Here's chapter two, mates........enjoy! =):
David pounding on the door of the shed awakened Elaina the next morning. "Elaina! Wake up and get out here! You have to see this!" he cried, his voice muffled from outside her little space.
She jumped up and found her way blindly to the door of the shed. She unfastened the bolt that David had put on the inside of the door for her and rushed outside, barefoot.
"What? What is it?" she cried when she saw David. He took her by the arm and led her towards the shop. When they reached the door, David pointed and said, "Look."
At first, Elaina saw nothing. Then her eyes met a strange sight. David walked towards the far corner and picked up the beautiful iron mask that lay on the workbench. He held it up and Elaina saw that it was skillfully carved with an entrancing, intricate design. It was made to cover the top half of the face, like what one would wear to a Masquerade Ball. And as Elaina drew closer, she saw that the edges were encrusted with tiny jewels, as were the area surrounding the gaps where one's eyes would be. This was obviously the work of a very practiced individual.
"Did you make this?" David asked her.
Elaina looked at him with a shocked expression on her face. "Me? I should be asking you that question. I could never make something so beautiful!"
"Well, this is not the work of my hands," David said, almost sadly, as he set the mask back down. He pulled out one of the chairs that Elaina and Gibbs had used the night before and sat down, resting his chin in his hands.
"I'm afraid I'm baffled," he said, "I don't understand who could have done it. We are the only blacksmiths around here for miles in every direction."
"Maybe it wasn't a blacksmith," Elaina said, a bit hesitantly.
"How do you mean?"
"I mean maybe it........" she sighed, "maybe it was made a long time ago and..........someone........left it here." She knew this was not the case. She knew the thing last night had left it, and she-in her bewilderment-had not noticed it. She loathed lying to David, but she couldn't bear to tell him the truth, for fear he would think her daft.
David raised an eyebrow at her, "Explain yourself."
She sighed and told him about the incident with Theresa and the things she had said. He listened attentively and when she finished he merely looked at her. Then, he sat back in the chair and sighed. He knew she was lying and he wasn't pleased. His gaze told her he was hurt, but he said nothing. Instead, he stood up, patted her on the shoulder and walked out. It pained her to see him like that, and she felt tears come to her eyes. She blinked them away and went to see Gibbs. He would understand.
* * *
When she arrived at Gibbs' home, she did not knock on the front door that recently been painted green. Instead, she went around back to his window. She peered in and saw him at his desk, writing with his back to her.
"Pssst! Gibbs! Open up!" she whispered as she rapped on the window.
He stood up, whirled around and smiled upon realizing it was she. He went swiftly to the window and opened it. He helped her climb in and gestured for her to sit down on his bed. They both did just that.
"Elaina, what are you doing here? If my grandmother finds you here........oh," he shuddered at this, "I'd never hear the end of it!"
"I know, and I'm sorry, but I must speak with you."
"Well..........all right, but not here. Come on." He took her by the hand and led her out the window.
They ran hand-in-hand through the village and towards the river. When they reached the banks, they turned and headed upstream for about one half of a mile. They arrived at a grove of birch trees and wound their way through them until they reached a small clearing that was undetectable from the outside.
Away to the far left of the clearing was a group of dense ferns, and behind them was the mouth to a small cave. They made their way towards it, got down on their stomachs and crawled into the small opening. Although the cave looked small from the exterior, once they had squeezed in, the cave was actually quite large. The whole interior was underground, so it was always nice and cool.
Elaina and Gibbs had come across this cave when they were six years old, almost ten years ago. Every time they were sad or depressed, worried or troubled, they would come here to talk. If they wanted to celebrate, or to laugh, or to just get away for a while, they would come here to relax. It was their special place, and no one knew about it.
Over the years, they had accumulated a few things to keep down in the recesses of the cave walls. Certain imperishable foods, a few of Gibbs' old books and some other random items that may be useful in case of an emergency.
Once they were inside, Gibbs looked around and sighed.
"What is it?" Elaina asked.
