WHOOOOOOOOOOO WE'RE ALMOST IN THE FORTIES THREE CHEERS FOR MY LONGEST STORY EVEEEEEEEER!
Review Replies:
Jesseromaeve: Heh, I suppose it would, but I don't think I'm going to do that. I had considered it, though. And, as stated previously, there will be no Jesskas in this. No one in the New Order will be in any kind of romantic relationship. All of the pairings were listed in an AN when the new arrivals got here.
GuestPerson13: Hey! I am so happy you love my story so much to read it three times, of all things, you've got no idea. As for season two, of course I'm writing in season two! I am so pumped for it! I'm refusing to spend the last of my money just so I can buy it as soon as it comes out. However, it will be a while before I get to writing it, which is completely fine as it will give me time to buy and play the next ones, as well as for them to come out. As for Jesse and Lukas bonding moments, I don't see why not! And the Ivor-Jesse father-child thing, I loved the way it was portrayed in Hybrid, and I'm looking to see if there's a way to put it into Movie Mode... perhaps with the black hands? Wow, thanks, this reply has just given me a new idea!
NarutoLunatic: Yup! I'll be writing in season two as well. However, I'm considering taken away some characters, especially since new ones will be coming in, but I'm not sure yet. There are a lot of them, though.
666: I need reviews like this in my lIFE!
666chibi: Heh, I suppose. Hey, are you the same person I replied to directly above this one?
Avatar Ninja: Yeah, good choice!
TheSilentFury: I'm just gonna jot that down...
Avatar Ninja (again): *rolls eyes* As said before, there will be no relationships with anyone in the New Order.
Gamerwhogames: *snorts* Staring stairs, ha. We'll be getting into Aiden's head eventually. Right after episode five, I think. So glad you're excited about updates!
TheLion: Thank you! Especially for saying not to feel pressured to update, I seriously appreciate it. Ah. Potatoes and fudge. Glad you liked the Magnugaard fluff in the last chapter, there'll be some more in the next one and both Soren and Gabriel mention their relationship in this one. And yes. Poor everyone. I am so evil to them.
Finn: Oh, cool! Hope you enjoy(ed?) yours!
kookie1234: Don't worry, thing's will get better for him after episode five. This is basically his turning point.
The Bronipegusisters Studios: Haha, that would be amazing. Perhaps I'll put it in, since I'll be doing season two and all. Thanks! I very much enjoyed my cruise. Not sure if I've lost weight from all the walking about or gained weight from all the free food.
Cassie: Yeah, I've got a countdown and everything! Season two will be released on July 11th, exactly 24 days from the postage of this chapter!
the indecisive bird: The hands seem to be reminding people of a lot of things. haha. Thanks!
TheAmberShadow: You mean like in Decibles? Hell yes. And oooooo, interesting theory! Jesse's twin sister, eh? Or the mansion being alive? I like 'em. Yeah, Cassie seems like she's got something mentally wrong with her, doesn't she?
Kaos Ruin: Haha, don't wanna pee you off.
ChoyofBonk: The talk will probably take place sometime after episode five.
Movie Mode
Episode Five: Order Up!
Part Thirty-Nine: Release, Part Three
Even though there was comfort in the confirmation that Jesse, Lukas nor Isa were going to be dying anytime soon, there was still a tension in the air. It was less noticeable, less thick, and didn't leave the entire audience's skins crawling as though a million tiny fire ants were running up and down their bodies.
But it was still there.
Aiden hadn't spoken a word for a very long time. Jesse couldn't remember the last time he'd talked during the episodes. Episode four? Three, even? He didn't know. Frankly, at this point, he didn't care all that much either.
Except... they'd survived. They were okay. All three of them. And Aiden hadn't said anything to him. Hadn't fought back when he'd attacked him, hadn't screamed that he was a maniac, although he hadn't exactly been all that aware of what was happening.
When was the last time Aiden had sent them a glare? Or a sneer? When was the last time he'd mocked them or snorted or laughed or even rolled his eyes? When was the last time anyone had done something like that to them?
