Second rule of Alchemy: For everything taken, there must be something of equal construct to take it's place.

Golden rays panned out in the room from the vast window, spraying everything with an amber sheen.  The room was almost completely barren, but still welcoming with angelic walls of white and floors of polished light wood. The only items in the room other than the white and brass bed she lay on was a pallid wooden dresser across from her, a brass serving cart adjacent to the bed and a worn white chair in the corner. She laid there bouncing glances around the room, combing through her thoughts and putting together different scenarios from the little bit she could remember.

For a while, she was sure she was in a hospital; the barred, colorless bed and cozy room gave her that hospital feeling, but after laying there for a while and not a single nurse had passed through, that optimism died along with any hope she had. Her entire body felt numb, she felt alien to herself—her own body had become unfamiliar. Behind her eyes it felt as if they were being burned, which gave her a massive headache, and by the way her body hurt to move she knew she was dehydrated too.  She swung her legs over the bed, carefully, the ache in her hips and legs almost ridding her immobile. She wrapped her arms around her legs, grunting angrily mostly because she was in so much pain and had no recollection of why. Get up—Get up, or die here. She repeated daunting words in her head for some time, until she finally willed herself to push off of the bed and onto her feet.

Nausea immediately came with the spinning of the room, and she could feel bile burning up into her throat. She knew calling out for help would be useless, since she struggled to even breathe. Her feet shuffled against the warm wooden floor, the malevolent sunlight burning her eyes as she hurriedly made it across the room. She reached for the handle of the door, and missed, as the door slowly opened and a few shadowy figures stood in the doorway. She tried focusing, but all she saw was a brilliant honey color before it was all enveloped in black anonymity. She heard a gentle man’s voice shout, “Catch her,” and managed to mouth the word, “Help,” just as she hit the ground and everything went silent.

****

The sweet smell of dandelions and apples hung heavily in the warm air. The sun heated her skin affectionately, like a welcoming hug. Slowly she awoke entirely, peering unbelievably at a landscape of yellow and green. Although she was unaware of where she was, it felt like she had been here before. She heard laughing coming up behind her, and as she turned around, her stomach and heart harmoniously jumped. Her eyes welled up with water, as she instantly put her hands to her face to stop the tears from making it down to her chin; behind her hands though, was a smile. Her mother and father walked happily hand-in-hand together, with her sisters, Lizette and Anna, walking on either side of them and laughing the way they always did at nothing. Suddenly, they halted, and looked forward, their question turning into thankful smiles. They motioned for her to join them but began walking away without any hesitation.

“No, Mom, wait! Dad,” she called out, but no one looked back, “dad, please, come back!” Her blissful tears turned into melancholy when she realized that every step she took closer to them, only made them appear further away, until finally they were gone; disappearing into the sky with a kaleidoscopic explosion. She dropped to her knees and sobbed into her hands, knowing that losing them twice would only come closer to ruining her completely.

“Wait for me” She whimpered into her hands, her voice nearly inaudible behind tears and a broken voice. Her body began to feel light and as she could feel herself losing her grip on the dream and fell into reality.

****

Dull whispers surrounded her even before she was completely out of REM state; mostly she was mostly afraid of waking up on an operating table encircled by a group of wicked scientists. When she became more aware of what was going on around her, she kept her eyes closed and listened, praying she was at least in the same room as before. So far, she was sure there were only a couple people in the room on either side of her, having a conversation—about her. It was obvious that whoever was in the room with her were only worried of what would become of her if she didn’t wake up, so she opened her eyes. She was definitely in the same room as before, only now it had to be very late; where the sun once hung earlier before, was now where the moon adorned the sky, glowing luminously. Leaning next to the window, peering out into utter darkness, was a man with messy, short, dark blonde hair, and his hands in his brown dress pants pockets. His deep blue dress shirt was half un-tucked and his suspenders hanging down at his knees made it apparent that he had been awake for far too long.  She turned slightly to the left where another man sat in the white wooden chair, his long blonde hair falling over his face. He hung his head low; he was barefoot, she noticed, with black dress pants and white dress shirt unbuttoned at the top. He rested his elbows on his knees, staring blankly at the ground; his suspenders were too hanging by his side. His light blond hair appeared silver in the moonlight, making him appear much older than she believed him to be. Candles flickered around the room, casting golden auras over the boys.

“Brother…” She jolted, turning over towards the man in the window, who was now looking at her. He stepped a little bit closer, holding his hands up to his chest and showing her his palms as to show her that he wasn't armed. She heard the floor creek next to her, and to her right, the other man was getting up from his chair in disbelief that she had even been awake. She felt herself wanting to ask so many questions, but couldn't bring herself to talk, so she waited.

