AN: Hi peoples! Another chapter for you, aren't you happy? I don't have much to say so on to the story. Thanks are at the bottom.
Please, comments, criticisms, anything, are appreciated and welcome. They are like Godiva chocolate to me...mmm. So please write!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter Eight:
Susan found them in the old recording studio in the school. She paused to listen to the song, enchanted by the slow sad lyrics and flowing background music. She had no idea that this was what they did in here. She had just assumed like everyone else that they went in here for privacy. She quietly listened to the song, not wanting to interrupt them just yet.
Falling stars spend all their time
Burning bright and fast
People who see them call them signs
Don't they know? Fallin' stars don't last.
Dreamers seem to spend their days
With their heads in clouds
To never wake up would be so sweet
Too bad it doesn't work that way
This world is full of sinners and schemes
And love is just wishful thoughts
'Cause fallin' stars just never last
And you can't rely on dreams
Susan felt like crying. It felt as if the song held no hope. The music died out and she sniffed. Lei and Avalon turned around at the sound.
"Sorry I interrupted. That is such a sad song!" she said, smiling at them. Avalon smiled back at her.
"It's okay. That was what I was writing in creative writing a few days ago. Remember?" Susan nodded, understanding. She wrote it when she was so bummed about Lei.
"Well, I have the charms for you, they're at my house because I didn't dare bring them to school. If you guys want to come over now then you can. My mom's not there." They nodded and quickly turned off the equipment, ejecting a tape before they did so.
"Is that what you were recording on?" she asked. Avalon nodded.
"Yeah, it has all my best songs on it. I plan on sending it away to try and get someone interested in me." Susan smiled as they headed out of the school and turned down the road that led to her house.
"Well, you're certainly good enough to make it. I wish you luck!" Avalon sighed.
"I guess that means that there isn't a charm for that huh?" Lei laughed.
"If there was then she and every other witch would be rolling in the dough."
"Too true," Susan admitted wryly. "Here's my house." They had stopped in front of a jungle. Literally. Plants were growing everywhere around the house, giving the cute little home a definite exotic air. Avalon nodded in approval.
"I always admired this place. I didn't know you lived here." Susan nodded and led them down a plant-choked path.
"As you can see, both my mother and I love plants. It really comes in handy sometimes because almost all of these can be used in spells." She left them in the living room as she went to get the charms she had made. She came back out holding a necklace and presented it to Avalon.
"Here, this way you won't look like a total doofus carrying around a bunch of pouches.
Avalon looked at the necklace in her hands. It was beautiful, if a rather simple design. The simple chain was short enough that it would fit like a choker around her neck, with strands of silver chain hanging down to make the actual necklace part. Each individual strand held three semiprecious stones of varying kinds and at the end was a small silver ball. They were cut so that when she put it on the multicolored strands would form a sort of design. The very middle one held a black Dahlia, which Susan had explained earlier as the sign for a witch. They had decided earlier to pass her off as a lost witch who had just recently been discovered. Avalon smiled her delight, smiling even more as Lei helped her to put it on.
"I thought you might like it," Susan said happily. "Each of the strands are a different spell. See, the little balls on the end hold the herbs that were needed." Lei nodded, impressed.
"I didn't know you could do this kind of thing Suze," he commented. She shrugged.
"Jewelry is my specialty." She pointed to her own various jewelry. "Oh! I almost forgot!" she exclaimed, turning to get something else. She returned quickly, hand clutching something else. She opened her hand for them to see and Avalon couldn't help but give a kind of stifled gasp. In her hand were three exquisitely worked rings, two smaller and obviously made for female hands and one larger, more masculine one.
