A Mercenary Among Merchants

[Felypsa]

As the voice rang out, December swirled around, pointing the shining Seraphim at the source where it had come from. The ventriloquism fooled her, but only because she was relying entirely on sound. She gnashed her teeth angrily, hating her blindness. “Imi,” she said quietly, wanting to confirm what she believed. Aloud, she said, “Fine. So you think it would do no good if you revealed yourself. Let me know, though, if you mean us harm. I will not back down from a fight if I must, but I’d rather deal with you peacefully. I will not attack; I have no quarrel with you. At least as long as you have none with me.”

Meanwhile, Imi pinged in the direction from whence the voice had come, but to her confusion found nothing there but wind and emptiness. The small bird-sized bat raced around the room, until she found something that jarred against her senses. She was alarmed at how close this being stood to her friend. Despite December’s offer at peace, Imi didn’t trust this hidden creature. She turned owl, and saw clearly it was vaguely humanoid, but its features were hidden so Imi could not find out anything else. Regardless, she hooted to December to turn towards her.

December did so, knowing she could trust Imi. But before Seraphim could get close enough to shed its light on the Phantom, December heard a commotion not far from where she stood. It sounded as if someone had stumbled, the floor shaking with impact. Her eyes flashed the moment she understood. Fortuné. Ignoring the other mysterious voice for the moment, she strode forth towards where she heard the vampire stumble. Her mercenary instincts screamed at her for turning her back on the unknown, but she ignored them for now. It had to be Fortuné nearby. She had to get him.

December thrust her silver-white sword out towards where she’d heard the person stagger. If it was Fortuné, and if he was indeed there, Seraphim would reveal him in its ethereal glow. But December did not stab whoever-it-was, just extended the sword so she could see. At the same time, Imi the owl lingered near where the Phantom stood, uncertain what to do.

[Mama Z]

His response was cut short when he heard the odd noise. Some one had more then likely tripped. Zayns acute senses were going hay-wire and the unnerving bird near him wasn't helping his attention. Something about the other two was off completely. One he knew was a vampire but the lady before him was something unreal.

He waited for a moment then stepped away from his small perch, there was no longer any need to hide. He had been spotted by the bat turned bird. His eyes were focused on both December and where Fortune would be. 'Show yourself,' He demanded bitterly, 'There is nowhere to hide.'

[/color]

[Aveilthé]

OOC: Keeping picture of Tom Cruise, kay, pretend that's Fortuné because I said so... And my wrist still bloody hurts, and it took me ages to type this whole mess out with ONE HAND. e.e

When he stumbled, the gravitation poring over Fortuné's
strapping masculinity successfully forced him to
fall backward. He landed on his palms rather hard.
His eyes almost popped out due to the sheer pain that shot
through his wrist. As soon as he settled on his bum,
he nursed both of his hands. Being an immortal,
it can be quite surprising how much pain can inflict upon
this unique vampire emotionally, not to mention physically.
He swore silently to himself in French.

He didn't cry out, but was in time to look normal once
December flashed Seraphim in his direction. The holy sword's
light illuminated the vampire's entire physique, making
him writhe from the holiness. The light burned his very flesh, and
it hurt, like teeth nipping at his skin. Beads of sweat dampened
Fortuné's fair face, matting bits of his dark curls to his forehead.
He had to shield his eyes with his hands as he tried looking at
who was precisely brandishing a glowing sword at him, but
it didn't take too long for him to figure out.

"December, is that you?" inquired he, scrambling himself
up rather fruitlessly. Once again, the entire shock that caused
him to fall back stole over him like a tsunami wave crashing
into his thoughts.

Fortuné stood up successfully, but in a frenzied defensive
position. For the moment, he wasn't sure if he was being
defensive from December, or the voice... that sounded so
familiar.

[Felypsa]

December took one step closer to where Seraphim’s light revealed a figure…who was definitely Fortuné. She suppressed the urge to immediately ram her sword into his heart, or to slice off his head, because all at once her rage towards him rose in a tide. Her hand began to shake, not from weariness, but from the effort it took to keep it in check. She made a very unladylike noise when Fortuné asked if it was she. “No, Fortuné, I’m the other mercenary with an angelic sword,” she replied scathingly. “Of course it’s me, you blatant fool, and you’re lucky to still be standing. I’ve more than half a mind to cut you down where you stand.” She brought her sword down quickly, but did not sheathe it. She kept it within range so that she could still see the vampire.

