A/N: Back! And now rated M for much more morbid manic madness! (And I'm sorry, but, "M" does not stand for muffins or marmalade.)
Oh, and I give all the credit for the name of our favorite rat to Ravencaller. Thank you so much. =)
Me no own, you no sue.
Ravings of a Fevered Mind
Chapter 6: The Gate
I don't know how long I've been laying here. Maybe a few hours or even up to a day, I really don't know. Everything is blur. Since there is no window in the cell, I have no idea what time of day it is. The room is completely pitch black. There is no difference from when I close my eyes to when I open them.
The pain in my head, sides, and leg has gotten considerably worse, to the point were it is getting unbearable. Even the slightest intake of breath is unbelievably painful and my head feels like it's going to burst. I massage my temples with the tips of my fingers, but it's no help. I want so badly for the pain to go away.
I press my hands against the floor and force myself to sit up. The pain in my sides increases, but I continue to straighten out my arms until I'm sitting straight up. I become lightheaded, and I have a nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach. I close my eyes tightly and try as hard as I can to fight it off. Those feelings slowly start to subside and I open my eyes I again. My eyes scan across the cell, searching for even the smallest ray of light. I find none; everything is as black as pitch.
Since I've gotten as far as sitting up, I have decided to see if I can stand. I bend my left leg towards me and begin to push myself up off the ground with my arms. I go to move my right leg to begin to stand up, and discover that I've made an idiotic error. In being so caught up in trying to get myself up off the ground, I have forgot about my injured leg. The moment I begin to bend my leg, a searing pain shoots up it. I collapse back onto the ground, hitting my head. I roll over on my side and begin to cry. Every shaky sob makes my ribs hurt ten times worse, but I just can't help it. It hurts so badly and I'm getting so frustrated!
I try to calm myself down and steady my breathing in an attempt to keep my sides from aching so badly. I slowly crawl across the cell floor until I hit a wall. I shakily pick myself up off the floor and sit against the wall; reclining my achy head against the cold, damp bricks.
I hear a squeak and the soft pitter-patter of tiny feet. It's Master Edmund. Because of the darkness, I cannot see his form, but I feel him jump onto my lap. From there he climbs up my arm, then onto my shoulder, then atop my head, and back again; cheerily squeaking at me the entire time. I try so hard not to laugh. With his presence and amusing antics, I forget my desperate situation for a moment; but for a single moment only. He jumps back down onto my lap and I pass my hand over his smooth fur.
I hear the door to the cell slowly creak open and Mary steps in. She put the torch she has in her hand in a holder on the wall. I shield my eyes with my hand for a moment until they adjust to the light. From being in complete darkness, even the dim light from the torch hurts my eyes.
"I brought you some water. It's the best I could do." She says, walking toward me and then setting a small clay jar beside me. She kneels down and gives Edmund a pat on the head, then quickly gets back up.
"I 'ave to get going. I'll come back when I can." she says hurriedly and walks back towards the door.
'I'll come back when I can.'; what's that supposed to mean? And why is she so hurried? I could hear a tinge of anxiety in her voice, but I have not a clue why.
"Mary, wot's wrong?" I call after her.
"Oh, it's nothing. Don't worry about it. I really must go." she answers back without even turning around.
"Mary, wot's wrong?" I ask again, more boldly. I am determined to get an answer out of her.
She finally turns around and shakes her head. "Fine" she says with a sigh, "Both Fogg and Watson are in a very, erm, disagreeable mood. They've been patrolling the corridors constantly. It took me hours to find an opportunity to sneak out. Now, I really need to be going."
She then quickly spins back around and walks towards the door. She takes the torch out of its holder on the wall and walks out of the cell, closing the door swiftly but quietly behind her.
I stare blankly into the darkness, piecing together what Mary has just told me. Does Dr. Fogg's and Mr. Watson's actions mean that they have found out about our plan? And if so, how? I ponder this for a few moments when it hits me; it's my fault. My foolish actions in the examination room must have clued the off. Now, I've really done it. I know I'll surely be killed sooner or later, but I can't help but to think that Mary and Lucy will be subjected to the same terrible fate. And it's all my fault. But, then again, it has always been my fault. It's my fault that Mrs. Lovett, my mum, the person who I cared for and loved more than life itself is now nothing more than a pile of ashes. If only I were more careful. If only I paid more attention and was smarter, then none of this would of ever happened. But, what's the use of looking back at the things I could have done, when I know that it's impossible to turn back time. Right now I'd be better off dead. I don't even care to escape now, because I know it would be so much better for me to die and be out of my misery. The world is better off without another monster. I wrap my arms around myself and close my eyes; letting the tears run down my face and praying that my heart stops beating.
"Toby. Toby! Wake up!"
I open my eyes to find Lucy splashing cold water on my face and Mary shaking me.
"Huh? Wot?" I mumble, still coming into consciousness.
"We're leaving. Now come on." Mary says, taking me by the hand.
I shake my head. "No. I'm not going." I say softly. I've already persuaded myself that I'm better off dead and nothing is going to change that.
"Wot? Wot are you talking about?" Mary asks, raising an eyebrow.
"I'm not going. I'll just slow you down. Go on without me."
