3.

She turns from her left side onto her back and stretches then opens her eyes. It hits her, a sense of something being very wrong rushes through her, a brief and temporary crash of everything physical within her strikes. It'll take a moment or so to recover from this drain.

What she initially can see she does not recognize. She doesn't know where she is. She sits up, slowly, cautious of that momentary draining sensation. She definitely does not recognize this room. There had been somewhere else not so long ago where she had been laying, wasn't there? Another room, a larger room, but where? For the life of her she doesn't know.

This place she now lays within, this is a hotel room, perhaps? Why is she apparently alone in a hotel room? She may have come here alone but why can't she remember?

Her head hurts, all of a sudden too. Pain from the center of her head emanating outwards, a brain kind of pain, she puts two fingers from her right hand to the base of her nose, there is blood but not all so much. It takes a moment or two for the brain pain to begin to ease. Gathering herself she stands, turns, and flinches suddenly. The flinch causes her to fall backwards and onto the floor next to the bed. She had caught sight of a reflective image and in turn it had caught her off-guard.

The reflective image had been her own; it is her own reflection having briefly come back at her from within a lengthy mirror on the wall opposite the bed. Though it couldn't have been her own image. Part of the reason she flinched and fell was seeing movement and not realizing the presence of a lengthy mirror and then not recognizing the image coming back at her.

The reflection, it may have been ever so brief though she did not in any way recognize that mirrored image. How can that be? How can she not know her own reflection when she sees it? Something is very wrong here.

She stands and attempts to compose herself then looks towards the mirror and begins to move closer to it. The mirror reflects the movement. She is in someone else's skin; this must be it. Whatever she had been previously has left her and what is new is still to be discovered, but is it new? It must be. This reflection, her eyes, her hair, her mouth and chin, the make-up she is wearing, there is nothing recognizable, she knows not of what she sees. Her brow contracts and thought takes over. What is it that she does know? No answer is coming.

Her name, her age, her family, and friends, she knows none of this. Where she is from, where she is now, how she got here, everything is a blank. Her heartbeat quickens and her eyes begin to search as if there may be answers hidden nearby, waiting to be found. There are no answers to be found, not in this room, at least not immediately.

But there is something, something brief, something dark. It is there in her mind's eye. She can see a darkness, she can see movement as if her mind is locked away in a room and trying its darnedest to get out, and just like that an attempt to escape from such a prison ceases.

On a seat, a cushioned wooden chair situated right next to the mirror there is clothing, more specifically there is a dress, white and red coloured, mostly white. There are two sets of shoes next to that chair, a pair of white high heels and a pair of red flats with a thick white rubber rim.

She presently is wearing nothing more than under garments and white stockings that stretch up above her knees, so the dress goes on as do the flat red shoes. The clothing fits and feels odd. She cannot see herself wearing clothing like this in any circumstance; then again, what does she know. For the moment it is not as if she has many obvious options at her disposal. If she looked more thoroughly maybe there are other options.

What to do now. She can't stay where she is. There is a window within the room, so she moves to it and has a look outside. It is bright out there and she appears to be at least one or two floors up in some town she is also unlikely to remember, yeah it is quite likely she is within a hotel too. So, a trip outside is in order, possibly get her bearings? What else is there to do?

A key card for the room also powers the electricity within the room. She removes it from its slot and cautiously opens the hotel room door. Out in the hallway a male passer-by moves from the right to the left, this catches her by surprise causing her to quickly, and briefly retreat back into her room. Was there a moment of panic there? Soon enough she makes a second attempt to leave the room and this attempt is successful and perhaps a little odd too.

She has taken a couple of steps out into the hall when she notices someone else approaching. She considers retreating once again but the room door has clicked shut, so she stands where she is for a moment at a loss for what to do. Yeah, there is panic in this moment, why that should be is unknown. This second on-comer is a guy coming in her direction, moving in the same direction as the previous fellow and he too soon moves on by.

'Good afternoon' he says as he does pass by.

She courtesies, giggles a little uncontrollably and returns the 'good afternoon' ... gees, has she always been this nervous?

Right, she can't stay here so off she goes in the direction she noticed both passers-by having gone off in and soon she sees an exit sign so she must be heading in the right direction for her to make her way outside. She recognizes nothing. Had she come to this place willingly? Had anyone come with her? Oh no, there is a brief thought of an attack, is this why she has no memory? She dismisses this as she feels fine apart from that headache of hers which is easing; still, maybe some sort of attack has occurred.

This brief thought brings another. Should she go to the police and report her condition? What could she tell them if she were to do that? If they were to ask her any questions, then she would have absolutely no answers to offer them. If she were to seek out police, then they may want to hold her at a precinct until answers come or maybe have seen to at a hospital. This won't do.

