Blair woke up in her same, unfamiliar bed the next morning, throat sore and mouth dry. She hadn’t remembered making it back from the bathroom. She assessed the state of herself; still in most of her uniform, only missing the vest which had been thrown to the foot of the bed. Her hair felt stiff and uncomfortable and her skin itched. She had clearly been sweating all night from tossing her stomach into the sink. Blair looked over to the dresser and eyed the glass of water that was placed there. One of her new parents must have put it there for her after bringing her back to bed.
After a sluggish walk to the glass, Blair drank from it gladly, her dry throat and mouth thanking her. The water was gone all too soon as she placed the glass back down on the dresser. She cast her gaze over to the window where a gentle light streamed through the thin fabric of the curtains and watched the dust dance in it.
She needed a shower.
Blair sighed as she rifled through the dresser drawers, pulling out a fresh set of underwear and clean uniform. Aside from a few other sets of clothes the dresser mainly only had spare uniforms in it. She supposed Cleo didn’t have any interest in fashion since the few casual clothes there were some simple shirts and riding pants. Blair closed the drawers and made her way over to the bathroom.
As she moved to turn the handle to the bathroom, someone called for her, “Cordelia?”
Blair turned to the voice and saw a man standing there. He was tall and stocky with slicked back, graying brown hair and sharp brown eyes that hid behind a pair of wire-rimmed glasses. His hands were blackened at the tips with ash and grease that he awkwardly wiped onto his worn leather apron. It was Oliver Klein.
“Dad?” Blair replied. The word felt wrong in her mouth. It was a word she hadn’t used in a long time.
Oliver stepped forward and reached a hand up to pat it on Blair’s head but seemed to think better of it and lowered it back down just as quickly. “How are you feeling? Laurence told me he found you in the bathroom.”
So Laurence put me in bed, Blair thought. “I’m okay,” she smiled, albeit weakly, “I’ll be better once I’m clean.”
Oliver smiled, it was crooked and awkward, just like Cleo’s had been. “Are you sure you’ll be okay to visit the knights? Your mother told me you were going but…”
“I’ll be fine,” Blair reassured him, “Commander Wirst is picking me up.”
Oliver’s smile dropped as he pursed his lips and nodded, “why don’t you tidy up and come down to eat? Garev and Olivia came by with fresh eggs.”
“Okay,” Blair smiled as she turned away, escaping into the bathroom.
Blair was grateful for the memories she had been left with while she was asleep. So far it seemed like Cleo’s were the only ones she’d received, but at least now she was able to bathe with ease. The bathtub didn’t have a showerhead, just a faucet and large basin. Thankfully the water wasn’t too cold as Blair sank into it, it was only luke-warm, like a glass of water that had been left out in the summer heat.
Blair’s head swam with thoughts as she scrubbed herself clean. The memories Cleo had left her with had helped her become less ill at ease with the idea of being a knight, but the fact that the change had been so quick unsettled her. She wouldn’t be able to act like Cleo, but she felt a foreign yet innate confidence at the idea of swinging around a blade. She wondered what other skills would become hers once she regained Mina and Seung-Eun’s memories. Maybe she could call upon them and ask them about themselves? Blair hoped that her disposition would help them feel comfortable opening up to her just as most people had when she was alive. When she was younger, Blair thought she was cursed because people would often tell her deeply personal things without being prompted, even strangers. Usually it was fine, but sometimes it led people to expect things from her and react badly when Blair didn’t meet those expectations.
Blair sighed as she pulled the stopper from the tub and filled up the small, hand-held basin with water and dumped it over her head a few times to rinse out the suds from her hair. After getting dressed and roughly towel drying her hair she made her way down to the kitchen. Amenna and Laurence were both in the kitchen fussing around while Olivia and Oliver sat at the set table chatting.
“I thought you said Garev was here?” Blair asked. He was Olivia’s fiance and one of Oliver’s apprentices, so she was interested to meet him for herself.
Before Oliver could respond, Laurence called from the kitchen, “you already remember!”
Olivia winced at his volume, “she always does,” she said and turned to Blair, “he just went to lock up the workshop, come sit.”
Blair walked over to the table and pulled out what she now knew was her chair to sit down. Before she could say anything a lanky man burst through the side door to the workshop.
“Cory!” He called excitedly, “How are you!?”
It was Garev. Just like in Cleo’s memory he had long blond hair pulled sloppily back into a bun and angular, gaunt looking features. Despite his grim facial structure, he beamed with joy and life as he strode over and wrapped his long arms around Olivia who shooed him off of her with a warm annoyance as she told him to take off his apron.
“I’m alright,” Blair supplied, “how’s the new necklace you’ve been trying to make?” She asked, the memory coming to her easily.
Oliver chuckled as Garev grinned joyously at her, “you never ask me about my work!” Garev cheered.
Amenna stepped in then, putting down the promised eggs at each place setting. She had made them scrambled and paired them with roasted potatoes and toast with a red jam. Blair wanted to assume it was raspberry.
“I hope you’re okay with scrambled, mom wanted to give you them over easy like before but I convinced her otherwise,” Laurence explained.
“They’re my favorite,” Blair said without thinking.
Amenna blinked owlishly at her and then looked to Laurence, “how do you always know?”
Laurence shrugged and Olivia said, “because he’s a freak,” earning her an offended squawk from Laurence.
“It’s not that I knew! Most people don’t mind their eggs scrambled, right?”
“But Cordelia likes them over easy,” Oliver jumped in.
Blair paled. Cleo liked her eggs over easy.
