Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Today was finally here!

Sucrose hadn’t slept a wink the night before, Albedo was going to be showing her his next break through. He had seemed so insistent and proud; she couldn’t wait to see what he had done. Sure, she had been with him in the lab during his initial trials and writings, but she had stuck to her own business even though the curiosity was eating her alive. Her own work on plants couldn’t even compare to the accomplishments of Albedo, and she couldn’t help but let her mind wander to even more impressive feats it could be. Mr. Albedo had stayed countless nights by himself trying to build whatever this thing was, or at least gather everything he needed for it.

Quickly she put her hat on her head; she wore her Favonius uniform as always and smoothed out a few of the wrinkles in her blouse. Washing her face quickly, she tried to ignore the obvious bags under her eyes. It couldn’t be helped with how things had gone, and she wasn’t a great sleeper anyway. Though she wasn’t too worried about it, those of the Knights that she saw frequently were aware of her unhealthy habits, and no one would really bat an eye… she always seemed to be a bit disheveled in the mornings. Taking a few fingers through her soft mint hair, she nodded at herself in the mirror, tying her hair back into a low ponytail. Opening the door to her home, she hopped out and locked it behind her, a slight skip in her step.

The day was sunny, no clouds out in the sky and everyone seemed to be taking advantage of it. Kids ran around playing, and Sucrose could see the merchants setting up their stalls. It was beautiful, her eyes crinkled as she smiled brightly, she loved Mondstadt. Her walk to the Knights Headquarters was enjoyable, usually she tried to get there as fast as possible but today felt different. It wasn’t that Sucrose disliked the outdoors, in fact she quite liked nature. But she felt more at home and at ease in the lab, there she could always make sure everything went a certain way. Her books were alphabetized, labels on all her vials and drawers. The lab was something she could control. Usually. Unless she missed a few key steps or ingredients in her work, nothing crazy seemed to happen. Outside however, everything always changed. Too many people, strangers, animals, so much going on all the time. But Sucrose could appreciate how beautiful it was. The temperature was nice, with a slight breeze, and everyone seemed so happy. Sucrose liked seeing strangers happy, even if she would never tell them that or share a chat with them. Her rules were to keep to herself, she would help but always be out of the way. At only an apprentice, there wasn’t much Sucrose herself thought she could do but she knew she would always try. Mr. Albedo always did his absolute most for the Knights and the people. His inventions and insights helped a lot of Mondstadt’s growth, and Sucrose was proud to be his apprentice, hoping she would one day be just as amazing. Sucrose had her own dream and was adamant to learn everything she could to achieve it. There was so much to do, but her drive for her wonderland seemed to carry her farther away from people. The thought of friends and people coming into her life was a terrifying thing. Sucrose thought she had already had her fair share of relationships.

“Sucrose!”

Sucrose’s ears perked and she stopped, turning slowly to smile down at the one who had called to her. The voice sounded like music to Sucrose’s fluffy ears. It was like bells, and laughter.

“Klee!” Sucrose bent down, her arms outstretched as she saw the small girl smile and take a running leap at her. They collided rather hard; Sucrose was knocked back but held Klee in a tight embrace. “Oof” Klee exhaled a small woosh of air.

“Sorry,” Klee and Sucrose looked at each other, Klee seemed a bit uncertain, but Sucrose just gave her a warm smile. “Hello Klee,” Her eyes shone with warmth and love, Sucrose gave the girl a pat on her head. “What are you up to?” Realizing Sucrose wasn’t upset or hurt from her rough hug she smiled, “Klee, Dodoco, and Benny’s adventure team! We’re going to go camping!”

“Oh?” Sucrose’s mouth formed a line, “Don’t cause any explosions, okay? Did you already let Mr. Albedo-

“Yes! Brother knows! Klee already told him, and no no we aren’t going far! Just outside!”

