Please comment and like this chapter - Let me know what you think!



It had been a few days. While Hyde and Arnest seemed busy trying to estimate a time to leave, Harper had noticed that Hyde was avoiding her.

She was able to walk around much better after receiving some aid from Arnest.

She couldn't figure out why Hyde always kept short conversations with her. It was a simple command, and a threat if she went against it.

She wondered if it was from that night they went to Arturo's restaurant. But her memory of that night was extremely foggy. She knew she shouldn't have let herself get as drunk as she did, but it was killing her to know what they talked about.

She only hoped that she didn't say anything embarrassing. But from the looks of it, it seemed like she said something to upset him, not that she cared.

Yanpu had been to school some more times, so she hadn't had the chance to see him as much as she would like to. She was still angered that he was enrolled in a school in the first place. But rather than lashing out at Hyde, she decided to use it as an opportunity to study Yanpu's behavior.

Anna gave her a notebook, and ever so often, Harper would write reports on changes to Yanpu's mood and how much exposure to other children he was getting. But she still felt it wasn't enough.

Part of her wanted to sneak to the school and watch him, but that would've been odd. Giada and the others would pick up on her worries and question her.

The last thing she needed was to be questioned and have Hyde be aggravated with her even more for causing any suspicion.

"Hey. You there? Hello?" Arnest snapped his fingers in front of Harper's face, and she blinked. When he finally had her attention, a wicked grin spread across his face. "You're back to reality, finally. Here."

He shoved a wooden bucket in her hands.

"What's this for?"

"Follow me."

"Why?"

"Stop asking so many darn questions! Get up, and let's go."

"Tch." Harper sucked her teeth and stood. "It's not like my questions are hard to answer."

"I think you're forgetting the position you're in right now. You don't realize who's in control."

"Oh. I realize. I think you're overestimating how much control you actually have."

"Come closer and I'll show you," Arnest spat.

"What? You'd harm me in the open so your family can see?" Harper mocked.

Arnest clenched his jaw and observed their surroundings. Sure enough, Giada and a few of his nephews and nieces were nearby, helping unload buckets of fruits and vegetables off a wagon.

If he had done something, they would've heard and rushed over.

"So. Where are we headed, since you asked so nicely?"

"Smile while you can, woman. Smile while you can." Arnest started on the path that led to the vineyard.

"I don't have a choice." Harper huffed, following closely after him. "If you had told them I wasn't associated with Hyde, they would've treated me differently."

Arnest paused and turned to face her. "Do you think that my family is that cruel?"

"I can't trust them. They're your family. And you're not exactly trustworthy."

"Wench, you can say shite about me all you want, but don't you dare insult my—"

"I'm being honest. If you're so against Westonian's—"

"Hyde is a Westonian, isn't he? But my mother treats him well."

"That's because they've been brainwashed!"

"Brainwashed?" Arnest cackled. "Oh! The irony!"

Harper rolled her eyes. She stepped ahead of him, not wanting to hear any more of his berating jeers.

However, she froze when she spotted a canine not too far ahead. It was a large dog, with black and brown fur and sleek in its build. And it was trotting toward them, fast.

Her heart began to pound against her ribcage as it got closer and closer. At first, she backed away slowly. But her fear of the dog's proximity got the best of her.

She turned on her heel and ran in the opposite direction. She bumped into Arnest harshly, knocking him off his feet, and let out the most ear-piercing scream.

The memory of the bloodhounds flooded her thoughts. All she could think about at that moment was getting away and preserving her life as the heart-wrenching vision etched at the front of her mind.

The stench of the blood and the sight of the severed bodies of her friends lying around her throbbed in her head. And suddenly, her breathing shortened.

The canine chased after her.

It was closing in.

There was a tall fence in the direction of the courtyard where Giada and the rest of Arnest's family lived. Her adrenaline was at full gage, so without realizing it, she climbed up the fence and threw herself over it.