"These are so whoever is wearing them will know if one of the others is in danger," she explained, handing out the rings. Avalon admired hers as she slipped it onto her third finger. The band was silver and engraved with minute carvings that seemed to move in front of her eyes, making it impossible to make out what they were. The moment she slid it onto her finger they seemed to glow like embers, then like molten silver until the light died out, leaving stationary etchings. She blinked, trying to decide whether she had imagined the light show. **Well, they are magic** she thought to herself. She looked at the stones set in the silver. There were three, the middle one being an opal that shimmered in the dim light. It was square instead of round, which she thought slightly strange. On either side of it were two triangular midnight blue stones which she suspected to be lapis lazuli. Susan and Lei's were almost identical to hers, but the engravings seemed a bit different and Lei's band was larger. Avalon was surprised that the ring seemed to fit her finger perfectly; she could barely feel its weight on her finger.
"These are absolutely beautiful! Did you make them?" she asked of Susan, admiring her hand from a distance. The ring seemed to shimmer of its own accord. Susan shook her head and laughed.
"I wish! These were made by a Harman witch a long time ago for my great Grandparents and their best friend. The Harmans are the most powerful witch family in the Nightworld, kind of like the Redferns but without the appalling stupidity," she explained for Avalon's benefit. Lei shot her a dirty look but didn't say anything. It was obvious he was used to the snide remarks. "There's actually a very interesting tale behind them." Lei cut her off before she could tell it.
"As much as I'd like to hear this, I have to go," he said. Avalon smiled sweetly up at him.
"Really? Why?" Her voice was much too syrupy to be real. Lei sighed impatiently, not amused.
"Because unless you want a couple of holes in your throat, I need to feed," he snapped. Avalon laughed and Susan joined in.
"Okay, you go. I want to hear this story." He nodded and left quickly. Susan smiled at her friend and gestured for her to follow her into the den.
The room was very cozy, done in cream and muted golds like wheat and airy browns. There were a few chairs and a couch, along with a TV and stereo. There was a faint smell of lilac hanging in the air, and it gave the whole room a light atmosphere. A large sliding door let copious sunshine in and warmed the air.
Susan left, coming back after a moment with two drinks. "I hope you don't mind iced tea. My mother is convinced that soda is the devil in disguise and never lets it in the house." Avalon laughed.
"That's fine with me, I like iced tea." She took a cup and sipped the contents. It was refreshing, with a slight hint of raspberries and mint. She sat down on the couch at Susan's beckoning, tucking her knees to her chest and curling her bare feet under her. They had all taken their shoes off at the front entrance. Susan took a sip of her own cup and then cleared her throat.
" My great grandmother was an extraordinary woman. She was a lost witch, our line, the Qwirans, were only rediscovered about a hundred years ago. Anyway, she commissioned these rings for herself and two of her friends. My great grandfather and my grandma's godmother. Of course at the time Great Grandpa Jason wasn't married to Great Grandma Morgana, nor was he even aware that she liked him. He was about as clueless as Lei. Which brings me to my ulterior motive. The ring that I gave Lei has a spin off of the Awareness spell. It's should help him realize his feelings for you, whatever they are. It helped G.G. Jason certainly." Avalon looked at her, smiling happily at the other girl's deviousness.
"Cool. G.G. Jason?" she asked, a little confused. Susan nodded her head.
"Yeah, stands for great grand-whatever. It's easier to say." Avalon nodded her understanding and the other girl continued her story.
"I guess I'll start at the beginning. It's a fairly tragic story. G.G. Morgana and Jason lived in Massachusetts, right before the Civil War. They both had pretty prominent families and were good friends when they were little, along with Morgana's friend Diamonde. Diamonde was a witch by the way; she was the Harman who made the rings. When Jason turned thirteen though, he was sent to school back in England. Why I'm not sure. I think his father wanted him to get abroad and see things other than their hometown. Morgana and Diamonde were still the best of friends though.
" When Morgana turned sixteen her father started to allow her to attend balls. He probably wanted to show her off for suitors. G.G Morgana was beautiful. My mother says I actually look a little like her but I also have quite a bit of my father in me. She had blonde hair like mine and green cat's eyes. Anyway, the real story starts when she went to a ball held by the Trables. They were the most prominent family in their town and that was where she met Adam. Grandma says that G.G Morgana used to talk about him all the time. He was very handsome, I've seen pictures. And he must have had a bit of Harman blood in him because G.G Morgana often talked about his beautiful violet eyes. She said you could see his soul through them."
