-falls over- Ah yes, nothing like updating after the so-far cutest episode of Danny Phantom ever...bwahahaha. Hooray for my new addiction. –drool-
Yeah, yeah, I'm freaky. I know, I know. ;)
Hmmm...I've been feeling weirder than normal lately. Too much Oreo Pie and root beer floats, I guess, haha. –facefaults-
I really am going to loose my brain one of these days doing that...ah well. I can sell it on eBay and get those Fruits Basket DVD's XD
NOW READ!
Chapter FortyA month. He made me wait a month, and shows up out of the blue like this.
I guess I had been standing there awhile, just staring with my hand clasped over my mouth, because Steve and Ivy each grabbed one of my arms and pulled me back down to sit.
"Lindsey, what are you gawking at?" Steve asked.
"Or would be, if you took your hand off your mouth," Ivy added.
I slowly removed my hand, the urge to throw up gone. "I..."
"You…?"
I stood up again without answering and made my way past the other people in the row and down towards where Darrell was sitting. I didn't have to look back to know that Steve and Ivy were totally staring at me, but I didn't care. I had waited a month for Darrell's return—for some odd reason, it was even more painful for me not to see him every night. Yeah, just to see him. I had this powerful urge to be with my man in black for reasons I could not describe.
I made my way towards him, delighted to find the seat next to him was empty, so of course I took it. Instead of jumping a foot out of their seat like a normal person, Darrell simply turned and gave me a smirk.
"Lindsey...I thought you'd be here."
I raised my eyebrows. "Lindsey, I thought you'd be here?! What the hell is THAT?! You could've had the decency to come back and see me instead of thinking I was coming here!"
"But your mother was in the program," he said, gesturing to the papers in front of him. "So I could only assume you would be going along also."
I gritted my teeth and was sooo ready to just open my mouth and let him have it, but the announcer suddenly came onto the speaker: "You are now free to walk the field."
To my surprise, Darrell got up and walked past me like I wasn't even there and started to make his way down towards the arena—which, of course, got me super pissed.
"Hey, wait, wait, WAIT!" I yelled, running after him—and for some weird reason, he was keeping ahead of me even though he was just walking and I was huffing and puffing. When I finally caught up to him, I grabbed his arm and spun him around.
"Dude," I huffed. "Darrell. Okay, are you totally whacko or something? I've been waiting for you for a month, and you just show up out of the blue! What the—"
"I'm here now," he interrupted calmly. "Shouldn't that be all that matters?"
My mouth fell open, but I closed it with a snap, slowly releasing my grip on his arm. Good question—why was I overreacting? Gaaah. It was like my body was being taken over by someone else lately.
"I guess," I mumbled, seeing Ivy and Steve shove through people and make their way towards us. I could tell Ivy had given Steve a quick talking-to, because the usual death glare he wore around Darrell didn't seem quite so deadly right now.
"You," Steve growled, narrowing his eyes at Darrell.
"Mochiles," Darrell nodded in reply. "I see you've recovered from the accident. Congratulations."
Steve gritted his teeth. "Ivy, do you have a really big bat?! Because this guy could sure use a thwacking!" He started to run up to Darrell like he was going to beat him up or whatever, but Ivy grabbed his shirt collar, rolling her eyes.
"Chill out," she said, pulling him back, and then putting on her best smile for Darrell. "Hey, long time no see. Been traveling?"
"Yes," he answered, sliding his hands into the pockets of his trench coats. "I have discovered a great deal of things on this journey."
"Like what?"
"Well..."
I was a little miffed about being left out of the conversation, but I had no time to get back at Ivy because Mom suddenly dashed out onto the field, in sweatpants I knew were covering her spotless breeches, old muddy paddock boots, and her show shirt.
"Lindsey, can you help me back here for a sec? Shane's filling in for someone else's groom and—" Mom's eyes widened, then quickly narrowed when she saw Darrell.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed, suddenly grabbing my wrist as if she could tear me away from him.
"The same as these other spectators, I'm assuming," Darrell answered. "Just enjoying a day of jumping competition."
If it was even possible, Mom's eyes got even smaller and without another word, she started pulling me out of the arena.
"Mom!" I protested, flinging my wrist out of her grip. "What's your problem? I didn't know he was going to be here!"
"You shouldn't have known anyway, considering you weren't supposed to see him."
