Just as I had predicted, it took approximately one whole day to reach the country of Amontyl. Of course, we first had to drive back to Aobasani so that we could pack for the long trip, and Kyo had to inform Yui and his mother that he would be going away for a little while. Kyo told us that we would have to wait to leave until the following morning, due to him having to make some arrangements. It all turned out okay, though, and I was relieved that it did.
Amontyl was such a beautiful country. The buildings weren't extravagant, but rather peaceful and humble looking. There were trees lining some parts of the streets, their pink, blossoming petals occasionally breaking off to drift to the ground below. I could see the palace from where we were, in the city called Arinnion. It's outward appearance resembled somewhat of a medieval design, but with more modern additions such as stronger walls and a more reliable army.
At some point in the trip, Ushio had grown tired of driving, so Kyo had taken over the wheel. Kyo was taking us slowly along the road that lead through one of the city's most beautiful forests now, solely for the purpose of our viewing pleasure. He had even rolled down the windows to allow us to get a feel of the fresh forest air, as well as get a better look at the wildlife. It was absolutely breathtaking. The trees seemed even larger now that we were alongside them. Small animals shuffled in the branches of the nearby trees, causing some of the petals to break off and float inside the open window. It was rather entertaining to watch, and I even managed to catch a few of the petals. But as the light at the end of the forest grew closer, I dropped the petals out the window of the car and watched as the wind carried them away until they floated gently to the forest floor.
"So...how do we plan on getting access to go to the palace?" Yuta asked suddenly.
"You're not very familiar with this country, are you, Yuta?" said Kyo, almost spitefully. "The Grand Palace allows tours on certain days of every month. Coincidentally, today happens to be one of those days. However, the tour will only cover a small area of the palace, not including the prince's room, nor the throne room. Maybe, if we're lucky, we'll be able to see him passing by while we're there. If not...then one or two of us will have to find some other way to speak to him. I'm really hoping we won't have to resort to that..."
Me too... Just the thought of sneaking around such a high security place sent a chill down my spine. "So how long will it be till we reach the palace?" I asked.
"Another half an hour or so," he replied. "Sit tight until then."
"Understood."
+++
Surely enough, about one half hour later, we reached the Grand Palace. Kyo parked the car on the street leading up to the palace, and we walked up to the front gate where two, well-built army men were standing guard. Kyo gave us all a confident, reassuring look before approaching the guards, while the rest of us stood back. The army men narrowed their eyes at Kyo and crossed their rifles to block the way. "You guys are foreigners, aren't you?" the guard with the scruffy brown beard asked Kyo.
Kyo nodded. "Yes, that's right. We came to Arinnion in hopes of getting to see the Grand Palace, and even Lord Christopher, if possible. I called just yesterday and scheduled a tour for five. I have to ask, though, because I'm curious...when I called to schedule the appointment, the woman who was in charge of taking care of that department informed me that there were no other scheduled tours before me. Is there a specific reason for that?"
The other guard, the one with the thick eyebrows, scoffed, then glared at Kyo. "Yeah...you definitely are a foreigner. Lord Christopher has been missing from the Grand Palace for more than a year now."
What? Did I hear him right?
I felt my heart sink as Kyo took a step back, and the frightened look on his face came into view. "Lord Christopher...has been missing?"
"He ran away, to be more specific," the bearded guard sighed heavily. "After the king refused to allow his daughter to continue living in the palace, Lord Christopher ran away with her. Soon after, the king died of an illness." He craned his neck to peak over his shoulder at the large palace gate, and he soon began to shake his head at it pitifully. "The Grand Palace is more like an empty shell now, if you ask me. To be honest, I'm shocked they even allow tours here anymore. But that ain't my place to say. What I can do for ya, foreigners, is advise that you go back to where you came from, or at least skip out on the tour. For as soon as you set foot inside the palace, you'll understand why I'm telling you this now. That palace is dark and cold...in more ways than one."
"Oh....I-I see...." Kyo took in a deep breath through his nose, and he nodded to the army men before turning his back and heading the other way. The rest of us followed immediately behind him without looking back at the palace.
