Chapter 10: eat, speak

- This door is locked. It's like the one in the mine it doesn't budge an inch!

-Then stop trying to force it open girl.

-What do you want to do then? To just wait?! Or look for another key again???

Dust advances toward them in silence. Not willing to interrupt the two, stepping quietly on the stairs. But Pony notices him despite his efforts.

The women raise her eyes to see him better. Under her fierce gaze, he recoils a bit.

Now that he is in a brighter place he can confirm that Pony has really large shoulders, and her body is very muscular for a girl.

it is the sort of body that one can only have if they train daily. 

It doesn't surprise Dust. She seem to be full of energy most of the time.

The boy suppose that she is an athlete.

However what surprise Dust is the fact that her hand is uninjured. No fingers missings, no blood. Nothing.

The old man turn his head too to give Dust a curious look.

Like Dust he has changed his clothes for a suit which seem to be straight out of the Renaissance era. Who know when he had the time to neatly comb his grey hairs.

-Ah you're alive too boy. That's good.

-He was ahead of us old man. It would be strange if he didn't survive the whole thing whereas  we lived throught it . It was us who where fighting for your lifes in the back!

The oldest of the three sighs his gaze  shifting from Dust to his own legs with a blank look. The vicious glint in his grey eyes dimming. Like the edge of a blade rusting.

His expression quite dark.

-Who know? This whole situation make no sense.

Dust glance at the imposing doors trying hard to avoid any eye contact with the other two.  Its the kind of doors  you would expect to find in a mausoleum. Majestic, luxurious but bleak.

Standing in front of it give the strange impression that someone is waiting outside. That they are looking through the wood to directly examine the three persons in the castle. Even with this kind of doors the complaints of the wind can still be heard.

-I see that i did hear well! Lady i could hear your voice all the way to the dinner room.

The voice of Purple belly suddenly appearing from the hallway in their left nearly make Dust miss the last step of the staircase. Following him like his shadow Two give them a faint nod.

But what really make the boy jump with his heart in his throat is the chuckle in his back. 

Suspicious is here too.

The red-haired man playfully add to the comment of the middle-aged man his own remark.

-At this point being so loud must be a talent.

You are the one with a real ability. Always sneaking on people back… 

Thinking this Dust step on the ground floor. And he is soon joined by the other.

Pony doesn't seem to mind the jab, on the contrary she smiles. 

-Thanks for the compliment! 

She then report her attention on Purple-belly and give him another grin.

-i am happy to see you well!

The man give her a polite smile.

- i am happy to see you safe and sound too.

Then he turn his face  to look at Suspicious and Dust, his expression just a tad less friendly than with Pony. However his voice keep his warm tone when he inquires.

-Shall we head to the dinner room? The other two are already there eating their fill.

Food!

Dust salivate at the mere idea of eating.

Of course, this doesn't prevent his mind to generate questions after questions at the statements made by Purple-belly.

In the mine, they were 9 at first, One died, Follower was left behind with the monster so… Is Eyes alive?

The corner of his lips rise a little  at the thought. Eyes isn't someone who exchanged more than ten sentences with Dust. At this level he can be called a total stranger for the boy. But if he has to compare with the others in the group then …

Even if he has said to them more than ten words it's a lot…

In this situation he can't help but feel isolated of the rest.

 If Eyes is there he will find a bit of confomrt. And less out of place.

Even if they all casually speak between each other it's easy to see that every people here are on guard. Sometimes one of them scan warily their surroundings, their back straight. And they all have something to light  the area if need be.

Purple-Belly and the old-man still has in their hand the flashlights they used in the mine while everyone else has the same lanterns Dust found in his bedroom.

Before he fainted he remember that his grip loosened around his own lamptorch and thus the object fell on the floor.

The one who brought them here may not have taken the time to look for it.

But why they all fainted in the same time is a mystery.

Wait, did they all faint? Because he saw Suspicious fall down like him he directly assumed that the other in the back did too. But what if this isn't the case? 

Yet if they didn't would they be so surprised to see each other alive and well?

Frustration furrow the eyebrows of the boy.

 Fainting at the same time isn't normal. And the monster ? Did it just let them go? 

If they were all unconscious, unable to move someone MUST have brought them back. It is logical. And yet…

Nobody broach the subject. They tip toes around the matter like they would contourn the edge of a cliff.

Even if they speak about it, what kind answer could justify all this?

Even if they only speak about the injuries of Pony what can they say? "Oh i see that your fingers connected themselve back to your hands without any scars! How is it possible i wonder... Does your hand still hurt?"

Awkward.

They head toward the dinner room with Purple-belly leading. Somehow Dust found himself at the back of the group.

Being with them, the feeling of not being alone sure does bring a sense of a security but in the same time it make one more conscious of what happen in the mine.

Some people died there.

When they arrive in the dinner room, Follower and Princess are there eating their meal in absolute silence.

Unlike before, they sit far apart. The ambiance between them as cold as the Antartic.

So the girl survived against all odd.

Hearing their footsteps, the girl raise her head to give them a cold glare.

Like Pony she has no visible injuries.