Jailbreak

She tilted her head to show her confusion, “Of course it is. Did you expect to see anyone else that looks like me? I believe it was you who said that I was one of a kind, you know. Oh! Look at this!”

Hana stepped back a step into the hall and spread her arms wide, “See? See? It looks so good!” It took him a second to figure out that she was wearing a new set of clothes, and they were certainly impressive. Gone were the plain but practical set of drab travelling clothes, for they had been replaced with a flattering forest green silk dress that was trimmed in gold. The shimmering embroidery clung to her curves in a way reminiscent of vines winding their way up the length of a statue, while a belt of soft leather cinched just above her hips. The ensemble opened slightly around the chest, in a way that some might say was lurid, but others might argue as tasteful. As she spun about in glee, he did make a note that there was an odd bulge in the back of the dress, which he soon realized to be her tail. It made sense that most human dresses wouldn’t have a spot for tails, which made him briefly wonder just how comfortable she was.

These thoughts quickly gave way to a storm of frothing emotions: frustration at seeing her walking about so nonchalantly, irritation at her blissful indifference, worry over what may have happened during their separation and relief at her return all collided so terribly that the mere act of thinking brought forth waves of nausea. She seemed to catch on that something was wrong, because she stopped her self-admiration to look more closely at him,

“Lucius? Is something the matter? You seem a bit – ah.”

Her sentence cut short as Lucius wrapped her up in a tight embrace, “Do you have…any idea how worried I’ve been?” The words felt thick on his tongue as he tried to force them out, falling from his mouth like drops of molten lead,

“I thought…I thought that something terrible was happening to you! I had no idea where you went, only that someone awful had gotten their hands on you! And what do I find!? You, wandering about like nothing at all! And you have a new dress!”

“Were you…hoping that something bad was happening to me?” She had every right to sound hurt, maybe even a little indignant. But that wasn’t what Lucius truly felt, though he found it difficult to put his feelings into sensible words.

“No! No, of course not. You have no idea how overjoyed I am to see you unharmed.” He took a deep, shaky breath, “I was prepared for the worst, and now I don’t need to be. I’m just…processing, I guess. Sorry if I sound mad at you. This whole thing is my fault really, I shouldn’t have yelled at you back there.”

Hana smiled gently, pressing her forehead into the crook of his arm, “It is alright. I should offer an apology as well. I allowed my passions to get the better of me, and I created a terrible situation for you. I will strive to be more mindful in the future.”

For a brief time, the pair stood as they were, absorbed in the presence of the other and ignorant of the outside world. As if an afterthought, Hana’s muffled voice reached his ears, “By the way, what is this that you are doing?”

Surprised, he pulled back a bit, “Oh, uh, it’s called a hug. Do you…not like it?” She shook her head, which she promptly shoved back against his shoulder, “I think I like it very much. You should do this more often.” Breathing deep, she sighed contently, “Ahhh…I’ll have to smell only you for at least a whole day. But that’s okay…I don’t mind such a thing…”

Lucius’ face began to burn and he coughed loudly, suddenly wanting to look anywhere but Hana’s blissful expression. It was then that he remembered exactly where he was, and what he still needed to do. Summoning all his willpower, he grabbed Hana’s shoulders and pushed them apart, though her quiet whine of displeasure certainly made their separation even more difficult. He steeled his heart and persevered,

“Hana, we can’t leave just yet. Someone went to a lot of trouble to make sure I could come and get you, and I can’t go back until I fulfill their request. But I have no idea what to look for, so could you help me?”

At the prospect of being helpful, Hana’s ears perked up, “Of course! But, what can I do? Are you looking for anything in particular? I didn’t get a good look at much besides of the room where they put me…”

“Now that you mention it…how did you get out? I figured you would’ve been…you know…a bit more captive? I was kinda expecting to have to break you out or something.”

She looked particularly proud when she responded, though it wasn’t clear if she picked up on the inadvertent disappointment in his voice, “Oh, that’s easy! I woke up being carried through that hallway up there, but then someone put me in a dark room with almost nothing in it. I couldn’t move my wrists, and my head was throbbing, but I kept calm! When I didn’t hear anyone anymore, I burned away the stuff on my hands and opened the door! I walked around for a bit, until I heard you downstairs! You came at just the right time too, I was getting really bored!”

Lucius was exhausted by her unyielding positivity and chided himself on feeling any kind of put out by her self-rescue, “Of course she’s fine. The woman can conjure clothes from nothing and summon fireballs on a whim, Hana hardly needs a rescuer. Just be glad she’s unharmed and move on, would you?”

He shrugged and got back on topic, “The people who helped me get here want to bring Salerius down, so any evidence we can use to defame or disgrace him would be ideal.” She scrunched up her face as she tried to think of something; Lucius also noticed with a slight grin that the tip of her tail seemed to twirl on its own while she was concentrating.

She mumbled aloud as she tried to think, “Hmmmm…I don’t really know what you mean by that…Oh, wait, I have something for you! Quick, shut your eyes!”

“Do we really have time for this? People could be back any minute!”

“So then do what I say and stop stalling!”

