Fate/Eva Frankenstein

"Even the darkest night will end with the rising of the sun."

-Victor Hugo

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Chapter 10: Thank You.

Chamonix, Switzerland - Winter 1836

Pov. Third person.

Eve woke up with her eyes half-closed.

The first thing she noticed was the smell of fresh bread coming from downstairs.

The second was the warmth of a small figure huddled beside her bed, her head resting on the mattress.

A little girl. Lilia.

Asleep, her hair slightly disheveled and her cheeks rosy. Her small hand gently gripped the sheet.

Eve watched her in silence for a few moments.

Then her expression softened.

"…At least that wasn't a dream," she whispered, almost in relief.

With unexpected tenderness, she reached up and gently stroked the child's hair.

Lilia frowned, shifting slightly. She blinked a couple of times before opening her eyes.

"Sister... Blanche?"

Eva took a second to respond. Then she smiled.

A weak smile... but a real one.

"Hello, little... Lilia. Did I wake you?"

The girl blinked once more, and then, without warning, threw herself at her in a hug.

"Sister Blanche!"

Eva froze. Her entire body tensed instantly, as if an internal alarm had gone off.

Hugs... had ceased to be comforting to her since Victor's death.

Her body remembered more than she wanted.

Like a curse burned viciously into her skin.

But...

Then she remembered another hug.

A different one.

The one with the monster in that cavern.

The one where she didn't run away.

Where she held... and was held.

So, slowly, with a little hesitation… she raised her arms.

And, for the first time in years, she returned a hug.

It didn't hurt.

She wasn't short of breath.

She didn't feel the urge to scream or to get away.

Just warmth. Soft. Quiet.

Warm.

"...Huh," she murmured to herself, surprised. "It doesn't feel bad."

Lilia quickly pulled away, as if she'd remembered something important.

"Mom! Mom!! Sister Blanche woke up!" she shouted loudly as she ran down the stairs.

Eva was alone for a moment, still sitting up in bed, her nightgown wrinkled and her hair a bit disheveled.

She looked at her own hand.

The one she'd used to return that gesture.

And she sighed.

A sigh that took with it a small but ancient shadow.

She had woken up.

And she was home.

Well, at least for now.

She looked at her hand a little more and squinted when she noticed it was completely bandaged. She checked the rest of her body—slowly because of the pain—and saw that most of it was in that state.

"It reminds me of my early days..." Eva whispered, her first days at the mansion coming back to her. After her "rebirth."

Though she frowned a moment later and placed one hand on the side of her head, the other on her forehead. All the metallic "encrustations" she had.

If they checked her completely, that means...

She pressed her lips together, and a sick feeling settled in her stomach.

She hoped not...

She stopped.

Her gaze wandered around the room until it rested on a coat rack by the window.

There hung her old black cloak.

The fabric had been carefully mended, and it hung with a quiet, almost forgotten elegance. She hadn't worn it for years.

Eva narrowed her eyes.

"Emma gave it to me..." she whispered, almost without realizing it.

A gift. An almost maternal gesture from one of the few people who had ever sincerely cared for her.

After that, she'd bought a cheaper one, a dull brown, to prevent it from getting damaged.

She hadn't used it again since... since that day.

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Three years ago.

Pov. Eva.

It was one of those days where the sky seemed too blue to be real. The sun filtered its warmth through the clouds and the wind gently rustled the trees along the road. It wasn't cold or hot. Just... calm.

I remember thinking that maybe the world had already decided to move on without me.

I was moving along in a similar way to how I had after Victor's death. With no clear direction and looking more than anything to distract my mind.

Then, I saw them.

A wagon stopped on the side of the road.

The axle was bent, one of the wheels had rolled half a meter, and the coachman—a thin man with a tilted hat—wiped the sweat from his forehead as he tried in vain to raise the vehicle.

On the seat, a woman with a round face and a worried expression held a small girl to her chest. The two of them stared uneasily at the problem, unable to do much more than wait.

I didn't mean to stop.

I just wanted to keep going. Without looking back.

But they saw me.

