Sandrone

Alain Guillotin would call her Marionette. Behind this name was the story of a loved one he could not forget and whose memories he had naively tried to revive by creating her. But the moment she opened her eyes and tentatively spoke his name, he resolved never to call her that again. It was wrong, he realized, to make this exquisite little creation bear the weight of his sister's life, and of his own mistake. This little creation deserved a life of her very own, just like anyone else born into this world. But from time to time, he still addressed her by that name, if only in his thoughts. He did so because, just as the name "Marionette" suggested, she was pure of heart, kind, and always full of joy. The people of Snezhnaya knew her as "the Lady" or "Lady Marionette." While most spoke of her with the fear that a Harbinger typically inspires, there was also often a distinct note of respect in their voices, a sentiment made clear by descriptions such as "the decisive Lady Marionette" and "the ever-reliable Lady Marionette." But to her friends and colleagues, she was known as Sandrone. While it was originally just a code name, over time the name became a cheerful way for her closest and dearest to address her. They began to associate it with the scents of desserts and afternoon tea, with the elegant turning of book pages and the steady ticking of a mainspring.... And of course, at times, it also evoked the grumbles and even furious outbursts of a lady who had lost all patience, proper etiquette be damned. Once, a friend put this question to her: "What do you want us to call you?" "It doesn't matter, and I don't really care," she replied nonchalantly. "I've always thought names to be something that existed mainly for the convenience of others. What other people choose to call me is, to a very large extent, determined by which part of me they choose to accept." The expression on her friend's face was one that clearly suggested that they were woefully unprepared for her answer. "Anyhow, what I mean to say is: No matter what people choose to call me, I am still myself. I will not change because they have chosen to call me by a different name, and since I do not care for what people call me, why not just let them use the name they're most comfortable with? But as to whether I would respond to the name in question, that is another matter altogether, heh."