Babyjayy ~ Thank you! LoL that was a new type of review! LoL, I'm just
kidding. Hmm, I'll consider what u said . . . hehe. Someone save them?
Hmmm, maybe, I think I will . . . just not the way you think . . . read and
find out!
Luv*a*lot ~ really? That's great! I really like ur story! (And it was well written . . . u don't find stories written so well most the time . . .) Thank you for the very nice review and, (in case u haven't already noticed) you're mentioned in my little author's-note-thingy-whatever in this chapter too! LoL. Enjoy!
Aviastar ~ I'll try . . . thanks! I think this chapter is longer . . . it certainly took a lot longer to write!
Dorkeegirl168 ~ thanks, LoL. I'm writing more. And yes, ur right, evil guys are fun to write about . . . but in this chapter, ur gonna see another (weirder) side of the evil guy . . . enjoy!
Deity-of-light ~ Thank you, and I'm updating!
Anonymous ~ Thanks! And, of course, I AM updating now . . . ^-^
Kari Kaiba ~ Ok, thanks . . . wow, a lot of u guys really like Ted! ^-^
Butterflygrl ~ Of course I'm gonna have action!! After all, this story IS Action/Adventure. Or something like that. Yeah. Thanks for reviewing!
RoseTheNinth ~ THANK you!!! I love to know that my characters can actually be brought to life through writing . . . after all, that's what all authors aspire for, isn't it? And being predictable makes for a boring story. That's why I'm going to add LOTS of little twists to everything. Thank you so much for ur really nice review!!!
Olenochka ~ Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! So far, you've reviewed practically every chapter of my story!! I luv ur reviews ~ they're always so uplifting! Hmm, yes, he's alive . . . and he WILL stay alive, for he is a very important character in my story, in my opinion (all main characters are important, aren't they?) Well, anyways, ignore my rambling and enjoy this chapter and thank you for reviewing! (Wait, I said that already . . . LoL)
Sheba, Queen of ~ Okee, thank u! And thnx for the clarification!
Stormcloud ~ thnx! Ok, u can stop wondering, it's already happened and this chapter is what Ted thinks. Enjoy!
*****
A/N: Special thanks to Tori, who helped me when I had a writer's block! This chapter couldn't be written if it weren't for her suggestions and encouragement and emails *hint hint* so . . . thnx, Tori!
And today's my BIRTHDAY!!! January 26th!! Yay!! Maybe, as a B-day present, you can review my story!! That would be just AWESOME!! And thnx to all the reviewers that have already reviewed ~ ur the best, and every single one of u ROCK!! I can't believe I have 97 reviews!!! I never DREAMED I would have so many when I began my story . . . Thank you ALL!!!! Well, anyway, on with the story itself . . .
*~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~*
"You're lying." Ted said to Lord Donovan. But he knew it - and I knew he knew it - that Lord Donovan was telling the truth, that I was the princess of Kyrria.
"I'm not lying. Ask her yourself." Lord Donovan said, amused.
I looked down, away from Ted's gaze. "He's right." I said miserably.
I could sense Ted's hurt at being lied to, his strong feeling of betrayal. "You lied to me," he said, in disbelief. "And I had just begun to think that I could trust you."
For some reason, those words hurt so much more than if he had said anything else.
"I'm sorry." I whispered, unable to think of anything else to say. "I -"
"Lied to me, tricked me, and betrayed me." Ted said resentfully. "And I believed you, too."
James looked worriedly from him to me.
Lord Donovan just looked on, amused with anything and everything.
I abhorred him.
"Well, now that you two have finally realized each other's backgrounds, may we get on with this plan?" Lord Donovan asked pleasantly.
"What plan?" Ted said through gritted teeth, though his eyes never left my face.
"The plan where Lela has to write to her parents to tell them to abdicate the throne of Kyrria." James informed him.
Ted looked confused and surprised, and completely lost. "Why?"
James rolled his eyes. "Weren't you listening? She's princess of Kyrria!"
"It's not like she has to do it." Ted responded scornfully. "She's royalty, isn't she?"
"Says who?" I challenged, at the same time Lord Donovan said, "Royalty has no power here."
"Now, come on, this isn't an argument. I'm the one in control here, if you haven't noticed," said the evil lord.