Me, covered in the black cloak Emma had given me. My body was covered in old, somewhat dirty clothes, with noticeable mud stains on the hem of the dress. In each hand, a suitcase: the long one, containing my only dangerous possession; the wide one, containing everything else that still mattered to me.

Their eyes met mine.

And, against all my plans, I let out a sigh… and approached.

"Do you need help?"

My voice sounded raspy even to me, but it didn't tremble.

The coachman almost knelt with relief.

"Yes! Yes, please!" We just need to lift it up a bit!

I dropped my bags on the ground. I crouched down beside the vehicle. I examined it. Old, but sturdy.

Then, I picked him up.

His reactions were as expected.

The coachman staggered back.

The woman—whom I later learned was Madame Louise—opened her eyes wide, and her daughter, that little girl with brown hair and braids, looked at me as if she'd seen a storybook heroine.

I said nothing more.

When the carriage was fixed, I grabbed my bags and turned, ready to disappear back down the road.

"Wait!" the woman called. "At least tell us your name. Where are you going?"

I stopped.

I stood still for a moment, the wind barely stirring my cloak. I thought about lying. I thought about moving on. But... for some reason... I didn't.

"To Chamonix," I finally answered. "They say it's a... peaceful place."

"We live there!" she exclaimed, relieved. "If you want, we can take you." You'd make us feel safer, too. It's the least we can do.

I looked up at the sky.

Blue. Silent. Too quiet.

And then the little girl—Lilia—poked her head over the edge of the seat. She smiled at me. Small, naive, sincere.

And for some reason… that got the better of me.

"Okay," I said, and approached slowly.

"And your name?" Madame Louise asked, extending her hand.

I stopped. My lips tightened. But then…

"…Blanche. Call me Blanche."

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Present moment.

She blinked.

Her eyes returned to the coat rack, where the black cape still rested silently.

A slightly nostalgic smile crossed her face.

"Emma... I still have it."

And this time, it didn't hurt to say it.

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A few minutes later.

The morning light still filled the small room with golden hues when the door opened again.

Eva didn't need to turn her head to know who it was.

Hurried footsteps, punctuated by an emotional restraint that wasn't entirely concealed.

"Eva!" Madame Louise exclaimed, dropping a tray with a soft clatter on the edge of the small table next to her bed.

She ran to her and, without thinking, hugged her tightly.

"Oh, thank heavens! You're alive! You're okay! You're awake!"

Eva let out a stifled moan.

"Ughh—! Careful!" she moaned, her face twisting with the pain still coursing through her body.

Louise pulled away instantly, as if cold water had been thrown on her.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, my girl!" she exclaimed, bringing her hands to her lips.

Tears were already running down her cheeks as she looked at her with relief and fear at the same time. "It's just that you were so hurt. The doctor said we lost you several times. And then you wouldn't wake up... we thought... that you wouldn't open your eyes again."

She spoke the last words aloud, as if she feared they might still come true.

"How... long was I like this?... unconscious?" Eva asked hesitantly. Her voice was a little raspy and hoarse.

Louise wiped her tears as best she could.

"A little over... ten days. You've been asleep since we found you in the woods. You were... devastated."

"Ten days..." Eva repeated softly.

It wasn't as long as she thought.

And yet, in that time, her body—the same one that had endured torture, lightning, and ice—was only just beginning to return to normal.

A pang ran down her ribs as she took a deep breath.

Louise took her hand carefully, with maternal tenderness.

"Thank you. Truly, thank you, Blanche. Little Anna... my beloved Lilia... and the other girls are safe and sound thanks to you."

Eva closed her eyes for a few seconds.

It wasn't time to think about that. Not yet.

First… she had to be able to sit without feeling her body split in two.

"…I couldn't lose another person I care about," she finally whispered.

With an effort, she sat up a little in bed, barely supporting herself on one elbow.

She looked seriously at Madame Louise, who was still beside her.

"Louise…" she said in a low but firm voice. "Why did that man have Lilia?"

The atmosphere changed immediately.

The faint smile the woman still had disappeared. Her expression tensed, and she lowered her gaze.

Silence.

Only the distant sound of birds and branches swaying in the wind outside.

