Chapter 5
The panic returned, choking Celena's throat and making her stutter for a few seconds. Still gripping the stone behind her, she took several deep breaths to quiet her rattling nerves and racing heart. She was still a little disoriented, and the fact that she was somewhere she shouldn't be and had no knowledge of how she had gotten there spooked her.
Needless to say, her answer was slow in coming, and she heard the figure sigh in audible frustration and the creaking of the cot as she rearranged herself into a more comfortable position.
Finally ready to let go of the reassuring solidity of the wall, Celena tentatively moved forward a few steps like a small child too afraid to leave their parents on their first day of school. The cold from the floor seeped into the soles of her feet and shivered reflexively, feeling the tiny pinpoints of goosebumps all over her arms.
She paused a few feet from the cell bars, hesitating. She knew she should turn around and run back up the stairs, but the presence of the girl in front of her was too strong to ignore. She could feel the smoldering glare shooting out at her from the darkness, waiting for Celena to answer her.
"Well, are you going to answer me or what?"
Celena started at the crispness of her tone; this girl, despite how young she was, obviously was very used to giving commands and equally used to immediately getting what she wanted in return. She could see by the poised way she sat and the cool alertness in her gaze that this was no ordinary peasant imprisoned for petty theft, but someone much more distinguished.
She was actually very pretty too, Celena saw, as her eyes further adjusted to the dimness of the cell, permitting her a closer study of the other girl's features. Large brown eyes were the focus of her small, heart shaped face, which itself was framed by two long dark bangs, the rest pulled back in a long tail. Her skin was fair, but nowhere near as pale as Celena's and currently flushed with agitation. Even seated Celena could see that she was tall, the innate self-assurance with which she held herself evident that her spirit had been tempered into something as hard as the iron bars which separated them.
"I-I'm sorry. I thought I was alone in here..."
Celena's voice echoed weakly in the damp air around her, a pitiful, breathy squeak of a mouse being eyed by an indifferent feline. She was tingling all over now, but not from the cold; she had a sudden feeling of inevitability. This was a moment that had to happen, would have happened—if not this way, then some other.
She was supposed to be here.
The girl was still studying her suspiciously as she continued in a slightly stronger voice: "I—I'm Celena. Are you...are you the Zaibach soldier everyone's talking about?"
The girl's eyes narrowed even more, her features becoming openly hostile and looking quite ready to spit out something nasty. Then she seemed to think better of it, apparently deciding this nightgown wearing stranger not to be worth the effort; she merely let out a derisive "hmph" and rolled her eyes. Evidently she must be quite an entertaining topic, if young girls were willing to venture down to the dungeons to get a glimpse of her, and in the middle of the night no less. The thought made a self-deprecating smirk dart over her lips for a moment.
"Captain, if you want to be more correct,"she said dryly. "I didn't realize I was so popular. I guess I don't have to tell you my name, then."
"Refina...right?"
"That's right," replied the prisoner with a mocking lilt in her voice. She was irritated at having her rest disturbed and being asked silly questions by a silly nobleman's daughter who'd decided to take an exciting step outside of her gilded cage. Her hesitating nature and shrinking-violet posture said as much. She looked absolutely terrified and bewildered; maybe thinking of the trouble she would get into when she returned to her disapproving parents. Yet there was the slightest hint of awe and curiosity in those saucer eyes, as though she were meeting her favorite hero from a bedtime storybook.
Refina felt herself wince inside. The last thing she needed was a naïve, hero-worshipping child bothering her. It was enough that she had been subjected to Millerna for all that time.
But...on the other hand...
She felt something click into place then, glowing to life like an awakened energist. On the other hand...this Celena. Curious, naive, and not very bright, but a potentially useful tool if this girl was as interested in her as she seemed. Celena was an insider, a member of the nobility, and perhaps able to access information that Refina certainly could not.
This was her chance, gift wrapped and delivered right to her doorstep. She'd be an absolute fool if she didn't try to take advantage of it.
