Hey guys! Man, it was a full weekend. Full of movies, anyway. I should study, but my next provincial isn't until Thursday, so I'll probably study Tuesday. And I really wanted to get another chapter up.

Tiger Lily21: Haha, what was your first clue? At least they're not going to have as tough a time as Danni and Aiden.

letylyf: Perhaps. ;c) Thanks.

Jyska: Yeah, yeah. My chapters are short. Bite me ;cD I'm glad you like it. Here's the next chapter. They're almost in the Cave. Almost. Woot. (and I don't get the rocky in the barn reference.)

rainkisser: yay! I love love. Don't die! Next chapter: Stat! Ready? CLEAR! Ready? CLEAR!

Glaze: I really like crazy evil characters. I'd like to perfect the snaky evil guy, but I can only seem to do the loud ones with the big plans. Probably because that's what I would be like if I turned evil.

UruvielTinuviel: Don't you hate that? You let them win, like, one game and they all of a sudden think they're better than you and such. Pfft.

Dragonblade Goddess: Don't you hate computer problems? Silly machines. ((machine starts making funny noises)) No! I didn't mean it! Honest! Anyway, I'm glad you like it.

You guys all rox0rs my sox0rs.

-Lulai

Chapter Seventeen: Attack!

"I hate forests," he heard Danni mutter behind him. Although he secretly agreed, he couldn't help the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth.

"Now, now, Danni," he said, and Danni glared at the smile in his voice. "The forest isn't so bad. Look around at all the beautiful foliage."

"I don't have to look around," she snarled. "It's all through my hair and my clothes." To illustrate her point, she reached up and tugged several twigs out of her hair, pulling the white blonde locks from their secure fastenings in her bun.

Aiden rather liked her hair like that, floating softly around her face, but he wisely didn't say anything. He just went back to clearing the path.

Danni glared at his back. "He can look at the foliage," she muttered angrily to Carpet, "because he's in front. With a sword. I just get slapped by the branches."

Carpet snorted in agreement.

Danni knew that she was only being so short tempered because of her headache, but that didn't really make her want to be nicer. "Where did he get that sword anyway?" she grumbled. "Why didn't I get a sword? I could chop my own path."

She was glaring so hard at her own feet that she didn't notice that Aiden had stopped and ran full into him.

"Steady," he murmured, grabbing her arm before she fell on her behind.

"What is it?" she asked after regaining her balance.

"I don't know," he replied, leading her into a clearing. She noticed that he hadn't removed his hand from her arm, but declined telling him. It felt very nice; she could feel the heat of his hand even through her tunic.

They stepped into a clearing, littered with sticks and large boulders.

Aiden frowned. Something about this place didn't seem right to him.

"Let's keep moving," he said tersely. Danni nodded, her violet eyes wide, his nervousness contagious.

They walked along in an uneasy silence. Danni's hand clenched tighter onto Carpet's reign. A cracking noise shattered the stillness.

Danni lifted her foot. "An eggshell?" she asked, surprised. She inspected it closer. The egg looked as though it might have at one time been about the size of her head. "What kind of creature has eggs this big?" she asked, a note of fear creeping into her voice.

But Aiden wasn't listening. Instead, he was intently studying a rather large pile of sticks. "I don't think those are sticks," he said slowly.

Danni followed the direction of his gaze. Indeed a grinning skull lay half buried in the ground.

"Let's get out of here," she said anxiously. "Quick."

Aiden didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed her hand and started pulling her at an extremely brisk tempo.

A dry flap and a terrible screech made Danni freeze.

Fortunately, Aiden wasn't as affected as Danni. "Move!" he yelled, pushing her to one side before jumping away. She banged her forearm against a rock and gasped at the pain. A great brown creature's talons tore through the place where they had stood a moment before and swooped away.

"Aiden!" Danni screamed as the griffin's golden eyes focused on her. The bird turned it's trajectory towards her, extending its talons.

"No!" he shouted, getting to his feet. Danni threw an arm over her face, calling Aiden's name again, preparing for the end.

With an ear-splitting shriek, the griffin turned away again. Danni lowered her arm. Aiden stood in front of her with a dripping sword. The griffin was now short a talon, great globs of blood falling from the beast.

"Run!" he yelled at her, pointing to the other side of the clearing. For a split second, she wanted to comply. But then she saw the great bird was joined with two others of its kind.

"Aiden, watch out!" she said, pointing.

"I told you to run!" he glared at her.

"I'm not leaving you!" she said obstinately, although her voice shook.

A look of desperation came into Aiden's eyes. "Don't you understand? If they kill you, they might as well have killed me!" He pulled her to her feet. "I wouldn't be able to bear it if you died." He pulled her roughly against him for a quick passionate kiss, before pushing her away again. "Now, go!"

He ran off in the other direction, yelling and waving his arms to get the griffins' attention.

Danni watched in horror as one by one, the bird's swooped in attacks at Aiden. He fended most of them off with his sword, but then one caught his shoulder. His arm drooped, red welling down his arm.

