The Awakening [First Draft]

There was a very familiar pressure on Ricky's chest, when he finally regained consciousness. His entire body felt way too heavy, even his eyelids were impossible to pry open. Still, he used all his strength to lift his arm up to pet Darva. His hand fell heavily on her back, but he could feel and hear her purring happily. It sounded like she had been waiting to be fed for a while. Ricky felt like he had just slept for several years, which was evident by a parched throat and a pounding headache.

After some reassurance from Darva, and a short break, Ricky finally forced his eyes open. The last thing he remembered was running across the street to reach the cat, then nothing. It was easily assumed that he had been hit by a car. His surroundings did not, however, attest to these series of events. He was certainly not in a hospital room.

Instead, he was laying on a huge canopy bed, with cream colored sheets and light blue curtains. They were all tied back, giving him a clear view of the room. The walls, floor and ceiling were all dark oak, with a few wooden furniture, painted in rusty orange. The doors, windows and other details were painted navy blue. The whole room made Ricky think of a chilly, but cozy autumn night. The only lights were coming from candles and a fireplace.

Ricky also noticed that Darva looked different. Her fur was clean, there were no patches of missing fur and her entire body felt... smaller. His hands also looked... small...

A clatter made Ricky turn his head to the right, where a simple wooden table and two chairs were placed under a big window. An older woman was standing by the table, it looked like she had abruptly stood up, causing the needlework in her hands to fall on the floor. She now stood completely frozen, one hand on the table to steady herself. Wearing a silk headscarf, a simple long-sleeved wool dress in dark gray, a white apron with several pockets and a colorful knitted shawl over her shoulders. Ricky thought she looked like an old-fashioned maid. He was vaguely aware of something green fluttering about, circling the woman's head.

He opened his mouth to ask what was happening, but his lips were dry and cracked, his throat felt like he had been eating sand. No sound came out. This seemed to shake the woman out of her stupor, because she suddenly got her legs moving. She exited the room at an impressive pace. And so Ricky was left alone again. "Meow.." Well, almost alone. He continued to pet Darva, who purred happily, but his eyes were still feeling like drying cement. Ricky resigned to sleeping a bit more, maybe the headache would tire itself out.

~𖦹~

The next time Ricky woke up, he heard voices. He couldn't hear any specific words, but they sounded hushed and somber.

He turned his head towards the sound to hear better, but the voices immediately stopped. Before he had time to regret his decision, he heard someone walk closer. A woman was speaking in a low voice, but he couldn't understand her. The tone reminded him of the spoken language of Central, but he couldn't understand a word.

Ricky felt someone move their hand to his back, assisting him in sitting up. They them put a glass of refreshing water to his lips. He greedily gulped it down, so fast that he forgot to breathe and only when the cup was empty, did he finally gasp for air. The woman kept talking in a low, calming voice, all while wiping him down with a wet cloth. Once she finally got to his face, he managed to open his eyes again.

He realized that three people were now in the room. The still-talking woman was young, with ash blonde hair and dark brown eyes. She was wearing a white shirt with puffy arms, under a wine red, sleeveless dress of wool. The woman was sitting on a chair next to Ricky, still eagerly chatting on and on.

The older woman was also there, standing by the foot of his bed. She was untying some of the light blue curtains, so the sunlight from the window wouldn't bother him. Ricky could now clearly see her long, white hair, which reached all the way down to her hip. It was braided in one simple braid and looked thin and fragile. Her light hazel eyes were almost glowing in the sunlight.

A man was standing by the door, his arms were crossed over his chest and he was watching the younger woman talk. He looked utterly bored. His light brown hair and amber eyes made him look the least remarkable, but his features were handsome and his build was strong. The man was wearing black leather armor with silver clasps, an empty sword sheath was hanging from his hip.

He said something to the younger woman, who then turned and said something to the older woman. Even if he didn't understand their words, the hierarchy was still obvious. The older maid gave a short nod and opened the door. Ricky heard the indignant screeching of a cat locked out of a room, but as soon as she walked inside, he could see Darva was keeping her head and tail high. No matter where this place was, at least she was as healthy and confident as ever.

Her face brightened at the sight of Ricky being awake, now in a sitting position, so she walked straight over and took her usual spot in his lap. Despite looking like a tiny kitten again, Ricky knew this was his cat. Feeling content, she purred as Ricky rubbed her ear and grinned.

Suddenly, he became very aware that people were observing him. The older woman had walked out, but the younger one was still seated by his bed and the slightly annoyed man remained by the door. Ricky tried again to say something, but his throat still felt rusted beyond repair.

The woman had a worried look on her face, but as the man said something, she lit up. Placing a hand on her chest, right over the heart, she tapped a finger as she spoke slowly. "Celi"

She repeated it a few times, before Ricky realized she was trying to introduce herself. "Ce-lee," he finally managed in a voice that was too wrong to be his own. It was more high-pitched and soft, like a small, pre-pubescent child. But also hoarse, like he had a bad cold or had somehow eaten five packs of cigarettes. Ricky couldn't help but cringe at his own, unfamiliar voice.

The woman didn't appear to take any notice and just tapped Ricky's chest, right over his heart and said, "Abi."

Ricky frowned at the woman, suddenly confused. His name was Blue Ricky, as infuriating as it was; it was the name his mother had given him. As much as he had wanted to change it, he could never actually go through with it.

The woman repeated herself, to the point where he finally gave in, tapped his chest and said it. "Ah-bee."

Her expression stiffened, then tears started streaming down her face. Ricky panicked a little, confused by what he did wrong. He was also overwhelmed by frustration. Not being able to speak properly, not understanding what was happening, where he was, why they wouldn't use his name. He didn't even notice he was crying, as well.