"Oh, nothing, just that we haven't been here in some time. Remember the last time we were here? The night before I left?"
Elaina smiled. "Yes, I do remember. We talked for hours. And you promised me that you would come home."
"Well, I have kept my promise, have I not, M'Lady?"
Elaina slipped her arm around his waist. "Yes, you have. And I am eternally grateful for that. How long, exactly, have you been gone? I lost track months ago."
Gibbs thought for a second. "It has been almost............one year and one half I believe. In all that time, you never came here alone, not once?"
She smiled at him. "Not once. I could never come here without you. There would be no reason, it wouldn't be the same."
"I feel the same way," he said, and gestured to the two cloth sacks that they had "borrowed" from Farmer Mason when they were ten. They had filled them with dirt and used them as chairs. It was a bit uncomfortable, but it beat sitting on rocks. It had been Elaina's idea.
They sat down and Gibbs looked at Elaina. Elaina said nothing for a long while, and Gibbs did not rush her. Finally, she said, "Gibbs, we have been friends for an inconceivably long time. Many, many years have gone into this relationship, and not once have I lied to you."
Gibbs just nodded, but his expression was getting more and more worried with every word Elaina said.
She sighed and continued. "Now, I have to tell you something. And you might think I'm crazy, but I need you to believe me!"
"Elaina, you know you can tell me anything, you can trust me."
She hesitated, nonetheless. But after a minute she heaved a sigh and proceeded to tell him all about the creature and the mask, Theresa and everything else. The whole time she was talking Gibbs never uttered a sound, but his expression looked more concerned than ever.
When she finished, she was a bit out of breath and she had tears in her eyes. She took a few deep breaths and blinked the tears away. Then she looked up at Gibbs with a inquisitive look on her face. "Well............am I crazy?"
Gibbs was quiet for a moment, and he looked away from her. She continued to stare at him, and the tears were coming back. He finally looked at her and studied her face for a moment. Then he took her hands in his and said, "Elaina, you have always had an active imagination......."
At this, the tears began to flow freely from Elaina's eyes and she looked down at her feet.
"..........But I don't think even you could come up with something like this. I believe you. Now, stop crying. There is no reason to hide that perfect smile of yours." He lifted her chin and smiled at her.
She looked up at him and laughed through her tears. "Oh, you!" She cried and she hit him on the arm.
He rubbed his arm where she had hit him and whimpered in mock pain. She just laughed and hugged him. "Well, Sir Timothy, I don't know about you, but I am hungry."
Gibbs nodded. "I also," he said. The two of them went to one of the alcoves in the wall and got out some provisions from which to make lunch.
They sat back down to eat, and talked over the whole incident with the mystifying being.
"Well, what do you think, Gibbs? After all, you are the one with the extensive knowledge on things of this nature."
"Well," he said, swallowing a mouthful of food, "from your descriptions of the thing, it sounds almost like a strange kind of faery. I mean, this is most definitely not human, and not even an ordinary kind of creature. But I am almost certain that we have a faery on our hands here."
She nodded. "All right, then, it's a faery until we know otherwise. But, now, we have another quandary to consider. Why did it come into the shop like that? Why did it come to *me*?"
They both sat in silence for a moment. They were both baffled. Suddenly, Gibbs snapped his fingers. "I know! This was right after Theresa left, correct?"
Elaina nodded. "So...........?"
"So..........she left, you threw a temper tantrum, and then the thing comes through your window, correct?"
"Yes, Gibbs, what are you getting at?"
"Well, think about it............you were feeling awful. You had been utterly humiliated, laughed at and made fun of, you-"
"Get on with it, Gibbs."
"Yes, sorry. So, you were feeling terrible, this thing comes through the window and for a moment you were engulfed in this wonderful rush, right?"
"Well, yes but.........wait. I never told you that. How did you know?"
"I know what it feels like to be in love, Elaina."
"In love! I'm not in love!"
"Oh please, Elaina, spare me. You haven't been able to get it off your mind for a second, right?"
