A/N: This is my first story, so please don't be mean in the reviews, I'm trying my best here.
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, or anything else you might recognize that I write about. Everything belongs to the intended owner of them.
So, without further ado, here it is.
Troubled Love
Chapter 1
EPOV
"Seth?" I said, while creeping around the side of the crate facing the wall.
"Where are you Seth?" I whispered again, still trying to stay hidden from the guards. I've been hiding from the guards for about ten minutes, when Seth disappeared from my shoulder.
`Stupid monkey, ` I thought.
It has been about twenty minutes since he disappeared, and I'm still searching for that monkey, who is my only companion for the last four years.
All of a sudden, something, out of nowhere, landed on my shoulder.
I jumped and panicked for a second, when I thought it was a hand.
Then I saw the furry tail in my line of vision, and I relaxed some when I recognized it.
"Seth! There you are, I've been looking everywhere for you. Where have you been, you monkey?" knowing full well he wasn't going to answer, but asked anyway, in a subdued voice; one that wouldn't carry. All I got in return was a a screech, from the old acquaintance sitting on my shoulder.
I rounded the corner of the crate of the wall I was hiding behind. Planning on slipping into the dark night, unseen; going to my rooftop place, I started moving, stealthily.
But I should have known better to believe that was ever going to happen. 'Just wishful thinking,' I thought, annoyed.
My head snapped to the end of the alleyway I was in, when I heard: "Hey! There he is!" What I saw, made me freeze, dead in my tracks.
There, at the end of the alleyway, my only way out, stood the very four guards I had been running from. What was worse was what they were holding.
Swords.
Very long, shiny, very real, silver swords; not just a mirage imaginary by my imagination. Each of them had one, and they were all looking my way.
'Coward,' I thought when I felt Seth use my shoulder fir leverage, to jump off and make his getaway; leaving me there to fend for myself, with four angry, muscular guards, with their shiny swords.
Turning around the other way to run, and stopping myself just before I ran into the brick wall, and ultimately, stomping on my getaway plan.
'This is really, really, really bad,' was about the only thing going through my head at that moment, while the guards increased their pace, running at me with their sharp-ended swords, pointed right at me: their target. So, with nothing else to do, I followed their example and started charging at my opponent: them.
As I was running I took notice of their appearance and little things about them, regularly, other people would have missed.
The one who spotted me first, was a foot taller than my 6"2'.He had curly brown hair, that went right below his ears, almost touching his shoulders but managing not to. His eyes ware sharp; they started with a dark brown on the outside and lightened to a light blue in the middle. You could tell he was in charge by the way he held himself: tall and proud, with his sword in his right hand, leading the way towards me.
Along with his tall stature, he had muscle: a lot. It was almost like he could crush me easily with just one hit from his hand. I was wary of him instantly. It didn't look like he had a soft side; 'although, that could just mean he didn't like me.
He is trying to kill me, after all,' I was thinking slightly, mockingly bemused. But I could tell he was a softy when he wanted to be, by the laugh lines on the side of both his eyes.
The second guy, behind the first, was about my height. He might have possibly have an inch or two on me. It's hard to tell when you're running, your head bobbing up and down. He had dark brown hair, almost black, and went to right above his ears. He had semi-cod, grey eyes, but they had a sort of welcoming feeling to them. His built was muscular, but not so much as the first guy, with curly brown hair. He held his sword in his left hand, but could tell, by his running, favored his right side, more. He didn't look like he had any laugh lines around his eyes, unlike the first guy, the leader. Although, if you were to look hard enough, you could see the ghost of some lines.
The guy behind him looked nicer, friendlier.
The friendly looking guy had shaggy, dirty blond looking, which fell handsomely around his lively looking light blue eyes. He had a tall and lean figure, but he still looked really strong with his lack of physical muscle. You could tell he was very much centered, didn't favor either side; and was very light on his feet.
He looked like a fighter. And a great one at that.
