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Lana put on a bright smile, happy to see her lover, but surpassing his question. “Good morning- well afternoon by now,” she said, her voice a little too high. Sylis gave a warm smile, his seriousness breaking for a moment. Lana leaned over and gave him a kiss to play up her happy mood and not give him any room for worry.
As their lips broke, Sylis once more asked, “Who’s Jessie?” Lana pursed her lips and proceeded to ignore his question as she selected her outfit for the day. Sylis continued to poke and prod at the subject, but Lana refused to speak.
Jessie was a girl from Dr. Tomlund’s Asylum for Young Girls. It was located on the outskirts of Sharn, among the warehouses where the screams and cries were drowned out. From the outside, most would find it a rather eerie place, but once a person passed the threshold of the gates, it opened up to a rather calming atmosphere. Though the lighting was gray and gloomy, the courtyard had a few trees and a spacious lawn that the girls sometimes could go out on for fresh air. Inside the halls were white. It always felt too clean for Lana. Something about the whiteness bothered her.
Within the first week at the asylum, Lana knew that she was truly around some crazy people. There were girls who felt compelled to burn things, hurt themselves, talk to inanimate objects, or just stand and stare off into space. There was one girl, Callie, who was magically inept but insisted she was on a quest to slay a dragon. Another girl, Georji, loved everyone and everything, going around helping and giving hugs whether one wanted it or not. She certainly wasn’t very bright.
However, the most interesting of all was Jessie. At first glance, Jessie seemed like one of the spaced out girls. She was the youngest at the asylum, eight years of age, with long, mousy hair that was slightly unkempt. Her skin was very pale and her eyes a light blue-gray. Often she was seen just standing off to the side. Sometimes she’d be interacting with an object, like a doll or blocks, but for the most part she’d just be standing silently.
Jessie was rather aware too. Lana would catch her looking at people, but everyone gave her a wide berth. It became clear why that was when Georji tried to hug her. The seemingly harmless eight year old grabbed hold of the girl and became something feral. She clawed and bit and pulled hair. Adults soon swarmed Jessie, pulling her off the sobbing Georji.
Lana made it a point to keep a sharpened pencil on her at all times. It paid off when a few weeks later she found herself alone in a hallway with the eight year old. Lana tried to bypass her, hoping whatever triggered Jessie wouldn’t happen, only for the girl to strike. For something so small, she pushed Lana hard into the wall. Quickly Lana reached for the pencil as Jessie continued to go into her feral tactics. What felt like an eternity suddenly ended as Lana rammed the pencil into the girl’s neck.
The look Jessie gave her was eerie. Lana was mildly disappointed that the blow didn’t kill her for she was certain the girl would have it out for her afterward. But that was the curious thing; Jessie became a sort of pet to Lana. When the eight year old returned to the core group, she surprised Lana by hugging her. She had been looking at the bookshelf looking for a book to read when little arms wrapped around her. Lana turned and found Jessie looking at her with adoration. It took awhile for Lana to trust her, but soon she became a crucial piece to Jessie’s improvement.
The little girl who was unpredictable, who never talked and found enjoyment in hurting others, suddenly was progressing toward stability. Lana was the only one she listened to. By the end of Lana’s fourth year, Jessie had improved to being able to care for herself and managing a schedule. She still doesn’t speak, but her outbursts were next to none.
Lana missed Jessie and felt a bit bad that she had nearly forgotten her in the four months she had been free.
When Sylis wouldn’t let up on who she was, Lana finally answered. “Oh she’s just a girl from the Boarding School I went to.” She then changed the subject. “I was thinking we should go visit Rin. I want to see how his job went, let alone tell him about our wild night.”
“I didn’t know you went to Boarding School. Where at?” Sylis pestered, seeing past her distraction.
“In Sharn,” Lana replied thoughtlessly.
“Oh neat! Maybe we can go pay a visit to Jessie then,” Sylis the suggested. Lana slammed the trunk lid down.
“No!” she said more curtly than she had intended, “It’s- it’s rather busy there. And we shouldn’t interrupt her studies-”
“Lana,” Sylis cut in, "don’t lie to me.” Lana furrowed her brows. She felt mildly embarrassed he caught her half truth.
“I don’t understand why you’re so interested in her. How do you even know that name!?”
Sylis took Lana’s hands and explained last night. “When you woke up after your fall, you were... acting very strange. You were eating blood and wood and anything you could get your hands on. You attacked those who tried to stop you. Then, when you began to come off of the high you were on, you began to ramble about being Jessie. You were rather insistent at points. I was just curious as to who she might be.”
Lana shrugged, confused by all that Sylis said. In the back of her mind, it explained the taste of blood and the anger toward him, but at the same time, it sounded farfetched. She touched Sylis's cheek where scratch marks lingered.
“Sorry about that...” she said absent mindedly, “It really was quite the night.” Then with a flirtatious tone, “I can assure you one thing, I am very much Lana May." She then wrapped her arms about Sylis, giving him a passionate kiss.
