Chapter Six: The Many reflections of a Broken Mirror, Part One

"Who's there???"

"Who's there… who's there… who's there…" came the mocking echoing reply to Augustine's somewhat sharp question. The girl turned around harshly and glared at whatever was behind her, but the creatures of the forest had the nagging habit of hiding in the shadow every time she tried to spot them.

"Filthy little bloody buggers" she muttered under her breath "I can't believe they live here"

There was too much wisdom bottled up in the huge extension of land. She breathed it and the scent was strangely familiar, yet entirely different to what she was comparing it too in her mind. The trees were filled with it too, and seemed almost alive, looming over her like omniscient oracles of doom, seeing tragedy in her near future.

"That's what I get after enjoying some innocent little myth books. I'm paranoiac, but a well-read paranoiac at least" she said to herself and then snorted gracefully, smiling a little "That would explain the voices in my head, on the other hand"

Her ears perked up at the sound of howling in the far distance and she shivered, looking everywhere at once. Her heart was beating wildly and everything she felt told her that it was dangerous ground the one she was crossing. But she had really no choice. She felt tears prick at her eyes. It wasn't fair, she was risking her life, bruising her body for people that had, on top of it all, thrown her into the wild wisdom of a thinking maze.

"Why do those pretty eyes want to shed tears?" a voice asked from nowhere. Augustine turned again all of a sudden and got caught in a bindweed with thorns the seize of needles. She struggled out of the plant's tight grip only to find her clothes ruined. Well, not that they had been a Hell lot better seconds ago, but…

"Little Red Ridding Hood all alone in the forest at Night. That is not safe my dearest. There is a wolf near" the same voice that moments ago warned her seriously.

This time the girl detected the source of the voice. It was a sack of rags that resembled a person in some way, slumped against a tree with a bundle besides him and a hood that covered every aspect or feature of his face.

It was a beggar.

"Hi" she said softly, not knowing if she could trust that old man. Nothing was what it seemed in the Underground, she remembered that all too well. She took some steps towards the man's direction and frowned, expecting the reply.

"'Allo there, little girl" the man said, with a worn-out voice that characterized people of old age "How is it that such pretty little thing ended up in King Gareth's Wisdom Forest?" he asked then, titling his head to a side. His white hair was long and reached way past his shoulders and, as the girl observed, was all tangled and dirty. She took pity on him, all alone as he seemed there in the middle of only God knew where.

"I'm traversing the Labyrinth" she informed him, looking at her watch and frowning "And I don't have much time left. I'm sorry, I don't mean to be impolite, but I must go" she added, having forgotten for a moment that there was a thirteen hour limit. But the man seemed so disappointed all of a sudden that she felt guilty instantly.

"I… I'm sorry" she stammered, sighing "That was very unkind of me, but I didn't ask to be in this situation and many people are counting on me. Besides, the more I am here, the more danger of exposing" she explained carefully, wincing after hearing herself utter that last part. How could she be so careless as to say it aloud in front of a total stranger?

"What was that, little one?" the figure asked, apparently curious. The girl bit her lip out of habit, leaving it even redder than it had been before while she tried to get out of the situation she had gotten herself into.

"Forget I ever said anything" she muttered finally, sitting down next to him and titling her head as well "Why did you call me Little Red Riding Hood?" she asked suddenly, partially to divert the attention from her slip and partially because she was intrigued too "I'm not wearing anything red, I'm afraid"

The old man laughed but it rather seemed like a muffled roar that startled the girl almost to the point of fear. She eyed him thoroughly but his appearance only spoke of calmness and kindness. Though she knew, she really did, that it may be a side of him, but only a side. That person could be just the opposite, she felt it in her bones.

His husky, almost throaty voice was somewhat mocking, but also gentle as he replied:

"Your hair, not too long and not too short, all loose though tangled a little seems so soft to the touch that it almost resembles a Hood. A deep blood red hood"

He had a way to sound feral and harmless at the same time and he was obviously as wise as the forest itself. Those words came out as an omen… An omen that many years later Augustine would remember and realize just how true and how warning it had really been. But that time she just thought it to be enigmatic and set it aside.

