Judith took a minute to make sure she was hearing right, and when she realized herself she ran into the bathroom.
"Judith?" Tsai had called out in confusion as Judith ran off, and she followed behind.
Upon entering the bathroom, Judith had turned the tap on so water began to fill up the wooden tub. Then she grabbed the small chair and ran to the wall, where she kept the chair next to it, climbed on it and began to reach for single Light Crystal hanging from a holder on the wall.
"Judith are you okay?" Tsai had called out one more time, worrying as she saw how frantically Judith was acting.
"Trust me Tsai," Judith said while stretching for the annoyingly high Light Crystal, "If what I think is happening really is happening, then everything..." Judith paused when she had leaped with a huff and grabbed the Light Crystal, but when she descended back onto the chair, she stepped on the edge and the chair began to tip. Seeing Judith sway in her balance, Tsai ran in to help, only for her to act as a cushion to break Judith's fall.
"Ouch!" They both exclaimed as they fell onto the ground.
"Are you okay?" They both asked simultaneously.
"I'm fine." Once more they both synced in their words, which had caused them to chuckle. Getting off Tsai and pulling her to her feet, Judith looked her in the eyes and raised the Light Crystal in her hands.
"If what I think is happening, realy is happening, then everything will be perfect." Judith said like an unhinged person, repeating her words from earlier with a bit of addition, then she rushed over to the tub which was now overflowing and spilling water onto the floor.
Struggling not to trip over the water on the floor as she ran, she stumbled onto the tap, turned it off and did a 180. Placing the Light Crystal behind her, Judith peered over her shoulder and stared at the unsteady water, which was undulating due to the efforts of the flowing tap.
But as Judith peered, she saw splotches of something on her back, right in the center of her spine and slightly above her backside. For several seconds, the spot began to take shape. Judith held her breath, already sure of what she was seeing, but the act of trying to confirm it left her tittering on a knife's edge. Anxiety became her as she stared at the spot, then, with one ripple that cleared the surface of the water, even only for a moment, Judith's eyes widened when she saw it. The tattoo of Sarah's family clan.
"That's it." Judith said, becoming a mix of anxiousness, excitement, relief and uncertainty. But out of all these emotions, Judith felt the one helming the forefront was excitement.
Screaming due to said excitement, Judith began to jump out of joy, literally.
"Careful, you'll fall." Tsai said, rushing over to Judith's side to protect her. As she ran, she accidentally slipped on the water that laced the floors and then she fell. Sliding with the force of the momentum she built up when running, she crashed into Judith, so she too fell on top of her.
Silent for a moment, and ensuring Tsai was okay, Judith burst out in laughter, which Tsai couldn't help but join in on.
***
After a very eventful shower, Judith had finally done something no one ever thought she would...put on some clothes. They now laid on their mats, which they had set up beside the window, so they could soak in the afternoon's gentle and warm winds. They laid there while waiting anxiously for their meal to finish up cooking in the fireplace.
The aroma of the meal filled the room, mixing with the gentle breeze that made waiting a painful task, as each sweep of the wind brought the scent of the meal into their nostrils. Judith more so than Tsai, felt she would go mad if she didn't get something to eat within the next second.
Calming herself down, Judith removed her mind from the meal...somehow, and placed it on other matters.
Thinking on the most immediate and very important turn of events this day, Judith remembered the tattoo on her back and she had never been happier. Tsai of course asked her the reason for her elation, but she just said she really liked looking at her tattoo.
Knowing Judith was hiding something but didn't want to share, Tsai had just let it go. But while Tsai was perplexed, Judith on the other had was very very happy about this discovery. This tattoo had proved without a shadow of a doubt, that she was Sarah. Or she was supposed to be Sarah, and as a direct result of that, things would go in the way she knew they would, so she could predict the outcome of this world and course it in her favor.
This was a major relief to Judith, she had all the tools in the bag and all that was left was for her to make good use of them. But there was one glaring thing that unsettled Judith. Sarah was supposed to have the tattoo on her shoulder, so, why was it on her back instead?
Judith wondered if this was a beginning of a pattern that meant certain things would not go in accordance to how they were supposed to go. But there was no reason to believe this. Apart from the meddling of this god person, everything so far had gone according to the story, and that wasn't about to change now.
Chalking this small detail up as nothing to worry about — hopefully — Judith decided to think on things that were more pressing than a minor displacement of a tattoo.
Remembering she had the rest of the day to herself, Judith really wished she could enact the first stage of her plan right now. That being, to go out of the castle, head into the forest on the outer reaches of the city and hunt down some weak Parabeasts. But the fact that it was still noon, and the looming possibility of Qui Lin turning on a dime and seeking her service, kept Judith from going through with this plan as of now.
If she wanted to do this, it had to be at night time. Though the possibility of Qui Lin still requiring her service out of the blue in the middle of the night did not escape Judith, it was less likely than during the day, so it was a risk she was willing to take.
But as she stared out the window and peered at the sky of day, she felt the Phoenix slugging through its rotation around the titan Zoran, because Judith wanted to go out right now.
'Can't you fly faster around the Zoran?' Judith thought with a hint of annoyance.
Removing her thoughts from all of that for now, she brought her attention to the prince...impostor. Thinking on him, Judith felt it very strange the way he was acting. The first thing to take precedence in Judith's mind was how he seemed to be lacking in putting any effort toward harming her, torturing her to give this world up.
Instead, he acted as if he didn't care. And, he seemed to be acting with some form of benevolence. If he wanted to harm Judith, what was taking him so long?
Judith didn't know, perhaps all this act was to make her let her guard down, so he could strike. If anything, Judith needed to be more watchful, more careful. She had to ensure to never be caught alone with him, else only heavens would know what he would do to her.
Thinking on this, a slight shiver ran down her spine.
She needed to stay away from him, until she could get to someone who would dispose of him for her. And by dispose, she meant keep him locked up somewhere he couldn't harm her or anyone else. Judith didn't want to get any blood on her hands as of now, hopefully not ever...again.
Because remembering the past made Judith feel like a monster, someone who was meant to...
"The food is ready."
"Really?" Judith asked with great elation in her heart, then she jolted off the mat, and began gobbling down the hot food without blowing. And just like that, she forgot all the heinous things she was thinking about.