#hereandnow

Despite his current situation, Al Haitham is relieved that the Matra seem to be doing a decent job here at Vimara Village. Policing at the Akademiya was their job, after all. It appears that the skillset is transferable to other environments.

Stretching lazily on the mattress, he peers through the steel bars into the room across him. Apart from a wooden chair in front of the bars, the room is otherwise empty- save for him and the mattress. The whole room is windowless- dark and quiet- a perfect place for a nap. Who'd have known that being arrested would be so relaxing?

Al Haitham closes his eyes, preparing for nap three. But then there's the jingling of keys- and the door to the detention room opens. The inch of sunlight bursting through the door hurts his eyes, which have gotten used to the dark.

Someone steps in. Through squinted eyes, Al Haitham could barely make out the figure walking towards the chair but recognised the sound of those light footsteps.

"I wasn't expecting you," Al Haitham sits up, stretching his back. "Why are you here, Cyno?"

"I received an urgent letter from Rashim," Cyno pulls the chair over. "He said that someone is dead and that you're the one responsible for it."

"Dilawar is dead," Al Haitham sighs, flopping back onto the mattress. "And it wasn't me."

Cyno sits, folding his arms as he stares at the prone man.

"That's what you told the Matra," Cyno retorts. He pulls out a few loose pieces of paper, flipping back and forth through them before continuing. "Yesterday afternoon, you visited Mr Dilawar in his home to discuss the Port Ormos situation. You spoke with him till late evening before leaving and resting underneath a tree for the night," Cyno looks up from the page. "Is this correct?"

"If that is supposed to be the case notes you received from the Matra, they seem to be poorly organised," Al Haitham lazily points to the mess of papers in Cyno's hands. "You shouldn't have to flip that many times to find my statement. Did they not use headers?"

"Just answer the question. Yes, or no?"

"Force of habit, sorry. I'm the Scribe, remember?"

"I asked you a question, Acting Grand Sage Al Haitham."

"Yes," Al Haitham relents. "It's as you said. I visited Dilawar, spoke with him, then left."

"Left him dead?"

"No, alive."

"That's not what the evidence shows."

"Then you're misinterpreting the evidence."

"You-"

CRASH!

The room is suddenly filled with light as the door bursts open. The sound of something- or someone tumbling through the doors quickly follows.

"Who's there?" Cyno leaps up from his chair, polearm in hand. He squints against the harsh afternoon sun pouring through the door. "Wait, that's- Why are you guys here?"

If you had a Mora for every time someone cried themself to sleep in your home, you'd have two Mora. Which isn't a lot, but it's strange that it happened twice in the same week.

Kaveh had just passed out on the couch- on the same one Al Haitham had done three days ago. To be accurate, Kaveh had teared up, hugged you, cried in your arms until he passed out, and then you laid him on the couch.

You were shocked when you saw the blonde tear up but were quick to soothe the crying man. You really didn't know what to say to someone struggling to come to terms with the fact that someone that they cared about was a murderer, so all you could do was pat his back and hold him while he aired his grief.

After replacing the wet towel with a spare blanket, you plop back onto the couch opposite the sleeping Kaveh, now nicely bundled up in the warm blanket. He's totally out cold. You suppose racing over to Vimara Village on foot after being punted off a boat would do that to a person. Based on what he told you, he probably had to hike through the entire night with no breaks to make it to the village this afternoon.

You can't even comprehend what Kaveh must be feeling right now. He looks so different from when you last saw him- cheerful and upbeat. As your eyes drift over to the blonde's sleeping form, flashes of the moment you last saw him come to mind.

Warmth. Laughter. Childish banter. Good food, but even greater company.

You can even remember where everyone sat that night. You sat next to Al Haitham, who sat next to Kaveh, who sat next to-

Cyno.

Oh right. Cyno is here. The General Mahamatra himself is here to deal with Al Haitham.

That's it, then? There's no getting out of this one. His fate is sealed. What's going to happen to Sumeru now?

What's going to happen to him?

If you had a Mora for every time someone cried themself to sleep in your home, you'd have two Mora. Which isn't a lot, but

it's strange that it happened twice in the same week.

Kaveh had just passed out on the couch- on the same one Al Haitham had done three days ago. To be accurate, Kaveh had teared up, hugged you, cried in your arms until he passed out, and then you laid him on the couch.

You were shocked when you saw the blonde tear up but were quick to soothe the crying man. You really didn't know what to say to someone struggling to come to terms with the fact that someone that they cared about was a murderer, so all you could do was pat his back and hold him while he aired his grief.

After replacing the wet towel with a spare blanket, you plop back onto the couch opposite the sleeping Kaveh, now nicely bundled up in the warm blanket. He's totally out cold. You suppose racing over to Vimara Village on foot after being punted off a boat would do that to a person. Based on what he told you, he probably had to hike through the entire night with no breaks to make it to the village this afternoon.

