Chapter 6

"If that's the case, then how can you do spells? Normal vampires can't do that!" Selene had decided to start up again, on the subject of my spells. It was true, most vampires couldn't preform spells.

"Because I have a lot of dark magic! I don't know how, or why, but I do! And because of that, I can cast a few simple spells. It's not like I can even do anything elemental! I can focus myself, or gain stealth. A bunch of tiny things humans put into video games! Even they know about them!"

"I said humans missed a lot, not that they missed everything. And it really doesn't make a difference weather or not these ones are known."

"Yes, it does. Because it proves that they are so small, anyone can do them. I would bet most vampires, too, if they would just try." She stopped. I had won this round, which really wasn't very common. She did mumble something in Icentaitcian, which I assumed was a few angry words, maybe a curse. But we were always putting little curses on each other, then removing them later.

"Are you guys done?" Rose asked from the couch. The laptop was in front of her, as usual. She spent a lot of time typing up that book.

"What does it matter weather we are or aren't?" I asked harshly. I knew I was being rude, but I didn't really care. I just wished Selene would stop saying that I might have a little elf in me or something.

"I stopped thinking it was elf, Noelle." Mind reading, forgot. "I'm begining to think it's dwarf. You are kind of short..." I was boiling by then. Keeping rational was becoming a challenge.

"What dwarf can do any kind of spells, besides a spellcaster?"

"I don't know. That was the point. A dwarf spellcaster." Spellcasters, the main users of magic besides elves, were really diverse. They could come from any species, once even human. Though the human ones had formed clans, which they called Circles, then made their presence too well known. The witch hunters came, and they were extinct. But most from the other surviving species were careful.

"I'm not even that short. I'm an average height for my time."

"And people in your time were short."

"Shorter than you overly-matured, pigheaded, filthy -"

"Noelle!" Rose shouted. Probably right for me to stop. I was about to start screaming curses at Selene in every language I knew, and I did know several. I took a deep breath.

"I'm going to go continue to learn braile." I went upstairs, opening the small book I had purchased to teach braile, the language of bumps that the blind could read by touch. I didn't like having to learn it, but at the same time, it was interesting and would allow me to continue with my previous reading.

It was past noon when I went back dowstairs. The scene there would have fit into a sitcom.

Rose and Selene were just flinging down the spell book, in the process of turning to yell at Jared, who was perched behind them again. Brandon was trying to get Jared to back up and stop making snide comments. When I started laughing, everyone in the room froze to glance at me.

"Look at yourselves! Why is it that we seem to get more and more like a T.V. series every day?" They all glanced quickly to Jared. "And you can't all blame him, since he's only been here 2 days." Rose huffed and walked out of the room. Selene calmly sat back down and retrieved the book. Brandon smacked Jared once and walked away. Jared proceeded to return to looking over Selene's shoulder.

I went out back, just like I had that morning, and went to the boulder with the stairs. With how late it had gotten, the sun was beating down much harder. I walked for only a few seconds before I heard a few quiet footsteps behind me, which froze at the same time I did.

I resumed, the sound following me. "I know you're back there." Someone sighed and walked forward.

"I thought I was being quiet." Brandon grumbled.

"Yes, you were. And it would work with someone who didn't have enhanced hearing." He nodded.

"Right. Forgot." He put a hand behind his head and grinned.

"Why are you following me, anyway?" His face fell.

"I don't know. I guess to escape Jared. He'll be safe, right?"

"I can't garantee he will escape injury, but they won't kill him."

"I think he needs to learn a lesson. Hitting him isn't really very affective." I glanced over, wishing I could see his face clearly.

"Why are you both so comfortable with us?"

"What do you mean?" I stopped and turned.

"I mean, you didn't freak out and have a heart attaack or something. We aren't human. You aren't bothered by that at all?"

"Well, in Jared's case, he's stupid. He gets straight A's in school and is actually very intellegent, but he really has no idea what's good for him. And I'm living the dream right now. I've always wished thoses fantasy books I read were a reality. And look where I'm standing. Beside a vampire, staying in her house with her two elf friends." He grinned. I shook my head.

"You realize it isn't a very good thing to be standing beside a vampire?"

"And why not?" I ran around him, grabbing him from behind and getting really close to his neck. I moved fast enough that he couldn't see the movement. He went stiff.

"Because. I'm dangerous." I whispered it as threateningly as I could, before releasing him. He didn't really loosen up until I was leaving him behind.

"What was that all about?" He said it quietly, like he feared a bold statement would be bad.

"You shouldn't act like I'm just a story in your favorite book. I'm very real, and a very real threat." He gulped.

"You did, uh... uh... you know..."