That's what scared me most about him. Though, he had this warm, friendly, inviting aura about him, which welcomed you in. He seemed very in control, and calculating every move. Very strategic. Like me.
The guy behind him was the worst of all, it looked like.
He had black, midnight colored hair, with cold ruthless, eyes, the darkest of dark brown eyes. He was tall and muscular, puffing out his chest, to emphasize his muscles. Even more tall and more muscular than the first one.
He towered over me alarmingly, and the other guards, that all my senses were telling me to get away as fast as possible. It all spelled one word: Danger.
The way he held his sword, in his right hand, you could tell he was very talented with it; although, it looked like he could switch to his left hand, at any time, if need be.
I took all this in within a matter of a few steps; and the distance between me and them, shortening, at an alarming rate.
There was minimal space in the alleyway, now.
When I got to the first guy, I ducked under his arm, and moved on to the next, with grace.
The second one grabbed me, but twisted free, and tripped him, while he tried to keep up with the twist in mid-twist.
The friendly looking one, was expecting me, and in return, on guard. He was a little harder. He swung the butt of his sword toward my shoulder, but me sensing it, leaned back, and shot forward. But what I didn't sense, was that he was expecting that. He swung his sword forward, toward me.
At the last second, the scary guy, bind the one with the swinging sword, grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me away, before I could get slashed open with the sword. He attempted to pin me against the alley wall, but Seth, my ever faithful monkey- companion, shot forward toward the guy attempting the pinning, and pushed him, with his tiny body, toward the Dirty Blond guy's sword as he swung back around, from his first attempt.
Scary Dude roared in pain and held his cheek Dirty Blond slashed his sword with; and, although I couldn't see it, could tell it was going to leave a scar.
As the men were distracted, Seth-who was on Scary Dude's shoulder the whole time- latched onto my arm, and I started running, silently, into the night. The only sound from the cry of a big guy cut.
*~~~…~~~*
As I climbed the side of the wall -for exercise, because the building is deserted- from up the boxes, and in through the abandoned doorway of the balcony, I think over what my life has become and how it came to be that way.
I went over to my mat on the floor in the corner of my spacey place. It's technically not my place, but since it was abandoned, I took it as my own, and started living here.
Seth who had been on my back the whole time, got off when I reached the balcony, still swung there, on the torn drapes, covering the town, and view on the back of the palace, about a mile away from my abandoned building.
I've lived in this abandoned building since my dad left me seven years ago, when I was ten, to go and explore the world, leaving me by myself and my uncle. My mom died when I was two years old, left me with my dad and her brother, Edward Sir. and Uncle Anthony. Mom, Elizabeth Mason, was always traveling with her brother; they loved each other a lot. So it was only rational for me to love Uncle Anthony; we were the best of friends. I was named after both of them; Edward Anthony Mason. One day we were out getting food (that's stealing for people like us, street rats) and the guards showed up, unexpectedly. They got him, because he was getting older, but not me. I was too quick, but graceful. He disappeared after that; never saw him again, doubt I ever will. I haven't seen him since I was thirteen.
4 years ago.
Since then, 4 years ago, I've been living on my own, with Seth, also. I got him when I was ten from my father just before he left. He helped me, my uncle, and some of my street rat friends. My street rat friends, John and Noah, and I did performances when my father left; of course Uncle Anthony helped too. But he didn't participate in the actual performance; he was off to the side, pretending he was watching us, but pit-pocketed the people actually watching. We called it close one day. One day I remember all too well.
~~Flashback~~
"Hey, Seth, how are you doing, you monkey of a friend?" Noah asked, walking up to me and the monkey, trying to pat him on the head; but failing.
"Dude, did you ever find out what you did to make the monkey hate you, to try and take off your head when you try to do something as pat it on the head? Hey, Seth," John jokingly asked him, coming up, and succeeding pat Seth.
We all burst out laughing at the lame, but true statement.