Sucrose had no idea what 'just outside' meant but figured if Mr. Albedo knew and was okay with it then it was fine. If Klee was going to be with others, then they would take care of her. Conceding, the alchemist let out a small sigh, Klee always made her nervous. She was so small and could always cause such destruction and trouble it was hard to just let her go. However, arguing with the small girl was a losing battle that Sucrose knew all too well. How many times had she been in small arguments with the girl, only because Sucrose wanted to protect her, only to end up broken when she saw the huge tears in the young girls’ eyes. Sucrose always relented, which may have been why Klee always sought Sucrose out first usually before going to Albedo.

“Then I hope you have a lot of fun, when you get back, please come find me and tell me about it.” Klee nodded enthusiastically. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” To that, Klee scrunched her face. Right. Sucrose wouldn’t do anything at all, to Klee she was probably the nicest yet most boring person in Mondstadt. Sucrose’s idea of a relaxing or fun time was categorizing her flowers at home or remodeling her bookshelf for the tenth time that week by book color.

Waving goodbye, Sucrose dusted herself off and gave the girl one last look back before continuing her way.

As she walked up the steps near the Headquarters, Sucrose saw Venti who seemed to be… acting peculiar. More so than usual… was that possible?

The Bard seemed distressed, pacing like Sucrose had never seen, but then again, she had never seen him pace around. Venti wasn’t usually someone Sucrose looked out for, or particularly liked watching. In fact, they usually were always in different areas of Mondstadt they hardly saw each other. He kept eyeing the Knights Headquarters but never venturing close to the door. His hand rested under his chin as he looked on thoughtfully. Venti seemed to sense her arrival, he looked back toward her, and his eyes widened ever so slightly.

“Little alchemist!” he sang in greeting, she cautiously approached, trying to get inside and not chat. She had already spent far too long with Klee and wanted to get to the lab. “Hello Venti,” Sucrose bowed in greeting, and began to reach for the door. Her eyes must have played a trick on her, for a moment she thought her Vision flickered. Looking down she saw the clear aqua gem just fine, it gave a constant glow, nothing out of the ordinary.

“Sucrose,” Her hand was on the door, she looked over her shoulder to be met with a serious gaze. It caught her off guard, he looked…

“Harmless sweetie,” His face shifted quickly, smiling, and waving at her. “Careful hands and sure steps,” Sucrose tilted her head, he was going to say more, right? But no, the strange Bard spun quickly around and ran off. How strange, but she guessed he was just trying to say a nice greeting. Venti was as free spirited as everyone believed Mondstadt to be. Sucrose admired how true that seemed, and Venti was always such a jovial individual. The Bard seemed to always bring energy into a room - or at least Angel’s Share- much to Diluc’s displeasure.

Reminding herself of what was to come, she quickly opened the door and made her way to the lab. Forgetting the awkward and strange interaction with Venti, and any worry her Vision gave.

- - - -

“Mister Albedo!” Sucrose opened the lab door, only to squeak in embarrassment as Lisa met her eyes. Albedo and Timaeus were also here in the lab, and they nodded at her as they kept moving things around. Sucrose blushed; she hadn’t expected anyone but Mr. Albedo to be here. But of course, he probably needed help, and Sucrose was late. “I’m sorry for not being here sooner.” She played with her fingers, feeling Lisa’s eyes on her but not daring to look.

“Don’t worry Sucrose, I had already asked for the assistance of Lisa and Timaeus today.” Watching him, he seemed to be pushing everything to the edges of the room, stacking books, moving flowerpots and vials. There were papers stationed on one of the tables in the center of the room, with symbols Sucrose couldn’t quite see or recognize, but it looked of alchemy. Chalk had been placed on the table and there were many beautiful stones. “Can I be of assistance?” Sucrose asked, feeling a bit helpless and embarrassed.

“Could you please start placing those stones here,” Albedo motioned for her, and she smiled, following his arm. On the now clean and open floor she could see markings in chalk on the ground. It was a beautiful piece of artwork, Mr. Albedo had an artists eye, and all his alchemy looked amazing even in the early stages like this. The chalk lines seemed so even, and there were elegant curving circles and almost pinwheel looking designs. Had he done all this just this morning? The stones were to be placed in open circles all along the symbol. The rocks seemed to range in color and weight, and Sucrose wondered how long it had taken him to procure some of these… They looked to be similar to some of the ore at Dragonspine, as well as some from...Liyue? It was rather large, and Sucrose still had a hard time trying to figure out what exactly he was going to do.