She landed on the cobblestone ground with a loud thud sound, scraping her arm in the process.

The dog began to bark continuously, as he tried to paw at the barrier. Distracted by the terrifying noise, Harper couldn't think clearly.

Her focus was on the large dog's sharp teeth, gnashing up and down as the animal bellowed.

Again, reminded of her past experience, she crouched forward and began to hyperventilate. Her hands were completely shaky. So badly she wanted to move, but her legs wouldn't allow her to.

"Please..." Harper coughed. "Please make it stop."

Every bark sent a horrible ringing in her ears. Quickly, she covered them with her hands. "Please..." She begged.

Blood. It was taking so much of her energy to forget the pools of blood at her feet.

Arnest finally caught up to her. "Hey, boy! It's okay!" He hushed the dog, who licked his face in response. "You just wanted to play, huh?" He chuckled and brushed the dog's neck affectionately.

Then he looked at Harper who was hunched over like a turtle. "Ha! You afraid of dogs or something? It's the first I've ever seen you run THAT fast."

Arnest teased her, but when he wasn't getting a snotty reply, his demeanor changed.

"Hey." Arnest straightened his posture and leaned against the fence. "Hey!" He voiced once more, but there was still no response.

He noticed her shuddering. When he leaned forward, he noticed her lips were quivering.

"I'm not gonna check on you if that's what you're expecting," Arnest mumbled, but even that didn't affect her.

Now, he was worried.

"Sit boy," Arnest commanded the dog, and it happily obeyed.

Arnest then climbed up the fence and swiftly landed on the other side near Harper. "Are you okay?" Arnest reached for her shoulder. He felt just how tensed her body was, just from a small graze.

He helped her sit up, and that's when he saw Harper's face full of tears. And her eyes were furrowed, as if she had seen something petrifying.

She sniffled and began to sob uncontrollably.

"You're actually afraid." Arnest exhaled softly. "The dog's not gonna bother you. Its job is to protect the vineyard from thieves."

"Let me go..." Harper whimpered.

"The dog is—"

"I said LET GO!" Harper retracted her arm out of his grasp and crawled aside, distancing herself from Arnest by only an arm's length away. "Just take it away."

Arnest sighed and commanded the dog to leave. It barked once more, before skipping back down the hill and toward the vineyard. Arnest sat down beside Harper.

He wasn't sure what to do next with all her crying.

"So..." Arnest cleared his throat. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Talk?" Harper sniffled. "If you're just gonna make fun of me, do it and leave."

"I'm not teasing you." Arnest sighed.

"Yeah, right." Harper wiped her face and turned away.

"What made you so afraid of them?"

"Huh?"

"The dog. Dogs."

"That's none of your business." Harper wiped her face.

"I'm trying to be nice."

"I was kidnapped, threatened, and forced to keep quiet and you're trying to be NICE now?" Harper huffed.

"Fair," Arnest muttered quietly.

"It's not a big deal." Harper stood up. But the moment she saw the dog approach her again, she latched onto Arnest's arm tightly and held her breath.

"Seems like a pretty big deal to me." Arnest scoffed. "You gonna admit you're scared of them or what?"

Harper bit her lips anxiously while her eyes remained on the canine.

"Scared" is an understatement. You're terrified." Arnest mumbled. "He's not going to hurt you—"

"You don't know that." Harper exhaled.

"He's playful."

"I'm not taking any chances. I'd rather stay here than listen to another person tell me that this thing isn't going to bite."

Arnest noticed how paler Harper was now compared to earlier. He wrapped his fingers around her arm and commanded the dog to leave. It was an attempt to make her feel calm.

It crossed his mind to leave her frozen in place. But this skittish type of behavior wasn't normal. She was usually feisty and full of spunk, always having something to retort with.

The dog finally listened and left. And that's when Harper's tight grip loosened. She wiped the rest of her tears, and Arnest watched her carefully, just to make sure she was back to her normal state.

