Mia helped Fidelia to her seat, but Fidelia was completely confused.
One moment, she had been walking to the bed the next, she was outside… in a completely different outfit.
The worst part?
She couldn't remember a single thing that had happened in between.
"This is so strange," she murmured, her eyes darting around in disbelief. "Why are you all dressed up like this? You look… different."
"Mia, if I tell you I remember nothing about how I got here, would you believe me?" Fidelia asked, her voice trembling slightly. "I was at home… going to bed. And suddenly I'm here—outside—dressed like this. I'm not going crazy, am I?"
Mia stayed silent for a moment, her expression unreadable.
"Let's get you home first," she finally said softly. "We can talk about it tomorrow."
Fidelia looked down, patting her pockets until her fingers brushed against something metallic. She pulled out a motorbike key, staring at it in disbelief.
Her eyes darted around until they landed on a motorcycle parked a few feet away.
"I think… that's mine," she whispered. Then a bitter laugh escaped as she packed her hair "Oh God… I actually rode here."
'Oh boy' Mia thought, this was getting really confusing that she couldn't make sense of It and Fidelia didn't seem to be pretending.
"Let's take my care I'll drive you home"
Mia walked Fidelia down to where her car was, and they climbed in. Mia drove them back toward Fidelia's house while they started talking. Both of them were in a bad mood.
"So you still can't remember anything?" Mia asked.
"I seriously can't," Fidelia said. "It's as if my whole body just moved… and I didn't know about it. This has never happened before. One minute I was recalling some painful memories and had a huge headache, and the next thing I know, I blacked out. Now I find myself here. I don't even wear all these outfits they're not my style. I just have them at home."
"What? Why are you so quiet?" Fidelia asked, noticing the heavy silence.
"You know… I saw you come out of the club with a broken bottle," Mia said slowly. "And you were charging at her like—"
"Like what?" Fidelia interrupted.
"Like you wanted to hurt her. Or worse," Mia said. "You even grabbed her hair and pulled her toward you."
"What? Hurt who?"
"Your stepsister. Bridget."
"Bridget was here too? No… no, even if I hate her, I can't bring myself to attack her with a broken bottle."
"Fidelia, you were pretty angry and she was the one you were after. From what I saw, it wasn't the guy beside her. It was definitely her," Mia explained.
"Fidelia, you looked like a totally different person. The way you were moving, you were so angry at her. I could see it all over your face." Mia hesitated before asking, "You don't think you actually wanted her dead, do you?"
"Mia… you think I wanted to hurt her?" Fidelia asked, her voice weak.
"I've known you for a while now. No, I don't think so," Mia said softly.
"Is there anything else I said? Or did? Something you haven't told me yet?" Fidelia asked.
"Not really… I don't think there was—" Mia began, then paused. "Oh, wait. You said something like… you were… Nyra. When I called you Fidelia, you slapped my hand when I reached for you. You said you weren't her. You said you were Nyra."
Hearing that, Fidelia's eyes widened. "What? Does that name ring a bell?"
That name Nyra echoed through her mind. It was a name she hadn't heard in years.
And suddenly, her sight changed. She found herself in her old room.
She was small again. Barefoot on the cold wooden floor of her old bedroom the one with peeling wallpaper and rain stains on the ceiling.
Three dolls sat in front of her, lined neatly on the bed. Their faces were faded, their button eyes slightly uneven. But to her younger self, they were everything.
She smiled, brushing the dust off their little dresses.
"You're Nyra," she said, straightening the first doll's red ribbon. "You protect us."
"Alright Fidelia, No one messes with my sisters" Fidelia said in Nyra's voice "If anyone does ill break their teeth"
The doll sat still, but in her mind, Fidelia could almost see her move standing tall, fierce, with a fiery glare.
"If anyone hurts us again," Nyra's voice was a bit thicker and sharper "I'll make them pay."
Then Fidelia turned to the second doll pale, with blue yarn for hair.
"You're Raven," she whispered. "You… don't talk much."
Raven stared blankly back. But Fidelia could hear her too soft, trembling.
"Sometimes I don't want to be here," Raven murmured. "It's too quiet… i wish i was not here..i hate being alone"
"You are not alone we are all here for you Raven" Fidelia said again this time in her voice.
Fidelia swallowed hard, then looked at the third doll the smallest one, with a cracked porcelain smile.
"And you're Iris. You're always happy."
"Because someone has to be!" Iris giggled in her high, cheerful tone. "If we don't laugh, we'll cry, right? And I don't want to ever cry again"
The little girl nodded, clutching all three dolls to her chest.
"Promise me you'll never leave," she whispered. "Promise."
"We'll never leave you," Naira said firmly. "Not until you're strong enough to stand on your own."
The sound of thunder rolled outside. The room flickered with light.
Fidelia blinked and suddenly, the dolls were back to being lifeless toys. Just cloth and porcelain.
Yet their voices still echoed faintly in her head.
Then, the memory began to fade.
Her grown-up self gasped and stumbled backward, eyes wide, returning to the present.
She was back in the car trembling, the name Nyra still burning in her mind.
"Fidelia… Fidelia… are you okay?" Mia called, keeping her eyes on the road as she drove.
"They were just dolls…" Fidelia whispered. "Just dolls… imaginary sisters that I created when I was a little girl."
"Sisters… you mean there are more?" Mia asked, confused, glancing at Fidelia with a worried expression.
"Yes," Fidelia said in a low voice.
"Nyra was the eldest sister, and I always role-played her as the protective one. She held the part of me that was always angry the part that wanted to hurt Bridget whenever I was insulted or abused."
After Fidelia said it, realization hit Mia. She turned to look at her, and the understanding settled over her face.
"Oh my God. I wanted to hurt Bridget. Nyra wanted to."
Fidelia's breath quickened. Her hands moved to her head as a sudden, sharp pain pierced through her temples.
"Ahh… my head," she gasped, clutching it tighter. The pain grew worse, like something was trying to tear its way out from inside her.
"Fidelia! Fidelia!" Mia shouted, panicking as she swerved slightly before pulling over to the side of the road. She parked quickly and leaned toward her friend. "Hey look at me! Fidelia!"
Fidelia's breathing grew uneven. Her body trembled, eyes half-closed as if fighting something unseen.
"Fidelia?" Mia said softly, voice trembling.
But Fidelia didn't answer. Slowly, her lips curled into a faint, eerie smile.
"It's not Fidelia…" she whispered. Her eyes flicked open cold and unfamiliar. "It's me. Nyra."