Incontri il Bandito Oltre il Muro

Vittoria, still distraught over these previous turn of events, continued to run through the streets of Naples; a sobbing wreck she was. "…I can't understand…I just can't! Why doesn't Gunha want to…"

As Clarissa expected, Vittoria had climbed up to the roof of the church building, sitting on the edge looking over the northern part of Naples. "Oi, Vittoria Giovanna. What's troubling you?"

Vivian didn't even bother to turn around, just letting out a nonchalant, "Oh, nothing. Nothing at all." Of course, she was lying straight to her face here. She ground her teeth, before basically blurting out, "…I can't understand it. Why doesn't Gunha wanna—"She twitched for a second, before—

Clarissa pressed her pointer finger to Vittoria's lip; shocking Vittoria oh-so-suddenly. Clarissa pointed to the prison in Naples, remarking, "…Look over there. That's where your next assignment lies. It should help you take your mind off this silly romance business. Inside that building is a man known as Polpo. He's the one who gives me orders; and he'll decide whether or not you'll join."

Vittoria stuttered, "Wait, that's our jail, right?"

"Yeah, it is our jail. Polpo's inside; he's serving a sentence of fifteen years; he gives me orders from inside the building—all in all he's one of the most high-ranking members of Passione."

Vittoria was now thoroughly confused. "But why?"

Clarissa continued, "Of course, he can get out of there whenever he wishes. Heck, he can ever be declared innocent in the first place if he wanted. But, he doesn't do that; because he has no need to leave the building." Clarissa grabbed Vittoria's shoulders and whispered into Vittoria's ear, "Vittoria Giovanna. You have to get through Polpo's interview. Like when you apply for a job, everything has to be verified. The type of interview you'll be doing will depend on his mood…but NEVER let him know your details…"

Vittoria nodded before beginning to walk off, towards the prison. However, she turned around, questioning, "Oh, that's right! I forgot to ask, but spirit power…you mentioned it a few times before. Why do you have spiritual powers? Are there other members of Passione who have it as well?"

Clarissa merely smirked and replied, "You'll know the answer when you go in there. Of course, that's if you pass in the first place…"

"Please put your watch, suitcase, and other objects in your pockets in this box, then head over there to go through the body check." Approaching the prison guards, Vittoria sighed. This was certainly unexpected. Quickly, she put all of her items into the tray which rested on the conveyer belt.

The guards continued, "Polpo's cell is N-28, just through that door. Just walk along the corridor and you'll reach it. The cell is made of reinforced glass, but you can talk through it. Even though you don't have to worry about the glass breaking, don't touch it! The visiting time is 15 minutes. Please don't give or take anything. By the way, once you enter the gate, it'll close by itself. If there's anything you need, please call us."

Vittoria questioned, "Don't I have to go to a waiting room? I can just see him in his cell?"

The guard's eyes sharpened. "You've never seen him before, have you?"

Walking through the corridors, Vittoria finally reached Polpo's cell. It seemed kinda cozy; with a desk, bed, and 'shitter'—everything needed for a basic lifestyle. She noticed a large hand twitching near the bed, until she heard, "Is your left hand injured?" Suddenly, Vittoria hopped back in surprise as an enormous, grotesque figure slowly rose up—there was no doubt that this was Polpo.

"…Eek!" Vittoria jumped back in fright. Not only was he grotesque, the man known as Polpo smelt horrible as well.

"Let me ask again, my lovely. Is your left hand injured? Your right fingers have red marks on them, as if they've been holding something. Looks like it's something in a plastic bag. In other words, you've been holding it in your right hand, right?"

Vittoria's eyes widened for a brief moment. "Dammit, I couldn't get Luca's blood off me…" That is all she thought. She tensed up for a moment before putting on a smile and continuing, "Yeah, you're right. I've indeed been using my right hand to carry a bag 'cuz my left hand's injured." She was practically polishing a crap in front of Polpo's face here.

"Hoo-hoo! I'm jealous of you; you can treat your own body the way you like it, girly." He reached around, trying to grab a glass of wine. "You want anything to drink? How 'bout a glass o' wine? I have this bottle of candy classic; it tastes great when you have it with a brie biscuit." Polpo boasted.

Vittoria inched back slightly. "…They said that I can't give you anything, and you can't give me anything as well."

Polpo smirked. "Hoo-hoo. What humans say and what they do are two entirely different matters. That's their good point, as well as their bad point after all, wouldn't you say?"

Vittoria growled and glanced over at Polpo's belongings; a gun, an hand-grenade, and a syringe. Clearly, this man wasn't to be trifled with. Polpo sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "But, if there is something that the outside world has that isn't in this cell; it's seeing a painting of the city walls by a certain painter…but! I have a similar painting of a Buddhist valley…"

Vittoria began to contemplate. "Polpo…It's not that he doesn't want to leave the cell…but he has all he needs in this cell. Furthermore, his body may be safer here. But what's more unbelievable is that how in the world he got into his cell with his fat arse…"

"Bucciarati mentioned you, hoo-hoo—You're Vittoria Giovanna…You want to join our gang?" Vittoria fidgeted a bit as she noticed that Polpo was actually eating his own fingers! "Alright, let's start the review!"

Vittoria muttered, "For a moment there, I saw Polpo eat his own fingers…was I mistaken? No, Polpo, like Bucciarati seems to be a God of Death. But I can't let him find out I saw his fingers…!"

Polpo smirked. "When selecting somebody, what do you think is the most important value, Vittoria Giovanna?" He held a lighter in his hands.

"Uhm, what he can do?" Vittoria naively responded.

"Hmm, so…what can you do?" Polpo questioned.

Vittoria pulled out a card. "When I went through the body check earlier, I borrowed something from them. I thought it could be useful in the test…but of course I'll return it to them."

Polpo boomed, "Wahahahahahaha! Do you…have any other special abilities?"

Vittoria replied, "Oh, yeah! I can stuff my entire ear into my head."

"Hahahahahaha! Very interesting, but there's a more important quality…and that's reliability! When choosing somebody, you must choose the person who you can rely on. No matter how smart or talented somebody is, if you can't rely on 'em, they're trash in my eyes!" Polpo handed Vittoria the lighter. "Here's the test. The lighter will measure your reliability. If the fire extinguishes, then…." He chuckled. "Watch out! Don't let the fire die, no matter what! A wise man once said "you can only rely on somebody once you've seen their inner self". You have to do the same if you want to join our gang!"

"So, keep the fire lit for 24 hours! If you can, I'll let you join us. There's enough wax in the lighter; you just need to keep watching it until 3 pm tomorrow. If you can do it, you've proven that you're a trustworthy lass. But if you don't respect me, you'll fall asleep, sneeze, or even let the wind blow into your room and cause the fire to extinguish. If that happens, it means I can't rely on you." Vittoria began to walk away, clutching the lighter.

"Remember, 24 hours! I'll be waiting here tomorrow at 3 pm, my lovely…" Polpo snickered.