The Arcana ~ The Requiem of Lost Memories

XVIII- The Moon

1. Origins

The card indicating self doubt cleared our way, unlocking the door.
...This is certainly tied to my thoughts earlier.
That I am nothing special. That someone else might be better with that power.
...
Maybe... Maybe I should trust myself more. At least, that's what the Arcana tell me.
Perhaps I am strong enough.
Perhaps it has to be me. ....
...Maybe I am someone special.
I stand, approaching Julian and the door while drawing a calming breath.
"Yes. Let's go."
We step through the door.

The world on the other side is... strange.
We emerge into a small clearing in a deep, but welcoming forest.
It feels familiar, like home, the very environment resonating with my magic... Yet it is somehow... incomplete.
In front of us, a spring blabbers water in a small reservoir a few stone steps ahead.
But this is where this 'incompletion' already starts.
The water in the reservoir is... Not there. I can hear the bubbling of water, so actually there should be water. But there just isn't.
Instead, there is a pure, hazy void.
Like something blurring my sight, reminding me of a heat mirage.
Yet, that cannot be.
If that was the case, I would be able to make out particular colours.
But there simply are none.
The water is just not there.
No light... No dark...
A pure nothing.
Behind us, the door has disappeared, giving way to a path leading to a cozy cottage. There are more of these 'nothings', a few engulfing only stones on the path, others huge enough to devour whole tree groups.
It's quite irritating to look at... And twice as hard to describe.
"So, Hm. Any idea where we are, Akiko?"
Julian looks as irritated as me.
Yet... I think I know where we are.
"This... It's my personal gateway...
The place basically resembling my magic. Myself, if one wants to go that far.
Here, my magic is strongest.
With enough practice, every magician can build one of these, a gateway to the magical realms..."
I approach the reservoir, peering into the void.
"...But this gateway, my gateway...
It's... broken. Incomplete."
I wrap my arms around myself, feeling uneasy.
...Does that mean I'm broken too?
I mean... My past is missing... I know barely anything about myself.
And this place...
Two arms wrap around me from behind, pulling me into a warm embrace.
It's Julian, who presses a kiss to my temple.
"Hey, don't lose hope.
We're in this together. I'm sure we can fix this place. Complete your magic, if I got that whole thing right.
And if there's anything I can do to help..."
He lifts me a little from the floor, holding me tight.
"I will."
"...Thank you."
Julian releases me, snatching my hand.
"Now. Where to go?"
I close my eyes, casting out my magic. Everything around me replies to my call, amplifying it, drawing me to the cottage.
My eyelids flap open.
"There."

We approach the cottage and the door swings open to welcome us. As we pass the threshold to the insides, the cottage expands and lengthens, and within seconds we stand in a corridor that leads off to the horizon. On both sides, in the walls, dozens of doors and hallways reach for the horizon as well.
"Hm, well. That's a cool house ... So much space, while looking so humble..."
My gaze wanders over the doors nearby.
"...I built this place when I was a child... I read a lot, and one of my favourite characters had a house that was 'larger on the inside'... I wanted that too. I think."
My hand brushes over the wood of a door right beside me. The wood itself hums with my magic... But behind it is just this void from before.
"Key memories... Magic will lead you..."
I shiver.
Where is this voice coming from?
Julian tenses beside me.
"You, uh. You heard this voice too?"
I nod.
"Find memories... Unravel your past... Regain power that once was yours..."
I know this voice.
"Save the future... Find your family."
...It's my own. But... It's faint... Just like my magic right here.
Julian recognizes the voice just a moment later than I do.
"Er. That's you. Right?
But that's impossible, you're standing right here.
...I'm lost."
"I don't know how that works either... But she... Er. I. I think we should do what... I said.
...That's confusing."
Julian chuckles.
"You take the words out of my mouth, dear."
I cast out my magic again, letting it pull me forward, following the words of my other me.
Soon, Julian and I stand in front of a crooked, purple wooden door.
...It's the door to my family's workshop back in Bryndur.
"In we go, Akiko?"
"Wait."
I steel my resolve, pressing my hand to the grain.
"Behind that door... Is my old home.
...I don't know what else lies beyond it."
Julian squeezes my other hand reassuringly.
"Whatever it is, we'll face it together."
Heh.
"Didn't I say that to you a few moments ago?"
He shrugs, playing oblivious, but the grin on his face is too smug to fit in.
"Maybe."
I nudge him, pushing the door open, and together we step into the light beyond.