Ruby thought herself crazy. As she kept knitting she couldn’t help have her thoughts go astray and lead her away.
Her hands kept on moving, already on autopilot since she just had to repeat the same motions. However, her mind was in a completely different plane. She knew, deep down, that things had changed and that she simply was in a different world. But that didn’t mean she was ready to accept that truth just yet.
Knowing that everyone was downstairs having dinner gave her the opportunity to have a breather. To really have the chance to think on her own and let everything surrounding her sink down. One part of her truly believed she was crazy, because as far as she knew, this couldn’t be her new reality. It was just too abnormal and she didn’t have a clue as to what everything was about.
She secretly hoped that she was just unconscious and that everything was just a dream. Then again, she remembered how in a movie someone had said that people can’t read while dreaming, thus she wasn’t sure if she was, in fact, dreaming.
There was also the possibility that she was blatantly hallucinating. Had her competition drugged her? Are mushrooms in play here? Hard to know, but if she went to sleep maybe she would wake up fine, but didn’t feel like sleeping yet.
Maybe she could be seen as calm on the outside, but in the silence of the night she could still feel her heart beat at the same rhythm as when she was found.
Everything was just… too crazy. It was a very Alice in Wonderland kind of experience and she didn’t know what to make of it just yet. Having a brother didn’t feel bad at least. It felt weird, but she could feel Theo was someone she could rely on, at least on a surface level. She was ambivalent still about the mistress, but couldn’t find the boldness to hate her for anything really.
She had so far taken the decision to roll with the punches and what life threw at her in the meantime, but the day’s events were slowly catching up to her and now she didn’t really know what to do with her life. The competition should have ended today and she should be in front of multiple cameras recording her victory. She should be on national television, calling her friends because she had won and enjoying the fact that she would finally start her own brand.
You’re to tell her now that she just has to start all over? Sure, she could try and go back, even if she didn’t have a clue on how to start that whole endeavor, but what was there to go back to? At this point in time, she had truly lost the competition, so that was a bust.
Without the money from the competition, she was going to get evicted. Her best friend was back there and surely would let her crash in her place, but the boyfriend was as toxic as a black widow.
She had her tools back home and the so many sketches and dresses she created, multiple collections sitting in wardrobes and boxes that would never see the light of day. She always tried, but never made it inside the industry.
After much thinking, her fingers still moving without a single mistake, she came to the conclusion that she just didn’t know what to do. She didn’t feel mentally stable for a fresh start, as it just came from nowhere. It just hurt too much to think her effort was for nothing as well. She still loved making clothes, but it stung knowing she just couldn’t make it no matter how much she tried. Someone could say ‘well, that’s life’, but she truly felt that was quite debatable now considering she was in some other reality. Was this Earth anymore? Some other version of it, at least? She couldn’t tell.
With a heavy sigh, her thoughts went back to the piece she had finished a couple minutes ago, now sitting by the end of the bed like one of many finished products she planned to make with the yarn given. Fortunately, there was enough gold yarn still to make a couple more of those with the same design, besides, she didn’t have the brain to think of something else at the moment. The second scarf she was starting now had the same colors but reversed, mostly to fill the void she left with the lack of originality.
Conversely, as she kept on working on the second garment, she started to hear people talking and people moving up the stairs.
Dinner was over and, apparently, it was approaching time to sleep, so the girls' floor started to get louder and louder. Not loud enough for her not to be able to hear her own thoughts or anything, but mild chatter here and there as the girls started to get to their rooms. Ruby’s eyes glued themselves for a few seconds on the door frame as she saw a couple of girls get inside her room and, unlike the little girl from before, moving with purpose and direction.
The girls gave her a side glance but ignored her, still chatting between them while walking to a pair of beds close to her own. However, just as she started to get back to her work, ignoring them back, one of them peered over and started to whisper to the other. Then whispers turned to voices and not even five minutes later she had more girls in her room than she could estimate actually slept there.
Things escalated quite quickly after that, but before she could even explain herself or talk to any of the girls, she heard the voice of the one and only mistress.
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Clarisse Sianna could not smell trouble. She truly couldn’t as she knew that was a skill she didn’t have and was surprised she hadn’t gotten it yet despite the fact she had so many children in her care. She even believed that no such skill existed, for she knew she would have mastered it a long time ago if that were the case. No, there was also no [Trouble Sense] either, as a derivation from [Danger Sense], a skill most guilders had.
However, if there was something she did have, was her [Discipline] skill, which pushed her right now to go up the stairs. Until now, she had been busy checking everyone completed their daily chores right after dinner, which thank the God of Night had been uneventful and without surprises.