"I really wanted to get a look inside..." Yuta sighed, shoulders drooping in disappointment.
I didn't admit it aloud, but in my heart, I wanted to, too. I didn't want to say it in front of Kyo, fearing he may react in a harsh way. I did, however, have other questions I absolutely needed to ask. "Hey, Ky-"
"We're not giving up now..."
His voice was ragged, and I could tell just by looking at his tightly clenched fists that he found himself at fault. I had no idea why, though. Maybe he felt guilty for dragging us out here in the first place, when it turned out to be for nothing. No, it couldn't have been that. After all, Yuta and I were the ones who persuaded him to go in the first place. And besides, it was a good experience going to another country, especially one as exceptional as Amontyl. So what was bothering him?
"Kyo, please don't be upset," Niall calmly told him. "You're right to say that we won't give up now, but getting frustrated or even the slightest bit shaken up won't help anything."
"Listen to Niall, Kyo," said Ushio, walking closer to his friend to loan his support. "We'll find him somehow. Don't lose hope."
"But you heard what the guard said," Kyo said in a low voice. "Christopher has been gone for over a year. He could be anywhere by now, maybe even outside of the country..."
"He is in Arinnion."
Everyone stopped in their tracks. Except Niall. He walked just a few steps out in front of the rest of us, not even turning to look at us as he said, "Lord Christopher is somewhere in this city. I know it to be true."
"How?" Kyo demanded of him. "How could you possibly know that?"
"Intuition. Demon's instinct. A gut feeling. Call it what you like. I have somewhat of a link to many of those who have been involved with the Midnight Legion at any point in time, and that includes Christopher. I cannot sense exactly where he is in the city, I only know that he is within the city boundaries, or perhaps, right on the border. However...I could be wrong. As I said, this is just a feeling, so I cannot assure you of it's accuracy. I only hope that it proves to be of good use to us." Niall then turned to us and smiled. "Shall we go look for the prince? Or would you prefer us turning our backs to the city and going home, throwing away our chance of getting closer to finding Hanako?"
Kyo, Ushio, and Yuta all seemed to be greatly moved by Niall's encouraging words. I even noticed a tear begin to form in Yuta's eye, but she wiped it away with her wrist before it could fall. "I want to keep going," she said, cracking a smile.
"I never said I wanted to go home," said Ushio.
Kyo was silent for a moment, but I soon noticed a smile breaking through his saddened complexion. "I told you I wasn't giving up, didn't I?" He laughed quietly. "Honestly, Niall...you are something else..."
After regaining his will to fight, Kyo resumed leading the way down the path. Wherever that path may lead.
+++
The five of us wandered around the city for the rest of the day, searching for the prince, but having no luck. We went in and out of various stores and other buildings, as well as around a couple of parks, but we found nothing. I can't say, however, that I didn't enjoy myself. It was clear to me that we had all made the best of our day. Even though it wasn't successful, I didn't regret any of it. I believed that it had truly strengthened out bonds in a positive way, and that alone made me happy to have known these people.
It was some time close to 9 o'clock, and Kyo had separated from us to go find a hotel for us to spend the night. The rest of us continued to stroll down the streets until the time came when Kyo was to call us and give the location of where we would be staying.
It was beginning to grow dark now, and the stars were just beginning to come out. Even with the street lamps and hundreds of little lights in the sky, the city still seemed to have a dark shadow cast over it. It started to make me feel uneasy, and I found myself wanting to get indoors as soon as possible.
"Hiro, are you alright?"
I looked up at Yuta, attempting to hide the discomforted look on my face. "Yeah," I told her. "I'm okay. I'm just curious, are we heading home soon? I mean, has Kyo found a hotel yet? That is what he left us to do, right? We all packed suitcases, didn't we? Well, except Niall, but still...are we staying?"
"Sounds like someone's afraid of the dark..." laughed Ushio. My eyes darted to the left just in time to see him come up from behind me. "It's alright, Hiro, you don't need to be ashamed. I didn't get over my fear of the dark until I was 13."
"I-I'm not afraid of the dark..."
"Ah, your stutter says otherwise."
