For the anime film based on this chapter, see Violet Evergarden Gaiden: Eternity and the Auto Memories Doll.
Eternity and the Auto Memories Doll (永遠と自動手記人形, Eien to Ōto Memorīzu Dōru?) is the second chapter of Violet Evergarden Gaiden.
Summary[]
A young girl arrives at the doors of the C.H. Postal Company. As she steps forward, she chants a magic spell.
Some time before this, Violet takes on an unusual request: becoming the etiquette tutor of a young lady named Isabella York while pretending to be her handmaiden at a ladies' boarding school, which prepares young women for high-status marriages, for three months. Isabella is attending the school as part of a deal with her father, but because of her humble background, she requires extra help to keep up with her classmates and the lessons. Violet is recommended to Isabella's father by Alberta. At the school, Violet accompanies Isabella at all times and helps her go over her lessons again in their shared room after dusk. She has become popular with the other students due to her knightly, gallant nature.
Half a month into the contract, Isabella and Violet prepare for another day. By now, they have settled into a routine. After Violet braids Isabella's hair, Isabella offers to braid Violet's hair as well, saying she has experience braiding her little sister's hair, but end up running out of time and have to run to their morning lessons. As they run, Isabella asks Violet if they can't skip classes and go somewhere else, but Violet reminds her that they cannot go anywhere in this academy. Stung, Isabella lashes out, causing Violet to apologize. Isabella feels bad as she only wanted Violet to treat her like a friend and apologizes, resting her head on Violet's shoulder and not caring that it might create rumors about their relationship.
During one lunch period, Violet turns down invitations from other students in Isabella's place, as she hasn't yet improved in manners to the point of refusing others in a ladylike manner. Violet saves a girl from tripping and dropping her tray, causing the girl to become flustered at being near her up close.
Violet and Isabella bathing together.
With twenty days remaining in their contract, Isabella and Violet practice dancing for an upcoming ball. Isabella is frustrated by her own lack of skill and vents her feelings of jealousy towards Violet and inadequacy. Violet apologizes for pushing her too hard and draws a bath for her, though Isabella insists on helping. Isabella presses Violet into joining her in the bath, and Violet reluctantly agrees after sternly warning her not to stare at her while she is undressing or try to touch her without permission. Upon learning that Violet received nail polish as a thank-you gift from the girl she saved at lunch break, Isabella offers to help her paint her toenails. Violet notes that Isabella has never asked her about her prosthetic arms. Isabella responds that she hadn't asked her about her life before she became the daughter of a rich man, either.
At night, Isabella has a dream about her sister. She is wakened up by a coughing fit caused by her asthma. Violet brings her water and sits next to her in bed. Isabella asks her why she's being nice to her even though Isabella had been hostile to her in the beginning and told her not to talk to her except for school-related matters. One week into the contract, Isabella had a violent coughing fit in the middle of the night and found Violet silently stroking her back. Realizing that Violet wasn't talking because she was ordered not to, Isabella felt ashamed and angry at herself for pushing her away. After the night passed, she told Violet to talk to her as a fellow young woman. As she listens to Violet tell her about the stars to help her sleep, Isabella resolves herself to become someone who's kind no matter what they endure in life, just like Violet.
On the day of the ball, packages of clothes and accessories arrive from Isabella's father. Violet also receives a dress from Hodgins with a playful note from Benedict, who delivered the package. Violet reflects that due to the nature of her current job, she can't keep in touch with them regularly. Isabella feels both happiness and loneliness at seeing that Violet has people who care about her. Since she will be leaving today, Isabella forces herself to look cheerful as she wants Violet's last memory of her to be a good one. They attend the ball and dance together after Violet assures a nervous Isabella that her dancing is perfect and that she will protect her if anything happens. After the ball, they return to Isabella's room. Before Violet leaves, Isabella asks her for a favor and promises to pay her back for it later. Violet calls her by her real name, Amy Bartlett, and states that she doesn't accept money from friends. The two girls never saw each other again after that, but continue to exchange letters.
When Isabella was still Amy, she found a little girl sitting outside a store in the red-light district where she lived and made a living as a thief. The little girl's mother had been killed in the streets, but the little girl didn't understand that. Amy, who knew the girl's mother, helped get the body buried in a cemetery. She then decides to adopt the girl as her little sister and make her happy as a way to get revenge on the world that had mistreated them both. She named the girl Taylor, and the two lived happily for a year until a messenger from the father she never knew arrived. He wanted to bring her into his family, even though she was the daughter of a lover, because all of his legitimate children had died in an epidemic. Since Taylor was the daughter of a prostitute, Amy could never see her again, but if Amy did everything she was told, they would send Taylor to an orphanage or a family that would allow her to live in a much better environment than Amy's rundown apartment. Amy realizes that Taylor was now the one good thing she had in her life and her sole reason for living. Though she didn't want throw away her freedom and value, she knew that she had no other choice.
Some time later, Benedict arrives at the orphanage where Taylor is living to deliver two letters. Since Taylor can't read yet, Benedict reads them for her. One is from Violet, who tells her that she can visit her at the C.H. Postal Company if she ever needed anything. The other one is from an unknown sender. It simply tells Taylor to say the word "Amy" as it is a magic word that will protect her. At the sound of the word, Taylor hazily recalls the person who took care of her and loved her before she came here.
In an unsent letter to Taylor, Amy admits that perhaps she wanted to be a mother instead of a sister. Though Taylor will eventually forget her one day, Amy tells her to simply call out her name if she gets lonely, because their bond is eternal.
Characters[]
- Taylor Bartlett
- Benedict Blue
- Cattleya Baudelaire
- Claudia Hodgins
- Violet Evergarden
- Amy Bartlett
- Amy's father (mentioned)
- Alberta (mentioned)
- Gilbert Bougainvillea (mentioned)
Trivia[]
- This chapter was adapted into the movie Violet Evergarden Gaiden: Eternity and the Auto Memories Doll.