You can't even comprehend what Kaveh must be feeling right now. He looks so different from when you last saw him- cheerful and upbeat. As your eyes drift over to the blonde's sleeping form, flashes of the moment you last saw him come to mind.

Warmth. Laughter. Childish banter. Good food, but even greater company.

You can even remember where everyone sat that night. You sat next to Al Haitham, who sat next to Kaveh, who sat next to-

Cyno.

Oh right. Cyno is here. The General Mahamatra himself is here to deal with Al Haitham.

That's it, then? There's no getting out of this one. His fate is sealed. What's going to happen to Sumeru now?

What's going to happen to him?

"Al Haitham, what happened to Mr Dilawar?"

Blood. Everywhere.

The racket around you suddenly seems quiet compared to the sound of your pounding heart. You force yourself to turn to face him.

Al Haitham doesn't reply. Instead, he tilts his head, glancing past you into the bloody room.

"Let's go," you feel Al Haitham grab your hand a second later. When you don't move, he tugs harder. "Come on."

Instinct makes you snatch your hand away from him in a movement so fast it makes you flinch. Your eyes dart up to meet his- just to be greeted with a cold stare. A chill goes down your spine.

Has Al Haitham always looked this threatening?

Was this the last pair of eyes Mr Dilawar saw?

"I- Sorry. I-," you stammer as Al Haitham's eyes drift to his still-outreached hand. "Ah. Yes. You want to leave. Leave where?"

You watch nervously as he slowly drops his hand. Time seems to stand still.

"...To the port. I need to head back to the Akademiya."

"What's the rush?" You blurt. No. You can't go with him. What if he gets you next? "I mean...ah! You left your bag at my house! You can't leave without it."

"Hm? Then we should head back to your house first."

"No need! Just stay here. I'll, uh, go and grab your bag for you!"

"Sure."

You instantly make a beeline for your house, hoping to put as much distance as possible between you and him. Slamming your main door shut, you slump against it. The sound of your racing heart fills your ears as you try to catch your breath from running home.

Archons, just who have you been hanging around?

You don't want him to be around you- or anyone else, for that matter. But you can't let him leave the village either.

Breathing deeply, you try to calm yourself down. If he's truly the one who killed Mr Dilawar, you got to make sure the Matra bring him to justice. You know what you have to do.

Scanning your living room, you spot Al Haitham's overnight bag. You grab it in a swift moment before heading back out the door.

"Wait, wait! We can explain! She can explain!"

"Ow- Kaveh! Quit moving!"

"An answer. Now!"

"Ok, ok! Just get that polearm away from me!"

Cyno huffs, shifting the polearm away from his friend's face. He folds his arms, glaring at the blonde and the woman beside him. The two were bound back to back, and Cyno would have cracked a joke about it if not for their current situation.

Dismissing his Matra with a glance, he waits for the detention room door to shut before glaring between the two.

"You. I can understand why you're here," Cyno points accusingly at Kaveh. "But her. How could you drag her into this?"

"Wait, Cyno! He didn't drag me here," She exclaims, squirming uncomfortably against her restraints as she casts a hesitant look at Al Haitham through the bars. "I knew about Al Haitham's arrest. I decided to follow Kaveh to see him."

"You knew of his arrest?"

"Yeah- I was there. The Matra made me sign a confidentiality agreement after taking my statement."

"How many people know about this?"

"Only the Matra who are involved in the investigation. And two villagers from Vimara Village; both have been sworn to secrecy," Shrohre blurts. "One of the villagers is a witness; the other was in the vicinity when the Acting Grand Sage was arrested-"

Cyno turns to Al Haitham, who nods in confirmation. So, she was one of the two people Shohre mentioned. He hadn't had enough time to read the whole chunk of case notes yet. For what it was worth, Al Haitham was right. The case notes were a mess- it'll take a long time for him to locate her statement.

"She's not lying," Al Haitham finally speaks up. He had been silent through the entire ordeal, lounging quietly as the Matra restrained her and Kaveh when they burst into the detention room. "You would have had to meet her soon anyway. She's doing you a favour by finding you first."

"Regardless," Cyno observes Al Haitham's eyes drift towards her as her eyes dart away from his. "Her actions today are inexcusable. The Matra had announced that no one was permitted within a hundred meters of the detention room yesterday. She would have known this. Yet, she decided to trespass into an area where a key player of a serious case is being held."

She says nothing in response, hanging her head down.

"And you," Cyno redirects his attention to the eerily silent blonde. "I warned you not to come here at all."

Sighing loudly, Cyno pinches the bridge of his nose.

"I really didn't want to have to do this. But I'm placing you all under arrest."

"Hey-"

"Wait-"

"I'm not hearing any of it," Cyno walks over to the door, pounding twice onto the cool metal. The door immediately swings open, and two of the Matra Cyno had dismissed re-enter. "Separate them. Lock that one with the Acting Grand Sage, and bring her to the interrogation room."

