"Framed?"
Cillada pauses, rubbing his temples with a deep sigh.
"You expect me to believe you? Do you have any other allibis?"
"Ah... That..."
"Clearly, you don't."
I frown at his words, lips quivering. I can't just tell him about inheriting Jean's memory to clear my innocence. Callida's narrator would know I'm an anomaly!
I let the thought linger for a second longer, then...
"Bingo! I can just give him Jean's diary!"
"Your face brightened. What'd you think of?"
"My diary. You can check it for evidence."
"There is a possibility that you fabricated some of the details. You are a surprisingly smart peasant after all."
I was itching to pull my hair out.
"I've got what I needed."
Callida gets up from his chair before neatly pushing it under the table.
"Wait! Hear me out more! I'm innocent—"
The door creaks open, behind it was the officer with a set of gold teeth, mister gold tooth, my escort.
Callida simply wears his hat, tipping it and taking a single puff from his cigarette.
Mister gold teeth—upon seeing Callida tipping his hat—nodded.
***
An endless void seemed to be awaiting me at the end of this spiral stairwell. The only source of light came from the oil lamp mister gold teeth carried, illuminating our steps. I could almost swear that my breath is echoing through this seemingly infinite pit of shadow.
An echo of water dropping from somewhere only added to the sheer eeriness of this place.
Mister gold teeth's sweat was foul. I had to hold my breath in every few seconds just for the sake of not smelling it. Can't blame him though, we've been descending for a while.
Then, I see it. The end of the stairwell. I would've been on cloud nine over the fact that the tiring descent has ended but...
The room was gigantic and seems circular. A hallway with an arched heading was lit before us with the oil lamp in mister gold teeth's possesion.
At the end, a door. Behind it was a room—suspiciously small.
"Is this a torture chamber!?"
Mister gold tooth approached a weird looking contraption. He placed the kerosene lamp on a podium.
"It can't be one right!?"
A wave of panic washed over me, tempted to bolts right out of there.
*click*
Light slowly but rhythmically filled the room with a yellowish-orange hue light.
*ding, ding, ding*
My lips parted, almost as if I just saw a magician doing an impressive trick for the first time.
"Welcome to the Under Grove."
"This... Is a prison?"
It was a sight to behold, a whole garden of Beacon Trees. Slowly but surely, they all lit up, one, possibly reacting to the warm light from the lamps on the wall. It was oddly ethereal for a prison.
Its hypnotozing ice blue glow eases my heart and slumping my shoulders. Almost as if the garden itself is dragging me further in.
The garden's grass is marine blue, its walkway is made of stone and a pond in the middle, seemingly full of stars.
*click*
The wall lamps turned off.
"Move along."
I didn't know what was more surprising, the fact that they have an underground garden or how laid back the gold teethed officer is.
"Do I have to repeat myself?"
The officer, on another set of stairs uttered to me, his tone slightly irritated.
I hurriedly jogged over to him, almost tripping in the process.
We went through the mystical garden. At the end, yet another door.
"How many doors do we have to go through?..."
Three. Three more doors to be exact.
Before me a rusty barred prison cell. It was the place I have to live in for now. An upgrade may I add.
Mister gold teeth fumbles with the set of keys he got along the way, inserting it into a lock and pushing the metal door open.
After stepping inside, he immediately closed the door shut, swiftly locking it and giving me a cold look before walking away, footsteps echoing in the halls.
I settle down on my new bedside located at the far left corner of this slightly small cell. Its cushion is surprisingly comfortable.
"Leola."
No response. I know She's watching but for some reason she's not uttering a word.
A clanking metal sound echoed through the prison hall. I was reminded of Kiran. Uneasiness slowly creeping in my heart.
"Hopefully he's alright."
[Jean the Peasant Orphan.]
There she is.
"Help me get out of here. You're supposed to keep my storyline in check right?"
I whisper but, yet again, no reply.
I clench my teeth in frustration. It's unfair. It would be fine if it was just me, no one would be waiting for a peasant at home. Kiran on the other hand has a loving family that cares for him. Klaudia simply can't lose another brother. My luck's all over the place.
"Why aren't you helping me?"
[I have my own reasons.]
"You say that quite often."
Once again, silence fills the room. Nothing but the sound of inmates doing their own weird things echoing the hall.
I let out a long sigh before lying on my back, eyes locked on the ceiling, trying to figure out what to do when suddenly...
"They arrested a peasant?"
The voice was deep, coming from the cell just across mine.
"Hey you. You're a peasant right?" The voice brings up another question.
"Yeah."
I sit back up, eyes on the inmate in the cell just across mine. His legs were crossed, a book titled "Top 50 cutest cat breeds" in his hands. His shoulders, broad, wearing a white sleeveless shirt. His biceps is also quite big to say the least.
"Yet another surprise, cats are in this world too."
"What did ya do to get arrested?"
"I can't recall."
He taps his chin, seemingly deep in thought. His brown eyes scanned me, up, down, left, right.
"Hmmm...HAH, you know, you're quite a looker chicken ribs."
"Chicken ribs?..."
"Is that my nickname or something?"
I let out a soft, forced chuckle.
"You look like a five hundred year old body who's been dug up from their grave! Hahahahah! You should eat more!"
I feel my face contorting at his words.
"Maybe you should learn to be less rude, sir."
"Hahahahah! Chicken ribs, you're asking a prisoner to be less rude!"
"My fault for talking to you..."
He continued to laugh for the next five minutes. I've had better five minutes than this. The way he laughs is practically burnt into my mind at this point.
"You gave me a good laugh kid"—he wipes his tears—"I usually show the newcomers how The Under Grove works."
"What are you implying?"
"I'll show you around of course. What are you a goldfish? How could you not catch on what I'm implying from that?"
"This man cannot possibly be real..."
"It's almost dinner time, follow me. I'll lead the way."
"Well... I suppose."
"Don't get lost and wander into the woman's lavatory. It'll destroy my reputation as The Undergrove's guide."
"Maybe I'll do just that if you don't shut your mouth."
Nonetheless I've got to find Kiran someway, somehow. Perhaps we won't be in this prison for long if they were to look into our situation more. That's a hypothetical, that's why it makes me nervous.
***
The tray in my hand is filled with food, high quality food at that. Rice, potatoes, vegetables and meat.
"They must be really rich. Meat isn't exactly cheap."
"Like the food chicken ribs?"
"I would enjoy it much more if your sweaty arm isn't touching me all over."
From our humble table at the corner, the dining hall was very crowded. Prisoners were starving, some were even bickering just for cutting the line. Glad I'm not involved in that.
The hands of the wall clock pointed at "6:27" yet no sign of Kiran anywhere in here.
"What's your name chicken ribs?"
"Jean."
"Sounds like something people would name a type of pants."
"Well..."
With a forced smile I reply,
"Ahaha... Yeah."
The seemingly cheery atmosphere between him and I suddenly shifted.
A tray came flying at our table.
"You! I've been waiting for this!"
Silence filled the room, all eyes were on the voice's owner. It was a tall, lean man with a mohawk. Best way I could describe him is that he's a stereotypical bad guy.
The prisoner next to me uttered with a sigh,
"Who's Old Hawk getting mad at now?"
"Old hawk?"
My head tilts at the weird choice of name when all of the sudden, I overhear a whisper from the nearby tables.
"It's that blonde boy..."
"The boy's new right?"
"Poor kid..."
Hawk lowers himself, grabbing someone by the collar. That someone was the person who stole my money, the same person with a loving and caring family.
My eyes widened. There is no way I wouldn't recognize this person. Even though It hasn't been a week. I'm certain of it, that person...
"Kiran!?"