have control again.
'Answer?' She thinks after a beat, her entire being hovering in the center of nowhere.
'You can hear me...even though I cannot speak...who...and where....are you?'
There is silence then, though in this place it feels as if there's no space where silence can fit. In fact it is so long and yet takes no time at all for 'it' to reply to her. This time the voice is even more willowy, as if the sound is trying to travel through a place so thin and jaded that it barely sounds real.
'I am nothing.' It says, its voice growing closer each second as she listens on, trying to grasp at anything she can.
It doesn't seem concerned with her confusion, and drawls on, voice as thin as string.
'You need not concern yourself with anything that deals with nothing. But you are tied to me, as I am charged with guiding you. And you have been given another chance at life, whether you want it or not. So for now, I am simply Aster.'
'Aster?' She thinks, her confusion as blatant as day. 'What is that?'
A beat of silence, then;
'The flower laid upon your corpse. The spirit of forgiveness, of reunion. I am nothing, but for you I am everything I would say. Your chance at living again.'
And then she see's the memory. Again. Like a tidal wave of air. Of Mina smiling at her in a field of grass.
Reaching out her hand, gaze warm and beautiful.
Annie feels cold.
'You want to see her again.'
This is a statement, not a question. And despite not having a body anymore, Annie feels as if she is being ripped apart.
'Yes.'
It's a heartfelt answer, as clear as if it had been a gunshot in the night. And the 'it' called Aster seems to be somewhat placated by the willingness in her tone.
'Then I'll lead you to her. But-' The spirits tone was filled with warning as it went on, 'whatever you do from here on out... the consequences will be your doing. Not mine.'
She feels it then. The feeling of having a body again. Of being able to see. When her eyes open, there isn't anymore darkness. But there's nothing there, absolutely nothing, and the only thing that she can ascertain to be 'it' is the feeling of a presence beside her. It's gripping her entire being, the closest thing to pain she can feel in the state she's in.
'Are you ready?'
It doesn't wait for her to answer. Doesn't even wait one second before the weight of a thousand worlds is pushing her into existence once more.
It's dark....again.
"Hurry back, Hannah!" Franz calls from the backdoor of the bakery, his smile warming the delivery girl to her toes as she heads outside with two bags of leftover junk balanced on her shoulders.
The redhead blushes, her freckles as pronounced as ever as she nods to him. He winks, blows a kiss, and then is back inside with the door swinging shut behind him.
That day had been almost too fast for the couple, hours crowded with pastry orders and impatient customers and flour covered floors and counters. But they had done good work, had made good money, and Hannah knew Franz would treat her to a date after they closed shop.
In the past week she had gone through quite a lot. She had been fired from her mothers salon after Hannah refused to break up with Franz, her trust fund had been cut off by her father. They didn't want anything to do with a daughter who didn't want to run the business, who refused to marry a 'suitable' man, and who refused to obey her elders.
So she was left with no place to stay, and none of her friends had been able to help.
Luckily for her, Franz had instantly taken her in when she informed him of her predicament and offered her a job at his bakery. She'd only started two days prior, but already she felt as if she were at home. It helped that she would willingly fly over the moon for Franz if he asked, so the work wasn't nearly as taxing on her morale as much as her parents demands had been.
Sure, all of their friends liked to tease her, since she and Franz had fell head over hills for each other. Literally only moments after crashing into each other in Paris.
They thought Hannah was air headed and foolish to fall for a dreamer like Franz, just like her parents did, but she knew love when she felt it. She'd been looked down on for so long because she had never been good at anything, but Franz wasn't like that. He cherished and respected and loved her.
He made her happy to be with him.
When they were tired or working all day- as long as they were together, it was always worth it. So she didn't mind the giggles and taunts, because in an hour or so she would be having dinner with her best friend and her love.
Hannah hummed happily, shaking her hair out of her eyes as she walked up to the bakeries fence and threw the bags over it into the dumpsters. There was a loud bang as the lid fell, and Hannah clapped her hands to ward off the dust before turning on her heel.
Only to suddenly be met with cold blue eyes.
Ba-bump
Hannah yelped, hand grasping her chest as she leaned back, back colliding with the fence. Her heart thudded in her chest, and she quickly tried to gain control of her breathing as the shock wore off.
