She Smells Differently

005 

Immediately Rebecca walked in her room, she hastily shut the door behind her. With her back rested on the door, she slump down slowly, feeling as though energy was drained from her — all of a sudden as if the world had just dropped on her.

Though her shoulder ache and felt really sore and heavy, but at that moment, she did not care, it wasn't bothersome — because there was something else; eating her off instead, and intensely.

The event throughout that day spun through her mind like whirlwind. From her mysteriously gaining consciousness after she was sure she died, the chandelier, her injury — though not as much as she remembered it to be — and Alexander talking about the rogue.

As far as she could remembered, all of these happened almost two years ago, but finding herself in the scene again, everything repeating itself could only mean one thing...

Alexander's appearance, his style of hair — and there was something she remembered to be on his hand that isn't there anymore.

The realization hit Rebecca like a freight train. Alexander was missing something — something crucial.

She racked her brain, trying to pinpoint what it was that made him seem different, less of the Alexander she knew.

And then it dawned on her. His bracelet. The one he'd always worn, a simple leather band with a silver charm, a token of a time and a place she couldn't quite remember. But it was gone.

Rebecca's heart thundered in her chest as she grappled with the implications. Or maybe there wasn't any implications to it at all — and she's the one over thinking it?

Rebecca’s frustration mounted. The missing bracelet could mean nothing, or it could be a vital piece in the puzzle of her memories. She felt like a stranger to her own mind, unable to fit all the pieces together.

She ran her fingers through her hair, her mind clouded in a foggy haze. There were so many things that felt off, but she couldn’t process them all at once. Her memories from before her death were intact—mostly—but there were still pieces missing, like a jigsaw puzzle with vital parts scattered to the four winds.

The more Rebecca thought about it, the more she realized that something was seriously amiss. Alexander's missing bracelet, the strange haze that clouded her mind... it was like she was caught in a web of mystery, tangled up in a storyline she couldn't quite understand.

And then, she remembered. A conversation she’d had with Kenziel, in the gardens, under the stars. He'd told her a story of a magical being, a guardian of the forest, who could bend the flow of time.

The memory struck Rebecca like a bolt of lightning. Kenziel had said that if the guardian found a mortal worthy of its assistance, it could alter the course of time to grant that person a second chance.

Rebecca did not think much of it then as she sees it as a fairytale, but the thought of that moment made her heart skipped a beat. Could this be it? Had she been given a second chance, one in which certain events had unfolded differently?

The light from the setting sun had long since faded, leaving only the soft, warm glow of the desk lamp to illuminate Kenziel’s office. The air was still, filled with the silence that only the deepest hours of the night could bring.

Kenziel leaned back in his chair, massaging the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. He had been pouring over the documents for couple of minutes, the lines of text blurring together in his mind as he struggled to make sense of it all.

The door to his office clicked open, and Herzl stepped in, a serious expression on his face. Kenziel only stared at him for a few seconds — barely acknowledging the latter's presence, before taking his gaze off him.

"The infirmary closed quite early today." Kenziel started, his facial expression void of emotion. "It's not even up to half an hour since Rebecca and I left. Is there anything you want to tell me?"

Herzl nodded, taking out a chair to sit, it scraped the floor with a disturbing noise for a second. "Yes, I guess we need to talk." he said, taking his seat.

Kenziel looked up, acknowledging his colleague's presence with a nod. "What is it, Herzl?" He asked, straightening his back. "I'm quite busy for now."

"Don't worry, it won't take long." Herzl enunciated, dipping his hand in the small bag with him. "I bought something to help hasten Rebecca's regeneration. It'll numb the pains she'll be feeling, and the heavy shoulder too."

Kenziel's brows was creased, his curiosity getting better of him. "What is it?" He asked, his eyes solely on Herzl's small bag. "Is it a potion... or?"

The latter shook his head negatively as he dropped two bottles on Kenziel's desk who immediately snatched them, his eyes flickering in recognition.

"Yes, I got them from the city on my last visit. My uncle works in the lab, so he discovered a breakthrough drug that treats nerve damage in werewolves." Herzl confirmed Kenziel's suspicion. "It'll help Rebecca, but I can't guarantee that it won't leave a scar, the wound is too deep."

But Kenziel didn't mind the scar. "Herzl, you're a life-saver." Kenziel said, with a tinge of relief in his voice. He leaned forward in his seat, the papers momentarily forgotten. "I was worried that Rebecca’s slow regeneration would weigh her down a lot — you know she's a over thinker."

"Indeed, Rebecca worries too much. She doesn't need the extra burden." Herzl replied with a nod, relieved that Kenziel was considering Rebecca’s well-being — of course, he should. "But Kenziel, I must bring up something else."

Kenziel frowned slightly, he doesn't like the sound of Herzl's voice. "What is it this time...?" He asked, his tone drawling and lazy.

"I'm sorry if I'm bothering you with too much talk." Herzl quickly apologized, earning an ‘of course, you are’ type of expression from Kenziel. "Did you notice something strange about Rebecca? I mean, she smells different from what I recalled her scent to be which is odd."

Kenziel's brows were creased, wearing an obfuscated look on his face. "Her scent...?"