Refina gave the girl an appraising, if not exactly warm, smile and cupped her chin in her hand, all attention as she leaned forward.
"So, now that introductions are out of the way, do you mind telling me what exactly you're doing down here so late, Celena?"
Celena blushed deeply, averting her eyes as she struggled to come up with a reasonable explanation. She nervously tucked a loose curl behind one ear while her other hand twisted the soft fabric of her nightgown.
"I—I don't really know. I was dreaming. Then I woke up and I wasn't in my room. I must have been sleepwalking."
"Hmm. A bad dream, maybe?"
Refina was a little surprised at the reaction to her offhanded remark; Celena's hands clenched so tightly that the knuckles turned white and a visible shiver rocked her slender frame, betraying a deep, inexplicable fear of something before she managed to regain control of herself. When she answered, her voice was quiet and haunted.
"Yes. A bad dream."
Sensing that she was treading on the edge of a dark precipice she had no intention of wandering into, Refina decided to test the waters more carefully.
"Maybe you should go back to your room, then. I don't think your mother would like it if she found you missing."
It was the most spectacularly wrong thing to say; Refina felt her rising good mood abruptly dashed as another tremor ran down Celena's body. If it had been possible, she would have sworn the air itself darkened around the girl, thick and heavy as black crepe.
What is the matter with her? Is she mad? Refina wondered, eyebrows furrowing in confusion as she waited for the girl to pull herself together again.
"I don't have a mother," Celena replied in a voice that was barely above a whisper. "She's dead."
Well, that was hardly surprising. Plenty of people had lost loved ones in the war, and even before it hadn't been uncommon for children to grow up without parents. Refina herself was one of them.
She shrugged it off. It wasn't as if things could get any stranger at this rate. She needed to focus on getting herself out of here.
"I'm sorry," Refina said, more out of formality than out of genuine compassion. She was still trying to work out what was wrong with Celena, and if her very evident strangeness would outweigh any potential usefulness to her plans. She'd seen a few children like that when she'd been in the factory; lost little souls, some no older than six, who'd withered under the abuses to their bodies from the machines they were made to work, and the abuses to their minds from the foremen whose only care and concern was how much gidaru they could rake up from the tears and the sweat. It hadn't taken long for them to transform into gaunt little ragamuffins, quickly swept away by the same foremen to a fate that Refina didn't want to think on too hard.
Celena didn't respond; a slight lift of her thin shoulders might have been a shrug, but Refina couldn't tell. She seemed to have folded in on herself until only a small corner of her mind was even aware of anything around her.
A long, awkward silence settled between them before the girl seemed to work her way back to the present, although her head still hung low and her voice was so soft Refina had to strain to hear her.
"It's okay. I don't really have any family except my brother, but he's always gone, so I'm stuck with Eries. She's nice, I guess, but..."
Eries? As in, Princess Eries? wondered Refina, her expression hardening at the mention of Millerna's older sister. She hadn't had the displeasure yet of meeting her, and hoped it would remain that way, yet it was nevertheless quite a tantalizing piece of information.
"Eries?"she asked, pouncing on the name before the conversation moved in a different direction, not that it was moving much to begin with. "You mean the princess?"
"Yes,"Celena answered. "She looks after me. She-"
Another pause and shrug combination followed. It seemed to be her defining gesture, that of a little girl who couldn't be more lost than if you'd blindfolded her and spun her around until all sense of direction had blurred.
"She keeps telling me I'm sick. I don't know why. I don't feel sick. She won't let me go anywhere...She keeps making me learn all these things like sewing and dancing, but I'm not good at it. I really hate her sometimes."
"Why don't you just tell her to leave you alone, then?"
"I do!" exclaimed Celena with a passion so sudden it made Refina involuntarily start and grab at the edge of her cot. "I do, but she won't listen! She just keeps telling me that I have to learn it and that it will help me to get better! But I don't know what that means! I don't know what I'm getting better from!"