Before she could even noticed the old, strange man had reached up with a ragged-covered hand and grabbed a strand of hair between his fingers. His touch was not rude, though, but gentle and smooth, very delicate. She leaned over slightly without noticing and didn't even realize the true meaning of the man's words as he whispered:

"I've been wanting to do that for a very, very long time"

He stroked her hair once more time, brushing her jaw slightly with his fingertips as he did so without the girl noticing. Finally he sighed and pulled his bundle of things in front of her.

"You have been very kind to me, stopping here and wasting precious time talking to me" he said "And I want to give you something in exchange. And I won't take a no for an answer"

He untied his pack and took something from it. It was a small, rounded crystal that reminded her of one of Gareth's own spheres, only smaller and of a milky-white colour that formed a mist that seemed concentrated inside the token. It was attached to a chain that seemed like a thick stream made out of white gold. It was breathtaking and, as soon as Augustine saw it, she shook her head.

"I… I can't accept it, I'm sorry. It's such a beautiful pendant…"

The old man chuckled.

"It's not a pendant, little one. It's a flute. The moment you want it, it transforms itself into an elf-made flute of the finest quality. I don't know what, but you strike me as the flute type of girl. And I really want you to have it, please…" he paused "It was given to me by the muses. It's a kind of charm, you could say, and also an instrument. I hope to hear you play it some time" he added at last, fastening the chain around her neck. When he saw she was about to offer to play now he shook his head.

"Later, child… You'll play for me later. Promise it, if it makes you feel better" he proposed, a hint of something else than goodness in his voice. But the girl didn't notice and simply nodded.

"Okay, I promise" she said smiling and out of an impulse she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek "Thank you for everything, Wiseman" she whispered tenderly, her bright smile still lingering in her ruby-red lips. Then she turned towards the path and disappeared shortly in-between the massive trees and foliage. The so-called Wiseman stood there for some seconds and then disappeared in the midst of glitter and icy wind. Later the same man appeared on the Throne Room and walked towards one of the windows, his rags slowly falling from his body and disappearing or rather fading away before touching the floor. His long hair shortened itself till it only passed his shoulders and became a silvery-white hue. His clothes shimmered and changed to a royal attire of a pitch-black tone except his shirt that was silver. As he gazed at the Wise forest from his position, with one leg perched in the windowsill and the other one in the floor and one of his hands running through his hair his eyes changed back to their usual colors. Steel grey, blood red.

Gareth, King of the Dragons, sighed and touched one of his cheeks with a gloved hand, his look clouding slightly. He closed his eyes tightly and tried to remember the chill mixed with the thrill that had emanated from deep inside him as he had had her so close he could breathe in the puzzling smell that she gave off... She smelled like ice, like vanilla, like... Like midnight.

"She felt so deliciously cold..." he whispered lifting his eyelids slowly, growling low in his throat and then frowning and shaking his head, his unruly locks following the movement in a graceful dance of silver "And I feel like such a fool"

He strode to his throne hastily, whispering something in some unknown, ancient language of the Fae. Finally he slammed a fist against one of the throne's arms and growled again, but this time it was a sound born out of anger. It was a true, lupine growl the one that escaped from his throat, a wolfish howl almost.

"She won't get to me. The game will soon be over. She will loose, but not to the Labyrinth" he paused to create a crystal within his fingers "She will loose to me"

He smiled then, smashing the crystal into a wall and looking as it shattered into a million pieces. Constance was right beside him, but felt reluctant to go to him, since he emanated some kind of invisible force that was overwhelming her, feeling her with fear. She took several steps back and buried her face in her hands, shivering.

"Silently the senses..." the Damned muttered "You will be helpless... and that, my dear, it's a promise"


The weight of the pendant was a comfort for Augustine as she wandered in the midst of the darkness of the Forest. There were no strange creatures lurking in the corners and shadows of it in that part, but the feeling of total loneliness didn't quite catch up with her. She felt still that she wasn't alone, and she had learnt too much of the Underground and of herself to even consider for a moment she was being paranoid. Moonlight lit up the Shakespearian scene before her, creating a feeling of safeness in her, as if the Moon was watching over her. The voices in her head were quiet, but the presence never left her. She was the Lonely, but ironically she never seemed to be alone, and yet in a way she was. It was getting way too complicated.

