Chapter 3:

Within a seconds the grim reaper creatures scattered before disappearing into thin air so I turned my attention back onto the pretty lady with long hair with silver strands that made her look graceful. The woman's eyes returned to natural color before looking down at me as I tried my best to grab a hold of the situation.

"Well don't you smell different... come, we'll get you cleaned up," She spoke in a surprisingly raspy voice that made me feel at home despite the rudeness in her sentences. I smell different? In a good or bad way? Lifting an arm, I tried smelling myself. Not saying that I smell like soap but it could be worse. Still... a shower would be nice. Oh wait, would it be a bath? Please don't let it be a river because I'm about tired of freezing my ass off.

"It isn't a scent you can just smell now stop playing around and let's get you some clothes to change into after you bathe,"

Fucking bossy.

Instead of starting an argument, I followed after the lady in hopes of not having to be alone for a while.

"What is your name, child?" It seemed like ages before I turned around to look at her, getting caught up in how beautiful all the trees looked with the strange little glowing lights floating around in the air. Like fireflies flying around but something told me they were anything but that.

"Regan Cavaille... what am I supposed to call you?" Should I talk like they usually do in medieval movies or just talk how I usually would? Cause if we're being realistic, I don't see my skin tone being all that welcomed during that era. But then again there are floating grim reapers and the option to start a fire out of nowhere gives me doubts of this being the same world I'm from.

"Lavinia Mallor but from today onwards you will know me as your teacher, go behind the wall and clean yourself," She ordered me around again, placing a soft towel in my hands before turning me around toward what looked like a bamboo wall. Walking around it I saw a large wooden bin that looked like it could hold at least three people.

What had me confused was the fact that it was empty so I put the towel and clothes on the bench nearby. Frowning with a small look around, I couldn't find any sort of access to water.

"Excuse m-" My voice went silent the moment hot water started to fill up the bin but no sign of where it was coming from.

Holy shit... it's just like what happened with that fire last night! Shit is really filling up all on its own!

Once it was full, I wasted no time throwing my clothes off and gently stepping into the water, sitting down and enjoying that the water reached my shoulders. A large part of me really wants to investigate this magic thing but the heat surrounding me and the scent of soap in the air, helped me relax.

One second I'm slipping through a cement floor, falling out of a sky, drowning, starting a campfire out of thin air, getting chased by the grim reaper, and being saved by a pretty witch lady.

My life fucking sucks and I was obviously a horrible person if this is the karma I'm getting back for all the bullshit I've done.

Grabbing the yellow rag that was soaking in soap, I took my time scrubbing down certain parts of my body. The paranoia of smelling weird caused me to focus on making sure my body was covered in suds before dunking into the hot water.

This world... is real.

I'm actually so far away from home to the point of being in a whole other dimension... I'm stuck. In a world where I can't even be sure that Ada is here besides this gut feeling swirling around whenever I think about her.

She is here... just out of sight.

If I listened to the voice telling me this, I'll keep this hope that Ada is alive. Pushing my head to the surface of the water, the steam from the heat made the stars in the sky seem mystical.

"I've brought you some clothes... can I ask you some questions?" Lavinia's voice carried over the wall, the respect for my privacy is what made me smile. I can't really grab the clothes without her getting closer or ill get dirt on my feet.

"Sure, can you put the clothes on the bench over here?" I put my arms on the edge of the bin, placing my chin on both hands while I watched her move around.

"Where am I?" I asked her with the knowledge that she's my only source of information.

Besides, something tells me Lavinia already knows I'm not from here. I've never doubted my feelings and this is a situation I'll have to be careful with.

It can be easy for someone to manipulate and control a person if they're lacking knowledge about the world.

"Poor child, you've come a very far place... first, take your bath, and then we'll talk while we eat," The look of sorrow in Lavinia's eyes made my heart squeeze as the thought of being stuck in this fantasy medieval-themed world.

There's no way that grim reaper thing is the only threat here and it was by luck that I'm alive.

Luck and magic.

I'm definitely going to die before I can even get a hold of what's happening.

This really sucks cause even just the thought of having to learn about a whole other world when I've barely covered my own! Irritation gnawed at me, being kidnapped... into a whole completely different realm... and the people responsible for it are nowhere to be seen.

I want to cry as emotions began to overwhelm me, causing me to dunk my head completely under the water and scream. The noise being muffled didn't really satisfy me but a small amount of pressure seemed to relieve itself from my shoulders. As if the invisible stress wracking my body lightened just a little.