"Why?"

"What?" Harper glanced at him.

"Why are you so afraid of them? You already told me it's none of my business, but I have to know."

"Why do you HAVE to know? So you can run back and tell Hyde? So he can find new ways to torture me?"

"No. It's because I've never seen you act like that before. Not to mention, you grabbed onto me. You put your trust in me for a few seconds. Maybe you didn't realize."

"I didn't put any trust in you."

"Harper." He called her name to show her how serious he was.

Harper looked at her feet and crossed her arms. Her shoulders sank. "They attacked my neighborhood."

"Dogs? What harm could dogs do to an entire town?"

"Bloodhounds."

"Bloodhounds?"

"Large powerful canines with a monstrous build. No one knows where they came from, but if you roam away from the capital of Westona, it's their territory. Somehow they seeped in... and they..."

Harper massaged her temples to ease the headache. Her eyes watered again. "They killed most of my friends and my neighbors. And I couldn't stop them... I..."

Arnest could hear the hurt in her voice. Itaria had never faced anything as horrible as she described it.

Westona was a dark place full of mysteries. The land was covered in organic Puron, which had a poisonous effect on the country. The entire nation was sitting in fumes of hot poison air.

He reasoned that the bloodhounds may have come about as a result of being infected by the unnatural air to adapt to the environment. And they may have bred several times to become what they are.

In a way, he could visualize the trauma Harper faced.

"Every time I see a dog... I see the blood of my friends at my feet."

"I assume exposure therapy has never worked for you." Arnest smiled.

"It's not funny. I shouldn't have told you. There you go, mocking me. I expected it—"

"Okay, okay, you're right. I didn't mean it. I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Harper sniffled again. "It's not like you can change the past."

"No, seriously. I get it."

"Do you?" Harper scoffed.

"Westona isn't exactly the ideal place to live."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I'm saying that your experience with those bloodhounds forced you into a spot of vulnerability. You feel unsafe around dogs. But think about it." Arnest clicked his tongue.

"Bloodhounds are a Westonian creature. There aren't any here."

Harper narrowed her eyes at him. She still didn't know what he was getting to.

"Because Bloodhounds don't exist here, maybe you can feel assured that dogs aren't going to harm you."

"Are you blaming my country for something we can't control? And on top of that, you're bragging about your own!"

"If you want to think that, so be it. It's not changing the fact that you're in a much safer place filled with various dogs than you were before. Let down your guard a bit and relax."

Arnest sighed. "They won't hurt you. So enjoy it. Breathe a little."

A warm gentle breeze brushed Harper's skin while Arnest motioned for her to observe the setting.

The wind forced her hair to rub against her face, and she placed the curly strands away from her eyes.

She wanted to find something to argue against within Arnest's statement. But he was right. She couldn't find anything wrong with what he said.

Her breathing steadied the more she thought about it. As much as she hated to admit it, she did feel more secure here than she ever did living in Westona. There was so much color, warmth, and fresh air to breathe in Itaria.

Piccposto was a beautiful town. Even though it was small, it had beautiful scenery.

The community seemed intimate with each other. And it reminded her of when she was younger before the bloodhounds attacked.

Arnest took a step forward and climbed back over the fence.

"W-where are you going?" Harper muttered.

"Back to the vineyard." Arnest's lips curved into a slight smile. "You head back to the Dojo since you're not feeling that well."

There was a tender emotion that coursed through Harper at that moment. But she couldn't put a pin on it.

"Okay." She nodded in response. Arnest continued down the hill, leaving Harper stunned.

After all that, she couldn't process what just happened.

Harper made her way back to the Dojo. On the way, she noticed a muscular man placing pots full of beautiful flowers in a variety of colors in the back of a truck.

She stopped for a bit to observe the flowers, letting Arnest's words really sink in.

