Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth. But the characters of Angel and Brendan are MINE!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
The Labyrinth's Chosen
Chapter 14
Two days later the town was spotted.
Angelina could have died of happiness.
Not that the past two days had been bad, on the contrary, Brendan had offered to teach her how to use a sword for which she was extremely grateful.
The more skills she could learn in this world, the better she could protect herself. Her mastery of her magic was just as important to her if not more in this world of the unknown.
Her magic was getting stronger by the day. The elementals enjoyed teaching the young lady because not only did the girl obviously enjoy learning, but she was able to pick it up quickly so they were able to move on to teaching her more difficult things.
Needless to say, with yesterday's sword lesson and last night's wind and water lessons, Angel was exhausted, sweaty and dirty. Perfect conditions for a good, hot bath.
So when the horizon began to show signs of the town, she whooped with glee.
"Brendan!" she turned in his direction excitedly.
"What is the name of this town?" she asked.
"It's called Veda, Lina." Brendan said enjoying the excitement in her voice.
'It's nice to hear her happy like that for a change.'
It was true.
Angelina did not like Tinoth at all and so she hadn't really talked much. She spoke to Brendan animatedly when Tinoth was not around, but as soon as he came back she would be silent again.
He hated that!
And he blamed it all on Tinoth.
That stupid elf is scaring his Lina!
Brendan shook his head and cocked his head to the side suddenly.
'When did I begin to feel this way for her? I didn't even realize how much I cared about her until the shadow attacked her that night not too long ago.'
"Are you looking forward to eating real food and bathing in hot water?" He asked suddenly desiring to hear her voice once again.
"I sure am princie!" she yelled back at him.
Charon and Salacia chuckled at this.
Tinoth looked very bored and said nothing.
Angelina turned to look toward the city with another burst of excitement.
'All right, time to actually spend a bit of time away from the guys and have some girl time!' she thought to herself, a small smile tugged at her lips.
"What do you mean you only have two bedrooms?" Asked a frustrated prince.
"I am sorry sir, but we only have two left, we have been quite busy lately." The distraught innkeeper said.
"Why are you so busy?" asked a curious Angelina.
She had no idea why Brendan was making such a big deal about this, she would take one room and the guys could take the other.
"Well, you see milady, everyone is making a journey to the high queen's realm for a special event that will take place in a month. It's a tournament." The man said acting self important at the knowledge that he knew something that this obviously sheltered little girl didn't.
"A tournament?" she questioned, eyes alight in excitement.
Brendan broke in abruptly.
"Yes well, sir here is your payment for the rooms. We will be retiring to our chambers for the night my good man. Please have our meals delivered to our rooms." He said swiftly.
"Absolutely sir, here are your keys milord. Now you are to go up two flights of stairs and take a right, the last two rooms at the end of the hall are yours. They are directly across form one another."
"Right, thanks." Brendan said shortly, almost glaring at the innkeeper.
The prince ushered the elf and the human up the stairs quickly.
When they get to the rooms, Brendan gave Tinoth a key.
"Have a good night Tinoth." The elf departed quickly, he felt a storm brewing.
"Um, Brendan, what's going on? How come you are NOT staying with him and letting me have my own room?" she asked getting very angry.
"Well, actually Lina, elves have this thing about sleeping in the same room as other males. If they can help it they are not supposed to sleep close to other males, it does something to their pride. It's a big deal to them. Quite strange really." He pushed his way past her into 'their' room.
"Excuse me? Because elves have a problem with their ego means that I don't get any privacy. Not to mention what people would think of me, I mean I am here in the Underground forever. And I have to bathe Brendan and I really just wanted to relax! I can't do that if we are sleeping together!"
"Really, Lina, I didn't realize you wanted that out of our relationship." The prince teased.
"Brendan!"
"Lina, is it really that ad staying in the same room with me? I though we were doing a whole lot better. As friends I mean. We sleep under the stars together, why can't we stay in the same room?"
She had to admit that the idea appealed to her. She loved being alone with him although he would never know that.
She looked at his face closely. She found herself wondering what he was feeling when he said that because he looked...sad.
Almost like he was disappointed that she didn't trust him.
Angel walked over to him and tentatively put her palm on his cheek.
Her touch sent shivers down his spine and caused both of their hearts to begin beating erratically. Brendan liked this feeling... a lot.
"I am sorry." She whispered softly, "I trust you with all of my heart. I think we are doing great with our friendship Brendan."
'Just a friend huh?' he thought somehow disappointed with what she said.
She withdrew her hand and sat on the bed opposite of him.
Wanting to keep any conversation going to cover up what was obviously an 'awkward' moment he asked her a question. He had wanted to ask this question for a while, ever since the encounter with the shadow man.
Brendan took a deep breath.
"Angel, you never talk about you parents, why is that?"
'I knew he would be curious about it sooner or later. Have to be careful with what I say though!' she thought to herself.
"What do you want to know?" she asked cautiously.
"What were they like? And what are they doing now?"
"Well," now she was the one taking a deep breath, "my father was a very kind man. In my world he would be considered a black man, he had darker skin but he was very nice and very wealthy and from what I understand he loved my mother very much."
"Was? You said was a lot." Brendan said confused.
"He died. I think." She replied.
"You think?!" Brendan asked surprised.
"well, when I was fourteen he was diagnosed with a disease, I don't remember what is was called, but he left my mother and I to go to a doctor in another country thinking that maybe he could help dad get better."
A storm sounded outside in the distance.
"What happened?"
"He left and never returned."
Brendan gaped at her in disbelief.
"We had, of course, assumed the worst and just figured he had died there." The tears were coming now. These were, after all, the first memories of the hell her life had become.