But just then, a pretty maid swept into the room. She curtsied gracefully, and said cheerfully, "Tea?"
Ted looked flabbergasted; James looked like he was going to either laugh or gape. He settled for choking instead.
"No, no, Cordelia, not now," said Lord Donovan, flustered. After the maid curtsied again and swept back out of the room, he said, "Where was I? Oh - right. I hold all the power here."
Ted glared at him. James choked on what I was sure was supposed to be a laugh. I just rolled my eyes. This entire scene just seemed like a really bad drama, where no one played their parts right. In fact, the entire thing would have been very comical if it weren't for the seriousness of the situation we had gotten ourselves stuck in.
The room was tense, and no one said anything. The very air seemed to hold its breath. Everyone stared at me.
I ignored all of them. Instead, I just said calmly, "I'll write the letter."
Of course, I planned to do no such thing. But I wanted to know what would happen to us all afterwards.
Lord Donovan clapped in glee. He handed me pen and ink and parchment to write the letter, pleased that he had gotten his way.
Carefully, meticulously, I dipped the pen in the ink and held it poised above the paper. Then, inspiration struck me, so, just to annoy the lord, I said, "Only if you tell us one thing."
"What?" he asked suspiciously.
"What happens after I write the letter?"
"I send it," he answered, but it wasn't exactly the answer I was looking for.
"And then . . .?"
"I wait until further instructions from Queen Maydria."
"And what about us?"
"Uh . . ."
I laughed silently to myself. What a stupid lord. Evil, yes, but intelligent? I didn't think so. He had no plans whatsoever for what could happen.
I waited, until he actually began to look nervous and fidget. "Are you going to write or not?" he demanded.
"Not." I muttered under my breath. "Unless you beg."
I saw James look up at the ceiling to keep from laughing out loud. Ted had a strange look on his face. A mixture of resentment and amusement and scorn and fear all mixed up. Interesting.
Of course, Lord Donovan didn't hear me. "Well?" he said impatiently. When I didn't answer, he actually said, "Please?"
Was this lord dumb or what?
At that moment, the maid Cordelia reentered the room. "My lord, maybe I could be of service?"
James actually laughed aloud at this. I was already giggling. This was just way too weird. Was I dreaming?
"Yes - perhaps you could watch them - with the guards of course - for a while, while I contact her Majesty?" Lord Donovan requested.
"Yes, my lord." Cordelia curtsied, and Lord Donovan, looking extremely disconcerted, left the room.
As soon as he was gone, Cordelia said sweetly, "Guards? If you may please bring us some tea?"
The guards posted by the door stared at her incredulously. "Huh?" was their brilliant response.
"Tea!" said the maid impatiently. The guards shot her weird looks, but did as she bid.
I studied the girl. She was my age, I assumed. She had waist-length, dark- brown hair, which glinted with lighter browns. Her eyes were a clear, warm brown. All in all, she was very pretty, if not exactly stable in the head.
When the guards had also left, muttering to each other and shooting us odd looks, she turned to us with a bright, sunny smile. "Hello. I'm Cordelia."
All of us just stared at her. I was pretty sure I had never met anyone quite this weird before . . . if I had, I would have remembered.
"Well?" she said irritably. "What are you waiting for?"
"Huh?" I asked, confused. I made a face; I sounded exactly like the guards had a minute before.
She planted her hands on her hips. "Aren't you guys going to do something?" she asked pointedly.
"Like what?" Ted said sarcastically. "Wait for the tea?"
"No . . . like . . . run away?" she replied, emphasizing the words.
"There are guards all over. We'd just run into another trap." I pointed out.
"No there aren't. I just sent all of them off to make tea. The rest are all downstairs, lounging around, lazy as usual." She told me.
"So . . . we . . . just leave." Ted said. He sounded like he was trying the idea out. "This is so weird."
"Life is weird," said the maid cheerfully.
I gave her a long look. Then, I turned and left the room. Ted and James followed a second later. "She is sooo strange." Ted whispered. "She's just standing there, looking amused."
Yes, she was weird. But I had a few bigger problems right now than a maid who wasn't right in the head. Like, getting out of here, for example.
