The Truth About The Many Worlds Of Printed Pages

°•○•°Fifteen°•○•°

They made the three people present in the office jump as they appeared suddenly, just about managing to land on their feet on the white wooden floor, scattering grains of sand all around them.

"You've been gone for almost forty-two hours," Albert announced matter-of-factly while Siena forced herself to stop shedding the tears she didn't want anyone to see.

She took a deep, tremulous breath and peeled her face from James' uniform-- its fabric held the faintest scent of the Little Prince's hair-- and looked around the room, red-rimmed eyes shining wetly.

"Alicia?" she muttered and didn't remove her arms from James' waist until the old woman appeared at her elbow.

"You stayed much longer than we had thought, I'm so glad I packed the food and water in your bag," Alicia said, finishing her sentence in a whisper, making Siena understand that it probably didn't comply with the rules of not taking anything strictly necessary into the book worlds. 

The old woman wrapped Siena in an embrace while James took her hand in his automatically. He wasn't going to let anyone take her away from him, not yet, not after what they had just been through. They needed time to understand and talk about it alone first.

Siena shook her head, attempting to smile at the woman, lacing her fingers through James' almost unconsciously in response to his touch. "I only opened the bag to put the book and the revolver in it, I didn't see any food. But we didn't need it, it didn't really feel so long. I'm just a little thirsty now," she said in a voice only meant for Alicia and James to hear, her throat feeling parched when she realised how long she had had nothing to drink or eat.

Albert was in front of them with two glasses of water even as she stopped talking, and they drained them before Christopher spoke. "Come, sit down, please, you must be tired, let us talk, we need to record everything. Alicia, please, find George and send him to me..."

James stepped closer to Siena and wrapped his arm around her waist when he noticed her dabbing at the new tears appearing in her eyes with her sleeve, before he spoke in a tone not leaving space for argument. "Call Jake, Alicia, please, we are going home now, we need to rest. We will come back tomorrow morning and tell you everything. We will also plan our new quest. This is the sixth day since we have arrived if I'm not wrong, which leaves us only a little more than a week before we must return to our lives. Seeing that the amount of time we spend within the books is unpredictable, the sooner we travel into the other world, the better."

Christopher looked disappointed, but he simply nodded, seeing James' unshakeable resolve to leave. "Are you all right?" He spoke to Siena, noticing only now how overwhelmed she looked, even as Alicia, who had vanished in search of the driver, returned.

Siena simply nodded in Christopher's direction in reply before she said goodbye to him and Albert and let James tug her out of the room in Alicia's wake.

"Rest well and eat something," Alicia said, hugging them both by the front door. "I'll see you tomorrow," she added before she opened the door and ushered them outside towards the dark car, waiting for them at the end of the path leading through the jungle-like garden.

Jake touched his hat in a silent greeting as he opened the door for Siena, then slid back into his seat while James followed her in through the same door. She gathered the skirts of her dress and made space for him next to her, leaning into him thankfully, feeling incredibly tired, when he wrapped his arm over her shoulders.

James caught Jake's questioning look in the rearview mirror and replied, "We are all right, and we will be better tomorrow. Just take us home, Jake, please."

Jake nodded, and no one spoke while he drove the car through the city's late morning traffic towards the flat.

"Thank you, Jake. Will you pick us up tomorrow morning, at eleven, please?" James asked before he exited the vehicle, helping Siena, who struggled with her voluminous dress within the confines of the backseat of the car.