She paused for a moment and took another drink. Avalon shivered. She had a pretty good idea where this was going and it was scaring her. Unaware of her friend's troubled thoughts, Susan continued.
" Adam was the son of Mr. Trable. I'm sure Morgana's father would have been very happy with that match. Unfortunately, tragedy struck. A vampire came after Morgana for some reason, no one was ever sure why. Adam tried to protect her but the vampire killed him. Morgana went a little crazy after that, at least that was everyone thought because she kept on raving about vampires and black eyes devouring her. Everyone thought that a murderer killed Adam, or perhaps even Morgana herself. They tried some poor miller and hung him for the crime later on.
"Diamonde was the only one who believed Morgana because she of course knew that vampires were real. Morgana's father died soon after that from a heart attack supposedly and Diamonde and her family took Morgana in and told her about the Night World. They knew that the vampire who was after her wasn't done yet and that their friend was in danger. They tried their best to protect her but she was determined to go after the person who had killed Adam. Reluctantly, they had to let her go and Diamonde went with her.
"They traveled everywhere, France, the Caribbean, Russia, anywhere that the vampire might be found. They killed many vampires but none of them knew who had killed Adam. In England they came across Jason, who immediately rejoined them and helped them out. They actually became fairly famous slayers. Morgana was fast falling in love with her childhood friend and that calmed her a bit. But he was completely oblivious to her. Finally Diamonde made the rings so they would always know if one of them was in danger and where. That would help them with their mission. And she put the extra spell on Jason's ring. She refused to use a love spell because those never worked the way people wanted them to. This was much more subtle. And it worked. About a year and a half later my grandmother Lilia was born and they settled down here because no one would bother them and they thought they would be safe from anyone trying to get revenge. G.G Morgana wasn't too keen on giving up on her mission but she did it for the sake of their new baby. She hoped that her daughter would never have to see the violence she had. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. When my grandmother was ten, the vampire that killed Adam came after Morgana again. This time he killed her and Jason as well. Grandma Lilia went to live with Diamonde.
"That's why we live here. We haven't really done anything wrong like most of the other Night Worlders here but we stayed for protection, even if it was false in our case. No one ever knew who the vampire was that went after Morgana, or even why he did it. It's still a mystery."
Susan finished there, smiling sadly. Avalon sat staring into space for a moment, thoughts racing within her mind. Finally she spoke.
"You said that you had seen pictures of Adam," she said slowly. Susan nodded.
"Do you want to see them? I have pictures of G.G Morgana and Jason, Diamonde too." Avalon nodded, twining her fingers together to stop them from trembling. Susan got up and returned a second later with a leather-bound photo album. She sat back down and opened it up, passing through the pictures until she came to a page near the back.
"There," she said, pointing. There were two pictures there, both grainy with old age and blurry and black and white from lack of technology. The first was one of three young people, two women and one male who looked to be about twenty or so.
They were actually smiling for the camera, which Avalon thought was a bit strange considering the time frame. Then again, both of the women wore trousers and men's shirts, which couldn't have been the normal fare back then either. One had dark hair, pulled up into a utilitarian bun at the nape of her neck and an oval face. Pretty but nothing compared to the beauty next to her. The other girl had her platinum blonde hair in braids wrapped around her head like a crown, shining brightly in the sun. Her features were fine and regular within the heart shaped face. Not to mention the fact that they were utterly and completely familiar to Avalon. She had seen them in her dreams often enough.
Avalon stifled a little gasp of recognition and turned to the other picture dreading what she would see. It was a newspaper clipping about the unfortunate murder of Adam Trable. The picture was yellowed and crinkled with age but the picture was still in pretty good shape.
A solemn boy around her age stared out at her, eyes light gray in the black and white picture. Avalon knew from experience that they would have been a clear luminescent purple in real life, like looking at the sun through a thin piece of amethyst. And the hair would have been chestnut brown with red highlights and the lips would have been turned upward in a happy smile.
