Not You Again.

I stood there in a daze. I tried to stay sharp, but I couldn't help but have a million thoughts swirling in my head.

"Even if they weren't fully annihilated in the Northern Forest, they wouldn't have recovered this fast. Did they have help?"

I pondered, pacing around the room as I rubbed my chin while deep in thought.

"The Northern sects' leaders were all systematically flushed out and burned, and only the members who weren't in the forest survived. But even they were hunted by the Inquisition"

Still deep in thought, I suddenly met my reflection in a mirror. It was above the sink, and was covered in droplets of blood, like the rest of the blood-smeared room. Noting my reflection, I could see my eyes, still the same dark brown color as before, which gave me relief, despite my paranoia.

I was also stuffed in a fancy suit, which restricted my movements. It clung tightly to my body, and my loose hair was slicked back in a presentable manner.

I'm not a big fan, too posh for me.

Then, an idea struck me as I stared into the mirror.

What if I...

I channeled energy through the air and my body, focusing it into my eye. As I started, I could see my iris start to change at a rapid pace, resembling a spider web pattern.

Once my eyes were dyed red, a magic circle started to slowly form in both my eyes, but much less complex than Charlotte's. Unlike Charlotte's eyes, which had multiple layers and complexities to it, my eyes only had the outline to a complete magic circle. Still, I stood there for a second and admired the natural beauty of it, even if it was only an incomplete copy.

It was still a powerful tool, and knowing how strong Mary would become in the future, I was apprehensive of what powers Charlotte's eyes held. Though I didn't know the full extent to the powers it held, I knew they were destructive enough for the Empire to exterminate anyone with them.

As this was happening, the world around me started to change as well. The room was dyed in a pink-red hue, and I started to notice more around me, minute details I didn't see before seemed obvious to me now. 

My perception started to get sharper, and I could see Divine energy floating around in the air. I wanted to touch the floating energy, but it filtered through my fingers like smoke, drawing to my left.

Seeing the direction the energy in the air was taking, I had a hunch. I moved my eyes towards the bloodied magic circle drawn across the wall, and was proven right.

The magic circle had transformed into something much more grotesque and sinister, melting into a sort of deformed cauldron, black liquid dripping from its edges.

Deformed arms stuck out, gripping around the wall, trying to reach for something. There were a couple, all were seemingly non-human. One had no flesh, another was pure bone, and one was pitch black, emanating a black miasma from its 'skin', similar to the nails that had crucified Bridgett. The black hand gripped the edge of the circle, its dark fingers curling like claws.

Okay... how the hell do I get rid of that?

It seemed that whoever was here, was more than just a mere follower of the Heretic's. They were at least proficient in Arcana, and that was a problem. It meant they were formidable.

"I need to find someone and quick. But if the heretics know that their plan was foiled, knowing them..."

They'd have a backup plan.

The Heretic's weren't a traditional force. They didn't march in columns, or build trench lines. They stayed hidden, and were masters of subterfuge, infiltration, assassination, you name it. They were far from a novice force.

Walking fast to the door, I was about to put my hand on the handled, when suddenly it opened by itself.

The door swung wide open, in a quick manner, as if someone else had rushed to get here. 

And they had in fact rushed to get here.

The one person, I didn't want to see, at all costs.

Oh fuck off.

What greeted me, was a beautiful blonde girl, dressed in all white. Her eyes met mine, glowing a deep golden. Her eyes were quite beautiful at least, and lacked the monarchical temperament they'd eventually obtain.

Suddenly, as we both stood there frozen for a second, her eyes started to glow more. The gold was almost blinding, and it started to form into a bright golden magic circle, similar to mine in completion.

It was only at this moment, seeing her eyes start to form, that I realized.

My eyes, they're still..

I could see my red eyes slightly reflected in Mary's golden irises as we both still stood there, transfixed on each other. I could see her expression as I stood less than half a meter away from her. Despite her psychopathic tendencies, I was surprised to see emotions I thought were unknown to her.

Shock is understandable, but fear and than... slight joy?

Finally, I broke the silence by rolling my eyes and sighing. Seeing as the jig was up, I then asked her in a flat tone.

"Well, you've certainly exceeded my expectations yet again." 