But the only thing clear, the only truth in the middle of the chaos was one thing: She had to get out of there before it was too late.

"Too late for what is what I wonder" she said to herself. But it was a secret she knew she could unveil at her will, and she chose not to. Whatever it was, it was better off buried deep inside where it was. Nothing good could come out of bringing it to the light in the middle of the Labyrinth. Maybe later, when the whole ordeal was over, she would choose to know what the thing the lie within her was, but that was a thought far from her mind as she concentrated on the task at hand, literally speaking.

"Poor Labyrinthine traveler, lost in the midst of wisdom, faced with questions that require a high price to be answered"

Augustine turned around suddenly as a chorus of female voices resonated across the woods. She heard the faint rustle of cloth against grass but saw no movement.

"What is it that she dares hide from He who knows everything? Your secrets aren't welcome here, child of the mortals, so forfeit them before we make you"

The chorus of voices echoed mercilessly inside Augustine's ears, but she felt the things inside stiffen, showing resistance. It was a battle she was fighting without enough knowledge of who she was, and yet it was a battle were she held most of the power for the time being.

"You fights us! We, who have discovered the secrets of the great Oedipus and witnessed the fall of the Labdacid Lineage! We who have watched as Antigone hung herself and Haemon wept by her side! We who laughed upon the destruction of Troy and drove Helen crazy with guiltiness! You dare too much mortal... Give up! Give up before we force you to!"

Augustine took a step back as if stricken by the ferocity and the omen contained in those carefully uttered words. The voices were perfectly synchronized and sounded like some ominous chorus of angels from the Heavens. Take that back... Those terrifyingly beautiful voices seemed to hold the words that would bring her to her doom instead of the key to her redemption.

"Leave me be!" she shouted to whoever was listening and set off as quickly as her legs would carry her. But the voices were everywhere; the shadows almost crowded the forest now, making her heart thump wildly against her ribcage. Finally the abrupt and spontaneous race for her life came to an end when she tripped in a root of an old tree that had with time escaped the boundaries of the soil. She rolled in the floor, the world spinning around her and she suddenly saw, illuminated by the moonlight that she had earlier thought to be appealing, a mask covering half of the face of a man dressed in white robes with a red cloth that looked like some sort of scarf without the flecks falling over his shoulders and down his figure. The attire resembled that of a priest in Pentecostal and the mask was half a gold sun with sunbeams and everything. She recognized that mask. And she recognized all those people, women of more or less fifteen years old, wearing white robes and simple white tragedy masks that changed expression depending on what they were saying.

That was a Greek chorus and the man was Coryphaeus himself!

"As fair as Helen or even more so, and with the force of spirit of the one who was sister and daughter to Oedipus, such a fair maiden as tragic heroes have never seen" the Chorus Master complemented, but then his tone grew sad "And yet you dare defy Destiny and the Mightiness of the one who is cursed"

Immediately the girl felt like she was home. The Greek tragedies and myths had been her companions and her advisors, the source of her amusement before, and she knew them by heart. She felt capable of dealing with the blow the Labyrinth had sent her, for a change.

"I thought you serve the Master of Light, Apollo, and instead I find you in the midst of a place where he doesn't even dare show his luminous face, Coryphaeus. I am not a tragic hero, my destiny is not controlled by the Gods, and I haven't defied anyone who hadn't defied me first. So go back to your ancient country, you have nothing to do with me"

Her posture indicated clearly she didn't fear the ominous words that came out of the all-knowing, all-seeing Greek Chorus whose warnings always proved to be wise and accurate. The group of girls was obviously insulted by that mortal's audacity, but Coryphaeus just smiled behind his solar mask, amused by the Lady with hair like blood. He peered intently at the girl, sensing rather than seeing something that was not right. Something that was eluding him, and he wanted to know what that was. He had to make that mortal tell him. It was his job, his reason for being there. He helped troubled Labyrinthine travelers, but in the Underground everything had a price... Even that.