Avalon turned away, biting her lip in an effort to not cry. Susan seemed to sense that something was wrong.
"What is it?" she asked, worried. Avalon shook her head and stood up.
"I have to go. Thank you for the charms and the story," she said. Susan stood up as well.
"No problem. Come talk to me any time you want," she said, confused but trying to hide it. Avalon thanked her once more and stepped through the door, needing time to think.
*~*~*~*
My warm and loving thanks to all these splendid people for sending in their comments!
Starwisher: eek! You want to know? Uh, hope this helps then...thank you so much for your enthusiasm! It is much appreciated!
Diomede*: I love plot twists too. It almost always takes me until I'm about halfway done with the story before I actually have any idea where I'm going with it. I'm about at that point now. Thanks for your reviews! Although semi-sporadic, the are always insightful and I love them!
Hazel Harman: Oh, please don't be mad at me! Why?! I'm glad that you like it though, enough to put it on your favorites. Thank you! And please! Don't be mad!
LisaB: Hi! Sorry about the whole excitement thing, or lack thereof. I'm not all to good at writing adventure, although there is plenty of it in here, especially near the end! Don't worry, hang in there and it should get better in about two or three chapters.
Kitty: Hi chica! Well, I took your advice and read your story The Diamond Heart. It's awesome! I sent plenty of reviews. If anyone out there is reading this, go read her story! Thanks for all your lovely compliments.
Night Goddess: Is this fast enough for you? the same day no less! I don't think this will be finished for a while yet so you'll just have to be content with another chapter. Sorry! And thanks for your review!
M.Shee: Thanks so much for all your lovely commentary! As I said before, You are so sweet! And thanks for telling me where you read this. I don't really care that you haven't commented before, once is enough to me!
I'd appreciate any comments my readers might have. As you can see, I try and answer questions and give personal thanks to all who write to me. So please do me a favor, (and get yourself a nice thank you letter in the process) and write what you think in the pretty little box down below! Thanks!
Kae
Please, comments, criticisms, anything, are appreciated and welcome. They are like Godiva chocolate to me...mmm. So please write!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter Eight:
Susan found them in the old recording studio in the school. She paused to listen to the song, enchanted by the slow sad lyrics and flowing background music. She had no idea that this was what they did in here. She had just assumed like everyone else that they went in here for privacy. She quietly listened to the song, not wanting to interrupt them just yet.
Falling stars spend all their time
Burning bright and fast
People who see them call them signs
Don't they know? Fallin' stars don't last.
Dreamers seem to spend their days
With their heads in clouds
To never wake up would be so sweet
Too bad it doesn't work that way
This world is full of sinners and schemes
And love is just wishful thoughts
'Cause fallin' stars just never last
And you can't rely on dreams
Susan felt like crying. It felt as if the song held no hope. The music died out and she sniffed. Lei and Avalon turned around at the sound.
"Sorry I interrupted. That is such a sad song!" she said, smiling at them. Avalon smiled back at her.
"It's okay. That was what I was writing in creative writing a few days ago. Remember?" Susan nodded, understanding. She wrote it when she was so bummed about Lei.
"Well, I have the charms for you, they're at my house because I didn't dare bring them to school. If you guys want to come over now then you can. My mom's not there." They nodded and quickly turned off the equipment, ejecting a tape before they did so.
"Is that what you were recording on?" she asked. Avalon nodded.
"Yeah, it has all my best songs on it. I plan on sending it away to try and get someone interested in me." Susan smiled as they headed out of the school and turned down the road that led to her house.
"Well, you're certainly good enough to make it. I wish you luck!" Avalon sighed.
"I guess that means that there isn't a charm for that huh?" Lei laughed.
"If there was then she and every other witch would be rolling in the dough."
"Too true," Susan admitted wryly. "Here's my house." They had stopped in front of a jungle. Literally. Plants were growing everywhere around the house, giving the cute little home a definite exotic air. Avalon nodded in approval.