It was the boy on the right that spoke first, “Miss—I’m Vincent Sarrow,” he held out a hand gesturing the boy across from him, “this is my brother Elias—“

“Call me Eli,” he said with a shy smile, “And, you are, miss?”

She hesitated for a second, feeling stupid for almost forgetting her own name, “Sera Fields--,” Suddenly her throat hitched, causing her to belt out in an uproar of coughs.

"Take your time," Eli whispered in between her frail weezing, "you've been out for a while."

Sera struggled to sit up, putting all of her muscle into just lifting her feeble body into sitting position. Although her body still slightly ached, it was in nowhere near as much pain as before.

"How long--," She paused, interupted by another wave of hacks. She gripped the side of the bed, digging her nails deep into the fabric. Her head felt light and airy, and with every shake from coughing it brought on a series of headaches.

Eli quickly turned towards the window where a glass of water was and grabbed it with a quick grace. When he turned back around, he held it out to her with eyes like a concerned mother and the smile of an innocent boy. When Sera noticed this, she tried to thank him, but another episode exploded from her throat. Sera reached blindly for the glass, and when Eli set the damp glass in her hands she forced the glass to her mouth and let the water fall roughly down her throat, cooling and cleansing.

It was moments before she finished after chugging the entire glass of water. "How long," Sera started again, swollowing hard, realizing that she may not want the answer after all. "How long have I been here?" Sera bounced glances between the boys with furrowed eyebrows, "and where is here, anyways?"

Vincent spoke hesitantly, like Sera would strike him if he said the wrong thing. “You were asleep for a few weeks.”

"And here," Eli took over, smiling proudly, "is sort of an Orphanage, if you will."

"Or an Institute," Vincent smiled fiendishly at Eli, "if you will," he mocked.

When Vincent and Eli stopped to face her, they immediately recoiled away from the bed. She tried softening up her expression from the reaction. Sera curled her lips into her mouth and furrowed her brow; she hated herself for being so incredibly emotional as she felt her throat close up and liquid shroud her vision. She knew that if she were to talk, it’d be a high pitched squeal and would otherwise cause her to cry. Sera sat there in silence. Vincent stared at Eli, trying to rid the room of the discomfort by focusing on someone he understood; Eli never looked away from Sera, though, his eyes overflowing with sorrow and empathy. He was always more fervent with emotions and Vincent knew that whatever this girl was feeling, Eli was putting himself mentally there too.

“Miss Feilds,” Vincent sat down at the edge of the bed by her knees.

Vincent’s voice, unlike Eli’s, was deep and serious, but much like his, kind and soft, with a slight English accent that made Sera shiver nervously. They were both, however, eloquent when they spoke, and had a tinge of sincerity with every word they said.

“We would like to help,” Eli glanced at Vincent and set his jaw, keeping his face serious, “anything you need.”

“We could take you home,” Vincent set his eyes on hers, “where do you live?”

Sera set the glass down on the brass cart and shook her head, “I’m sure I could make it from here on my own,” her feet hit the now cold floor and made her shudder as she pushed herself off the bed. Standing in front of the boys she noticed she wasn’t that much shorter than them. Her head still spun, but more slow and calm like a carousel now.

“After whatever happened to you, I don’t think you should be walking around at two-thirty in the morning.” Vincent’s voice became stern with apprehension.

“Look,” She changed her gaze towards Eli, unable to handle the anger-worry in Vincent’s eyes. “I don’t even remember what happened to me after…” Sera trailed off, staring blindly past Eli.

“After what?” Eli questioned with genuine wonder.

“Nothing,” Sera shook her hands towards the boys as if to erase the thought, “I just need to get home.” She said quietly, averting her eyes away from them, lost in thought.

“We could help you get there, should you like." Eli managed to get in, but his query didn't phase her.

“I'd rather be alone,” Sera set her jaw and sighed, ignoring the look in both of the boys eyes as if they had cared about her; but Sera knew situations like this better than anyone. They had helped her, sure, but Sera thought she knew them as if they were like every other man she had met. They wanted something in return. And what price does one pay for a life? “thank you anyways.” She felt a sharp pain shoot through her legs with every stride.

The boys gave each other a questioning look, but it was already covered with the sound of the door closing behind Sera, leaving the boys gazing wide-eyed at the lone girl willing to brave the city at the raw hours of the night.

