Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 6:17 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis was a little surprised at her answer, but from a logical perspective it made complete sense. He smiled at her. “I love you for all of you…including the guide and your other self. I could never not love you all…you’re Simone.” Despite his overcomplication of the whole thought process before, it really did just boil down to the fact that Simone was Simone in his mind, no matter which one she was at the time. They were all her, different aspects of her that presented themselves different. The innocent Guide, the naive but wholesome younger self, and the mature and loving form that was here with him today.

“You’re amazing, you know?” he said. “In a single sentence you managed to clear up a problem I’ve been confused about for the past two days. You’re really something else…” He stood up and walked over to her, kissing her on the cheek. “Then let her know it’s a date.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 6:13 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Simone was taken back a bit and she started to chuckle, “I can let her out more if that’s what you want. All you have to do is tell me.”

As for the other thing she was quiet for a moment and gave him a smile, “Lewis, she is me. She is a part of me. I don’t care what you do with her. After all, it was the Guide who fell in love with you first. She is the one who made the younger Simone love you and in turn, show me. It was the Guide who influenced all of this to happen,” she motioned to the castle.

“It is perfectly fine if you want to spend time with her. I encourage it since it is different from me. I technically owe her everything we have even if she doesn’t realize it.” Simone reached over and took his hand. “Besides I don’t get to have a monopoly over you. You are free to do as you wish. Besides, I think a part of you missed and loved her too.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 6:07 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

For most of the morning they lazed about, Lewis taking his time to enjoy having his Simone back. When they finally did descend into the dining hall, Lewis and Simone finally had an opportunity to discuss the time he had shared with the Guide. It started out slightly awkward, and Lewis didn’t really know how to bring it up, but Simone had to have known it was coming from the resonance.

“So…” Lewis said, unsure of what to really say. “Guide wants a date…” Direct as usual. It was easiest that way, and while it may have lacked tact in most situations, Simone had grown accustomed to it from Lewis, and knew how to navigate his abrupt communication method. Still, even for him this was rather…blunt.

“We did a lot of things, but mostly it was just her exploring the castle and the shore next to the pier. She was…happy…” Lewis said. “Will she be back sometime? It was…different. It was you…but not you…” He was struggling to explain it.

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 5:37 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Simone was smiling up at him as they kissed. It worried her how breathless he was but once he told her he missed her she let her face flush as well. “I missed you too and I didn’t want to worry you.” She caught him easily enough and got some help taking him upstairs. The staff was glad she was back to herself and she apologized for the guide. They didn’t overall seem to mind her she was just new to them which she understood quite well.

Once they were upstairs she got him changed and changed herself. Tucking him into bed she braided her hair before climbing in after blowing out the candles in the room. Simone wasn’t tired though as she pulled him close and laid him in her chest. Her back was against the headboard of the bed as she sang a soft low tune. Her fingers gently ran through his hair. She had the time and it wasn’t like she needed to sleep any time soon.

She only fell asleep once she ran out of songs to sing and stayed put where she was. Her fingers still idly playing with his hair. In the morning she kissed the top of his head when she felt his stir and she pulled the blankets up a bit more. “Stay awhile. You were exhausted~ Things around the castle can wait today.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 5:30 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis said his goodbye to the guide once more, and as she fell, he caught her. The resonance sparked to life, and Lewis felt his connection with Simone solidify. They were one again. It was a feeling that he was surprised to find comforting. It was sorely missed, and he felt more at ease than ever. When she kissed him, it was almost like the first time again, and he felt a heightened awareness of their closeness.

“I missed you,” he said as he pulled her in for a second kiss. When they broke apart, Lewis was panting, breathless. “Sorry…I just…” His face flushed. “I really missed you.” It was really that simple, and he couldn’t think of anything else to say. Despite their renewed resonance, though, Lewis was feeling a bit woozy himself. Perhaps it was the sudden linking, or perhaps the exhaustion of the past three days of worry combined with keeping up with the guide…or perhaps he was finally able to fully relax with Simone back to normal. Regardless of the reason, Lewis felt himself going in and out of consciousness.

“I think…” Simone steadied him as he started to sway. “I think it’s….time…we went…” He closed his eyes, and started to drift off while still being supported by Simone.