"Gibbs..........an oversized faery came in through my window. Would you be able to get that off your mind?"
"Fair enough, but you have this feeling every time you think about it. A little pang that's almost like fear but much nicer in the pit of your stomach. An emotion that is unlike anything you have ever experienced before. It's better than anything you have ever seen, heard, smelled, felt or tasted. Stop me when I'm wrong."
Elaina just looked at him. "You......but......how? I left all of that out! I didn't tell you any of that! How could you possibly......?"
He stared into her eyes for a moment. Then, slowly, he whispered, "Like I said, M'Lady..........I know what it feels like to be in love."
His eyes swept her face softly and he stared back at him, utterly shocked at what she was hearing. But she couldn't look away from him. Their eyes locked and they just gazed at each other.
Then Gibbs looked away and cleared his throat. "In any case, we need to figure out how we are going to get this creature back into the shop."
Elaina didn't answer. She merely looked at him.
"Elaina?"
"Mmm..........?"
"Elaina? Hello? We have a dilemma, here, remember?"
"Oh, yes," she cleared her throat, "well, it's tied to my emotions, correct?"
"Something like that. I think it has more to do with some kind of connection between the two of you. Maybe it's that it watches you and comes when you need it. And, if that's the case, then I think all you would need to do is call on it."
"What if it won't come because you're there?"
"Hm, well, it's entirely possible. Some faeries are like that. Although, as I said, I don't think this is an ordinary faery, if it is one at all. But either way, it's worth a try. If I could see this thing, it would make it a lot easier to determine what it is and what it wants."
"What it wants? I thought it was there because I was sad."
"Or so the theory goes. We should make sure. And, anyway, even if it did come because of some emotional connection, we can't be positive that's all it wants."
Elaina nodded. "I see. Well then, we will have to wait until David goes to sleep. I don't want him finding us trying to summon a faery through the shop window.
Gibbs nodded and said, "My grandmother goes to bed around half past nine. How does ten o' clock sound?"
Elaina thought for a moment. "That should be fine. But don't come to the shop. We should meet here first, just to be safe. We will both head over here once our guardians are asleep, agreed?"
"Agreed. Uh........Elaina?"
Elaina looked at him.
"I......well......." he sighed, "I.........need to borrow a lantern from you. Mine broke on the trip back here."
"Oh.......yes, of course. I........uh......I'll bring one by later on."
"All right, but leave it outside my window. It's still not safe for you to knock on the door."
Elaina sighed. "I swear, you break one window and your marked permanently as a heathen."
"By my grandmother, anyway. If you don't want to be chased away at broom- point again, I suggest you don't let her see you."
"Ugh, it was five years ago! That woman can really hold a grudge, eh?"
"She's stubborn as a mule, Elaina, you know that."
"Yes, well, in any case, I need to get back before David becomes even more upset with me."
"I'll see you tonight, then?"
"You can bet your life on it. But I may be late, wait for me." And with that she was out of the hole and dashing through the birches as fast as she could go.
Gibbs sighed. "Yes, wait for me, too." He climbed out of the hole, also, and headed slowly towards home.
Ah, I am SUCH a genius! I love me! Hehe, well, please r&r, por favor. Gracias, amigos!
Jarreth: This is SOOO cliché!
What's cliché about it?
Jarreth: Oh, please..........she's in love with me, but her best friend is in love with her.......it's like an episode of Dawson's Creek for goodness sakes!
*plugs ears* lalalalalalaaaaaaaaa.......I can't hear yoooooooouuu......
Jarreth: Ugh.........really, if you are going to be a writer, you need to learn how to take constructive criticism!
Not from you, I don't. I refuse to take constructive criticism from a freaking faery!!!!!
Jarreth: Aha, so the truth comes out......
Oh, shut up, you sound like Maxwell Smart......
Jarreth: Who?
Ugh, nevermind. Just keep your shirt on.
Jarreth: Keep my shirt on? Ugh, you mortals and your impromptu little expressions. Next you'll be telling me to keep my pants on as well....
Don't be so sure about that
Jarreth: .......????????????
