Morning came softly to the Sanctuary.
No alarms. No shouting. No cameras hidden behind mirrors.
Just rainwater dripping from the trees outside and the distant creaking of old pipes waking up somewhere inside the walls.
Aglaë opened her eyes slowly.
For a few seconds she didn't move.
The ceiling above her stayed harmlessly still. Pale wood. Soft shadows. The small crack near the corner she kept meaning to trace with her eyes before sleeping.
Safe.
The word came automatically now.
Safe.
Her breathing steadied.
Then the memory returned.
The pub.
The broken bottle.
Men staring too long.
Hands reaching.
Laughter turning wrong.
And suddenly—
another room.
Not the pub.
Older.
Bigger.
Gold walls.
Velvet curtains.
A chandelier trembling softly above a table where old men laughed with expensive mouths and dead eyes.
Aglaë's stomach tightened instantly.
No.
Not this.
The memory opened anyway.
Cold marble under bare feet.
A collar around someone else's throat.
Girls lined up too straight.
Doors that locked from the outside.
A hand brushing gently through her hair while a voice whispered:
"Good girls survive."
Her chest seized.
Another flash.
Cages beneath the manor.
The smell.
The silence after crying stopped.
Aglaë sat up too quickly.
The blanket tangled around her legs as panic climbed into her throat like ice water.
"No…"
Her voice cracked softly in the empty room.
She pressed both hands against her face.
Breathe.
Breathe.
The Sanctuary remained quiet around her.
No footsteps coming.
No one opening the door.
No one choosing.
Slowly—
very slowly—
the memories loosened their grip.
Aglaë lowered her hands.
The room returned piece by piece.
Morning light. Rain. Wood. Breathing.
Not the manor.
Not anymore.
She swallowed hard and forced herself to stand.
The floor was cold beneath her feet as she crossed the room toward the bathroom.
The mirror caught her for half a second.
Small. Blonde. Fragile.
Safe-looking.
Aglaë stared at herself silently.
Then the performance began.
Not consciously.
Never consciously.
The warm water started falling around her.
Her shoulders relaxed first.
Then her face.
Then her posture.
By the time she washed the last traces of sleep from her skin, the frightened animal inside her had already started disappearing beneath softer movements.
Gentler ones.
The version people protected.
The version people loved.
Aglaë closed her eyes beneath the water.
A quiet melody escaped her lips before she realized she was singing.
"Welcome… beautiful…"
She froze.
Water ran down her face.
A small laugh escaped her despite herself.
"Mia's fault…"
The words came out warm. Almost shy.
She resumed humming quietly while reaching for shampoo.
The melody softened the room instantly.
For a moment, she imagined Mia hearing her sing it.
Would she smile?
Would she be embarrassed?
Would Alice smile differently than Mia would?
Aglaë paused.
That thought stayed longer than it should have.
Then she shook her head lightly.
Ridiculous.
Outside the shower, morning waited patiently.
Normal breakfast. Normal conversations. Normal Sanctuary life.
Like the world had not almost swallowed them alive the night before.
Aglaë turned off the water.
Silence returned immediately.
For a brief second, her reflection appeared again in the fogged mirror.
Not fragile this time.
Just tired.
And very young.
Her fingers brushed the glass softly before she looked away.
Then she smiled.
Small. Sweet. Safe.
The face everyone expected.
And she stepped back into the world wearing it perfectly.