With a start, Jesse realised he couldn't remember. Now that he thought about it, the earliest he could remember Aiden being at all nasty to them was when he'd been doing farmwork with himself, Maya and Lukas. Jesse was almost certain he'd done something mean afterwards, but... that had been a while ago.
He shook his head, glancing about for the boy. It took him a moment, but he eventually spotted Aiden standing near the back of the room, arms crossed, staring at his shoes. The bruise Jesse had left on his jaw stuck out like a sore thumb, bright purple and turning yellow around the sides. He didn't look angry. He didn't look annoyed.
He looked sad.
Jesse tore his eyes away from him, pushing those thoughts out of his head with an almost unnecessary ferocity. He was too tired, too stressed, to be thinking of things like that. He knew that, at some point, he was going to have to talk with Aiden. Even though he wasn't sure what he was going to say. What either of them were going to say.
But, for now, he didn't want to think about it.
"Alright," said Otto, raising his voice like a professor making sure he'll be heard all the way from the back of the lecture hall. The chattering that had started up after the episode had been paused subsided, every head turning to look at the robed referee. "Are we all agreed to play the next round of Release?"
At the various nods, Otto continued, "This round, the teams will be switching places: Team A, you will be the Hiders. Team B, you're the Seekers."
"This is going to be easy," muttered Magnus, leaning back in his seat and grinning. Ellegaard sent him a glare, but it didn't contain as much heat as it could have. It was more competitive than annoyed.
"As done before," said Otto, "The Hiders will be given a five minute head start. Seekers, you have those exact five minutes to figure out where to place your Belgium."
"That's not fair!" Maya protested, "Team A had half an hour!"
"Yes, well, that half hour proved to be unnecessary," Otto gave a small smile, "Besides, the winners always get difficulties, don't they?"
There were a few grumbles from Team B, but no one protested further. Otto nodded at this. "Split into your teams."
They did as he said, Team A sitting on the right side of the room, closest to the door, and Team B sitting on the left side of the room. Otto pulled a golden clock from his pocket, setting a timer, and held up a finger.
"One," his middle finger popped up, "Two," he held up another, "Three!"
Immediately, Team A scrambled to their feet, some tripping over each other, and dashed out of the watching room. As soon as they were gone, Jesse turned to his team.
"Okay, where are we putting the Belgium?"
"The kitchen?" Axel suggested, trying- and failing- to suppress a grin, "I can be the guard."
"How about the Guest House?" said Lizzie, 'Guest House' being the unofficial name of the left wing, which housed mainly bedrooms, "That place can just be downright confusing at the best of times."
"Or the basement, perhaps?" suggested Soren. A shiver wracked Lukas's spine.
"I'd rather avoid going down there for the time being."
"Three minutes," called Otto. Jesse's heart gave a small leap. He hated being timed.
"Okay, okay," he said, hastily, "Er... the back of the house?"
"But that's where they kept their Belgium," Ellegaard pointed out, "We can't both have the same Belgium."
"I suggest the library," said Isa, "There's only one way in and out of that place."
"Except it's full of portraits," Harper pointed out, "Who knows how many of them can be secret passageways?"
"Look, we've only got a couple of minutes, could we please hurry this along?" asked Lukas.
"How about the attic?"
Blinking, they turned to look at Gill, who's cheeks reddened at the sudden attention. Awkwardly, he cleared his throat, "It's, uh... confusing. Filled with bookshelves. And the only proper way up it is the ladder."
"Okay," said Jesse, nodding slowly, "Let's just go with that."
"But who's being the guard?" asked Em, her face set in all seriousness, "Facemeat?"
They looked at Facemeat. He wasn't paying attention, too busy chewing on his dirty finger nails. Sensing their eyes, he blinked at them, thumbnail still between his teeth. "What?"
"I... don't think that's a wise choice," said Soren.
"Well, what about Reginald?" suggested Stampy, "He's all guard-y like."
Reginald's lips twitched at that, "I thank you, but I'm afraid I must decline. I am needed to protect m'lady." This was an odd thing to say, especially after just watching said "m'lady" kick all their butts to hell and back. Isa rolled her eyes at the Head of Guard, but was smiling.
