Episode II
A Place for Every Child
What is your problem, lady?
Lost kids of all sorts probably get sent there while the adults sort out who they are. This is normal. “Do you know anyone there…?”
Joy, other kids… “Sounds… fun. When do we leave?”
definitely couldn’t eat his fair share of the meal. He was a carnivore only here for the syrup, the bread itself just wouldn’t do it for him.
silent.
anything.”
No, she told herself. It was time to endure whatever nonsense was in this place.
were the video games over in the corner there… though nobody was playing them.
Well, she didn’t try to eat me, she just thinks I’m worthless. Amaris smirked. I’ll show her. I’ll be early!
instant she sees you.”
I’ll get back to you, I promise.
Uh-oh! the indicator read.
I’ll have to fix that, get some green in here.
Uh-oh!
Prove her wrong. Be better. Be faster!
What…?
not to smile—maybe whatever they had was contagious.
orientation!”
I swear, if this involves me running through some kind of death gauntlet…
That’s terribly boring, but not a death gauntlet. …Do we never get to use the game consoles or the classroom?
knew she’d heard her. But, apparently, she just wasn’t allowed to ask questions.
So I just… sit here for an hour. She glanced around the dining room, finding nothing of interest to examine aside from the children themselves, and at the moment she decided examining them wasn’t good for her mental health. She spent some time studying the grains in the table, becoming lost in potential equations that could be used to describe the whirls and lines dancing along with the wood.
This simply won’t do. Taking a deep breath, she turned to the person closest to her—a redheaded girl slightly older than she was. “Hello! I’m Amaris!”
What… am I doing?
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wrong. Everything about this was wrong.
This is ridiculous, she thought, trying to make light of the situation. She didn’t find her observation funny.
was the right room. Just without any of her things.
Snake jump!”
jump.”
one channel. To get nothing at all...
Of course. They’re just for show, for the people on the outside to see. She grimaced. Or for kids to be lured in. For… what, though?
also perfectly in line with the others. She needed to look good and obedient for what she was about to do.
If?”
If.” She spoke the word with power, making Amaris shrink back into her chair. “Until then, all such things are effectively contraband. Speaking of that…” She glanced at the shirt visible through the open zipper on Amaris’ jacket. “What is the symbol on that shirt?”
you.”
It’s like she’s certain I won’t leave…
afterward. What was the plan? Grab her stuff and run off into the woods? Calling Officer Dawson wouldn’t do anything, he’d just think she was crazy. No, she needed a better idea, she—
That can’t be right, we just had breakfast… She glanced at the clock. It said four o’clock. What!? I can’t have been in here that long!
feels like nothing.” She found herself clenching her fists as she walked back to her room, slamming the door behind her.
Very tired. But for the life of her, she couldn’t remember much more than the vaguest details. Had she really spent the entire day coming up with… a completely terrible and only half-thought-out plan? She was better than this.
plink sound on the glass.
something out. We’ll get our stuff back and… something.” She frowned. “All we have to do is… defy Mrs. Ibis.”
defied something an adult said. Complain, whine, perhaps even scream, sure. But adults tended to know better and if they told her to do something it was probably for a good reason. What she was thinking of doing was essentially sneaking into the office, stealing things that Mrs. Ibis thought were hers, and making a break for it.
angry…
And I’ll have a plan of where to go next!”
something. Got it?”
What a pleasant dream.
Woah. Freaky.
Oh, it’s just Pitch. Nothing to be concerned about…
Pitch.
I didn’t put new batteries in the lamp.
pulled.
Ring…
Ring…
Ring…
Click. “Egh… who is this? How did you get my number…?” Officer Dawson’s voice came from the other end.
rage.
We are getting our stuff back.”
easily come up with it before. But she’d needed to leave this accursed place to do it.
hers, now.
rest. Mrs. Ibis was the only unknown, and Amaris would know about her soon enough.
motion. None came. Even the sound of the rain outside began to die away as the storm abated.
extra sure to clean them. They turned without a hint of squeaking.
Guess she just couldn’t resist…
Quickly.
Yeah, it had to be quick. Or else the police forget everything.
quickly.
I’m not the only one… She’s probably got this down to a science by now.
confront her if we went down there.”
Dark eyes that are not mine,
You look upon this child so fine,
O you, great treacherous curse,
Empower my spell through this verse.”
witch at the top of its lungs, Mrs. Ibis herself appeared as she normally did, with her smooth white clothing and aging body.
“Broken relic from beyond the veil,
Bring an end to the girl’s tale,
Give the curse inside to me,
And truly happy thou shall be.”
just Amaris. Probably trying to condition her like the others.
something.
special bliss.”
put in there!?”
Oh. Amaris tried to climb out faster, but she was already scrambling as fast as she could.
real panic, complete with tears, shouts, shoving, and terror. In other words, expressions all far removed from silent, dead smiles.
Something about that girl…
May your life be interesting. “We should just… set out, and find things out on our own. I don’t want to be traceable if that witch ever gets her memory back.”