Chapter Text
A creaky carriage stopped after reaching the old gothic building. It was three stories high and its lengthy manor structure seemed as if it was reaching out to hug the dragon fountain located in front of the main entrance.
The girl quietly observed the view for a minute before opening the door and stepping outside. She was wearing a simple white blouse with a long blue skirt, her brown hair tied and resting on her right shoulder.
A similar man wearing a black tuxedo and a half-top hat left the carriage right behind her. He had black hair with an alarmingly receding hairline and brown eyes that couldn’t hide his exhaustion.
They walked to the door together and the man knocked on it. While waiting, the girl paid close attention to the surroundings.
There were several black pillars on the sides. After closely staring, she could almost make out the shape of faces on the marble. She unconsciously stepped closer to her brother and raised her eyesight.
Above the double dark wooden door were antique spaced-out letters that spelled "EDEN".
***
“Good morning, Mr. Benson and Melissa.”
It wasn’t their first time meeting this young woman. Nevertheless, her appearance managed to mesmerize the visitors again like a bright emerald surrounded by the metamorphic rocky building.
Noticeably born with a silver spoon by attire to manners, she wore countless jewelry. Yet, all those precious gems only resembled a small complement of chromium, merely adding to her authentic beauty.
“Good morning, Dr. Audrey.” Both greeted back.
“Your brother is outside.”
“...Klein, is he...” Melissa hesitantly started a question, but couldn’t find the words to finish it.
“He is doing well. For his situation, at least.” The doctor showed an empathetic smile. “It’s better if you see for yourselves. We can talk later.”
Truth be told, his delusions were as strong as ever, but his mood had remarkably improved since he was admitted.
Back then, I was only an intern doing simple tasks and spectating from the side. Audrey shook away her thoughts. The two in front of her finally had time to visit and it would be unfair to waste it at the reception.
Next, they signed their names on a timeworn notebook and followed the blond doctor through an aisle, a room, another aisle, a large hall, and a big arched door leading to a gorgeous yard.
Melissa studied each patient on sight, trying to find her brother as soon as possible.
She saw a black-haired boy with a lazy expression sitting under a tree, a strange man with a spotted face knitting on a wheelchair, a man with big ears and bloodshot eyes, a woman sibilating while caressing her harmed wrists, and a man who looked at every person that passed by with lascivious eyes.
While contemplating the type of people her brother was surrounded by, she finally spotted a black-haired youth of scholarly air in the distance.
Under the gentle morning sunlight, he wandered about while eating an apple. His hair was longer than the last time they saw each other and there was a foreign smile on his lips.
What drew most attention was the improvised black robe and hat he was wearing, as well as the silver rounded ‘thing’ on his right hand.
The siblings turned their heads to the doctor with questioning gazes.
This wasn’t something new. They had to talk to Klein’s other… ‘identities’ during all of their visitations. Their brother simply refused to talk to them as himself and it was a difficult thing for the siblings to accept.
Despite everything, since they had gotten used to it over time, Audrey knew they were just asking for the peculiarity of this seemingly new character.
“He'll ask you to make a wish. Avoid that… or at least be careful.”
After contemplating for a bit, they nodded and the man caught up with them.
“You know, it’s always a shame to see new faces in this place,” Klein said before biting the apple.
Melissa gulped all bitter feelings trying to arise and smiled gently to greet her brother.
"What makes you say that, Mr…?"
"Oh, where are my manners? Though the locale is regrettable, our encounter is a gift by fate."
Or by scheduling an appointment. He laughed and proceeded to hold the hem of the robe while exaggeratedly bowing.
"I am Merlin Hermes, a wandering magician."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Merlin. My name is Melissa and this is my brother Benson." She gestured for the man standing beside her.
Benson simply nodded as a greeting and jumped to the matter that concerned him the most.
"You don't seem to like this place. Any particular reason?"
"Don't get me wrong, I met a lot of interesting individuals during my stay here."
Merlin briefly smiled at the doctor, before hesitating on his next words.
"But… my home is somewhere else, Mr. Benson. And they deny it."
Truthfully, there was much more Klein wanted to say; but having the truth be seen as the ramblings of a mad man was one of the problems.
Experience has proven honesty to be counterproductive with certain people. It was better to ease the worries of his siblings than to make them think his mind was done for.
It pained Benson and Melissa to leave him here. They already knew his dislike towards the sanatorium as he left that very clear a long time ago.
The complaints were mostly gone now that he seemed more stable, but that still wasn't enough to make the siblings stop worrying.
An awkward silence paired in the group. Each one of them lost in their unsaid anguish.
Benson glanced at Audrey. She was the biggest relief they had here. Someone to trust, someone who genuinely cares about the patients, and someone Klein listened.
Merlin cleared his throat. He couldn't waste the time with his siblings.
"What brings you here? By your faces, not good news, I suppose. Has trouble arisen?"
The siblings tried to stop their lips from twitching and used this as an excuse to tell Merlin about their current life.
After chatting about Melissa's class drama and her latest feats, Benson started complaining about his heavy workload.
"Shouldn't you pay more attention to yourself?" Merlin frowned.
Seeing the clear worry on his brother's face and realizing he accidentally had fallen into a depressing rant, Benson apologized.
