Through the Looking Glass: Chapter Three

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"I don't think either of us have eaten in a while." Prime Sara said, looking at Mirror Sara, who stood. "I-I can go get food..."

Kay shook his head [Merith, you aren't alone any more. Everyone here will fight for you, surely you realize that? Whatever you did in your past, it's not who you are now. you've proven this time and time again. I have no doubt this.. illness for want of a better term, may be used against you, which is precisely why we can't let you get worse. Perhaps if we can give evidence that you're trying to be well, trying to manage it, that you aren't a threat or a danger...] He closed his eyes for a moment, gathering his thoughts. [The only reason we're heading for the guild in the first place is because you think they can protect the children. You are sacrificing your own safety for others, which speaks volumes of your integrity. You could have run, you could have hidden, you could have abandoned all of us but you haven't. You stand beside us and you fight, not just for Heny, but for all of us. Merith, I don't know what you stand accused of, but I really don't care because the crimes of all those centuries ago were not committed by the man sitting here before me. You have changed. You aren't a bad man, irritating as all hell perhaps] He smiled softly [but not a bad person. Whatever happens when we get to the guild, I have no doubt the people of Vestia will stand beside you and fight for your life just as you would fight for ours. Because we are allies, we are friends, we are family. We've been through hell together, we're all going to see this through to the end alright?]

"Aww, that's so nice!" Ellie looked at the Shanes, "Isn't Starr nice?" She went over to Starr, "Hey, we were totally wondering who the Shanes' parents are. Cause maybe you know now?" SHe looked hopeful.

Starr paused and blinked, going through the memories of the other self then nodding "We would have to go to my room, but such information is available" She said then picked up her cup to go with them. "Vestia is on a course to the freedom fighters now."

"Freedom fighters." Ellie smiled and followed Starr. "This Matthew better not be as sleazy as the other one." She slapped a Shane on the shoulder. "We're gonna find out who your PARENTS are!"

Shane hugged Ellie and grinned then looked to his double, who was standing with his head bowed.

"Come" Starr said and smiled at the group as she started to leave the room so she could go to hers in the lab.

"You okay there, Shane-from-this-universe?" Ellie asked as she followed Starr.

"I do not know how to take this. I didn't expect to ever really know who my parents were" Mirror Shane said as he followed them.

"Neither did I" Prime Shane said "I was abandoned as a baby"

Mirror Shane looked to him then nodded.

"Well things always take you by surprise, right?" Ellie waved her hands. "I have plant magic for some reason, Shane didn't know he was a dragon until last year, people get freed when they never thought they would. Life is weird."

"Life does have a way of doing that" Prime Shane said with a nod as they got to the lift to take them to the lab

Ellie pressed the buttons to go to the lab. She liked pressing buttons.

~~
James went over to Esk. Hey, he felt grumpy right now. Maybe he and Esk could be grumpy together.

Esk was just chilling out, eating a sandwich he'd pillaged from the kitchens and sitting with his feet up on a desk because hey, who was gonna stop him?

He looked up from his position at James, chewed, swallowed and quirked an eyebrow. "you look pissed off." He remarked cooly.

Shane held to Ellie's hand as they went up then followed Starr to her personal room.

James leaned against the desk, shaking his head. "Your brother is so ungrateful. I know he's having a bad day and all that, but seriously, he could at least try."

~~
Ellie looked around the room curiously. SHe wanted to know what a princess' room looked like!

Esk snickered at that "He's a self absorbed spoiled brat, what do you expect?" He shook his head "What'd he do this time?"

The room was pretty plain considering. There was a big pile of blankets in a corner that she used as a bed and an incubator with three eggs in it in another. The walls had stars painted on it but they were as a star dragon saw them, with colored streamers almost, going from one star to another so that all were connected in a giant web. Starr went to the desk she had, turning on the computer to search it.

"Tried to freeze himself by sitting in a cold shower for too long, until Asher dragged him out. When he wakes up, he wonders why he doesn't get a private room, and doesn't thank the vampire girl who totally just healed him!" James ranted. "I'm glad Asher wasn't there, he would've apologized and stuff, even though there's no reason to apologize after dragging someone out of a shower for their own good."

~~
"Ooh, nice room," said Ellie. She stared at the eggs, "Oooooh, eggs?!"

Esk rolled his eyes. "now you understand why he pisses me off. Everything is always about him. He's so fucking melodramatic. Sulking in the shower? What a drama queen. " He took another bite of his sandwich. "What's this about vampires?"

"I understand you much better now, man," James said. He looked enviously at the sandwich. "Vampires. You've seen Andre and Sawna, the two freed slave siblings? They drink blood and heal people. It's pretty cool."

"Creepy." Esk remarked, licking what looked like jam off his fingers. "Why are you staring like that?" He asked, frowning a little.

Starr looked to Ellie then the eggs and smiled "Yes, eggs. They are from a star dragon we came across a couple of weeks ago. They are near hatching."

Prime Shane went over to look at the eggs and tilted his head "We didn't find any mother dragon...just Cassie, but that was months ago and not the mother, just the eggs." He was a little confused.

James shrugged. "I've heard food is good for bad moods. Sadly it doesn't work for robots, for reasons that should be obvious." He sighed and settled himself in a more comfortable looking position on the desk. "Oh well. So what have you been up to? Bonding with your long lost twin?"

~~
Ellie squeed softly, looking at the eggs. "Where's the mom?"

Esk shrugged. "I was just hungry. Kay's psycho clone didn't bother feeding us yesterday." He finished the sandwich. "He's not my twin, he's. .me.. or something I dunno, it's weird. " He shifted his feet a bit so James could better sit on the desk.

Starr frowned and looked down at the keyboard as she typed in something "She did not survive. She was unknown to me and our records. We do not know the father either."

"What a jerk. He really didn't have any redeeming qualities, did he?" James was feeling uncharitable to all versions of Kay today. How dare they be such jerks? Gah.
James smiled. "Don't be pedantic. It looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, so you might as well call it a duck. Or a twin. Whatever these guys are."

~~
"That's so sad, they're orphans!" Ellie went to look at the eggs tragically, completely distracted from the question of who Shane's parents were.

"Unknown orphans" Starr said and nodded. She wrote something down and looked to Shane, calling him over from the eggs. "You can go ahead and turn them if you want to Ellie, just be careful" She said then focused on the guys to tell them what they both wanted to know.

Esk shrugged. "Other me? It's weird, not everyone has doubles here. I kinda wonder what they're like, if they exist. I suppose I should be grateful that at least my brother isn't as much of a dick as other me's Kay. You have no idea how psychotic that guy was, sick and twisted doesn't begin to cover it. " He fiddled with his nails, chewing on a handnail idly. "At least he's dead now. It was oddly satisfying shooting them both."

Vanessa clapped. "It's decided then. And should they choose to go along with it, no doubt our Inari would be willing to help us. With any luck, her Mirror would be just as virtuous."

~~~~~~

Merith stared at Kay, his jaw slackening as if stunned by the words he spoke. Finally he managed another smile, and nodded. "Alright, Kay. I will put my faith in you all, and for better or worse, no matter my fate, I am honored to have friends like you and everyone else here."

He suddenly laughed softly, "Thank you... Funny. Even after he witnessed the atrocities I had done, Asher said the same thing you have."