"I always admired this place. I didn't know you lived here." Susan nodded and led them down a plant-choked path.
"As you can see, both my mother and I love plants. It really comes in handy sometimes because almost all of these can be used in spells." She left them in the living room as she went to get the charms she had made. She came back out holding a necklace and presented it to Avalon.
"Here, this way you won't look like a total doofus carrying around a bunch of pouches.
Avalon looked at the necklace in her hands. It was beautiful, if a rather simple design. The simple chain was short enough that it would fit like a choker around her neck, with strands of silver chain hanging down to make the actual necklace part. Each individual strand held three semiprecious stones of varying kinds and at the end was a small silver ball. They were cut so that when she put it on the multicolored strands would form a sort of design. The very middle one held a black Dahlia, which Susan had explained earlier as the sign for a witch. They had decided earlier to pass her off as a lost witch who had just recently been discovered. Avalon smiled her delight, smiling even more as Lei helped her to put it on.
"I thought you might like it," Susan said happily. "Each of the strands are a different spell. See, the little balls on the end hold the herbs that were needed." Lei nodded, impressed.
"I didn't know you could do this kind of thing Suze," he commented. She shrugged.
"Jewelry is my specialty." She pointed to her own various jewelry. "Oh! I almost forgot!" she exclaimed, turning to get something else. She returned quickly, hand clutching something else. She opened her hand for them to see and Avalon couldn't help but give a kind of stifled gasp. In her hand were three exquisitely worked rings, two smaller and obviously made for female hands and one larger, more masculine one.
"These are so whoever is wearing them will know if one of the others is in danger," she explained, handing out the rings. Avalon admired hers as she slipped it onto her third finger. The band was silver and engraved with minute carvings that seemed to move in front of her eyes, making it impossible to make out what they were. The moment she slid it onto her finger they seemed to glow like embers, then like molten silver until the light died out, leaving stationary etchings. She blinked, trying to decide whether she had imagined the light show. **Well, they are magic** she thought to herself. She looked at the stones set in the silver. There were three, the middle one being an opal that shimmered in the dim light. It was square instead of round, which she thought slightly strange. On either side of it were two triangular midnight blue stones which she suspected to be lapis lazuli. Susan and Lei's were almost identical to hers, but the engravings seemed a bit different and Lei's band was larger. Avalon was surprised that the ring seemed to fit her finger perfectly; she could barely feel its weight on her finger.
"These are absolutely beautiful! Did you make them?" she asked of Susan, admiring her hand from a distance. The ring seemed to shimmer of its own accord. Susan shook her head and laughed.
"I wish! These were made by a Harman witch a long time ago for my great Grandparents and their best friend. The Harmans are the most powerful witch family in the Nightworld, kind of like the Redferns but without the appalling stupidity," she explained for Avalon's benefit. Lei shot her a dirty look but didn't say anything. It was obvious he was used to the snide remarks. "There's actually a very interesting tale behind them." Lei cut her off before she could tell it.
"As much as I'd like to hear this, I have to go," he said. Avalon smiled sweetly up at him.
"Really? Why?" Her voice was much too syrupy to be real. Lei sighed impatiently, not amused.
"Because unless you want a couple of holes in your throat, I need to feed," he snapped. Avalon laughed and Susan joined in.
"Okay, you go. I want to hear this story." He nodded and left quickly. Susan smiled at her friend and gestured for her to follow her into the den.
The room was very cozy, done in cream and muted golds like wheat and airy browns. There were a few chairs and a couch, along with a TV and stereo. There was a faint smell of lilac hanging in the air, and it gave the whole room a light atmosphere. A large sliding door let copious sunshine in and warmed the air.
Susan left, coming back after a moment with two drinks. "I hope you don't mind iced tea. My mother is convinced that soda is the devil in disguise and never lets it in the house." Avalon laughed.