"Sorry, I'm making it seem worse than it is. It's just that the country is going through a lot of changes recently, but the work is a thousand times better than before; and I have to thank you for that. "
"What did I do?" Merlin innocently bit the remains of the apple.
"What did you do..." Benson softly repeated with a bitter laugh.
“Well, sir." Merlin straightened up and flashed a dazzling smile. "I certainly do magic, and my best magic trick is to grant someone’s wishes. Do you have a wish you would like granted?”
"Plenty." Benson felt Melissa elbowing him and he remembered to keep the doctor's advice in mind. I wonder what's there to be careful about. Maybe I should indulge him a bit, but in a simple way.
"Can you answer a question?"
"Not only that, I can give you the best answers to anything." The magician held up what he was carrying.
A silver mirror with ancient patterns on the back and an eye-like pattern on each side at the front rested in his hands. Something fell off about it, although nobody could understand why.
"Ask a question, give an answer. Both parties shall be truthful."
"Then, can you tell me why Klein is avoiding us?"
Audrey facepalmed. Mister, you're supposed to be careful.
Can you stop insisting on this? Klein resisted the urge to sigh. Thanks for the wording, I guess.
"Arrodes said no." Merlin deadpanned. "Now, what is the size of your..." He slapped the mirror. "...Underwear?”
"...What?"
What kind of question is that? What answer was that?!
"Wrong." Klein swiftly threw the apple’s core at his brother.
Surprised and failing to react in time, Benson could only turn his head and exclaim while receiving an apple to the side of his face.
The offender dramatically widened his eyes and whispered with his face close to the mirror, as if scolding it.
Weirdly enough, Melissa could only watch and ponder on how skilled her brother was at throwing things. If it weren’t a potentially dangerous behavior, she would almost be proud.
She frowned. The doctor said he's stable now, right?
Audrey took the apple leftover from the ground with a bitter smile.
"Mr. Merlin, may I ask you where did you get this from?"
She made sure to emphasize she was asking Merlin and not the mirror, lest he had something else to throw.
"I apologize." Merlin chuckled. "Arrodes has a weird sense of humor."
After finishing threatening the innocent hand mirror, the magician continually stroked it like a pet. Audrey wasn't fazed about having her question dodged.
"Please, make sure to control it properly. If this happens again, you'll have Arrodes taken away."
She thought a bit more and decided to try a different method. If she remembered correctly, Merlin did mention being ‘His’ follower in past encounters.
"And... I will have to report this to 'Him'." She said in a more stern voice.
Oh? Using myself to threaten myself? There's no respect in this house anymore. Klein lampooned but decided to play her game. He also agreed Arrodes was getting too bold. To think he would dare to play with his master's brother. No respect, really.
"I understand. It is a hand mirror after all; it shouldn't get out of it." He smiled.
Audrey nodded with a smile. Some people in the asylum didn't like dealing with this patient, especially when he used the character called Gehrman, but she enjoyed talking to him.
She knew he was a truly good person who suffered a lot. The deaths of his colleagues still haunted him to this day and it shouldn't be easy to live in a different reality from everyone else.
A morbid one at that. It reflects his very pessimistic view of the world, but the young man never expressed hatred towards it. Rather, he always tries to help others if given the chance.
Tries. She sighed silently. Though he has his heart in the right place, the help isn't very effective given his delusions. Most times, it's the problem.
For example, the time he stuffed a baby with ice cream because he needed good luck to fight another patient who, according to him, wanted to kill his friend's grandfather.
She always remembers the first time Klein sought her himself for an appointment. It was the time he realized he wouldn’t be able to leave this place.
He didn't want to talk face to face, so they sat on the carpet with their backs to each other. Audrey knew it wasn’t proper conduct, she was putting too much trust in this patient, but she didn't regret it. Klein had never been that honest before and it helped her understand his condition a lot.
Surprisingly, she found out some of his characters can even be called deliberate to some extent.
Gehrman, for example, is a tough front he created to deal with harsher situations and, even though Klein will stubbornly commit to the acting, she should still be able to reason with him in that state. Most employees just gave up when facing the 'pirate hunter' and immediately called security.
Merlin was a new front, but it should be the same situation.
Benson still felt wronged but threw that aside to enjoy the time they had together. The visit ended soon.
***
After leaving Eden, the quiet atmosphere was only broken when the front door of the siblings' house closed.
They were home now. Well, as home as it can get without their brother here. Nothing felt like what they had in Tingen.
"I don't like this, Benson." Melissa hugged herself to shake off the uncomfortable feeling griping her heart.
Benson gave a deep sight while massaging his forehead. "This, again?"
"Are they really treating him well? Is this really the right option?"
"What right option, Melissa? Do we even have one?"
A tense silence filled the room again. They had discussed this many times, but couldn't find anything terribly wrong with the place.
It was difficult to understand Klein and, worse, everything he told them could be a figment of his overheated imagination. Were his complaints based on reality? Is his current silence genuine? What changed?
"It pains me to leave him there. You know that better than anyone." Benson looked absolutely exhausted. "But remember why the sanatorium was recommended in the first place. Have you forgotten the state he was in?"
The younger sister looked down. Of course, she hasn't.
"He isn't safe." He continued.
Klein's distressed eyes and nonsensical mumblings; His desperate reasonings and obsessions; The tragedies that followed him; and the blood.
"Not to himself; not to others."
It could never leave their memory.