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 4:35 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

The staff was busy fighting with the Guide because she was rejecting the vegetables that Simone had picked out herself since they were healthy. The guide didn’t like the texture and it became very clear that they had been an acquired taste that the Guide was lacking. Finally, the staff gave up when the Guide held her breath when they attempted to feed her. Instead, putting a tart in front of her that she quickly ate.

It was obvious the staff was very worried about the condition her body would be in if the guide continued to binge on sweets the way she was. It was overall very complicated for them. Finally, the guide snapped her attention to Lewis and nodded with a smile. “Okay!” While she would like that Simone would let her go on a date with Lewis she was aware that he more so belonged to her than the Guide.

Though there weren’t any ground rules it was clear that Lewis was being careful around her. There was no telling on what Simone would think of any of this since the Guide was effectively locked from talking to her.

The rest of the day went by smoothly as she romped around with Lewis showing him all of her favorite things. Which Lewis always knew from Simone. As the day progressed the resonance got stronger but it wasn’t the Guide he was feeling. Whenever the Guide did something embarrassing he felt Simone be embarrassed.

At the end of the day, the Guide jumped on him and hugged him, “Thank you for the nice day! I really liked it and I hope she lets me come back! She says she is ready now! And THAT YOU SHOULD CATCH ME!”

Switching the two personalities took a little work as her body fell unconscious. The resonance link sparked full as Simone opened her eyes. Letting out a groan she pouted a bit, “That was mildly embarrassing. However, it’s not her fault.” She wrapped her arms around Lewis and kissed him gently. “I’m sorry I worried you.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 4:25 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

The entire time, Lewis was thinking of how to answer. He wouldn’t mind overall going on a date with the Guide, but it was all kinds of complex when it came to the actual Simone. Would the real one ever let the Guide out again? Finally, after the guide rejected a few different vegetables at the dinner table, Lewis found an answer.

“Simone,” he said as he looked at her. “I will go on a date with you, but only if Simone is okay with it. Since you two are…the same, it shouldn’t be an issue, but…” He paused. “I need to talk to her about it. And maybe, just maybe…she’ll let you out every so often.” It was a complicated response to a complicated answer, but he felt as if he handled it well. Or as well as he could.

“Is that…acceptable?” He cocked his head to the side, looking at her questioningly. It was impossible to read her at this moment, and Lewis found himself missing the power of resonance more than ever.

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 4:08 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

“Because I…” She thought about it. “Wasn’t thinking about it?” Which was totally a not Simone thing. Simone always tried to think at least three steps ahead. That was how she survived in life but the Guide didn’t have to worry about that. She never had the need to and Lewis had helped her with everything else. His arms were warm and the panic was slowly going away as she snuggled into him.

“I don’t think…” She frowned for a moment as she thought. “She doesn’t know how to swim either~” She told on herself. It made sense since Simone liked looking at water she didn’t necessarily like being in it but the Guide appeared to enjoy it which begged the question of if the lake torture had anything to do with it.

“Yeah! I can walk. I’m a little tired but I can walk back.” She blinked up at him and thought about it. “I… Just want to be with you.” Tilting her head her gray eyes watched him for a bit. “Can… we go on a date?” She remembered the thing with Gluttony the most. “Since Simone will be back soon? Not right now but soon?” Was she asking for too much? “I don’t know when I’ll be back. Simone is really careful.”

Once she got changed back at the castle she romped around with Lewis down to the dining hall to eat again as the question still weighed on her mind. The staff fed her more of Simone’s favorites and she loved all of them. Though she had a major dislike of some of the vegetables that Simone had clearly grown accustomed to.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 4:02 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis had almost seen this coming from leagues away, and was immediately there to rescue her, pulling her back into the more shallow waters. He cradled her as he floated on his back to the safer areas, but he didn’t let go of her, instead just holding her for a moment longer.

“Now why did you go and do a thing like that,” Lewis asked, half amused and half worried. “We’re going to have to get you trained up on how to swim. I feel like I’ve been a neglectful teacher in that regard…” He still hadn’t let her go. He stayed like this with her for some time, and eventually his back hit solid ground, and he noticed they had drifted a bit farther down from the place they had entered.

