Emily woke up feeling disoriented. For a few moments she couldn't remember where she was. As she pushed the blue-and-white-striped bedsheets off her and noticed her pyjamas, the memories of the previous day came rushing back. How she woke up in a hospital bed. How she didn't recognise the people she'd spent all her life with. How she'd gone to bed so exhausted that she hadn't even had the energy to look around the room. Her room.

Bitter disappointment rose like bile up her throat when she realised that she still didn't know who she was. She'd secretly hoped that her brain would fix some connections on its own overnight. That she'd remember something by the time she woke up. Anything. But her brain had reconnected nothing.

Emily stepped out of bed and had a look around her bedroom. Next to the door stood a tall wardrobe, which Eddy had pointed at the night before, to let her know where her clothes resided. On the other wall sat a desk, scattered with school books, notebooks, pens, markers, and a laptop in the middle of everything. On the walls were a handful of posters and pictures of people she didn't know and on the door hung a large mirror.

As she opened the grass-green curtains, she noticed the potted plant on the windowsill. After getting dressed in a simple blouse and jeans from the wardrobe, she went over to the mirror.

A pale girl with long, sleek tawny hair looked back at her. Her blue eyes stood wide in surprise by what she saw. For some reason, she hadn't expected not even being able to recognise her own reflection. She took a deep breath and watched the girl in the mirror do the same. She saw the clothes she'd just put on, the necklace she wore...

Emily looked down with a frown. She hadn't realised she'd been wearing a necklace. It was so small she hadn't even felt it. It was made of silver, with a lovely little charm in the shape of what seemed to be a fox. She wondered how she'd gotten it. Had someone given it to her, or had she bought it herself?

That's when she heard footsteps outside her door. Emily opened it when she heard knocking.

"Morning, honey," said Eddy. "How are you feeling?"

"Not too bad," Emily answered. "The headache is gone."

"Great! And did you... Has anything come back?" he asked uncomfortably.

"No, I'm afraid not..."

"Oh... Well, maybe later. Do you want to come downstairs? Breakfast is ready."

With a nod, Emily shut the door of her bedroom behind her.

Two plates were already lying on the kitchen table, along with several kinds of juice and some toast.

"I made croissants. Let me get them out of the oven," said Eddy. It was almost as if he nervous, Emily thought. As if he was trying to make a good impression. She knew how he felt. She herself also wanted to come across well to him. After all, he knew her really well. She had to show him that she was still the same Emily, even though that may not be the case.

As she waited for the croissants, she glanced around the living room. On a cabinet not far from her stood three photo frames. One held a picture of a baby, the second one a little girl with what Emily guessed was a very young version of Eddy. The third showed that same girl, a little older now, with the same young Eddy and a woman, a forest in the background.

Her curiosity peaked, Emily stepped closer to the picture. She'd not seen that woman yet. Could that be her mother? Why wasn't she here, in the house?

Eddy came back from the kitchen and placed a bowl of hot croissants in the middle of the table. He saw her looking at the picture and came over to stand next to her.

"Who is this?"

Eddy took the picture frame from her and said, without taking his eyes off the woman, "This is your mother."

A smile crept onto her face. So I was right! "Where is she? I'd love to meet her."

But when Eddy looked up, the sadness in his eyes was crushing. "Emily... She's gone. I'm sorry."

"Oh..." That wasn't the answer Emily had expected. She opened her mouth to say something and shut it again. What were you meant to say upon learning that someone close to you, who you couldn't remember, had passed away? She cleared her throat and stuttered, "Wh-What, uhm..."

Eddy took the hint. "She died when you were six years old. It was a car accident." His eyes wandered back to the picture in his hands. "Her name was Rosa-Lynn."

Emily followed his gaze. "She was pretty."

Eddy nodded. "You loved her, so much. You cried yourself to sleep for months, after the accident. You kept asking me when she'd come back. You even asked me once whether it was your fault that she'd left. I wanted to cheer you up, but I... I felt exactly the same." He sighed and lead Emily to the table to sit down.

