Chasing shadows

If there had been any doubt lingering in Artorias' mind that this was his long-lost sister, it was immediately dispelled when she looked up at him and met his gaze, those familiar mismatched eyes showing no recognition for him, yet his held all the remembrance for her. Her chubby cinnamon-coated companion came racing up to him, another testament to his sister's identity, and Art beamed brightly. "Hey, it's you!" His smile slowly began to droop from his face as the raccoon set about miming out Daphne's ordeal, using the firefly the bottle as a prop. Artorias eyed the bottled insect with trepidation, recognizing that ethereal blue glow immediately. Although Artorias didn't fully understand the story from the small mammal, he got enough of the gist to understand Daphne had encountered the same entity he had that had stolen his sight. But what had he stolen from Daphne? Something coming out of her head...?

Artorias' unspoken question was answered when Daphne claimed the only things she remembered were thousands of eyes and too many teeth, and while the blue-furred brute didn't know what that meant, he knew what had been stolen from his sister. She doesn't remember anything... The cold realization hit him like a slap in the face. Artorias gazed at Daphne in a state of stupor, mouth hung open dumbly while he tried to get any semblance of a thought started. She really didn't recognize him or remember anything. Not him, not their family, not the Hallows—not even her own name.

"Yes, that is your name," answered Art, nodding his head slowly. He took a measured step closer to her, fighting back the urge to rush up and embrace her for fear he might scare her off in her state. But gods, the emotions of having his family all returning home after so long...! "You're Daphne. And I'm Artorias. You're my sister, and I'm your brother. We have three other siblings too. Rudyard, Gwynevere, and Bowen. Do you remember them? Or our mother, Tamsyn?" Artorias looked his younger sister over, taking in her appearance from a distance to make sure she was okay. A hot meal and warm bed would be awaiting her in her near future, but for now, Artorias would content himself with just making sure she was healthy and uninjured.

"Artorias Carpathius"