Who: Vanya Hargreeves & Mirror!Vanya What: Trading Places Where: Room 502, Butler Hall When: Week 7, Day 5 Warnings: references to being drugged Status: complete narrative
Despite seeing people on the network mention that their reflections were talking to them, Vanya was convinced that she was going crazy when she heard her own voice coming out of the mirror because it wasn't always her as she was now talking, sometimes it was her younger self, the one that Reginald manipulated and tricked into believing that she was ordinary, who was left out of all the training and missions that her siblings did, who felt like she was lesser than because she didn't have powers. The same younger her that encouraged her to embrace her abilities and use them to get out of the vault where Luther trapped her.
She was afraid to talk to Allison about it, considering the circumstances under which she'd ended up in said vault, and she didn't know anyone else here nearly well enough to even consider mentioning it or asking if they were having similar experiences. Everyone said that the weird things here only lasted for a week, so she was determined to ignore the voice and get through the week. As the days went on, it got more and more difficult to ignore. She tried covering the mirror in her room, but she couldn't do so in the communal bathroom. And her reflection became more and more insistent, speaking to her through other reflective surfaces, like the spoon she used to stir her tea.
The little creature friend that she'd picked up shortly after her arrival offered some modicum of comfort and distraction and seemed to sense her growing distress by the whole situation. When she woke up on the fifth morning and discovered that the covering had fallen off her mirror somehow in the middle of the night, Vanya felt her entire body vibrating as she took deep breaths, trying to keep herself in check. "Why are you doing this to me?" she demanded, walking over and confronting her reflection.
"You know why. You're weak. You could be strong. You could do anything. You might be able to get all of these people out of here. And you won't even try. Because you're scared."
She was scared and didn't think it was fair of her reflection to taunt her about it. From the stories she'd heard, she had been the cause of the end of the world twice and only sheer luck and Five's abilities prevented it from happening so far. "Shut up," she said, bending down to pick up the towel so she could re-cover the mirror.
Unfortunately, when she lifted it, her hand touched the cool glass surface of the mirror and in an instant, she was trapped inside. No amount of screaming seemed to work and she was forced to watch her other self explore the room and the few belongings she had accumulated so far.