"That was fast." I hear someone saying to me. How was someone talking to me. I'm dead, aren't I?

"What was fast?" I inquire of the voice.

"Someone finding out who you are. Her favorite breakfast is jasmine tea with honey and lemon slices, stuffed French toast, and a side of sausage to feed to her cat, Sir Blizzard. Blizzie for short."

"How was I supposed to know that."

"Hmm, I guess you being able to access her memories is random. Also, I wasn't even sure that you would be able to. As the god of this world I should have somehow checked beforehand. Well, I am still learning all of this as I go and making up arbitrary rules." he says and gives a loud laugh. "Who knew your first death would come so soon." he says, laughing so hard tears form in his eyes. It is at this moment that I realize I am able to see him.

He is tall and finely built. Very handsome. Long blond hair and bright eyes that seem to reflect a multitude of colors. They are gorgeous to look at. He has a genuine smile playing over his lips and he reaches out to me.

"Want a hug to make you feel better?" he asks me.

"I don't hug strangers."

"I have a feeling that you and I aren't going to be strangers for very long." he tells me warmly, although I somehow feel that those words are rather ominous. "My name is Alias and I am the god of this world."

"You are the god of this world. You mean this game.?"

"Did that feel like a game to you?" he asks me. I touch my fingers to my neck.

"No. It didn't." I tell him honestly.

"That's because this isn't a game. Or it wasn't originally. I would tell you more but it is time for you to wake up. Remember your favorite meal and what you did yesterday."

Everything goes dark and I once more feel the plush softness of the bed I had woken up in only a few hours before. Or had it even been that long?

"Good morning, Aria! Sleeping in late this morning?" says the now familiar voice of Poppy. I inwardly shutter. "Oh, goodness Aria, what happened to your neck? Did you scratch yourself while sleeping? You haven't gone back to hurting yourself, have you? I thought that you outgrew that."

"I have no idea what you are talking about so I must have scratched myself in my sleep. Am I bleeding?" I ask her, hoping that I wasn't. Didn't time rewind?

"Ah well. It did sound like you were tossing and turning a lot right before I came in. It looks like it bled just a tiny bit but has already closed up."

"Well that's a relief. I bet a bit of make-up will cover it up. After all, I plan to go out and about today. No use sulking about yesterday. If he messes with me again maybe I really should go dump a bucket of horse urine all over his bed."

"Don't you want to do that anyways?" she asks me. I glance at the suspicion bar. It had the smallest bit of color in it but didn't seem to be growing.

"He isn't worth my time right now. Also, I want the threat to linger in his mind. I want him to worry himself over it. Is today the day that his bed is going to be full of horse urine, or will that be tomorrow? I want it haunting his thoughts. Seeing him agonize over it is too sweet to give up so soon." I tell her, trying to have my voice full of malice. Is it working?

"Oh Aria, you are simply too funny." she says and laughs. Loudly.

"Care to share some breakfast together we me?" I ask her. I see the color bar increase slightly again.

"We always eat our meals together, whenever we can. Did you have plans that I didn't know about?" she asks, curiosity. "Did you cancel plans for me?"

"I had considered going out this morning, getting breakfast near the barracks and just watching Heinrick. Just stare at him while eating. But I realized once I woke up that staring at him while eating would just give me indigestion."

She laughs again and I see color increase the smallest amount on the affection meter. I know what happens if the suspicion bar fills all the way up, but what happens if the affection meter does. Oh well, I am not sure what I am going to have to do in order to fill it, so I suppose I will simply have to wait to find out.

"Stay here and wash your face and I will go get breakfast."

"Oh! Can you bring me my favorite this morning? Stuffed French toast, jasmine tea with honey and lemon and a side of sausages?" I ask her.

"I was already planning to. And you don't have to tell me your favorite every time. I know it by now. Just because I've messed it up once or twice doesn't mean I forgot. I did it those times intentionally, intentionally I tell you!" she says and walks out of the room.

While she is away from the room, I go to the place I found my diary, a purse hidden in the back of my large closet and sit down to look it over.

Have mercy on me, this girl has this in sections. Irick, Jeofry, Heinrick, Jason, Iris. I flip it open to a random page. It has a date and the things that Poppy and I did to that person that day. And in a different color ink I see things that I lied about doing. Why would Aria need to lie about bad things that she did. I have a small suspicion itching at the back of my brain, but I push it away. Aria was the villainess, maybe she said these things just to boost her reputation.

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Planning to read more later, I put the diary back where I found it and look through my clothing. Does someone pick out my clothes for me or am I allowed to pick them out for myself?

"Here comes the foooood!" Poppy sings as she pushed the door open. I see a small white animal following behind her. Oh! That must be Sir Blizzard.

"It seems that Blizzie wanted to come get some breakfast with us." I say happily, taking my seat at the small table.

"Were you looking for an outfit for the day?" she asks me. "You always are so stylish." she says, giving me a compliment. Does Poppy normally compliment Aria randomly?

"I am, aren't I?" I say haughtily.

"I like this mood better than you sulking. I am glad that you bounced back so fast. I guess it was only Heinrick that offended you yesterday and not Jason."

"You aren't wrong about that." I tell her. I remember that while playing the game there was a scene where Jason told off Aria for something she had supposedly done. Aria had screamed at him about not having proof and you could see that she was crying when she ran away. Does Aria still have feelings for Jason, or did it just hurt seeing her childhood friend attacking her like that.