"I'm sorry. Maybe you can tell me about her." Emily wasn't quite sure whether she suggested this for her own sake, or for Eddy's. But it at least seemed to cheer her dad up a little.

"Yeah," he said. "Yeah, I'd like that. Maybe it'll help you with your memory."

"Maybe."

Eddy took a bite from his breakfast and shook his head. "I can't believe you cannot remember anything about your mother. You loved her so much." He sighed. "I wish this had never happened."

"Me too," Emily agreed whole-heartedly. "I hate the man who ran into me. Do you know what happened to him?"

Eddy stirred his coffee as he answered, "He uhm... He had to go to the hospital, too."

"Was it bad?"

"Yes," said Eddy. "Yes, it sure was."

"Good!" said Emily stubbornly. "It's not fair if I'm the only one left with injuries."

For a couple of minutes, the pair ate in silence. Emily's mind wandered back to the picture behind Eddy. She wondered where it was taken.

"So, that forest, is it close by?"

Eddy's eyes snapped up. "Forest?" he grumbled.

Emily raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, the... the forest in the picture." She gestured towards the photo of her mum.

Eddy stayed quiet for a while, frowning. It made Emily uncomfortable. Then he sighed. "I should've expected you to be drawn there. I'd better warn you now."

"Warn me?" For a forest? What on earth is he talking about?

"There is a forest close by, right next to town. But you cannot go there. It is too dangerous."

Emily stared at her dad in confusion, her croissant forgotten between her fingers. "Okay... What's so dangerous about it?"

"The Others live on the other side of the forest. If they ran into you, alone and defenceless... I can't imagine what they might do to you." A shiver ran down Emily's spine. "Don't worry," Eddy continued. "They don't come to this side of the woods. The townspeople protect each other. As long as you stay away from the forest, you'll be just fine."

"I... I don't understand," said Emily. Why would those people want to hurt her? And if everybody knew they were dangerous, why didn't they do something about it? "Who are they, those Others?"

Eddy sighed. "They're, like, a group of savages, wild people. They don't belong in our world. If they didn't have those powers, they'd have died out long ago. Which is how it should have been."

"Powers?" Eddy's answers just seemed to raise more and more questions.

"Yes. They use their powers to do whatever the hell they want. To get what they want, when they want it. You have no idea how many people here in town they've already attacked, just because they wanted something from them." Eddy shook his head sadly. "If there's one thing that doesn't belong in this world, it's magic."

Suddenly it occurred to Emily what her dad was doing. She chuckled, a smile spreading across her face. "Magic? You're joking! Come on, Eddy, I may not remember anything, but I know magic doesn't exist."

But Eddy did not return the smile. "It does exists, Emily. We are lucky, because we don't have magic, but the Others do. And it makes them evil."

"Eddy, you don't have to lie to me! Why won't you just tell me what makes that forest so dangerous?"

"Emily, listen to me. I'm not lying, I'm not joking. The Others exist, they always have, and everyone knows it. They have these strange powers, allowing them to... direct the elements, control gravity, things like that. I don't know exactly what they can do, but I know that those powers make them extremely dangerous."

Emily didn't know what to think. She didn't believe Eddy's story for a second; magic did not exist! But Eddy seemed very sure of himself. If he wasn't joking, he sure was a really good liar. He truly seemed to believe what he was telling her. Could she really have ended up in a world in which magic existed? Maybe she should just play along, for now.

"Alright then," she muttered eventually. "Stay away from the forest. Got it."

Aaaand I've reached the first checkpoint: 2000 words!:) It's a good start, but the story ain't finished yet! Can't wait to share the rest with you guys. 

Also, just wanted to say, thank you so much for the votes! I honestly didn't think this story would get any reads, but then it got 10 votes in like a day. I'm so humbled. Thank you :')

- Noami