omg i got so caught up in a movie yesterday that i completely forgot to update this! i'm so sorry guys! hopefully i don't do that again :oP
anyways, thanks for the reviews so far and Happy Mother's Day!
Surprisingly enough, Viren pulled both sturdy wooden doors open all by himself and Clark and Lana watched from Elsu, excitement fluttering within them. The doors inched apart more each second with a definite creak.
Clark's jaw dropped spontaneously.
On the outside, the castle was beautiful, and on the inside…it was magnificent.
They were face to face with a lush and prosperous garden, filled with every kind of exotic plant and flower imaginable (and some even unimaginable). A tiny cobblestone pathway weaved around the many displays of greenery. Bushes trimmed in the shapes of flying horses and dancing fairies were set everywhere and were surrounded by tuffs of roses, tulips and the fairy flowers Clark had discovered earlier.
Other flowers were present also. A few had petals that were larger then Clark's hand and flashed an attractive shade of bright orange. Their stiff green stems stretched higher then Clark himself and dipped down, hanging there as if to welcome Clark and others into the castle.
Japanese-like trees stood a few feet above the travelers and provided a natural roof of pink flowers over them. Their branches made detailed designs of shadow on the multi-colored pebbles of the pathway.
It was truly a jungle of wonderful colors and trees that both Clark and Lana wanted to get completely lost in.
They started to cross into the castle itself and as they did, they faintly heard singing…like a choir of young angels humming in the background, helping them along. A patch of fairies from the nearby flowers rushed up over them and sprinkled their special glitter upon the travelers' heads, giggling as they did so. A soft wind tickled the trees and made it look as though they were dancing to the gentle music of the invisible angels.
No one spoke. It was somehow understandable that no language could be spoken in the Garden. Clearly, the Garden was something to only be felt, smelled, and touched.
Clark sucked in as much of the wonderfully scented garden as he could. He let his eyes close and let the singing carry him away. Everything was utterly peaceful and calm. It was as if he suddenly understood the whole meaning of life. He knew why he was here and who he was. And more importantly, he realized that none of that mattered. Everything came into him so clearly and quietly…this truly had to be the closest to heaven he'd ever be…he promised himself to remember this feeling forever. It was a beautiful, amazing and tremendous feeling…never to be put in words…the only word that could ever come even remotely close…was love. Pure, sincere, honest love.
Soon the horses lead them up to a long wall of deep green ivy, which stretched, from either end of the castle walls. Viren rushed up to it and pulled away a patch of the vines, revealing a large, round, brass knocker. He knocked cautiously.
Clark opened his eyes, preparing himself to move further into this unbelievable place.
Slowly, the many strings of ivy slithered away from the center like a million tiny snakes. They revealed a medium-sized opening, just big enough for the tallest (Clark) to fit through. Tentatively, everyone slid off Anstice and Elsu and began to enter into the heart of the castle.
After Clark and Lana each got off Elsu, they turned to each other and smiled. A rush of something Clark couldn't quite control took over inside when he realized Lana had slipped her warm hand in his, intertwining their fingers affectionately.
He opened his mouth to say something, but then realized he wasn't even sure what to say. At that moment, all he cared about was Lana…and all she cared about was him. He let another one of his Kent grins show, his white teeth shining along with everything else around them.
Viren was the first to walk through, then Clark and Lana, and finally Emmet and Wenda. Everyone was overcome by agitation when they saw the site before them.
They were in a beautifully lit entrance hall, with a set of pearl steps leading them down into the middle of the enormous room. A long balcony stretched out along either side of them and overlooked the center of the room. It was supported by six thick marble pillars which all shined with perfection. The stairway in front of them grew wider as it reached the bottom and was covered with a layer of ruby red velvet.
But by far the most magnificent piece of beauty in the whole room was the chandelier, which hung in the middle of the ceiling. It was made up of at least a trillion tiny crystals and was shaped a like an upside-down teardrop. At the very bottom was a gigantic baby blue jewel, which acted as a prism and cast little rainbows along the pearl-colored walls. The light of the fixture itself didn't seem to be electric nor was it by ignited by fire. It simply seemed as though the crystals themselves naturally gave off a warm, bright light of their own.
"My God…" Clark muttered, dumbfounded.
"This is…incredible…" Lana whispered, her eyes widening as large as they could go.
"And it only gets better," Viren informed happily. "Within a few hours, everyone in Sogni Dromen with be here. You will be treated like gods."
'Wow…gods…' Clark felt twice as better as he felt a few minutes ago outside of the castle. He was definitely going to be able to get use to the place…
"Accueil, Monsieur Clark et Mademoiselle Lana! Accueil to you all!"
Just as Clark and Lana were trying to slowly gather back up their dropped jaws, a small butler in a nicely tailored suit rushed out from one of the doorways on the bottom floor.
By the way he spoke, he was obviously French andkept his dark black hair slicked back with a heavy amount of gel. He had a slight appearance of a goatee and his chin came to a sort of point at the end. Nonetheless, he looked very respectable and obviously a very important person in the castle.
"Good day, Sir Rolf," Viren commented with a slight bow.
