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Sybil had never thought of herself as anything special. In fact she thought that, despite her teal hair and pet fox, she was rather boring. Then she met Jeanne. She had been helping him learn to read and write. Growing closer and more fond of him as she did. Helping Jeanne had given her purpose in this strange new world. For the first time in a long time she began to feel stable and dare she say it, loved. Or so she though. One day after attending a festival Jeanne grew cold again. Even started calling her woman again. When she finally talked to him about it he told her that he wanted to die. Being in love with him this of course broke Sybil’s heart. Memories of everything she had lost came back and she froze in fear. She didn’t, no couldn’t, lose Jeanne too. Holding him tightly she was desperate for him to live. “Don’t touch me. You’ll only become corrupted.” His words probably sounded cold but she could hear the sadness in them.
“You can’t corrupt what’s already ruined.” Her voice was small and full of fear. That was when Jeanne feared he was too late. He pushed her away and ran. That was the final straw for Sybil. She had been abandoned by someone she loved, again. With history repeating itself she did the only thing she knew how to do. Pretend she was fine and take care of the others. She continued living in the mansion even after the door to her own time opened and closed. Most of her time was spent helping Sebastian around the mansion. When ever anyone in the house asked her why she stayed she would smile and say that she was happier here. It wasn’t a total lie. This place was where all her memories, good and bad, were with Jeanne. For a while that was enough to help her get through the days. With those memories in mind she still offered to teach Jeanne or help at his weapons store. She wasn’t surprised when he said no. This didn’t stop her for leaving him tea and various practice books in the library before he went there every night. Any chance she got to help him even if he didn’t know it was her, she took. That was how she learned that Arthur was helping him now. He’s probably a better teacher than me anyway , she thought. After a while her mask began to fall. A person can only stay so strong when they face their source of pain everyday. Sybil began to sleep even less than normal and her smile was painfully forced every time. It was when she stopped eating and even turned down desserts that everyone began to really worry. Unable to watch her self destruct any more Mozart and Napoleon. Coming up with a plan Napoleon went to go see Jeanne in the library.
“Jeanne we need to talk.” Napoleon’s voice was stern and Jeanne looked up. When he did he knew exactly what Napoleon wanted.
“If this is about that woman then I have nothing new to say. She’s still better off without me.” His voice was flat and showed no trace of emotion as he continued to look at his book. Napoleon slammed his hands on the table in a fit of rage, causing an echo.
“That’s bullshit! Can’t you see how she’s changed? After she decided to stay we all assumed you two had worked things out. She even went so far as to say she was happy. Now though, she barely comes out of her room, and when she does it’s hardly for a moment or two. I can’t even remember the last time she ate anything. She won’t even eat the sweets that Sebastian makes.” That last part almost made Jeanne look up, but he didn’t.
“If she was fine before she’s probably just misses her own time. It doesn’t have anything to do with me.” Jeanne didn’t even appear to care and it angered Napoleon that he was hiding from his feelings again. In a fit of rage Napoleon grabbed Jeanne’s collar and pushed him against the bookshelf.
“Bullshit! We’ve all heard her cry for you at night when she thinks no one else is awake. Every time she says she’s fine it feels like she’s going to disappear. Do you really want to be responsible for that? I thought you were a soldier not a coward.” Napoleon’s words had finally caused Jeanne to look surprised but before he could say anything Mozart came running in.
“Sybil is gone. I can’t find her anywhere but there was a letter in the kitchen.” Flashbacks of Giles kidnapping her flashed through Jeanne’s mind. He snatched the letter before Mozart could hand it to Napoleon. His heart was banging in his ears as he opened it.
To whoever finds this,
I’m sorry to leave without saying goodbye, but it was just too painful. I don’t regret staying in this time period, or meeting you all. However I have to leave the mansion. It’s too painful to live here when the person I love doesn’t want me there. Please tell Jeanne that I’m sorry if I was ever a bother to him. I hope that he finds his happiness in life and changes his wish. Please take care of him for me.
Sincerely, Sybil Rose
There were a several water marks on the paper and the ink was smeared in some places. She had obviously been crying when she wrote this. Jeanne’s heart sank after reading and he didn’t understand. He had been so cold to her. Why didn’t she still love him? He didn’t deserve to be happy after making her cry. Grabbing his notebook he ran off without saying anything to the other two. He ran letting his feet carrying him. His destination was unsure but he felt he was going the right way. As if the moon was pulling him. When he saw the field of lilies he became confused. Why did he come here? Was he dumb enough to think that she would here? Maybe so but he still looked for her and he almost didn’t believe his eyes when he saw her. Jeanne called out to her and moved closer. Sybil heard her name and immediately recognized the voice. Not believing it she told herself it was just a trick of the wind. Then she looked to the sound and saw him. “What are you doing here?” The surprise in his voice nearly made her flinch. Of course he didn’t want her here either. With a broken smile she looked over all the lilies and then at the one in her hand.