Behind her, Imi hooted urgently, and she turned to the side so she could still see Fortuné and see what her friend was hooting about. There was a figure next to where Imi hovered in the air. December’s eyes flashed. “So. You’re the house’s owner, I presume? Or, at least, its lone resident.” Then, surprisingly, she bowed her head in respectful apology. “Forgive me for breaking and entering your abode. I was chasing after this idiot” she jerked a thumb in Fortuné’s direction, “and believed the house to abandoned and empty. But now that I’ve found him, and the g—” She cut herself off, immediately reminded of something.

Suddenly December spun back towards Fortuné, raising her sword above her head as if about to strike. “The girl! What the hell did you do to her?” She brandished her weapon menacingly at the vampire. “I swear by heaven, Fortuné, if you’ve done anything to her—” She didn’t even bother to finish the threat, just stepped closer with Seraphim held high. Her pallid face was unforgiving; December feared the worst. True, the girl had been stupid enough to follow a vampire into an old decrepit house, but even such profound folly did not merit a painful death—or, even worse, a transformation to be a vampire herself.

[Mama Z]

Zayn watched with a impassive face, though in honesty his heart was racing faster then a horse about the sight he saw, and it wasnt due to the idea that a murder may happen right in front of him. But her telling of the name confirmed what he believed was true. Briefly eyes flickered to the bird, it was a rather curious thing, but he was ready to kill it for being so loud. He surpressed that much and looked back at the woman who bowed. Yes, it was his house, always has been always will be. He would have said so and would have asked kindly for both to leave when she suddenly fumed and spun back around.

So there was another still here. He sighed and looked around, rather getting bored now. 'She's alive.' He finally cut in, peering at the wall and almost as if seeing through it. Arms reched up, crossing in front of his chest in a bored manner. 'Still chasing the girls around Fortune?' he asked a small chuckle leaving his lips.

[/color]

[Aveilthé]

The vampire cringed pathetically like a dog cowering
from his master's wrath. But in Fortuné's case,
it was December's quavering wrath that he feared;
or, perhaps, it was Seraphim's holy light that
forced him back like a dangerous lion. It was hard
to decipher. Perhaps it was both Seraphim and the
wielder of the sword that he feared altogether.

Fortuné's face slowly looked up at the wrathful
seraph-girl, his expression desolate of anything
cheerful. His bright green eyes glittered miserably.
"I have never imagined you killing me with your
heart so angry," said he, speaking softly. "I've
imagined my saviour striking me down with more
compassion than so full of hate. Go on, if
you must, my life's always been so miserable.
Don't let my pathetic words hinder your cause
to kill me now... As for the girl... she is
perfectly unharmed. I had no real intentions to
hurt her... or to kill her... I... told her to
conceal herself as I didn't want her harmed."

Fortuné fell silent. He realized that he made
the mistake by telling out loud that he hid her -
December will perhaps inquire where she was
hiding, but the vampire honestly did not know.
But the dark creature did, and Fortuné nearly
jumped out of his skin when he saw Zayn sanding
there. The vampire slowly stood up, his breathing
cut short due to exhaustion, shock, and December's
holy light cast upon him which made him shudder
uncontrollably. He ignored Zayn's remark as he
parted his lips to speak, a look of sheer distress
seen upon his sweaty face.

"Brother," exclaimed he rather loudly, "I
thought you were dead!"

[Felypsa]

-falls out of chair- ; Did not expect THAT one coming...well, that succeeded in blowing me away...@.@




December’s forehead creased delicately, hearing that somehow the creature in this house knew Fortuné. Before she could inquire, Fortuné began his pathetic speech to her. The words were wretched, the vampire himself was wretched, and she half-suspected he was just saying these things to get out of death. But despite herself, she lowered Seraphim carefully. His words echoed in her mind: …more compassion than so full of hate…She let out a drawn-out sigh, but made no move to end Fortuné’s life.

“Fortuné, I have not forgotten that I promised you as a friend,” she said softly. “I cannot in good conscience kill you now. You have evaded me, frustrated me, and made some foolish mistakes…but if the girl is unharmed, then I’ll let it be.” She looked at him to let him know that she was being sincere. But the tender moment was over and she turned her gentle gaze into a glower. “But if you ever do that again, I won’t hesitate to end it all, compassionate or not,” she warned, though only half-heartedly.