"Hunt recently? Yes, don't worry. But don't let your gaurd down so easily, either. Esecially when you're involved with us."

"You have people after you." It wasn't a question.

"Not me personally. But Rose and Selene do, and by being so closely associated with them, I'm in trouble as well."

"Yesterday, right after I said I ran away from being prince, you mentioned that Selene did the same thing."

"I was wondering if you would notice. She is the princess of Icentaitcia, which is the country of elves. She ran away from the title, in fear that she wouldn't be a good ruler. She only wants the best for her people." I sighed. "She might not have the best of methods, or the best of attitudes, but her intentions are pure, and she has a good heart."

"She really doesn't like us, does she?" I looked at him.

"Yes, she does. Jared seemes to have brought out the bad side of them both, but Rose has no problem with you. Selene just doesn't like seeing someone else abandoning their country like she did."

"I'm not abandoning my country at all. I was planning on coming back at any time that something major would happen. The servants hear everything, and they tell my old nanny. She has my phone number."

"Smart. But that's going to backfire if you go back every time something happens."

"I was thinking, either a huge war or Father dying would be almost all I would return for."

"A small list." We walked for only a few more minutes before I turned to the right. He stumbled once and picked up pace behind me.

"Where are we going now?"

"A secret place. You'll like it. It's an underground tunnel system. And convenietly, it's cool." He smiled. The heat was already getting to him, quite obviously on his face.

3rd Person POV

Rose sat down on the front step, overlooking their hill-side property. Or, more acuratly, Selene's hill-side property. It had been a blessing after the tiny apartment they had been forced to stay in the last time they moved.

She sighed and rested her head in her hands. She was starting to worry about herself. She was the Light Master after all, the most powerful of all light magic users, and was known to be exceedingly kind, but she was breaking her own persona. She wasn't even sure why she was being so ruse to Jared. He was annoying, and a bit of a pest, but he really didn't do that much that was bad. He was just the sort that wanted everyone else's attention. He didn't have good methods, though. She should try to respect that.

Quiet footsteps alerted her of someone else's presence. She spun, staring straight into Jared's green eyes. She groaned and turned back, completely forgeting that she was supposed to try to help.

"What do you want?" She snapped. He flinched, but sat down beside her.

"Nothing, really. I just wanted to look around. I've never seen this place, the famous 'privately owned, no trespassing' land." She sighed and stood, strolling calmly to the other side of the porch and leaning against a beam. He laughed, forcing her to turn and glare.

"What?"

"You look like a pouting toddler!" She walked back up and raised a hand to hit him, but he suddenly threw his arms in front of his face. Not that she couldn't break them in the process, but she lowered her arm and relaxed as best as she could. "I'm sorry. I just..." She sat down crosslegged beside him.

"No, I'm sorry. You really haven't done anything wrong, and I'm trying to alienate you. I don't know why..."

"Because I've been more obnoxious than I usually am. Being raised by parents who hate kids isn't the best thing in the world." Rose scoffed.

"Do you learn much about England in Irish schools? About a hundred years ago?" He nodded.

"It isn't the most detailed, but we hear a few of the wierd legends that spread through there. I used to think it was crazy that they claimed to have magical rulers. I'm starting to believe it."

"It is true. At the time, the only major link we had found to Otros Tierras, the Other Worlds, was right beneath England. Even though he wasn't my real father, I was raised by King Micha."

"The King Micha?" She nodded, amused by his sudden energy. "So, that means... that means that you're the missing Princess Rosealina?"

"Yes. What all have you been taught about his rule?"

"Only that he took England to many wars, but the colateral damage was slight and most wars were short. He did a lot of good things for them." He said this matter-of-factly.

"Of course they would make him sound like a hero for England. But that is most deffinatley a lie. He was an evil tyrant. He lead England to a lot of wars in Otros Tierras, too. And that resulted in 75% of magic users in the nation dead. He never won a war there, but he kept going. He let thousands be taken to a brutal death without losing a minutes sleep over it. He tried his hardest to manipulate me into being as evil as he was. When I didn't, I got sent to Spain for a boarding school. I met Selene there, right before she was going to get kicked out. I got her to stay in, and she arranged with her connections for us to have a home. We met Noelle in China a little later." He seemed a little behind.

"Wait, he was the one responsible for all those deaths? What happened to it being an outburst of terrorists after a deal with English government fell through? And you were sent away, not ran away?"

"Yes and yes. So, I think I was raised by a more kid-hating father than your parents." His head drooped.

"Don't think so. I would give anything to have gotten to go to boarding school in a different country. Instead of being beaten for talking at the dinner table when everyone else did." Jared shivered. Rose placed her hand on his shoulder slowly.