Taking a step back, I gave her some space to process her thoughts. I tried to reassure her that I wasn't in any position to take advantage of her situation.

"You don't have to worry about me turning you in, I'm in the same boat as you, after all."

After mentioning that, her eye started to gain some clarity. Her mouth started to shake a bit as she struggled to respond.

"I-I-I'm sorry? Your eyes. Your eyes are similar to mi-."

Not letting her finish, I heard someone slowly coming around the corner, the footsteps sounding like an average servant.

Suddenly, without warning Mary, I grabbed her hand and pulled her inside, closing the door slowly as to not cause any noise.

Locking it behind me, I stare at her, but her attention wasn't towards me. She was standing there, transfixed on the mess on the all.

"I probably... should've warned you about that. I didn't do this, by the way. You can look in my eyes and use your abilities if you'd like."

Looking back at me, she seemed oddly more calm than I'd expect. I repeated the same words, while staring at her eyes. I could see the divine energy in the air gather into the magic circle she had created, and got slightly curious into how it worked. It was about as incomplete as mine, and was glowing much more brightly than mine did.

Maybe I'd be a good scientist?

She kept staring, like she was searching for something. Five seconds passed. I suddenly thought of an idea.

I'll test too see if she can actually read minds yet.

Still staring at her, I thought of something that would bring a reaction out of her.

I stared deadpan, reflecting no emotion.

Mary, I know about your 'father'.

Staring at her, her expression didn't change in the slightest, still staring intently into my eyes. Just to make sure, I asked her outright.

"Can you read minds yet? Or are you still limited to noticing intentions and being able to tell if someone is lying."

Her face went straight to shocked, and her mouth dropped.

"How do you know that? Wait—read minds yet? Just how much do you know about me?"

She scrunched her eyes, seemingly a bit cautious. I interrupted her, to make sure I didn't seem creepy. I pointed towards my right eye, and the glowing insignia deep within my iris.

"I have my own abilities, tied to my fate element. Don't worry, I'm not a stalker. In fact, before this I would much rather have kept a mile between us. But alas, fate has a weird tendency to ignore my desires."

Shaking my head, I sighed heavily, feeling oddly relaxed in front of her. Other than Arthur, there was no one else who I was safe enough around, and he didn't even know about my newfound Angel Eyes, yet. Considering we both have profound dirt on each other, I felt comfortable enough to not put on an act like I usually did.

Maybe I should be a bit easier on her? I don't really know anything about her before she turned 18 in the Novel.

While thinking about my attitude. Mary's tough girl facade suddenly started to fade, her eyes starting to tear up slightly. She tried to move away, facing away from me. I heard a suppressed sob, and she hurriedly tried to talk to me.

"I-I'm sorry, I just thought, that I was the only one, the only... a-abomination. Everyday, I live in fear that everyone... will..."

I sighed slightly at the water show. One side of me wanted to ignore her, knowing the devil she'd become. But another side of me convinced myself that she was still only a 16 year old girl. Knowing all the responsibilities that must have been tied to her status as a future saintess, and now this... I couldn't help but feel bad for her, unfortunately.

"Look... Mary right? I'll call you Mary. You can vent to me in the future, I don't mind, but right now is not the time. Heretics are here and we have to find them befo-."

Before I could finish my sentence, I felt a massive sense of foreboding behind me, as if I was being watched. My heart felt pained, as if it was being grabbed by an invisible hand, and my senses heightened to a whole new level. My breathe started to shorten, and I felt like a animal backed into a corner, ready to flee.

I noticed Mary in front of me, who was staring behind me, her face in shock. Turning around quickly, I was greeted my the door, which had somehow, unknowingly to me, been opened slightly ajar.

I saw a hand, which was skinny and pale, gripping the door, its deathly fingers wrapping around the edge. But that's not what caught my attention.

It was a man, staring straight at me, with deranged eyes that almost seemed hollow. His eyes, which had a purple hue to them, were greyed, almost like a drug addicts.

His face was covered by a half cracked mask, which covered the left side of his face. The part of his face that was covered seemed to be rotted, as his eye seemed as though it would fall out. The other side of his face looked normal, if not for the large deranged smile that formed after seeing us two, and his dilated pupils.

"Hello, my little Angels."