“Can you walk? We should be heading back for lunch soon. I’m sure the staff have prepared something delicious for you…and we can get you out of these wet clothes. I’m sure Simone has dresses that you would love…and you can parade around the castle all you want…”

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:52 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Simone tilted her head at him as she let the frog go. He was probably scared of her from the way he scampered off. She watched until the frog disappeared and looked back at Lewis. “I’m just everything that wasn’t touched.” Touched was probably the better way of putting it. “Simone used to do this a lot at the castle and get herself in trouble when she was younger.” There were things she knew. “I don’t know what she did… It's just familiar to me. Nostalgic.” It was funny thinking of the original Simone as someone who used to be like this but Lewis had seen the memories of when she was young. She had been fearless and full of energy at one point.

The guide blinked up at him and gave a smile, “You’ll figure it out I’m sure!” At least Simone hadn’t sent one of the others. The guide had been the best choice for everything. Right now she was more hellbent on exploring all the new things.

“The water?” She tilted her head and she had her sandals off before he could get it out. Going to the water's edge she looked at the dark blue water and back up to Lewis. Hesitating she got her feet wet first, “IT’S SO COLD.” Still, she didn’t jump out as she went further in. She was chest-deep by the time she stopped and looked up. Her teeth were chattering but thankfully the sun felt warm.

Why did she go all the way in the water? “I feel… like I’m forgetting something important,” she walked along the bed of the lake before she found a hole and slipped into it. She began to panic as that important thing came back. “I. Can’t. Swim!” She got it out as she managed to surface herself a few times. Her feet couldn’t catch the higher bed for long.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:44 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis was merely smiling at how the guide was “tracking” the frog, and even with her little mishap, which Lewis had to struggle not to interfere with, she managed to catch it, showing it to him. Yet again, it was surreal to have his Simone showing off a prize like this, with the mind of the guide, but it was also almost cute in a way. There were times when Simone showed it, but for the most part she never did things like this.

“The two of you are so different, yet…the same…” Lewis said aloud. “I can’t wrap my head around it. I’ll just…” He shook his head and smiled. “Simone is Simone. That makes it easier. You’re both Simone, just…a little different.” That was how he was reconciling the two different personalities. At least for the time being.

“Simone, would you like to get in the water?” he asked. He was a relatively confident swimmer, but he didn’t think she’d go too far out. “Let’s rinse the mud off of you. Take your shoes off and go dip your toes in. I promise it feels good.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:40 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

The Guide’s purpose had been to keep safe all of Simone’s good side. It would make sense that Simone had once again re-purposed her for that. Giving her familiar memories that Lewis helped. If anything Simone was good at segmenting herself and putting up an illusion that nothing was wrong with her. The downside to this was that the Guide wasn’t like that. She wore her emotions on her sleeve and you could tell when something was bothering her. Which meant that it also bothered Simone. Like her fear over being useless because of not being able to have children even though that was something Lewis clearly didn’t mind.

“No!” She was excited as she stuck her hand in the water to touch one. “They are squishy,” she said as she was gentle with them. Most women were scared but the Guide was more head first as she explored. “Frogs?” She blinked a bit but Lewis was quick to point one out. “Okay!”

The guide rushed off to go catch it and Lewis was walking behind her to watch. She was quick on her feet but she wasn’t expecting the hop which caused her to jump back and fall on her behind. Once she was back up she went after it again. She was so focused on what she was doing that she hadn’t seen the log she was running towards.

Tripping she went face-first into the ground with her belly on the log and her butt up. She took a moment, “Ouch.” Her hands, face, and knees were scraped up but she merely dusted herself up and pounced on the frog that was nearby. “I GOT IT! LOOK!” She came back over to Lewis with her knees bleeding from the impact on the log and held up the tiny green fiend. “He was formidable but I won.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:30 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

The fact that the guide was so innocent was almost off putting since the rest of the staff and Lewis had become accustomed to her usual self, but no one seemed to question it as Lewis lead her out the door towards the water’s edge. It was a short trek, and all the while the assassin kept a close watch over the woman. Finally, when they arrived, he let her loose once again to explore the new and wondrous things about the world.