Albedo worked over the large symbol, redrawing several layers from notes on the table. Taking and moving some of the stones carefully, and then stepping back to look at the work. Sucrose marveled at him, she had seen him work countless times, either working in his sketch book or producing things from almost thin air. But this seemed almost ethereal to watch. Almost like a performance!

“Mister Albedo,” Sucrose whispered, “Is this what you were talking about? All your research was for this?” Her eyes widened when she saw the glint in his eye as he looked to her.

“Sucrose,”

Her ears flicked happily, his voice… He was excited. His voice rang differently in her ears and her heart flipped. “I want to show you, and everyone this.” He looked toward Lisa, and they exchanged a nod. “Don’t feel too bad sweet Sucrose,” Lisa smiled at her, “I haven’t lifted a finger since I got here.” She seemed almost proud of the fact.

Taking some of Sucrose’s windwheel aster plants, they set them in the middle of the circle. The small flowers in the center dwarfed in comparison to the space and how large the work of chalk was, it was almost comical.

“What’s going to-” Sucrose cut herself off, she took a step forward, her heart beating wildly. Alchemy was always exciting. “It needs an electrical charge, but I believe we can move things…” Albedo put a hand over his mouth in thought as he looked at the circles. “If we can get everything correct, then perhaps…”

“Do you need something… more than flowers?”

“This is just a test, then we can work bigger. I expect if this goes as planned, we’ll be able to instantly move objects from Mondstadt to… Dragonspine. At least that’s the goal.” Albedo turned to Lisa, “Would you please?”

“Of course, I’d love to be a part of something this exciting.” Lisa flicked her wrist and a ball of electricity clacked into existence, sparkling wildly. Sucrose couldn’t help her curiosity, her ears fixed almost upright, pointed forward.

-Help!-

Wait. Sucrose saw a flicker of light.

Stop!

-Help them!-

Sucrose took a step forward, her heart hammered in her chest. Was that a voice?

Wait, something was wrong. As she blinked, everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. Looking down, she saw her Vision fluttering, the light dimming only to glow seconds later. So it had been flickering, it wasn’t just her eyes seeing things! Lisa was knelt down now, her hands fixed on the sides of the chalk. Something’s wrong!

Do something!

“Wait!” Sucrose yelped, Albedo had been to her side, and she grabbed at him helplessly, pushing him behind her and away as she stepped forward once more, but Lisa had already ignited the chalk with an electrical burst. The immediate sound caused Sucrose to flatten her ears against her head. Cracking and the splitting of stone erupted loudly; everything began to shake in the room. Was there an earthquake happening? Everything was moving! Unsteady, she took a few more steps to try to keep herself from falling.

“SUCROSE!”

Oh.

For a moment everything stopped, Sucrose saw the terrified expression of Albedo and … Timaeus was yelling. What was he saying? She couldn’t hear anything anymore.

Is this what happens?

 Where was Lisa? Behind her? She couldn’t turn or move her body. It felt heavy, but her heart thundered in her head. Water roared everywhere around her, was that the blood in her ears? Her body?

Am I dying?

Darkness consumed her, had she closed her eyes? But she felt warm. The loud noises were all gone, she couldn’t tell what was happening anymore. She was sure she was still standing; she hadn’t hit the floor.

-You need to wake up!-

Moving her eyes was agony, but she forced herself to look down. The outline of the alchemical symbols shown brightly under her feet. She had stepped into the circle. Her body refused to move, so she could only force her eyes to look around but there was only darkness. For a moment the fear that was tight in her chest dissipated, this meant Albedo had been successful. Right? She would wind up in Dragonspine if things turned out. But what if she didn’t? Would she die? Is she dead?

Sucrose couldn’t believe that in the moment, while the fear gripped at her again, she just stood there. This wasn’t her time, she had so much to do! She needed to stay with Mr. Albedo! He still had things to teach her! And Klee! Klee would come back and want to tell her stories!

Albedo.

Albedo!

Where is Mister Albedo?!

