Cutie and the Crazed

~{-I 10 I-}~

Clement walked out of the alcove, opting not to needlessly wake Chrissy. Whatever gut feeling he had had brought him there, to her, for a reason, though he could only guess why. It was almost comforting to see her there, amid the plants, finally seeming human. He would've felt guilty awakening her.

As he followed the path back to the front of the garden, Clement thought back to the previous few days. He remembered, in flashes, how Chrissy had assisted him during his illness, how she had almost seemed to care for him. Though she certainly seemed to hallucinate from time to time, there was some part of her that had stayed in contact with reality over the time she had been stuck in the weary old house. There was some rational being inside her - or at least a rational motive guiding her to helping him.

Clement paused in the doorway to the library - she had never truly revealed her motive for assistance. For welcoming him into the house, feeding and clothing him, or supporting him through his fever. Though, if she wanted him dead, she certainly wouldn't have healed him through his sickness. And something seemed to haunt Chrissy, though she hadn't explained it. Whatever had frightened her enough to arm a stranger with a dagger for self-protection.

Clement moved forward to the library, coming to the conclusion that wondering alone wouldn't answer his queries. Since Chrissy had been so reluctant to share information, he found a new potential source: the library. Surely, somewhere in those endless bookshelves he would find an explanation for Chrissy's actions! And perhaps then he could even find an explanation for Chrissy herself - when she arrived and what had trapped her in this complex maze.

Clement approached the guidebook, cautious, yet for the first time fearless enough to venture forth and begin his research. A long day of reading awaited him.

Many hours later, as Clement finished skimming the last book on the shelf describing the geography of the area, he found himself no more enlightened than before on the mystery of his entrapment. Perhaps he would simply have to spend more time with Chrissy and somehow manipulate her into revealing something helpful, or at least a useful keyword to use in the library. At this point, knowing that there was no clear exit to leave the house, Clement had nothing left to lose.

As he walked back to his room, passing through the brightly colored doorways without hesitation, he realized the odd level of familiarity with the house that he had so soon obtained. Laying down on his bed and beginning to drift off to sleep, Clement's last conscious thought was the hope that he would not stay in this house long enough to turn into Chrissy.

He was in the parlor, then, viewing the room through a shifting sheet of water. A familiar girl watched him, her soft brown eyes observing silently. Clement reached forward, recognizing at once the girl with the copper curls who he had seen in a dream before, the girl who had disappeared in the library the night before. The tips of his fingers passed through the water, and he pulled the rest of his body through. As he approached the table, moving through molasses, she stood and curtseyed, imitating the manners he had long since forgotten.

"And so we meet again," she said, smiling.

He reached her and smiled back, then frowned. "Why are you here?" he asked. "What brought you here?"

She pondered the question. "There are some things I can answer, but that is not one of them." After a pause, she continued. "Perhaps I can elaborate. There is a curse in place that necessitates my silence. But explaining the complete nature of this curse, you see, would eliminate the possibility of breaking it."

And at last, in this dream that he hoped was more than just a dream, Clement finally understood a key component of the mansion and its trapping capabilities. It was no ordinary prison - there was some kind of magic involved, an enchantment affecting the mansion and perhaps everybody in it.

"How can I save you?" he cried. "How can I save myself!"

At that, she shook her head sadly. "Nothing can be said, nothing can be done. The curse cannot be absolved through simply the power of one."

Clement made a mental note, then to remember this conversation whenever this dream broke. To remember everything the girl told him and use it to his advantage. To find some solution, no matter how final her words seemed.

"I can give you this, at least," the girl told him, eyes lighting up. "You are not alone in your imprisonment, and you will never feel trapped so long as you can find a door. There is one good thing about this curse and the mansion that became of it. Each door you follow leads you to a different world, any world you've dreamed of. An endless library, a garden that defies mortal rules, anything you desire. You shall never tire of options, nor exhaust the limits of space. The mansion expands as it must, and you can follow any path you wish..."

At that, Clement found a kernel of adventure in his predicament - the opportunity to see magic up close, to test its capabilities and create any environment he wanted to! With a joyous grin, he began to imagine the potentials - building his perfect reading room, seeing an ocean for the first time, perhaps even creating mountains...

"...so long as you follow house rules, that is," the girl completed.

House rules. Who created house rules? The homeowner, the host... Clement scanned his brain, trying to remember something very important. Chrissy. As her masked face flashed before his eyes, he lost his focus on the dream, dropping back into a whirlpool of thoughts and fragmented memories, this time keeping hold of one thing - his memories of the girl with the copper hair, who had, after days of unfortunate turns of fate, finally taught him something wonderful.