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False kneels at the foot of the altar, laden high with seasonal fruits and bundles of wheat. She did not put them there, does not have anything that the goddess would accept, but she is here anyways, under the watchful eye of the frescos above.
“My Lady,” she starts, mumbling under her breath. It feels a little silly to be saying it out loud, but that’s how she thinks it’s to be done, and besides, how else will the Lady hear if she does not say it? “I’m sorry I have not visited sooner.” She had not remembered to, before.
False swallows. Her mouth is dry. “I’ve begun to remember, though, and I can’t bear it. The memories… all that I’ve done… It's too much. Please, my Lady, take them from me so I can live unburdened.”
“Why would you want that?” False looks up at the sound of the voice. She was whispering, she swears, and certain that her voice would not carry past the alcove she is kneeling in. “Your memories are you, aren’t they?”
Leaning against a pillar is the woman depicted in the mural. Her hair is up in intricate braids, her dress glowing gold in the candlelight. She walks over to where False is kneeling. “My-my Lady,” she says, looking down at the ground in reverence. “I–”
“It’s okay,” the Lady says. She crouches beside False, reaches over to tilt her chin up. “You can call me Pearl.”
“I-Pearl.” False still keeps her eyes downturned. “My memories… I’m not a good person. I’ve done horrible things, and I’m so scared that if I remember what I’ve done, I’ll do it again. Please, you have to take them from me.” She’s still whispering, voice urgent, pleading.
Pearl sighs. “I wish I could. Memory isn’t my domain, as ironic as that might seem. And even if it were possible, it would just come back. Memories are finicky like that.”
False sobs, crumpling further to the ground. She doesn’t want to remember. She didn’t like being an amnesiac, paranoid, but it was better than remembering the things she’s done in her life. As she cries, she feels arms, warm and steady, wrap around her, a comforting presence emanating from them.
“You’re strong,” Pearl says quietly, in False’s ear. “You always have been.”