!!! DISCLAIMER !!!

This is a copy/paste of the prologue section of Stormy's ref sheet. No new lore here yet. Just wanted to start organizing these into more digestible chunks. If you want to read the rest early, you can see it on her ref here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/57808928/

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~~ The Mirror ~~


After obsessing over stories set in the middle-ages for a few months, Stormy began to drop hints that she wanted to redecorate her bedroom for her upcoming birthday. Though she fails to recall the exact age now, she remembers clearly that this was before she'd started puberty... 7 or 8 maybe.

Though her upbringing was never impoverished, they were by no means wealthy. "Lower middle class" is probably the most appropriate classification for their financial situation. Enough to afford to get by and occasionally get treated, but something as big as redecorating an entire room was a big ask.

Dawn, wanting to do her best for her firstborn child had a mission. She was going to scour every thrift shop, antique store, furniture outlet, etc. Even if she wasn't going to be able to afford an entire overhaul, she wanted to make sure there was at least something she could give to make her baby happy. Days turned to weeks, and it was becoming increasingly clear that "none of this crap is right for Stormy". On the final weekend before her daughter's (and son's) special day she had a hail-mary attempt at one final pawn shop...

The birthday went on like any other. The same drone of the same song, the same sharing of the cake with her brother (who she still could not stand). Her brother tore into his wrapping paper, ripping out the box for an RC plane, and waiting impatiently for his father to find batteries to power it. Meanwhile stormy delicately peeled off the tape from hers -- one strip at a time, carefully unwrapping her gift without a single tear. She eventually revealed an antique standing-mirror with ornate decorative carvings all along its wooden frame. Though the carvings were beautiful, there was almost an "emptiness" in the woodwork, like something is missing, or that the design is incomplete -- despite having no particular shortcomings anywhere in the work. The mirror was beautiful. Everything about it was deliberate and intricate. It was exactly the style Stormy had imagined while begging her mom to redecorate. Despite the odd feeling that it didn't quite belong, it added to the mysterious allure that Stormy had grown to love in the books she'd been obsessing over. With help from her dad, she got it hauled into her room and placed exactly where she wanted it.

But that's where the fun begins

The fact that the mirror was special really wasn't a mystery. Even from day one, everyone could pick up the strange vibes. They weren't creepy, just out-of-place. Like a single rose in a bouquet of lilies.

Every day since the mirror was added to her room, she started experiencing intense migraines. These weren't simple headaches either. Every time, it would happen the same way: her heart would begin to race, sweat would run down her cheek and into her eyes, her vision would darken and blur until the words on the page became completely illegible, and eventually even her own book would disappear from her field of view. Everything had double-vision, and the pain would continue to intensify until either she passed out, or vomited.

Nobody attributed this to the mirror. Why would they. Sure it was out of place, but this was real life. Mirrors can't make people sick like that. It must be a flu or food poisoning. Maybe all that reading was giving her eyes strain. Her parents took her to a doctor a few times, but the general consensus was to let her rest and come back if it worsens or continues for more than a few days.

One of these migraine episodes began while she was reading in her windowsill, listening to a rainstorm that was gradually turning into a more intense downpour. To this day, she still remembers clearly what she was reading. It was a nonfiction piece explaining imagery of the occult and the meanings behind them. Like every other time previously, the pain crept in, her heart rate rose, the sweat dropped down on to the pages, and so on. At this point she'd grown accustomed to hauling herself into bed as soon as she first noticed the warning signs, but this time was different. Something in the corner of her eye caught her attention as she began to brace herself for another collapse. Despite the double-vision of everything else, the mirror alone stood, crystal clear against everything else in her room.

Against her better judgement, Stormy's curiosity got the best of her. She stumbled across her room, barely able to keep on her feet as everything around her began to spin with increasing intensity. When she finally reaches the mirror, she is stunned speechless at what she sees in her reflection. Even through her pained squints, her eyes were.. glowing?! They shone the most brilliant shade of magenta she had ever seen. Cautiously, she tried to reach out to her reflection, to see whether it really was her or just an optical illusion. Unfortunately, the migraine finally got the best of her. Her consciousness faded as she was losing her footing. She was out cold before before he could even finish falling into the mirror.