David pounding on the door of the shed awakened Elaina the next morning. "Elaina! Wake up and get out here! You have to see this!" he cried, his voice muffled from outside her little space.
She jumped up and found her way blindly to the door of the shed. She unfastened the bolt that David had put on the inside of the door for her and rushed outside, barefoot.
"What? What is it?" she cried when she saw David. He took her by the arm and led her towards the shop. When they reached the door, David pointed and said, "Look."
At first, Elaina saw nothing. Then her eyes met a strange sight. David walked towards the far corner and picked up the beautiful iron mask that lay on the workbench. He held it up and Elaina saw that it was skillfully carved with an entrancing, intricate design. It was made to cover the top half of the face, like what one would wear to a Masquerade Ball. And as Elaina drew closer, she saw that the edges were encrusted with tiny jewels, as were the area surrounding the gaps where one's eyes would be. This was obviously the work of a very practiced individual.
"Did you make this?" David asked her.
Elaina looked at him with a shocked expression on her face. "Me? I should be asking you that question. I could never make something so beautiful!"
"Well, this is not the work of my hands," David said, almost sadly, as he set the mask back down. He pulled out one of the chairs that Elaina and Gibbs had used the night before and sat down, resting his chin in his hands.
"I'm afraid I'm baffled," he said, "I don't understand who could have done it. We are the only blacksmiths around here for miles in every direction."
"Maybe it wasn't a blacksmith," Elaina said, a bit hesitantly.
"How do you mean?"
"I mean maybe it........" she sighed, "maybe it was made a long time ago and..........someone........left it here." She knew this was not the case. She knew the thing last night had left it, and she-in her bewilderment-had not noticed it. She loathed lying to David, but she couldn't bear to tell him the truth, for fear he would think her daft.
David raised an eyebrow at her, "Explain yourself."
She sighed and told him about the incident with Theresa and the things she had said. He listened attentively and when she finished he merely looked at her. Then, he sat back in the chair and sighed. He knew she was lying and he wasn't pleased. His gaze told her he was hurt, but he said nothing. Instead, he stood up, patted her on the shoulder and walked out. It pained her to see him like that, and she felt tears come to her eyes. She blinked them away and went to see Gibbs. He would understand.
* * *
When she arrived at Gibbs' home, she did not knock on the front door that recently been painted green. Instead, she went around back to his window. She peered in and saw him at his desk, writing with his back to her.
"Pssst! Gibbs! Open up!" she whispered as she rapped on the window.
He stood up, whirled around and smiled upon realizing it was she. He went swiftly to the window and opened it. He helped her climb in and gestured for her to sit down on his bed. They both did just that.
"Elaina, what are you doing here? If my grandmother finds you here........oh," he shuddered at this, "I'd never hear the end of it!"
"I know, and I'm sorry, but I must speak with you."
"Well..........all right, but not here. Come on." He took her by the hand and led her out the window.
They ran hand-in-hand through the village and towards the river. When they reached the banks, they turned and headed upstream for about one half of a mile. They arrived at a grove of birch trees and wound their way through them until they reached a small clearing that was undetectable from the outside.
Away to the far left of the clearing was a group of dense ferns, and behind them was the mouth to a small cave. They made their way towards it, got down on their stomachs and crawled into the small opening. Although the cave looked small from the exterior, once they had squeezed in, the cave was actually quite large. The whole interior was underground, so it was always nice and cool.
Elaina and Gibbs had come across this cave when they were six years old, almost ten years ago. Every time they were sad or depressed, worried or troubled, they would come here to talk. If they wanted to celebrate, or to laugh, or to just get away for a while, they would come here to relax. It was their special place, and no one knew about it.
Over the years, they had accumulated a few things to keep down in the recesses of the cave walls. Certain imperishable foods, a few of Gibbs' old books and some other random items that may be useful in case of an emergency.
Once they were inside, Gibbs looked around and sighed.
"What is it?" Elaina asked.