“Tadpoles,” Lewis said as he walked up to her, leaning down to look at them. “You’ve never seen them? They grow up to become frogs and toads. Some toads can create a strong pois-” He paused. That was irrelevant to it all. “Nevermind. I’m sure if we look around, though, that we can find some frogs too.” He took a quick look, and pointed a little more inland. “See, there’s one hopping about. Go try to catch it.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:23 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

She had a disappointed look on her face, “So I’m not fixed still?” That was disappointing but still, she smiled at the thought of kids no matter who they were. It was something that she and Simone yet again had in common. She still thought of herself as broken and knew that it was a reason why she had been thrown away. It was one of the rare few instances where she knew things. The duke was one of them for information's sake.

“I’m overwhelmed,” the guide spoke softly and looked at him. “But you are here so it’s okay. I think I would panic a bit more if you weren’t here… Everyone is so nice but I’m not used to other people. The only people I’ve ever met were the other Simones and you.” She blinked a bit as she was sure it made her sound crazy had he not experienced it with her.

She put the bear back down and tilted her head, “Can we go walk around the water?” She wanted to see water that wasn’t going to kill her. “I’ve never seen clean, not going to kill you, water before. Is the lake huge?” Well, they were in the middle of it so it had to be.

The trip to the outside edge of the island was long enough for her to appear a bit tired but she didn’t complain. Instead, she walked along the shore and watched the water, “It ripples! It’s so pretty. There was almost no breeze back in my mind.” She got down and she watched a small pocket of tadpoles near the shore. “What are these? They look like small fish! THAT ONE HAS LEGS!” She pointed in excitement.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:17 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis watched as the guide looked over the room. She was so happy and excited about it all.

“We’re not having children,” Lewis said after a moment. “We’re going to adopt them. A few to start, but soon we hope that this place can be a haven for kids who don’t have anywhere else to go. This…this will be the start of it,” he said. It was strange, hearing the plan out loud like this. Was this something that they could actually pull off?

We can do anything together. Those had been Simone’s words. She was confident that they could do it, and in turn, so was he.

“Are you doing okay?” Lewis asked. “The real world is a lot different. If you feel like anything is off, let me know.” The assassin looked around the baby room again. They’re keeping it clean and ready too. “Where else would you like to go? The whole island is available…do you want to explore a bit?”

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:06 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

She made an oh silently with her lips as she nodded and went back to admiring the flower bed. “I’m not sure what it’s like now,” the guide looked up at him. “She gave me the boot shortly after making me again. It was pretty dark though I think from her concentrating so much on trying to get back. She got rid of distractions.” A part of herself she felt like was too much. The memories and emotions. She just wanted to be home.

“A baby room?” Her eyes lit up as she jumped up and rushed at him. “Are we going to make babies? Is it a lot of babies? Lewis and Simone babies?” She tried to think about it and made a face. She couldn’t quite figure it out. “She didn’t tell me much of anything! I want to see the baby room!”

She was really happy, “I feel like I would like being a mother.” Gods knew Simone missed it dearly with the way she looked at children while they were out. “Can I see?” Once they were up in the baby room she took a look all around and picked up one of the stuffed animals. It was the bear that Lewis had won her and she held onto it.

“It’s so cute!~ I like the color. It reminds me of the woods when you…” She cut herself off and smiled a bit before bouncing over to the crib. “A lot of thought went into this. Did you do this or did Simone?”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:58 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis shrugged at her question. “It’s just what I’m trained to do. I can ignore just about anything that may cause me to fail an assassination. Smell, hunger, and a few others. It’s not really important though.” He leaned against one of the stone pillars in the courtyard, and watched her make one of Simone’s tells. He smirked. She’s so innocent.

It was weird not feeling her emotions, and almost concerning. Yet, even without the resonance he was able to get a sense of what she was feeling based on her actions. A bit of embarrassment was what she had felt, probably over the interactions they had during the dream world.

“Don’t worry. It’s a lot different here,” he said. “Besides…I’m not sure how Simone would take that. It’s something we probably need to discuss when she comes back.” The assassin was enjoying this though. It was almost refreshing to have someone like the guide. It was like Simone, but not Simone.

I still miss her… His smile faded for a brief moment, and he felt cold. “Oh, I know what might be something you’d like to see.” Lewis looked up with a half smile. “Did Simone tell you about the baby room?”

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:48 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

The guide nodded along to everything he was saying. Simone stood up and thanked everyone before romping after Lewis. She lagged behind him to take everything in but once she saw the flowers she bolted without much thought. He did say it was safe.