"One minute, Team B!" said Otto, "Just choose anyone!"
"Okay, okay," Axel said, jabbing a thumb at himself, "I'll be the Guard, you guys just go and find those A-ers!"
Lukas raised an eyebrow at him, "Uh... 'a-ers'?"
Axel's cheeks tinted pink, "I'm not very good with names."
"He shouldn't be the guard!" protested Hadrian, turning to Jesse, "We, uh, need him in the field. I can be guard."
"Time's up!" exclaimed Otto, "Go, go, go!"
"Okay, Belgium's in the attic. Axel, you're the Guard," said Jesse, launching to his feet with surprising speed, "Go!"
With that, they all sprinted out of the watching room and into the hall. Hadrian scowled, but did so as well. Feet pounded against wooden floors, a small thrill shooting up Jesse's chest. He was excited, despite himself, and couldn't find much reason why he shouldn't be.
Eventually, the sound of the others quietened, and then vanished entirely. Jesse, with a stitch creeping up his side, came to a stop. The excitement dwindled, then went out completely, like blowing out a candle. From the back of his mind surfaced an image of cold, black hands, wrapping around him, strangling him, stealing away his breath.
He should have told someone. Anyone.
Why hadn't he?
Because it hadn't happened, said the walls, oh, you silly little boy, the stress is getting to you.
He rubbed at his forehead. Of course it hadn't happened. Since when did black hands come from the walls?
Then again, since when do the days never end? Since when do you get videos that show you the future? Since when is he seen as a leader? Since when do you just get randomly plopped into a creepy as hell mansion with secret passageways and potential death traps for a movie night?
Silly little boy, the walls purred, It didn't happen.
Didn't it?
He shook his head. Clenched his eyes shut. It happened. It had happened. Right?
Wrong.
He took a deep, shaky breath. Something nudged his leg and he jumped, nearly out of his skin, head snapping down and coming face to face with a concerned looking Reuben. His little pig oinked, snorting, little noise twitching cutely. Jesse took a few more steadying breaths, and abruptly realised he was trembling.
He fell to his knees, pulling Reuben tight against him in a hug. The pig whined, confused and concerned, but Jesse offered no explanation.
"It happened," he muttered, earning a confused snort from Reuben, "It happened. Right?"
Wrong.
He opened his eyes (when had he closed them?) and glared at the walls. They remained still and silent.
"It happened, it happened," he whispered, holding Reuben tighter. He looked down at the floor, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "It- It happened..."
The walls seemed to shift. Was that a black finger, poking out of the wood? Was that an arm, appearing and then vanishing like a black fish leaping out of water? He clenched his eyes shut. He didn't want to look at the walls.
"It-" his voice caught in his throat, as though someone had punched him in the neck. He swallowed thickly. In his arms, Reuben gave a squeal, louder this time, concerned and confused and on the edge of terrified.
"It didn't happen," said Jesse. He held Reuben closer.
"It didn't happen."
Soren poked his head around the corner. Seeing no one, he continued down the hall, trying to keep his footsteps light encase a Hider was nearby. He raised a hand, absentmindedly, and trailed his fingers along the wall.
The mansion was extraordinary, even to him. It's architecture was plain and simple, made solely out of wooden blocks (a burning hazard, he noted), but it wasn't this that he found extraordinary. It was how it seemed so much bigger once you're inside it, how the corridors twisted and turned and left you bewildered and realising you were back where you started. It wasn't as massive as one might think, for once you knew where everything was, it almost homely.
But what impressed Soren the most wasn't the decoration, or the main build of the mansion. Rather, it was the passageways, hidden in plain sight, connecting and interlocking and, from what happened to both Jesse and Lukas, annoying. But, so far at least, not deadly.
After all, that potion could have easily been poison. And that fall could have easily been to stone rather than water.
"After all these years, you still have that ridiculous beard."
He jumped, spinning around. A smile graced his lips as the words registered. Harper slid her hands into the pockets of her coats, stopping just in front of him, regarding him with soft eyes.