"Toby! Wot's gotten into you?" She says and looks at me questionably. She places the back of her hand against my forehead for a few seconds and sighs. "No wonder you're acting delusional." She says and shakes her head sorrowfully.
"Isn't he always?" Lucy mutters to herself.
"Lucy…" Mary says sternly.
"Sorry."
"Now, enough with this foolishness. 'ere, let me 'elp you up."
Mary takes me by the arms and helps me up. When I finally get on my feet, I start to feel dizzy. I can feel myself losing balance. Mary quickly grabs hold of me to keep me from falling; which causes me to yelp from the pain she has caused to my broken ribs.
"Oh! I'm sorry." she says and moves her arms up my torso. I lean against her and close my eyes, waiting for the room to stop spinning.
"It's all right, Toby, I got you. It's all right." Mary whispers softly in my ear and rubs my back soothingly. Her sweet, musical voice and gentle touch are really making me want to go back on my earlier thoughts. My head finally stops reeling and I pull away from her. I look into her pretty blue-gray eyes as she passes her fingers through my hair.
"Are you ready now?" Mary asks. I nod a yes.
I place my arm around her shoulder and she places her arm carefully around my waist. She then leads me across the cell with Lucy and Master Edmund beside us. Lucy opens the cell door wide enough for us to get though, revealing a very steep flight of stairs; steeper than I had originally thought. I swallow hard.
"Now, we're gonna take this one step at a time, all right." Mary says, turning her head towards me. I nod, uneasily. I carefully ascend the first step.
" I got you. I'm not gonna let you fall, I promise. That wasn't so bad, though, huh?" Mary says.
We slowly ascend one step after another until we reach the top; the main floor of the asylum. Lucy is the first to step out into the hallway. She looks to each side and nods, showing that the coast is clear. Mary and I then follow.
We make are way as quietly as possible through the numerous winding corridors, when we hear the sound of voices and foot steps in front of us. Mary quickly pulls Lucy and I into an empty, darkened cell as we wait to see who is coming down the hall.
"Oh, yes, Dr. Popplejoy," Dr. Fogg says to the elderly man walking beside him. "It's a very sad case indeed. Truly so very sad. It's insanity at its absolute worst. We have the poor lad put in solitary confinement for the time being. I'll take you to see him now."
I can tell that they are talking about me. I merely scoff. Won't they be surprised when they find out that the cell is empty.
After they pass, we enter the hallway again. As we go through more hallways and corridors, I hear the cries and sickening moans of the other inmates. I feel so bad for them. I wish I could give them all a chance to escape, but there is just not enough time. There is barely enough for us to make are own escape. But I can't help but to think how many of them; like Mary, Lucy and myself; have been wrongly imprisoned in this wretched establishment? Or how many of them are truly insane and are not getting the care they need? I shutter at the thought.
We continue walking until we reach the lobby. From here we pass through a set of wooden doors and outside into the courtyard. It seems like it has been an eternity since I've been outdoors. It's such a nice change to have fresh, cool air enter my lungs. I look up at the twilight sky and smile to myself. I look around me to see a gigantic stone wall surrounding the mad-house. It must be at least three stories high. Straight ahead of us is a massive iron gate with hideously pointed peaks. We stop in front of it and Mary turns to Lucy.
"The key?" she says, holding out her hand.
"The key. The key. The key?" Lucy says, franticly searching the pockets of her dress.
"Lucy, don't tell me that you forgot the key." Mary says sternly to her sister.
Lucy continues to search, when Master Edmund Rottendam climbs out of one of her pockets with the key in his mouth.
"'ere it is!" Lucy exclaims triumphantly, taking the key from the rat. Mary harshly grabs the key from her sister and looks at her in disgust.
"If you weren't my little sister, I swear I'd…"
"Tobias! Where are you!" I hear Dr. Fogg cry out. "Come out, come out where ever you are!"
"Where are you, you little fucking bastard!" Watson yells, in turn.
"Oh, how wonderful..." Mary grumbles, starting to panic. She quickly puts the key in the lock and turns it. The sound of grinding gears and loosening bolts fills the air. With a groan, the gate opens and we step through. We hear the first gate slam shut as we proceed to the second gate. We then hear the shouting of Dr. Fogg and Mr. Watson and their futile attempt to open the first gate in this seemingly impenetrable fortress. The second gate is now open and before us stands the third and final gate. We're almost their. Just as we are reaching the last gate, we hear the first one open. My heart stops. I know now that we are truly done for. Just as the third gate is beginning to open, we hear the second gate opening as well. I can hear Dr. Fogg's and Mr. Watson's shouts as we quickly go through the last gate.
I can no longer keep up with Mary and Lucy's swift pace on one leg, so instead I let them drag me along to the wooded hillside not far off. The mad-house keepers' shouts can still be plainly heard.
After about an hour of maneuvering through the forest, we stop. Everything is as quiet as the grave.
"I- I- I- I think we've lost 'em." Lucy says, out of breath. Mary nods and helps me to sit down. I'm exhausted. I can feel the pain creeping in again in my rib cage, and it's getting worse. Even worse than before. I hold my hands to my sides and grimace. My vision is starting to blur and everything is closing in around me. As I'm letting myself slip into pain induced unconsciousness, I can't help but to triumphantly think that I've finally escaped from the mad-house on Peckham Rye.