"We were worried," Louise finally began, her voice strained. "It was getting late, but you didn't come back… and someone said you had closed the bakery early. Besides, there were some strange rumors about you. We didn't know what to think."

"So I went out looking for you."

She bit her lower lip, visibly embarrassed.

"Lilia... she wanted to come with me. I told her it was very dangerous, but she managed to convince me. You know, that little girl always knows how to get to me," she added with a broken smile.

Eva watched her, allowing her to continue. Although she already roughly deduced what had happened.

"I told her not to let go of my hand at any time. Not to go far, not to speak to anyone." Her eyes began to shine with fresh tears. "But when we searched near the river... I only looked away for a moment... just a moment..."

Tears began to fall, hot and silent, down Louise's cheeks.

"...And she was gone."

A lump formed in Eva's throat.

"I'm sorry..." Eva whispered, unsure if her words would help. "It wasn't your fault."

But they both knew that wounds like that didn't heal so easily. Madame Louise would probably be very protective of Lilia for a while after this.

Louise shook her head gently, wiping her tears with her sleeve.

"It doesn't matter. You saved her, Blanche... All of them."

Then she smiled again. A little better now, but still fragile.

"And you're still here, alive. Thanks to you, we didn't have to mourn our girls."

The silence settled like a heavy rock between them, until Eva broke it.

"...I couldn't save them all," she murmured, barely audible.

"Blanche?"

Eva wasn't looking at her. Her gaze was fixed on her own hands, lightly gripping the sheets.

"I've been investigating the disappearances since they began," she confessed. Her voice was tense, heavy with remorse. "I heard the rumors, I saw the signs... but I did nothing."

Louise's eyes widened in astonishment.

"I wanted to believe it wasn't my problem. That if I got involved, it would only make everything worse. That I had no right to interfere in other people's lives."

Eva gritted her teeth.

"But then... Anna disappeared. That little girl smiled at me every morning... gave me flowers..." She swallowed. And when I learned she was gone too… I couldn't just stand idly by.

Louise looked at her with compassion and pain.

"If… if only I had acted sooner," Eva whispered. "Maybe… I could have saved them all."

Louise leaned toward her and, with a tenderness unlike the first hug, took her hand.

"You did more than anyone dared to do," she said firmly. "And that saved many lives. Not all, I know... but many. That's what matters."

Eva swallowed, feeling the pressure of that truth, the unbearable contradiction of being both a hero and a culprit.

"Don't carry the whole weight of the world, okay?... You've already had enough to deal with."

Eva didn't respond.

But this time... she didn't look away.

Besides...

"Eva."

"Huh?"

...maybe it was time to be a little more honest with her."

Louise looked at her in surprise.

Her eyes widened as she saw a few tears forming on Eva's eyelids... and a smile on her face.

She had seen Blanche smile many times since they met, but…

…she felt like it was the first time she had seen her truly smile.

"Eva?"

"It's my name. My real name," she said after a pause. "I wanted a fresh start, so... I gave you a fake name that day. I'm sorry."

"Eva..." Louise repeated, as if savoring the sound before smiling at her. "It's a good name. It suits you."

"Yes... I guess so," she replied with a shy smile.

"But," she added, with a stern look, "next time you could give us a warning before doing something so dangerous."

Eva cringed a little at the scolding. Her face went from shy to guilty.

"I'm sorry... I thought I could handle it on my own," she murmured, lowering her gaze. "And I didn't want to cause you any trouble."

Louise sighed.

"So... who was responsible?"

Curiosity got the better of her.

"...His name was Benedict. He... kidnapped the girls because he wanted to do something bad to them. That's what I found out, at least.

Half truth, half lie.

Lying again after coming clean didn't leave a good taste in her mouth.

But it was better for them to live in ignorance anyway. It was safer.

Lea and Emma had taught her that rule that those who practice sorcery followed: preserve the mystery at all costs.

Any leak of non-magi information must be controlled... or eradicated.

If they learned more than they should and the wrong person found out... she didn't want to imagine what would happen.

Eva pursed her lips, hesitating for a moment before speaking.

"There are things they don't need to know... It's not their fault, nor theirs to bear."