"Harper," he said, surprised by how quickly he was slipping back into her company, "My beard, as it has always been, is magnificent."
She laughed, stepping forwards and hugging him. He immediately hugged back.
"Oh, it's so good to see you," she said, "I wasn't sure if you were PAMA or not," she gave a small sigh, "Still not, if I'm being honest."
"PAMA?" repeated Soren, as they separated, "Who's PAMA?"
Harper shook her head, still smiling, "It's not important. Who are... your new friends?"
Soren blinked, cracking another smile as he rubbed at the back of his neck, "Oh, uh, them? They're the rest of the Order of the Stone," he faltered, "Well, the old one, anyway," he shook his head, smile returning, "The one in the blue armour is Gabriel, and the two dorks in the red and green are Magnus and Ellegaard."
"Ah," Harper's smile widened slightly, "They like each other?"
Soren laughed, "You have no idea."
"What about the, ah..." she wracked her brain for a way to describe him, "The beardy guy?"
"That's Ivor," said Soren, "He's, uh, kind of the reason all this happened, actually."
Harper's eyebrows rose to her hairline, "Really?"
Soren nodded, "Yeah. The five of us have been a little distant for the past few years, but, well..." he shrugged, smile suddenly turning bitter, "I suppose watching one of us die and the other getting amnesia brought us all back together."
Harper's eyes widened. She opened her mouth to say something, but she didn't get the chance, because at that very moment the door directly across from them opened and Milo froze in its frame.
For a moment, they stared at each other. Then the innkeeper dashed down the hall as fast as he could, skidding around the corner, Harper and Soren watching after him.
Harper blinked, slowly, "Is he on our team?"
"I don't think so," said Soren, "He did run."
They looked at each other. Then, with a competitive gleam in their eyes, they took off after the unfortunate innkeeper.
Maya pressed her back against the wall, heart thumping in her throat. She tightened her grip on the wooden pickax she'd been able to craft with some spare wood from chopping trees to pass the time during a break. When had that been? Certainly not anytime soon.
How long had they been here?
The floorboards creaked, and she took in a sharp hiss of breath, pressing herself further against the wall as though trying to vanish into it's surface. She clenched her eyes shut, holding the pickax to her chest. She decided, right then and there, that she preferred being a Seeker.
She heard the person- a large one, by the sound of it, but she could be wrong- on the other side of the pillar, closer to the stairs. To Maya's left was the door leading into the second living room, but she'd have to come into sight to get to it. If that happened, all they would have to do was follow her and she would be dragged off to the Belgium.
The person came to a stop. She held her breath, afraid that she'd made a noise. But then the footsteps continued, quietening and then vanishing entirely. Maya stayed where she was, then slowly released her breath, shoulders slumping in relief. She began to inch towards the door leading to the second living; maybe there was a chest or a closet she could hide in, although she couldn't remember seeing one in there. It wouldn't hurt to check, though.
However, she didn't get very far before a beefy hand curled around her arm.
Maya screamed, spinning around and stabbing them in the arm with her pickax. They flashed red with a yelp, automatically releasing her, and Maya ran as fast as she could around the thick pillar, feet pounding as she dashed up the stairs. Behind her, the person cursed loudly.
For a moment, she thought she'd got away- but then she ran smack dame into someone. They tumbled to the ground in a painful heap of limbs, Maya cracking her head against the floor. Groaning simultaneously, they looked at each other, struggling to register the other.
There was the pounding of footsteps up the stairs, soon followed by a pounding of two footsteps from the hall. Soren and Harper appeared around the corner, while Em emerged from the staircase, all three Seekers coming dead on either side of them.
"Ah," said Milo, resting his head back and grimacing at the ceiling, "Ow."
"Okay, okay, okay!" Olivia winced, pain flaring up her arm from it's twisted position it was being forced into, "Let me go, I'll go to the Belgium!"
Grinning, Facemeat let her up, and she quickly retracted her arm, rubbing her now sore shoulder. The scarred Gladiator pointed down the hall, "It's in the attic."