"That's fine with me, I like iced tea." She took a cup and sipped the contents. It was refreshing, with a slight hint of raspberries and mint. She sat down on the couch at Susan's beckoning, tucking her knees to her chest and curling her bare feet under her. They had all taken their shoes off at the front entrance. Susan took a sip of her own cup and then cleared her throat.
" My great grandmother was an extraordinary woman. She was a lost witch, our line, the Qwirans, were only rediscovered about a hundred years ago. Anyway, she commissioned these rings for herself and two of her friends. My great grandfather and my grandma's godmother. Of course at the time Great Grandpa Jason wasn't married to Great Grandma Morgana, nor was he even aware that she liked him. He was about as clueless as Lei. Which brings me to my ulterior motive. The ring that I gave Lei has a spin off of the Awareness spell. It's should help him realize his feelings for you, whatever they are. It helped G.G. Jason certainly." Avalon looked at her, smiling happily at the other girl's deviousness.
"Cool. G.G. Jason?" she asked, a little confused. Susan nodded her head.
"Yeah, stands for great grand-whatever. It's easier to say." Avalon nodded her understanding and the other girl continued her story.
"I guess I'll start at the beginning. It's a fairly tragic story. G.G. Morgana and Jason lived in Massachusetts, right before the Civil War. They both had pretty prominent families and were good friends when they were little, along with Morgana's friend Diamonde. Diamonde was a witch by the way; she was the Harman who made the rings. When Jason turned thirteen though, he was sent to school back in England. Why I'm not sure. I think his father wanted him to get abroad and see things other than their hometown. Morgana and Diamonde were still the best of friends though.
" When Morgana turned sixteen her father started to allow her to attend balls. He probably wanted to show her off for suitors. G.G Morgana was beautiful. My mother says I actually look a little like her but I also have quite a bit of my father in me. She had blonde hair like mine and green cat's eyes. Anyway, the real story starts when she went to a ball held by the Trables. They were the most prominent family in their town and that was where she met Adam. Grandma says that G.G Morgana used to talk about him all the time. He was very handsome, I've seen pictures. And he must have had a bit of Harman blood in him because G.G Morgana often talked about his beautiful violet eyes. She said you could see his soul through them."
She paused for a moment and took another drink. Avalon shivered. She had a pretty good idea where this was going and it was scaring her. Unaware of her friend's troubled thoughts, Susan continued.
" Adam was the son of Mr. Trable. I'm sure Morgana's father would have been very happy with that match. Unfortunately, tragedy struck. A vampire came after Morgana for some reason, no one was ever sure why. Adam tried to protect her but the vampire killed him. Morgana went a little crazy after that, at least that was everyone thought because she kept on raving about vampires and black eyes devouring her. Everyone thought that a murderer killed Adam, or perhaps even Morgana herself. They tried some poor miller and hung him for the crime later on.
"Diamonde was the only one who believed Morgana because she of course knew that vampires were real. Morgana's father died soon after that from a heart attack supposedly and Diamonde and her family took Morgana in and told her about the Night World. They knew that the vampire who was after her wasn't done yet and that their friend was in danger. They tried their best to protect her but she was determined to go after the person who had killed Adam. Reluctantly, they had to let her go and Diamonde went with her.
"They traveled everywhere, France, the Caribbean, Russia, anywhere that the vampire might be found. They killed many vampires but none of them knew who had killed Adam. In England they came across Jason, who immediately rejoined them and helped them out. They actually became fairly famous slayers. Morgana was fast falling in love with her childhood friend and that calmed her a bit. But he was completely oblivious to her. Finally Diamonde made the rings so they would always know if one of them was in danger and where. That would help them with their mission. And she put the extra spell on Jason's ring. She refused to use a love spell because those never worked the way people wanted them to. This was much more subtle. And it worked. About a year and a half later my grandmother Lilia was born and they settled down here because no one would bother them and they thought they would be safe from anyone trying to get revenge. G.G Morgana wasn't too keen on giving up on her mission but she did it for the sake of their new baby. She hoped that her daughter would never have to see the violence she had. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. When my grandmother was ten, the vampire that killed Adam came after Morgana again. This time he killed her and Jason as well. Grandma Lilia went to live with Diamonde.
