Chapter 13: Smiling Calignosity

After the lesson of today, which is about 'Silver lining', Silla took Charlotte out of the facility.

"Looks like it'll be sunny today.", Silla muttered. She then look at Charlotte, begrudgingly holding her woman's hand.

"Charlotte, since this will be a short walk, I wanna ask you about something. About your Reverie."

What does she want now?, Charlotte complained in her mind.

"Charlotte, you said your Reverie absorb impact and spread, right?"

Charlotte nodded.

"So what if you apply the impact before you attach it?", Silla wondered, "Or force the speed of devouring to increase?"

"I... don't know.", the girl simply answered.

"Fair enough.", the woman shrugged, "By the way, what is your condition for gaining back your powers?"

"To leave my safe haven.", Charlotte repeated Reverie's words.

"Safe haven huh, I see! Throwing you into a dangerous places should do the trick.", Silla smiled, making Charlotte become more wary.

She is unpredictable... and dangerous...

Seeing Charlotte being uncomfortable, Silla changed the subject, "Van Gogh's place isn't too far away, just a block down from here."

Charlotte looked to the front, she could see it's shape. Curiosity struct her, as the building resemble more of a cottage, as much as a mansion that was made to look like a cottage.

"That's Van Gogh's place. Beside being our therapist, she also take personal commissions, usually rich people. Her paintings usually sells for the billions, often due to the commissioner's own will."

"What is so special about her paintings?", Charlotte did not understand much, but she know billions is a large number.

"Her ability, she has a bunch herself. Beside being a good painter, she has the ability to see and translate emotions into art, your deepest secrets, your subconscious mind. Van Gogh can translate them into arts.", Silla explained with unusual seriousness, "I got a painting of my own too. But I burned it, it revealed too much of me."

Charlotte nodded. I wonder what my painting will be like?

 

They stopped at the front door, too small for the size of the two stories mansion, Silla pressed a door bell. Instantly, the door opened.

Coming out is a petit woman with messy ginger hair, shadowing her bright sky blue eyes. There are freckles on her face, giving her an endearing aura. The outfit she wears is a simple white shirt stained with colors, a blue denim jacket, and brown pants.

Her eyes met with Charlotte's azure gaze, she shivered a bit as she turned her attention to Silla.

"H-Hello...", she spoke timidly, "H-How can I help you...?"

"Hi Van Gogh! I was just checking on you, and brings you another fellow Gem Holder!", Silla glanced at Charlotte.

"I told you to call me Vanessa...", she whispered, before checking out Charlotte with a kind smile, "Hello, what is your name?"

Charlotte felt relaxed by just being near her, maybe this is an effect of her power? 

With calm manner, she replied, "I am Charlotte Silvi."

"What a beautiful name. I am nobody special... you might know me as Vincent Willem Van Gogh, or Van Gogh for short... but please call me Vanessa, it's the name of my Gem Holder... I do not wish for her to be forgotten..."

Charlotte nodded, "Okay, Vanessa."

She brighten up a bit, "Thank you... come in, I was just done with my current painting..."

Charlotte and Silla followed Vanessa in. The first thing the girl saw was paintings, a lot of paintings hung on the walls. Scenes of stary nights, fields of flower, beaches, pictures of architecture ingenuity... each and every one of them are beautiful, on a physical and psychological level.

The ability to paint emotions...

Charlotte can feels Vanessa poured her heart out for each of the paintings. The emotions the girl felt from them are unfiltered, so much so they may actually influencing her emotion state.

"Oh...", Charlotte touched her cheeks, they are wet, "Oh... I'm crying."

"S-Sorry, this place is a little overwhelming...", the painter approached Charlotte, crouched down and taking out a tissue paper, she wiped the girl's tears from her face, "You are a big girl, right?"

She pat Charlotte's head, "Don't look at them too much, maybe when you are older you can handle them. Come on, follow me."

"You guys go by yourself, I'll be here observing the paintings.", Silla said, waving them both goodbye.

Vanessa nodded, accepting the proposal. She took Charlotte's hand, which made the girl realized how soft the painter's hand is. She held her hand in a delicate manner, her eyes viewing Charlotte as something fragile.