The corridor was lengthy and eerily straight, with faded maroon wallpaper and lit brass candelabra’s adorning the walls. It was a tight hallway that made Sera feel like she was journeying through a never-ending labyrinth with no turns. The dark shade of the walls gave Sera a confined feeling, with the ability to escape excluded. She could feel anxiety rush over her in a constricting wave, changing her steady walk into a nervous sprint. Sera imagined she probably looked like a lost child; out of breath, panting heavily, and eyes full of frustration and distress. She regretted not going the other way when she came out of the room, and a part of her regretted leaving at all.

When Sera finally hit her first turn, relief rushed over her, giving her reason to lean on the wall and catch her breath. The hallway looked the same as the last, but aligning the sides were white, worn doors, and only a few had any sort of life seeping from underneath them in a white filament. At the end of the hallway, to her salvation, was a bright light; a sudden surge of hope gave her new energy to force her body into a violent sprint. Sera’s bare feet cracked loudly against the wood floor, and every pant sounded like the last melancholy breath of someone unready for death. She could feel her ribs aching with every narrow breath and her heart beat like a hammer against her rib cage. Sera couldn’t understand why she felt the need to get out of such a so-far welcoming place as fast as she could, but it wasn’t home—so it wasn’t necessarily safe.

This was the first room Sera had been in willingly since she had woken up and white was the apparent theme. The floors were white marble that branched off elegantly from the hallway’s wood paneling, with a chain of rotated squares in darker blues, oranges, greens, and browns centered in the middle. Pillars of white stone lined the entire circular room, blending in perfectly with the white and grey stone walls. The ceiling was a tall dome with crown molding of white, and most beautifully were the hung chandeliers of gold in a row down the middle, sparkling like champagne in candlelight. Sera noticed a hallway directly in front of her matching the dome room, leading to a reinforced door decorated with stained glass windows and elaborate carved designs. She peaked back over her shoulder where she came in from; the shadowed hallway with large dark red curtains stationed on the side almost beckoned her, but for once the comfort of her own bed sounded heavenly and her house would once again be home.

The length from the maroon hallway to the oak wood door was a lot longer than she figured, but she was only walking, and barely at that. Sera shuffled her feet to the door, bouncing glances around the dome room and the hallway duplicate, and the other hallways that one surprisingly split off into. The smell of something cooking made her stomach tighten into a knot, but the thought of her failure made her believe she deserved to starve, to thirst, to tire, and to ache. “Julius, you bastard,” Sera heard yelled from the hallway to her left where the delectable smell was wandering from. It had been so long since she had good company since the accident, though her hand on the doorknob, her heart was still there, begging her to stay—yearning for the warm touch of someone, anyone. Sera was too disciplined to give herself a reprieve though, a failure as big as her didn’t deserve be loved, or appreciated; so with a heavy heart, she turned the doorknob, already forcing herself to forget the kindness of the two boys and the sweet smell of a home cooked meal.

Sera had to pull hard at the huge door to get it open, the crisp aroma of a cold winter’s night slowly flooding in and ridding her of nausea like a prescribed medication. She stepped cautiously onto an ancient looking stone pathway, peering out at something much too beautiful to be in Charlotte. Her whole body was frozen, the long sleeves on her black dress kept her arms warm, but her legs and bare feet chilled in the ice winds and frigid stone walkway. But it was hard to completely pay attention to how cold it was from where she was standing; a tall, grey-stoned building with layers upon itself like a more modern castle boxed in the now seemingly small quarters she had come from. The building seemed to seethe supremacy the way it towered into the sky. The walls that surrounded her stood high above the ground, and were apparently made to be a way to transport one from the grey building to the domed one and the towers in the middle on either side. The area in between the two buildings, though, was tremendous and picturesque. A fountain of marble positioned in the middle, gleaming in the white light; a God, or the God, Sera figured, stood in the center of the water on a pedestal holding his hands wide open, palm up, and where it looked like magic should be discharging out, was where water cascaded into the fountain. Surrounding the heart of the beauty were shrubs of bright green, old stone pathways leading around the garden to marble benches, and multicolored bushes and flowers. Even more beautifully was the golden luster from the flame sconces and pathway lights, dancing harmoniously with the silver of the moon. The way everything gleamed so otherworldly made Sera feel like she had crossed into an entirely new realm; the world she knew was cold, and cruel, and unforgiving, not like this fantasy where there’s selfless generosity and man-made splendor.