Physical pain began to seep into Sucrose’s body; her heart felt like it was being ripped to pieces. Waves of agony hit her over and over again, was she screaming? She couldn’t open her mouth. As she tried to cry out, light began to filter into her dark world. Heat, so much heat in her bones, muscles. There was an endless pounding, was it her heartbeat? Her skin was on fire, her very soul was being licked with flames.

Where am I?

Is everyone okay?

Mister Albedo please be okay!

The pain stopped.

She hit the ground.

- - - -

It was cold and wet, and the floor felt like the cobblestone of outside. Blinking around blearily, Sucrose still found it hard to see. Everything was… foggy? Was she outside? Taking a breath, her lungs felt like fire burning. Her nose and eyes stung. This wasn’t fog, this was smoke.

Gasping, she tried furiously to blink away burning tears. “Hello?” She croaked, but even in her desperation she still couldn’t bring herself to scream too loud. What was going on? Was there an explosion? “Is anyone there?” Staggering to her feet, she tried to ignore the searing pain in her limbs. Why was the ground of the lab different? If this worked, she should be in Dragonspine, yet she felt like she was still in Mondstadt. There was no cold chill in the air or wind, no snow. Sucrose felt sick, like she had just run several miles, and the adrenaline she felt before was leaving her. Swallowing hard, she willed herself forward, she could not afford to get sick right now. Her stomach churned with unease, but she kept walking.

“Anyone?” She called out, not knowing where to look. “Lisa! Timaeus!” The cobblestone under her feet stopped. Sucrose felt herself falling, her eyes widened, she couldn’t even see the ground! Snapping her hand up she brought a small burst of Anemo out to try to catch herself, but she overshot it. Her body felt like a limp ragdoll as she bounced up then felt herself plummeting back down.

“Mr. Albedo!” She shrieked, her Anemo had caused the clouds of smoke to dissipate slightly. Giving her a slightly clearer view of the area. Her heart lurched; she was outside in Mondstadt but… something was terribly wrong.

Sucrose lost her glasses in the tumble, she saw them glint for a moment, then the clouds swallowed them. She braced herself to hit the ground. Landing uneasy on piles of rock, she tripped, smacking her head against stone.

Am I dead?

I’m not dead. I can’t be dead. I’m in Mondstadt.

I hope I’m not dead, my poor flowers haven’t been watered today…

Wake up! This is just a dream!

- - - -

A groan escaped Sucrose’s lips; her head tilted forward as she pushed herself up with her arms. The ground was cold, wet, wait – it was raining. Golden eyes blinked rapidly as she looked around, her eyes and chest still stung. Her body lurched as she resisted to dry heave. Her head pounded; her breathing was ragged. “H-hello?” her voice was soft, there was no power behind it. No one would probably hear.

Get up Sucrose.

She took in a breath and used the large rock next to her to stand. Hold on, this was a slab… Her hands felt around the stone carefully as she squinted to take in all the detail. This was a part of a wall! It was on the ground? Slowly moving her head around, her eyes widened.

Mondstadt was… Mondstadt was in complete disarray. The rain had cleared some of the smoke, but Sucrose could see there were still small fires in the city, their orange glow lapping hauntingly at the wood of homes. Some of the houses she could make out seemed to have pieces of their walls missing. Or the roof of some of the buildings were gone or caved in. One of the large windmills that had been standing proud only hours ago to Sucrose, now was crushed and collapsed amongst the ground. The girl stood there, feeling another wave of nausea. Tears filled her eyes, but she blinked them away. Her ears flicked droplets of water from them, then pressed against her head.

“T-Timaeus,” Her voice sounded hoarse, and it shook slightly. Her body shivered from the cold, finally realizing the temperature. “Lisa…” Taking a step, she assessed her body, nothing seemed broken, just incredibly sore. That was lucky, thank Barbatos. Sucrose had to find everyone quickly, why was there no one around? It was eerily quiet, with all this destruction she thought there would have been screaming, or people running. Someone outside to see her or hear her, where were the Knights? Everything was wrong.

