Claude

Luar rushed into the village and searched for a familiar house. It followed the same path it always took. 

It spotted a large hut made of dark oak wood that was built on a large rock platform. Flowers bloomed around the house as if it was a nature reserve. The lights were off as expected.

Luar rushed and crashed into the house through the window. It heard glass shattering but it ignored it. The glass fragments bounced off it's fur as if repelled. It was about to crash into a door before the door opened and slammed on the wall.

There stood an old lady with an angered look plastered over her wrinkly face that didn't suit the way she stood. She stood up straight with undying elegance and complexity. Her blue eyes glowing with wisdom.

"I told you over and over again that you can't keep breaking the window like that!" Lithia nagged, pulling out a stick from her pocket and twirled it into her hair. "So what item did you bring this time?" she yawned.

"Why is there security outside Gia?" Luar asked.

"Oh, that? A few weeks ago when you went missing some assassins came by wanting my head but they had no idea what I looked like so they just went killing off people in my age range." Lithia said as she poured tea into her cup. "Why are you still in the small cat form?" 

Luar groaned. "I brought someone back here all the way from somewhere near Bristol." 

"Where are they?" Lithia asked, surprised by how far Luar went. She looked around the house to spot who the someone was. But the only presence there was her and her link.

"Prison."

Lithia spat out her tea in shock. Did Luar happen to bring in a criminal? "You-"

"The security was insane! They took him in as he had no sort of invitation and they didn't recognise him as a villager. So they immediately suspected him of treason and attempted murder!" Luar complained.

"Oh. I knew the security was tough but I didn't think they'd make it this tight just for my safety. You want me to take him out of jail right?" Lithia asks the obvious. She seemed astonished by what was happening around her that she seemed to have lost her mind for a while.

Luar waited at the window for them to leave. Since it was no longer separated from it's linker, it wouldn't disappear when daylight fell upon it. But leaving a child in prison was a little too cruel. That was why it was rushing.

"Grandma?" A boy came out from the same room Lithia was from. He wore a loose set of pajamas as he rubbed his eye. His brown hair sticking out like spikes. It looked like he had quite a hard time sleeping.

"Oh? Claude, why are you awake again?" Lithia asked, sighing as she wiped the drool of her grandson's face. 

"I heard loud noises" Claude turned his head and saw a familiar black figure. His eyes widened in shock as he smiled brightly. "Luar! You're back!" it congratulated as if the cat had won some kind of world changing award.

"Yeah, I am." Luar settled down beside Claude. Slightly forgetting the important matter it had at hand. 

The both of them chatted for a while as the child listened to Luar's adventure this time around. Luar talked about it's experience travelling on a ship and meeting terrifying monsters on its way.

While Lithia wore her cloak and got ready to step out. "Luar?"

"We have to go out for a while so wait for us, okay?" 

Claude's disappointment flooded his face. "Don't leave me! If you're going I'm also going!" he whined, hugging onto Luar. 

"Claude dear-" Lithia started before she saw tears flooding from her grandson's eyes.

'Why are you leaaaving?!" Claude whined, jumping up and down. 

Lithia looked at Luar and they both came to a mutual agreement with just the meeting of their eyes. 

"Claude." Lithia said in a serious tone. "It's an important errand. It won't take long." She attempts to convince the child.

It didn't seem to work that well on such a stubborn child that she spoiled. Claude looked at her with eyes that were swollen from all the crying. 

Hesitantly, Lithia said, "Can..this wait till tomorrow?" 

Luar wanted to say no but it couldn't seem to. It knew how much it's owner treasured her grandson after that incident. Being a link could make it feel a portion of emotions their linker felt. And it was painful. 

"Yes. It can wait." It said while sighing. It prayed Kai would be able to stay safe till the morning.

Lithia smiled and dragged Claude back to his room. "You're so stubborn, you know that?" she teased while wiping his tears.

"Luar, come sleep too!" Claude said with a smile now. His mood changed relatively quickly, as if he was a living light switch. 

Claude had managed to successfully convince Luar and his grandma to stay for the night and finish their important errand tomorrow. 

It was a terrible week for him. And only sleep can make his mind relieved of the thoughts that haunt him. And they knew that very well.

And there was another person living in hell. Kai waited and waited for help that Luar had promised. He could hear footsteps approaching his cell and that made his head turn.

It was just the guard with the food. Bread and water. Were they really planning on treating him like a criminal without proper evidence?

"How long is this going to go on for?" Kai asked, taking the metal bowl of bread. 

"Until you can be proven innocent." The guard snapped back immediately.

"Isn't it a crime to jail someone without concrete evidence?" 

"We have the authority to do so, stop asking." The guard said, annoyed by the constant pestering. 

Kai went silent and watched the guard walk by. He glared at them.

"Did you just glare at me?" The guard snapped his head back and stared at the young boy who didn't know his place.

"Tch." Kai clicked his tongue. "No, sorry." he apologised. He knew it would be better not to cause trouble while Luar was away. 

The guard opened the cell and came stomping in, he grabbed the can of water and poured it on the boy's hair. He dropped the can and kicked the boy right across his face. "Watch it." 

He then left and locked the cell back. The other guards saw his actions but didn't care much. It happened too many times to count.

The teenage boy across Kai's cell began to laugh his heart out after all the guards left when they had finished distributing the food. "You chose a bad one to mess with! He smacked me too when I rebutted."

Kai's head was kept low and he didn't look up. He bit onto his tongue to stop his voice from coming out. 

"Uh, you okay?" The boy from the cell across asked.

Kai sat there and stayed silent and waited like he always did.