"The forest is a two bladed weapon and a golden cage, you stupid mortal!" the chorus roared "Ignorance is the only thing that can cut through the thick foliage of wisdom. You'll never find your way out of here otherwise!"

They were definitely mocking her then, Augustine noticed. But she knew what they wanted, and it wasn't worth what they were offering. On the other hand if they didn't tell her the way out of there all the wished-away were going to...

She didn't even want to complete that dreadful thought.

"The position you are in, mortal, is unfair, we concede you that, but it is the way of the Labyrinth"

She knew that, all too well by that. The way and will of the Labyrinth, that had almost gotten her killed more than once, as if the structure wanted her dead.

'That's a reassuring thought' one of her voices muttered into her ear, rather amused. Augustine grunted mentally in response, but concentrated on the task at hand.

"Nothing is fair in this Hellish charade, that I am certainly well aware of. The game is not fair, life is not fair" she threw her arms in the air as if to say 'who cares' and continued in a calm, indifferent tone of voice "And yes, I am jaded, but I won't let that be used against me. I won't say it!"

Like a loyal guard she protected her secret from the praying ears of He who was always listening. That secret could never be uttered aloud in the Underground without having entire armies of darkness chasing after her in a second. She was such a rare thing... And, like all rare things, people would want to posses her. She didn't want that, she didn't want to fight them; to hide... she didn't want to struggle. She had always been Lonely, and that was the way life was supposed to be for her.

"It has been almost five thousand years" she whispered to herself and then looked at Coryphaeus "What makes you think, Oh great Greek, that you will make me say something that has been kept a secret since the day the lights in the sky dimmed?"

Too late the chorus realized she was playing their game and being as cryptic and as twisted as they where while speaking. But soon a chorus of laughs that rose from the group of teenagers that surrounded her made her feel a thousand times powerless. And it wasn't the inability to do something about the situation that she was in the thing that made her feel like that, but on the contrary it was the knowledge that she could end the charade in a second if she would only expose herself, her true self. But for the Love of the Underground, she would never do that.

"Come, come, mortal, confession will lighten your soul. Your secrets are bound to be with us, so don't resist. It's easier to just give in to the need"

And they were right. It was as if they were pulling the secret out of her mind by some sort of enchantment. She covered her ears to try and repel the enthralling command but the charm was spoken inside her mind a thousand times. She felt the air, and knew it was getting horribly chilly and felt as if something inside her tugged to be free.

"No!" she whispered "You don't know what you are doing!" she hissed then, clutching her head as her eyes started to burn. She knew she shouldn't open them. Her skin felt cool, almost frigid and it felt wonderful but her back was aching horribly. And, meanwhile, the chorus kept on pressing and pressing, rising their voices and looking at themselves cause they knew that no mortal could resist them that long.

"I...I..." she was stuttering, now knowing if she was going to tell them what they wanted to know or if she was going to show them, which was the same damn thing in the end. "You don't know what you are doing"

But the circle of females just pressed closer and closer to her, chanting words of doom as if they were some strange, saddening lullaby. And when she thought that nothing would prevent her secret from coming to the surface she parted her lips to say it... Just as a gust of wind warned her of the apparition of a group of nine ladies, dressed in Greek tunics of rich colours.

"People should just stop appearing out of nowhere" Augustine muttered through clenched teeth, wondering if the newcomers were friends or foes. But as she asked herself that one of the figures, with wave dirty blond hair and a rather willowy figure shown by her rather revealing tunic looked at her and winked, smiling but her smile faded a little as she saw her.

"Aw, she is a girl!" she said aloud "I was expecting some handsome mortal man!"

One of the other newcomers, all of them female, nudged the one who had complained aloud and chastised her.

"That was way out of line, Erato! Besides, we are not here so you can seduce poor mortal boys"

"Now that is the only thing this Forest was missing" Augustine whispered, half amused and half angered by the willowy woman's comment "The muses!"