But she knew things better and it wouldn’t be out of character for Ruby to make trouble again. While she was thankful of nothing happening yet, she knew the key word was ‘yet’, as it was just a matter of time for things to go sideways.
Now, however, her skill was tingling and pushing her to go to the girl’s dormitory, as she could hear the girls talking and gossiping. It was common behavior for them when something new happened in town or, more importantly, whenever Ruby was making a scene again. She had been hoping to get some rest before having to do her last check of the day, but clearly something was going on.
When she was up the stairs, she noticed a bunch of her girls already gathered by the last room across the hallway. The little ones already wearing their nightgowns — as they usually were sent to bed early — not even an hour after dinner, otherwise it would be more than just a hassle to wake them up early in the morning.
“Why did it have to be that room of them all?” It’s not like it was a surprise, but knowing she had to steel herself for the incoming confrontation was already anxiety-inducing.
“Move aside girls, make some room.” She said with a stern voice, candle alight in her right hand.
Of course the subject of so much talking was none other than the Future Breaker herself. She was not a fan of the moniker and was quite the insult in her book, so she would never dare treat the child as such, but she couldn’t help slightly agree it was a fit. While she wouldn’t blame Ruby for allegedly ruining other people's future, she could see with her own eyes how she kept on ruining her own.
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Always a troublemaker and bringing attention to herself. Worst of all is that many children had it way much worse than her and yet grew up to be way more. Unlike most, she had a caring brother at her side, a respectable one at that who always did everything in his power to protect her.
Hence, it became a permanent puzzle for her as to why had Ruby turned out the way she was now. She had given and done her most with her education, but that was never enough it seemed. It was never enough for any of the children actually, but she was well past her years to know she shouldn’t blame herself for that. That didn’t make the daily reminder any more bearable though.
As she made her way towards Ruby’s bed, the girls around her made room and went back to their beds or their older sister’s beds, sharing the space just to watch the show that was about to happen. Of course Sianna realized immediately that Ruby was the talk of the show once more, though she couldn’t help but be surprised the girl was still on her bed, bundle of wool on her lap.
“Now what is this fuss all about? Care for you to explain yourself, child?”
She looked at Ruby expectantly, waiting for an answer that hopefully would actually shed light on the real situation. She had told no one, but it was Ruby’s lies that allowed her to develop [False Truth].
“Good evening Mrs. Sianna. As per your instructions, I’ve been knitting. Hopefully this would be to your liking?”
Ruby’s dark brown fiery hair shone with the light of the candle, revealing a neutral expression, like everything was well with the world. But Sianna knew better and couldn’t help but feel alarmed at what she was seeing. Why was Ruby being so courteous? First time she ever heard her talk like that, and how was it possible for the child to actually have stayed in bed and follow instructions? What made even less sense was that she was actually knitting, at an incredible pace at that.
Had her journey across the bridge actually been fruitful and she had gotten a mentorship? Impossible. Not because she was against Ruby herself, but because she didn’t expect the child to actually take real action into that. When did she learn to knit like that? Sianna couldn’t help but just look dumbfounded as the girl kept moving her fingers with extreme dexterity as the needle moved up and down, around and in-between. She was no seamstress but knew a thing or two about knitting, and those movements included ones she didn’t even know about. “How is she even doing that?”
Many of the girls around her had similar expressions and were voicing in very low whispers and comments her exact same questions.
Then, her eyes posed on the offering she had mentioned. A neatly folded scarf was laying by her feet, a crimson red being its prominent color but there was something quite different about it.
As she took it in her hands and opened it up, she saw how it was adorned with a beautiful and cute pattern that depicted white snowflakes, but there was also a third color added. In different seemingly random places, there were little stars made out of golden wool, making it even more impactful than before.
As she woke up from her stupor and realized what she had in front of her, mouth agape, she couldn’t help but really listen to the new wave of comments and gossip the girls were riding.
They were not even holding back at this moment. What she thought before were the typical snide comments that girls made towards Ruby for her behavior, were in fact praises and comments on how cute and pretty the wintery accessory was. It seemed few of them had seen it up close.
“Did she steal this from somewhere?” It was her first thought, but it didn’t add up with what she was seeing the girl do at the moment.
But Sianna knew better. Being the only adult in the building and having access to her skills, she could do what no one else could. [Analyze].
