Chapter Fourteen: Oddities
Come nightfall, I'm sat at a table in the restaurant filling out an in-depth questionnaire and a job application, Olivander guiding me through the pain in the ass process. The lettuce haired gent sits directly beside me instead of across from me.
In the middle of him explaining how the interview part will work, the bell on the front entrance rings its airy tune and the two of us look up, me barely, from our spot.
Olivander gets up to greet the customer and I make the finishing touches to the documents before handing the small stack over to the manager who's stood behind the bar, wiping it down with a fresh hand towel.
From my spot at the bar, stood by the stools that haven't been stacked atop the reflective table yet, I see Olivander step back in with Sinead's grandma. They seem to be friendly, ecstatically fawning over soups and what breads are best dipped in what kinds. It's not my thing but it's cool I guess.
I mime a thankful farewell to the owner, and he hands me a card with a date on it. Seeing that it's my interview date, I happily pocket it and head out into the night.
While walking the semi-quiet streets, the snow starts to fall in heaps and I'm soon looking for shelter. Throughout all of this I hear footsteps every-now-and-then, but peering back I eye nothing, no one.
Before I know it, I'm somewhere familiar. I glance around and see that, for sure, I'm in Kai's neck of the woods. The place is dark with no lights on, appearing cold and in a way, abandoned. Why I'm not sure. For a moment I consider knocking on his door or just walking inside like I used to, but in the end I turn away and pull the dark hood of my hoodie over my head, shrouding my face from view.
In time, my feet aimlessly carry me to another familiar place, home, and I fight the urge to fall to my knees. At the warm glow of some neighborly house lights, memories flood my mind, but I push them away, suddenly feeling even colder than I was before. With a deep, shaky breath, I shuffle off. He wouldn't want me around anyway. I'm a mess, a shell of my former self, remember?
As the night wears on, I grow more somber, and at times hear the rushing of footsteps again, but I chalk it up to me just hearing things due to the lack of any stimulants or relaxers.
Eventually, they fade away and I find myself stepping through a section of town that I don't recognize. My anxiety spikes.
At the ringing of a loud, chainlink gate, I peer to my left and spot Sinead coming out of an imposing building.
It's tall, stretching seamlessly into the night sky and painted in aged, graying brick and mortar. The building seems like it's been around for over a century, but what do I know? A female cop comes out with her, most likely a guard or the warden, and it's then that I figure out that this is a prison.
I hurriedly hide behind a big, wide tree before the two can spot me. In shock I see that Lionel is coming out too. He signs a piece of paper and his restraints are removed, meaning he's a free man.
Right after that, Olivander's dad comes out, visibly on the phone with someone. Probably the manager of the restaurant. When Olivander's aged twin is done with his phone call, Sinead faces him and she shyly bows back. Lionel does as well, appearing gleeful.
I then notice that Sinead is wearing a set of the new clothes she chose. A long and loose, peach colored turtleneck sweater with black thermal pants and light brown boots. Minus the foe-fur, they're similar to the ones she had on earlier. Her hair is tied back into a low ponytail with some stylish strays curling in and down and out all around her head and shoulders, framing her heart-shaped face. Those barely tamable waves just add to it, making me melt.
They all pile into a stretch limousine and whoever's chauffeuring it drives off and around the next corner, the taillights glowing an eerie bright red before blending into the darkness.
"Gou?"
At the perplexed sounding male voice, I spin around, the thickly soled heels of my shoes digging into the damp dirt.
"Officer Fernandez?" What the hell is he doing here?! Oh wait, never mind. Oh man do I feel stupid.
"Out on a stroll?" he asks, not batting an eye. I guess he feels like going through parodical, I don't know. Either way, I feel like I owe him an answer.
"No sir, just got lost,"
"Is that right?" The cop gives me a skeptical once over and looks around us expecting something or someone before shifting away from me, posture beckoning me along, "Why don't you come with me?"
I nod, too anxious to say anything back.
The man in black leads me into what I can only describe as the holding unit of this place, people that haven't been sentenced or placed yet and the like stuck in one room. I panic, why am I in here?!