"Cyno! You can't do this!" Kaveh protests as the Matras haul the duo up. "You're being ridiculous!"

"I'm just doing my job," Cyno doesn't look in Kaveh's direction as he walks towards the exit. "Don't make things harder for me- and for you."

The tiny lantern hanging precariously above the table flickers as Cyno searches through his notes piled onto the table. The interrogation room is so small that you can feel a soft brush of wind with every page turned- it does nothing to ease your nerves.

"So, you were the villager who turned the Acting Grand Sage in," Cyno sighs as he stops at a particular page, taking a quick moment to scan through the contents. He frowns. "Tell me what led up to that moment."

"There's nothing much to say," you blurt, watching the loose page fall out of Cyno's hands. "I'm the one who turned the Acting Grand Sage in."

"Is that so," Cyno picks up the page off the floor, smoothening it out as he gives it a scan. "I see it here. Your statement."

"Wait a second," you frown. "First off, I was never asked to give a statement. I mean, yes, the Matra had asked me what happened, and made me sign a confidentiality agreement, but I never gave a proper statement."

"Well-"

"And look," you turn the paper around, pointing. "This can barely be called a statement. Where do I even begin? The officer who supposedly took this statement's name isn't here, the writing is all off, my address isn't recorded, and my own name isn't even here!" you huff. "This statement, if I can even call it that, wasn't even confirmed by me- it wasn't read back to me. This, if it can even be used in court, would be treated as unreliable at best, and inadmissible at worst!"

"I-"

"The audacity!" you slump back into your cold, metal seat, ignoring the rude screech the chair makes as it scratches against the floor. "A case as serious as this, handled by Matra who don't know what they are doing!"

You huff out loudly in frustration. How could this be happening? The validity of evidence, the witnesses in this case will be crucial in determining Al Haitham's fate. How would the Matra be so careless about this?

Wait a minute- Matra. General Mahatra. Cyno.

He's here.

Oh no.

Cyno's eyes are wide open, with an expression you can't quite place. Perhaps somewhere between being appalled and angry.

"Well, that is why I called you here," Cyno clears his throat, carefully peeling the paper from under your palms. "I'm here to retake your statement- a proper one."

"…Yeah. Yeah, ok. Sorry."

"This won't take long," Cyno takes out a fresh sheet of paper and opens a bottle of ink. "I am Cyno, General Mahamatra of the Akademiya. May I have your name, age, and address?"

It doesn't take long for your statement to be recorded. Cyno writes fast and knows when to ask you to be more specific and when to let you keep talking.

"…This statement has been read back to me and is correct to the best of my knowledge and beliefs." Cyno reads. "If you're satisfied with your statement, please sign here."

Cyno holds out the pen to you, his other hand gesturing at the signature line.

This is it, then. Once you sign the statement, the Matra will have everything they need to formally charge Al Haitham with murder.

You would be the final nail in Al Haitham's coffin.

Your eyes can't move away from the paper.

"…Thank you for your time," Cyno clears his throat, tossing you a quizzical look. Awkwardly, he places the pen on the table, pushing it closer to you. "If you would just sign here, that will be all."

He's right. All you have to do is sign the statement. Nothing on it is false, you weren't coerced into saying anything you didn't mean, and there weren't any procedure lapses while your statement was being taken. It's not like you're doing anything wrong.

So why?

Why can't you sign this?

It's because you know he's innocent. Deep down, you know he would never do something like that.

Are you going to let an innocent man hang?

All those dreams of being able to stand up for the guiltless, the framed and downtrodden, just for you to end up like this. Just for you to sign a paper that would contribute to the death of what you know to be an innocent man.

And for what? Just for you to be able to give yourself a pat on the back and say, "I did my part as a citizen of Sumeru! I told the truth, even when I knew that it would condemn an innocent man!"

Is this what justice is? Are you doing the correct or the right thing?

"Hey… is everything alright?" Cyno frowns, leaning over the table. "I know I told Kaveh that the two of you were under arrest. But I didn't really mean it for you-"

"No. This isn't right!" You will to push the words out of your mouth. You see Cyno flinch from your outburst. "He wouldn't have, couldn't have!"

"Wha-"

"I'm not signing this," You stand, snatching the paper off the table and ripping it to shreds. "This is wrong, all of it is!"

The two of you watch the torn pieces flutter all over like snow. You see Cyno's eyes open in disbelief, and you see him open his mouth-

"I'm not going to stand around and let an innocent man get charged with murder," You look away from Cyno, afraid that your resolve would crumble the moment you meet his strict gaze. "The Acting Grand Sage doesn't have a defence lawyer, yes? So I'll do it."

You take a deep breath in. No turning back now.

"I'll investigate the case and prove that Al Haitham is innocent!"

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