"Ushio, quit teasing him," said Yuta sternly.
"Guys, I'm serious," I insisted. "I'm not afraid of the dark. It's just...there's something about this place that...kinda creeps me out. It almost feels like...I don't know...like there's something else here..."
"Oh, don't tell me you're afraid of ghosts, too..." Ushio let out a heavy sigh, which soon turned into a hearty laugh. "Calm your nerves, Hiro. Kyo's going to find us a hotel while we make a quick shopping trip. Then we can get away from the ghosts and the eerie city streets, okay?"
"Thanks..." He's definitely taunting me...
"Ushio, this place looks nice," said Yuta, suddenly changing the topic. I looked up to see what she was speaking of and noticed that we had stopped in front of a small and humble looking convenience store. Yuta seemed particularly set on this store for some reason, judging by the bright smile on her face. She jabbed a thumb at the door before swiftly turning around, only to stop suddenly before taking a few steps forward. "Little...little girl...?"
It was then that our eyes feel upon a young girl with long blonde hair, looking to be around 10 or 11 years of age, sitting near an alleyway, just between the convenience store and another building. Her head was resting against her shoulder as her eyes stared straight ahead. However, just as she lifted her head to look at us, I noticed that they were blank. Completely expressionless. And even though I knew she heard Yuta's voice, she didn't look directly at her, but instead just a tad bit away from where Yuta was standing.
Yuta approached the girl by taking small, quiet steps until she reached her. I soon came up beside Yuta and knelt down beside her, then looked up at the little girl with concern. "Hey, what are you doing outside by yourself so late at night?" I asked her. "Shouldn't you be getting home?"
"Hello."
It was such a simple, yet kind greeting expressed in a small, sweet voice, and I couldn't help but smile. "Hello there. What's your name?"
"Neimi."
"Neimi...that's a pretty name," said Yuta. "May I ask what you're doing out here alone? Do you not have a home, Neimi?"
Neimi shook her head. "I'm just waiting for my brother," she told us. "He told me to wait here while he went shopping inside the store."
"Why didn't your brother just take you inside with him?"
"Because he is kind," she replied with a soft voice. "My brother knows that it's hard for me to walk on my own, so he tries to keep me off my feet as much as possible. He should be finished soon, so don't worry. I'll be fine."
"Mmm..." Yuta hummed quietly as she slid into a sitting position beside Neimi. "Even so, do you mind if we wait here until he gets back? You know, just to make sure."
Neimi smiled and gave us a happy nod. "That would be very nice of you."
With her having said this, Yuta and the rest of us stayed by the little girl's side. It was about five minutes later that a teenage boy wearing a hoodie came out of the convenience store carrying a small grocery bag. The second he stepped outside, he pulled up a mask that covered all but his eyes. Neimi lifted her eyes and smiled widely at the boy, but he didn't do as much as to glance at her. Then, without uttering a single word, he walked away.
Yuta and I looked at each other, shocked. "Why did he ignore you?" I asked. "Was that not him?"
Neimi's head fell, and her lips bent into a depressed frown. "I can sense it was him," she whispered somberly, "but I don't think he can see me yet. If only he could learn to forgive himself, then maybe...maybe he would be able to see me."
"What are you talking about?" said Yuta. "What do you mean he can't see you? Didn't you say he told you to wait outside for him?"
"I lied. I'm sorry." Neimi's lips began to quiver as her eyes closed gently, and soon a tear fell down her cheek. "Christopher was a good brother to me. He didn't mean any harm. It wasn't his fault. He only wanted what was best for me. Chris is a good boy...Chris is a kind brother...Chris is not at fault..."
"Christopher?"
I looked over my shoulder at Ushio, whose eyes were now opened wide in surprise. "Do you mean...Christopher, as in...?" His eyes locked onto Neimi, who suddenly began shivering nervously. "Neimi, what's your last name?"
"I can't tell you..." She muttered, shaking her head refutably. "Christopher told me that we were to live in secret...I made a promise to him."
