KAIROS (a Your Throne/I Want to be You for a Day Fanfic)

Chapter I: Selcouth

"Your heart and my heart are very, very old friends."

- Hafiz

Selcouth

(adj.)

unfamiliar, rare, strange, and yet marvelous

Psyche let out a yelp as her body jolted forward. Arms reaching forward only to catch the cold, empty air. Sweat rolled down from her pale face. Her lithe chest rapidly ascending and descending; mouth gasping desperately for air.

She remembered the agony of suffocation. Her consciousness slowly departing away, and her body going numb as she sank deeper into the fountain's cerulean void with Lady Medea in her arms-

Psyche blinked.

Lady Medea in her arms?

Green eyes snapped open; her fingers held unto her temples, trying to recall what happened next in her dream. It was all blurry.

Forcing herself to remember was not the best thing to do. Her mind refused to cooperate, and forceful recollection would only cause more confusion and pain.

Sighing, she looked up - unsuccessful and disheartened - when the realization finally struck her. She drew a breath.

Everything wasn't a dream.

Face, pale-stricken, as dread filled her being; her body trembled in aghast. She shook her head as questions flooded her mind.

How did I survive? Who saved me? Is Lady Medea alright-

Psyche stopped her train of thoughts when she finally digested her surroundings. She let out a small sound and looked frantically around the room, gaping at the unfamiliar environment.

She woke up in a large room, luxurious and designed in dark shades with the never-missing color purple, most likely a bedroom judging from the bed and the essentials placed. It was so different from her bedroom, but strangely she feels secure in this place.

Yet anxiety failed not to bubble in the pit of her stomach. Confusion and alarm consumed her body.

And . . . body! Even her very own body feels disconcertingly foreign!

"What's going on?" She asked to no one in particular. The puzzlement heightened as she heard the voice that came out of her mouth. It was familiar and it relieving away a significant amount of stress from her current situation. It was something that she heard for million times in her dreams, yet she could not put her finger on the reason.

She let out a giggle. "Oh, silly Psyche. It's your voice. Of course, it's familiar."

Her smile faded when she remembered where she is at. Her slim fingers reached for the silk bedsheets and grabbed into them tight, curling her legs against her heaving chest. Her chin rested atop her knees as she took deep breaths in an attempt to regain composure. "Clear your head, Psyche. Think."

But she could not think. All she wanted to do is to weep, close her eyes, and sleep her feelings away.

Psyche willed herself to calm down, bringing her thumb to her lips and bit her fingernail.

A dirty little habit. Her mind whispers.

In the corner of her eye, she caught sight of something shining. She turned her head towards the object. It was the bedroom's mirror sitting on top of the vanity table, with the moon's light reflected dimly on its glass. She gazed at the transparent object before deciding to rise from the comforts of the bed, taking a blanket to wrap around her body to shield away from the cold.