"No way," Sam squealed. "Are you saying we're in his house?"
"Looks like it." Meg flipped her hair and shook her head. "Without that gem, he probably doesn't have the power to maintain the prison. Is that right?"
She raised her voice, directing this at the still bamboozled Oliver.
Oliver twitched, his face flooding red. Then he started kicking and thrashing like a toddler throwing a tantrum. Sam quickly scooted out of his range.
"You awful – horrible – thieves and cowards! How dare you do this to me, I'm the Enson heir! Give it back! Give it BACK!"
"Nah, I think we'll make much better use of it than you," said a grinning Ryan, reaching for the gem in Darian's hand. Only for her to clench her fist and lift it away from him.
"And I think we can make better use of it than you," she said frostily.
"Stingy." Ryan pouted. Well, looked like somebody was back to his usual self.
"Wait a minute." With a creak of armor, Ryllis stepped closer. "If the prison's gone, what happened to the other prisoners?"
Her entire body quivered with tension, hardening its already sharp angles. To say nothing of her Levia, so heavy Sam could barely breathe through it.
Oliver didn't answer, just thrashed and whined some more. So Meg came to the rescue. "I'm going to guess they probably ended up scattered throughout this house too."
Without another word, Ryllis stalked to the door and flung it open.
"Huh?" Sense slammed back into Sam and she jumped to her feet, running after Ryllis. "Ryllis! Where are you going?"
"Where do you think?" Ryllis said roughly. "I'm looking for Jin."
"Hey, hey, wait," Sam protested, struggling to keep up with Ryllis' strides despite her longer legs. "How do you know – ah!"
The hall wasn't empty; people were slumped on the floor, leaning against the walls. Prisoners, all looking just as bewildered as Sam had been only a few moments earlier.
Ryllis paid them no heed as she marched on past, but Sam tried to offer them encouraging smiles. Well, one thing was certain. She'd succeeded at freeing all the prisoners after all.
Though it didn't feel like it with everyone still trapped in the Enson manor. Outside the large windows, Sam glimpsed rolling green grounds, colorful gardens, dense stands of trees, even the ocean gleaming in the distance. Beautiful, but thinking about what the Ensons had done to obtain it soured all the sights for her.
A loud slam – Ryllis had thrown open a door. Peering from behind her, Sam saw what looked like a guest bedroom. A few prisoners were huddled inside, looking confused.
But apparently none were Jin. Ryllis kept marching down the hall.
"Hey," Sam called after her. "Maybe we shouldn't go too far? Don't want to get lost, you know."
Ryllis went on as if Sam hadn't spoken. The hall ended in a sharp turn and Sam thought to try to stop her again, but Ryllis had already disappeared around the corner. Sam jogged to catch up.
Only to almost bump into Ryllis' back. Yelping, Sam stumbled backward.
Ryllis had stopped at the top of a staircase, its steps covered in white carpet and its banisters polished brass. Rather than admiring the decor, she had her eyes fixed on the first landing.
Her Levia throbbed inside Sam, sharpening to a single point of fierce intention. So Sam looked too.
Someone was huddled in the corner of the landing, hands over their head. A child, Sam realized with a jolt.
And if she wasn't mistaken, the child's hair gleamed silver in the warm afternoon light. Part of it seemed to be moving independently too, twitching up and down.
Sam blinked. Not hair, but ears like a fox's, covered in fur as silver as his hair.
Her heart hammered, but she wasn't sure whether this excitement belonged to her or Ryllis. And before she could figure it out, the child lowered his arms and lifted his head.
Slowly, he climbed to his knees and stared up the staircase. When Sam saw his eyes, her breath caught – they glowed a brilliant golden yellow.
Ryllis' voice escaped in a puff of breath. "Jin."
The boy blinked, long eyelashes sweeping up and down. Then he leaped to his feet, his ears perking and his bushy silver tail shooting upright.
"Ryllis?" he cried out, high and thin.
"Jin." Ryllis swallowed. She had started trembling, the spear dipping up and down in her hand. But even as Jin began climbing up the stairs, Ryllis remained frozen in place.
Sam decided to give her a little encouragement. Smiling, she nudged Ryllis in the shoulder. Ryllis whirled upon her, mouth slightly open. Sam smiled wider.
Ryllis pressed her lips together and nodded. Then she put down her spear and pulled off her helmet, settling it beside the spear.
Jin had made it halfway up the stairs. He reached a tiny hand for her, tail wagging so fast it was a blur.
With a single leap, Ryllis landed on the stair above him. She crouched down, arms open, and with a delighted squeal Jin launched himself into her chest.
Ryllis' arms locked tight around him, crushing him against her armor, but he didn't seem to mind. He was laughing, kicking his feet, wagging his tail. Ryllis hunched over him, shoulders shaking.
From this angle, Sam couldn't see her face. But it didn't matter, because she knew exactly what Ryllis was feeling. Her familiar's joy swelled inside her chest, mixing with her own until she felt like she was going to burst.
Tears pricked the corners of her eyes. Shaking her head, Sam wiped them away and started down the stairs herself. Jin noticed her approach first, drawing back from Ryllis' chest and blinking those wide golden eyes. His face was round and sweet, with a dusting of freckles over his nose.
"Who...who are you?" he said hesitantly.
"Ah." Blinking, Ryllis glanced over her shoulder at Sam. Sam's heart twisted when she saw the tears shimmering in her hazel eyes.
Then everything rushed away – all her emotions, all her memories – the moment a huge smile spread across Ryllis' face.
"This is Sam," she said, her voice warmer than Sam had ever heard it. "My wizard. If it weren't for her, I...I wouldn't have found you."
Once again, Sam fought with all her might against the urge to cry. Instead, she smiled too and crouched down to wave at Jin. "Nice to meet you, Jin."
Jin blinked a couple more times. Then his lips lifted in a smile just as dazzling as Ryllis', making Sam realize who she had learned it from.
When he spoke, his voice was quiet, but brighter than the sun outside. "Thank you for helping my sister, Sam."
Sam couldn't take it anymore. She flung herself forward, wrapped her arms around both siblings, and finally let the tears fall.