"Right," Olivia muttered, skirting around him and hastily making her way towards the direction of the ladder. Facemeat watched her go, as though to make sure she was actually going to the attic, until she was halfway up the ladder. Satisfied, he went off in search of anymore potential victim.
Sighing at being caught so early (and at how bad her shoulder was hurting), Olivia pushed open the trapdoor and clambered through. She wasn't the first time she'd been in the attic, since she'd been one of the first ones to come up here, but that didn't mean she was a big fan of it.
The attic was a place of bookshelves, cobwebs, randomly placed chests with just as random stuff in them, other seemingly random things like pumpkins and armour stands, and more cobwebs. It wasn't that bad when she had something with her, but now that she was alone, she felt as though she were being watched.
"Er, hello?" she called, tentatively taking steps deeper into the maze of bookshelves, "Guard guy? Gal? Guard gal?"
"Who are you calling a gal?"
Relief washed over her like a wave, and she let out a breath she hadn't been aware of holding, "Hey, Axel."
Her large best friend smiled, gesturing her into the little 'clearing' that he'd claimed as the official Belgium. He'd must have been busying himself by clearing cobwebs, for long trails dangled from his fingers, unnoticed, and torn webs swayed gently from where they were attached to shelves and ceilings in a nonexistent breeze.
"Hey, 'Livia," grinning, Axel gestured to the empty Belgium, "Looks like you're our first prisoner."
Olivia laughed. It was only a game, after all. Her smile faltered slightly when she realised that was what she would tell herself back when they first started entering the Endercon Building Competition. She quickly pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind.
"Yeah," she said, "That Gladiator guy jumped on top of me."
Axel winced sympathetically, "Facemeat? The one with the blind eye?"
Olivia nodded, absentmindedly rubbing her shoulder. The pain was starting to fade now, thankfully.
"Yeah, I'm real glad I didn't run into any of them when I was a Hider," said Axel, "Although Jesse had a bit of trouble with the horned dude, didn't he?"
Olivia cracked a smile, "If anything, I would be more worried about running into Jesse."
At that, Axel gave a hearty laugh, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye, "Yeah. Horn dude's learnt his lesson."
"Who is this 'Horn Dude'?"
They turned, just as Milo and Maya entered the Belgium, having caught the last part of their conversation. Olivia waved the question off.
"We're talking about the Gladiators."
"Oh, those guys?" said Maya, "I just got taken down by the one in green."
"She is not a Gladiator," Milo said, "I believe I have heard the purple suited man refer to her as a former one, though."
"Em doesn't sit with the Gladiators," Axel pointed out, "She sits with Nell, her teammate. Besides, she would be wearing something like them if she were a Gladiator, wouldn't she?"
Olivia nodded, "Yeah, she's in a team suit."
"How did you get captured, Milo?" asked Axel. Milo's mouth twisted in distaste.
"I was doing just fine," he announced, crossing his arms and sending Maya a scowl, "Until she ran into me."
"On accident!" said Maya, affronted.
Milo rolled his eyes, "Of course it was."
"What happened?" asked Olivia. Maya sighed.
"I was running from the girl- Em, did you call her?- and I ran right into Milo, who was running from Soren and the white-haired woman."
Axel winced, "Sounds painful."
"It was," said Milo, rubbing a new bruise on his elbow. Maya winced, brushing a finger at the lump forming beneath her hair.
The trapdoor creaked as it was opened once more. The four occupants of the Belgium turned, just in time to see Reginald leading a half-blind Slab towards them.
"That's not very fair," said Maya, frowning, "He can't see."
"It's alright, little miss," Slab assured, "I had insisted."
Reginald helped the Gladiator sit down against a shelf, then gave a nod in Axel's direction, before making his way back towards the ladder. Axel and Olivia looked at Slab for a moment, then at each other. Axel shrugged.
"How are your eyes?" asked Maya. Slab lifted his massive shoulders in a shrug.
"They're healing. The potion master said he'll be able to quicken it's process soon."
"Wow," said Axel, planting his hands on his hips and surveying the Belgium with a grin, "We're doing pretty good so far."