The tension in the room faded only to be resurrected—except, this time, by something completely different and unexpected. December blinked, for once utterly baffled, when Fortuné called the house’s owner “brother.” She took a step back and pointed Seraphim first at Fortuné, then on the other—seeing, of course, no family resemblance between the two. “Well, by the deuce,” she said, too dumbfounded to say much else. Suddenly she tensed, stepping closer to Fortuné’s alleged brother. “Are you a vampire too?” she demanded, shedding Seraphim’s light on him. Just because she had learned to pardon one flirty and flighty vampire didn’t mean she could pardon the entire species. Vampires were still creatures of the night, still her enemies. And, perhaps she had imagined it, but had she seen a look of fearful distrust on Fortuné’s face as he regarded his brother?

[Mama Z]

Ah, so he had been regonized, even years later Fortune still could pick him out of a crowd. But his glory was short lived as he felt the small burn upon half his face. Instantly, he lifted the tuxedos cloak over his face and stepped back, hoping to disappear into the shadows. 'I was already a member of the shadows,' He admitted still trying to push his way back, 'But in answer, yes I have been turned by those foul creatures.'

He paused a moment, if anyone could see it, there was a shadow which fell over his eyes. The look giving even a nitwitt the hint that he was remembering his past. 'I was only hoping the same wouldn't happen to family.'

[/color][/size]

[Aveilthé]

Fortuné simply stood there, feeling a bit lighter than usual,
almost faint. He felt his heart drum like thunder in his chest.
Everything known before, except now, was forgotten.
Staggering forward a bit, Fortuné made his way over to
Zayn. After reaching close to his brother, he halted, shaking
all over. For a moment, he did not speak, but only stood, gaped,
his face shining profusely with sweat.

"Z... Zayn," he breathed softly, quite not sure how he
should react. Who could blame him. For over one-hundred years,
he believed his brother to be dead. "You are alive! I...
Oh, God, I've missed you so much!" With that, Fortuné flew
forward and embraced Zayn, wailing and blubbering on
his brother's dark-clad shoulder.

[Felypsa]

December’s grip on Seraphim tightened when Fortuné’s brother admitted to being a vampire as well. She took a step towards him even as he shrank back into the shadows. But his next words stopped her. She studied him curiously; he was reliving his past. Cold hard rationality told her to the devil with him, the world would not suffer with one less vamp. But that voice of reason was wiped away when Fortuné stood up to embrace his long-lost brother.

The half-seraph girl took a step back, respecting their joyous reunion. Well, joyous on the part of Fortuné. He was blubbering like the big baby that he was. She wasn’t sure whether to be annoyed or amused. Imi flew to her shoulder, also letting the two brothers celebrate their having found one another anew. December was almost touched—almost. As the hug and Fortuné’s babbling nonsense went on, however, she found she was losing some of her patience. “I am very happy for both of you,” she said haltingly, unsure how to address a pair of vampires. It was easy interacting with Fortuné alone, but Zayn was different…more of what she would expect from a creature of the night. Not evil, necessarily, but dark and distant. December got the same vibes from him as the ones she got whenever Fortuné’s eyes turned red. She was not afraid of Zayn—so long as she had Seraphim by her side—but she was not ready to take him into her arms and call him a friend. “But…Fortuné brought a girl here, and I suspect she’s more than ready to go home now—”

December was cut off by a high-pitched, frightened shriek from somewhere in the house. She tilted her head. “As I was saying,” she remarked. But she did not hurry to wherever Rosaline was. Zayn was here, and the only person in the house, so what could have possibly befallen her? Quite possibly, the blonde ditz had gotten cobwebs in her hair, or some other such idiotic thing. Nevertheless, December started moving towards the sound—at a leisurely pace.

Rosaline hid beneath the stairs with bated breath as the seconds ticked away. Fortuné had not returned. Was it possible, she thought, that that horrid woman had caught up with him and killed him? She shuddered at the very thought, and tears formed in her eyes. She didn’t like it here. It was creepy and scary. She’d hardly noticed the creepiness and scariness when she was with her gentleman, but now that he was gone it was all too evident.

As if to enhance the effect, a spider the size of her fist crawled over to her. Rosaline could not suppress a horrified scream as it approached her. She began to back away from it, slowly. It followed her. She quickened her pace, her hands and feet moving back. It followed her. She tried not to scream again, but her hands brushed against something—a section of the floor that had collected an inch-thick blanket of dust and grime. The moment she touched it, this section of the floor—really an old trapdoor—collapsed in on itself. Rosaline was pitched off-balance—and the next thing she knew, she was falling, falling down a long shaft, into a dark hole.