Garev sat down in his seat, “it’s alright Mr. Klein, tastes change.”
“Yes–” Blair said quickly, “yes, I prefer them scrambled now.”
Amenna settled into her chair, “I still remember when you said you hated eggs,” she said with a sigh.
“She was a kid then, of course it’s different now,” Olivia laughed.
Seung-Eun or Mina must not have liked eggs. As Amenna and the rest of her new family reminisced, Blair reached for the jam and spread it across her toast, excitedly taking a bite of it. It wasn’t raspberry.
“It’s strawberry…” Blair muttered a little deflated.
“Oh, I’m sorry honey, did you want blueberry?” Amenna asked kindly.
“No, I just, I thought it would be raspberry so–”
Laurence laughed but stifled it with a cough when Amenna shot him a glare.
“I don’t think her memory is fully back yet,” Olivia said.
“You’re allergic to raspberries, Cory,” Amenna said gently.
“Oh,” Blair said softly, “right.”
Blair set aside her toast, her brow furrowed as she pushed herself up from her seat and collected her plate, barely making it past Amenna before she placed a warm, gentle hand on Blair’s arm.
“I can take care of that, honey.”
Blair wanted to peel away Amenna’s warmth. Amenna wasn’t her mother, she had no right to radiate the same warmth as her. But she wasn’t just Blair anymore.
“It’s okay,” Blair croaked out, backing away towards the sink as naturally as she could.
Without thinking twice, Blair busied herself with cleaning her plate as if she had been doing it this way her whole life. She pushed the scaps aside to the compost, placed the plate in the sink as she prepped the soap she would use. She washed and she dried a dish that she had never touched before for the hundredth time. It was strange to take part in a habit that had never been hers.
"You forgot your sword."
Blair jumped, nearly dropping her plate as she flinched forward. She sighed and set the plate down to face the offender, it was Laurence.
“What?”
Laurence grabbed the abandoned plate and set it into its rightful place on the shelf. “Your sword, usually you never put that thing down, it’s like some weird growth.”
Blair grimaced, “I don’t need it in the house,” I don’t want to need it at all, “What do you need anyways?”
Laurence gave her a puzzled look, “you’re my sister, I want to see how you’re feeling.”
Right, he had carried Blair to bed last night. “I’m fine, thank you for putting me in bed.”
Laurence smirked, “Y’know this isn’t the first time I’ve done it, but this is the first time I’ve been thanked,” he placed his hands over his chest and faked a touched face, “is this what it’s like to be loved by your little sister?”
“What about Olivia?”
“Doesn’t count, she always hit me growing up, even as a baby,” he stated. Blair rolled her eyes and let out a soft chuckle. Laurence’s smile softened, “go grab your sword, Shawn’ll be here soon.”
“He’s coming in the afternoon?” Blair said, failing to hide her sudden distress.
Laurence looked around awkwardly, “sorry, he came by last night and said something changed so he’d come by after breakfast. I would’ve told you but–”
“It’s fine,” Blair interjected before sucking in a sharp breath. “Thanks, I’ll… go get my sword,” she said bitterly.
By the time Blair came back down, still awkwardly fumbling with the clasp on her sword’s harness, Shawn was there, standing in the kitchen while Amenna scolded him for trying to help her and Olivia with the dishes. Oliver and Garev were gone again, likely back to the workshop, and Blair wished that they had stayed so she could have used Garev as an excuse to delay spending time with Shawn.
Blair still wasn’t sure how to treat him. Aside from falling for the then fifteen Cordelia when he was twenty-two, he seemed to be a genuine person. Even in the new memories she had gotten from Cleo he had always been kind to Cordelia’s family and a well mannered person. Despite him being obvious with his feelings he never acted on them.
Before she could think about it anymore, Shawn caught sight of Blair and beamed his blinding smile right at her.
“Dame Klein!” He called as Amenna shooed him out of her kitchen. “Are you ready to go? Eric is waiting outside for us.”
“Sir Jaune is here?” Blair asked nervously. She knew he didn’t like her.
Shawn nodded as he strode over to Blair, subtly offering his arm to guide her out. Blair pretended not to notice and watched his smile falter slightly as she did, putting his arm back down to his side.
“How are you feeling? Are you still sick?”
“Ah, no, I’m fine,” Blair said quickly as she gripped the hilt of her sword, thumb brushing against it absentmindedly before quickly pulling her hand away. It was one of Cleo’s habits. “We shouldn’t keep Sir Jaune waiting,” she said tersely, as she walked briskly past Shawn.
When Blair opened the door she was met with Sir Eric Jaune who had nearly been hit when Blair swung it open so forcefully.
“Woah!”
Blair startled, “oh my God, I’m so sorry!” She exclaimed.
Eric made an appalled face, “what is wrong with her?” He asked Shawn incredulously.
Shawn gave Eric an awkward chuckle in response before he shut the door gently behind him. Blair immediately felt an awkward red fill her face as she tried to avoid her gaze meeting Eric’s judgment.
“I’m sorry, Sir Jaune,” Blair reiterated more formally, bowing slightly with a fist held over her heart.
Eric huffed, “Whatever, just try not to say something so insane again, Dame Klein.”
“Insane?”
Eric rolled his eyes, “well if you want to be insane then be my guest.”
“Eric,” Shawn scolded. Eric acknowledged it but simply gave Shawn a curt bow and greeting. Shawn sighed, “shall we get going, Dame Klein? Sir Reid and Dame Riley are looking forward to seeing you again.”
Blair nodded, “ah, yes, Commander Wirst,” as she took off to keep pace with him.
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