"Well, well, well. Look here. I believe this is treason. Am I right, my loyal followers?"

I opened an eye groggily. My vision was blurry for a split second, before Chief Kosumi came into view, silhouetted against the faint dawn light. My mind was confused; why wasn't I in bed at home? Then, my memory fell upon my thoughts. I'd fallen asleep by Lia's cage. I bolted to my feet.

"Why, I think this treason should be punished, yes?" Chief Kosumi turned to the small crowd of gathered people behind him, who I'd only just noticed. A few murmurs of agreement rose.

"For what?" I muttered, still trying to shake the last effects of sleep off.

"For feeding, giving water to, and talking to a known criminal."

I looked around my feet. Empty plates were scattered around. The bucket of water stood still, half empty. "Known criminal? She hasn't done anything wrong."

"And standing up for said criminal." The chief gestured towards two members: my mother and father.

They grabbed me by the arm and pulled me towards the other cell right by Lia's. "Father!" I wanted to yell. But, I didn't want to ruin the calm and cool image I'd built for myself, so I walked with Mother and Father to the cell. They opened the door and threw me in. The pebbles on the floor sprayed my face. Mother locked the door and left with the rest of the tribe.

That was it; I was now a convict.

A rustle occured in the other cell. "Phelix?" A sleepy voice said. "What's happening?"

I crawled over to her cell, favoring one palm where it had been scraped while I tried to break my fall. "I'm locked up."

Lia sat up, her brown hair falling out of its updo. "Why? Where am I?"

I sighed. "In a cellblock remember?"

Lia squinted and pulled her hair out of the braid. "Oh. Yeah. Why are you in here?" Her hair poofed everywhere.

"I was caught outside your cell with the empty plates."

She nodded. "What about food now? I'm hungry."

I moved to a position where he could comfortably lean against the cave wall. "Around noon someone will bring you and me a meal and a bucket of water."

Lia opened her mouth as if to speak, but she broke down in a fit of coughing.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

She nodded, still hacking. "I'm just thirsty, that's all."

I stood shakily and shuffled towards the door. Looking out, I saw the water bucket had been taken. "There goes that idea," I whispered underneath my breath.

We sat around, talking, until when the sun peaked at its highest. At that time, one of the younger girls came around with two buckets of water swinging from her hands. Another followed her with four plates of food. The former sat the buckets within reach of the both of us. The latter slid two plates apiece under our doors. They said good-bye. Lia said a polite thank you; I said nothing.

The plates held two slabs of meat apiece. Lia made to dig in, but I told her to wait.

"This is the only meal that we'll get until tomorrow at noon. We should ration."

Lia nodded. We both ate most of our first steak, leaving a little for supper. I could clearly tell the meat was nearly raw. It tasted funny too, like meat set out for a few hours. Lia didn't seem to notice.

Our stomachs were still growling, but we drank a little water each to try to quiet them. I had no idea how long we would be in there, but hopefully not too long. I didn't think either of us could survive long on our rations.