The hallways were empty. No guards were in sight. We took a bunch of turns, expecting to crash into a guard at any minute. To our surprise and relief, there were none.
"Stop." Ted commanded suddenly. I halted, and James crashed into me from behind.
"Ow!" I said.
"Hush," commanded Ted. Then, he flushed. "I mean -" he looked away from me. "Never mind." He put his ear to the door that we had just walked past. "It's this way."
He pulled something from his pocket, and used it to fiddle with the lock on the door. It swung open noiselessly.
"What's that?" I asked, staring at Ted's hand.
He opened his hand. It was a lock pick.
"Where'd you get that?" James asked.
"I'm a thief, remember? I have to live up to my name." He laughed humorlessly, and stepped into the next corridor. Cautiously, we followed.
But just as we stepped in, the door slammed behind us. Loudly. The noise echoed in the corridor. Ted swore.
Guards ventured out of a room to see what the loud noise was, and stopped when they saw us.
Not again. So much for 'no guards'.
Instantly, Ted leapt into action. Before I could even register what was happening, Ted was locked in combat with a guard, both of them using swords.
Huh? How had Ted gotten a sword? I wondered. I was dimly aware of noises and shouting.
James had managed to wrestle a sword from another guard, and he was viciously slashing this way and that. But he wasn't as good as Ted was, and even Ted was having trouble with about twenty guards around us.
There was a yelp as James was grabbed from behind. He kicked at his attacker and, of course, missed.
Ted was still fighting, and though he was an excellent fighter, even I doubted his ability to hold off seven men at once. He didn't even look like he was trying to hurt the guards.
Two guards came at him from behind and managed to grab him. Ted gasped, obviously not expecting the attack. He looked around frantically, but James was also being pinned down, and only I was available. "Lela! Here!" he yelled.
Before I knew it, a sword was flying through the air towards me. Ted had thrown it. I stared dumbly for a second, but then Ted's teaching kicked in. I grabbed the sword, hilt first, and stabbed at a guard that was advancing towards me.
We traded blows and blocks. Ted's training and my own instinct took over, as I felt a rushing sensation sweep through me, one that I had never felt before. I dodged a blow smoothly, then pivoted on my heel and struck again. I felt as light as air, and I wasn't even thinking about what I was doing. I just did it. I guess I DID have a natural flair for sword fighting, after all.
It was like I was floating in a dream, as I hit and parried and blocked, spinning and pivoting and hitting with deadly accuracy, taking down many guards.
At last, no more guards came at me. I slowly lowered the sword, as reality came rushing back to me.
Ted and James both stood up slowly. James was staring at me like he had never seen me before, with an expression of awe on his face. Ted didn't look at me, only surveyed what I had done. I looked around also.
Guards were strewn all over the floor, mostly unconscious. I don't think I killed any of them, but I guess they deserved it if I had.
Ted had a pained look on his face, like he was remembering something he wanted to forget.
"Can I have my sword?" he asked abruptly.
Mutely, I handed it to him. As soon as it touched his hands, he whispered a word, and it vanished. I stared in shock.
Seeing my surprise, he laughed a little. "It's elf-made. Fairy spelled," he said matter-of-factly.
I nodded. No wonder he always seemed rather at ease. He had always had his weapon with him.
"Well?" I demanded of him. "How did I do?"
A smile quirked at the corners of his mouth, as he looked around at the unconscious guards lying on the floor, mainly due to me. "Not bad. Not bad at all."
Feeling proud and very warm inside, I took once last glance around. He was right. It wasn't bad at all. For a princess.
*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*
A/n: This chapter took me 3 whole hours to write! I think it's longer, too. I'm not sure. Personally though, I like it - I think it's rather funny as well. Well, it doesn't matter what I think. Tell me what you think!! And BTW, for those who haven't voted yet, either Lela/Ted or Lela/James, please VOTE!!! Thanks! *~*~AryaWinds~*~*
BTW, I am well aware that this chapter is kinda weird, but I was in a weird mood when I wrote it so . . . and anyways, this fits in with the later chapters, and it'll all make sense later, I promise. So if this seems like a really weird way to escape, and wasn't what u were expecting, then GOOD! Cuz I don't wanna be predictable. And this WILL make sense, once u read on. Which will be once I update. Which will be once u review. So please REVIEW!!!