[Crimson Scarf of a Winter’s Night]
Quality: Uncommon
Level Requirement: None
A scarf knitted by an unawakened crafter. Depicting a starry night in the middle of winter, this scarf gives the wearer additional warmth while in cold weather and adapts to fit comfortably around the neck.
- Minor resistance to cold.
- Adaptable.
[https://i.postimg.cc/XqcjfYqV/Chapter-6-Red-Scarf.png]
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Sianna sat on her rocking chair, the candle on her bedside table flicking from time to time due to the wind blowing from the cracks in the building. The darkness of the night was no one’s enemy around these parts and it helped soothe her rattling mind. Her thoughts kept going from one place to another, but always having the same person in mind.
Ruby.
She felt… troubled. She has known Ruby for years, even to the point where she could even predict some of her behaviors, but the young lady she had seen a few hours ago didn’t feel at all like the brat she was used to dealing with.
Her speech was different and the way she moved and acted was too wildly unlike herself. She had noticed this the second she got inside the doors, acting too mild, but during that moment she hadn’t given it a second thought as she knew she had to reel her in immediately or she would escape.
Now, things were different. The attitude was one thing, but what about her knitting skill? She had taught Ruby years ago how to do it, just like she teaches every girl, but the olive-skinned girl was never someone for arts and crafts. She was more the… jump and punch in the eye kind of girl. To see her so calm and knitting like there was no tomorrow was way too surprising for her; the moment she had lived still fresh in her mind.
Should she do something about it? She didn’t know. A lifetime of yells, lectures, and reprimands telling the brunet to behave properly and stop causing trouble had actually worked, but from one day to the next?
“Is this a blessing from the god of night?” She thought, godcrux on her lap.
If that girl had ever picked a knitting needle before, it was to try and take the eyes out of one of her bullies. Had she been hiding her talents all this time? Had she actually gotten a mentorship and someone else taught her how to do it? While she saw Ruby as someone capable of keeping a secret like that from her, she didn’t see her brother doing so. She would have known. Right? She was sure she would have known.
But things just didn’t fit. Her brother’s surprise was not faked. If she had planned this as a big reveal or something, why now? Why was Theo so surprised? Children, as children were, had this capacity to bring surprise after surprise to her much older soul. Most she could see coming, but this? It was too unexpected and out of the blue. Was she the same girl? Could this be a case of impersonation? Mimics were not common around these parts, but then again, there was much she didn’t know about magic and monsters. The possibility wasn’t out of the question, but why someone like Ruby?
It was still impossible though. While she could be a sapient monster, how was it that she was able to create that item? The system would have told her it was a monster that did it or someone who was already awakened that did the job, but it clearly wasn’t. No one had seen her even leave her room after she left her there.
The scarf.
She had never seen something like that. A scarf was a simple object and one even some of the other girls in the house could pull off without much effort, but to be recognized by the system too? How did she even add those patterns? It was beautiful and it seemed like an ode to the God of Night, for sure.
She was pleased with the crafting, even more so after seeing its description. To think that child could even make a scarf that gave something else than just the adaptability trait. She even knew tailors who couldn’t pull that off. She wasn’t even awakened and the system already recognized her skill to such an extent it considered it as a real item and granted bonuses.
A normal unawakened would have gotten a message like ‘common scarf made of wool’. An already awakened low leveled crafter something similar but just a bit more specific and, luckily, an added bonus, like the resistance to cold. But an item with a name?
She didn’t know what to make of it. Did Theo know? Was this his fault or was it something else? She just had too many questions and for once in over a decade she didn’t have even a single skill that could help her out with her conundrum. She knew most people would feel alarmed and ready to take action, hell, her predecessor wouldn’t have hesitated to get in contact with the guilders to check on the child, but she wasn’t her predecessor. She felt oddly at peace, and it was that same crawling peace that made her feel guilty.
Should she actually do something about it? Ruby was just a child, as every unawakened was, but did she truly feel bad about it enough to actually do something about it? At this point in time, Sianna could only assume that Ruby was either acting or something had happened.
She knew deep down in her heart she wouldn’t miss the back-talk and overflowing sassiness, but was that actually an impostor that could bring danger to the rest of the kids? A chill went down her spine, pushing her to her feet and forcing her to blow out the candle.
She had handled the event for the meantime, but was that all? To Sianna, Theo seemed to have his head on the clouds like so, expectantly waiting for the arrival of his Class, that he couldn’t see what he had in front of him.
Sianna shook her head, coming to a decision. Head hit the pillow and eyes closed in the dark. That night was different for her, for her mind was clear like never before, but her heart trembled like a baby bird.
That night, Sianna got a level.