"I think we've both had decently rough childhoods."

"You think?" His voice wavered. Instinctively, she scooted closer and placed her whole arm around him.

"At least you got a chance to run away at all. Better late than never. And you didn't have to kill them to get out."

"I heard the King Micha was assassinated by a shadow. Someone was in and out through hidden tunnels in an instant."

"That's me. Right after he very nearly murdered my brother." Her voice took on a darker tone then, filled with anger yet again at him.

"I would say that killing isn't the answer, but I think he really deserved it." He looked up. "I wish I had killed my parents."

"You should talk to Noelle about that. I never killed anyone actually related to me."

"She killed a relative?"

"Not willingly. She couldn't help it."

"But I can. And I wish they were dead."

"No, you don't." She leaned closer to him. "You aren't the type to kill."

"I'm not." He whispered, moving upward to kiss Rose. She stiffened, then released, kissing back passionately.

The door slammed open loudly, breaking the two apart in a rush. "What is going on?" Selene fumed. Jared laughed nervously.

"Funny story..." Rose stood up to face the angry elf princess.

"You were listening to my thoughts. Again! Don't I get any privacy, ever, for the rest of my life?" She screamed at the blonde, who backed away a few steps. Rose seemed to be radiating fury.

"Yeah, but I was just making sure..."

"I'm 134 years old! I can do whatever I want without a second mom!" She shoved Selene inside and snatched the door shut. She turned back to face a startled Jared, her anger disappearing in an instant.

"You are pretty old, aren't you?"

"Yeah. We all are. Older than we look or act like." He shook his head.

"Naw, you do act like you've seen a lot sometimes. All of you." She giggled weakly.

"I'm still babied though. Mainly because I am the baby of this group. And we're all babies to our species of immortal creatures."

"Wierd."

"Yeah." She looked back to him. "I'm sorry about that. I don't like being invaded like that."

"It's alright. I'm sure having someone read your mind all the time is pretty annoying."

"If you plan on staying here, get used to it."

"Well, she can read our minds all she wants. It won't stop me from doing this..." He captured her lips again. They could actually hear Selene yelling from inside.

Noelle POV

"This doesn't look very interesting." Brandon mumbled, as they trecked through the dirt tunnel. It was too dark for him to see, and the air was stale.

"I know. But it gets much better. You can get pretty much wherever you want in the state of Florida from here. This tunnel even goes underwater, into the gulf." I grinned, even though he couldn't see. "And these tunnels have a natural suprise up ahead." I giggled like I had so many years ago. For some reason, I was suddenly becoming the old, human me, giddy and playful. It was strange.

"You weren't this happy earlier..." Oh, no. I wasn't ready to share my past. 151 years hadn't prepared me to tell a word of that first 17.

"That surprise cheers up everyone."

"Alright..." He was sounding very uncertain. Of course, after my previous outburst to prove how dangerous I was, I could really expect him to be alarmed. I was only capable of killing a human with a single bite, and I dragging human him into a dark, unknown place. No biggie.

I could tell light was filling the cavern, because he started looking around. And gasped.

Though I could no longer see, I knew we were finally in the diamond structure. It was pure diamond, a jeweler's delight. Someone, most likely elves, had carved the paths into an intricate system. Doors led into full-sized homes and even warehouses, all the clear crystal. Some places were even made of other colors of the gem.

"This isn't natural, is it?"

"The carvings aren't. But the diamond is. This is Diamante Tu'neles. The only reason I don't use this place for profit is how ancient it is. I think it's elves who built it, but it's hard to decide."

"How can the carve into it? It's the hardest natural substance on Earth." He turned towards me. "Right?"

"The hardest on Earth. Not outside of it." He nodded. "They did this." I walked over to a flat slate, one that hadn't been used. I ran my finger down it once, then pushed down along the same path. An indented trail followed, bits of dust falling to the ground. "Not that hard." He stared on in amazment.

"That's not normal."

"Not to a human. But when your skin is ten times harder than diamond, it really doesn't really pose a threat." He nodded stiffly.

"Ok." He sounded a little weary. "That still isn't normal."

"You'll get used to it, the more time you spend around us. We typically don't do normal things. Are you ready to go back?"

"Not really. Do you know how to read these?" He pointed to the downward symbols next to each door.

"It's Icentaitcian. Selene and Rose can read it, but I never bothered to learn. I don't have a very good standing with the elves."

"Is this a story you'll tell?"

