Notes: *Kiss for Kris!* ^^; Review please.
Chapter Twelve
The next morning I got up slowly. I felt weird, as if things were different somehow. I stumbled into the bathroom and had a shower. The water was warm, but I felt chilled. Walking into the kitchen I felt a sense of dread. My mother and a strange lady were sitting at the kitchen table.
"Mom, what's going on?" I asked cautiously.
My mother looked up.
"Oh, TK. I'm glad you're awake. Something terrible has happened," she said dismally.
I felt my heart skip a beat. The strange lady spoke up.
"Angel's gone missing," she cried and tears of anguish fell down her cheeks.
So this is Angel's mother, I thought.
"Do you have any idea where she might be?" my mom queried.
I racked my brain, finding it hard to concentrate. Then it came to me.
"The temple," I stated. Angel's and my mothers shared a look of confusion.
"She's in the butterfly room," I told them. The two women stood up from my kitchen table.
"Let's go to this temple," Angel's mom said decisively and she ushered my mother and me out the front door.
When we arrived at the temple, Angel's mother looked around at it in awe.
"Angel spoke of this place. Why didn't I think of it before?" she said to no one in particular.
"The door to the butterfly room is up the back of the shrine," I said and we all walked up to the rear of the temple.
I kneeled down and brushed the wall hangings out of the way. The door was there, but when I tried to open it, the door was locked.
"She's here," I said matter-of-factly. "The door's locked, from the inside."
Angel's mother ran up to the door and pounded on it.
"ANGEL! ANGEL! IT'S YOUR MOTHER! OPEN THE DOOR!" she yelled.
We listened for a noise inside the room, but none came. My mother tried her luck, knocking softer than Angel's mom.
"Angel? Are you in there? It's TK's mom. TK's here and so is your mother. We're all worried about you. Please come out," my mom begged.
Still there was nothing.
"TK, you try," my mom urged me. I walked up to the door.
"Angel?" I asked. "Emma?"
We all held our breath as the door clicked and opened slightly. Angel beckoned me to come in. I quickly ran in before either my mom or Angel's could follow. I heard Angel's mother scream at us and my mother trying to reassure her that I was in here to get Angel out. I turned to Angel.
"Are you okay?" I inquired.
Angel didn't answer but she glanced upwards. I followed her gaze. All the butterflies were gone and so were the silks and the grass. The room looked plain and ordinary.
"Where'd all the butterflies go?" I whispered, afraid that too much noise would shatter the room.
"They left with Angel. All the magic's gone," Angel sobbed, breaking down as she spoke. She sank down onto the bare, wooden floor.
I sat down beside her and held her as she cried.