She looked toward the window, where the sun was timidly beginning to creep through the clouds.

"Sometimes, the world is a safer place when certain truths are hidden."

She took a deep breath, as if preparing to accept the weight of her secrets.

Madame Louise pursed her lips, dissatisfied, and tried to say something, but...

Then footsteps were heard downstairs. Madame Louise looked up in surprise, just as the voices echoed softly down the hallway.

Shortly after, one by one, they began to enter.

First the girls, some with timid steps, others holding their parents' hands tightly. Then the adults, many with red eyes, others carrying flowers or small packages of homemade sweets. All had faces bathed in gratitude or some other kind of gift.

Eva sat up a little in bed, perplexed.

"The girls' families...?" she whispered in bewilderment.

Eva sat up a little more when she got a better look, her expression confused, still dressed in her white nightgown and surrounded by bandages.

Little Anna was the first to run toward her, stopping just short of hugging her when she noticed the bandages. She fell silent, her lips pressed together, her eyes shining.

One by one, the others approached.

Some children brought drawings. Others, homemade sweets. One simply took her hand without a word.

The adults spoke more solemnly.

"Thank you..." said one of the parents, bowing his head sincerely. "There are no words to express what you've done for us."

"You saved our daughters," added one mother, Celine Meyer, her voice breaking. "We can never thank you enough."

The room filled with murmurs, soft sobs, and a silence filled with intense emotions.

Eva… she didn't know how to react. She just stared at them, a lump in her throat that she didn't know how to release.

Then, a little girl stepped forward alone.

Alessia Martínez.

Her steps were unsteady, her gaze lowered.

She held a small bouquet of white flowers in her hands, tied with a blue ribbon.

She approached the edge of the bed and, without looking up yet, held out the bouquet.

Eva received it slowly, still silent.

"I remember... they were your favorites," Alessia said, her voice breaking, without looking at her.

And then, with an effort, she raised her face and smiled.

"Thank you for saving me."

There was a brief moment of silence.

"And me!" another girl exclaimed.

"Me too!" added a third.

"You're our heroine, Sister Blanche!" the two twins chorused.

Their voices mingled with clumsy applause, words of thanks from their parents, and a few tears. Some tried to hold them back; others couldn't stop them from running.

Eva… froze.

A tremor ran through her fingers.

For the second time that day, tears escaped her eyes.

"Sister Blanche...?"

"Does anything hurt?"

"Quickly, Doctor! Check her out!"

"S-sure, give me a moment..." said Dr. Reinhardt, surprised, as he approached awkwardly.

"No... no need..." Eva murmured, her voice breaking as she clutched the small bouquet to her chest.

And then, like a flower in the sun, she smiled.

Dazzling.

A warm blush covered her cheeks, her eyes closed in crescents, and her smile was full, brilliant, unmasked.

"Thank you..." she whispered, giggling. "You can't imagine how much."

"Everyone, thank you so much."

The laughter and voices filled the room with a warmth that almost hurt.

Eva closed her eyes for a moment.

And remembered.

"Lea, Emma... Am I a monster?"

For so long, that question had followed her like a shadow, even on the calmest days, even amid the smell of bread and borrowed smiles.

But now, feeling the weight of little arms around her, seeing tears turn into smiles...

Finally, she had an answer.

"No... I don't think so," she whispered.

And then, without thinking too much, she suddenly pulled the nearest girls into a tight hug.

The little ones were surprised for a moment, but soon burst into soft laughter, full of relief and joy.

Louise, standing to one side, smiled tenderly, her eyes shining.

She approached too, putting her arms around Eva and the girls.

Lilia soon followed, launching herself into the fray with the childlike energy of someone who doesn't want to be left out of anything.

It was a warm moment.

A happy moment, like no other.

A moment suspended in time, where all the wounds seemed more distant.

But amid all those smiles, no one was happier than Eve.

Embraced by so many small hands, by so much unexpected affection.

By so much love.

And in her mind, like a soft murmur, she repeated to herself, as she closed her eyes and let peace envelop her:

"No... I guess I'm not a monster."

End of Chapter 10

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That's it for Chapter 10. I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for the support. See you next time.