"Certainly. It isn't very long. I was in Ortos Tierras, the Other Lands. That's the second world beyond this one, where Icentaitcia and a few other countries of magical beings are. In Icentaitcia itself, no one but Selene are dark, it's all light and sun. So me coming into that place with all black, glaring at the sun, and radiating darkness, wasn't very good to the locals. I didn't want to come, but for Rose. Anyway, the queen's nephew, not a real heir but still in the royal family, decided to pick a fight. We yelled at each other for a few minutes, than he tried to kill me. I didn't take that very well. Now he's dead, and most elves hate my guts. No biggie." He stared on wide-eyed for a few minutes. "Are you done yet?"

"Sure." He turned and walked deeper into the tunnels, staring at the ever changing markings. "Any idea why they change languages?"

"What?" I followed him to a certain door, trying to make sense of what little I could see of them. Then I recognized the symbols. Our alphabet. Not English, but the same letters. "I don't know. I'll ask Selene tomarrow. That's peculiar."

"These are in Irish." He said, on the opposite side of the hall, pointing a particularly long passage. "'Early on Midnight Morning, the sun shines bright upon night.'"

"I know what that is. Midnight is the day in Otros Tierras that the sky stays black instead of blue, and the moon stays up, but the sun still follows it's normal pattern. Rises and sets just like any other day."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"It does when you understand the depth of magic the Ancients used. They could blot out the sun and stars and make night day and day night. They understood how strong the magic they were taught was, and as they saw the world changing and strong magic become more of a risk with evil, they put all of their teachings onto the Endless Scrolls, nearly 200,000 individual scrolls, and hid them. We don't even know which world they were hidden in, and hiding ourselves from humans makes searching this one much harder."

"Wow. Sounds like there's a lot to learn about your world."

"Oh no, not mine. Vampires are the only ones who don't have a free-standing country in Otros Tierras. So it technically isn't my world."

"See? It proves the point." I laughed.

"Even in my age, I have only scratched the surface of the knowledge of magic. I don't think anyone ever learned it all." He nodded and returned to reading a few of the other Irish phrases. He sighed.

"I guess we should go back." He mumbled sadly.

"Why? No one expects us."

"I'm hungry." As if on cue, his stomach growled. I burst out laughing.

"I guess I'm not as fit as I thought to spend this much time around humans. Come on." He followed silently through the dark entry tunnels, and into the seemingly endless forest.

By the time we got back, it was almost noon. It was an especially hot day, and more humid. Not a good mix. But the house was cool and dry, and no one seemed very disturbed. Brandon went srtaight to the kitchen, before he started yelling at Jared in Irish. I only caught a few words, something about being a stupid baby. I sat down beside Rose, who was reading a book and smiling to herself.

"What are you so happy about?" I asked her quietly. Selene, on the other side of the room, huffed and went outside. I heard something wooden snap, then a loud crash. Most likely the porch being destroyed yet again. We were lucky she was rich.

Rose's head slowly bobbed up, then she tackled me in a hug. "I think I'm in love!" She whispered frantically, hyperventilating.

"Relax." I groaned. "And go on a diet." She grinned widely and got off of me in a rush, bouncing in place. "Ok, you're in love. With?"

"Jared Augastan!" She moved towards me again. I pushed her away, causing her to fall face first on the floor. Then she started giggling and got up just to bounce some more.

"If you don't relax, I'm going to lock Jared up somewhere you will never find. A depressed you is probably better than a love-struck you." She stilled and stared at me.

"Fine. But aren't you happy for me?"

"Of course I am. You're my sister, after all." No, not really. We were very close, and thought of ourselves as sisters.

"You don't seem happy." I hung my head and sat down slowly.

"I'm just confused is all. Don't worry about me." I put on my best fake smile, though Rose having known me for so long saw right through it. She slapped the back of my head. "Hey!"

"Well, be confused, but be confused happily." I looked at her curiously for a second, before we both burst out laughing.

There was another crash, this time of something large hitting a wall. The door was slammed open, then shut, as a frantic Selene flew back inside.

"They're here." We both stood, going serious. "Rose, cast a speed spell. We need to run. Fast." Rose obeyed, before I cast my own spell on both of us. The layers of magic would make her fast enough to keep up, even though she wasn't really as quick as Selene or I, being only half elf. We then darted into the kitchen, the smell of reheating chicken filling everyone's nostrils. I grabbed Brandon, holding him bridal-style, Rose doing the same with Jared. They both protested at first, before seeing our faces.

We ran through the hall to the back door, Selene holding it open and following after we got out.

"Where are we going being held like women?" Jared asked sarcasticly, earning a thump from Rose.

"Don't joke. You should be happy you're with us, or you could be dead. We are going to Diamante Tu'neles. Don't ask. You will see." He nodded, still rubbing his head where she had hit him.