~

"Celi," the man walked over and out his hand on her shoulder. "Look, you made the kid cry."

Celi let out a small gasp and turned her head up. He was right, the small child indeed was crying. "If he only sees you sad and crying, he'll never learn to smile." He sounded bored by the whole situation, but Celi recognized the care behind his words.

She quickly wiped her face on her puffy sleeves and then used the wet cloth to wipe Abi's face again. Then she smiled the best and biggest smile she could. After a bit of hesitation, the child smiled back at her. It lifted her spirit, she had to fight hard not to cry again.

~𖦹~

The next time Ricky woke up, the pressure on his chest felt unfamiliar. When he opened his eyes, he expected to see Darva. However, the huge yellow eyes did not belong to his tiny kitten. Those eyes, placed on a small head with white and brown feathers and a huge beak, was most definitely not a cat. Ricky jumped up, but since his body was still weak and heavy, he didn't really get far. The bird only flapped its huge wings and dug some big, sharp talons deep in his cover. It was dangerously close to breaking his skin.

With a fierce hiss, Darva jumped on the bed and swatted the bird away. It screeched back at her, but the brave little kitten didn't even flinch. The big bird of prey finally flew off and Ricky got the air to yell. No coherent sound came out, but it was enough for someone to come over and lift him up in a sitting position.

Celi, the young woman from before, was talking in a reassuring voice and stroking his head. Once she saw he had calmed down, she turned her head and spoke in a furious tone to the door-guy.

He had his usual indifferent expression and Ricky just now noticed that the bird was sitting on the man's shoulder. It was still staring right at Ricky, like it was thinking about how easily it could tear up his flesh. Ricky gave them both an angry look, which in turn made the man burst into laughter. This only infuriated Ricky more.

Celi tapped his shoulder and she said something he didn't understand. She tried to look serious, but there was clearly an amused glimt in her eyes. Ricky also gave her an annoyed look.

After the young woman finished, what Ricky could only assume was her daily report, the man opened the door. The older maid-looking woman and a few younger women came inside. They were wearing similar clothes as the older woman, but their sleeves were folded up. All of them also had cloth belts around their waists, made with different colors and patterns. The cloths were long, wrapped around two or three times, then either simply tied in sturdy knots or delicate bows.

The belts were really the only thing about the maids that stood out to him and he mentally started referring to them by their belts. The green-knot and blue-knot maids gently helped him up, then proceeded to strip him completely naked. Ricky finally got a proper look at his own body and was too shocked by the sight to get shy. His arms and legs were tiny, way tinier than before, and stick-thin. He could easily count every single one of his ribs and his skin was sickly pale.

Although he had always been short and scrawny, this looked more like the body of a small, sick child. His skin, eyes and hair should have a natural darkness to them, all of which he had from his father. This body had none of these things, none of the scars from his childhood, none of the moles. When his body was now leaning forward, some of his hair fell over his shoulder and Ricky saw shockingly light, straight and blond hair.

Knowing something was wrong, but being unable to confirm it, Ricky had easily pushed this nagging feeling in the back of his head. Now the evidence was right in his face and he was too stunned to struggle, as the blue-knot maid easily lifted him up and carried him to another room.

He was dimly aware of entering a wet room and getting placed in a polished, white tub. The water was an iridescent turquoise and almost seemed to faintly glow, when he was placed into it. Ricky couldn't even feel it, the liquid was perfectly body-temperature and if he had his eyes closed, he wouldn't even have known he was almost completely submerged.

~

Celi watched as the two maids with red and yellow bows on their belts readied the bath. Once they finished, she put her hand in the water and felt the healing properties of the liquid on her sore and calloused palms. Satisfied, she stood up and allowed the maid to enter with the small child. He was still staring at his own body in a daze, slowly closing and opening his hands, like he wasn't really sure if they truly belonged to him.

It filled her with a warm calm; Alo had looked as surprised, when he first became aware of own arms and legs. He had squeezed everything he could get his grubby little fingers on. He had taken an especially liking to Celi's hair. The only difference was that Alo had still been a baby, barely two months old. Abi, on the other hand, would soon turn five.

She had just finished washing and drying his long, light blonde hair, and started on the braids, when the convulsions started. Celi had seen it happen so many times, but failed to realize that Abi had never been awake for it before. The sudden flexing and releasing of every muscle in his body clearly frightened the child. As soon as his body relaxed, he sat up with a cry and Celi quickly stood up to help support his body. "Eudie!"

~

Since receiving the black poison right after his birth, Abi had spent a considerable amount of time in the healing water. At first it was simply for detoxifying the infant, but the water eventually stayed clear and they knew the poison was gone. The newborn did not, however, wake up. Ignoring the warnings from every doctor; not even a grown man could survive the black poison. Despite the body being healed, the mind was as good as dead. No one could therefore understand it when, although a bit later than average, a fully developed soulbeast was formed. Despite looking unlike anything anyone had ever seen before, and was clearly stunted, it was still alive and active. As a matter of fact, Abi's soulbeast seemed almost too alive. While the infant grew from a baby, then a toddler and finally a child, the small cat stayed alive, active and very alert.

After Abi's first time being awake in the tub of healing water, they made some drastic changes to his routine. Whenever he woke up, they fed him a light yellow porridge-like substance that tasted like watered down rice. It even had small, yellow rice-like grains, and sometimes even small soft pieces of meat or vegetables. They would then do what Ricky could only assume was physical therapy. The green-knot and yellow-bow maids would slowly move his limbs around, until finally he was able to move them on his own. Ricky would then get some sort of tea, which made his head cold and body warm. It would put him to sleep before he even managed to finish the cup. Only when he was asleep would the maids take him back to the healing water.