CHAPTER 2:

The same herbage, the same fragrance, the same light, the same greenish aura… it was all the same, except for one little thing… the arc was gone.
The floral structure had been replaced by a dark marble pillar, its detail carved gracefully on the hard surface.

Fai was down on his knees, looking at the column and watching every detail, every draw the structure had on its black stone.

—Where are we now? — He turned his face to look at Kurogane, who was walking around the place to find out where they were—. This things… everything is a big nonsense…
—Nonsense, you say? Because we are in this spot we don't know… we apparently didn't know anything about our house, to be lost like this…
—It's not that… actually, just look at this drawings…

When he got closer to the pillar he bend down to look carefully to what the blonde man wanted him to see.

—Just look at the drawings… Don't you believe it's telling a story?
—I don't know… Is there a sequence I must follow or what?
—You start here —he posed his finger on a point of the pillar—. And you end here…

The dark-haired man started to follow the sequence when someone said:

—Indeed, it's telling the story of the death… Would you like that I explain it to you, young men?

The brothers turned their heads simultaneously, realizing there was a man standing behind of them.

—What the…?
—I asked if you want me to explain you the story we have here… but probably I shouldn't do it…

He made a slight smile and sat down on the grass, after that he took the little doll he had on his shoulder and putted it down, fixing it to look like it was sitting on his lap.

The man had a weird look, with his dark clothes stuck on time, his silver hair combed on a low braid and the left half of his face covered by a blue mask, covering the emeralds he had for eyes.
Even the doll had a weird, fantastic look; it represented a young man with spiky brown hair, a wide smile stitched on his face with a black thread, its eyes closed, giving it a childish look.
His outfit was completely out of the picture, too. His loose pants and his white shirt didn't fit with its owner's appearance.

—Fred is really pretty, isn't him?— The masked man, as Kurogane decided to called him, talked again after a couple of minutes of complete silence—. Although he's been very impolite… Fred, what about your manners? Please, show some respect to our guests…

Kurogane stood up, mainly because his legs started to hurt, but also because he wanted to search the path that would take them back to the Victorian house.
Before he could walk away, the masked man took him by the wrist, making him glance back and frown.

—What on Earth now? I just want to go and look for a way to get out of here, you know?
—You know things are way simpler than you believe, right? — The voice was softer, lighter. The words came out like the one who said them was struggling to not laugh—. We tend to forget the world's simplicity when we believe we are in danger. But we must keep it simple, humans, keep it simple.
—But mister doll, we actually aren't in our world, you know? —The blonde made an indecipherable smile, looking back at the masked man—. It was the doll who spoke, right?
—Would you mind stop the act, Fai? We must go back to the house and call the police for them to come and get this guy out of here.
—You are not in your world, but in our world…— there was that voice again. Soft, light, different—. The ones that should be talking to the police should be us, you know?
—Be kind, Fred, be kind…

The brothers weren't able to notice when the doll became a real person, still having the seams on his face and neck, but looking more real, with a body and a presence.
He kept sitting on his owner's legs, the same height as a little kid, with a young man's face, his stitched smile still there.

—Finally you decided to show your true-self… Now let's help them realize how to get out of here.
—We can do that by our own, thank you— Kurogane shook his arm to get rid of the masked man grip and started walking—. Let's start searching, Fai.

Fai gave them another unreadable smile and stood up, going to the opposite side his brother had headed to, looking for a sign that would tell them how to go back.

—They won't listen to us right now… But I bet you a little time here will make them realize how the things are…
—So we are saying goodbye for now?—the masked man nodded, and Fred sighed and stood up—. Time to disappear, huh?

When Kurogane turned around to tell Fai he had find something that seemed like a path, he could see the masked man vanishing, the doll again on his shoulder.