She did what any girl in her place would do. She screamed.

[Relairah]

Jolene had silently followed along into the mysterious, broken
home of Zayn. She had cautiously followed December for most of
it. Her bright orange eyes gave her plenty of night-vision, thus
she didn't need anyone's guidance. She was still quite clueless to
the reasons for her eyes being the way they were, but she
would learn in due time. Her feet made not a sound as she
scampered along through the halls. She constantly wiped her
long, brunette hair from her sweat-soaked face. She had been
running quite a bit. She was still entirely curious of how this
would all turn out. It seemed one event lead to the next and
each was more confusing and yet at the same time filled a piece
of a puzzle in somewhere.

When December had the incident with the crashed portrait,
Jolene stopped frozen in her tracks, backing up to press herself
against the wall, her hands immediately going for her knives. Yet,
after a moment, she calmed herself down, realizing it had been
nothing more than someone being clumsy. She scowled to
herself, releasing her knife-handles and moving foward once
more. 'Couldn't she be a little more careful?' she thought to
herself, not thinking at all about the fact December could not see
in this dark place. She could feel her heart beating heavily in her
chest, and as they ran along, she herself had been getting an
odd feeling that something was amiss, that she, Imi, December,
Fortuné and the girl weren't the only one's here.

As they stopped once again, now to find out that all of they're
feelings that someone else was present were indeed true, she
once again stopped. She watched silently, and curiously as the
next events unfolded. She watched as Imi found the mysterious
man of the shadows, and as all of a sudden Fortuné was once
again present. She watched as he was pushed back under the
holy light of seraphim and how December exploded off. She
partially understood why December was so upset, and another
side of her was questioning. However, she decided it better to
keep her mouth shut. She didn't want to become any sort of
obstacle to make this whole mess worse... although she
probably already was in an odd sort of way.

December walked right past her when she moved over toward
Zayn, yet it seemed all were ignoring the fact Jolene was there,
which was completely fine with her. As all would discover the link
between Zayn and Fortuné, Jolene would also become surprised,
and curious as to of the past of these two vampiric creatures.
She nearly sighed, bringing herself to realize that almost this
whole time she'd been holding her breath, although she couldn't
figure out why. Yet, she was quite startled when the scream
burst through the entire place. She scowled once again, surely
anyone even relatively close to this place had heard that
dreaded scream. She prayed there would be no more visitors to
this place.

She glanced at the small group of people: bird, vampires, and
seriph-girl, briefly, before she began to slink off. She was curious
as ever. She figured it was the girl that Fortuné had taken who
had made that awful scream, but she wanted to know what had
happened, where she was, and much more about her. She
grinned slightly, it didn't really matter if she were to investigate...
it wasn't like she was going to cause any harm, she told herself.
Besides, nobody else would even notice she had been there and
left.

She silently swept along the shadows, every now and then
glancing up through the holes in the roof where the moonbeams
poured through, making gentle silvery beams here and there.
She paused to rest a moment, and looked around herself. She
was in a rather large room, with not but a couple chairs, a small
table, and pictures all over the walls. There was no sign of the
girl here. She glanced down at her two knives then back up. She
didn't think there would be any reason for her to use them right
now, but nevertheless she swiftly pulled her left knife out of its
sheeth, spinning it in her fingers so that she could attack if she
needed to. Leaving her right hand open, she continued.

Her path lead her down a long, dark hall. She followed it, her
eyes constantly looking about her. There was no sign of anyone
here either. She felt she was getting rather lost. What if she
ended up somewhere where she deffinately shouldn't be. She
shook such thoughts from her mind, and quickened her pace a
bit. At last, she came to the end of this hall and before her were
three more halls, one to her left, one to her right, and one
straight ahead. She sighed, and leaned against the wall for a
moment. Listening didn't get her anywhere either. At last, she
decided to turn right. She entered a long, dark corridor, and she
wondered where this would lead to.

At last her searching had a bit of success. She nearly fell down
the same hole Rosaline had just fallen through, but she caught
herself in time. She knelt down on one knee, gazing down at the
hole in the floor. "These are times when I wish I had wings... or
could float," she muttered aloud to herself. Rolling her eyes, she
lept into the dark, unknown hole. 'Gee... I hope I don't land on
anyone,' she thought rather sarcastically. It had been a bit of
time that the girl had fallen and if she was too stupid to move
out of the way then she'd have to deal with being landed on.