And the muses they were, indeed. Proudly standing in front of the red-haired mortal were nine women. One, the one who had told the playful blond woman off was Calliope because she had on her hands a writing tablet. The one with the curves with a lyre in her hands was Erato, representing the love poetry while her sister represented the Epic poetry. Euterpe, muse of Music followed them, with her flute always near her and she was talking to a girl holding a celestial globe, who was Urania. There was a pair wearing tragic mask also but of a grayish colour. They were Melpomene (with a tragic mask symbolizing her domain, tragedy) and Thalia, wearing a comic mask representing her domain, Comedy. Further on the left one of the women was dancing, holding a lyre much like Erato's. Augustine deduced she was Terpsichore, the Muse of Dancing, and the one with the pensive look in her face must be Polyhimnia, the one who represented Sacred Poetry. The last one, holding a scroll that seemed never-ending was Clio, Muse of History.

"What is this, the annual Greek Mythology Meeting? Because if that's the case I don't want to be around when the most notorious Greek Characters start showing up" Augustine suddenly blurted out, shivering at the thought of encountering the Minotaur or a Gorgon.

"We are here because it's our right to protect you, and you called us, dear" Calliope explained softly, turning towards her "And you, Coryphaeus, better tell your chorus to hold their horses. We have jurisdiction over the girl and they can't ignore it"

"Prove it if you must and can then, Clio!" the group of girls said spitefully, their eyes glowing red under the marble-white masks.

"Euterpe is the one who has influenced her the most, so she is her protégée. The girl is a writer, Oh Superior Greek Chorus, so she is clearly ours"

Augustine's mind was in a turmoil. On the one hand, no one had ever fought for her and the feeling was strange, alien to her and, on the other hand, she was her own person, not something to people could claim they possessed.

"How do you know that at all? There is not a single piece of writing signed with my name, that I can assure you" she suddenly challenged, just to get a hold of the conversation. Euterpe smiled and shook her head, as if to say 'Ahhh, these mortals...' and then produced a crystal, of a milky-white colour that, with a puff, became a sheet of paper, with some words scribbled on it. Augustine's eyes widened when she recognized her signature, with her alias name, at the bottom of the page.

"You can't really hide yourself, Sabina" she said with a little triumphant smile, while the girl covered her own mouth, as if that could make the spoken words disappear from everybody's mind "Whatever your name is, I've seen you grow and flourish. Can't really fool me then. You are one of my strongest protégées, so that is why I came here for help. I sensed your anguish. You were afraid"

"Of course I was. They were about to make me say something that would have had too many consequences" she replied cryptically, her eyes flashing icy blue at the member of the chorus, who flinched. Suddenly the girl had changed, something had flashed across her face for a couple of seconds, but it was promptly gone by the time they had realized it was there.

Fortunately for her nobody replied or made any comment about what she had said, and she was able to breathe normally again. Another faux pass, she noticed. The truth was just dying to come out.

"Tell her the way to get out of here, and for free" Melpomene demanded in a melancholic tone, as she said all things. The members of the chorus actually sneered at the Muses, looking at them with narrowed eyes and then looked at Coryphaeus, looking for advice.

"They are far stronger than we are. And they are fulfilling a wish, which is something allowed in case the Labyrinthine traveler is one of their protégées, so we can't do anything about it" he told them, actually quite relieved he didn't have to torment the girl anymore. He felt it would have been for the worst to pull the secret out of her.

"But... Master Coryphaeus!!!" the group of teenagers whinnied in unison, not wanting to give in to the muses at all "There must be a way!"

The Chorus Master shook his head, though he could think on one or two ways, and smiled at the muses, as did the chorus once they got into their heads that they had to tell the mortal how to get out of there but seeing her try could be a Hell lot of fun as well.

"We'll tell then" they agreed with voice dripping with false sweetness "The task for you to complete, mortal, is to prove yourself to be wiser than wisdom"

Augustine's look there was priceless. Mouth opened ajar, eyes as wide as saucers, all the colour draining from her face she stood speechless for a couple of seconds while the Muses winced inwardly upon hearing what she would have to do.

"And how the Hell am I supposed to do that???" she blurted out when she found again her capacity to link letters into words and words into sentences. For the first time she really was doubting her ability to make it to the castle in Lumiara fast enough and the Chorus, seeing that, smiled even more as they looked at one another with smugness written all over their faces. Euterpe and Clio frowned at that.

"You have to formulate the forest a question to which wisdom does not have the answer to" the Chorus chorused (duh!).