The exotic man seems to find my reaction funny, patting my back and ushering me into another part of the building entirely, two floors above. Out of date computer noises hit my ears as we stand before a heavy looking door, and once it's opened I come face-to-face with- an office suite? Where the hell am I? Is this a prison or a maze from a video game?
While laughing to himself, Officer Fernandez guides me inside. Rows upon rows of occupied cubicles surround me, but toward the back of the huge room, I'm met with an empty one. He has me sit in what I can only assume is his work chair and then leaves to do something else.
It's comfy, I won't deny that, but what's his real reason for doing this if I'm not going to be put behind bars?
Officer Fernandez smiles brightly as he steps closer to me, carrying an extra chair and placing it next to the one I'm in.
"What? You thought I was gonna lock you up?"
I just nod, feeling a mix of irritated and uneasy.
"Naw, we don't put people away for just wondering around. I know the shorter days make it seem later than it should but trust me, it's nowhere near past curfew, it's only nine o'clock,"
I nod again, my voice still unwilling to be used.
"Are you hungry?" he energetically asks, trying to get something out of me. Why does he remind me of papa? Wait, can I still call him that?
"I'm fine," I frankly answer, just giving in to him now.
The older man blinks at me a couple of times, baffled, "Are you sure, I'm buyin' the goods,"
"I'm sure,"
"Ok, do you have somewhere to go? No offense but you look homeless,"
I shrug, folding my arms over my chest, "I'll manage,"
I know it's stupid to decline but I'm under enough stress as it is, I don't need law enforcement riding up my back too.
Mr. Fernandez eyes me one last time before getting up from his seat and going over to someone stationed at the front of the room, a woman with long, dark blue hair fastened into a high ponytail via a red ribbon and sharp green eyes. She's pale like papa is and seems dainty, her well manicured nails showing that she enjoys spoiling herself.
The redhead points to me and soon, he's stepping out of the room while the deep sea blunette is striding up to me, her uniform the same as his.
I quickly learn that her name is Mariam, and she's wife to Officer Fernandez and mother to Agatha. I wonder if she knows how bitchy her daughter is towards most people, should I tell her? No.
In a matter of time, probably an hour, I'm led into a cop car and drove to some unknown, gated area lightyears away from familiarity.
"Where am I?" I ask flatly, my mood unchanged.
In truth, I'm scared out of my mind and in trying to keep it hidden, my temper flares up, making me come off meaner than intended. But in the depths of my soul, I don't think they buy into my front. They understand all-too-well how people can be when afraid. Why else would they push, poke, and prod at me, bring me here?
The couple exchanges woeful glances, and then give me calm expressions.
"To keep you safe," the redhead states, his now serious eyes aglow with some type of warning.
Safe, from what, who?
I'm then led onto the well groomed property of what I see to be a massive mansion of sorts, an old but imposing building with winding walkways and a ludicrously tall stone wall bordering the university sized campus. A captivating water fountain sits running in the center of the front garden, a sprawling forest stood far off in the distance. Though I know I'm not, I feel so cut off from the world and it's people, isolated. Have I crossed into another plane of existence or something?!
Once the huge, oak double doors are expectantly opened, we're urged inside by a filthily cloaked, elderly person, one using a wheelchair to get around. I notice my escorts trade big, toothy smiles as if they're ecstatic about something. My scowl deepens, the mental walls rising. What do they know that I don't?
Upon exiting a long hallway and entering what I can only assume is a foyer, our guide wheels themselves over to a table, staying still. Just like with the front ones, these heavy and real wood double doors then close with a creaking, echoing slam, rattling me from the ground up.
Footsteps approach us and I'm unwillingly placed by Mariam in front of the two adults, in full few of whatever's coming.
Out of the shadows steps another figure, a male, and he's clad in a nice, pressed suit.
Fastening a cuff on his right wrist, the homeowner steadily reveals all of himself to us, and I'm left a mix of furious and breathless. What the hell is Kai doing here?!
The man eyes us indifferently, but then he gives us a regal bow hello. It's as if he's been rehearsing this his whole life, weird.
"Welcome, to Hiwatari Manor."
It's off-putting but I catch it all anyway. Did he just say, Hiwatari Manor, what is going on here?!