I apologize for the tardy update. I think I will make the update once every other week, so that it can be consistent in the future. Thank you sayalovesdiva for youe review, and to everyone else who reads this. After all, people reading and telling me about my stories is the reasons I am doing this. Thank you all again.
Sun shone in through the windows. Yet somehow, like always, it remained dark. The sky, whatever it looked like, might as well have been empty. No sounds were voiced; nothing lived nearby but plants and they would not speak. It smelled of dust. That was all. On the hottest of days it smelled like sweat, until a bath was possible. The shadows made her feel cold. The chill wasn't aided by her only garment, which she had been with since she could remember; it was a dirty old sheet.
A flower that looked like a see-through white ball blew towards the window, offering that it may enter, but then the air changed direction, and blew it away from her window. It had been a long time since anything had managed to make it up this high, let alone how long it had been since something had actually blown in. And anything that did hadtransformed into mush long ago.
"I wonder how long it will be until that man comes back and brings food." She thought. It had been almost a week now. She was used to her stomach hurting, but usually she would receive food by now. Had she done something wrong? The last time the man came, she had tried to get away from him when he made advances on her. It had not made a difference; he used her like any other time and left her on the floor, but perhaps it was fighting back that had caused this to happen. Was there something that she could do, then, that was right? When she did not fight back, she got hurt. When she did fight back she got hurt and then did not receive food. Was there something she could do that would keep her from getting hurt and get her food?
She didn't bother trying to scratch off the milky-colored crust that was left on her anymore. It didn't matter to her that much. If she felt hungry enough, sometimes she even ate it. It did not taste that bad, considering other things which she'd been given to consume.
Her lips were chapped, and her skin was dry. It was the result of not having water or that red liquid for as long as she had not been given food. She would usually try to drink the liquid that seemed to form in her mouth, but that did not happen anymore, leaving the inside of her mouth feeling dry as well. If she had enough liquid inside her body to urinate, she might even be willing to drink that.
She was thirsty, and she was hungry. And she was lonely.
There was almost nothing that she could think of to do to occupy her time anymore. Her sheet had grown too frail in the past few years to be used in any ways other than a cloak. Even as that it was beginning to tear in places. Nothing else remained for her to use. The bowls or plates her nutrients were brought in were subsequently taken after she had consumed what was placed in or on them. She had no toys, nor books, nor anything else to teach her how to do things. If she thought about it, it wasn't that she didn't have anything to do, but rather, that she didn't know how to do anything.
"There is one thing." She thought to herself. It was the one thing she had.
The girl opened her mouth and sat up straight, reaching out towards the room as if asking it to provide her with something- anything, to occupy her life with other than loneliness. It did not provide anything more than the usual nothing, so she did as she usually would as well.
A sound came from her throat. It was her voice, and yet more. Or perhaps, it was just her voice, but her voice past what she could speak. The sound carried off, expanding beyond her, filling the room, and then escaping through the windows as she could not. The sound was her voice, and it spread throughout the air outside, traveling with the wind wherever it could go, hoping that another voice would hear its call and respond.
Hers was the voice that called for another. She was searching for something, love? Perhaps that was it. It was difficult to know what it was you were searching for if you knew nothing more about it than the word itself. To the girl it was just a dream, a want that could never be fulfilled, just like her desire to leave this tower in which she had remained for so many years. The girl did not know what it was that she was doing that was keeping her here, but she did know that no matter what she did, nothing seemed to change.
She did not ask to be let out. That was what she wanted, but it was not what she asked. She wanted to have food and other things every day, but that was not what she asked for either. All that she asked for was something to change, something to become part of her life. For that she would do almost anything.
The girl's voice ceased and her arms fell once more.
No one answered.
No one ever answered.
She drew her head between her legs, and tried to go to sleep. It was the only thing she knew how to do other than sing.
The air was stagnant, empty, and cold. But then something sounded. It was a voice other than her own. She heard the man's voice sometimes, usually grunts, but this was different; the voice was that of a girl's. "Hello?" It said; it asked. Was the question coming to her? No, it couldn't be.
"Hello? Can you hear me?" The voice asked once more. It couldn't be for her. "I heard your singing. It's really lovely." It spoke, and she sat straight up. It had been for her!
"I… am here." She responded. Her voice was barely above a whisper. Would the other voice hear her own?
"I'm glad!" The voice told her.
She felt something happen in her. Was it surprise?
