The POV is Rose Red's. The action is set mostly before the previous chapter.

Chapter 10. Two Grimms With Memory

Wind, the operator, programmed our "digital selves" so that we would be able to go inside the reality of the Matrix. Meanwhile, Uno spoke to us:

"We have a spy of ours in the Matrix. He's an actor, Armand Benois, and he told us that he knows Sabrina, Daphne, and Basil. Sabrina's really a Hollywood actress, Daphne's a writer, and Basil's still a student. They remember they are siblings, but they obviously don't remember the rest of the family. Also, Benois said that a Tobias Clay published a research some time ago about the Grimms' descendants."

"Tobias Clay? It's Mr. Canis!" Andrew chuckled. I recalled that Andrew's father and Mr. Canis had been constantly scuffling in the past.

"Oh, you know him? That means he does remember something, though I have no idea why!"

"We must find him first," Calendula suggested. "Then, Armand can bring the rest of the family to your exits – as an actor, he has quite an influence in the city's society."

Wind gave Calendula her phone and found out Mr. Canis's phone number in the Matrix. Calendula called him, introduced herself and told him to come to the exit at Monert & Berry Fashion. Then, she hung up the phone.

"It's to intrigue him," she explained. "Besides, I don't want whoever rules the Matrix to overhear us either."

"Your digital selves are completed," Wind interrupted.

"Great!" Uno grinned. "All of you will go, right? And myself, Comet, and Ed to help you in case something happens. Lie in these armchairs."

"You don't have holes in your necks, that's why we'll have to use electric signals to bring you there," Wind mumbled more to herself than to us.

"Holes in our necks?" I whispered, confused, as I settled myself in the armchair.

"They're to feed the people's bodies in the Matrix intravenously," Andrew quietly explained from his seat. I shivered with disgust.

Suddenly, I felt something peculiar, almost painful, in my brain, and in a second I found myself standing near a fashion store in a beautiful modern city.

Mr. Canis and Jake Grimm (I recognized them as I had seen their photos) was standing not far from us, along with their dog Elvis.

"I can't believe it!" they cried as they rushed to us. Elvis followed them.

Calendula hugged them (even Elvis) and gestured to us:

"Laurence, Robin Hood's son. Princess Rose Red, Mustardseed's daughter. Prince Andrew Charming, also an Air Force captain. Princess Ellen Charming, his sister. Princess Avril, Atticus's daughter – she's on our side. And these are Uno, Ed and Comet – the people who escaped the Matrix, I mean, this reality."

"Pleased to meet you," Jake said. "So, you mean we can escape this thing?"

"Yes," Uno nodded. "We'll get you out of here. But we have to discuss some matters with our spy Armand, and as we wait for him, we'd like to know how you haven't lost your memory."

Mr. Canis smiled faintly:

"When the robots took me and spoke something about my brain, I broke the jar with the Wolf and let them erase the Wolf's memory. The beast sprung free and entered a mosquito, which was then killed by the robots, so the Wolf is no more. I pretended to have lost my memory, and they gave me a new one and inserted me here as a professor of history. Jake was made my nephew. As I talked with him, I realized his memory wasn't wiped away clean; it was buried in his subconscious thoughts."

"After some exercising I restored it completely," Jake finished. "We've waited for help, because the only member of our family whose Matrix identity we know is Sabrina."

"Armand is going to make enquiries about the rest of you," Ed assured him. "Ah! There he is!"

A black limousine stopped by our side. The back door opened, and I felt my heart skipping a beat. The most handsome man I've ever seen stepped onto the sidewalk. He had coal black hair, a pale complexion and eyes that looked like blue diamonds.

"Armand Benois. Nice to meet you," he said in a beautiful deep voice. Color rose to my cheeks as his eyes looked straight into mine.

I barely heard Uno introducing us to Monsieur Benois. Only when I realized what he'd think of me staring at him, I was able to draw my attention away for some time.

"I'll tell you what," Armand suggested after Uno told him a brief overview of our adventures. "I'll bring Miss Grimm to Hotel Delivery first, since I'm acquainted with her, it will be very easy, and then somehow I'll trick her siblings so they'll get there too. After this, we'll think of a way to find the rest of your relatives."

"And what next?" Andrew asked. "Do we have time to restore their memory?"

"We'll do it the harder way, using our programs written to affect a human brain," Comet said. "First, we must get everyone out of the Matrix. Then we'll figure everything out somehow."

"Today evening we're filming some scenes of The Miraculous Show that involve both me and Miss Grimm. After that, I'll ask her out and instead bring her to Delivery," Armand said.

Ask her out… Despite it was going to be a trick, I felt a pang of jealousy.

"Rose?" I heard a whisper. "Rose? Are you alright?"

Andrew.

"Yes…" I mouthed.

"You look rather feverish," he remarked worriedly.

"No, it's okay. I just… am… excited to meet… the famous Grimm family."

Andrew smiled and nodded:

"So am I."

By that moment, Ed asked Andrew and Jake to discuss some technical details of the Matrix. I sighed with relief: I managed to forge a reason for my brightened eyes and blushed face after all. To avoid awkwardness, I turned my head to Ellen, who was playing with Elvis, but I still kept glancing at Armand now and then.

Suddenly, Armand's iPhone rang. He frowned, but answered:

"Claudette! I'm busy… What?.. No, today I'm meeting Sabrina Grimm… Yes, it's very funny… What?.. No way… Oh, fine, I'll talk to you later… Goodbye."

"That was Claudette, my ex-wife," he said apologetically. "She still thinks I owe her another €3000 after the divorce."

He had been married? I bit my lip to suppress a sigh. Well… no wonder… he's so handsome… and he's also rich…

"Now, let's get ourselves to Hotel Delivery," I heard Uno's loud voice. "It's our main base inside the Matrix."

Armand glanced at the screen of his iPhone.

"I must go, sorry. I'll be late for the filming, and old Bowly – that's the director – demands strict punctuality from everyone."

"See you in the evening, then. Ed will drive you to Delivery, as usual," Uno shook hands with Armand, and the latter got back into limousine. In a minute, it was making its way down the street. I looked at it, feeling dreadful when not seeing its dazzling owner.

"Rose! We're going!" Laurence pulled me by the elbow into Ed's big gray car, where everybody else was already sitting.