Luv*a*lot ~ really? That's great! I really like ur story! (And it was well written . . . u don't find stories written so well most the time . . .) Thank you for the very nice review and, (in case u haven't already noticed) you're mentioned in my little author's-note-thingy-whatever in this chapter too! LoL. Enjoy!
Aviastar ~ I'll try . . . thanks! I think this chapter is longer . . . it certainly took a lot longer to write!
Dorkeegirl168 ~ thanks, LoL. I'm writing more. And yes, ur right, evil guys are fun to write about . . . but in this chapter, ur gonna see another (weirder) side of the evil guy . . . enjoy!
Deity-of-light ~ Thank you, and I'm updating!
Anonymous ~ Thanks! And, of course, I AM updating now . . . ^-^
Kari Kaiba ~ Ok, thanks . . . wow, a lot of u guys really like Ted! ^-^
Butterflygrl ~ Of course I'm gonna have action!! After all, this story IS Action/Adventure. Or something like that. Yeah. Thanks for reviewing!
RoseTheNinth ~ THANK you!!! I love to know that my characters can actually be brought to life through writing . . . after all, that's what all authors aspire for, isn't it? And being predictable makes for a boring story. That's why I'm going to add LOTS of little twists to everything. Thank you so much for ur really nice review!!!
Olenochka ~ Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! So far, you've reviewed practically every chapter of my story!! I luv ur reviews ~ they're always so uplifting! Hmm, yes, he's alive . . . and he WILL stay alive, for he is a very important character in my story, in my opinion (all main characters are important, aren't they?) Well, anyways, ignore my rambling and enjoy this chapter and thank you for reviewing! (Wait, I said that already . . . LoL)
Sheba, Queen of ~ Okee, thank u! And thnx for the clarification!
Stormcloud ~ thnx! Ok, u can stop wondering, it's already happened and this chapter is what Ted thinks. Enjoy!
*****
A/N: Special thanks to Tori, who helped me when I had a writer's block! This chapter couldn't be written if it weren't for her suggestions and encouragement and emails *hint hint* so . . . thnx, Tori!
And today's my BIRTHDAY!!! January 26th!! Yay!! Maybe, as a B-day present, you can review my story!! That would be just AWESOME!! And thnx to all the reviewers that have already reviewed ~ ur the best, and every single one of u ROCK!! I can't believe I have 97 reviews!!! I never DREAMED I would have so many when I began my story . . . Thank you ALL!!!! Well, anyway, on with the story itself . . .
*~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~*
"You're lying." Ted said to Lord Donovan. But he knew it - and I knew he knew it - that Lord Donovan was telling the truth, that I was the princess of Kyrria.
"I'm not lying. Ask her yourself." Lord Donovan said, amused.
I looked down, away from Ted's gaze. "He's right." I said miserably.
I could sense Ted's hurt at being lied to, his strong feeling of betrayal. "You lied to me," he said, in disbelief. "And I had just begun to think that I could trust you."
For some reason, those words hurt so much more than if he had said anything else.
"I'm sorry." I whispered, unable to think of anything else to say. "I -"
"Lied to me, tricked me, and betrayed me." Ted said resentfully. "And I believed you, too."
James looked worriedly from him to me.
Lord Donovan just looked on, amused with anything and everything.
I abhorred him.
"Well, now that you two have finally realized each other's backgrounds, may we get on with this plan?" Lord Donovan asked pleasantly.
"What plan?" Ted said through gritted teeth, though his eyes never left my face.
"The plan where Lela has to write to her parents to tell them to abdicate the throne of Kyrria." James informed him.
Ted looked confused and surprised, and completely lost. "Why?"
James rolled his eyes. "Weren't you listening? She's princess of Kyrria!"
"It's not like she has to do it." Ted responded scornfully. "She's royalty, isn't she?"
"Says who?" I challenged, at the same time Lord Donovan said, "Royalty has no power here."
"Now, come on, this isn't an argument. I'm the one in control here, if you haven't noticed," said the evil lord.
But just then, a pretty maid swept into the room. She curtsied gracefully, and said cheerfully, "Tea?"