"My name is Saya, what is your name?" The other, Saya, spoke.
It was at this that the girl grew anxious; she had no name. She tried to think of one, but ultimately, her effort was in vain.
"Name?" She asked.
"You don't have a name?" Came Saya from down below.
She couldn't answer. She didn't have a name, but she did not want to tell Saya that. Would Saya leave if she confirmed that she did not have a name?
"Then we'll just have to give you one!" Saya spoke enthusiastically.
The girl was very excited when Saya said that. Not only would Saya remain, she would be given a name by Saya as well!
She sang. It was all she could do. And it was what Saya wanted her to do. Her voice sailed out into the air, through the room, and out the windows. But it did not sail through the wind as it usually did, searching aimlessly for another voice. It went straight down to Saya, and enveloped the girl in its song. She was not singing very long before Saya spoke up again.
"I know! Your name will be Diva!"
"Diva… I am Diva?"
"Yes! Diva the princess; with the beautiful singing voice!"
Her name was Diva.
"So now that you have a name, let's become friends!"
Diva… did not do or say anything for several moments, perhaps minutes. That might have been the reason Saya chose to speak up.
"Or not… you don't have to be my friend…"
"Saya, I would like to be your friend."
"Really?!" She asked.
"Yes."
Diva could hear how happy she was down below.
"Thank you, Diva!"
"Saya…"
"What is a friend?"
Diva heard the girl's tone change down below.
"What?"
"A friend; I would like to be yours, but I do not know what that is."
"But you must have tons and tons of friends, with a singing voice like that!" Saya responded.
Diva said nothing.
There was a long silence, and she wondered if her lack of a response had sent Saya away. She was gladly proved wrong, however, when Saya spoke once more.
"I've got an idea! Why don't you come down here?! There's this beautiful garden of roses very close by!"
"Roses?"
"Yes! They're all different kinds of colors and…" Saya trailed off.
"Diva, don't you know what roses are?"
Diva once again didn't respond, which Saya must have taken for a "no".
"Then I'll show you!"
Diva looked at the strong door which barred her from leaving the room, as well as through the metal bars which kept her from even being able to explore it in its entirety, if there were even something to explore. She couldn't squeeze through the bars, and she couldn't force open the door even if she could reach it.
"Saya, I cannot get down to you."
The girl's tone was loud when she spoke again from down below.
"What is it, Diva?!"
She did not mean to make Saya upset, but Diva couldn't feel her own mood changing.
"I cannot get out of this room."
She heard Saya running in the grass, and began to sit up, wondering if that had been the last straw for the girl. However, when she heard the entrance to the tower open, she realized that Saya was coming up to her, not running away. Diva allowed herself to slouch forward again. Unfortunately, Saya coming to help her would not change anything. Meeting Saya had been that change that Diva had so desired all this time, but Saya would not be able to change Diva's entrapment. Nevertheless, as she heard Saya's shoes clattering on the steps as the girl drew closer, Diva felt her heart's rhythm change to match the rapidity of the steps.
The sounds of the steps changed; they did not echo as much anymore. Saya must have reached the top of the stairs. Diva knew this to be true as her suspicions were confirmed by the growing volume of the steps until, at last, she heard the girl reach the door. It wasn't silent for very long before she heard, and saw, the door shaking.
"Saya." She spoke, hearing "I'm trying, Diva." Come from the other side of the door.
"It won't open." She explained, seeming to trigger the end of Saya's attempts.
"How could someone lock you in a room like this?!" Saya demanded.
Diva told her she didn't know.
"Doesn't it upset you that you can't leave that room?! Doesn't it make you angry?!" The girl requested further.
"Angry?" She asked.
It seemed like such a foreign word to her. She did not understand it.
"I want to leave." She finally said. "But I cannot."
The door rattled a few more times, but it would not budge.
"Saya?" Diva asked.
A few moments later Saya answered
"Yes? What is it?" Diva was afraid to ask, but she decided that she might as well since she had already started to.
"Will you be my friend?" She asked, hoping it wasn't too great of a request. She found herself surprised when Saya asked her what she was talking about.
"Of course I'll be your friend! When you said you were mine I thought that meant we both were."
"We are both friends then?"
"Yes." Neither of them said anything for a while. Finally Saya broke the silence.
"Diva, we have to find a way to get you out of there."
"We cannot."
"Yes, we can. Think; do you know where they might keep the key to this door?"
