After a long argument in which the girl 'borrowed' a bicycle from a woman who will never see her bicycle again considering how much she complained about the girl borrowing it for the day, she arrived at the address of the hotel. The five-star hotel was next to the Brandenburger Tor, the quadriga standing prominently against the sky. Inside, the front desk was manned by a young man about her age, who perked up when the girl entered.
"Welcome to the Hotel Adlon Kempinski Berlin, Frau...?"
"Frau Webber."
"How may I help you today Frau Webber?"
"I was invited to this hotel by a Frau Otroi, her full name is Helen Otroi." It occurred to the girl that she was never given a floor or a room number. "I'm supposed to be meeting her at 6:00 pm today for dinner."
Oh, that's who she wanted to meet today! I can see the resemblance.
The girl blinked. "Who do I resemble?"
He turned to her in surprise. "I didn't say anything." She's a lot more like Frau Otroi than I thought. Sometimes I think my personal space gets invaded more than I'd like...ahh, I have to show Frau Webber the room! "Follow me this way."
She had not invaded this man's personal space, she was merely asking questions! Why would he think that? The man led her through a luxurious wing of the hotel, yet she still heard multiple conversations, not as intense as back in her hotel room.
...Holy shit this is expensive...
...Where is room service?!...
...Should I lie about the window...
Finally, they ended up in front of a room at the end of the hallway. A "Do Not Disturb" sign was hung on the door handle.
"And this is where I leave you, Frau Webber." What were the instructions again...ah yes! When you go inside the room, there is a glass of water. Drink all of it, and put the glass on your head. Lay on the couch and place the heart-shaped pillow under your head. The glass will have fallen off your head by this point. Ask Frau Otroi if Sunset Glow will breed with Midnight Rose, then point at the horse statue. This guest has strange requests, why did I sign up for this job?
"Thank you." The girl replied. Helen Otroi is more secretive than her boss, and that's saying something when her boss has called her in the middle of the night five times and sent you cryptic instructions and two suitcases with tickets to Barcelona on her doorstep.
The girl inspected the door. Nothing unusual. She knocked, once, twice. At once the door swung inwards, and hot shower steam hit the girl's face. The woman from the café greeted her with a smile. She must have recently stopped showering, the girl thought, judging from the steam, the bathrobe, and the towel-wrapped hair. Her eyes were still that sharp shade of yellow.
"Come on in! I've been waiting to meet you for a while now. Take a seat at the table over there." The woman pointed at the dark-coloured table near the window.
The girl ignored the woman and grabbed the glass of water on the kitchen countertop. Drinking all of it in one gulp, she gagged from the lemon juice and water mixture. Placing the glass on her head, the girl wobbled carefully to the couch, using her right hand and moved the yellow heart-shaped pillow to a comfortable position for her head and the glass. Surprisingly, the glass remained on her head despite the movement. The woman observed the girl in that critical fashion, eyes scanning over every part of her body, and the glass tipped over at that very moment.
That's my cue, the girl thought. "You think Sunset Glow will breed with Midnight Rose?" She pointed at the statue of a horse in the middle of galloping, the same colour as her medallion.
The woman cleared her throat. "Sunset Glow is a strong stallion and can endure a greater strain on his body no matter the weather, Calamity or no Calamity. Midnight Rose is swifter, more clever than most mares her age, and adaptable too. Yes, I do think they would make a fine pair, just like us. Without any romance, of course." That transatlantic English accent is still present.
The girl stared at the woman more closely. "Who are you? Why are we identical in everything other than the colour of our eyes? Why didn't you want the police involved? Why did you give me an amulet?"
"The police didn't need to be involved, and the fewer people interfering in your recovery, the faster you will regain your full strength." The woman's fingers danced on the bathrobe-covered arm.
"You didn't answer my first question: who the hell are you?"
"A woman, as you say so in your head, and good job on following those instructions perfectly." Now the girl is intrigued and alarmed by her attitude. "Don't be alarmed, I'm only listening to your mind, just like you and that young man."
The girl's interest is piqued now. "No one in the world has telepathic powers." No one else has yellow eyes, whirlwind eyes that never stopped darting around the room. Who was she looking for?
"You are oddly poetic, Miss Webber, for an English influencer. Tell me, when were you walking around the hotel, were you hearing the voices of the rest of the guests, or did you assume that?"
Now that the girl was thinking about it, she didn't hear anything. No, only the receptionist a few times, and the rest...
"Ah yes, the realisation. Yes, we can both read minds and do other things as well, like persuading you to come."
She can read my mind, and what else? "And you on the amulet, what was that for? Why didn't you help me in that tornado? What else can you do?"
"To persuade you to come. The moment you heard my voice, your body ignored all of its pain receptors telling it that it is in need of repair. That does not mean I healed you, you're still hurt from that beating. It's why you're on the couch and not standing up. It'll go away in a week or so. I was busy with other things while you were battling that tornado."
It would have been better if this woman let the police handle this. The girl could have better medical care than magical persuasion. "You still haven't answered my question."
The woman sighed. "To answer your original question: I'm your twin sister."
YOU ARE READING
Zodiac Story
FantasyThe world is dying, and everyone knows it. Beset by calamities, the world can't survive for much longer. Its only hope lies within those who carry the hopes and dreams of the stars above and the keys to the gates and houses that hold the solution...