"That's why we live here. We haven't really done anything wrong like most of the other Night Worlders here but we stayed for protection, even if it was false in our case. No one ever knew who the vampire was that went after Morgana, or even why he did it. It's still a mystery."
Susan finished there, smiling sadly. Avalon sat staring into space for a moment, thoughts racing within her mind. Finally she spoke.
"You said that you had seen pictures of Adam," she said slowly. Susan nodded.
"Do you want to see them? I have pictures of G.G Morgana and Jason, Diamonde too." Avalon nodded, twining her fingers together to stop them from trembling. Susan got up and returned a second later with a leather-bound photo album. She sat back down and opened it up, passing through the pictures until she came to a page near the back.
"There," she said, pointing. There were two pictures there, both grainy with old age and blurry and black and white from lack of technology. The first was one of three young people, two women and one male who looked to be about twenty or so.
They were actually smiling for the camera, which Avalon thought was a bit strange considering the time frame. Then again, both of the women wore trousers and men's shirts, which couldn't have been the normal fare back then either. One had dark hair, pulled up into a utilitarian bun at the nape of her neck and an oval face. Pretty but nothing compared to the beauty next to her. The other girl had her platinum blonde hair in braids wrapped around her head like a crown, shining brightly in the sun. Her features were fine and regular within the heart shaped face. Not to mention the fact that they were utterly and completely familiar to Avalon. She had seen them in her dreams often enough.
Avalon stifled a little gasp of recognition and turned to the other picture dreading what she would see. It was a newspaper clipping about the unfortunate murder of Adam Trable. The picture was yellowed and crinkled with age but the picture was still in pretty good shape.
A solemn boy around her age stared out at her, eyes light gray in the black and white picture. Avalon knew from experience that they would have been a clear luminescent purple in real life, like looking at the sun through a thin piece of amethyst. And the hair would have been chestnut brown with red highlights and the lips would have been turned upward in a happy smile.
Avalon turned away, biting her lip in an effort to not cry. Susan seemed to sense that something was wrong.
"What is it?" she asked, worried. Avalon shook her head and stood up.
"I have to go. Thank you for the charms and the story," she said. Susan stood up as well.
"No problem. Come talk to me any time you want," she said, confused but trying to hide it. Avalon thanked her once more and stepped through the door, needing time to think.
*~*~*~*
My warm and loving thanks to all these splendid people for sending in their comments!
Starwisher: eek! You want to know? Uh, hope this helps then...thank you so much for your enthusiasm! It is much appreciated!
Diomede*: I love plot twists too. It almost always takes me until I'm about halfway done with the story before I actually have any idea where I'm going with it. I'm about at that point now. Thanks for your reviews! Although semi-sporadic, the are always insightful and I love them!
Hazel Harman: Oh, please don't be mad at me! Why?! I'm glad that you like it though, enough to put it on your favorites. Thank you! And please! Don't be mad!
LisaB: Hi! Sorry about the whole excitement thing, or lack thereof. I'm not all to good at writing adventure, although there is plenty of it in here, especially near the end! Don't worry, hang in there and it should get better in about two or three chapters.
Kitty: Hi chica! Well, I took your advice and read your story The Diamond Heart. It's awesome! I sent plenty of reviews. If anyone out there is reading this, go read her story! Thanks for all your lovely compliments.
Night Goddess: Is this fast enough for you? the same day no less! I don't think this will be finished for a while yet so you'll just have to be content with another chapter. Sorry! And thanks for your review!
M.Shee: Thanks so much for all your lovely commentary! As I said before, You are so sweet! And thanks for telling me where you read this. I don't really care that you haven't commented before, once is enough to me!
I'd appreciate any comments my readers might have. As you can see, I try and answer questions and give personal thanks to all who write to me. So please do me a favor, (and get yourself a nice thank you letter in the process) and write what you think in the pretty little box down below! Thanks!
Kae