Everything was blurry at first. Muddled in gray, like trying to look through a foggy window. All the past dirt and grime muddling the edges of his view as he strained to see clearly. Blinking, the young man soon came to be fully conscious.
"Ah." A short, strangely soft exclamation left the boys throat as he woke up. This place.. he didn't recognize it.
Of course, he knew that he wouldn't. A soul suddenly placed into the body of a stranger.. Who in the hell would remember a world they never knew? As he had opened his eyes, the person now laying in a desolate bed had transmigrated into a body that was no longer his own. A discovery that he didn't appear to find particularly shocking.
Carefully propping up an arm as he turned to sit up, the young man seemed to be cautious in testing this bodies condition... Which unfortunately appeared to be exceptionally weak.
Groaning quietly as his head began to swim from the effort, he took a deep breath. The stale air circulating into his nose before escaping from his thin mouth. From what he could tell, not only was this person weak, but they weren't even cared for; layers of dust stretched beneath his gaze in confirmation of this fact. There were tracks from servants coming and going, and his belongings weren't exactly what anyone would call well-organized.
A few shabby vases filled with dead flowers and plain furniture without any remarkable garnishing sat within view. His bed only possessing sheets and a thin, cream colored blanket to cover him. A singular pillow seemed to be the only other feature as he continued to look. Even the desk resting just off to the side next to a filled book case looked quite old and tilted more to one side.
Taking all of this in silently, there was still one thing that really urked him. Not only was the state of this room lacking, there was also absolutely no one nearby to check on him. Although his souls abilities were dulled by this pathetic body, he still had enough power to know if someone was near. No one stood outside of the door or down the hall. He could hear no shoes nor murmurs. Smell nothing besides dust and moth balls and taste the still air mixed with musk. Most importantly, he could feel no living being within his proximity.
Well, this was certainly one way to start things off. Sighing with slight irritation, the young man struggled to his feet only after rolling his eyes.
'Eventually,' he thought, 'someone will come.'
Of course, if no one did he would just go out on his own. It wouldn't be hard. The only factors he saw stopping him were his current stamina and overall lack of any physical affinity.
Walking over the dirty floor barefoot, he found the wardrobe rather quickly. He had to labor to even make it across the room, but the boy managed eventually. The piece itself was a modest size, plain but functional. Yet, it was the mirror placed nearby that made him hesitate after approaching.
A full length mirror, seeming to be an antique due to its lack luster appearance, stood in front of him. Speckles of brown and black created a vinegrette around the person reflected back at him.
"What.." A pathetic, trembling voice fell from his lips as he shuddered. Even though he knew this not to be himself, seeing someone elses face reflected back was still a bit... unsettling. The sensation of such an experience nearly made his skin crawl as he became almost deathly still- if not for the natural shaking in his limbs.
Washed out skin with the softest tones of caramel spanned across his bare forearms and exposed body. Two moles sat just along the right curve of his jaw, and one more rested beneath his exposed collar. A deep chestnut colored hair ruffled over the top of his head, disheveled from a long rest. It was a boyish cut, now overgrown and in desperate need of straightening. His brows were an even dimmer tone, but nothing quite compared to his dark chocolate colored eyes. Overall, they were shapely and cosmetically pretty. Framed with espresso pigmented lashes, each orb looked naturally dilated which gave a softened conviction. Their only flaw, that he could tell, was the soul reflected from within. His gaze was too solemn, too mature in relation to such a boyish appearance.
Strange. How very, very strange. He was in no way a bad looking person. Many may even call him cute, but the lithe tone of his figure and naturally tired expression he gave off were exceedingly gloomy. He knew this expression well. The shallowness of his face, the shadow of his eye sockets.. It was the look of someone on the verge of death.
"What a pain." Stating his thoughts with cutthroat certainty, he shook his head before looking over at the old wooden wardrobe next to him. Everything in this room was so ancient, it was almost as if it were all forgotten. Including the sickly person whom had been resting from within.
Opening its creaky doors, the male easily found the source of the moth ball smell and frowned. All of these clothes besides a single vest and his shoes were basically ruined. Holes were gnawed into every other lump of fabric he could see, resulting in a mess of loose threads and frayed articles. He had to look somewhere else to properly clothe himself. Plucking the vest from the hanger, it took a moment for him to actually grasp what some of the clothing was. It seemed the fashion in this place was incomparably different from his home world where tunics and gowns were common..
The closest garments he could relate to these were from the country of Tehvey. A place that had been undergoing an advancement in technology and magical devices.
Carrying the vest and shoes on his arm, the dark haired individual soon found himself in front of a large chest sat at the end of the bed. Kneeling down he opened it and was again met with the smell of moth balls. These clothes weren't completely eaten through, at least.
Cutting his losses without so much as a sigh the young man eventually managed to get into his clothes. It was only when he actually seemed to look decent that someone finally knocked on the hollowed door.
Why they didn't just come in was beyond him. A greenhorn maid may as well think this place was deserted.
Not even being given the curtousy of granting permission for them to enter, an older woman seemed to barge into the room. "Aein, it's time for your-" Cutting herself off out of sheer shock, the woman's high strung expression seemed to become tighter somehow as her eyes shriveled with digust. Honestly speaking, she looked like she just ate something excessively sour.
Glancing over at her with an uninterested expression as he finished tying his thin, plain necktie the male appeared to silently acknowledge the use of a name. So, this boys name was Aein? It was certainly different from his own. Not that it mattered as he stated with a hoarse voice. "What is it?" Good deities above, even this persons voice was weak from lack of use.
Flapping her gums a few times- if only modestly- the maid answered. "... It's.. It's time for your check up."
Silence hung between the two of them for a brief, suffocating period of time as he stifled an expression of disbelief. Check up? There was such a physician that would "check up" on this frail, dying person? Looking away before he could sneer with distaste the man said finally. "... Let them enter."
Without so much as a curtsy the prune-faced maid seemed to tussle her feathers and skirts before allowing the so-called doctor inside. It was a somewhat younger man than her, but still middle aged. He had a softer countenance, if only somewhat stern. Like a father or guardian figure, if he had to compare this person to anyone in particular.
"Young master Aein, I've come to... do your check up today." Pausing upon actually laying eyes on his patient the mans gentle words slowed before finishing. Going to sit down on his bed (seeing as there was little other furniture) the younger man beckoned. "Please, proceed." This pair of servants looked like rabbits frozen in front of a predator more than people as they both blinked. The maid obviously stayed back; however, her educated companion soon stepped forward. His caramel brown leather shoes clicking against the filthy floor as he went to take his station next to the young master. "Then, let's begin."