"Neimi, please," said Yuta, with a much softer and less urgent tone. "We aren't going to hurt him, I promise. We just want to speak with him. This is really important, Neimi, so please try to understand. How about we make a deal? If you tell us just who that boy was and where he was headed, then we'll do you anything you want us to do. Okay?"
Neimi was silent for a moment. She sat there, still as a statue, staring at the ground beneath her as if we weren't even around. "In that case...could you...make it so that Christopher can see me again? I want him to see me."
I could tell by the look on Yuta's face that she was unsure of what Neimi was trying to say. Even so, she put on her sincerest smile and gave the little girl a reassuring nod. "Of course we can."
"My brother's full name is Christopher Ether Valiant," Neimi told us. "He's most likely heading to the inn just a few miles from here. The old man that runs the inn lets Christopher stay in the basement of the building. Now you have to promise you won't turn him in, okay?" Neimi looked up at us, but once again, she didn't look into our eyes. "I'm gonna come with you, but I may need some help."
"Can you not walk?" Yuta asked.
Neimi shook her head. "My legs aren't very strong, but it is possible for me to walk. It's just that...I'm blind, so it's hard for me to navigate on my own."
I felt my heart sink as I listened to Neimi say these words so plainly, as if it meant nothing. She's blind? But she's so young...I wonder if she's been blind since birth. That's kind of sad to imagine. But I guess it explains why she can't look at us directly... "One of us can carry you," I offered. "In fact..." Carefully I slipped one hand behind Neimi's back, the other underneath her knees. Then I slowly got to my feet, her now laying safely in my arms. "I'll carry you."
She was so light. I guess I should've expected it, seeing as she was just a little girl, but it still surprised me. Neimi squeezed her eyes tightly and hid her face from me, then began whining quietly. "Embarrassing," she muttered. "But you're nice and warm..." Soon she began smiling again, which somehow made me feel more relaxed.
"Shall we go see your brother then?"
"Yes. I wanna see Chris again."
"Then let's not waste any more time."
+++
Ushio had given Kyo a call on our way to the inn, informing him that not only had we found the prince, but that we had also found a place to stay for the night if necessary. Kyo brought the car immediately to our location, and soon we were all standing in front of 'The Foster Inn.'
"Hello there, and welcome to-...is...is something wrong?"
Upon entering the inn, I received a greatly concerned look from the old man behind the front desk. I shook my head as soon as we made eye contact. "No, there's nothing wrong," I assured him. "We just want to speak with the boy staying in this basement."
The man's mouth fell open. "Are you...are you folks with the authorities?"
Kyo marched up to the front desk and looked the old man dead in the eye. "We might be," he said harshly. "What difference does it make? It is vitally important that we are to speak with that boy. So would you be so kind as to allow us into the basement?"
"It's off limits," said the man, tensing up with fear. "The basement is simple where I keep the inn's storage and some of my own personal belongings. There is no boy living t-"
"I know he is," Neimi interrupted, raising her voice so that it was loud enough for everyone to hear. "I know my brother is living in this basement. Please, Mr. Inn Keeper sir, let me see my brother."
The inn keeper's face seemed to become more relaxed upon hearing Neimi's voice. His shoulders fell, and he opened his eyes just wide enough for us to see. "Oh...it's you, Neimi," he whispered. "I'm very sorry, my eyesight is not what it used to be. I saw this man carrying a young girl, but I didn't know it was you. Please forgive me..."
"I forgive you," said Neimi. "Just take us to my brother."
The inn keeper smiled as he walked out from behind the front desk and over to a door just across the room from where we were standing. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a key, which he then inserted into the lock. With a turn of his wrist the door unlocked, and soon we all began to make our way down the creaky wooden staircase.
"I do hope that we will not be disturbing Lord Christopher," said the inn keeper. "He just now may be starting his supper. Hold on a minute, I'll call out to him. Christopher!" He knocked three times against a wall, then flicked on a light switch, causing the room to be filled a rather dim light. "Christopher, you shouldn't spend so much time in the dark. I told you I didn't mind if you kept the light on. This basement is dark and damp enough on its own..."
"Sorry, Mr. Foster, I just-..."