"Of course, I'm not wrong. He was the one in the wrong, ditching you because he wants to sleep with Iris. I wonder if he finally has or not, the way that he fawns on her. But I haven't heard anything. Are you sure you don't want to spread rumors about her sleeping with Jason as well?" she asks.

As well? Does that mean that Iris is already having sex with one of the male suitors or did we just lie about it?

"Didn't you tell me that you once caught her half naked with your brother?"

"Don't call that arrogant prat my brother." I say. It came out so naturally. I must have heard Aria say it in the game or something.

"Haha I just had to make sure that he hadn't won you over. Although, hasn't he been even more of an arrogant ass than before recently?" she asks, and seems genuinely curious as to how I feel about it.

"As if he could get any worse." I say and let out a groan before stuffing a bite of French toast in my mouth. I see a little more color go into her affection bar. Not much, but a little. Ah, I guess she really does like sitting and trash talking others.

"I didn't think he could, but I swear that he did!" she says loudly. I hope no one hears her.

"I suppose you could be right." I say and rip a piece off of the sausage and feed it to Blizzie. I see his affection bar jump almost all the way up. Guess it isn't hard to win over this little one. I'll just keep on feeding him. I know that I am not his true owner, but I am going to love him like I am.

At this thought, a pain lances through my heart. I wonder how Snowy is doing without me. I hope someone notices that I am not there and goes to feed her. Maybe if I am not on my streams one of my followers will become a stalker, find out where I live, and feed Snowy. Kind of an uncomfortable thought, but I want her fed.

I sip at my tea and continue eating my food. it is even more delicious than my first breakfast.

"Let's go to the baths together after we are done eating, shall we? And you can tell me all about your plans for the day." Poppy says, leaning back a bit in her chair and resting a hand on her stomach.

"The food here is always so good." she says happily.

"I completely agree. And yes, let's." This will be helpful. I do need to know where the baths are. I know that many nobles and royals bathe in their rooms, but some of us have luxury and dedicate an entire room just to a large baths of different temperatures. I know this from the game, but I don't know how to get to the baths.

We finish off our food and Poppy throws open my closet. "Let's see what you should wear today. I know you said that you were going to pick out your outfit, but you just got in new clothes that I haven't had a chance to see yet!"

I hear her shuffling through my clothes and get curious myself. I end up in the closet alongside of her.

"Well, what do you think. I really do have the best taste, don't I?" I ask her.

"You really dooooh!" she says, her do turning into an oh!

"You must wear this blue one, I insist, I absolutely insist." she says and passes me a blue dress. Unlike most of the women in the game, Aria does not wear poofy or frilly dresses. She wears gowns of varying color and length. Luckily, she isn't one to always be showing a ton of cleavage. I actually love her dresses.

"Oh, you are so right, I want to wear this one. Oh. Since I got new clothes, feel free to take my oldest dresses if you wish." I say, and gesture at my closet. I watch her bars to see if that was the wrong response. I see her affection go up a small bit.

"You are always so generous." she says and paws through my gowns, pulling out a handful. This helps her, and it also helps me know which ones are too last season. Although, I doubt as the king's stepdaughter that many of my clothes are out of fashion.

"Yes, yes I am so benevolent. Hurry and pick your clothes so we can go bathe." I tell her, letting a little exasperation come through in my voice. Poppy just laughs it off and tosses me a pair of underwear, bra and some shoes.

"Thanks." I say and we leave the room. Poppy picks out a golden yellow gown, with a little bit of ruffles at the bottom, one I most likely never wore, to go with her eyes and her glossy blond straight hair.

Poppy and I walk down the halls and I look around me, trying to memorize the directions. I also notice that this part of the castle is in need of some repairs and is very poorly maintained. Ah well, I am his stepdaughter. I guess looking at me may remind him too much of his dead wife. I wonder if he loved her? I know that he loved Irick's mother.

I look at the walls and see if there is any decoration, and I see some tapestries that seem to have been ripped. I wonder who did that? I hope that it wasn't me in the grief of my mother's death. As I think that, a memory flows into my mind.

"Aria. what do you think that you are doing? Why are you destroying those banners? Those were your mothers!"

"My mothers? These never belonged to her. She hated these banners. We used to sit together and talk about how we would decorate our section of the castle." I shout at the king.

"Why didn't either of you ever tell me this?" he shouts back at me.

I reach up, grab another tapestry and tear it in front of him. He grabs me by the shoulders and yanks me away from the walls.

"I insist that you stop." he hisses.

"And if I don't?"

"I suppose it doesn't matter. I won't get you any new things for this wing of the castle just for you to destroy and not appreciate."

I consider spitting at him and instead turn on my heel and lock myself in my room.

I guess I did destroy them in my grief. I have decided just to think about myself as Aria now. I am living her life and need to effectively be her to not continue to fill up other's suspicion bars.

"And here we are!" Poppy sing-speaks to be again. I wonder if this is a habit of hers? I am assuming that it is. She holds the door open and waits for me to go in. I do not keep her waiting and make my way through the doors.

I glance around and see a small room, which we walk inside. We hang up our changes of clothing, strip down, wrap towels around ourselves, and go to choose our baths.

"Checkpoint" I hear a voice in my head say. Why have I reached a check-point, and what does that even mean?

"Well Aria, what are you waiting for? Aren't you going to get in the bath?"