Ted looked flabbergasted; James looked like he was going to either laugh or gape. He settled for choking instead.
"No, no, Cordelia, not now," said Lord Donovan, flustered. After the maid curtsied again and swept back out of the room, he said, "Where was I? Oh - right. I hold all the power here."
Ted glared at him. James choked on what I was sure was supposed to be a laugh. I just rolled my eyes. This entire scene just seemed like a really bad drama, where no one played their parts right. In fact, the entire thing would have been very comical if it weren't for the seriousness of the situation we had gotten ourselves stuck in.
The room was tense, and no one said anything. The very air seemed to hold its breath. Everyone stared at me.
I ignored all of them. Instead, I just said calmly, "I'll write the letter."
Of course, I planned to do no such thing. But I wanted to know what would happen to us all afterwards.
Lord Donovan clapped in glee. He handed me pen and ink and parchment to write the letter, pleased that he had gotten his way.
Carefully, meticulously, I dipped the pen in the ink and held it poised above the paper. Then, inspiration struck me, so, just to annoy the lord, I said, "Only if you tell us one thing."
"What?" he asked suspiciously.
"What happens after I write the letter?"
"I send it," he answered, but it wasn't exactly the answer I was looking for.
"And then . . .?"
"I wait until further instructions from Queen Maydria."
"And what about us?"
"Uh . . ."
I laughed silently to myself. What a stupid lord. Evil, yes, but intelligent? I didn't think so. He had no plans whatsoever for what could happen.
I waited, until he actually began to look nervous and fidget. "Are you going to write or not?" he demanded.
"Not." I muttered under my breath. "Unless you beg."
I saw James look up at the ceiling to keep from laughing out loud. Ted had a strange look on his face. A mixture of resentment and amusement and scorn and fear all mixed up. Interesting.
Of course, Lord Donovan didn't hear me. "Well?" he said impatiently. When I didn't answer, he actually said, "Please?"
Was this lord dumb or what?
At that moment, the maid Cordelia reentered the room. "My lord, maybe I could be of service?"
James actually laughed aloud at this. I was already giggling. This was just way too weird. Was I dreaming?
"Yes - perhaps you could watch them - with the guards of course - for a while, while I contact her Majesty?" Lord Donovan requested.
"Yes, my lord." Cordelia curtsied, and Lord Donovan, looking extremely disconcerted, left the room.
As soon as he was gone, Cordelia said sweetly, "Guards? If you may please bring us some tea?"
The guards posted by the door stared at her incredulously. "Huh?" was their brilliant response.
"Tea!" said the maid impatiently. The guards shot her weird looks, but did as she bid.
I studied the girl. She was my age, I assumed. She had waist-length, dark- brown hair, which glinted with lighter browns. Her eyes were a clear, warm brown. All in all, she was very pretty, if not exactly stable in the head.
When the guards had also left, muttering to each other and shooting us odd looks, she turned to us with a bright, sunny smile. "Hello. I'm Cordelia."
All of us just stared at her. I was pretty sure I had never met anyone quite this weird before . . . if I had, I would have remembered.
"Well?" she said irritably. "What are you waiting for?"
"Huh?" I asked, confused. I made a face; I sounded exactly like the guards had a minute before.
She planted her hands on her hips. "Aren't you guys going to do something?" she asked pointedly.
"Like what?" Ted said sarcastically. "Wait for the tea?"
"No . . . like . . . run away?" she replied, emphasizing the words.
"There are guards all over. We'd just run into another trap." I pointed out.
"No there aren't. I just sent all of them off to make tea. The rest are all downstairs, lounging around, lazy as usual." She told me.
"So . . . we . . . just leave." Ted said. He sounded like he was trying the idea out. "This is so weird."
"Life is weird," said the maid cheerfully.
I gave her a long look. Then, I turned and left the room. Ted and James followed a second later. "She is sooo strange." Ted whispered. "She's just standing there, looking amused."
Yes, she was weird. But I had a few bigger problems right now than a maid who wasn't right in the head. Like, getting out of here, for example.
The hallways were empty. No guards were in sight. We took a bunch of turns, expecting to crash into a guard at any minute. To our surprise and relief, there were none.
