She still felt really cold, while she did indeed feel warmer than she had before, a persisting chill gnawed away at her bones as she lay there. In response to the coolness, Lulu attempted to form her small body into a tight little ball, trying to force her legs against her chest with as much pressure as she couldâshe wanted to be warm, she desired simple warmth. Her mind still lost to the clutches of unconsciousness and the confusion which came with it, the reality of her existence, the learned truth which had shocked her into fainting before was forgotten for a moment as all she remembered before was the life she led with her parents. It was because of this, thinking she was still living with her mom and dad, that Lulu allowed a soft moan to slip from her throat before she murmured a simple request, âMm, mom, could you turn the heat up please. . . ? Iâm cold. . . .â
Lulu didnât stir for another moment, her body remained curled up in the fetal position, her expression a peaceful one as she attempted to return to the clutches of sweet sleep. However, when there was no response to her request, the girl moved, shaking her head just a bit as she allowed her eyes to slowly open, confusion glinting within them, âMom. . . ?â Luluâs voice slipped from her throat, cracking just a bit as fear seemed to seep into that one word. As those strange eyes of hers opened to the world around her, they widened as Luluâs heart fluttered to life in her chest. Letting a sudden rush of air escape from her lips, Lulu abruptly forced herself to sit up, the upper half of her body supported by her toothpick thin arms.
Dizziness set in upon her senses from her suddenly sitting up so fast, but the utter shock at finding herself not in her bed, but lying in a world of white, surrounded by an odd assortment of . . . things, it was enough to circumvent the lightheadedness. Bewilderment attacked at her brain as she struggled to make sense of everything, to remember. The matter of finding her own grave was temporarily wiped from her mind as sleep had drawn it away. I-I, she started, trying to form a coherent thought. Even stuttering in her own head, Lulu sighed harshly and set a hand to her forehead as she shook her cranium back and forth. An expression of annoyance happened over her features, What the hell happened to me, and where am I? she silently questioned, drawing her hand down over her eyes as she brought them to shut, thinking back, trying to draw some answer from the murky depths of her memory.
For the moment, things were silent; the only sound Lulu could make out was the uneven sound of her own heart fluttering away in her chest, urging her form to quiver from a sentiment of fear at not knowing where she was. Even though she did indeed feel the poison known as terror trying to creep in upon her, Lulu refused to let it show against her outside. No, being scared and showing such a thing was a weakness, something that would make her look feeble. She wasnât anything of the sort, no, she was a strong girl who didnât suffer from such things.
After a moment or two more of struggling with her haphazard memory, it came back to her. Well, enough of it did to make sense of things . . . sort of.
It came crashing back to her, what had happened, in front of her . . . grave, she had fainted. âM-My grave. . . ?â she whispered to herself, the hand she had over her eyes dropped to gravityâs pull all of a sudden, revealing the wide and shocked expression laying over the face of one Lusine Fiala. Her life, everything, it played back through her mind, and she could recall it all. She was dead, or, she was suppose to have been.
But, she wasnât, sheâd been living for the last odd number of months without a memory. In those amnesia ridden months, she had been breathing, feeling, sleeping, singing, living. There was no way she was dead but. . . . If Iâm really suppose to be alive right now, why can I remember my own funeral?
Drawing her lips back together, Lulu bit down upon the both of them, drawing them inward to form her mouth into a thin line as her flesh turned pallor from the puzzlement and utter shock she felt. She blinked and allowed a shaky exhale to come from her nose as she attempted to relax her tense body, and to keep herself from shaking. Even if she really was feeling afraid for the simple fact she could remember her own funeral, that didnât mean she wanted to show it. Tilting her head skyward, Lulu turned her head to each side slowly, scanning her odd surroundings with her eyes, taking it all in, and trying to understand it.
A world of white littered with broken pillars, rusted and newer weapons emerging from the firm fog-covered ground . . . as well as figures off a short distance away, close enough for her to make them out, yet far enough for her to not figure out any details. So, she wasnât alone? There were people in this strange place. . . ? No matter what my memories might tell me, even if I seem to remember dying and my own funeral, Iâm not dead right now. And I havenât been dead for the last few months! Lulu told herself, bringing herself to pout as her face flushed a bit, Maybe Iâm not the only person experiencing this weirdness. . . .
Uncertain of what else she was suppose to do, Lulu placed her small hands upon the ground carefully, and used her arms to push herself upward, getting to her feet in a somewhat clunky manner. As she steadied herself, Luluâs gaze caught upon her attire for the first time, and an expression of disgust passed over it. Ugh, what was she wearing exactly. . . ? Black flats, black leggings underneath denim shorts and a white tee-shirt that looked like it was unisex, and was way too big for her body. Whenever I figure out what the hell is going on, I am SO going to try to find something better to wear than this mess. she huffed while shaking her head back and forth.
Crossing her arms over her diaphragm, a terse expression played over Luluâs face as she quietly moved forward ready to demand some answers from whoever else was in this freaky place. As she traipsed on ahead, her eyes happened along the forms of a couple of other people who were collapsed into heaps against the murky ground below them . . . and despite the memories associated with them being utter blanks, Lulu realized something quite disturbing, though it was not as disturbing as supposedly remembering her own funeral. The redhead realized that they seemed familiar to herâshe felt like she knew them for some reason when she was utterly certain of her memories telling her otherwise.
Shaking the doubt from her mind, and the unsettling feelings she was experiencing, Lulu wrenched her gaze away from their sleeping faces and looked ahead, a tinge of insecurity remained upon her features however. I know that I havenât met those people before, but I feel like I ought to know them, if anything else, I should at least know their names.
Lost in her own mind, Lulu brought herself to a sudden halt when she realized that she was now standing before several other people who left that same sense of doubt within her heart upon seeing their faces. Like she needed to know their names, but for the life of her she couldnât pull them from her memories again. Mmph! Is it amnesia again?! she thought to herself, face reddening from the very notion that she was suffering from something again.
Blinking, Lulu looked to the people around her, at a loss for their names . . . doing her best to ignore the urge to freak out at seeing a woman dressed in armor, wielding a short that was probably larger than Lulu herself.
These people, all of them, why do I feel like I should know who they are?! Why canât I remember simple names? Trying to look at her feet through the thick white fog which covered the ground, Lulu shut her eyes, feeling embarrassment and utter annoyance gnawing away at her innards for forgetting names. With a red face she forced it away, refusing to show any more weakness to these people she felt like she was suppose to know.
Tightening her small hands up into bony little fists at her sides, Lulu turned her gaze back upward before she opened her mouth to speak, to try to garner some information about this situation from the lot of these familiar strangers when something sort of felt like it snapped inside her mind. The expression upon Luluâs face changed in an instant as her eyes went wide and she went still. I-I remember their names. . . . she realized, I donât know who any of these people are, but I know their names.
A rather innocent expression lit Luluâs face up as the normal terse look she kept left for the time being, remembering everyoneâs names she turned her head back and forth with her mouth slightly agape, looking at them all, matching the name to the face. Remaining quiet for a moment, forgetting about the things she intended on questioning them about before, Lulu lifted an arm upward, and curled a few of her fingers up on her hand as she formed it to point.
âAll of you . . . I know all of your names. . . .â she said quietly, voice shaking a bit. Slowly enough, Lulu moved her arm to point at the first person she matched a name with, âYouâre Dove, and you are Aquaea, your nameâs Relic . . . then, youâre Joss. And the two girls who are still out cold back there are Amoretta and Zyanya. . . .â she said rather quietly, letting her hand drop back to her side. âWh-Why do I know everyoneâs names. . . ? And where am I?â