She held her arms around herself again, as if trying to hold back the roiling frustration she'd kept so carefully under lock and key, however her chewing on the fingernails of her left hand suggested that she wasn't doing a very good job. Her eyes seemed to have completely shifted character; a moment before they'd been clouded with hesitation, now they were fiery and alive in a way that struck Refina as chillingly familiar. A shiver prickled down her spine as she continued to watch, both intrigued and disturbed by this abrupt transformation.
"I...I need to get out of here," Celena continued, starting up a desperate pacing, small hands fidgeting in a lock of hair or an edge of lace, eager to grasp at anything to relieve her sudden bout of nervous energy that seemed to crawl through her skin.
"That makes two of us," Refina said carefully, her battle-seasoned instincts rising up behind her intrigue of this peculiar midnight guest, alert to every agitated movement. Part of her was beginning to agree with Eries's assessment; the girl was certainly afflicted, though how she couldn't even begin to hazard a guess. Certainly, though, it called for a light hand in order to steer this nascent design in the direction she wanted it to go. A troubled mind could easily become a dangerous mind.
Celena halted in mid-stride, staring at Refina with those wide eyes before suddenly darting towards the bars, the movement sending Refina coiling reflexively back against the wall.
"Maybe you can help me. You want out too, right?"
Refina's eyes narrowed and she gave the girl a long, hard stare before answering. She had the sense of some savagery peering back at her in the feverish glitter of the girl's gaze, the mop of messy curls and porcelain features serving only as a mask over that which was less reminiscent of a child and more reminiscent of a caged dragon...and that it would be a very unwise idea to open the lock on that cage.
But what other choice do I have? Came a questioning voice raising its red flag of dissent in the back of her mind. You were looking for a way, and here you are. The girl is mad, no doubt, but that's nothing you can't handle. It's either this or a rope around your neck. You choose.
"Yeah," she said eventually with a small nod, settling back against her pallet and allowing her muscles to relax. For now, at least with the bars between them, there was no danger. "But let me ask you something. If you got out, where would you go?"
Celena paused, annoyance darting over her brow as she realized she had no idea where she would go if suddenly she were free to make her way across the highways and byways of the wide world. She'd be as disoriented and vulnerable as a newborn against such a world where embroidery and etiquette would get her about as far as the nearest ditch.
But, much like the imprisoned captain she, too, had the choice of either spending the rest of her days resigned to idleness and waiting to be married off like a burden, or take a very serious risk on the slender hope that she would find a place for herself out there, a real family that didn't leave her behind and shut up alone.
"...I don't know. But anywhere has to be better than here!" she cried with a quelling edge in her voice.
Still, the Zaibach captain pressed on, ticking off essential survival strategies to deflect Celena's train of thought. Which actually wasn't that far from the truth. Refina had no intention of taking on extra baggage that would only slow her down, especially not in light of the unnerving behavior she'd just had front row seat to. It would be little inconvenience to simply leave her behind the moment she was free and let the princess come collect her.
"Do you have any money?"
"No...but..I'm sure I could find some."
Refina remained unconvinced. "What about a weapon? If you're going out on your own, you'll need to be able to defend yourself."
The frustration returned to her eyes as Celena realized that Refina wasn't extending the offer to teach her, simmering its way past the desperation in a vivid flash that rekindled that earlier fire.
"...No..."
"Do you know how to ride a horse at least?"
Again Celena's eyes flashed in a way that sent a silent shiver rippling down Refina's spine. That anger...she felt she knew it, had seen it countless times through countless lenses, yet she wondered at how it could be when they'd only just met.
"Yes..." came Celena's voice, firmer now with self-assurance. She stared back at Refina, still obviously angry, but with an unexpected stubbornness that had appeared beside it.