"Um...right." I looked at my feet, which were encased in my old, messed up boots. "Uhh...I should get back to Steve and Ivy now...or do you need my help that bad?"
"No, I'll manage," Mom replied in a low and angry voice, storming off back to wherever she had come from.
I sighed, but quickly ran back towards my friends; as I had suspected in the back of my mind, Steve was doing his best not to...uhh..."beat up" Darrell, and Ivy was talking to him like it was an early Christmas present.
"...Yeah, that's cool. I've always wanted to travel a lot like that but my parents are way strict...oh, hey Lindsey!" Ivy greeted when she saw me. Darrell turned his head to me, and I somehow knew he was silently thanking I was there...Ivy can really babble when she wants to.
"Um...hey," I greeted awkwardly, wishing I could somehow get a second to talk to Darrell alone with getting Steve mad or upsetting Ivy—and without Darrell noticing I was trying to shoo them away.
"Lindsey!" Ivy squeaked. "Hey. What was that all about with your mom?"
"Umm...she just wanted to know where I was sitting," I lied, clinking my nails against the cross belt that practically never came off of my waist. "I mean, where we were sitting."
Ivy raised an eyebrow. "Sure." She turned to Darrell. "So, you're going to stay and watch?"
Darrell took his gaze off of me and gave a slight nod. "Yes. I've been looking forward to this event for quite some time."
"C'mon you guys, let's go back up and sit," Steve complained. I rolled my eyes, knowing he just didn't want to be around Darrell if he could help it.
"Yeah," I agreed, and the four of us started making our way back towards the stands. "Oh yeah," I suddenly said to Darrell. "Weird question, but did you happen to grab my backpack that night of the crash?"
His face steadied for a second, but he shook his head. "No, I did not get it. Is it missing?"
I nodded. "Man, that sucks. I had some...uh...important things in there. Ah well. Guess that shows me to leave stuff in my backpack, huh?"
Steve and Ivy kept walking towards our seats, but I really didn't want to leave Darrell...who would? Ignoring the fluttering feeling in my stomach, I stopped at the aisle where his seat was.
"Well..." I trailed off. "I guess I better sit up there." I gestured to where Ivy and Steve were already sitting, and Steve was giving me a 'hurry-up-and-get-away-from-that-loser' look. "But...um...I'll meet you somewhere after the show, okay?"
Darrell nodded slightly, staring straight out onto the where people were leaving it and coming back to their seats in hoping the show would start sooner. I frowned, getting angrier by the second. How dare he treat me like this after he just left without a word?!
"Darrell—" I began, the anger apparent in my voice.
"Like you said, I will see you after the show." He eyeballed me. "In fact...I have a surprise. Be patient. Sit with your friends."
I rolled my eyes. "Fine, whatever. Have it your way." I stomped back up to my seat and plopped in it with a growl. 'Be patient'. Geez, he hadn't been waiting around a freaking month for me to come back from wherever I was. I furiously picked up my program and practically tore the pages out.
Ivy raised an eyebrow. "Lindsey, why are you so worked up over him? I've never seen you this upset over something before."
I threw my program behind me, and someone gave a start of surprise as it whacked them in the head. "It's because..." I paused, glancing a bit at Steve and then stared straight at the field, where the field was getting ready for the opening parade of competitors. "I just missed him I guess...I dunno." I put a hand to my forehead, ignoring my dismembered bangs, and tried not to puke again.
Steve heaved a sigh. "Don't freaking worry about him. Just enjoy the show, like you wanted to." He slumped in his seat a little. "And what does he got that I don't have?" he muttered under his breath.
"I heard that," I snapped. I was in no mood for this little love-triangle business. Geez, was I in a shojo manga or something?
"Oh look, they're starting," Ivy said after awhile. Practically identical sets of Rapidash paraded out into the arena, only their riders and tack different. When I spotted Mom in her 'pinks'—what she called her red show jumping jacket—I gave a little wave and she returned a nervous smile. I noticed she was keeping Blaze's reins a little more taunt than needed—was she that shaken up over Darrell? Blaze, though, was having the time of his life, lifting up each hoof as the flames around his legs seemed to glow brighter with every step.