"I will take good care of you, Charlotte, you need not to worry...", Vanessa spoke as she lead Charlotte from the show room to a more normal living room, with two sofa opposite of each other, a coffee table inbetween, an office space with documents, and a scenic painting of a lake.

"This isn't much but it is still something. Sit down, I will get some snack and drink. What do you want?", Vanessa asked.

"Mhmm... milk.", Charlotte answered with hesitation. It was the first time she get to choose her drink, after all.

Vanessa nodded, "Milk, and would crisps be alright?", she went through the door next to the office table.

Charlotte nodded, she go along with anything. She has yet to discover anything she would dislike to consume.

She sat down on the sofa, letting the soft embrace consume her as her body began to relaxed. Her eyes naturally fixed onto the painting of the lake, it truly gave a calming presence.

The painting depicts a still lake, painted with light brush strokes, almost like the painter just let the paint spread without manipulating the oil. But the more Charlotte look at it, she realized the finer details of the artwork. The subtle strokes here and there, the blue line of water touching the green patch of land, giving life to the still image.

It's beautiful...

"Ah, please don't look too much at the painting, it's not something really worth looking at....", Vanessa spoke from behind.

Charlotte jolted out of her daze, her eyes flashed to the painter. Which spooked the painter.

"Aah! Your eyes are intense...", Vanessa took a step back, avoiding Charlotte's eyes. She looked very uncomfortable when placing down the glass of milk, a mug of Irish coffee, and a bowl of potato chips.

She sat down opposite of Charlotte, fidgeting a bit. Not caring much about the mental state of the therapist, the girl grabbed a potato chip and eat it.

A round of awkward silent ensue.

"Umm...", Vanessa hummed, "Is the snack to your liking?"

Charlotte think for a bit, tasting the salt left on her mouth. The flavor of the chips are salty, but not too salty, it was perfect and Charlotte think she could eat it forever. So she nodded, to Vanessa's relief.

"Thank you, I'm just getting used to the air fryer. I'm not sure... how it would taste.", she smiled, "Now, I think it is time for business."

Charlotte tilted her head, "Business?"

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Vanessa's face showed confusion, then panic, "Ah aah! I'm sorry! Usually people come here to tell me... for me to help them... being a therapist is hard to explain."

She began to shake, looking around the room, trying to find something.

Charlotte~ give it a try~! It'll be an eye opening experience!

Eye opening? Whatever...

Charlotte spoke up, "Can I give to a try?", which made Vanessa refocused on her.

"O-Of course!", she brighten up, then straighten herself up, "Ehem, so is there something troubling you lately?"

Charlotte leaned back, once again staring at the painting. What is troubling her? There is of course Silla, who forced her to do things against her will multiple times. That is very troubling.

But... that is not the trouble Charlotte think Vanessa can deal with.

There is another one, one that she already agreed to. She took out her phone, opening up the file that disgusted her the most.

I hate this...

She handed it to Vanessa.

Vanessa took it, "Is it okay for... me to read this?"

Charlotte nodded, prompting the painter to read. At first, she was frowning, probably reading the first few entries. Then she winced, maybe at the part where Charlotte caused the destruction at the facility. Finally, her eyes shook, showing terror behind them, the hand holding the phone shaking.

"H-How could they...", tears began to form on her eyes. Her eyes transfers between the phone and Charlotte, before dropping it on the table.

Vanessa stood up, going around the table to reach Charlotte. She went in for a hug, surprising Charlotte in her warm embrace.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! So much suffering, so much agony! I... I didn't know...! I couldn't have known!", she cried out a stream of tears.

However, being the insensitive child Charlotte is, only one thought crossed her mind. My shirt is wet now...

"Let me... let me take on the burden for you... please wait a bit... I'll get my stuffs...", Vanessa let go of Charlotte, arms still shaking.

She went into the other room. 

Charlotte tracked her as she go in. Then her azure eyes changed target, from the painter to a painting in that room. A red bush made completely out of thorns, simple as that, but the details of the painting filled Charlotte with an overwhelming sense of dread. She averted her eyes, wondering what kind of thing that was.