OoC: Squee! Well, I hope to be able to rp and stuff now ^-^ And, I will relieve you of your dreaded task, Fely LOL Mind if I take Rosaline from here? xD

[Mama Z]

The dark-clad man stood frozen, listening to his brothers sobs and wails. He was too paralyzed with fear. Was this not but another joke that the world decided to play upon him? Before he could even begin to commute his feelings towards his lost blood brother the scream broke through Fortunes useless babble. Head lifted slightly and looked towards the entrance in which they all had come, trying to pinpoint her location.

Forest green eyes glanced once towards the small group then took to following an invisable path. With practice and ease he moved over the burnt floor and ultamintly coming upon the spot where the mortal had been. Fear seemed to stain the area and he glanced around, watching as the other woman had jumped rather carelessly into the hole. A brow arched delicately and he moved towards the hole, barely peering over. Now how were they to get two of them out?

[Aveilthé]

Fortuné released his brother and turned to December with
the sloppiest grin he could ever display. "Why, thank you!"
said he with an air of complete happiness. The instant
December said that he had brought a girl here, which was
indeed true, and that she may need to go home, the
vampire's grin deflated long before she even completed her
sentence.

He wanted to say something to her, to retort
that he will not allow it, but he knew better. Fortuné
did not want to make December his enemy, after all
they've been through in just one day that seemed like
a whole month to him. Indeed, it felt like the longest
day of his enitre life. So he attempted to show the
greatest contempt at the idea to December by putting
on a nasty scowl on his still handsome face.

Just as December nearly finished her sentence, a loud
shriek filled the entire gloomy estate, causing Fortuné
to twitch a bit, but he instantly knew that it belonged
to his beloved - err, he didn't know her name... so he
thought that he will call her Beloved. And with that
being thought out, Fortuné's noble muscles flexed
through his lightly blood-stained shirt as he displayed
a heroicly verile stance before running like a skiddish
colt to the source of the noise.

Thus, with Fortuné's ironically athletic build (he used to
work nightly by helping ships load crates of fish off along
the Escavas coast when he was 176 years old, and quit
his job since his coworkers were becomming a bit
suspicious of his lack of visibility during the day, and he
killed 8 out of 37 of them, and their suspicions grew), he
outwitted many of the traps and obstacles until he
approached the spot where he left his Beloved. She was
no where in sight, obviously; she was not attacked.
Looking around quickly, he bent down as spotted an
old trapdoor that had undoubtedly been broken.

Fortuné bent forward, fear glazing across his bright
green eyes. "Alas, I will not let this strange hindrance
get the better of me!" he spoke softly, trying to
reassure himself.

Filling his lungs with breath, he then called out, "MY LOVE!"
His voice echoed through the dark trapdoor, all the
way into the mysterious depths below. It was more of a
fearful inquiration if his Beloved Rosaline was okay, but
before Fortuné could say just this, he was leaning forward
too far.

Gravitation was once again this vampire's crazy nemesis.
With that, he was pulled forward, and before he realized
what had even happened, he was tumbling after where
Rosaline had gone. A loud yelp escaped his voice as
darkness engulfed his entire being.

[Felypsa]

December jerked in surprise as she noticed another presence in the house, and realized that it was Jolene, the mischievous urchin who simply couldn’t leave them alone. She felt herself getting angry at the girl for having followed them, but inhaled deeply, calming herself. I’ve had a rough day, she thought tiredly, and it’s only going to get rougher. No use losing my temper over things I can’t control. She ignored Fortuné’s stubborn frown and swept past him, following Zayn and Jolene towards the scream.

Imi again was her eyes, though she could hear the others sweeping through the abandoned house. The mockingbird-turned-owl made sure her mercenary friend could easily follow her. December used Seraphim’s inner light to give her enough vision. She hated her liability though. Zayn and Fortuné could see in the dark, and she strongly suspected Jolene could too, since the girl had explored the old mansion with Imi in pitch blackness without a qualm. That put December at a great disadvantage. I can’t rely on Imi all the time, she thought. And there’s only so much I can do when I’m half-blind.

