Chapter Text
Walking towards the stage, Graecie sways with every step.
Does she truly knows why she's here? Of course she does! The Shepherdess is why she's here.
Yet, as she step closer, why is she so nervous.
"Hop!" Graecie chirps as she prances up the steps.
Her grip tightens around the bells in her hand, the jingling bringing her comfort. She hums to herself, reminding that her Shepherdess herself always has a plan.
She watches as someone she called sister — was that actually her sister? She doesn't even know the other girls name — gets turned into stone. Or, she thinks it's stone.
Stone is grey, that stone is white. Weird. Oh well.
She stands in front of a statue. She doesn't know what it is aside from the fact it has one eye.
She doesn't like this one eye thing. It creeps her out.
She hears some one shout. Is it to her? Graecie looks around, spotting a cloaked figure standing from the stairs.
She hears the same tone again, processing that it's coming from the cloaked guy.
That is so not fair! She can't even tell what he is saying. She can, however, see where he is point. She turns around, pausing mid way.
Woah- that is such a bright light—-
She wakes up in a blank void, a ringing in her ears. She keeps her eyes closed until it dies down, her headache going away.
Graecie moves her hands, picking up the sound of bells chiming. She looks down, looking slightly confused why her hands were wrapped in the strings of her bells.
"Little lamb." A voice echos out.
She startles, very much not used to the very loud sound. She turns to the sound, stumbling backwards when she sees the looming figure, only held back by chains wrapped around them.
She takes a moment to compose herself before opening her mouth to speak, only for no sound to come out.
"Come closer." They call out.
Graecie hops towards him, mouthing the familiar word as she does.
Hop, Hop, Hop!
"Fear not, for you are dead."
The white hair girl stops for a second. Dead? Is this what death felt like? She looks around again, and then back up to the creature. She goes to ask a question, yet nothing still came out.
"Those foolish Bishops wished to keep you from your shepherdess in death." They growled, irritation in their tone.
What? Surely not, they would never! She doesn't believe it, but what if her disbelief is against her Shepherdess wishes?
Maybe she'll just believe both! Yea. That makes it easier.
"But they failed." They continued. "All they done was sent you directly to me."
As soon as the words left the chained figure's mouth, the void clears up, and a familiar presence runs through her veins once more.
Do they work with the Shepherdess?
"I could give you life again." Their head tilts as Graecie takes a steps back. "At the shepherdess request, but."
but?
"There is a price."
"Anything for the Shepherdess." She blurts out, surprising herself with the sound of her own voice.
A laugh echoed around the room, Graecie feels her face slightly warm up from embarrassment. Although it was quickly replaced by excitement.
"All I- well, we ask of you to start a… cult in the shepherdess' name."
A cult? What's that? She tilts her head in thought. Oh! There was this one kid — can't remember their name tho — back when she went to school a year ago who called her home a cult, although she's pretty sure the school was the actual cult.
"Oh! So get a collection of friends?" She chirps, bouncing on her heels.
"…Yes?" Huh. Why do they sound so confused?
"Then absolutely!! I love to make more friends!"
"…Good." A pause. "I think."
“Take the Red Crown which I once wore. With it you shall command the loyalty of Fol-Friends and strike fear into the hearts of our enemies.”
"Fear?! Why would we want to cause fear?? And enemies?? why would—"
"Pardom. I should have worded that better." They interup, sighing.
After a moment of hesitation, Graecie's vision goes red, feeling herself going limp.
“Return to the land of the living." Right. She's dead. "Start a Cult in my name, and begin recruiting Friends. Once you have at least gained one, you will see me again.”
She drops back onto the ground where she last remembered seeing the bright light. her head hurts, but the doesn't get time to react. Almost immediately, muffled shouting surrounds her, yet all she feels is sarrow. A voice floods her mind, one that calms her more than she thought it would.
"Call Upon the Flock?"
Without thinking, Graecie nods, letting calmness overtake her once more as she closes her eyes. She hears baas and bleats, and feels sheep all around her. She reaches down and places her hand on one of their head. She opens her eyes, finding the sheep turning into smoke, vanishing.
"Oh! that's cool!!" She exclaims, clapping.
One sheep stays on the path in front of her, seemingly waiting. Graecie takes a small step closer, only for the sheep to run ahead.
"Ah! Little lamb, wait for me!"
She runs behind it, only stumbling a little.
When the lamb finally stops, Graecie finds herself in the middle of a clearing. She spots a person and gets a bit brighter.
"Oh! Look lamb-" She turns back to the lamb only to find it missing.
It makes her a little bit sad, but that's okay.
"Hello?" She calls out, heading towards the person.
As soon as she does, the person's eyes light up. In an instant, they are right in front of her, shaking her hand.
"Hello! I am Sausage. You must be the new vessel!"
"Vessel?" She asks, tilting her head.
"Yes! I was just like you, a chosen vessel, but it's now far in the past." Sausage poses dramatically. "Actually, I'm here to guide you."
"Why? Are we not safe here?" She looks around, the cleaning seemingly empty.
"Nope! We will be in grave danger if we stay here any longer. Come on, let's go!!" He grabs her hand, pulling her elsewhere.
As they go down the path, Graecie dodging any of the attacts that come towards her and turning away when sausage kills any of the other family.
She feels bad, but it is in the Shepherdess will soo…
Once they arrive at the end of the path, she sees someone getting cornered by a couple members of the other family. The corpses around them let her know that they tried to fight them off most of them.
But why? They wouldn't harm anyone before?
She rings her bells, distracting the other Family as Sausage knocks them away, rendering them subdued.
Graecie goes over to the person before pausing, letting out a gasp.
"Zam?!"