I awoke again after my counting just as the morning rays of the dawn shone through the open window. Being an infant was a struggle, as I had so little energy to use before exhaustion would take me and even the most disturbing lullaby's would lull me to sleep. Feeling myself wrapped in a blanket in my prison of a crib, I struggled to free myself. My chubby arms making it a difficult thing to do, and I narrowed my eyes as I struggled even harder.

  As I pulled my arms out of the blanket, letting them feel the cool air as the wind blew through the windowsill. Shadows stretched from one end of the room to the next, and even the cribs walls wrapped over me like boney fingers that would pull me down. I let out a sigh at the foolish delusions of my waking mind, though.

  But when the sounds of someone groaning next to me appeared, I froze and cast my gaze to the side, my heart beginning to race. In the dim light cast by the sun, I could see someone was on the bed, and as they flipped around, their face was revealed: it was the woman who, in my last moments before I first passed out, had looked at me in horror. Now she was looking on in bleary joy. But I could see beyond the facade of care. She was a demon.

  The demon who brought me into this world. Without her, I would have been in the joyous confines of death and next to Fane. It knew... it knew I wasn't their daughter, and they were going to torment me over it.

  Her white hair that tangled into constricting vines over themselves, the blood red eyes that made me feel sick to my stomach. The choking air around them full of vitriol... I felt like crying out. Why me? Why was I the one to be brought to life again?

  I gulped quietly, hoping to god that they would ignore me.

  Their voice came out with a quiet word: "Lorena". The word sent a shudder down my spine as I slowly opened my mouth, feeling myself getting choked by her presence alone now that I knew she was there. I soon became tunnel-visioned on their face, and as the room seemed to dim, the light on their face focused on the demons eyes, causing them to glow brightly and for me to turn my head away, forcing myself to look away as I quietly gasped.

  They repeated the word from before, "Lorena," as they slowly got up out of bed. They stepped closer. Closer. I could hear their footsteps on the floor tapping nearer.

  I clenched my hand into a tiny fist, nails biting into my palm. Each step they took pounding in my ears, sending shudders through my body. The shadow that was cast over my crib grew darker and longer, swallowing me whole in its encroaching embrace.

  Why wouldn't they leave? I thought, the helplessness of my infant form only adding to the claustrophobic terror I felt. My body betrayed me; I could do nothing but lie there, trapped in this fragile cage and under their piercing gaze, hoping they would leave me be.

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  Her voice came again, soft and lilting, but to me, it was the slow drawl of a predator toying with its prey. "Lorena." My—this body's—name, I realised, twisted on her tongue, a reminder of this second life I never wanted. It wasn’t just a name; it was a chain, binding me to her world, her grasp. It was a choking sensation, and I wanted nothing more than to rid myself of it. I shut my eyes tightly, begging, pleading in silence they would leave me be.

  And as their finger traced the edges of my cheek, her fingernail making invisible markings over my skin, I wished I could bite her finger off. Her hair draped over me, and it felt like thousands of snakes curling their bodies around me, making my heart pound. It was only minutes later that I would calm down, as I heard the door open. My senses were so high-strung that I hadn't noticed until a second voice spoke up.

  It was soft, tender, and though it spoke in the same language as the demon, it was not nearly as harsh. An accent, maybe?

  The woman, likely this body's original mother, fingers stopped tracing over my face, and instead rubbed over my head gently, cradling me as if I was her most precious. And for a moment, I wondered if everything was in my head, that perhaps I was overthinking and everything was actually normal, perhaps that I was just panicking over nothing.

  For a fleeting moment, I dared to glance at her face again, and what I saw gave me pause. Her expression... it wasn’t glee or malice as I’d expected. Instead, it was something softer, more fragile. The glowing eyes I’d been so terrified of now seemed veiled with fatigue, the red dulling to something almost human. Her lips quivered as though holding back words, or tears.

  Was this another trick? Another calculated ploy to lower my defenses? My rational mind screamed it must be, but something deeper—a whisper from a part of me I wished I could silence—suggested otherwise.

  She whispered soft words so faintly I wondered if I had imagined it. There was a tenderness there that I could not reconcile with the suffocating presence I’d come to associate with her. My hands trembled as confusion gnawed at the edges of my fear. No. This is what she wants. She wants me to trust her, to let her in, so she can destroy me.

  Exhaustion was already taking its hold on me again, and I was struggling to imagine a way out of this situation when the door opened to reveal a woman with strikingly green hair, as well as a maid uniform. The type the wealthy like to have employed in the inner sectors and even in the Emperor's palace in The Center.

  The uniform-wearing woman then looked at me through the cracks of the crib and smiled tenderly, before looking at the Demon with confidence. Bowing to her, they walked closer and said some words that I again didn't understand. The conversation was like two people scratching a plate with their fork and the other gnawing on wood. Both of them sounded horrible, but one was slightly better than the other.

  My name came up a few times, and each time, the maid would look down at me briefly before continuing. At first I felt disgusted with the way they looked at me, as if I was a helpless fawn in need of their protection, but as the Demons attention was taken from me, I allowed it as I rolled over and tried to fall asleep. Closing my eyes, it was much harder than normal, perhaps because of the choking aura of the Demon behind me, but I couldn't fall asleep.

  Minutes of their conversation later, and I felt my eyes lid and close, and eventually, I was asleep.