Danni gulped. "Be brave, be brave," she chanted to herself. She had to save Aiden, but she couldn't seem to move a muscle. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Move! she ordered herself, but her feet remained firmly planted. She saw the Aiden was tiring, and wouldn't be able to hold off the griffins for very much longer. She began to crouch over as if her stomach hurt her.

Carpet nudged her in the shoulder and she snapped upright. Suddenly, she didn't feel paralyzed with fear anymore.

She steeled her courage, and mounted Carpet.

"Go!" she said, kicking at Carpet's flank. He spurred towards Aiden, Danni holding on for dear life.

"Aiden!" she yelled, holding out her arm. Carpet reared, whinnying, scaring the griffins away for a few moments. Aiden took advantage of their momentary distraction and grabbed Danni's arm with his good one. She pulled him onto the back of Carpet where he clutched tightly about her waist as she turned Carpet towards the other end of the clearing.

"Run like the wind, Carpet!" Danni cried, Lark's words suddenly appearing in her mind.

Carpet galloped towards the trees, the griffins right behind them. Carpet leapt over a fallen log and extended his wings.

Aiden and Danni sat open-mouthed as Carpet took off into the sky. Each of his great wings was almost as long as Carpet himself. They were a deep brown with black tips on the ends of the longest feathers.

After a few minutes of chase, the griffins gave a great scream and turned back towards their clearing, presumably to lick their wounds and find a less challenging prey.

Aiden sighed in relief and laid his head against Danni's back.

"Let's land there, Carpet," Danni said, pointing to a blue pool that glittered in the afternoon sun. Carpet nickered softly and descended.

They landed on a thick patch of green grass, Aiden sliding off of the horse first. He helped Danni off as her legs were shaking so badly she wasn't sure that she'd be able to stand on her own.

She began to rummage through the pack that Crispin had prepared for them. She found some herbs labelled 'Retrina' and some strips of cotton.

"Thank you, Crispin," she whispered. She turned back to see Aiden staring at the small waterfall. She grabbed one of their bowls and dipped it into the pool of water.

"Aiden," she called softly. He shook his head then turned to her.

"Yes?" he asked.

She held up the bandages and herbs. "I'd like to clean your arm, if I could."

Aiden nodded, the pain in his arm severe. "If course," he said, sitting down.

She knelt next to him. "You are going to have to take your shirt off," she said.

Aiden winced. He removed his uninjured arm first, then pulled the half of the bloody tunic over his head. He slowly slid the sleeve down his arm. She dipped one of the bandages in the water and set to softly cleaning his arm of blood.

Aiden's focus went back to the waterfall. He'd been there before, he was sure of it. The place seemed so familiar to him.

He felt Danni sprinkle some of the herb in his wound and hissed in pain. The herb felt as though it were burning his skin where it lay open. She wrapped the bandages around his arm, tying them. There was a splash of water against his skin.

His head whipped around to look at Danni. "Danni?" he asked.

She looked away from him, but he grasped her chin in his hand and gently turned her face to his.

"Why are you crying, Danni?" he asked softly. Her violet eyes shimmered. She shook her head.

"You can tell me," he urged, stroking the side of her face.

"This is all my fault," she blurted out. She took a deep breath, trying to control her tears. All she seemed to do lately was cry.

"All of what?" he asked, confused.

She looked at him as if he was daft. "You were hurt because of me," she said, her voice cracking on the last word. She closed at her eyes, afraid they were going to pop out with the pressure behind them. "If I wasn't such a coward, I could have gotten to you sooner," she said, her voice becoming thick with tears.

"Oh Danni," Aiden said with what sounded like a smile. "You aren't a coward. A coward would have fled at the first sight of danger. You stayed."

"Because I was frozen to the spot!"

"But then you overcame that fear and saved me," he said. He lifted her chin, and she opened her eyes. "And that's bravery."

Danni desperately wanted to believe him. She searched his eyes, hoping to find her answers in there. What had he said out on the field? 'I couldn't bear it if you died?' It sounded as though he almost cared about her. Could that be possible?

"Perhaps," she stuttered. She stood up. "Would you like something for supper?" Coward, she berated herself bitterly.

"Of course," he said calmly, as if nothing had happened. "What do we have?"

She held up a few bundles. "Dried beef, cheese, and bread," she listed off. "We have oatmeal as well, but I figure we should save that for breakfast."

He nodded. "Shall I build a fire?" he asked.

Later that night, after they had eaten a pleasant dinner, Aiden sat up, watching the dying fire. Danni had fallen asleep quickly as exhausted as she was.

Aiden's gaze flickered over her sleeping form. She did like him; that much was evident. But she was as skittish as a colt. A grin slid across his face. He was good with colts.

Danni turned fitfully in her sleep, drawing Aiden's attention towards her again. She was muttering something and her face was drawn into a frown. She had kicked her blanket off during one of her shufflings.

On a sudden impulse, he stood up and walked over to where she was sleeping. He lay down beside her and pulled her tight against him. She fit perfectly, the top of her blonde head tucked neatly underneath his chin. She sighed and snuggled into him, her nightmare gone for the moment. He pulled the blanket over both of them and fell asleep.