The Buried Bonds

Someone twisted the knob of the door. 

Alyssane's gaze dimmed.

The last rays of the sun seeped through dark clouds and cast faint shadows on her face. She remained leaning against the glass window, feeling too tired to move.

There was a pause.

And then, the door opened.

Johanna narrowed her eyes the moment they looked at each other. But she said nothing as she walked, holding a tray of food.

The air turned sour.

Alyssane quietly watched Johanna, so much had happened between them in the past, and so long it had been since they last met. 

Even so, she could not help but wonder what suddenly made the bright shimmering star of the manor dress in old worn-out clothes, and how they did nothing to dull her otherworldly beauty.

Johanna remained standing, her hands tense around the tray as she said in a low detached voice, "Everyone else has been thrown into dungeons."

Alyssane's mind returned to those distant screams she had heard, and suddenly her heart was heavy. But she could also not believe Johanna's words so easily either, it seemed too extreme.

"And you're just where you always wanted to be." Johanna murmured, a wry smile on her lips, "Alone, and forgotten."

Alyssane's smile faded, but she said nothing.

She could not.

She silently observed Johanna, searching for something perhaps they both had forgotten. She could be executed anytime, Were cold words all Johanna had to say?

"They locked me in a small room with no light, no windows," Johanna continued in a bitter voice, looking away, "Suddenly, we all became traitors and prisoners."

It was a strange feeling that Alyssane felt at those words. Even after saying so much, Johanna refused to directly blame her for some reason.

Her gaze returned to Alyssane, holding her eyes for a quiet moment before she looked down at her bandaged hands and whispered, "Except you."

Alyssane offered a dry smile, "I am having so much fun."

"Does it hurt?" Johanna frowned as she watched the bandages.

"I can't even feel my hands," Alyssane lied.

And her old friend's expressions darkened.

There was no chair for her to sit on, so she remained standing and uncovered the dish without another word. Her movements were stiff and quick as she pricked some meat with the fork.

And once again, Alyssane could not speak.

The food was delicious, each bite a reminder of simpler times when they were younger. But now, the taste was also half-bitter in her mouth, making it all harder to swallow.

'How long has it been?' Alyssane wondered, her eyes unmoving from Johanna, 'You seemed so kinder…'

She and Johanna had been brought to the Pearl Manor brothel as slaves on the same fateful day. Alyssane was sobbing and shivering, and Johanna had held her hand, whispering soothing words, she promised to never let go.

There were so many nights they had spent huddled together for warmth, sharing secrets and dreams into the darkness. 

It was easy to love when they had no one else but each other.

But soon, Johanna started to have other friends. Everyone loved her, she was beautiful, and her words were always kind. No one liked Alyssane.

Her path was different from everyone's.

She sought freedom through being wild and untamed, by embracing what they believed was madness. 

Alyssane was no longer easy to love.

Johanna made her choice, severed all ties, and buried their past somewhere neither of them could ever reach again.

'But that was not enough for you.'

Alyssane quietly took the plate from her hands. She felt like starving even after eating half the meal, and there was still nothing to satiate her thirst.

Johanna's eyes widened slightly.

She clenched her fingers, no words, and then folded her hands, watching Alyssane with a confused look.

"How are you so quiet?"

'How are you suddenly concerned?' Alyssane wanted to ask, but she was more tempted to let go of everything they once had.

"Alyssane," Johanna's gaze became serious, her words tense, "Do you not see what's happening? These knights are torturing innocents without any reason. They have turned the whole manor into a prison!"

"It was always a prison."

"Have you really gone insane?"

"Perhaps."

Alyssane's words were distant and indifferent, but there was a storm raging in her mind, all her thoughts lingering on the worst moments of her life.

She was also tortured, and confined. What about her pain? And now, she was entangled in a vicious scheme, awaiting her death or worse.

Johanna had never come to her when she was suffering, even though she knew everything, every fear, every secret Alyssane ever had.

Her absence cut deeper than anything.

Without a word, Johanna turned to leave.

"Everyone is imprisoned?" Alyssane stopped her.

Johanna took a deep breath, silent for a moment as if to control her anger and then she coldly answered, "Some are in dungeons, some in secluded confinement. The knights are unpredictable, they are doing whatever they please."

"What do you mean?"

"Everything they do is…" Johanna struggled to find a word, "It's too random. There are rumors that they have found nothing since the past week, no new evidence, and still torturing everyone based on whims."

"Sadistic, perhaps," Alyssane murmured.

She was also confused. Why not simply go ahead with her execution if they can't find anything? She was just an orphan, a slave, too easy to kill and be forgotten.

"Maybe," Johanna said after a while.

She licked her lips, averting her gaze towards the window. There was a storm of unsaid things brewing in her mind, but she was not sure if they mattered anymore.

In the end, she asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Did you do it?"

Alyssane pricked the fork into the last bite of meat, "What do you think?"

There was no answer.

Johanna did not move either, there was a long silence before she simply walked out of the room―leaving behind more confusion in Alyssane's mind.

A key was hiding under her meal.

'What are you doing?'