Her immediate first stop was the peony section. Out of all the flowers they were the ones that attracted her eyes the most. Some of them were large and pink others were a darker almost purple color. “THESE ARE HUGE AND I LIKE THEM!” She got down and smelled them making a happy noise. “They smell so good too!”

The entire world smelled good and she took the time to look up and smell the area. It was assaulting her senses a lot. “How… How did you stand my world?” Her eyes locked with Lewis. “Compared to this… the smell was unpleasant.” She hadn’t been there for when he showed up.

“I remember… my lotus,” her face flushed almost instantly as her mind went to something else about the flower. She pushed her hair behind her ear like Simone often did when she was embarrassed. At least those signs hadn’t changed much.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:38 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis smiled at the guide and her many questions. “Calm down, let’s…let’s just get some food first and we’ll go from there.”

The staff was surprisingly adept at handling the sudden shift in Simone’s personality, and of course tended to her needs as they would the true Simone. It was endearing to watch her, and the staff was almost instantly in love with her and her innocence and reaction to everything new. The tart was the cherry on top to their emotions, which only made everything better,

Now that she was full, Lewis was ready to start answering some of the more basic questions. “Now…this is our home, Guide.” He raised his hands. “This is an island in the middle of a large lake. For the time being, we’ll not leave the island. Anywhere here if pretty safe to explore, save for a cave on the opposite end of the island, but…we’ll not be going there either. For now, let’s just stick to the castle here.” He stood up.

“Follow me.” Lewis lead her through the halls and into the main courtyard where Simone had started gardening. The sun was shining high in the sky, and the air was sweet with the scents of flowers. “Here. I think you’ll like this here.” He stepped to the side and let the guide explore on her own terms.

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:29 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Her eyes got big in excitement as Lewis told her how he was feeling. With much more energy than the regular Simone would use she launched herself at Lewis and snuggled up to him. “I’m HAPPY YOU ARE HAPPY!” She was glad to be here if that meant that Lewis was happy.

The guide thought for a moment how to best answer his question, “Yes and no. She barely told me what to do. She’s almost meditating in her mindscape trying to gather the magic. She gave few basic instructions but left the rest to me. She hasn’t even filled me in on anyone or anything. I know you and that’s it.”

She had never lived in the physical world so all she knew was the twisted landscape that had been Simone’s mind before they reunited everything. She never got to see the outcome. She took his hand and smiled, “I can walk if you help me.” Learning to use her muscles was an easy feat after a few seconds. This Simone was just as adaptable as the counterpart she was split from.

“Is… This home?” Her innocent eyes stared up at him. “Where are we? Is it sunny? Are there lots of flowers?” She was hungry though and her stomach was loud which caused her face to flush. “Is the food good?” The food from her mental scape was different from the real world and she didn’t know what to expect.

Once she got food in front of her she dug right into it almost stuffing her face. The house staff were up to speed on what was going on and that the Missus was asleep choosing to let someone fill her place. She greeted everyone cheerful and one on one. It was almost unsettling how trusting she was which raised some concerns from the butler to Lewis who was scared of leaving her alone.

She would probably go off with just about anyone if they offered her something. It just meant that everyone had to keep an eye on her while the real Simone was asleep. “That was good!” A tart was put in front of her and Simone took a few minutes of looking it over before eating that too.

Her face flush and she got excited, “I really like this one!”

“Yes, the Missus likes it too. It’s her favorite,” the butler smiled at her.

“OH!” The guide was beginning to realize that some of her favorite things might also stem from Simone which might make sense.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:21 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

What she was asking was very complicated. She was Simone, in a way, and had given him much needed information on her state of well being, but…it wasn’t quite right either. He was happy, of course, that she was here, and also ecstatic that the actual Simone was doing okay. Feelings are too complicated.

Finally he opened his mouth to speak, trying to choose his words carefully. “I’m glad that Simone is okay and that you are here.” That seemed good so far. “I’m…disappointed that she’s not here. But…I’m glad that you’re here in the meantime.” That seemed good enough, right?

“Here. Let’s go get food. I’m sure you’re starving. Can you walk?” He held out his hand and helped her up. “Does she…talk to you?”