Milo hummed, "I suppose. You do already have four of us."
"Yeah," said Olivia, "We'd only captured Ellegaard after almost twenty minutes. It's only been ten."
"But we could be freed," Slab pointed out.
"Yes," said Maya, "There is that."
Once more, there was the creak of the trapdoor, soon followed by footsteps. They turned expectantly to the path leading to the trapdoor, Axel bracing himself just encase it was someone trying to free the others.
Mevia emerged, muttering angrily to herself. Silently, she plopped herself down a little ways away, nodding in Axel's direction. He relaxed, and sent Olivia a grin. She simply rolled her eyes.
"Who is it?" asked Slab, squinting in Mevia's direction, "They look blue."
"It's Mevia," said Maya. Slab nodded, smiling in thanks, although it was in the direction of a shelf rather than Maya.
"How were you caught?" asked Milo.
"Hadrian," said Mevia, anger beginning to subside, "Caught me off guard."
Olivia nodded, stopping when she spotted a flash of yellow out of the corner of her eye. She looked in it's direction, frowning.
Then Nell's blond head appeared above a bookshelf, sending her a wide grin and two thumbs up. Olivia blinked at her dumbly; looked at Axel, who hadn't noticed; then blinked at Nell again.
With a heavy sigh, she put her head in her hands.
This wasn't going to end well.
Gabriel shifted, his bottom starting to go numb. The newly crafted wooden sword in his hand poked painfully at his side, and he was starting to feel a bit claustrophobic. He should have realised, he supposed, that Lukas was quite a bit smaller than him, and that just because the blond could fit in a double chest, that didn't mean Gabriel wouldn't find the encounter to be uncomfortable.
And that is exactly how he found it.
Uncomfortable.
Grumbling under his breath, he shifted again, trying to get into a better position. Perhaps he could get out and find a better hiding spot, a closet or something. It had been a while since he'd heard anyone.
Making up his mind, as well as deciding that getting caught would be a lot better than sitting in his current cramped position for an hour, Gabriel creaked open the led of the double chest, peeking out just encase his ears were deceiving him and there was someone out there.
Thankfully, the bedroom- he wasn't sure whose; a rose sat in a flower pot next to the bed- remained empty. He crawled out of the chest, a relieved sigh escaping his lips as he stretched out his aching muscles. He must be getting old.
There was no closet or any other form of hiding place in the bedroom, although he knew this already. He strode across the room, sheathing the wooden sword for later use, and poked his head out the door and into the hallways.
The closet that Ellegaard had told them was another trap (the same one that had led to her being thrown into the Belgium) was directly next to him, but, with recent events, he had decided to avoid it. The rest of the hall was empty, although with it's many twists, turns and unpredictable corridors that seemed to pop out of nowhere, it was hard to truly say. He hoped it was empty would be better wording.
Gabriel inched into the hall, closing the door behind him. Listening carefully and watching where he put his feet less he walk right into a trap, he made his way down the hall. The portraits, big and small and everywhere, almost seemed to watch him, although he supposed this was his own paranoia. He rolled his eyes at himself. Leave it to him to become paranoid at a mere game.
Then again, they'd always been cowards, hadn't they? Nothing without their damned Command Block.
So where did that leave them, after the destruction of the Witherstorm? Ivor, as it was shown at the beginning of episode five, remains close to the New Order, giving them tips to where they could find treasure. But where did that leave Soren, Magnus, Ellegaard and himself?
No. Ellegaard had died.
Were they grieving for her? He probably was. Perhaps they had built a memorial. Or at least a grave. Magnus would probably have buried himself in rebuilding Boom Town, only to destroy it again. Or perhaps the death of Ellegaard would leave him a shell, and he'd no longer have the urge to blow things up. Magnus had always been an emotional one, although he hid it well. Only twice had Gabriel seen him cry, both times when he thought he wasn't being watched.
And Soren. He'd run off as soon as things started to go bad. Did he return to the End? Their old, demolished temple that the New Order had only partly rebuilt for shelter? Did he gather the things Ellegaard had dropped after she poofed, and bury them in a chest beneath a tree? Or did he simply stand, surveying the destruction, and wish for death?