If I were to go on assuming I'm just being constantly drugged so this situation is some sort of hallucination, I'll more than likely miss something important. Like that grim reaper thing from earlier. Something about it seemed to force you to pick flight instead of a fight like it isn't even an option.

Gently picking myself up out of the water, I was craving a shower while pushing the thick brown curls falling in my face. Baths are fine but I have a feeling this is going to be the only way to wash. I never took baths all the time because I always hated the feeling of swimming in the dirt I'd originally washed off. Though as I stood up and got a good look at the water, the clearness was the complete opposite of what it should've been. Especially seeing as how I should've been covered in dirt from two different worlds.

Climbing out of the large tub, my feet landed on a soft dark blue carpet I hadn't noticed earlier. Or maybe it hadn't been here the whole time. The cold night breeze encouraged me to pick up the towel Lavinia had left next to the clothes.

I wasted no time in drying myself off before picking up the long fabric attached to what looked like a corset but with a much softer fabric. Unless movies just didn't do the real thing any sort of justice. It took me a bit to get the thing on my body and instead of finding string or a ribbon to tighten it, the dress seemed to shrink around me on its own.

"Magic clothes... holy shit," The words tumbled from my lips in a whisper as I hurried to dry my hair before taking a look around, a bit lost as to what the next move is. It isn't like Lavinia gave me directions of where to-

A bright blue light suddenly grew in my face, stopping its growth when it became the size of my palm. It danced in the air for a second, flying back and forth twice before I understood that the thing wanted me to follow it.

Is it a creature or just magic? I'm assuming at this point that I should keep an open mind about anything that's happening. Either way, it led me to what looked like the backdoor to a cabin, and before I could even knock it was quick to swing open.

"Come in Regan, there's a lot for me to teach you and plenty more decisions for you to make. I'll get us a cup of Plettle tea while we discuss things,"

My feet seemed to have a mind of their own as they followed the strong yet frail voice that called out to me. The moment I stepped into what looked like the kitchen of the cabin the smells of lavender, lemons, and cedarwood seemed to help calm me down immensely.

Taking a seat at the dinner table while Lavinia moved around the medium-sized kitchen, reminding me of Ada's grandma when she would make us a cup of coffee.

"Why am I here?" I asked her while folding the towel that had once been around my shoulders. The heat in the room was warm enough without it but I almost jumped out of my seat when the wet towel suddenly disappeared from my lap.

"Why? Don't you want to know how?" Lavinia's response had me scrunching up my nose, not at all in the mood for some fucking mind game about the sort of question I asked.

"Does it matter? Where I come from, people don't just fall into the fucking ground and end up in a whole other world like Alice. I'm not trying to fry my brain with shit I can't handle right now," My response sounded a bit snippy to me and a part of me wondered if I should apologize to her. It isn't like I'm mad at her.

I just... I just don't want to be here right now. You know that emotion of being so stressed and lost that it feels like you're standing on the edge of a cliff and the smallest thing could make you lose your balance?

Right now, I mentally feel so vulnerable that it was making me feel like I'm losing my mind. Who do I trust? What are the rules and customs of this place? Is it like earth, where places are split up into countries, or is this world completely under one ruler? Or multiple?

"Calm your mind child, before you get lost in it," The woman snapped me out of my thoughts, making me feel a little guilty since I don't know how much time has passed or if she had spoken to me within the last couple of seconds.

But the words "calm your mind" echoed in my head, making me frown in confusion as I watched her movements.

How the fuck do you soothe yourself when you feel like you're going insane?!

Not even that, what the fuck is Plettle tea? It sounds like a plant full of thorns if you ask me. Oh god, is their food going to be on some weird medieval shit? Where their food is bland and no one knows what seasoning is? What about candy and desserts? Oh no... that means there aren't any brownies in this world.

At the realization that almost everything I adored from my earth... wouldn't exist here. I mean, why would it? It isn't like there were people starting fires with their mind or someone teleporting to weird distances any time they panic!

The thud of a clay mug being placed in front of me with steam coming from it once again kicked me out of my head as I smelled a thicker scent of lavender. Is that what plettle supposed to be? Lavender? Either way, just a small smell of it seemed to help calm it down and a sip helped me go a lot farther as I felt myself calming down little by little.

"Now, let us talk about the situation you're in,"

I get why she waited to answer my question while I was silently freaking out but the first thing I could think of when she was that was simple:

Fucking finally!