When her laughter died down, she fell silent for a few moment, and then said in a neutral tone:
"To be honest, I am a bit devious. And l am a bit eerie. Treacherous... that too, I think. I just hide it better than most — possibly better than anyone."
She paused, then added:
“But I am really trying my best."
Mordret studied her carefully and sighed.
"Someone told me recently that there comes a time when one must take a stand. I feel like you are at a point when you are ready to take yours, as well. So, I don't think that you'll betray my brother, even if it benefits you. And no matter how much you hate him.”
Cassie reached forward and touched the mirror, tracing its frame with her fingers.
“Hate him? I never hated him."
She drew her hand back.
“Was appalled by him? Yes. Was terrified by him? Yes. But hating him... it would have been hypocritical of me, considering all the things that I've done."
She remained silent for a few moments and then added:
"It's difficult to hate someone whom you understand. And in this whole wide world, I might be the only person who understands Mordret. Because I've seen his memories — most of them, at least. I experienced all the things he had experienced, and saw every step he took to end up where he is today — what he is today. I... witnessed him."
Cassie smiled weakly.
"I am still appalled by him, but I don't think I will ever be able to hate him... or you. After all, the two of you come from the same source. The most important memories I saw are yours, as well.”
She sighed deeply.
"So even if we are meeting for the first time, I can't treat you as a stranger."
Mordret did not say anything, and all that met her was the darkness... as well as the feeling of the cold surface of the mirror under her fingers.
Cassie raised a hand and pulled down her blindfold, revealing her empty, bleeding eye socket.
"That is the real reason why I came to talk to you, Mordret... the other Mordret. The lesser Mordret."
He smiled bitterly.
"The lesser Mordret... well, I can't argue with that. But what exactly do you mean, Lady Cassia?"
She lingered with the answer. In the end, she shrugged.
"I lost the ability to see the future. But I can still predict it, even if I use deduction instead of precognition now. So... call it a contingency, of sorts."
He seemed to have frowned.
"I still don't understand what you are talking about."
Cassie raised an eyebrow.
"Don't you? The two of you used to be the same person, but your paths have diverged at some point. Since then, you were both locked in your own cell of solitude, each suffering his own banishment. Neither of you is whole, and while he detests you... you long for him, don't you? Just like you longed for your family, whose care and affection you had been denied."
Mordret laughed bitterly.
“Oh, but he longs for me, as well. He longs to destroy and absorb me, like he did the rest — it's just that he can't, because I carry his death. Quite a pair, aren't we?"
Cassie shook her head.
"It doesn't matter what he wants. I've spent so many days and suffered so much doing what he wanted... what he needed from me. What do you want?"
Mordret remained silent, so she spoke instead:
“I will tell you what I want. I want to remember where Sunny and Nephis are, so that I know when they will come back. I want them back so badly. But I can't, because I erased my own memories of knowing... that is a power of mine. To see, to know, to remember. Or to forget."
She drew in a slow breath.
"And now I have to confront the possibility that they won't come back in time. Which means that I cannot rely on them to defeat the Dreamspawn. Which means that I must defeat him myself. But he is so vast, and I am so small. When he pressed me down and took my eye, I couldn't even move. All my weapons are gone or broken, and all I am left with is a tangled thread..."
Closing her one remaining eye, Cassie took a deep breath.
"How is Ariadne supposed to defeat the Minotaur without Theseus?"