A Miracle

My eyes fluttered open, followed by an intense disoriented, groggy feeling and a pounding headache somewhere at the base of my head.

“Mmh!” I moaned, squinting and shielding my eyes from the bright light that probed the whole room. The room was too bright, and I could hear the faint beeping sounds somewhere above my head. 

"Where am I?" I croaked, my voice barely above a whisper. I tried my best to sit up, but an intense and sudden wave of dizziness and pain forced me back down with another groan.

I couldn’t tell what was going on, it was like an intense struggle between sophistory and reality. My senses seemed numbed and each movement helped put off the nagging, horrible feeling.

"Honey, you're awake!" a voice exclaimed beside me, chillingly close.

 A-wake?  

My feeble mind was trying to piece the words and get an idea of what was going on.I turned my head to the direction of the voice only to see a man rushing towards me. I flinched the moment he reached out and grabbed me, it seemed almost like he was going to attack me. He had tears in his eyes but it was evident they were tears of joy.

That led me to asking questions, rhetorical ones of course. Who the hell was he? Why was he gushing over seeing me awake, and what the hell was I doing in a hospital, numbed in mind and body.

"Oh, thank the Moon Goddess! You're back!" The man went on with his litany of gratification.

I blinked, trying to make sense of the situation I had found myself in. Getting into a more comfortable situation, I looked around the whole room, my face strewn into a grimace.

"Who are you?" My voice came out weak and shaky as I asked, and it surprised me. I expected myself to sound more grown-up, but my voice sounded like that of a child, or I had just sucked on helium.

"It's me, your dad," he said, his brows drawing together in a bit of confusion before he pulled me into a tight hug. 

"You've been in a coma for days, and we were so worried. Only the Goddess has an idea of how worried I was about you, sweetie. I thought- I thought I’d lost you-" his voice was breaking and it was very clear he was emotionally tense. I wondered what had happened and how I was connected to it.

Coma? Days? I felt even more confused. Why couldn't I remember anything? 

The next thing that happened freaked the hell out of me.

As I looked down at my body, I noticed something was off. "Wait... why am I so small?" I stuttered, looking at my child-sized arms and legs.

A wave of panic suddenly seized me, coupled with intense fear. The kind of fear that would make the hairs at the back of your neck stand up and tingle. My eyes clearly weren’t playing tricks before I felt for my legs, and it was real.

Perhaps I was in a dream.

The man chuckled softly but I could tell he was a bit bothered by what I had said to him. "Well, you're still young, sweetie. Don't worry; you'll get better soon and I will make sure you get the best treatment before and after leaving..."

The rest of his words faded to the background because that didn't make sense. I was already a grown woman, preparing for my wedding day. Instead, I was way smaller. More and more fear began to creep in, and I desperately tried to understand what was happening because as time went by, I was slowly getting forced to accept that this was reality.

Suddenly, a voice inside my head spoke, and it felt both comforting and strange. "Don't worry, darling. I am your wolf and I have always been your inner guide. We are in a different situation now, and you need to act like the child you are. I know it all sounds all crazy and you feel so confused but I need you to do as I say."

I froze for a moment, trying to know if the voice was just a fragment of my imagination playing tricks on my mind.

“And if you’re wondering if I’m real, yes, I am.”

"Wolf? Inner guide?" I stuttered, feeling overwhelmed. "What is happening to me?"

“Is everything ok, honey?” The man asked “I will send for the doctors immediately,”. He looked so concerned as he spoke to me.

Meanwhile the voice continued.

"We are in a new body, a child's body," the voice explained patiently. "We must get used to this and pretend to be the girl we are now. Trust me, I'll help you go through this."

Before I could ask more questions, the door swung open, and two people entered the room. They wore white coats and seemed to be doctors, pack doctors. One of them gasped in amazement as he examined me.

"Her healing has surpassed all our expectations," the doctor said in what looked like shock. "I must admit, It's like a miracle!"