To the left Sera almost missed a rusted, black gate, hidden by the immense size of an aged stone archway in one of the towers. It seemed to be the only logical way out, since she was sure that despite how nice the boys were, it didn’t have to mean that whoever inhabited the grey building shared the same morality. She rubbed her arms for quick warmth, and coughed from the ice air striking her throat raw already. Every part of her begged her to go back inside, but something else, something not her, dragged her reluctant body down the path and through the gate. The stone pathway discontinued, and lead her into a dense wooded area; in the distance she could see buildings and dim lights, and almost next to her the slow, tranquil rolling of a steady river cloaked any nearby sound and attempted to lull Sera.

No. No. What have I done? What. Have. I. done? Where she lived was a broken down shadow of its former glory; a melancholy town, thriving in sins and drugs. What Sera’s eyes were beholding though, was not said town. What she was staring at was a city full of life, with sepia’s, and gold’s, and greens. But however bad her town was, her house, her home, her memories, were not here, wherever here was.

Sera felt her hot acid bubble up into her chest as she dropped to her knees and retched; searing tears rolled down her cheeks, and every heave brought a new wave of yells and anger. She imagined she was like an explosion in this oddly quiet City; humility consumed her though, forcing her to cough one last time, and compel a scream into a silent weep. 

“Miss Feilds?” a kind voice spoke behind her.

Oh god. Sera hated herself for being so loud when she was frustrated. She immediately wiped her eyes, and tried to sniffle silently.

“Yes?” Sera wouldn’t look at them, and now calming down, she could feel the cold breeze off the river.

“You… must be freezing… “The motherly sincerity in this voice—Eli, Sera was sure. “We brought your shoes.” She could hear the rustling of the grass behind her as one of the boys dropped off her shoes directly next to her hand. She rubbed her fingers delicately against the worn leather on her flats, the feeling reminding her of how much her mother loved leather like she did.

“Something happened to you, I understand, but sitting outside barely dressed won’t get you anywhere but deaths door.” Vincent stepped closer, slowly raising a welcoming hand. “Please come back inside, we can figure out who left you for dead in the morning."

Sera cocked her head to the side, still embarrassed by her display of emotions. She was surprised; they thought that she had been in a homicide. Sera almost didn't want to correct him, figuring the real story was a lot less beleivable. "I don't even know either of you, or where I am. I'm not going anywhere."

Vincent looked up at Eli with pursed lips and questioning eyes. Eli shrugged back at him, and then urged him forward, mouthing for him to talk to her. It was true, Eli was relateable and ever kind, but Vincent had a tongue of silver-- and if manipulation and reason wouldn't get her safe back inside, then Eli was their last resort. So Vincent stepped forward, dropping to the balls of his feet hunched over. His eyes scanned her fret filled face, the girl unwilling to look at him.

"You don't trust us." His voice was deep, his tone set-- firm and buttery. Sera ignored his statement though, her thoughts and questions mostly on how much she thought she messed up, and why she couldn't remember anything in between the transportation. "If we were the bad guys we wouldn't have pulled you off the streets, nearly dead mind you, and barely ate, slept, or bathed until you were awake."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Sera whispered, "are you expecting some kind of favor in return for watching me sleep?"

"I--I, no, no, we didn't watch you sleep..." Vincent shrugged, "well, we did, but we are not perverts, I assure you. Just a couple of worried do-gooders, really." Heat rose in Vincent's face, he could sense the stiffening of her body and he knew he was losing her to the city.

""Worried do-gooders?"" Sera turned to look at him, stunned that his eyes were already focused on her, like he was awaiting her every response and move patiently and attentively. "Normal people don't take a random unconcious women back to their... home... without calling the police or taking her to a hospital unless they had other intentions."

Vincent let out a breathy laugh, though his posture gave way to something different. Offense, she guessed. "Miss, my brother and I are neither normal nor perverts with salatious intentions. We merely had the means to keep you safe and alive, and insinuating that my brother and I are depraved monstrosities is quite rude given the circumstances."

For moments Sera gazed at Vincent, and though he seemed frustrated it was almost unrecognizable behind his cocky smirk and slow, steady ogle. Vincent talked like every word was as graceful as a ballet, with ardent manipulation seething through his articulateness. But Sera was stubborn. Too stubborn to just trust a couple of boys, especially boys that appeared to be around her age.

"I'm not asking you to stay out here with me-- I'm not asking you for anything." Sera stared forward at the unfamiliar city and cringed. "I'd have to be an idiot to follow a couple of strangers back into some 'institute' or whatever the hell you called it."

To this Vincent laughed, though Eli did not. "Miss--,"

"Sera," She interupted, "it's Sera."