“I’m sorry. I just wanted to see this place one last time before I left. You looked so happy when you brought me here and I’ll never forget the sound of your laugh. Back then I thought that just maybe you had accepted me and would let me stay with you.” Fresh tears began to pool in her eyes. “I was an idiot. I don’t belong anywhere.” The tears began to fall but she was used to them. The words she said made his heart shatter. To Jeanne she was the purest thing in this world. She always smiled and he never once imagined that she was so lonely. Using his speed he quickly closed the distance between them. He took her in his arms and held her close. She felt so much more fragile than he remembered.
“I truly am a monster for making you feel this way. I thought I was right to keep you away but if this is the result then I change my wish.” He smiled softly at her. "I want to stay with you and make sure you never cry again.” Jeanne felt so sure saying this. It felt so right. While he said all of this Sybil’s head was still spinning from the sudden affection. His words made her heart pound and she suddenly felt overwhelmed. Why did he suddenly care? It was confusing. This had to be some kind of cruel dream, but she felt so warm.
“Jeanne I…” That was all she said before collapsing in Jeanne’s arms. Panicked he gently sat on the ground, cradling her in his arms. He checked her over for injuries and was relieved to find none. Looking at her face however he saw the dark circles under her eyes, and he noticed how thin she was. Jeanne did this to her and would spend the rest of his life asking for her forgiveness. Gently scooping her up Jeanne carried her back to the mansion.
Several hours had passed before Sybil had woken up. More like a whole day actually and Jeanne was very worried she wasn’t going to. When she did wake up Sybil noticed that it was Jeanne’s room and not her own. Confusion still clouded her thoughts until she heard his voice. “You’re awake. Oh thank God.” She sat up and confirmed that the voice was in fact Jeanne’s. He was sitting in a chair across the room. Suddenly everything from last night in the field came rushing back. So fast that it almost made her dizzy again.
“Jeanne. Did you mean what you said in the field?” There were a million questions in her head but this was the one she needed an answer to the most. She had to know if it was real or not. Jeanne hated hearing the fear in her voice as she asked, but he what he hated most is that he was the reason it was there. Getting up from his chair Jeanne came over and sat with her on the bed. Gently taking her shaking hand he brought it to his lips and kissed it.
“I swear to you I meant every word.” He looked her in the eyes and blushed. With his free hand he took off his eye patch. He wanted to look at her with both eyes as he told her the truth of his feelings. “Pushing you away was the most painful thing I’ve ever had to do.” He spoke slowly so she wouldn’t be overwhelmed again. “I thought you would be better off without a monster like me in your life. It seems that was wrong though, and I know that now.” Still holding her hand he lightly squeezed it. “I want you to have a life full of laughter and say ‘I’ll see you tomorrow’ to each other every night. I know I hurt you but if you’ll let me, I want to make up for it by loving you properly. I’ll,” his words were cut off by Sybil wrapping her arms around him.
“Jeanne you don’t need my forgiveness. All I want is for you to live and be happy. If that’s what you’re doing then I’m happy.” That’s all she ever wanted, even if she hadn’t been part of it. Jeanne listened to her and then wrapped his arms around her.
“If that’s what you truly want then I need you to make that happen. Even after I pushed you away you still tried to make me happy and I really don’t deserve your love. Yet I’m so happy I have it. I don’t want your forgiveness. I’ll never deserve that.” He pulled back so that he could see her beautiful eyes. “I love you. So please stay with me so that I can spend the rest of our lives making it up to you.” Hearing him say all of this made Sybil’s heart feel like it was going to explode.
“I love you too Jeanne. A life with you. That’s all I want.” For the first time in months Sybil actually smiled. Jeanne felt so relieved that he smiled too. He brought a hand up to cradle her cheek. Wasting no time he leaned down and kissed her. It was soft and full of love. Jeanne had dreamed of kissing her for so long that it felt like salvation. He had heaven in his hands and he would never give her up again. After breaking the kiss Jeanne carefully laid down with her and kissed her forehead.
“Good night cherie. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow my love.” Wrapped in each others arms the both of them got some much needed sleep…