Still trying to catch my breath, I said,"I don't think anybody will ever understand Seth as long as he lives. Plus," I add in a joking tone of voice," didn't he just automatically hate you first time he set eyes on you?"
"Maybe," Noah grumbled, making us all laugh at his expense, again.
"OK, let's get started boys," Uncle Anthony says, walking up behind the building we usually meet at.
We all start walking out to do our thing. John goes first as a solo act; acting like a mime. Then I join in and pretend to mess up the act, but before it gets out of hand, Noah comes in; all the while Uncle Anthony, deep in his trench coat he stole from a clothing line, goes around knocking in to people paying attention to our acting. Seth, the crazy swinging guy, runs -as much as a monkey can run – around us a couple times, sometimes coming in and hitting one of us, and just basically there to look cute and funny.
After Noah comes, we start fighting, but fake the hitting, because we don't actually want to hit one another, but try to recreate the sounds like we are hitting each other. We eventually get behind the building, and end our act once the audience can't see us. John, still in front this whole time on the ground, comes back with the hat full of coins, marking our earnings for the day, minus what uncle has. When he does come back, we split it between the four of us and Seth.
"We did pretty well today guys."
"Well? Oh, come on! We did a-m-a-z-i-n-g, Uncle Anthony!" I exclaim, because we did do amazing today, we got more than usual. I admit, it wasn't that much more, but it was more so than normal.
"Listen here, Edward; don't get so cocky, or you may end up regretting it. Cockiness equals one thing: Over confidence. And if you have too much confidence: then good luck to you. So when I say we did well today, I mean we did well. End of discussion, period. Now, why don't we split it?" he asks, you could say I felt properly chastised after that little speech. Without waiting for an answer, he grabs everything and starts dividing it; everything he got, we got and the stuff Seth snatched. Seth, while people are watching the show, goes around and starts picking the jewelry girls are wearing and the valuables any people are wearing, also.
After we're done, we go our separate ways, after we set up the next sham-slash-show and where to meet. I go with my uncle and Seth on my shoulder, while John and Noah goes their way, opposite the way were going.
"Hey! You kids there! Come back here! You took what's ours and we want it back!" We heard what sounded like the audience we had were on their way. When we turned around, Seth tightened his tail on my neck to where he was almost choking me. Behind us, I was correct, was the audience and two guards. The guards started running at John and Noah, when they started sprinting down the way to their place they shared together. Uncle Anthony and I started sprinting down the other way fast, but not so fast that it made sound and brought attention to ourselves.
We made it back to our place, holding our breaths to make sure no one followed us, and let it out when we heard nothing but silence. "That was a close one; I hope the guys are alright."
"Yeah," I agreed, still in a daze, and breathless, about almost being caught. That could have been us.
"Hey, Edward, that just goes to show we should have been more careful. If you think about it that goes to prove my point; don't be over confident. There's always still that chance we could get caught. Learn from what just happened today."
"OK, uncle," I agree, trying my best to mean it, but not quite making it sound believable.
'My uncle is always such the optimistic person,' I think, while shaking my head mentally.
"Don't just shake off this experience or my words, you mark them, mark them." He says seriously –with a sort of mad undertone, if you knew him well like I did- shaking his pointer finger at me, like a parent would a child. And if you think about it, he sort of was in a way.
If only I knew in a months' time I was going to be taking those words he spoke to heart…
~~End of Flashback~~
I got up and changed into my bed wear, and got into bed.
'If only I knew then,' I thought shaking my head. "Night night, Seth," I laid my head down and fell asleep, thinking of my beloved uncle. 'If only I knew.'
A/N: OK, there you are, I hope some liked it, if not, oh well, I can't please everyone. Leave a review, let me know if you liked it, loved it, hated it, I don't care, I just want to know. If you like it, but have questions, please feel free to PM me. Please keep in mind that this is my first story, so please, only constructive criticism.
~Cynthia~