Chapter 3

It had been two weeks since Sakuya had taken employment in the manor, and so far, nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Amnesia was a strange thing to deal with. Her mind was not completely blank. She still had basic knowledge. She could read and write for example, she knew there were four seasons, the sky was blue and two-plus-two-equals-four, etcetera.

However, anything relating to herself was a completely empty, or at the very least locked away. Her memories seemed at the very edge of her mind, just out of reach. She felt as if she was climbing a mountain, and was about to reach the peak, if she could just find that last handhold. From where she hung, she could see nothing above.

Every time, she tried to find that handhold, she would get a headache, so eventually she had given up on trying to recall.

At the moment, Sakuya was in the manor's kitchen. The cook asked her "Would you mind taking that crate down to the basement, and while you at it, bring up a bag of flour."

"Right away sir."

The crate was fortunately empty, and therefore light. She managed to transport it with ease. As she entered the basement, she shivered, so far from the heat of the kitchen. She set the crate down and went to go find the sack, when she heard the sound of coughing.

She turned to see a short staircase leading to a dark hallway. Though she had a job to do, curiosity won out and she headed to find the source of the coughing.

It was even colder in here, so cold Sakuya could see her own breath. The hallway was lined with doors, like a prison, each door was made of metal and had a window, with bars. The sound of the coughing came from one room. Sakuya went up to that door and peered in.

Two small figures huddled together for warmth, they looked like children. The reason for the coldness was made apparent; there was another barred window on the wall, which was completely open to the outside. One of the children was coughing, while the other tried to comfort her.

She turned away for a second, and noticed Sakuya. Sakuya froze, held by those eyes. Those eyes were deeply intelligent, far more than any child's should have been. They looked at her, unblinking, until Sakuya could do nothing else but look away. She was thoroughly unnerved, and fled from that place, completely forgetting the flour.