Eventually Sucrose found her footing, ignoring the pain in her lower legs, perhaps she had twisted something. Walking carefully along the road, she could make out the vague shape of the water fountain in the heart of Mondstadt. This was good, she could get her bearings now and figure out where to go. Finding her glasses at this moment wasn’t really on her mind, she wasn’t completely helpless without them. She wanted to figure out what was going on before she even thought to turn back to look. Approaching slowly, Sucrose could tell the fountain was also in pieces, the plaza seemed even more empty. The plants had wilted, the water was still and murky from debris.

Fluffy ears flicked forward; she could hear something! It… It sounded like… someone. “Hello?” Sucrose called out again, turning her head, her ears pressed forward and up high, swiveling frantically to figure out where they were. “Where are you? Can you hear me?” It was high pitched, the sound. Someone was crying! Was it a child? Her legs felt lighter as she jogged forward, past the plaza, and hopping down the split stairs. The Adventurer’s Guild was just ahead surely…

Sucrose saw a small figure in the road, she stopped for a moment. It was so small she wondered if it was an animal, but then she heard the wailing again. It was a child!

“H-hey!” Sucrose could feel the pain in their crying, her ears hurt, and her heart ached. She ran toward them, her heart pounded, and a sense of dread overcame her… Why? Why did this voice sound so familiar?

The child didn’t respond to her, nor did they seem to acknowledge her when she reached them. Dropping to her knees quickly, she wrapped her arms around their tiny frame. “It’s okay…” Sucrose ignored how her voice quivered. No one had come out for this crying child? What in Archons names!

“Hey, it’s- ” Sucrose felt the child move in her grasp, wiggling, still sniffling and hiccupping. Moving herself, she angled the child to look at her, she was going to give them a reassuring smile but upon looking at them, her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach.

“K-…Klee?” Sucrose’s voice was barely audible. Her arms shook, the small girl looked up at her with questioning eyes. This couldn’t be Klee, but she looked just like her. This girl had blonde hair, and her usual pig tails were gone, as was her red uniform. But Sucrose would never mistake those pointed ears, no one else had them. “Klee,” Sucrose swallowed, “It’s me, Sucrose,” Pulling Klee toward her, she scooped her up, cradling her. The girl – Klee- seemed to curiously watch her, then gently reached for one of her soft ears. “Suwose,” Feeling the tiny hand hold her ear, her heart shattered even more. Her tears fell this time without abandon, but the rain helped confuse the young one in her arms. This was wrong. Sucrose looked around as she stood, trying hard not to sputter or whine, hoping Klee wouldn’t start to cry with her. “Klee,” taking a breath, she steadied her voice. “Where is everyone?”

“E-one?” Klee looked around, and then the small girls’ eyes grew blurry again. Oh no, no no no!

“Oh Klee, it’s okay!” Sucrose sniffed, “Hey we’ll find everyone. Don’t cry.” She hoped she sounded even a bit reassuring, but Klee seemed content just to have someone with her now. Heaving Klee up a bit more to get her comfortable, she looked around. “Hello?” Her voice was louder this time, she needed to find shelter, someone, Klee needed to dry off. How long had she been out here?

“At least you don’t seem injured…” Sighing in relief, Klee just seemed to be dirty and wet at worst. But the unease would only lift once Sucrose was sure.

“Let’s go.”

Klee was silent in her arms as she walked, and they seemed to walk around for what felt like ages. Everything seemed so different, and it wasn’t just because Sucrose had to squint at everything. The town seemed darker; everything was broken but the damage was new, all this was fresh. Sucrose was scared, her mind retreated to the dark places of her mind, wondering if Mr. Albedo’s test had caused all this, or what if something else happened? Had Sucrose maybe been gone for … no. Klee was younger now, had she gone back in time? That sounded crazy, but Sucrose would believe anything right now. She didn’t want to believe everyone was gone…

“Hello?” Sucrose yelled again, covering Klee’s ear with one hand as not to scare her.  They found themselves passing the Plaza once more, the Knights headquarters were up the steps…

One side of the Plaza seemed ripped from the ground up, the stairs that had once been there were nothing but rubble. Time to walk to the other side, please let there still be stairs. They had to get to the Headquarters.