Hospital, maybe she should go to one. The thoughts of that make her feel uneasy, just the thought of the word hospital relates to something not all so nice and there would be so many people there. Hospital, has she recently come from one? An inner fear really is growing. Does she have a dislike for crowds?

Whatever she likes or dislikes she can't have either option happen, police and or hospitals, not yet at least. For the moment she will dismiss these thoughts as best she can. See what her walk brings for her, something may come back shortly.

Down in the hotel foyer there are many people, and she does not like the looks of this. The first thing, well not the very first thing, she finds out about herself is something she does not like. How has she ever survived if she constantly feels this way?

Out the front entrance she goes, avoiding eye contact with anyone and everyone, for a fear certainly is closing in on her, a kind of inner sinking feeling. How is she going to manage outside if how she feels continues? What if it intensifies?

People everywhere, she so wasn't ready for this, hell, what is going on? She is a recluse, was a recluse, still is apparently, nothing from before can really be determined for sure. Still, on she goes. There is no point in even looking at her surroundings or any of those who are near to her in the hopes of finding recognition. If it is true that she rarely ever got out at a time prior to waking on this day then there probably will be nothing to recognize out in the great outdoors, so should she head back? How can she? She can't just hide away in a hotel room, can she? This would be no way to live or to survive.

Staying away from financial thoughts for the moment, not that she has considered that just yet, something needs to be figured out. Not an easy thing to do and it all is getting to be too much. So much is a blur, literally and physical. As it currently is, it is quite possibly lunch time; sure, one of the passers-by back at the hotel did greet her with a good afternoon. Lunch time most likely more people out and about than most other times of the day and in reaction to this she continues to fall back in on herself, she starts singing out loud in an attempt to calm down somewhat so she can at least attempt to manoeuvre among those within the immediate vicinity.

My Bonnie lies over the ocean, my Bonnie lies over the sea ... little does she know that as she sings to herself as she moves herself along, she is becoming louder and is drawing attention. This town must be well used to the odd oddball or two as there are not a whole lot of people looking her way. Those who are, add to the physical blur of her surroundings. There is one chap however, he has noticed her, and he has watched her pass him by.

Something about her has caught his attention and unbeknown to her he has decided to go into surveillance mode, not in a creepy way but something driven more out of curiosity. It is as if he has recognized some element in her or quite possibly it is more to do with that song she is singing. He is harmless, right? Who knows? For she doesn't even know that she is being followed or will be followed and with all this, neither he nor her are aware that there someone else is watching, following, keeping a keen eye or two on what is occurring, and really, just what is it that is occurring?

Is all this a game? Is she and her follower related somehow? Possibly connected in some way or another? Both possibly being some kind of test subjects who are being observed and have been observed by some kind of ... observer? Is he an observer? If so, then what is the goal of such a possible observer? What is this observer's part in all this? Really what the hell is going on?

If some sort of defence mechanism has put her onto a trance like state, then it doesn't last so long. She begins to come out of it and while still surrounded by many strangers she begins to become quite agitated. Henry sees this and sees it fit to intervene.

He had only been following her for a matter of seconds, not much more than a minute in fact, so still being more than a few feet away he speaks. 'Excuse me, Miss?'

She turns and her agitation revs up a gear. She doesn't stop moving though and soon is facing forwards again and picking up the pace. Has she recognized Henry? Does she fear him, or is her own condition worsening, her own fear of ... people? Whatever is happening, Henry picks up the pace too and is soon in front of this lady and walking backwards.

'Excuse me Miss, do we know one another? Do you recognize me?'

She stops for a couple of seconds and stares him in the eyes then in a hurry moves past him.

'Miss ... please.'

Henry goes after her and a stranger sees it fit to intervene.

'Look, man ... she clearly doesn't want to talk to you.'

'This is not your business; please keep out of this ...' Henry tells this stranger.

'Oh, but it is my business if a lady is to be harmed.'

'I'm not harming anyone ... she needs help' Henry says surprised by the strangers' actions.

The stranger steps in front of Henry, 'and you are the one to help her?'

'Yes.'

Henry and this stranger now have a brief stare down and when Henry moves his gaze, he can no longer see the lady in the white and red dress.

'Damn it, she's gone.'

The stranger leaves things be, sure that he has prevented something untoward from occuring. Henry moves on, going in search for Bonnie as he will call her for the time being. Maybe she can help him as much as he can help her. He doesn't know her story, hell he doesn't know his own story and maybe nothing might come from talking with this lady though he can only find that out by actually talking with her. It might be a start.

There is a kind of craziness about her so what could she really do for him? It doesn't have to be all about him, and it could end up being a no good deed goes unpunished kind of thing but what the hell? Maybe his memory loss is to bring about a kind of calling. This particular calling cannot begin or at least continue if he cannot find her. She can't have gone too far; she does stand out somewhat. How difficult can finding her be?