Author: Simone, Posted: Tue Oct 20, 2020 4:38 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

It was weird for her as Lewis took hold of her. It caused Simone to freeze as if unsure what to do but she did hug him back and snuggled herself close. His scent was a bit different from the time she last remembered but this was the real world. A world she hadn’t been allowed in before now. She listened to all of his questions and got overwhelmed by them. She was unsure how to answer but she just nodded, “My stomach does feel empty? Ish?” She was sad when he let her go and immediately felt colder just from that single interaction.

She shook her head to his question and saw how sad he was that it wasn’t her. It made her frown a bit but she knew that it had been a while. “Yes! That’s me!” She nodded sternly, “Yes, Simone is… exhausted. She spun me again so I could come out and make sure you were alright. So you weren’t lonely and she thought you would like it if it were me.”

This was all so new for her and it showed in the way she couldn’t quite navigate. She was curious of it all and trying to move her legs was a bit weird for her. She made a face and took her arms to move her legs. “This is a real body~” It was much different than her dream form. “It’s weird,” she noted but turning her attention to Lewis she smiled. “The magic should be built back up into a stable level by tomorrow. She created me again so if this happens again I can take over. I’m afraid I don’t have access to your resonance though. It would defeat the purpose of her resting if I did.”

Tilting her head she reached over and pet his hair, “Are you still upset it's me and not her?” Of course, he would be upset. “…I mean you would be you do love her~ but that’s not quit–” she struggled to find the words and her face flushed as she looked away. “Not what I meant.” Her voice was really quiet now.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Tue Oct 20, 2020 4:29 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Lewis stirred as he heard Simone’s voice. It took him a moment to register that it wasn’t a dream, and that it was really her that had spoken, and he shot up, eyes wide with concern. It was so unlike him, that it looked almost absurd. This earned a giggle from “Simone”, which was completely unlike her normal self.

“You’re awake.” Lewis pulled her into an embrace, squeezing her tight. “I was….” He thought for a moment. “Worried. I couldn’t feel you, I still…I still can’t feel you.” Their resonance was still dormant, but it was trying to wake up. “Are you okay? Are you hungry, thirsty?” He let her go, and looked her in the eyes. They were still the same stormy gray, but they felt different. Younger. More innocent.

“You’re…not her, are you…” Lewis said, looking a little dejected. “But you’re also…her…” It was slowly coming back to him. “The guide…?” The recognition was finally kicking in. It had been over a year since he had last seen her. Well, seeing being a loose term for it. “You’re really here, though?” It was curious. How could she be here? “Did Simone send you?”

Author: Simone, Posted: Tue Oct 20, 2020 4:22 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

Simone had restrained herself mostly because of that time in the basement. She was afraid of letting Lewis feel how the entire situation made her feel. She didn’t want him to feel the pain she did as it overtook her. Couple that with how much magic she had used that day and it had depleted her almost entirely. It would take some time for her to recharge and she now knew her limits. To have absolute control over the resonance was devastating.

On the inside of her mind, she waited as there were no dreams in this state, “I need a favor.” Two little eyes looked at her and nodded. “Good.”

Her gray eyes opened and she squeezed his hand. She could tell he hadn’t moved much at all those last few days. From the way the bed looked. She rubbed her eyes with her free hand and moved over him. Those innocent eyes were looking down at him, “Lewis? Wake up~”

Only he would know this wasn’t exactly his Simone but it was a familiar personality. “Please?”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Tue Oct 20, 2020 4:18 PM, Post Subject: A New Day [p/r]

It had been almost three full days since they had come back from eliminating the conspiracy threat that was Simone’s family. Those days passed with Simone lying asleep in bed, not stirring, and not showing any signs of awakening. Lewis rarely left her side, only to attend to dire emergencies, and even then he made quick work of them, only to return to her side.

An exhausting three days had Lewis passed out by her side, his hand holding hers. It was inelegant, but endearing. The house help had seen his devotion to Simone, and instead of waking him, simply tossed a blanket overtop of him. Though, perhaps it was less the thought of devotion, and more the fear of his muscle memory. Regardless, this was where he would be.

As the night passed into the third day, Lewis felt something…different in his sleep. The brand on his back had felt wrong for the past few days, but something was changing in it, as if it were healing. Still, this was not enough to fully wake him…