Sucrose was reciting the different flower samples she could remember in her head, to distract her from their surroundings only till she felt a small tug on her shoulder. Snapping to reality again, she looked at Klee who seemed to be pointing. Squinting in that direction as they proceeded up some cracked steps, her eyes widened, movement!

“Hello!” Sucrose felt a small wave of relief, there had been someone… someone was there, they were heading to the church! Her pace quickened, “Wait!” She almost broke out into a run, holding Klee tightly. “Wait, Klee is out here! It’s Sucrose! Assistant to-”

Clattering and banging could be heard as they approached the church. There were people inside! Lights!

Oh, thank Barbatos.

The door was thankfully unlocked, she pushed it open and stepped into the cathedral.

People sat in small groups scattered amongst the hall, sitting in the church pews or the floor along the wall. Sucrose had to ignore the obvious silence that fell over the crowd as she entered. “W-Where is Mr. Albedo?” She turned toward some people, unable to fully make out anyone she knew. “Is Lisa here?” She stepped further into the church, scanning frantically for a lab coat, or purple hat.

Her ears could hear whispers, were people scared of her? “I’m Sucrose, researcher of alchemy under Mr. Albedo. Is he here?” Her voice rang louder, and she began to feel sick again. Klee wiggled and pointed further down toward the front of the church. Sucrose obeyed her quietly, if she wanted to go this way maybe she saw Albedo or someone they knew.

Was everyone ignoring them? Sure, they were a sight, soaking wet, dirty, faces probably red from tears. But to ignore a little girl? Sucrose could probably fend for herself, but Klee needed people to look after her!

Oh! There! A familiar blur entered Sucrose’s line of sight. “K-Kaeya?” Her eyes that were once squinted almost shut, opened wide. “Kaeya!” The dark blue hair was a happy sight.

“STOP!”

Sucrose faltered in her step, her pupils dilated, she knew that voice… didn’t she? Her body was frozen in place, Kaeya’s blob was gone from sight. But in his place was…

“M-Mr. Albedo?” Sucrose felt her shoulders slouch, suddenly Klee felt very heavy. Her body was finally feeling all the stress. There was someone approaching them, they had hair similar in color to Klee’s. It was Albedo wasn’t it… no, no their body grew taller and taller as they approached. Albedo was the same height as Sucrose, so who was this?

Sucrose’s eyes adjusted slightly, as they grew near, she didn’t have to squint so much. This couldn’t be –

Albedo stood in front of her, he was several heads taller than her. H-how? Was this Albedo? His hair was longer, and a loose mess around his face and shoulders. He looked… he looked tired. Sucrose fixed her eyes on his face; he had a scar… there was a scar that wrapped around the bottom of his chin to his right cheek. “W-what happened to you?” Sucrose swallowed, her voice had cracked, her ears were pinned against her head in fear.

Wait – was she afraid of him?

“Who are you?” He loomed over her even from where he stood a few feet away.

“It’s me? Sucrose…” She looked at him in confusion, “What-”

“LIAR!”

Sucrose took a step back, gripping at Klee’s shirt, holding her close. Her ears twitched; she heard the scratch of metal.

Albedo unsheathed a sword at his side, “Do not lie to me again,” His sword was pointed directly at her, Sucrose looked at him in horror. She set Klee down slowly, “W- Mister Albedo!” Klee scurried behind a church pew, and Sucrose was left alone to face this… new Albedo.

“Don’t call me that.” Her heart couldn’t take all this today, she frowned, what was going on.

“You’re so much taller…” She whispered, taking a step toward him even though her body screamed for her to run.

Sucrose had never had her fight or flight kick in like this before, she could tell his face was terribly angry. He never lowered the sword. “Mister Albedo it’s-”

“I said don’t call me that!” He lifted his sword, taking a lunge toward her.

Oh, he really intends to kill me…

Sucrose stood, fear freezing her feet and her mind going black. She could never strike him; she couldn’t fight anyone here in Mondstadt.

“Albedo!”

There was a gust of wind, and Sucrose shut her eyes. But she didn’t feel any pain, or the sting of metal on her flesh. Prying an eye open, she saw someone in front of her.

