Preamble

The next day we arrive at the village in the middle and, as last time, Dango immediately climbs the gate. Beatrice stands still, staring at him hesitantly.

«Come on, jump up!» says Dango.

«I-I'm not tall enough.»

«Never mind, you can do it!»

«No! It's not true!»

How are we going to get in now if she doesn't want to climb the gate?

Dango, wasting no time, climbs down the other side and calls me, «Pierrot!»

«Yes?»

«Throw her to me!»

Beatrice and I look at each other perplexed. She also looks a bit terrified.

«What do you mean?»

«Take Bea and throw her!»

«E-Eh?» exclaims Beatrice, taking a step back.

«I'll catch you, don't worry!»

«C-Can't we ask to open up?»

«… No.»

Before she can object, I grab her by the waist, she lets out a yelp, I lift her up, throw her towards the spot where Dango climbed down, I send her over the gate, immediately after, I hear a thud and groans, worried, I climb over the gate to see if they're okay... The scene that greets me is... peculiar. Beatrice is lying on top of Dango, both of them motionless.

«Are you okay?»

They get up in silence, their faces completely red and their eyes looking in opposite directions. Without saying anything, Dango walks towards the door, and we follow him. Once inside the villa, Dango and I exclaim in unison «Get down!» crouching down suddenly.

She turns to us «What?» the next moment, he is hit squarely by a chair.

Dango and I get up as if nothing had happened. «Heyyy, long time no see!» exclaims Dango enthusiastically.

Vincent emerges from the shadows, walking heavily. The scene is all too familiar to me.

«Why the hell are you back?! Last time agents came and asked me questions about you! You don't know how hard it was to get rid of them!»

Meanwhile, I help Beatrice up.

Dango doesn't seem fazed. «But in the end it went well, I don't understand why you're angry.»

Vincent rubs his eyes with two fingers and sighs. «It's useless talking to you...» he stops as soon as he turns his gaze towards Beatrice. His expression seems to have changed. He seems to have become sad. He slowly approaches, stopping a step away from her. He extends his hand towards her face, but stops just before touching it. Beatrice looks at him, her eyes wide and confused... He drops his hand along his body.

«Boy, make some tea.»

«Yes.» Without repeating himself or saying anything else, Dango immediately heads towards the kitchen.

«You two, come with me.» he says turning around.

«W-Where are we going?» asks Beatrice in a thin voice.

He turns and gives a brief smile. «To the attic.»

He leads us down the same twisted corridor as last time. This time we stop halfway, in front of the door to the attic, or to the right of the corridor, I still can't figure out how to understand the directions.

As soon as he opens the door, there is a distant rock wall in front of us. Vincent looks at us. «What are you doing, not coming in?»

The two of us lean forward. Below us is not the floor, but a precipice on which he has set up an office furniture, with sofas and a table.

«How do we get in?»

«By walking through the door.»

«But we’ll fall.»

Without saying anything else, Vincent pushes us, we fall, we scream and... we realize that we have landed on the floor? Behind us, the door is wide open, but now it's on the floor.

Vincent passes through it, composed, remaining standing. «What are you doing there on the floor? Get comfortable.»

Confused, we get up. Beatrice can't stop looking around curiously. Me too, I can't help but be curious. I realize that the attic looks like a cave and the table between the sofas is actually a sarcophagus with macabre decorations in bas-relief on the sides. But what's the point of setting up the attic like an underground place?

As soon as we were seated on one of the sofas, I asked «Why has the floor changed direction from the corridor and not remained the same as in the other room?»

«Have you ever seen an attic built vertically?»

«No.»

As soon as we sit on one of the sofas, Vincent scrutinizes us in silence. His gaze lingers on Beatrice. She keeps her eyes down, her hands clasped nervously, playing with her thumbs.

«Why did Dango take a mutant?» His voice breaks the silence, but the tone is not one of reproach. There is a nuance that I can't immediately understand.

Beatrice stiffens. She doesn't answer, nor does she look up.

I decide to intervene. «You see, it was... complicated.» I search for the right words, but Vincent doesn't seem patient. He rubs his temples with two fingers.

«Complicated?» he repeats in a tone that seems about to explode, but he holds back. His gaze shifts back to Beatrice.

I can't ignore the oppressive silence. I try to continue. «Okay, tell me everything. I want to know what went through your heads.»

Beatrice looks at me, I can't back down. «It started like this...»

At the beginning of my story he wasn't calm. His hands were clenched into fists that were shaking, his lips were pursed, he probably wanted to hit something. Then, little by little, as I explain the details of what happened to us, I see him relax. His hands open, his shoulders lower, and at the end of the story, he almost seems calm. I admit that I omitted some important details, not knowing how he would react.

Silence stretches after my story. Vincent stares at an undefined point, lost in thought. Beatrice, visibly uncomfortable, continues to fiddle with her thumbs.

Vincent stands up slowly, his hands behind his back, and starts walking back and forth. The room becomes heavier, every step echoes in the cavern. Then he stops suddenly and turns to us.