At that moment something clicked, something that had been retrained far too long and now was like a powerful force coursing through the red-head's veins, overtaking her. They had tampered with it too much, teased it and endangered it and now what she really was claimed a way to get back for everything. And she was only too glad to be herself, her true self, if only for some minutes. She rose her eyes to the skies, as if to seek inspiration or to talk to the trees themselves and seeing the stars shining strongly, slightly invisible because of the leafy foliage of the forest, shining for her, she gained all the courage she needed to voice her question.

"If you have all he questions as well as all the answers, Oh Mighty one who now rises imposing before me, tell me... What's the void or emptiness that the more you fill the bigger it gets?"

Her semblance gave nothing away. She stood calm, her full if petit height, chin up and eyes looking everywhere but devoid of all expression, though she wasn't breathing also, expectant. Her words echoed in the vastness of the woods for a couple of seconds and silence fell upon everyone present. They looked at each other, unsure of the near future, of the events that were going to decide if the quest was over, or if she was still in the fight. At last a cried that was born out of sheer agony could be heard all over the forest and suddenly the path was clear again, and this time there was an exit near.

"You have challenged wisdom and beaten it" observed Clio with a smile of sheer pride and astonishment gracing her face "That is not something that usually happens"

The chorus was speechless, their masks reflecting an expression of utter astonishment that seemed almost comical and they looked at each other, each of them expecting the other to be able to explain what had happened before their very eyes.

"These woods have seen more knowledge than we have" they finally said "They were blessed by the Gods and a mere mortal can't escape them! That is not possible!!! We demand an explanation"

"What do you mean?" Augustine asked, her tone calm and serene. She never lost her composure, she never flinched and her eyes, as hard as shards of ice, never blinked.

"You must have cheated!!!" the chorus girls screeched, fancy rimes long forgotten "Tell us what the answer to your question is if you were telling the truth!!!"

They were almost hysterical now and some of the muses (mainly Terpsichore, Erato and Thalia) were having the time of their lives laughing at their expense, covering their mouth with both hands and trying to stifle their giggles. Euterpe, Clio and Urania looked at them disapprovingly, though they were smiling too. Augustine flashed the enraged chorus an innocent smile and replied without further ado:

"Curiosity... It's the void that the more you feed the bigger it gets"

The Chorus girls looked at themselves, confusion written plain across their features before their screeching and protesting started again, realizing the girl was right. Coryphaeus shook his head and sighed.

"They will recover, my fair heroine, don't worry about that" he assured Augustine with a smile "Now I must bid farewell to you all, though I'll keep an eye on your progress, Labyrinthine traveler and to aid you I'll give you this" he paused for dramatic purposes as a bundle wrapped in red silk cloth appeared in his hands and then he handed it to her "I have business to do before Apollo's chariot crosses the midnight sky. Too many legends to tell... to many tragic heroes whose lives will be ruined..."

He smiled darkly and the mortal forced herself to remember that in the Labyrinth even the purest of creatures had a dark side even if they didn't show it most of the time. Then they disappeared in a puff of smoke and a flash of light.

"Nice fellow" Augustine commented truthfully as she eyed the bundle in her arms wearily "Now let's get the Hell out of here. Any suggestion as where to go from here?"

Euterpe suggested to take the shortcut through the coliseum, though the girl didn't really like the sound of that.

'Considering past experiences in the Labyrinth that could end really bad' she thought 'With my luck I will end up as meat for lions. And I'm really tired. I don't think and get miraculously out of a problem like that'

But, once she spotted it, she forgot all rational thought. The marble-built structure raised imposingly in front of her, the grayish walls uncorrupted by the passing of time, showing sometimes chiseled scenes of long-forgotten combats, of dangers that had laid inside the rounded structure centuries ago, in the days were everybody settled for "bread and circus". She suddenly felt as if she had been tossed back into the Roman Ages, feeling awkward and plain in her plaited skirt and white shirt. She noticed then that the said garments were quite ruined so she decided to cover herself with the cloth so she unwrapped the chorus Master's present. To her own surprise she found part of the gift was a grey cloak and...

