Love in Another Universe (Gabenath)

Search + Discovery

Nathalie vomits into the toilet of her bathroom. Her stomach aches along with her entire body.

She tightly holds onto the necklace in her hand as she empties out her stomach. And when it seems that her stomach has finally settled down, Nathalie only leans against the bathtub in absolute agony.

She stares at the miraculous in her palm, and its loveliness almost stops her lungs from expanding and her heart from beating. The jewel is truly beautiful, but her purpose with it is nothing but gruesome. Something drips from mouth and the sudden smell of blood invades her nostrils making her want to vomit once again. Nathalie wipes her lips and notices the blood coming from her mouth.
She quickly stands up, and finally looks at herself in the long mirror of the bathroom.

She is an absolute mess. Her hair is messy and completely tangled, and her face is sweaty and swollen. Nathalie can see the bruise forming on the left side of her face along with the blood coming from her mouth. She quickly turns on the faucet so she can wash her face and rinse her mouth. The cold water is not enough to wash away the awful taste of blood, nor the awful feelings settling in her chest. There's humiliation and great sadness in her with everything that has occurred tonight. Her heart has suddenly gained a very painful and dangerous love that seems to have come to destroy her.

———

Standing in front of the mirror, Nathalie finally puts the mouse miraculous around her neck.

Immediately she notices how the miraculous turns black with small red studs around it. The kwami emerges from the inside of the jewel and for a moment Nathalie looks at it as if she isn't aware of what it is.

"Hello, my name is Mullo, who..." but the kwami suddenly stops speaking and seems to be very shocked and confused.
"Oh, no! What happened to you?!"
Nathalie rolls her eyes at the kwami's question and turns around to grab a towel to dry her face.
"Are you okay?"
"Quiet." Nathalie says with her back still turned on the kwami. "You are here to perform duties, not to be asking stupid questions."
"I'm sorry." The kwami says in a low and sad tone.

———

Nathalie exits the bathroom and finally takes a seat on her bed. She removes her shoes and leans against the headboard of the bed and brings her knees up to her chest. She hasn't got the energy to change out of her dress, and there's also so much she needs to discuss with the kwami.

Nathalie looks up and finds the kwami uselessly hovering by the entrance of the bathroom. She signals for it to come closer, and immediately the kwami flies towards her and stops right in front of her.
"We will be going to a house, where your job will be to search for the peacock miraculous. I need you to search every inch of that place, and find the peacock miraculous. Do you understand?"
Mullo looks at her with confusion, not understanding anything of what has just been said.
"I'm sorry, I don't understand. Which house is this and who's house is it? How do you know the peacock miraculous is there and..."
"Shhh," Nathalie says, waving a hand to silence the kwami, "that is none of your business. I am telling you that we will be going to this house and when I tell you it is time to go searching for the peacock miraculous, you will do it. Do you understand?"
"Yes, ma'am."

———

Nathalie applies makeup to cover up the bruises on her face. Mullo hovers near her, watching her in concentration. It's obvious that her holder was hurt and she just knows who did it.

"It was him right? That man hurt you."
Nathalie turns around to face the kwami with shock evident on her face.
"That monster who stole the miracle box from the temple in Tibet because he so badly wanted to be the guardian and wasn't chosen and now has had us imprisoned for such a long time."
"What?" Is all that manages to leave Nathalie's mouth. Because she is now more than shocked, she is absolutely horrified. She has never known the past of The supreme, and it might be darker than what she could've ever imagined.
Bubbles leave the kwami's mouth as she attempts to speak again, and Nathalie can only imagine all the secrets she is obligated to hold. Maybe it's best for Nathalie to be ignorant to such deep secrets, she doesn't want anymore problems with The supreme.
"I don't want to hear you anymore, so be quiet before I make you stop speaking." Mullo only nods and keeps quiet once again.
And Nathalie tries her best to ignore the kwami's words but the truth is that this revelation has left her extremely stunned.