Unable to argue with her logic, he shut his eyes with only a hint of anticipation. He heard her briefly walk away, followed by something heavy clinking around as she walked quickly back to him. He was starting to come up with some ideas when he felt her grab his arms and pull them up, only to have something thrust into his now open palms.

“Ta-da! Go ahead and open your eyes!”

Doing as he was told, his mind quickly turned from curiosity to astonishment as he beheld the ornate rapier that she had placed into his hands. The scabbard was gleaming white and embossed with engravings of a dragon in flight, while a hilt coated in gold filigree enticed him to draw the weapon properly. When he gave in to the pressure, he brought forth a blade of patterned steel that was blunted towards the base and tapered to a vicious point. He recognized the weapon immediately, as it was the same that had left a lasting mark on his face not but a few hours ago.

“This is…Salerius’ weapon! How did you get it!?”

She puffed out her chest with pride, “Easy! When I was waking up, I heard him in another room, he’s really loud, saying something about you and getting his sword! So, I figured he meant to give it to you! Once the coast was clear, I walked into his room and picked it up off the wall. And here you are!”

Lucius was so flabbergasted that he didn’t quite have the heart to tell her what Salerius’ was probably saying, though he was certainly impressed by her boldness. He smiled at her, “I can’t believe you’d pull something like this off. Didn’t anybody teach you that stealing is wrong?”

She giggled, “Nope! But if you don’t want it, go ahead and put it back. Hey, by the way…what’s that on your face?” Lucius quickly turned aside, pretending to inspect the sword, “Nothing important, I’ll tell you later. For now…” Something clicked in his mind, “Aha! I think I have it! Follow me, quick!”

He took off up the stairs and made it halfway before Hana realized what he was up to and gave chase, calling up after him, “What is it? What are you looking for?”

“Salerius’ bedroom! You remember where it is?” A note of confusion colored her response, “Of course, third room in the left area. Why? Your eyes say that this man is dangerous and you do not wish to be anywhere near him.”

“Glad my eyes are so talkative, but there’s a method to my madness.”

Upon reaching the top of the stairs, he darted across the open floor, abandoning the pretense of stealth. Speed was going to decide the outcome of the evening. As he dashed about, he explained his reasoning,

“Think about it, does Salerius seem the kind of guy to be all deep and secretive to you?”

“I am not sure…there has been little time to judge his character.”

“Hana! The guy literally kidnapped you!”

“Well, it was not him exactly.”

Lucius rolled his eyes and kept going, “Look, all I’m saying is that this guy is anything but subtle. Big house, big colors, big attitude, the guy craves attention. But he’s also cocky as the hells, and thinks that nothing bad can ever happen to a person like him. I bet you that he’s the kind of guy to have no subtlety in anything. As in…here we go.”

Pushing open the door that Hana had indicated, Lucius stepped into a lavish bedroom that did little to improve his views on Salerius. Every inch of available wall space was covered in murals and paintings, most of which appeared to contain himself in some way. A large bed draped in silken curtains took up a sizeable portion of the interior, while other pieces of furniture likely held a multitude of clothes and other adornments. A balcony allowed for a sweeping view over the nearby neighborhood, a perfect vantage for a vain man to stare down at those he viewed as inferior. Which Lucius suspected was most people.

“Quick, open up those drawers! I’ll start with the bed.” He dashed over and began tearing open the fine sheets and curtains, much to Hana’s continued bewilderment,

“What are you doing? Please, Lucius! Tell me what you need me to do!”

“Salerius is a classic narcissist. I bet he’s kept a detailed record of all the nasty stuff that he’s done somewhere around here. It’ll probably be some kind of book, that’s what we need to find.”

“Nar -si…huh?”

“Narcissist. Someone who loves themselves more than anyone else.”

“Oh, okay! I don’t really get it, but this feels like fun!” Without another word, she set to the task assigned her with gusto, grabbing large fistfuls of clothes and tossing them into the air like so many streamers. Though this was supposed to be a high-tension moment, Lucius felt all his nerves vanish at the sight of her continued optimism and flexible attitude. But as the minutes ticked by and more of the room had become a designated disaster area, his good feeling was starting to slip. If he failed to convert this gamble, he really didn’t have a backup plan.

There was a sudden yelp of surprise from the other side of the room, “Ah! Lucius…I think I broke it…” He turned to see Hana kneeling by one of the dressers and waist deep in a pile of brightly colored fabric. She held part of the drawer in her hands, which Lucius thought looked like its underside. Now suspicious, he waded through the mess to look over her shoulder, only then realizing what she had found,

“Well damn, I should’ve given him more credit than I did. Seems this drawer had a false bottom. Great find, Hana! This is exactly the kind of thing I was hoping to find!”

She beamed at the praise, her tail echoing the sentiment by rapping out a happy beat on the carpeted floor. Glancing inside, he noticed two objects that drew his interest: a brass key and a leatherbound journal.

“Bingo.”

As he picked up the items in question, Hana suddenly stiffened and her ears rotated towards the door,

“Lucius! Someone’s coming! I’m so sorry, I got distracted and I didn’t hear them!”

