When Bianca first woke up from her death, the poor girl instantly became terrified and involuntarily panicked as the memories of her being violated by a group of sick suddenly came to haunt her.
Their vile hands stroking every part of her body unhindered, their sadistic expressions as they debased her nonstop while Zack… the boy whom she loved… could do nothing as they tortured him as well.
At the young age of eleven, it was undoubtedly a traumatizing experience for a child like her. As a result, she even flinched and lose her nerve so hard when she felt someone touching her.
Even when it was none other than Alice who only had the intention of only tending to her when she was finally awake, it's as if she was blinded by her fear instead of feeling at ease when it was a kind lady with intentions of only wanting to help her.
"N-no, stay away!!!!" Bianca was now all tears while covering her frail body with a blanket as she slapped the hand that only wanted to offer her aid.
"But child, I only wanted to…"
"No!!!!! Please, don't!!! Just kill me!!! I beg of you!!!!"
It was then that Bianca instinctively conjured her flames as they threatened to burn and consume her own body intensely as a result of her fragile will.
"Shit, this is bad!!"
Alarmed, Alice instantly recognized how out of control the situation was and immediately cast a spell on Bianca to relax both her body and mind.
Thanks to Alice's quick thinking, the flames on Bianca's body dissipated, and the little girl was back to her unconscious state.
Fortunately, the bed was only the casualty as it was burned to ashes. Alice sighed tiredly and carried the girl gently in her arms.
"What happened for a child like her to react petrifyingly this way?" Alice muttered sadly while eyeing the unconscious girl, "The girl must have been branded just recently. She displayed no control whatsoever over the flames that she just conjured. If I had never reacted quickly to cast my calming magic, then she would no doubt perished no question."
Indeed as Alice said, when a Witch was branded, they initially had no control whatsoever of their newly acquired magic. The element of a Witch depended on the Brand that they were bestowed and how they were in sync they were with the element itself, so to speak. For instance, Witches of the St. Raven family were attuned with the Dark element, so they naturally would receive said element should they be branded.
Although, that may only be a theory, albeit a strong one. There were still special cases of a Witch receiving an element that was somewhat unexpected and out of the norm. One instance shows how a Witch of the St. Kanari clan gained the Water element instead of Lightning that they were renowned for.
In any event, Alice could only wonder who branded the girl lying unconscious in her arms. Perhaps it was the boy who was with her?
Speaking of the boy, Alice was still in shock as to how a boy was able to gain a Brand of his own. While she wanted nothing more than to get to the bottom of the boy's dilemma, she still got a pressing matter in the form of a girl to attend to.
In the dark depths of her mind, Alice contemplated if it was best that she would just leave the girl to her fate or perhaps a more merciful conclusion… just end her life painlessly so the girl shall not suffer any longer from whatever demons that were presently haunting her.
Honestly, Alice was not obligated to help the girl. Getting involved with others was simply a pain in the ass for her, and it was one of the reasons why she isolated herself from society in the first place.
With her choices in mind, Alice then brought the girl into her new room and laid her in her new bed. Confident that her magic would hold the girl to her sleep, Alice left shortly after. A few minutes later, Alice returned with an injection on hand.
It was a poison… designed to end someone's life without pain on their part. Alice personally designed the formula to make sure that the person's death would be as painless as possible, like merely sleeping without them realizing their demise. It was during her childhood days when Alice invented and first used the poison. It was on her dog who was suffering from a terminal illness and old age.
Such was a difficult time back then for her when she had to do the procedure with her own two hands, especially with her being just a child. Seeing her beloved dog suffering with each passing day was gut-wrenching. No amount of healing magic would do anything for the dog's natural condition, and the poor girl had no choice but to put her beloved dog down.
And after that incident, Alice experienced what it meant to lose a loved one. Her subsequent experiences from that point forward would only destroy whatever shred of innocence that she once clung to.
"Poor girl. I can tell that you have felt great pain." Alice positioned the injection on the girl's arm, "But you don't have to suffer any longer."
"Z-zack."
As Alice was about to perform the deed, she heard the girl now starting to mumble in her sleep.
"Please don't leave me, Zack. Our dream… never… give up."
With her eyes widening, Alice's hand now hesitated to insert the injection. Her conviction to euthanize the girl faltered, and a sad tear was shed on her right eye.
Alice could now tell that this girl was still clinging to whatever hope of life that she once had, even if it was in an unconscious and involuntary state.
"What am I doing? Committing this foul act of murder like this?" An adult like her trying to toy with the life and death of a child like this…
What in the Saint's name was she thinking?! Who was she to determine the worth of a person to live or die?!
It was like she was in a momentary daze, her mind turning blank, particularly upon seeing someone suffering horribly like that.
Alice wanted to berate herself… to punish herself for this guilt that she now possessed.
This was no dog that should be put down!! This was a young girl with still the prospect of a good and healthy life!!! Even if she suffered one bad experience, this does not mean that she will suffer yet another one in the future!!!
"It appears that I'm still not over with my own demons of my past. Heh, how fucking hypocritical of me." Alice threw the injection away and sat on the bed to comfort the girl, "I'm sorry for even the thought and intention of this unforgivable act of mine."
With that in mind, Alice took it upon herself to make sure that this girl shall recover from whatever harsh experience that she had gone through.
Whether it was for easing the guilt that was building up inside her or just simply the kindness inside her heart… it does not matter.
Alice shall ensure that this girl won't end up being a sick-minded, worthless fool of a woman like herself.