Here we go it's that time again. Anyway as promised here's the second part of this chapter. Excuse my tardiness.
Transcending Feelings
Chapter 4: Strasbourg (Part Two)
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"Arno!"
"Whoa!" Arno screamed as he fell off his bed. The sound of laughter that followed it made him frown. "What was that for Élise?"
Élise placed her hands on her hips. "Arno it's already morning and you're still sleeping. I guess you're still as lazy as ever."
"Am not," He defended and pulled himself off the floor, dusting himself off in the process. "May I ask why you've barged in my room?"
"Because it's morning," She answered. "I've been awake for hours but I've been waiting for you to awaken."
He grinned. "Oh I see. Let's find out what we can conjure up."
The place was a lot bigger than expected. The hallways seemed endless and there seemed to be several stairs everywhere he looked.
"This place looks nice." Arno commented as he examined the paintings decorated on the wall. "I wonder if it's bigger than our home."
Élise couldn't help but smile at the fact that he had said 'our home'. "It is quite big but I think our home is slightly bigger."
"Is Monsieur De La Serre here? I haven't seen him anywhere." Weirdly it was almost as if Arno could sense that he wasn't in the household.
"No. Father had some important business to attend to. He won't be back till evening."
"Then I suppose we have the house all to ourselves," Arno pointed out as he pocketed his hands. "What would you like to do first?"
"Let's go outside."
"Sure thing."
The snow had piled up and the ground was no longer visible. The entire garden was decorated white by now and the fountains were certainly frozen.
"Hmm... it feels a lot colder than I would've expected." Arno exclaimed. "I think that—" Before he could complete his sentence he was pelted in the face by a blob of snow.
"Hahaha!" Élise laughed. "You have to be ready for the unexpected at any moment! Try taking your own advice!"
He smirked and began molding the snow into a ball. "Using my own words against me, huh? Challenge accepted!" He chucked the snowball at her.
She anticipated the shot and dodged. "Your aiming is terrible Arno! Is that the best you've got?"
"That was a decoy!" Arno shouted before playfully tackling her to the ground. "Victory is mine!"
Once her laughter subsided she caught his gaze and froze. She lied motionless as he hovered above her. Suddenly her heart felt like it was pounding inside her body. His face was dangerously close to hers but, he wasn't moving. He was staring at her so intensely.
"Élise..." He said in such a serious tone that was certainly too serious for his age.
"Yes, Arno?" She replied almost breathlessly.
"I'm hungry."
"Eh?"
Élise stared blankly at him, blinking twice before shoving him off.
"Ow, and what was that for?" He asked, frowning slightly. Upon seeing her face he raised a brow. "Your face is red. Are you getting sick?"
"Just be quiet and let's go."
"Women." He muttered under his breath as he followed her back inside. They were definitely complex creatures.
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"What?" Élise asked with worry. "Is this true?"
"I'm afraid so," One of the guards said. "The snow has yet to let up and it's only getting worse. I've received word that due to these unfortunate conditions your father won't be able to return; the roads are impassable like this."
"How long will it be till he returns?" Arno chimed in.
"I assume until the weather eases." He answered before giving them a stern expression. "I was also informed to not let you outside under any circumstances."
Arno's eyes widened. "What? You mean we have to stay cooped up in here until the weather lets up?"
"Yes. If you'll excuse me I must go." Was the last he said before returning to his post.
"Staying indoors doesn't sound so appealing." Arno complained as he sat himself on a nearby chair.
"I second that." Élise agreed before her eyes shined with an idea. "I have a suggestion!"
Lazily he looked at her from the corner of his eye and shrugged. "I'm all ears."
"I noticed there was a nice library here on our way to the dining hall. Would you like to see what books they have?"
"I don't have any better ideas."
He was soon being dragged by a very eager Élise. Arno knew of her little affinity for books. And Arno did enjoy a good book every once in a while.
Unfortunately life was being cruel to them.
"German, again?" Élise shouted as she tossed the tenth book she'd picked from one of the many shelves. "I can't read German! Can you read German?"
He shook his head. "No."
"This is unbelievable!"
Arno sighed and placed his book -which also was in German- back onto the shelf. "It's the same with the ones on this section."
"Perfect!" She said sarcastically. "Now what?"
Once again Arno found himself slouching on one of the nearby chairs. "I wish I had answers."
"Forget this!" Élise snapped. "I'm off to my room to wait for this to blow over. Surely by tomorrow it will."
And three days later and the storm had not let up in the least. The falling snow looked even fiercer. The two had run out of ideas to entertain themselves with an hour ago. Now they were currently heading to eat.
"Still nothing." Arno said as he swung his wooden sword around in boredom.
"I haven't thought of anything constructive either." Élise groaned before taking her seat. "Perhaps after we've had our fill we might be able to think of something."
"Aah, young Arno and Élise," The servant greeted as he began placing their food on the table. "Right on time. Still no easing for this weather huh? The cook believes this is some sort of curse. Can you believe it? Anyway I shall return momentarily for the plates."
Élise raised a brow in amusement at Arno's mischievous smirk. "I recognize that look. What do you have in mind?"
"If the cook thinks this place is cursed then who are we to tell him he's wrong?"
It was her turn to smirk. "I see where you're going with this."
"Here's what we're going to do..."
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"Are you okay? You don't look so well." The cook asked with a concerned tone.
"I feel unwell." Arno said, attempting to hold onto his facade without laughing. "I think I might be coming down with an illness."
"It's strange," Élise added with false concern. "Arno seemed perfectly well before entering this house. And then suddenly he just wasn't feeling so good."
The man gulped in fear as they had anticipated. "Are you telling me these occurrences began during his stay here? In this household?"
She nodded while doing her best not to break down in a fit right then. "Perhaps it has something to do with that story I overheard yesterday."
"W-What story?"
Élise faked a gasp. "Oh my, you mean you haven't heard? They say this place is haunted."
"Haunted?!"
"Apparently this place was built on the soil of what was once the home of a Frankish tribe, a prince's to be exact." Arno stated. At this point it was becoming very difficult to contain his laughter. "First the storm and now my sudden illness? It seems too much for coincidence. I fear we've unsettled these burial grounds."
The poor man paled instantly. "Oh dear! P-Please excuse me for a moment. I must go to my quarters for something!"
In one quick movement the man had sped off like a tiger out of the kitchen. That was when the laughter came.
"Hahaha! Oh my sides! I can't...!" Arno laughed as he clenched his stomach. "He fell for it! He really fell for it!"
Élise wiped a laugh-induced tear. "Did you see the look on his face?"
"I almost feel sorry for him." Arno joked before turning to her and smiling. "We sure do make quite the pair. Nothing can stop us when we're together. And that's how it'll always be: Arno and Élise!"
Somehow he always knew what to say to make her heart skip a beat. "Us, together till the end? I like the sound of it."
Finally the storm had calmed. Unfortunately that did little to quell the frightened cook, much to their delight. The man never left the kitchen without a rosary in one hand and a Bible in the other after the story they fed him. That was all the sufficient humor they needed to get through the entire week that the storm lasted.
Author's Notes
Think this is coming along fairly nice, no? Well it's all thanks to you guys! Till next time.
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