"Oh, nothing, just that we haven't been here in some time. Remember the last time we were here? The night before I left?"
Elaina smiled. "Yes, I do remember. We talked for hours. And you promised me that you would come home."
"Well, I have kept my promise, have I not, M'Lady?"
Elaina slipped her arm around his waist. "Yes, you have. And I am eternally grateful for that. How long, exactly, have you been gone? I lost track months ago."
Gibbs thought for a second. "It has been almost............one year and one half I believe. In all that time, you never came here alone, not once?"
She smiled at him. "Not once. I could never come here without you. There would be no reason, it wouldn't be the same."
"I feel the same way," he said, and gestured to the two cloth sacks that they had "borrowed" from Farmer Mason when they were ten. They had filled them with dirt and used them as chairs. It was a bit uncomfortable, but it beat sitting on rocks. It had been Elaina's idea.
They sat down and Gibbs looked at Elaina. Elaina said nothing for a long while, and Gibbs did not rush her. Finally, she said, "Gibbs, we have been friends for an inconceivably long time. Many, many years have gone into this relationship, and not once have I lied to you."
Gibbs just nodded, but his expression was getting more and more worried with every word Elaina said.
She sighed and continued. "Now, I have to tell you something. And you might think I'm crazy, but I need you to believe me!"
"Elaina, you know you can tell me anything, you can trust me."
She hesitated, nonetheless. But after a minute she heaved a sigh and proceeded to tell him all about the creature and the mask, Theresa and everything else. The whole time she was talking Gibbs never uttered a sound, but his expression looked more concerned than ever.
When she finished, she was a bit out of breath and she had tears in her eyes. She took a few deep breaths and blinked the tears away. Then she looked up at Gibbs with a inquisitive look on her face. "Well............am I crazy?"
Gibbs was quiet for a moment, and he looked away from her. She continued to stare at him, and the tears were coming back. He finally looked at her and studied her face for a moment. Then he took her hands in his and said, "Elaina, you have always had an active imagination......."
At this, the tears began to flow freely from Elaina's eyes and she looked down at her feet.
"..........But I don't think even you could come up with something like this. I believe you. Now, stop crying. There is no reason to hide that perfect smile of yours." He lifted her chin and smiled at her.
She looked up at him and laughed through her tears. "Oh, you!" She cried and she hit him on the arm.
He rubbed his arm where she had hit him and whimpered in mock pain. She just laughed and hugged him. "Well, Sir Timothy, I don't know about you, but I am hungry."
Gibbs nodded. "I also," he said. The two of them went to one of the alcoves in the wall and got out some provisions from which to make lunch.
They sat back down to eat, and talked over the whole incident with the mystifying being.
"Well, what do you think, Gibbs? After all, you are the one with the extensive knowledge on things of this nature."
"Well," he said, swallowing a mouthful of food, "from your descriptions of the thing, it sounds almost like a strange kind of faery. I mean, this is most definitely not human, and not even an ordinary kind of creature. But I am almost certain that we have a faery on our hands here."
She nodded. "All right, then, it's a faery until we know otherwise. But, now, we have another quandary to consider. Why did it come into the shop like that? Why did it come to *me*?"
They both sat in silence for a moment. They were both baffled. Suddenly, Gibbs snapped his fingers. "I know! This was right after Theresa left, correct?"
Elaina nodded. "So...........?"
"So..........she left, you threw a temper tantrum, and then the thing comes through your window, correct?"
"Yes, Gibbs, what are you getting at?"
"Well, think about it............you were feeling awful. You had been utterly humiliated, laughed at and made fun of, you-"
"Get on with it, Gibbs."
"Yes, sorry. So, you were feeling terrible, this thing comes through the window and for a moment you were engulfed in this wonderful rush, right?"
"Well, yes but.........wait. I never told you that. How did you know?"
"I know what it feels like to be in love, Elaina."
"In love! I'm not in love!"
"Oh please, Elaina, spare me. You haven't been able to get it off your mind for a second, right?"
"Gibbs..........an oversized faery came in through my window. Would you be able to get that off your mind?"