Refina paused for a long moment, feeling again a need to weigh her options as well as to recover from the shock of that familiarity. This girl seemed absolutely set on coming with her whether she wanted her to or not, and she could see that no amount of dissuasion would stop her. While she was admittedly impressed with the girl's determination, which honestly, she'd never imagined her to possess, there was the inescapable reality that she was a child. An ill one at that, who was too cosseted and coddled to understand that there would be bandits out there, survivors from the war raiding villages for whatever supplies they could scavenge. There would also likely be patrols from various countries they would have to hide from, and they'd sure as hell would be looking for her once she freed herself. She wouldn't even be able to use a guymelef for fear of attracting the wrong attention. It didn't leave her with much to decide on, but the decision had to be made. Grab a horse and leave the girl where she belonged.
But I can't tell her that, she thought as she prepared her next words. If I dash her hopes I lose my chance.
"That's good," she said with a nod, working her lips into a half-smile. "At least you can ride. It'll make the escape easier."
Celena started, the anger on her face softening into an answering smile. She hadn't thought Refina would acquiesce, but couldn't deny the overwhelming feeling of excitement that she had. They'd be free, the both of them! Free to do as the wished, when they wished. There would be no more Eries, no more doctors, no more lonely days aimlessly practicing pianoforte or painting flowers with no one to talk to.
"Really? You're really going to let me come with you?"
"Sure. You seem determined to leave anyway, so you might as well come with me. Maybe you'll find whatever it is you're looking for."
The girl titled her head a little to the side in curiosity.
"What are you looking for?"
Refina started, not liking the directness or intimacy of the question, but quickly masked her surprise with a small, thoughtful shrug and smile.
"Well…Maybe I'm looking for the same thing you are," she replied, ignoring the half-formed ache that tugged in her chest as she thought of her squad. "But before that, we should focus on getting out of here first."
"Right."
Refina quickly settled into a more businesslike manner then, crossing her arms over her chest as she leaned forward again, brushing aside both the ache and the memories it had inspired. The time for that...and for any regrets...had passed. Now was the time for resolve.
"What do you know about this place?"
"I know that King Aston is dead."
Well, wasn't this the night for the unexpected? By the Gods! Refina momentarily forgot herself, mouth slightly dropping in astonishment, completely unprepared for yet another incredible stoke of fortune. At most she had expected a description of the palace grounds, of where the stables were, of where the guards were stationed, and so on. A dead king tipped the scales in her favor quite considerably. The entire court would be preoccupied with funeral preparations. That it had happened just as she was beginning to think of a plan to escape made it all the more eerily perfect. It was as if Fate had decided not only to give her a helping hand, but also decided to give her every single winning card combination to beat those of her opponents.
"What?" she cried incredulously, still aware enough to keep her voice hushed so as not to alert any guards that might be nearby.
"He's dead,"repeated Celena simply, as if she'd elected to share the fact that her favorite color was blue. There was no hint of sorrow in her voice. "Eries went to visit him after breakfast this morning and I went with her. That's when he died."
"You mean..."
Realization hit Refina then with all the unwelcome swiftness of a dragon descending upon an unwary victim. A dead king meant more than a simple gain in luck. It meant that her window of opportunity would become exceedingly narrow very shortly. It might be only a matter of days before the decree was issued to have her hanged. She needed to move all the more quickly then, if she wanted to make it out of Asturia alive.
"Then," she said slowly, her words gaining speed as her mind began to piece together ideas. "Then there's going to be a funeral soon. I need you to find out when it is. That's going to be our only chance. Everyone's going to be busy with the ceremony and they won't see it coming. You'll have to find a way to get down here and let me out."
Celena nodded, meeting Refina's eyes with a steady, solemn expression.
"All right. Then what?"
"We'll make for the stables and get a horse. After that, I'll tell you where we're going." She paused to glance around the cell. "I think you'd better go. The guards might come around at any time and if we're caught now, it's over."
"I understand. I'll come back as soon as I can."
She disappeared, a ghostly flash of white as she silently fled back to the world above.