«You, do you understand what all this means?» he asks in a grave, almost resigned voice.

«No, of course, surely Dango doesn't even try to tell you anything. Every choice, every decision, every new addition to your... little theater... has consequences. You could just mess up your own lives, but you decided to involve her too. Have you ever thought about what it means to be different for mutants?»

Beatrice finally looks up, surprised by the question. Her lips move, but no sound comes out. Vincent, noticing her hesitation, kneels to be at her height, his eyes softer than I would have imagined.

«When I was young, I met someone... someone like you. I thought I could protect her, to change the rules of a world that doesn't understand those who are different.» He pauses, his gaze becoming darker. «But I couldn't. You can't always win.»

Beatrice seems confused and at the same time touched by those words. She hesitates, then asks in a thin voice «W-What happened to her?»

Vincent's face contorts into a mask of restrained pain.  «I lost her. It doesn't matter how, it doesn't matter when. All that matters is that I wasn't enough.»

A heavy silence falls in the room...

He stands up, returning to his imposing height, and looks at me. «Pierrot, you'll protect her, won't you?»

I nod, feeling the weight of the question. I don't have an eloquent answer, but my nod seems enough.

Vincent turns towards the door, almost with his back to us. «Well. Then make sure you keep your word, like a man.»

His words hit me harder than I would have liked, but I don't answer. Vincent walks towards a corner of the room, where a pile of old books and strange objects is leaning. He stops, takes something, a small, inlaid wooden box, and returns to us.

«Beatrice…» he says, handing her the box, «This is for you.»

She looks at him surprised. Hesitantly, she takes the box with both hands. She opens it slowly, and inside there is a small crescent moon pendant. The black part is made of a shiny, dark material that draws energy from the darkness, while the white part is made of neon. Vincent observes her with an expression that mixes regret and hope.

«It's nothing magical, if that's what you're expecting…» he says with a tired smile. «But sometimes a symbol is enough to remind yourself who you are and what you're worth.»

Beatrice looks at the pendant with watery eyes.

«Wait, let me help you put it on.» Vincent takes it from her hands and puts it around her neck. She looks up at him and hugs him suddenly.

«Thank you…»

Vincent, although hesitating, returns the hug...

He lets go and turns abruptly... What's wrong with him? He seemed happy...

Suddenly, the sarcophagus in front of us begins to open, a noise of stone being dragged heavily, a curtain of smoke comes out of it, as soon as it opens completely, Dango emerges, standing tall, with a tray in his hand, singing a little entrance song.

Vincent puts a hand to his face. Beatrice, still moved, turns slowly towards Dango, she seems not to understand what is happening.

«Tea is served!» exclaims Dango, waving the tray. On top of it are three cups and a teapot that is dangerously wobbling.

«Please, get down and serve the tea.» says Vincent in an exasperated tone.

«Of course!» Dango replies with a huge smile. «Cool entrance, right?!»

Beatrice, who still has the pendant clasped in her hands, whispers incredulously «It's... It's a bit creepy..»

I, who have remained silent until now, try to hold back a laugh. «At least the tea is still on the tray.»

Dango looks at me, frowning. «Don't jinx it.»

He gets down from the sarcophagus, in the movement, the tray tilts dangerously, the teapot starts to slide «Careful!» Vincent exclaims.

Dango straightens it immediately and looks at Vincent annoyed. «Next time someone tells me to be careful, I'll break the teapot over their head!»

Beatrice, apparently recovered from the emotional shock a moment ago, bursts out laughing. It's a clear and genuine laugh, so out of place that for a moment we all stop to look at her. Even Vincent seems perplexed.

«Well, at least someone is having fun...» Vincent murmurs with a tired smile.

As Beatrice wipes away a tear, the sarcophagus closes with a heavy sound. Dango places the tray on top of the sarcophagus and serves the tea.

They both sit on the sofa in front of us, starting to sip their tea.

«So, what have you brought this time?» asks Vincent.

Dango smiles mischievously and, with a dramatic gesture, takes a folder out of his boot. «We've worked on a new text.»

I don't want to know why he put it there.

Vincent raises an eyebrow. «From your boot? Really?» He takes the manuscript, examines it with a slightly disgusted expression. «I still don't understand why you don't use a bag.» He mumbles, starting to flip through the pages.

«Where's the surprise effect then?» Dango retorts, with a tone that wants to be playful but betrays a hint of nervousness.

Vincent doesn't reply. He starts flipping through the pages slowly. He doesn't say a word, and a tense silence falls in the room.

I remain motionless, staring at him intently. Vincent isn't the type to give compliments without merit. Beatrice, next to me, has her hands clasped and looks at the floor. I can feel her tension through the way her breathing slows down. I must admit that I'm also feeling agitated. I would really like to know if I did a good job this time. As for Dango, he looks around seemingly relaxed, but I know him well enough to know that he's the most agitated of us all. He's drumming his fingers on the armrest of the sofa, an unmistakable sign of his agitation.