It was too late for regrets. In the moment after Hana had finished her statement, the door crashed inwards and revealed a very flustered Salerius, flanked by two of his personal guard. For a heartbeat, the two groups stared at each other with equal incredulity. Salerius’ eyes flicked to the book in Lucius’ hands and narrowed with anger,

“Get them!”

“That’s our cue!” Lucius grabbed a handful of cloth in his free hand and tossed them forward, watching in satisfaction as the long strands of fabric wrapped around the intruders’ eyes and legs. This granted him the crucial seconds he needed to work out an escape plan, which came to him in either a flash of brilliance, desperation or a healthy mix of both. Reaching out he seized Hana by the wrist and pulled,

“Come on! To the balcony!”

She followed without resisting, kicking up another storm of cloth that served to further hamper their pursuers. Picking up a wad of clothes as she dashed across the room, she tossed a pair of undergarments straight into Salerius’ face, at which she barked out a laugh of pure delight.

“Ahaaha! This is fun!”

Lucius didn’t quite see the fun in all this, but he made sure to burn the image of Salerius stumbling under an onslaught of underwear into his mind for posterity. Barreling forward, he lowered his shoulder and forced open the flimsy balcony doors, bursting into the cool night air. The balcony itself was fairly wide and curved in a half-moon shape, decorated with plants and a sitting area with a table and chair. This was all well and good, but Lucius didn’t have time to stop and admire the view. He pointed forward,

“Get ready! We’re jumping!”

“What!? Are you crazy?!”

“Yep! Here we go!” “Noooo!!! I just got a new dreeeeeesssssss!”

Hana lamented the full way down as they both vaulted over the low railing and plummeted into open space. But Lucius had no intention of dashing either of them against the stony ground. He had recalled seeing a large pond that was directly beneath the balcony, which he hoped to use to break their fall. Of course, he wasn’t sure how deep it was, but this seemed to be a night for taking risks and it was better than the alternative. The moment before they hit the water, he tossed the stolen journal off to the side to prevent it from being damaged.

They hit the pond with a tremendous splash, and Lucius felt his feet hit the bottom slightly harder than he would’ve liked. It was only a drop of less than twenty feet, but it was still enough to send a jolt of pain up from his ankles. He had managed to hold onto Hana the entire time and squeezed it to reassure himself that she was still there.

“Hana? You good?”

A sorrowful moan came from his left, “My dress…it was so shiny…is it ruined??”

“Yup, she’s okay. That’s a relief.” He chuckled, “Don’t worry, we can dry it off later. But first we need to get out of here before that guy sends more people after us.” She murmured an acknowledgement, but still grumbled about the state of her dress and the frustration of having wet fur. Turning about to help her from the pond, his eyes lingered over how the silk clung tightly to the curvature of her body, accentuating an already flattering physique. He was especially fascinated with how she swung her hips in an attempt to get rid of the excess water from her tail.

She caught him staring and put an indignant hand on her hip, “You can stare more later! Shouldn’t we be getting away right now?”

“Yes, yes, you’re right! Sorry!” Lucius guided them towards the loose gate where he had entered, pausing only briefly to snatch up the book that he had tossed aside.

He kicked the gate open, though he really didn’t need to, dashing out into the quiet streets beyond. In the distance, a faint alarm bell sounded, which told him that the city guard was likely on their way to investigate the disturbance. They needed to disappear, and fast.

“Let’s go that way, we need to be away from here before anyone else comes!” Hana shook her head to toss off as much excess water as possible, though many droplets remained, framing her face in shimmering dew. The smile that she bore seemed to only add to the glimmer of starlight; it was hard to imagine that just a few hours ago she had been kidnapped. He was so caught up in admiration that he stopped in his tracks, which any good adventurer would know is a foolish mistake to make when danger was still present.

Something heavy slammed into his upper left shoulder, throwing him onto his knees. Deep, burning pain lanced through him from the point of impact and tears clouded his vision. Grunting from the shocking development, Lucius tried to move the affected arm, but this only sent a sharper pain coursing through him. Hana dropped to her knees beside him, her eyes wide with fear,

“Lucius! Lucius! Are you alright? Can you speak? Can you stand?”

He grunted an affirmative through clenched teeth, forcing himself to twist his neck and inspect what had just hit him. A long, black shafted arrow emerged from his shoulder blade, its tip buried deep into his flesh. Staring at it in disbelief, he withheld the strong urge to poke it as a way of telling himself that it was real.

Hana pulled at his arm, the good one, “We have to go! I hear more of them coming! Please, please be okay…”

“Yeah…I can move.” Lucius heaved himself to his feet, allowing Hana to aid him, “They got my arm, not my legs. We can look at it once we’re somewhere safe.”

“Where would that be?”

“No idea, I didn’t think that far ahead. First things first, let’s vanish. We’ll handle the rest when it comes.”

As they dashed into the darkness, Lucius chanced a look back over his shoulder. From atop the balcony, he swore that he saw the fading figure of Salerius standing at the banister’s edge, a bow held firmly in his grasp.