Ba-bump
The person in front of her didn't react, simply stared at her. Hannah couldn't see their face clearly, since they wore a long leather jacket with a dark gray hood shadowing their face. But the person was short, though no less intimidating and startling than before. Hannah's eyes darted around the clearing, wondering how they could have snuck up on her so quickly.
"Who...." Hannah gulped, hands still shaking from surprise as she focused on the intruder once more. "What...what are you doing back here?"
The person didn't answer at first, but simply tilted their head back and studied Hannah with eyes that were as sharp as knives.
"You....are the same in this world." They muttered, the slightest hint of surprise in their voice.
It was then that Hannah noticed it was a girl in front of her, the feminine voice unmistakable. Now the slender form and short stature were more clear, and Hannah felt her panic subside though she was still confused.
"What do you mean? This world? Who are you?"
The stranger stared at Hannah for a moment, before backing away- an expressing barring irritation flitting across her face. Even with the sun setting and the darkness setting over the shop, Hannah could see that the girl was perturbed and not planning on staying any longer.
Sweat began to trail down Hannah's face, since she was unsure how to react in such a situation. Such an intimidating figure mysteriously popping up at the back of the bakery, where Franz had specified no one but staff were allowed back there. And yet the girl seemed to want nothing to do with the bakery itself, as she had already brushed past Hannah and glided over the gate.
"Hey..." Hannah was stunned, bright eyes wide as she grasped the edge of the fence with no notice of the hinges digging into her hands. "Where are you going? What were you doing back here in the first place!?"
But the stranger was gone before Hannah had even finished her sentence. The redhead stared into the darkness for a moment, confusion still marring her features. There was no telling how long she would have stood there, if not for Franz suddenly calling out to her again.
"I heard yelling, and you've been out here for a while. Hannah, what happened?" He was beside her in an instant, hand on her shoulders, fingers lifting up her chin. Her eyes were wide and unblinking, but she came back to earth after several moments of Franz shaking her shoulders and asking for an explanation.
"Honey...." Hannah asked after a moment, her eyebrows furrowed as she looked up into her lovers face. "You don't happen to have any strange lady friends I don't know about do you?"
"What!?" Franz asked, his face aghast. He looked at her as if she were crazy, but when he saw the seriousness in her gaze he began to sweat."Of course not! You know all of my friends! Why? What happened back here?"
Hannah shook her head, as if to ward off his questions. Her hands lifted to her temple as if she had a headache. She was sure one was about to come too, with the racket Franz was sure to make if she told him about the strange girl lurking around his bakery.
"It's nothing Franz." Hannah muttered, eyes briefly looking back over the gate as she headed back inside.
"Absolutely nothing."
'You said another chance of life...' Annie murmured coolly, eyes staring up at the moon high above the city. 'But you never said anything about them forgetting my existence completely.'
Aster hovered beside where Annie sat on the branches of a large oak tree, but said nothing.
'That lovesick swane, Hannah, she's still the same in this world.' Annie went on, the displeasure clear in her voice as she turned her head in the direction where Asters presence was most prominent. 'Which means that even in this place, they're the same. The only difference is me. They don't remember me.'
'From what I gathered, you weren't close to this Hannah in your world either.' Aster replied, tone devoid of all emotion.
'It doesn't matter!' Annie snapped, hand gripping the tree as she sat up. 'It's not like I've been reborn. You just...dumped me in an alternate reality where no one remembers me. I don't even know where Mina is, but even if I do find her...how...will I face her...'
Annie makes a strangled sound in her throat and turns away from the spirit. Aster doesn't seem deterred by her anguish however, and simply sighs.
'You are dead to them, but you don't have to be. If it pains you so much, then why don't I just take you to the girl now? Even if you don't 'exist' to them now, that can change.'
'Something like that...' Annie's voice drips with disbelief. 'You can't honestly allow it? To interfere...it could ruin everything.'
'I'm handing you the reins to your fate.' Aster cut her off, the slightest hint of disdain in the spirits tone. 'If you don't want to take the chance, then by all means rot in a world where no one remembers you. Waste your chance.'
Although Annie couldn't see the spirit, she could tell that it was retreating into the night- it's last words as hard as stone itself.
'But remember this, even though you are free to do what you wish here- if you fail, you die. And there will be no flowers to lay on your corpse this time.'