"I am very sorry Lina, I did not mean to bring about such painful memories." His voice was tight with an unknown emotion. He was crushed that such a nice person had to endure so much.
They didn't say anything more to each other that night.
Brendan lay awake that night thinking of the events that had transpired a few short hours ago.
To say that he was shocked was an understatement.
It seems that his hate for Sarah had been sorely misplaced. That woman and her daughter had suffered so much. No longer did the prince harbor ill-feelings toward her.
But then he began contemplating other things and began delving into what his feelings were for Angel. When he was through he was overwhelmingly happy and terrifyingly dismayed at his answers.
Angel woke up the next morning with a sore throat. She had spent most of the night awake and trying to keep her sobs from being heard by Brendan, until she remembered her abilities and put a silence wall up and then let out all of her anguish.
She had forgotten how badly she had been hurt during those years after her father had left to die.
Angel had dated many men to try to forget all of the pain she had gone through as a young adult, but all the guys wanted from her was to say that they had a gorgeous girlfriend. Although, she never agreed with what they considered beautiful, she had always thought her beauty, if it indeed was beauty, was stupid because it did nothing to heal her broken family.
All of her relationships had been built on her looks and later on sex. She hated it!
She had only had sex with two of her longer relationships. Both of these relationships had actually been broken off by the men, they complained that she spent to much time taking care of her mother and that's why she was in a home to be taken care of by people other than her.
She always grew so angry about it but she knew she couldn't take care of her mother forever. She regretted ever thinking those thoughts especially now that her mother was gone.
She had been lonely even while Sarah was still alive.
Most of the time to keep Sarah from going into tirades about the 'Underground' the personnel at the home had her take drugs to calm down. Unfortunately, when she took these she was next to impossible to talk to, and Angel always ended up putting her to bed and going home.
Once again Angel wished desperately that she had known about the Labyrinth earlier, she would have never agreed to let Karen put her mother away.
After pondering about last night she looked over into Brendan's bed.
'He really is the sweetest man.' She thought dreamily.
'If only I could make him fall for me before seeing my face. Then he wouldn't just like me because I am somewhat pretty. I don't want him to be like every other guy I have dated.'
She had been raised to be modest.
She also had been raised to be mean to people who had the misfortune to still be asleep after she woke up.
She put her silence wall around herself and tip toed over closer to Brendan's bed.
Swiftly and quietly, she began to put her spell of pulling moisture out of the air to work.
When she had enough water ready she carefully positioned the cold ball of water over Brendan's head.
Then she got back in her bed and prepared to watch fireworks.
She let the ball drop.
An angry yell pierced the morning air.
"Just think of it as payback for not letting me have my own room."
He still wasn't talking to her. They were making their way down to breakfast.
"Look, I am sorry okay? I couldn't help it you just looked so peaceful and handsome..."
Angel clapped her hand over her mouth.
'Oh I did NOT say that!'
Now a smirk was planted firmly on his face.
"Why Lina, you think I am handsome?' he teased.
In reality, his heart had leaped into his throat at her little confession.
"All right owl- boy, lets go eat breakfast, please, I am starving." She ignored the scowl that appeared on his face.
Serves him right.
"I will have you know that the owl is considered the wisest of animals." He spouted darkly.
"Good for you. I am sure that turning into one gives you all the wisdom of the ages." She said sarcastically.
He laughed at this. "No it doesn't. But I will live long enough to acquire me own wisdom and knowledge, and by then I will still look like this." He gave her a dazzling smile after he bragged.
"Yes, you will wont you? But I certainly won't be there to see it." She said almost sadly.
Brendan stopped in his tracks.
He had forgotten that she was human.
The prince had explained at breakfast that the next leg of the journey would be getting a bit difficult.
"I know for a fact that the next two days you will not be getting any sleep at all."
This caught her attention.
"There is a huge magic lake that we have to cross. We will be able to walk across it but we have to sleep on it as well. The only thing is even in out sleep Tinoth and I are able to keep ourselves on top of the water. You have no magic and you may not be able to handle that." He said matter of factly.
"Well, why can't we take a boat?" Angelina said with a tight voice.
"Charon and Salacia." He said simply.
"It will be fine, human, we are here to keep you safe." Tinoth said unconvincingly.
"Lovely." Angel snapped at the now snickering elf.
"Shut up both of you." Brendan spat at them. He was still shaken about his realization before breakfast." Let's just get across the lake and get on with the next stage of our journey ok?"
"Sure Brendan." Tinoth said brightly.
Angel just glared at the two men balefully.
It looked like a normal lake, but you could definitely tell that is wasn't. The air around the place was saturated with magic, leaving a strong tingling feeling in the back of each of their minds.
Concentration was going to be necessary to be able to walk across. The simple belief you could do it was enough, but it had to be maintained throughout the crossing.
Angelina watched Brendan, Tinoth, Salacia, and Charon walk across the water with ease.
'Eventually, this will get difficult for you, if you need help don't hesitate to ask me alright?" Brendan asked softly.
Angel still stood on the bank with a look of determination plastered on her face.
Brendan came a bit closer to the bank of the water he was standing on and held out his hand.
She took a step... and felt something solid beneath her.
She let out the breath she was holding and took the fae princes' outstretched hand.
And they didn't let go of each other for a while.
AN: Hello! I am sorry it took me awhile to update! I decided to give ya'll a ling chapter to make up for it. I really hope you like this chapter. Thank you guys for your reviews, I just love reviews!(sigh) Hopefully ( I am not sure) I will be able to update once again before the 4th(my wedding day) I still have loads of stuff to do! Wish me luck or better yet pray that everything goes well. Thanks again people, please review!
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