Gabriel shook his head. No. No. He would not allow his thoughts to wander down such dark paths. He vowed, much like he was sure Magnus himself had, to not allow Ellegaard's life to end like it had on the screen. Nor would he allow Magnus to take her place, or Soren to run when faced with danger.
He didn't care if he still got amnesia. He didn't care if he wouldn't even remember taking this vow.
He would not allow it to happen.
His thoughts were interrupted by the creaking of floorboards. Gabriel came to a stop, hand immediately finding the handle of his wooden blade. He listened, head cocked, limbs frozen and muscles tense in preparation for a fight or a flight.
Then, again, the creaking of floorboards, followed in near immediate succession by the snorting of a pig. Gabriel's grip on the sword's handle tightened. He slipped around the corner, to a dead end, pressing his back against the wood.
Footsteps met his ears next, the click of shoes on wood, the trotting of hooves. Reuben the pig passed the intersection that served as Gabriel's hiding spot, stopping to sniff at a patch of floor, but continuing upon finding nothing of interest to a pig.
Jesse followed him, muttering something to himself that the warrior didn't catch. He was still in those dungarees- not that they didn't suit him- but it left Gabriel wondering if everyone had simply forgotten about the clothes that they had hung out a little while ago. Surely they were dry by now.
Jesse came to a stop, and Gabriel stiffened. The boy seemed to pause for a moment. He tightened his grip on the sword. If he was spotted, he would aim for the knees, try and knock him over, then make a run for it. If his memory was correct, the second kitchen wasn't all that far from here, and there was a door leading into the Guest Wing from there. He hadn't already lost him by that time, he could lose him in the mess of bedrooms.
Then, arm automatically coming up to cover his mouth, Jesse sneezed.
"Bless you."
Nearly leaping out of his skin in shock, Jesse spun around, and Gabriel realised his mistake not a moment later. Cursing his own politeness and praying the rest of the Order never found out about what he'd just done, he pulled his wooden sword from his scabbard and lunged.
Jesse stumbled back, and the tip of the sword grazed his knees. But, being wood, it didn't even tear the clothing covering them. Within moments, Jesse had drawn his own wooden sword (the same one, Gabriel thought at the back of his mind, that must have broken in the woods, all those episodes ago), holding it in front of him defensively. Reuben, who had almost reached the end of the hall now, spun around with a startled squeal.
Gabriel parried, wooden sword smacking against wooden sword, and spun, sticking out his leg to trip the boy up. However, Jesse jumped, stumbled, and regained his balance, then moved to hit Gabriel over the head.
He ducked, watching Jesse's feet, and felt a smirk curl his lips. The boy may be impressive on screen, but none of it had played out yet; the only practice he'd had so far was on an armour stand with an angry- but defenceless- pumpkin on it.
Gabriel swung his sword at Jesse's head, making sure his movement was fast but not too fast, and Jesse ducked almost immediately. At the same time, Gabriel changed his attack, and kicked the boy in the chest.
Jesse grunted, landing on his back painfully, a hand coming up to clutch at his most probably aching chest. Gabriel made to run in the direction of the second kitchen, but he didn't expect a pink blob to start running circles around his feet.
With a gasp, he tripped, falling to the floor and biting his tongue. Grimacing, he pulled himself to his feet, leaning away when Reuben once more darted passed him in a final lap, before leaping onto Jesse's chest just as he was getting up.
The poor boy yelped, once more slamming into the floor. He groaned, Reuben licking at his face, unawares that he had just made him feel a hundred times worse.
Wincing sympathetically, although he no doubts that, had Reuben seen him as a threat, it was Gabriel who would be groaning on the floor, the warrior took off running.
Behind him, he heard Jesse say "Love ya too, buddy" in a terribly pained voice, and laughed despite himself.
He was more than content to allow the boy to lead the New Order.
MY MUM'S SHOUTING AT ME TO GET THE COMPUTER OFF SORRY CAN'T COMMENT HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE CHAPTER BYE