A/N) Shout out to two more followers! Eeee!
MiraculousNikki: thank you so much for following and favoriting (I'm pretty sure that's a word) my story! And thank you for your support. Review and let me know what you think of the story!
Percabeth and Sophitz Rules: thank you so much for following and favoriting (yup, it's a word now) my story! And thank you for leaving that review as well and for your support!
And, wow, almost 800 views! Y'all are gonna make me cry . . . ;.;
And now, onto another chapter!
Chapter 11
How the heck was any of this real?
This was, like, by far the nicest house ever. No. Not even a house. Or a mansion. Definitely way better than a castle. I couldn't keep my mouth from gaping as i saw the huge structure down the beautifully tree-lined path.
It was a huge expertly cut crystal palace-castle-manor looking thing that seemed to have jumped straight out of a movie. Though, i highly doubt Hollywood would stand a chance against copying this. Several turrets and gables rose throughout the magnificent home, and there was a tower that kind of reminded me of a lighthouse i had once seen throughout my travels along the western coast. They led me up to the massive doors, and i couldn't help but stop and trace my fingers down the delicately braided silver covering the doors.
We entered a large, round entrance hall that sparkled with all the colors of the rainbow, thanks to the sunlight streaming through. I stopped midway and looked around. Della stopped and offered me her hand.
"Come on, dear," She smiled.
"This house is just getting started," Sophie told me. I reluctantly took Della's soft hand in my dirty calloused one. I must look like such a mess to all these Beauties. She led me behind the others through the most spectacular hallway in the world, which was kind of weird, but it was amazing. It was the widest out of the other hallways, and there were these awesome fountains that shot colored water over our heads. I couldn't help but smile, and i was tempted to reach up and touch the water, but i resisted. My smile faded quickly as i was led in to a large living room, with several overstuffed chairs and comfy looking sofas. A soft carpet ran under my feet, but i felt so out of place in all this wonder and finery. I was just dirtying their carpet with my tattered shoes, and when i was offered a seat, i refused and simply leaned against a wall. Silence was my companion for a while as i watched the others. Finally, Alden said in his accented voice, "I'd better let your bodyguards know that you all are safe. You all have caused quite the scene in your absence,"
"Oooh, Gigantor is gonna be sooooo mad," Keefe told Sophie with a grin on his face. Sophie rolled her eyes.
"Ro's gonna be mad too, you know," She answered.
He shrugged. "Nah, Ro loves me."
"Well, Woltzer has to deal with me disappearing all the time, so . . ." Biana added, putting a finger up to her lower lip as she seemed to think for a moment.
"I don't think Grizel will be too mad at me," Fitz said.
"And i have no idea how Lovise is gonna react . . ." Dex told them.
Wait. Bodyguards? What did they need bodyguards for?
Alden chuckled and stood up, holding some sort of sleek silver square in his hand. "I'll be back shortly." He glanced my way before leaving the room, his floor-length cape sweeping elegantly behind his as he did. I stared down at the floor as i felt everyone's eyes turn to me.
"Hm," Keefe said suddenly. I looked up at him, which i immediately regretted. Why was he so darn cute? I've never felt this way towards a boy-or anyone, for that matter- before, so it was really confusing. "When was the last time you ate something?" he asked me. I stared for a long time before blinking.
"Well, let's see," i uncrossed my arms and counted on my fingers. "Was it last Tuesday?" i counted four on my hand and then shook my head, "No, the Friday before that, most likely," i mumbled. I looked up at the others again, who looked like they couldn't believe what they were hearing. "I mean, it's not like i didn't find a decent fruit here and there, but a real meal? Nah, that hasn't happened in forever." i shrugged it off. It was true, though. And i was starving everyday. At least i could manage to get some water whenever i really needed it. But i never begged. I would never ever beg, even if my life depended on it. I may be some useless orphan of no significance whatsoever at all, but that didn't mean i would resort to begging.
Della and Edaline seemed to be the first to recover from the shock. Alden had just entered the room again, and asked what had happened when he saw everyone's shocked and sympathetic faces.
"Alden, this girl hasn't eaten in over a week!" Della told him. His eyebrows shot up and he turned to look at me as i became flushed.
"Well, then we need to get her something to eat right away." Della nodded and practically flew out of the room. Alden looked at the other J.B.s and said, "Your bodyguards are on their way, so be prepared."
"And the punishment Sandor gives you will have no effect on the punishment we will will give you, Sophie," Grady told his daughter firmly.
Alden nodded right along with Sophie. "Same goes for you two," he told Fitz and Biana. They looked down at their hands and nodded.
Della saved us from the following silence by entering the room again with a crystal bowl full of greenish-blue mush in her hands and a spoon. She smiled and handed me the bowl.
"Here you go, dear," she told me. I took the bowl, staring down at the sloshy mush. I poked at it with the spoon. Huh. Maybe they were elves. I mean, this looked nothing like something a human would eat, or . . . . human flesh.
"What, um . . . what is it?" i asked. The others around me laughed.
"Don't worry," Sophie told me. "It tastes like human food, it just looks different."