The Gáe Bolg Forest, something born from the last stand of a Celtic hero, Cú Chulainn. Made from the demonic spear giving the forest's name. Once it lost it's master, without no one to control it, it drank the blood of the fallens and became a forest of death.

Hearing Reverie's explanation, Charlotte could see why the forest was dreadful. If she know of it before seeing the painting, she might think the Gáe Bolg Forest is cool, but with the ability of the painter, nothing but fear took hold of her.

"I'm back— oh...", Vanessa came out with a bunch of painting supply, she was frowning when she looked at Charlotte with dread in her eyes, "...sorry... you saw it, didn't you... I really should put it somewhere else."

Before getting to comfort Charlotte, Vanessa placed the easel down in front of her office desk, a white canvas, along with the palette on a holder, tubes of paint, different kind of brushes. She took out a stool from under the desk, sitting on it.

Vanessa breathed in a deep breath, "Here goes nothing..."

Charlotte felt Vanessa peering into her body, into her mind. Like a gentle gardener, tending for a garden, cutting off the unnecessary branches, removing vines to let the plants grow freely, replacing the soil, singing a lovely melody into her very mind. She closed her eyes, letting comfort taking over her, as Vanessa continues to paint the canvas.

 

 

"Charlotte... wake up, I'm done..."

Huh?

Charlotte felt someone shaking her, she opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was sky blue eyes, ones full of innocence. 

"Vanessa...?"

The painter smiled, "Yes, I am here. Did you have a good nap?"

Nap...

Charlotte know the word, but she has yet to experience it yet. All she did was going to her void, nothing more, nothing less. With the effect of her hat, she may never feel truly tired. And she cannot dream. Though she does feel a weight has been lifted from her, as if all of her troubles was taken away. So she just nods.

"Good... now... your painting is complete. Would you like to see it?", Vanessa smiled, she seems excited to reveal the painting to Charlotte.

She turned the canvas to Charlotte. What the painting... no, portrait describes is something strange. A humanoid figure cover in darkness, almost like a void, drapping over it is a pure white veil, around are flowers, many different kinds of blooming flower, both elegant and disgusting blooms... like others paintings of Vanessa, this one made her feel emotions, many, many different emotions.

"When I use my powers... I am able to touch your soul...", Vanessa's expression darken, "And feels it... to paint it..."

The artwork by itself is beautiful... beautiful... the power to transform pain into beauty... the power to see the pain of other...

Charlotte continues to stare at the painting. Different emotions, all mixed together to form a garden around the figure, her figure, yet there are two emotions that stood out the most. Rage, and Joy. What could have her soul saw for those emotions to twist together into a morbid harmony? It was ugly to Charlotte, yet magnificent at the same time. It draws her in, her soul in bare form through the eyes and mind of an artist, greatest at their craft.

"You can keep it if you want, Charlotte.", Vanessa touched her again on the shoulder, snapping Charlotte away from the painting.

"I will... keep it, thank you...", she spoke quietly, enough for Vanessa to smile.

"It is a pleasure, jonge vrouw.", she bowed, then she held Charlotte's hands in a warm embrace, "I will get it deliver to you tomorrow, it will be up at your place my the time you wake up."

Charlotte nodded.

"Now, it's late. You took quite a long nap, Charlotte.", she chuckled, "You should head back now."

Nodding, Charlotte gulped down her glass of milk since her mouth is pretty dry, and it would be a waste of hospitality. 

"Thank you for having me.", she stood up, giving one final glance at her portrait before going.

Going to a gallery of a room, Charlotte kept her eyes down as to not get overwhelm by the paintings. Before she know it, she reached Silla's feet. Stress once against formed in her.

"Little one! You took your time, didn't ya?", Silla cheerfully asked.

"Yes...", Charlotte nodded with a small smile.

"Good! Van Gogh might not be as sociable as most people, she's good at her job. Feels all better now?"

Again, she nodded. Silla then gave her hair a good ruffle, "Atta girl! You did good!", then she slapped her back, "Now go! I got some business with Van Gogh, I'll be back later!"

Charlotte felt relieved, she rushed past Silla and when away.

Today was a good day.

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