After the riders and Rapidashes were announced, they finally started the competition. The goal was to get around a course of twelve jumps just over three feet high in under ninety seconds without knocking down any fences or going over the time limit. I stole Steve's program and saw Mom was the sixth rider up.
Even though I really did try to pay attention to the first five riders, my gaze kept drifting off to Darrell. He hadn't budged an inch and was still staring out onto the field like his life depended on it. Steve kept pinching me to watch the show, but I couldn't.
"Our next rider is Diana Tamer!" the announcer blared, and I jumped in surprise, which Steve snickered at. I reminded myself to dump him in the manure pile when I got home.
Mom and Blaze came cantering into the ring, making their opening circle while the announcer kept talking:
"Diana Tamer is quite known for her techniques on creating well show Rapidash—her own have never failed to win her a ribbon! She's been around these Pokemon all her life, so this lady knows her stuff! Don't miss her in upcoming shows!"
I rolled my eyes. Yeah, so what if Mom got lots of ribbons and was well-respected in the Pokemon equestrian world? That announcer didn't say how much time she spent mucking stalls or grooming or how long she would stay by an injured Rapidash until Nurse Joy came by. Stupid announcer-dude.
The crowd fell into a hush as the starting bell sounded. Mom did a hand gallop—a sort of half canter, half gallop—towards the first fence, and Blaze cleared it with inches to spare. Rinse and repeat—and repeat. Blaze was on a roll!
"Go Blaze," I whispered. He flickered one huge ear in my direction as if he could hear me, but I realized Mom was muttering words of encouragement to him. His ears pricked up as they cleared the second to last fence.
"C'mon, two more," I heard Ivy murmur.
Seventy-five seconds were on the clock, and if Mom wanted a chance of winning, she had to get well under ninety. She gave Blaze a little nudge, and he did a flat-out gallop towards the last two fences—and cleared them both!
"YEEEEES!" I exclaimed before the whole stadium started cheering. Blaze seemed unfazed by the noise and was prancing around happily, his flames burning brightly. Mom had a relieved look on her face as she trotted Blaze round and round.
I instinctively glanced towards Darrell to see if he was cheering, and to my surprise, he was standing up. I could see his mouth moving, but I couldn't make out the words—until a sweet melody, unlike any human language, started to bore its way into my head.
My breath caught in my throat and I slowly stood up, my eyes wide. I knew that song, I knew those words...
"Lindsey?" Steve said, glancing up at me. "You okay?"
I didn't answer. Darrell...he was speaking in the language of Dragons!
I suddenly gasped. "Mom!" I screamed before a slightly empty section of the stadium suddenly blew up.
"Holy crap!" Steve yelled. Only he said something worse than 'crap'.
"What's going on?!" Ivy cried, looking stricken with fear.
As Mom ran Blaze out of the stadium and people were filing out left and right, I could only stare at Darrell, who was still standing there, muttering a language I thought only I could understand. Despite all the noise, the sudden fluttering in my stomach, and paying attention to Darrell, I thought I heard a faint click—like something unlocking.
My eyes widened some more as a feeling of nausea traveled up my throat. "No," I whispered so faintly, even I could barely hear it. But it was true...
Darrell had opened the Dragon Den.
-kills QuickEdit- GRRR! I WANT MY SQUIGGLY LINES!
Karania Avalon—Meh, I still want to throw rocks at boys, even if they do finally call XD
Rose—Let's just go with strange coincidence XD Even though it's not really...but yeah, let's just say it is...-facefaults into gummy candies- Yahoo!
Adriel-- -head pops open- Damn subliminal messages. :P
Robin Ryan—IT'S OKAY?! WOMAN, DO YOU KNOW WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A SEKSI HALF GHOST HERE?! –falls over again- Haha. –cough- Well you updated today, so wheehoo. Let us dance now. XD I'm weird.
Opaltiger—YOU WIN THE PIE! –gives you last slice of Oreo Pie, but half of it seems to be missing- Hmm...wonder how that happened...-burp-
Hakura—It's Friday! –throws confetti- And yes, yes I do. ;) Hey, keeps you coming back, doesn't it?
Bleeeeh...I don't wanna drive in the dark scary boonie of a town and pick up my sister and her friend...-hides- I'll just stay here and eat my pie, waiting for some awesome reviews...you know, so I can live on them once the pie runs out.
So you know what that means! –wink wink-
-coughreviewcough-