Thomas awoke the next day, into a morning where the sunbeams shone through the window, and dust motes danced merrily through an empty cell. There was no Archibald, no Egil, no daggered gnome, no turnkey at the bars, and no other nameless prisoners crowding up the cell. Thomas woke up and the tension was gone from his shoulders, his thoughts and mind were curiously empty, no voice within to hide the fear underneath.
There were three doors in the walls of his cells, lacquered wood groaned, as if it was breathing, alive. Thomas opened the door in the middle and stepped through, into another cell, it had the same three doors.
He opened the door to his right, it looked into a forest road, dirt bordered by the wilds of Ferpost. Thomas left that door open, and looked into the door on his left. It looked the newest and shiniest, its wood with the slightest tinge of green and the lacquer still wet and sharp smelling. Thomas opened it, and saw a skeleton in the dark dress of a woman, it still had hair, long and black, that curled into luxurious ringlets, the skeleton sat still at a moonlit table, the kind you might find in a ballroom, it turned its head to look at him, and raised a glass of wine, it flowed through her ribs as she drank, and her dress was stained red, right over her heart.
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Thomas blinked, and the table was candlelit, and there was his youngest sister, the same dress but white, the same hair but shorter, as to suit a smaller girl. Daphne laughed.
"I'm very happy in Hardhome" she smiled.
Thomas blinked again, and there was Lord Kesten, Duke Kesten, Thomas' father stood at the edge of the door, blocking everything behind him, he loomed, tall and broad, and then opened his mouth to speak, Thomas closed the door. The door rattled and banged, it rattled and banged, it breathed, angrily, and with a muffled furious yell, a crack appeared onto it, and then more, it broke into a hundred pieces. The pieces stopped shaking, and merely observed him sullenly.
The Third door spoke, it was closed again.
"Thomas, we need to talk."