"No. They never told me. There is a different key for the cage as well."
"A cage?!"
Had she made Saya angry again? Once more they were overcome with silence, but this time it appeared to be a good thing; she could hear Saya trying to calm down.
"Well, we'll worry about the cage later, for now I just want to see if I can find a way in there. I don't know if I have a strong enough hairpin to pick the lock. But I could probably find one somewhere, perhaps something used for sewing heavy fabrics."
"How long do you think it will be?" Diva asked.
"Before we can get you out?"
"Before I can see you." She explained.
Saya seemed surprised, or perhaps stunned, as she didn't say anything for several moments. She seemed to recover quickly, though.
"Oh, not very long at all! The only problem I will probably have is finding my way back here; I just got lucky before when I got lost."
"Lost?"
"When you're lost you are somewhere that you're unfamiliar with."
"I see."
"It was kind of scary at first, but I found that garden of roses, and then I got to meet you, so it wasn't that bad, I guess."
To be somewhere that you've never been…
"It sounds nice." Diva spoke.
"What does, Diva?"
"To be somewhere you've never been before."
She seemed to catch Saya off-guard once more.
"Well you'll be able to experience that really soon, Diva. If I can find the right pin or maybe even the key itself, I could probably get inside by tomorrow if we're lucky."
"Will you stay?" Diva asked her.
Saya's tone had a touch of guilt when she responded.
"Well, I wouldn't be able to stay here forever, but I could come see you a lot. And once we find a way to get you out, you could come with me everywhere I go!"
"Everywhere you go?"
"Yes! We'll have lots of fun together!"
Diva thought about that word; fun. It sounded nice. She wanted to know what it was like to have "fun".
"Saya, may we do something?"
Once more Saya seemed surprised, or at the very least, confused; her tone seemed somewhat unsure when she responded.
"What do you mean, Diva?"
"I have heard of 'games' before. And I would like to try one. But I do not know any. Do you know any games, Saya?"
"Well, sure, I know quite a few games, but most if not all of them require that we be able to interact with each other to play them."
Diva felt her spirits dip.
"I see."
Before she could fully feel disappointment, however, Saya spoke up once more.
"Wait! I do know of a game we can play!"
"You do?"
"Yes!" Saya responded, once again sounding enthusiastic.
"What is it called?"
"It's called 'Saya says'."
Diva tilted her head in curiosity, though she knew that Saya could not have seen her. It was such an interesting combination of words. It felt to Diva as if she had just experienced a new taste in her mouth, or a new scent in the air.
"How do you play that game?" Diva asked.
"Whenever I say 'Saya says', you have to do what I say. If you don't, you lose. But if I tell you to do something and I don't say 'Saya says' at the beginning and you do what I say, you lose. Do you understand?"
"I understand."
"Alright then; Saya says stand up."
Diva did so.
"Saya says 'stand on one leg'."
Diva lifted one of her legs into the air, looking at the door and awaiting further instructions.
"Put your leg back down."
She did nothing.
"I did not." Diva informed Saya, since the girl could not see through the door.
"Good job, Diva!"
"Saya says 'do a handstand'!"
"What is a handstand, Saya?"
"It's when you go upside down and balance yourself on your hands, instead of on your feet."
Diva dipped forward, not even putting her leg back down before pulling both of them out from under her and slapping her hands onto the cold stone. The sheet fell from her back, and her long hair fell down in front of her face, but she did as Saya had said.
"I did it." She spoke, no effort in her voice.
"You did?" Saya asked, sounding surprised.
"Yes."
"Wow, Diva, you must be really strong!"
She awaited Saya's instructions, and the girl seemed to understand the game was still on.
"Oh, alright; Saya says-"
Before Saya could speak they both heard someone calling her name from somewhere outside. The speaker sounded like an old boy to Diva.
"Oh, darn, it's Haji." She heard Saya say.
"Diva, I have to go now. But I'll be back real soon. I promise. I'll find a way to open this door."
She didn't want Saya to go, but she couldn't make the girl stay.
"I understand. I look forward to speaking with you again, Saya." She spoke.
"And the same to you as well, Diva. I'll see you soon!" Her last sentence had a fading volume as Saya drew away from the door and could be heard running back down the steps of the tower.
Diva held herself up on her arms, remembering her friend had not said "Saya says" again and not wanting to "lose" the game. So she waited for Saya to return, hoping it would be soon