The group reached the hole where Rosaline had disappeared into, and December got there in time to see Jolene vanish down there as well. To her relief, Zayn did not do such a foolish act. To her annoyance, Fortuné cried down the shaft, shouting “My Love!” in a most ridiculous way. December couldn’t exactly put her finger on why that irked her. She personally thought the vampire was being foolish, claiming to “love” a girl he’d only been acquainted with for a few hours…but then again, Foolish was Fortuné’s middle name.

She refused to believe that she was at all jealous of the attentions Fortuné lavished on the blonde airhead. That was just impossible. Letting out a sigh, December reached to pull the fop back from the trapdoor—but too late, because he tipped and fell in, yelling all the way. December could not suppress a loud noise of indignation before she straightened up and gave Zayn a hard stare.

“Well, all our companions have disappeared down this mysterious tunnel,” she said with exasperation. “Please, Zayn, you must know where this hole leads. Or at least have a vague idea. You live here.” December looked down at the impenetrable hole, and another thought struck her. “I hope they’re alright,” she muttered, “although they deserve any injury they suffer for being such idiots.” She looked at Zayn again, seeing only his outline, a shadow darker than the rest of the house, eyes glinting. “Do you think you’ll be able to lead us down there—in a more sophisticated and safe way?” she added dryly. Imi hooted, agreeing. Though the bird could easily fly, she did not look forward to entering a hole which could very well end up being a dead end.

[Relairah]

Jolene fell through darkness for a bit of time, everything going by
and upward quickly in a blur before her bright orange eyes. It
wasn't long before she hit bottom, landing smoothly on her feet,
then hands, the impact causing her to fall foward onto her knees
slightly. She stood, looking around, squinting a bit, trying to see
farther in the seemingly endless dark before her. She didn't see
anything, and she moved foward a step, giving a slight flick of
her head to toss the hair that had fallen over her shoulders
behind her. She sighed slightly, the girl couldn't have gotten that
far... right? She opened her mouth to call a 'hello?' of some sort,
but was cut off...

Her ears twitched and she covered them with her hands, cringing
slightly when Fortuné yelled, 'my love!' down the trap door. She
leapt back, glancing up where she had come, her eyes allowing
her to see Fortuné's form falling from above. She sighed to
herself, folding her arms. She supposed it wouldn't take long for
the others to get down here as well... Shifting her gaze from
Fortuné, she once again looked at the long darkness. She began
moving foward, wondering whether or not she should wait on
everyone else or not. Afterall, sooner or later they would be
either caught up or ahead of her in no time. Her eyes searched
the darkness, seeking the form of the girl that all had been
distracted by and now came to see.

She kept her senses alert, but soon paused. To her left was a
wall, to which she moved toward and leaned against, emitting a
soft, "Huff..." from her lips. She glanced back the way she'd
come, her eyes straining a bit in this dark. Even though she had
night vision, this dark was deeper than that of above, being as
above had places where the moon shone through. The place
where the broken trapdoor was had a bit of light coming down,
thus she could see sillhouettes. (forgive me if I'm wrong on this
guys o.0) She crossed her arms over her chest, and waited,
tapping her fingers.


Rosaline had hit bottom rather roughly, she being completely
sure she now had a large bruise on her bottom. She had sat
there in a daze for a few moments, before groaning and rising to
her feet. She had stared dumbly at the hole above her, yet soon
had squealed to herself when hearing a rat's squeek somewhere
near her. She gazed about herself, having no nightvision at all.
How was she to get out? Oh, where was her lovely man! She
dusted off herself, mummbling to herself about how her hair must
be so dirty and her clothes probably ripped and her hands all
dirty. Perhaps there was a ladder of some kind nearby. With that
she wondered off into the long dark aimlessly.

Soon, she stopped once again, looking back, and seeing nothing
but dark. All around her... nothing but darkness. She sniffed,
looking up and seeing nothing but dark. "Oh, will I ever get out
of here?" she whined. She plopped to the ground, hugging her
arms around her knees and beginning to sob into her skirts. She
had only been sitting there a moment, before she heard a
familiar voice reverbeat through the tunnel. She looked up,
searching for where the voice had come from. He was coming! He
had come back to rescue her! She sniffed once more, and wiped
her face, having no doubt in mind that she had smeared her
perfect skin with dirt.

She rose to her feet once more. She opened her mouth to
scream back to him, but her throat was dry from crying and her
lips cracked. She could utter no words. And so, she began
walking back the way she'd come... or so she thought... and
hoped...