[ COMPLETED ]
German Translations Provided By @vanessanats
BOOK 1 of the ORPHIC series
ZEITGEIST
/ˈtsītˌɡīst,ˈzītˌɡīst/
the defining spirit or mood of a particular period of history as shown by the ideas and beliefs of the time.
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"Her head spins like a record that never stops."
Azzano, Italy November, 1943
SHE KNEW IT WAS a dream when the atmosphere was too peaceful and too quiet to be real. There were times she did confuse reality with her nightmares, but this time she was lucky. She opened her eyes, still in whatever concoction her mind had imagined. Her gaze met a white ceiling and her heart dropped in her chest at the feeling of fingers rifling through her hair. She froze, her hands starting to tremble against bed sheets as she hesitantly turned to her side.
Dr. Schaffer sat beside her with a book in his hand, the cover unbearably blurry. His fingers continued to comb through her hair and Lucy looked away from his book as he turned a page. She started to sit up and Dr. Schaffer's book was immediately dented by how tight he was holding it. She stopped, loosening every muscle in her body to stop herself from panicking. His grip loosened on his book and he hummed softly as his eyes scanned the pale paper.
She didn't know how long she lay there in her dream, wondering if she would be killed in her mind and awake to reality. Those were the better nightmares, and she had a feeling her luck had already run out. When Dr. Schaffer finally snapped his book shut, his hand disappeared from her head and she slowly sat up. She reluctantly looked up, catching sight of Dr. Schaffer's lips curled into a dark grin.
"Where have you been?" He questioned, his voice deceivingly calm as he placed a warm hand on her cheek.
Lucy's hands trembled as her fingers curled into the bed. She inhaled deeply as his hand moved to her chin, his iron grip tightening around her cheeks. She tried to pry his arm away but he was stronger than she'd expected.
It was all a nightmare, she told herself, I could do anything if I wanted.
Yet she didn't as Dr. Schaffer placed his book beside him, standing off the bed without letting go of her. She stumbled off the bed and almost fell onto the ground, if not for a steady hand landing on her shoulder. He let go of her jaw then, and relief filled her body, moving her hand to rub her cheek.
"Oh Ver, did you really take my gift and throw it to the dirt? Like it was nothing? Do you know how expensive it was?" His cheery tone contrasted the darkness in his gaze, and Lucy's breath hitched in her throat.
So that's what her mind was terrified of. Throwing an insignificant dagger to the side of a private infirmary had caused terror to seize her heart and produce this nightmare.