"Oh, um . . ." i scooped some up in the spoon, feeling rather uncomfortable that everyone was watching me. I just got over it and stuffed the spoon into my mouth.
Wow.
I quickly finished the rest of the bowl of sweet deliciousness. I had no idea which human food it tasted like, but it was definitely meat. And the last time i had meat . . . well, you get the idea. Maybe there were potatoes in there somewhere, too. I dunno. All i knew was that i wanted more, but was it rude to ask for more?
I looked up at Della, who had been watching me the entire time with a smile. She seemed to read my mind, because she took the bowl once i was done and immediately said, "I'll be back with more." And then she left the room.
After two more bowls-which were more filled than the first one-i had a feeling that i hadn't had in the longest time.
I was full.
By then, i had sat on the floor against the wall to eat, because i still didn't feel good enough to sit on the sofas or chairs. I set the bowl down in my lap and let out a satisfying sigh while laying a hand on my stomach.
"That was so good," i said through an exhale to Della. Everyone smiled. "Thank you so much. I didn't deserve that . . ."
"Now now, don't you start with that nonsense," Della said, holding out her hand for the bowl. I handed it to her and she continued. "You were hungry, so of course we would feed you. Why on earth haven't you eaten in so long?"
"And that's what brings us to the upcoming conversation," Alden said loudly, reentering the room. Gosh, i hadn't even noticed he left. What can i say? I was really hungry. . .
I was about to answer, but instead of a question, a scream came out of my mouth, followed by, "Oh my God oh my God Oh my God!" i flatten myself as far as i could against the crystal wall behind me as i watched four huge muscular gray creatures and one other lean, muscular greenish brownish creature come into the room behind Alden. But they all had these weird, curved swords hanging by their sides, which is what scared me the most.
"What the heck are those things!?" i scrambled behind the nearest sofa, peeking out from behind the back and trying to expose as little of myself as possible. Everyone laughed as the creatures looked offended. But, they seemed to quickly get over that as soon as their eyes landed on the J.B.s. Their expressions turned murderous as they marched over to them, and i ducked back onto the ground, expecting them all to be clobbered and killed by the strange creatures. But instead, i heard a squeaky voice say,
"Have you any idea how worried you've made me, Miss Foster?! You have put my title as your bodyguard to shame!"
Wait.
Bodyguard?
These were their bodyguards?!
I looked over the couch again and saw one of the male-looking gray creatures in black pants and bare chest turn to Grady and Edaline.
"My deepest apologies, Mr. and Mrs. Ruewen." i did not expect a voice that high to come out of a creature that muscular.
Edaline smiled and shook her head. "It's alright, Sandor. It's Sophie who should be apologizing to you." She gave her daughter a pointed look, which made Sophie immediately stand up and say,
"Sandor, i am so so sorry. I really am! It's just, we were going to a Forbidden City, and we couldn't bring any of you with us without-"
"You went to a Forbidden City?!" All of the creatures interrupted.
The one creature that was different than all the rest-who also looked female-lifted Keefe up by his collar and snarled, "Are you kidding me? Kid, i don't even want this job. The absolute least you could do is make this easier for me and tell me where you're going! I would have let you go, too," she dropped him back onto the couch, leaving him with a new-found respect in his eyes.
"You would?" he asked, and at the same time, the one called Sandor cried out, "Ro!"
She shrugged. "Too late now. You've lost the very little trust i had in you. Time to work on getting it back," She smiled sinisterly, and i couldn't help but giggle. No one noticed though, because the punishments were still going on.
"You've all lost some of our trust as our charges," one of the female gray creatures said after the rest of the J.B.s apologized. They all looked down at their laps as the creature continued. "And you can expect us to watch you much more closely after this incident."
Sandor nodded in agreement. "Anything could have happened to you!" He looked at Sophie especially. "You could have been kidnapped again! The Neverse-"
Alden cleared his throat, making him stop talking. They all turned to look at him, and then i noticed him nudge his head pointedly in my direction. I sank as far as i could behind the couch with still being able to watch them. All the creatures to in my direction, and i felt my heart pound in my chest.
They were gonna eat me!
"Hm," the one called Ro said, pursing her lips. She stalked towards me, and i scrambled backward, my back pressing against the wall and my hands on the floor as i waited for my fate. My chest rose and fell quickly with deep, panicked breaths as she stared at me with her large gray eyes.
"And what do we have here, huh?" she asked, putting her hand on her hips as the other creatures gathered around me. They looked like they wanted me to answer, but i couldn't find my voice. I was too scared.
"Come on, don't be shy," Keefe suddenly came up behind Ro. He smiled, and walked around the couch to stand next me. He fanned the air between us and said, "wow, that is a lot of fear coming off of you right now."
"What are you talking about . . . ?" i asked, confused.
He smirked and placed a hand on his chest to refer to himself. "I'm an Empath. Empaths can feel people emotions by just touching them. But i'm special, because i can feel people's emotions without having to touch them, especially Foster's emotions." He looked at Sophie and winked at her. I felt my chest tighten a bit. He looked back down at me, and bent over a little, extending his hand out towards me. "But when i do touch someone-" i hesitated a second before taking his hand, "-their emotions are a little stronger. And, i can tell you aren't as scared anymore. I'm a genius." He pulled me up, and i let go of his hand, quickly looking away from his captivating icy blue eyes as i blushed for some strange reason.