"Why would he give this to me...?" she wondered as her eyes widened at the sight of the object in question as she picked it up, taking care no one saw what it was "He must know I would never...!"

All thoughts about dressing more fitting to the settings vanished from her mind as she wrapped the blasted thing with the cloak, shaking her head.

"Come, Augustine!!!" Erato screamed, her generally-sweet voice that sounded at that moment extremely high-pitched. The girl shook her head again and ran to were the muses stood, the dreaded item tucked safely under the folds of the grey cloak.


"This can't be"

"'Tis impossible!" someone agreed.

"Totally outrageous!" a third person joined the conversation. The Throne Room of the Castle in the middle of Lumiara, the Dragon Kingdom's capital city, was brimming with commentaries such as those. Vampires flashed their fangs indignantly, while dragons of all kinds roared and huffed, making tiny- or nor so tiny- clouds of smoke in the air. Centaurs stomped their hooves against the stone floor, while a couple of hobgoblins laughed at everyone, finding mirth in the rest of the magical creature's state of mind. They were promptly quieted by the murderous look of the Monarch of the Castle. Gareth growled once, loud enough to be heard amidst the chattering and the shouting, and everyone stopped dead in their tracks, shutting up. He was as tense as an animal, feeling something pressing against his chest, crying to be let free. He glanced at the window, where a half-moon shone proudly and shook his head.

"It's not a full moon night..." he whispered fiercely, clutching his chest and closing his eyes, panting "It is not your time to come out!"

He didn't understand it; his heart-beast was molesting him as it had never done before. He could control it, master it, except in full moon nights, when the best was finally free to kill and slaughter. But it was not one of those nights, and yet he was having a hard time controlling the monster inside him. His wild side. His eyes were already changing, his pupils becoming elliptic instead of rounded, like animal-like slits, his voice gruff, hoarse, husky...

"Dirashki aniala... sen*" he muttered in an ancient Fae language... The dialect of a special race. He sat up suddenly, letting the chair fall to the floor with a loud thud and then approached the crystal orb levitating in the middle of the room. Augustine appeared there, all silent and suddenly demure and powerless again, as mysterious as he had first met her... Or even more so.

"I should have suspected her to be the author of the pages I read..." he cursed silently, remembering how close he had been to finding out her innermost secret "But I had to give her that necklace, and the muses sensed her through it"

The old ragged-clothed man had been a test, one of the many of the Labyrinth, and she has past it. He had been obliged to reward her... But he had gotten something out of that bargain. Something she had unwittingly given him. He made a swift movement with his wrist and a tiny, silvery spark appeared floating a few inches above his leather-clad palm.

"A maiden's promise, sprung out of the depths of her very innocence" he mused aloud, watching the tiny spark glow lightly, casting an eerie light to his features, making him look even paler than he already was. He bared his teeth in a feral smile and his eyes changed again, his pupils turning into slits once again, his fangs gleaming in the darkness. And all the while, unaware of just how foolish she had been, a tiny little girl, too scrawny and too dirty to be called even remotely pretty stared transfixed at the sight before her eyes, ignorant of the prying eyes all over her body.



*Translation = It's not your time... yet.



Author's note: Well, I posted and a long chappie too! I wanted more things to happen in this chapter, but before I knew it I had eleven pages and I thought it wouldn't do to post more than that... I find that very, very long chapters bore me, as well as very short ones. Well, I hope this one doesn't bore you. And for the ones thinking: 'She should write more, she is on holidays' let me remind you that I live in Argentina, in the other hemisphere and, therefore, its winter here and I've got classes, unlike you (that is sooooo not fair!). Anyway I hope to here from all of you soon. Review people, please, pretty please? Remember I am stuck here with school while you are all free and in holidays!!! Don't forget a fellow comrade in disgrace!

By the way, ever since last Tuesday (7/29/03) I am officially seventeen years old!!! Don't you find me more mature? My muse says it's as if I was going backwards or something, but don't mind her, she is just jealous 'cause I included the famous Greek muses in this chapter instead of her. Well, they are a lot nicer (Sabina warns her muse not to get close to her with that frying pan). See you soon! Best wishes,

Sabi (a.k.a. the girl trapped in school!)