All of a sudden, the sound of a table flipping over and glass crashing against the floor hit my ear. A tall, blonde haired boy stood up and glared at us with his pale blue eyes. They seemed to filled with intense fury and betrayal.
"Good evening, Christopher. These are-"
"How could you?" Christopher snapped at the old man. "I thought you promised never to turn me in? We made a deal!"
"Christopher!" the Inn Keeper shouted. "These people aren't here to turn you in! They just want to speak with you. The sooner you cooperate, the sooner they can leave."
Christopher scowled at each one of us and clicked his tongue with distaste, but his eyes never once fell on Neimi. He spun around with a kick of his foot, then proceeded to walk over to an old sofa on the other side of the room. I looked at the Inn Keeper, and he gestured for us to go follow him. So we did.
"So who the heck are you people anyway? And how did you know where to find me?" Christopher hissed, clearly not liking the idea of conversing with any of us. "I swear, when we're done here, I expect all five of you to clear out of this place and pretend as if none of this ever happened. Got it?"
"All...five of us...?" My gaze slowly dropped to look at Neimi's face. She was frowning again, and for some reason, just seeing her with such a sad expression made me my heart sink even deeper.
"Yeah," said Christopher. "I'm not gonna kick Mr. Foster out. Now answer my question. How did you know where to find me?"
I was too shaken up to speak, and just from a side glance at Yuta's face, I could tell she was, too. Thankfully, Ushio spoke up. "Your sister told us," he said with hesitation. "Neimi."
"My sister has been dead for more than a year now," said Christopher, his expression unchanging. "I don't appreciate you using her name so casually. Now who really told you?"
"My friend is telling the truth," said Niall. "Your sister is with us right now. Can't you see her?"
"He can't."
We all looked at Neimi just in time to see another tear fall from her eye. "Christopher is right," she whimpered. "I died over a year ago. But it wasn't his fault. He thinks it was, and that's why he can't see me."
"Well how can we change that?" Yuta asked desperately. "You can't possibly go on like this. How can we make him see you?"
Neimi's eyes closed slightly as she released a gentle sigh. "Brother must forgive himself."
"Who are you guys talking to?" Christopher asked, glowering at us. "You all drunk or something?"
None of us said anything at first. It was as if our legs ceased working properly, so we all found some place to sit down. I carefully set Neimi down on a worn down velvet armchair and helped her get seated comfortably. Then, because she was so small, I sat right next to her.
"Christopher," Kyo began, nervously avoiding the boy's gaze. "Could you tell us what happened your sister Neimi?"
"She died," he replied bluntly. "Didn't I tell you that already?"
"No, I mean how did she die?"
Christopher leaned forward and placed his elbow on knee, then rested his chin on the palm of his hand. His eyelids drooped, and a somber look soon appeared on his face. "Why should I tell you?" He muttered. "Just thinking about it makes me feel disgusted with myself. Talking about will only make me feel worse."
"Why do you make it sound like it was your fault?" I asked him. "Judging by the way you're acting now, I'd say that you never had any intention of hurting your sister. If that's the case, then why-?"
"Because it was my fault," he said. "If I never told her to run away with me, Neimi would still be alive."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Shut up!!" Christopher's head shot up, his eyes now seemingly filled with murderous intent, but also an extreme amount of regret. "What do you want from me? My life story? My darkest secrets? You want to know how I ended up in this run down basement with my hair and eye color changed? Huh? Is that what you want?!"
"Chris, would you calm down already!" Kyo reprimanded him, attempting to steady the boy with his hands.
"Don't call me Chris!!" He shouted, suddenly springing up from his seat and staring us down as if we were lowlives. "Neimi was the only one I ever let call me t-....that..." Just as soon as he had stood up, Christopher fell back onto the sofa, all of the anger he had just forced on us vanishing in an instant. His face was now filled with a look of heartbreak and sorrow, and his eyes seemed ready to cry. "I give up," he said, voice shaking slightly. "I can't take this pressure any more...I'll tell you, but you have to promise me you'll never mention my sister's name ever again, okay?"
I nodded slowly. "Of course. We promise..."