"Fair enough, but you have this feeling every time you think about it. A little pang that's almost like fear but much nicer in the pit of your stomach. An emotion that is unlike anything you have ever experienced before. It's better than anything you have ever seen, heard, smelled, felt or tasted. Stop me when I'm wrong."
Elaina just looked at him. "You......but......how? I left all of that out! I didn't tell you any of that! How could you possibly......?"
He stared into her eyes for a moment. Then, slowly, he whispered, "Like I said, M'Lady..........I know what it feels like to be in love."
His eyes swept her face softly and he stared back at him, utterly shocked at what she was hearing. But she couldn't look away from him. Their eyes locked and they just gazed at each other.
Then Gibbs looked away and cleared his throat. "In any case, we need to figure out how we are going to get this creature back into the shop."
Elaina didn't answer. She merely looked at him.
"Elaina?"
"Mmm..........?"
"Elaina? Hello? We have a dilemma, here, remember?"
"Oh, yes," she cleared her throat, "well, it's tied to my emotions, correct?"
"Something like that. I think it has more to do with some kind of connection between the two of you. Maybe it's that it watches you and comes when you need it. And, if that's the case, then I think all you would need to do is call on it."
"What if it won't come because you're there?"
"Hm, well, it's entirely possible. Some faeries are like that. Although, as I said, I don't think this is an ordinary faery, if it is one at all. But either way, it's worth a try. If I could see this thing, it would make it a lot easier to determine what it is and what it wants."
"What it wants? I thought it was there because I was sad."
"Or so the theory goes. We should make sure. And, anyway, even if it did come because of some emotional connection, we can't be positive that's all it wants."
Elaina nodded. "I see. Well then, we will have to wait until David goes to sleep. I don't want him finding us trying to summon a faery through the shop window.
Gibbs nodded and said, "My grandmother goes to bed around half past nine. How does ten o' clock sound?"
Elaina thought for a moment. "That should be fine. But don't come to the shop. We should meet here first, just to be safe. We will both head over here once our guardians are asleep, agreed?"
"Agreed. Uh........Elaina?"
Elaina looked at him.
"I......well......." he sighed, "I.........need to borrow a lantern from you. Mine broke on the trip back here."
"Oh.......yes, of course. I........uh......I'll bring one by later on."
"All right, but leave it outside my window. It's still not safe for you to knock on the door."
Elaina sighed. "I swear, you break one window and your marked permanently as a heathen."
"By my grandmother, anyway. If you don't want to be chased away at broom- point again, I suggest you don't let her see you."
"Ugh, it was five years ago! That woman can really hold a grudge, eh?"
"She's stubborn as a mule, Elaina, you know that."
"Yes, well, in any case, I need to get back before David becomes even more upset with me."
"I'll see you tonight, then?"
"You can bet your life on it. But I may be late, wait for me." And with that she was out of the hole and dashing through the birches as fast as she could go.
Gibbs sighed. "Yes, wait for me, too." He climbed out of the hole, also, and headed slowly towards home.
Ah, I am SUCH a genius! I love me! Hehe, well, please r&r, por favor. Gracias, amigos!
Jarreth: This is SOOO cliché!
What's cliché about it?
Jarreth: Oh, please..........she's in love with me, but her best friend is in love with her.......it's like an episode of Dawson's Creek for goodness sakes!
*plugs ears* lalalalalalaaaaaaaaa.......I can't hear yoooooooouuu......
Jarreth: Ugh.........really, if you are going to be a writer, you need to learn how to take constructive criticism!
Not from you, I don't. I refuse to take constructive criticism from a freaking faery!!!!!
Jarreth: Aha, so the truth comes out......
Oh, shut up, you sound like Maxwell Smart......
Jarreth: Who?
Ugh, nevermind. Just keep your shirt on.
Jarreth: Keep my shirt on? Ugh, you mortals and your impromptu little expressions. Next you'll be telling me to keep my pants on as well....
Don't be so sure about that
Jarreth: .......????????????