A lot of things that were happening at the same time led me to conflicting emotions and I couldn’t help but ask questions. But the more I did, the more I was led  to greater complexities.

The other doctor nodded while staring at me, a hint of disbelief in his eyes. "Indeed, she's recovering remarkably well."

I wanted to speak, to ask them what happened but each time I wanted to do that, the voice inside me stopped my words, meaning it was in control of my body. "Not now," the gentle voice whispered. "Remember, we have to act like the child they think we are. I promise to tell you what’s going on if you cooperate with me. Do you understand me?"

“Yes' ' I whispered back, mentally tough.

“Great”

The man who claimed to be my father beamed as he stared down at me. "Thank you both for saving her life. I can't express how grateful I am but I will reward you handsomely for this."

"We're just doing our job," the first doctor replied with a smile. "It's a relief to see her doing so well."

“Li-liars” the voice inside my head countered, seemingly angry at the doctors. “They did nothing.”

After a few minutes, I regained some strength and was able to speak again, but with some strain. "Wh-what happened…to me?" I asked, looking at the faces of the doctors expectantly.

But before they could answer, a young guy entered the room and he stopped right at the doorway, his eyes locked on me intently. He stood there for some seconds, and he looked surprised and so happy at the same time. He seemed to be around my age, or rather the age of the body I was in, maybe a little older though. "Hey, sis, you're finally awake!" he exclaimed, grinning as he ran into the room in a full, careless tilt children ran with before throwing his arms around me in a bear hug.

Sis? I wondered. Did he mistake me for someone else?

The young child walked closer and sat at the edge of the bed, locking his eyes onto mine as he sat there. "You had quite a fall at the mansion, and you passed out," he explained, glancing at the doctors who didn’t seem quite pleased. "You've been sleeping for days and we have all been worried. Mrs. Amber has been worried sick, she would be so happy when she sees you."

"M-mansion?" I stammered. "I don't remember any mansion."

He chuckled, caressing my toes. "Well, you must have hit your head pretty hard. Don't worry; you'll remember soon enough."

“Of course,” One of the doctors interjected. “A few rest sessions will do the trick.”

I wanted to protest and also tell him I didn't belong here, but the wolf inside me reminded me to keep quiet. "Y-yeah, I guess so," I replied, trying to mimic the voice of a child.

My father grinned warmly at the young guy, Theo. "Now, you both can go skiing again, Theo. Now, let's get back to the Packhouse and inform the rest of the people; she needs some rest to recover, ok?."

Theo nodded, but before he left, he turned to me with a curious expression. "By the way, you didn't call dad the usual pet name you use. Are you feeling alwight?"

I discerned the way his R rolled off as W.

My heart skipped a beat. What pet name did I use to call the man? I had no idea. "U-um, I'm just a bit tired," I croaked, hoping it would be enough to satisfy him. The curiosity of children was one exacting thing to satisfy.

Theo seemed to accept my answer, probably because the man was already poking him so they could leave, but I could tell he was still puzzled by the whole thing.

"Okay, well, let's head back now. I'll take care of you, little sis once you are back!" He said, before giggling. His giggle was full of life, like spring air.

The man walked him out from thereon while the doctors attended to me. They were both talking about Theo having an old head on young shoulders. He seemed more mature for his age. 

As soon as they were done, the doctors left and I was left alone. But it wasn’t long before I began to feel so weak again. 

That’s when the door creaked open, and through my blurry vision, I discerned Theo’s figure sneaking in. Theo walked up to my bed, staring at me thoughtfully with a cheshire grin. "I'll be watching you closely, sis" he whispered

I nodded weakly, feeling relieved and so worried. What had happened to me? I needed answers, but at the moment, I just had to focus on adjusting to this new life and pretending to be the girl I was in this child's body. It was the only way to survive in this enigmatic situation.

Well, if it was real.