KAEYA.

“Get out of my way. She’s dangerous.” Albedo growled, growled!? Sucrose had never heard such emotion from him before, especially such hateful emotion…directed at her!

“Albedo listen to me.” Kaeya stood in front of Albedo, and while he had always been tall, Sucrose could tell that he had also grown. Even though Albedo was now a giant before her, Kaeya still towered over him. His hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, and his hands were grasping at the sword Albedo had tried to swing toward her. Light plips came to Sucrose’s ears, her eyes widened.

Blood.

“Kaeya!” Sucrose moved beside him, and sure enough she could make out the red liquid falling from his hands and the blade.

“Don’t talk,” Kaeya side eyed Sucrose, “You’ll make things worse.” Sucrose frowned, what in Teyvat was going on? She couldn’t get a single moment of relief! As soon as she started to feel some normalcy something else had to happen!

“Kaeya, get out of my way.”

“You’d kill Sucrose?” Kaeya’s voice was cool, his eyes burned into his friends, Sucrose had to stifle a shiver.

“That’s not Sucrose!” Albedo grunted.

“W-what?!” Sucrose exclaimed, not her? How was she NOT herself!? “Mister Albedo what are you saying!” She gripped her chest, could he not recognize her?

“I don’t know WHO you are!”

“I AM Sucrose!” She wailed, all her pain and agony poured out of her. She held her chest tighter, hot tears falling from her eyes. “What do you mean! Do you not want me here?! I don’t know what’s going on!” Her voice broke, she was so, so tired. Her body was running off the last bit of adrenaline she had. “Is Lisa alright? Is Timaeus? Why are you so much taller and… and older? Why is Klee so young and WHY was she outside alone?!” Her sadness turned to anger, hot and wild. Klee was like family now to Sucrose, and she had always known Albedo loved his sister dearly. So why had she been outside crying? Why was he so mad? Why was he trying to hurt her? “You wanted to show me something and now, NOW, you want to KILL ME?” She fell to her knees, “I thought we were friends!” Her face burned with embarrassment, but she was too tired. Her emotions were running ragged. In this moment she knew people were watching, this was a show. Before, she wouldn’t be caught dead crying in public but… but how could he say this?

She felt Kaeya stiffen next to her, but he let go of the sword. Blood continued to trickle to the floor, the sound causing Sucrose to feel queasy yet again. “You would harm a friend, just to kill someone…who has been your assistant for so long?” She looked up, unsure of what she wanted to see. Maybe this was all a dream, a scary dream! Maybe he would come to his senses, apologize, help Klee, and tell her what was going on.

But none of that happened. He looked at her, frowning. “Sucrose was my friend. I don’t know who you are. You are not the Sucrose I knew.” Kaeya knelt to her, “Sucrose didn’t,” he paused, looking at her with… was that pity?

“Sucrose didn’t have those kinds of ears,” Kaeya tilted his head, “Sucrose was human.”

“W-what!? I AM human!” Sucrose couldn’t believe what was happening, her head reeled with emotions, desperation. What had she just heard? Human? In this moment she felt like the most human here!

“You can’t be Sucrose,” Albedo spoke once more, “You can’t be.”

“Sucrose is dead.”

He turned away from her, “Get out of here.”

Sucrose continued to cry, stunned, her eyes blinked rapidly. Dead? How could she be dead? She was right in front of them!

“I don’t – I don’t understand!” She wailed; fear eating at her yet again. What did this mean? Was this hell? It surely wasn’t any kind of heaven! Where was she? There was so much confusion in her, building and building. A dam was bursting, she couldn’t understand. “Albedo!” Her mouth felt thick, and she covered it with a trembling hand. Saliva built up in her mouth, she was going to be sick. The world looked to be underwater from how many tears filled her eyes. For a brief moment, Sucrose wished Albedo had struck her with his sword.

Warmth spread around her. Something was covering her. She couldn’t look up to see what it was, all she could hear was murmuring. Her ears failed to pick up any semblance of words, her body was no longer able to move. All her energy was depleted. A hard blunt force hit the back of her head, and everything went dark.