Vincent cleared his throat with a smirk, "Miss Sera, as much as I'm sure you would love to be left alone, I'm afraid we cannot comply."

Sera shot him a quick glare, "why?"

"We have gone through hell and back, and then back again, just to make sure you were going to live, so letting you simply up and walk away into the night isn't a clanger we are going to let happen." Vincent drew a deep breath, burning holes into Sera, though she wouldn't look back over at him.

"You can't stop me." Sera's voice was firm, even if she didn't believe in herself. If these boys were as bad as she thought, and they did have other intentions, there was no reason why they couldn't grab ahold of her right now. And if she ran, she knew either of them were capable of catching her, especially at her weekened state.

Vincent smiled wide, as if on the inside he was begging her to tempt him. "Would you like to test that logic?"

Sera's eyes widened, her body tensed up apprehensively. "Oh, that's definitely going to persuade me." Sera sneered.

Eli nervously ran his fingers through his hair, any moment now, he was sure he would have to intervene. Alternatively, Vincents was calm, his shoulders slouched and a poignant humour blazing from his expression.

"I apologize," Vincent tipped his head. Suddenly it struck Sera that these boys might indefinitely be English. That would explain their 'charm' she thought. "I didn't mean anything by it-- purely jest." He licked his lips and breathed in deep, Sera wondered if he had finally given up. But somehow she knew that wasn't going to happen. She was either going with them, or making a run for it. Suddenly he exhailed, as if he was ridding his body of every frustrating and angry thing he wanted to say. "Sera," He started so enchantingly that it rendered Sera tense and breathless, "trust me, trust us, like we trusted you into our home. I promise there is no foul-play here, we just simply want you safe, if not for another night. It's better on our consience that way."

There was something in his tone, soft and pure, and a posture that looked as if he had been opening himself up to her. They both were strangers, true, but not once did she truly feel threatened. It was against everything her parents had taught her, but Sera trusted him. "Fine," Sera turned away, "but--but I have questions, and--,"

"We'll answer everything in the morning."

Sera was clearly taken aback by Vincent's firm statement as if he could control her with his unwavering tone. It frustrated her instantly, someone she barely knew, keeping her from what she wanted. "What? No, you don't understand--,"

"Miss, If I may," Eli's turn. "We could all use some rest, you especially." He stepped forward, Vincent stood up, shoved his hands in his pockets and became entranced with the city over the river. He hated London, true, but at night it was as if it wasn't London anymore. "We promise, first thing in the morn we will get you back home and figure out what happened to you."

"Good luck," Sera murmered, now a little more discouraged that the real reason she was lost was a question neither of them could answer nor a problem they could fix. A heavy breeze burst from across the river, thrashing Sera's hair around her face and sending her body into an explosive shiver.

Vincent turned back to her and laughed, his hair blowing around his face. "I think that's our notion to get back inside." His eyes shown like golden discs, full of intrigue and victory.

Taking the hint, she slipped on her shoes, and as she turned she noticed Vincent’s outstretched hand and half-smile. Even just in the moonlight, the boys’ blonde hair shown like thin strands of lustrous gold; their eyes the same kind eyes, but different befitting colors. Sera put her hand in Vincent’s hand, his brawn pulling her weak body up with an ethereal ease. “Easy does it,” She heard him mutter and then fallowed behind her.

    The walk to the room she started in was silent; Sera tried not looking at either of the boys, or talking if they were much too tired to engage in a conversation even though billions of questions burned in her mind. Before they left her, Eli, the softer spoken one Sera noted, told her that should she need anything his room was down the hall. Now lying on the brass bed, the darkness enveloping around her, she couldn’t help but wonder why here? And, where was here anyways? She ran over and over again in her head what the perfect Alchemic Gateway required, and couldn’t retrace her steps back to her mistake. Her eyes grew surprisingly heavy with each Alchemy component, but a nagging thought kept her from sleeping: Why couldn’t she remember between the transportation? Sera felt somewhat violated, the fact that she couldn’t trace back her own recollection made her uneasy; like someone had stolen something vital for her to live. Her head ached and stomach groaned from hunger, Sera was partially pissed at herself for not asking either of the boys for a snack; especially Eli, Sera was already positive he would have brought her anything had she just asked. Damn it. The growls from her stomach only grew louder; she turned on her side and tried one last time to get comfortable. Her head sank into the white cotton pillow, and her eyes hung down heavily. She could see the kind faces of the boys, and the beautiful lights of the city, her family, and then darkness.