"These are our bodyguards," he told me, waving a hand toward the strange creatures. I managed to look at them without running away. And, now that i saw them as good instead of bad, they didn't seem too scary.
Okay, maybe a little.
Sophie, Dex, Fitz, and Biana each stood next to one of the gray creatures, and Keefe went back around the couch to the other one.
"This is Ro," Keefe told me. "She's been my bodyguard for almost a year now." He looked at Ro with wide eyes. "Hey! We should celebrate our anniversary!" Ro rolled her eyes and shook her head. Keefe pouted. "Aw, you're no fun. Anyway, she's an ogre warrior-princess, so you shouldn't mess with her."
"Ah, so there is a brain in that big egotistical head of yours," She said to him, which made the others chuckle. I wanted to, but i was still processing the fact that she was an ogre. And i thought elves would be hard to believe in.
"This is Sandor," Sophie continued with the gray creature next to her. "He's been my bodyguard, and my friend, for about two years." She smiled up at the seven foot tall looking creature, who looked like he was having trouble resisting smiling back. "He, and all the rest, are goblins."
Goblins?
Seriously?
"This is Grizel," Fitz said, nudging his head to the gray creature next to him. "She's the best of all the bodyguards." Grizel smiled and ruffled Fitz's hair, making him duck down out of her reach.
"This is Lovise," Dex told me. "She's amazing, but not much happens with me, so i try to keep her job easy. Well, unless I'm with Sophie, which is pretty much all the time," he grinned at the blondie, and she smiled back.
"This is Woltzer," Biana said. "And i'm pretty sure he's the most patient of all bodyguards, because he's always losing me." She looked at Woltzer with a knowing look.
"Losing you?" He scoffed. "You keep disappearing and running away! It's not like it's my fault you're a Vanisher."
"V-vanisher?" i asked quietly.
Biana looked at me and smiled. "Yup. Which means . . ." she suddenly disappeared into thin air right before my eyes. I looked around for her, but then she popped up right next to me, making a scream come out of my mouth. I clutched my chest and gasped for breath.
"How the . . . What did you just do?" I asked as she giggled.
"Biana, don't scare her like that," Fitz scolded as she skipped back to Woltzer.
"I dunno," Keefe jumped in. "She's kinda cute when she gets scared, don't you think?" He winked at me, and my cheeks got a weird, unfamiliar warm feeling in them.
"My special ability is Vanishing," Biana told me, making me look back at her. "I can let light pass through my body, allowing me to vanish. My mom can do it too, and so can my . . . oh, um, nevermind . . ." A heavy silence followed, and i remained quiet as the Vackers seem to share the same expressions. Sadness, anger, betrayal. I wonder what had happened.
After a few moments, Fitz cleared his throat. "I should probably mention that i'm a Telepath. So i can read minds-but don't worry. I won't read yours unless i have permission. Telepaths have rules in the Lost Cities, and we need to follow them."
. . . He was a Telepath, too?
"I'm a Telepath, too," Sophie added, much to my surprise.
"And an Inflictor, and a Polygot, Enhancer, Teleporter . . ." Keefe counted on his fingers teasingly.
"You have five special abilities?" i asked. "How . . . ?" i only had two.
"It's complicated," she shot Keefe a look before adding, "Most elves only have one special ability, and if they have two, it's usually because they're a Polygot, like me."
"Oh. Then they must be something wrong with me," i mumbled mostly to myself, holding my hands out in front of me and looking them over.
"What was that?" Alden asked as the goblins, ogre, and J.B.s dispersed.
"Oh, um . . ." Should i tell them? Would they think i was weird and end up throwing me out? I didn't wanna leave. The people here were so nice, and the bodyguards seemed nice too, despite all the weapons they had. But . . . if i kept it a secret, and then they eventually found out, they would just get mad at me. Could i trust them? They had mostly proven themselves as being elves, i guess. But trust wasn't really my thing.
"Ebony?" Della pressed in a gentle voice.
That's what help me decide.
"I, uh . . ..um, well, you see . . ." i looked down, and then up at all of them. I stalled for time and moved back around the couch, twisting my fingers nervously.
"I'm a Telepath, too."
A/N) DUN DUN DUUUUUUUNNNNNNN. Even though you guys already knew that XD But, now, the other found out! What will they do? Looks like you'll have to read the next chapter to find out, whenever that comes out . . . Mwahahahaha!
And, i get the feeling that some of you are being suspicious of the little hints of feelings that Ebony has towards Keefe . . . that's all i'm gonna say about that, because, like i always say, suspense is suspense. Let me know what you all think by reviewing, and i might give you a shout out in the next chapter. Also, lemme know if you want any specific POVs. I'm running out of ideas, even though there are like, eight people to choose from. But, i wanna do something that you guys specifically request. So, review! it always makes me so happy when you do. Until next time! *Vanishes away because i am secretly an elf . . .*