"Stop." Ted commanded suddenly. I halted, and James crashed into me from behind.
"Ow!" I said.
"Hush," commanded Ted. Then, he flushed. "I mean -" he looked away from me. "Never mind." He put his ear to the door that we had just walked past. "It's this way."
He pulled something from his pocket, and used it to fiddle with the lock on the door. It swung open noiselessly.
"What's that?" I asked, staring at Ted's hand.
He opened his hand. It was a lock pick.
"Where'd you get that?" James asked.
"I'm a thief, remember? I have to live up to my name." He laughed humorlessly, and stepped into the next corridor. Cautiously, we followed.
But just as we stepped in, the door slammed behind us. Loudly. The noise echoed in the corridor. Ted swore.
Guards ventured out of a room to see what the loud noise was, and stopped when they saw us.
Not again. So much for 'no guards'.
Instantly, Ted leapt into action. Before I could even register what was happening, Ted was locked in combat with a guard, both of them using swords.
Huh? How had Ted gotten a sword? I wondered. I was dimly aware of noises and shouting.
James had managed to wrestle a sword from another guard, and he was viciously slashing this way and that. But he wasn't as good as Ted was, and even Ted was having trouble with about twenty guards around us.
There was a yelp as James was grabbed from behind. He kicked at his attacker and, of course, missed.
Ted was still fighting, and though he was an excellent fighter, even I doubted his ability to hold off seven men at once. He didn't even look like he was trying to hurt the guards.
Two guards came at him from behind and managed to grab him. Ted gasped, obviously not expecting the attack. He looked around frantically, but James was also being pinned down, and only I was available. "Lela! Here!" he yelled.
Before I knew it, a sword was flying through the air towards me. Ted had thrown it. I stared dumbly for a second, but then Ted's teaching kicked in. I grabbed the sword, hilt first, and stabbed at a guard that was advancing towards me.
We traded blows and blocks. Ted's training and my own instinct took over, as I felt a rushing sensation sweep through me, one that I had never felt before. I dodged a blow smoothly, then pivoted on my heel and struck again. I felt as light as air, and I wasn't even thinking about what I was doing. I just did it. I guess I DID have a natural flair for sword fighting, after all.
It was like I was floating in a dream, as I hit and parried and blocked, spinning and pivoting and hitting with deadly accuracy, taking down many guards.
At last, no more guards came at me. I slowly lowered the sword, as reality came rushing back to me.
Ted and James both stood up slowly. James was staring at me like he had never seen me before, with an expression of awe on his face. Ted didn't look at me, only surveyed what I had done. I looked around also.
Guards were strewn all over the floor, mostly unconscious. I don't think I killed any of them, but I guess they deserved it if I had.
Ted had a pained look on his face, like he was remembering something he wanted to forget.
"Can I have my sword?" he asked abruptly.
Mutely, I handed it to him. As soon as it touched his hands, he whispered a word, and it vanished. I stared in shock.
Seeing my surprise, he laughed a little. "It's elf-made. Fairy spelled," he said matter-of-factly.
I nodded. No wonder he always seemed rather at ease. He had always had his weapon with him.
"Well?" I demanded of him. "How did I do?"
A smile quirked at the corners of his mouth, as he looked around at the unconscious guards lying on the floor, mainly due to me. "Not bad. Not bad at all."
Feeling proud and very warm inside, I took once last glance around. He was right. It wasn't bad at all. For a princess.
*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*_~_*
A/n: This chapter took me 3 whole hours to write! I think it's longer, too. I'm not sure. Personally though, I like it - I think it's rather funny as well. Well, it doesn't matter what I think. Tell me what you think!! And BTW, for those who haven't voted yet, either Lela/Ted or Lela/James, please VOTE!!! Thanks! *~*~AryaWinds~*~*
BTW, I am well aware that this chapter is kinda weird, but I was in a weird mood when I wrote it so . . . and anyways, this fits in with the later chapters, and it'll all make sense later, I promise. So if this seems like a really weird way to escape, and wasn't what u were expecting, then GOOD! Cuz I don't wanna be predictable. And this WILL make sense, once u read on. Which will be once I update. Which will be once u review. So please REVIEW!!!