She felt so confused about everything. No one had told her that oxygen beyond Westona was clear and free. And the results from it were mesmerizing.

Was the President of Westona not aware of this? Perhaps the government was too caught up in the war with Krahagh to notice. And what about Dr. Bomb? Surely, he knew about this, right?

Everything about Itaria was the life she wanted to live. It was the life she wanted to give Yanpu. And she believed that he was the solution to helping Westona get to this point.

"For eyu." A bright pink flower was placed in front of her eyes. Harper blinked at it before glancing at the man. "Non charge."

He grinned at her. Harper blushed, and took the flower, before thanking him.

"Gracee."

"Gracee? Non. Graci."

"Oh. You're right. Graci."

"Si." The man nodded at her before hopping in his truck and pulling off. The fragrant smell was imprinted on her mind as she hugged the plant closer to her.

~~~

The first thing Harper did when she returned to the dojo was place the flower in a glass of water so it wouldn't die. The more she eyed it, the more she became interested in planting more flowers.

Starting a garden would be nice. It was something she had never thought of before. She didn't think it was a possibility in her lifetime until she was brought here.

"You've been staring at that plant for hours now."

Harper looked to her right and flinched. Hyde was sitting next to her casually. She hadn't heard him walking in, let alone hearing him sit next to her.

Hyde pulled the glass closer to him and furrowed his eyebrows at it. "What's so interesting about it?"

"It's pretty," Harper mumbled.

"This basic flower?" Hyde scoffed. "You could've at least picked a better color."

"Basic or not. I still think it's very pretty." Harper frowned. "There's nothing wrong with its color."

"You're right. There's something wrong with your eyes. You have bad taste."

"Okay. Whatever." Harper grumbled and rolled her eyes at him.

"Where's Arnest?"

"At the vineyard."

"Why aren't you with him?"

"I don't know." Harper hesitated at first. She decided not to tell him the actual reason she came back. She didn't want to be mocked for having her legitimate fear.

"You don't know?" Hyde scoffed. "Don't give me that. I was told you were there with him."

"He told me to come back."

"Yeah, okay." Hyde snickered. "If I find Arnest lying in a ditch somewhere, I will kill—"

"I'm back!" Arnest burst through the doors with plastic bags in his hands.

"Speak of the devil," Hyde mumbled.

"I went out to buy some groceries like you asked me to. Oh. And don't tell Mama or Arturo. But I also grabbed us a bite to eat."

Arnest placed one of the bags on the small coffee table in front of Hyde. He rummaged through it and opened the box inside.

There were 6 large pieces of flat bread stuffed with cheese and half of them were coated in a garlic butter sauce.

Arnest grabbed some of the toss-away plates and set one out for all three of them. Then he served everyone's share. "Try it."

Arnest sat across from them happily and began to eat, paying no mind to how Hyde was eyeing him.

"Is there something I'm supposed to be aware of?" Hyde sneered.

"Huh?"

"What happened between you two?" Hyde looked back and forth between them. "Since when did you start sharing your food with her?"

Harper blinked in surprise. He was right. Up until now, she always had to ask for food.

"She's not feeling well. See how pale she looks? I don't wanna walk with someone who looks like a ghost." Arnest snorted.

Hyde glanced at Harper again. To him, she looked the same. Rather than delving further into his suspicions, he changed the subject.

"Any word from Harald?"

"There's some issues at the Border. That's all I heard from him."

"Another issue? Or the same one?"

"I'm... not too sure." Arnest took a big bite out of his piece of bread.

"Not too sure? You didn't even try to find out? I'm on a time limit here!" Hyde raised his voice and slammed his fist on the table. Both Arnest and Harper flinched.

Hyde gritted his teeth. "When you're done stuffing your stomach, go back to the Postal Home and fax another message. I don't wanna see you until you get the full story. Si?"

Arnest nodded.

Hyde flicked his plate aside and stood before sauntering into the bedroom.

~~~

Chapter 25