A/N: HUGE SPOILERS ABOUND.

Valant Gramarye has so little love.

Takes place after Zak's disappearance from the Gramarye trial and Valant's arrest after it.

Suppose Valant took a journal to prison with him. The idea isn't that lofty, so I decided to work with it. Thus, we have a journal of the incarceration of Valant Gramarye, inspired partly by The Prestige and In The Time of the Butterflies, the latter of which contains diary chapters where the diary is addressed "little book." I tried not to make this a retelling of what happened, but rather a look into Valant's head, affected by false accusations and the burden of playing second fiddle.

Chapters were meant to be short. I hope you like anyway.

I Brake For Franzy / AsakiPhreek

Property of: Valant Gramarye
If Found, Return To:
GRAMARYE THEATRE AND MUSEUM OF MAGIC
with original lock and key intact

May 1, 2019

Hello, my pitiful little book. The officers forbade me from taking anything else, so I guess it's just you and I.

You see, they shut me in for my supposed murder of Magnifi Gramarye, alongside tampering with a crime scene - more specifically, the scene of my mentor, Magnifi Gramarye's death. I myself would not call it "tampering," but rather "attempting to reclaim what should have been mine." And I will not mention the murder, simply because the popular belief surrounding me as of late is false. They think I did it. I will admit that I very nearly did, but good will took over and made me drop my weapon. His own hands wrought his demise.

Your pages are for my eyes alone. To them, I would not lie.

Zak Gramarye, my partner in prestidigitation, received the letter before I did. "One shot, square in the forehead." Yes, Magnifi Gramarye told us to kill him. One of us would serve as the stagehand, holding the rope, ready to "lower his life's curtain," as he put it. It is strange, little book, but it is true.

I went into the hospital room with an honest intent to kill the man. Thalassa's mangled body flashed before my eyes as I walked in, my heart pounding. I could not refuse. Magnifi would not let me, and neither would she. What a disgrace it would be if she were unable to see her father again in heaven. Such a kind woman. A beautiful one, too, let me tell you.

But you only have so many pages, little book, and I shall return to the matter at hand. That is a story best saved for another day.

I entered the room, and Magnifi's eyes were shut in a mock slumber. I reached for the pistol - the signature Gramarye Golden Gun, cleaned and polished for this grim occasion - and took aim, ready to give Thalassa her company in the world beyond. But that was not to be. As I said, I dropped my weapon. This roused Magnifi, who proceeded to tell me that I had failed and that Zak had inherited his repertoire of tricks. I left the room only to return to it. Magnifi Gramarye, illusionist to the gods, lay dead, a hole in his head where the bullet had entered and carried his soul away.

I shall not record my reaction here, for there are no words in this language to describe its magnitude. This anger drove me to my sudden crime of "tampering" with the crime scene (or: "taking back what I should have had all along" - ah yes, that's much better.) And Thalassa's face...her figure...it all flooded my mind. Zak had taken everything that was mine. The tricks. The fame. The lady. On top of that, I thought I would let him take the blame, too. However, that's the only thing he returned to me, and this is why I am here.

They may have found me out. But my day shall come. I'll make sure of it.

And if it doesn't, I'll be damned.