Sir Rolf rushed up the carpeted stairs and then stopped in front of the newcomers, bowing also. "'Tis a fine treat to see you again, Viren. Such a polite young elf."
The butler scanned everyone's appearance and stopped when he noticed Viren's parents. "Oh, comment merveilleux! Monsieur Emmet et Mademoiselle Wenda!"
The elves all dove into their greetings and comments on how each other had changed over the years. Obviously they had quite a history between them. Clark and Lana waited patiently until they were finished, still gawking at the beauty of the castle.
"And of course I know who these fine young humans are!" Sir Rolf suddenly exclaimed, looking at Clark and Lana. "Ah, yes…there has been a rumor going around of your beauty, Mademoiselle." The butler timidly bowed towards Lana.
"Thank you, Sir Rolf. That's very kind of you," Lana stated, feeling a little uncomfortable. She continued to hold onto Clark's hand.
"And you, Monsieur Clark…why…you look as though you could take on Amon with your bare hands!"
Clark laughed, "That would be something, wouldn't it?"
"Yes, you both truly are what Sogni Dromen has been searching for all these long years…the Old Story will finally be laid to rest…" Sir Rolf looked down in deep thought, and only then noticed the time on his watch. His face snapped back up quickly. "Oh mon! It is really this late? We must get you all fixed up for the ball tonight!"
"Oh, does it really have to be tonight?" Lana asked with uncertainty. "I'm feeling a little tired…"
"Not to worry Mademoiselle…you will feel perfectly fine by tonight." The butler extended his hands and said a loud, "Tonight is a night long past due! Maybe in your real world you were treated as a commoner…but tonight…you shall be the prince and princess of Sogni Dromen!"
He clapped his hands to together and a cluster of other people looking much like Sir Rolf rushed up the stairs. A few lead the horses off down the right-hand side of the castle balcony and the others followed along behind Emmet, Wenda, Viren, Clark, Lana, and Sir Rolf who were walking along the other side of the balcony.
"This should be very interesting," Clark whispered to Lana as they followed behind Sir Rolf.
"I think it'll be enchanting." She looked up at Clark truthfully. "I've always wanted to be a princess."
As they walked along the balcony, the travelers noticed extraordinarily made tapestries lining the wall. Each one bore beautiful colors and shapes that drew Clark and Lana more and more into the magical castle. Everything was so exquisite it was hard to believe it was real. Or…semi-real at least.
After they passed a couple of doors, Sir Rolf finally stopped in front of a pair of gilded double doors.
Clark took a breath, getting ready to me stunned again by more of the luxurious beauty that was Sogni Dromen.
Sir Rolf blasted through the doors, revealing an enormous suite.
It was in a circular shape and held an elegantly comfortable-looking bed with a canopy directly in front of them. To the left was a porch with a few lounge chairs and exotic plants like the ones they'd seen in the Garden earlier. Above was a round skylight, which let a beam of pure sunlight in. Over-stuffed couches and chairs littered the floor.
"This suite is reserved exclusively for Monsieur Clark and Mademoiselle Lana," Sir Rolf explained with pride. "'Tis one of the finest in the whole castle!"
"It's awesome," Clark stated, gawking at the display before him.
"Awesome?" One of the butlers next to the one who just spoke looked at Clark with confusion. He obviously didn't understand much English.
"Great. Nice. Perfect. Thank you for it. Really. Very cool."
"Okay, well, Mademoiselle Aimee should be here soon to take care of the princess and I will personally help our prince prepare for the ball tonight."
And with that, Sir Rolf and all his acquaintances left the room.
Lana turned to Clark.
"You do realize they only gave us one bed," she informed with a smirk.
"I know. I didn't want to complain and make them feel bad. Plus," He rushed up and plopped down on the blankets, spreading his arms out as far as they would go, "it's even more comfortable than it looks."
Smiling, Lana walked up and sat next to him on the bed. She leaned against one of the posts of the transparent canopy above them.
Clark sat up and watched her carefully.
"Ready to go through with this?"
"With what? It's just a little makeover."
"I know..." Clark admitted, feeling a little stupid. "It'll just…it'll be the first time we won't be together since our whole experience here. Be kind of weird going through this crazy palace on my own."
She smiled at how protective Clark was acting. "Clark, we'll be fine. It's not like you're going off to war and I'm joining the Mafia."
Laughing, Clark looked into her eyes, perplexed by their radiance.
"Lana…I hope tonight – this…ball or whatever – I hope it's something we'll never forget."
She smiled sympathetically at him and patted his hand lightly. "I'm sure it will, Clark."
"Excuse me…Lana?"
Clark and Lana looked up at the door to see a young woman standing there, scissors and a mirror in hand.
Lana turned back to Clark. "I guess I better go freshen up for tonight."
"I already know you'll look beautiful," Clark commented dreamily.
Reluctantly, Lana followed the hair-stylist woman out of the room, feeling Clark's stare all the way. Bubbles of joy broiled inside her. Things were finally changing between her and Clark. The uncomfortable moments and regretful feelings were all gone.
She couldn't wait until the ball tonight.
Sir Rolf wasn't kidding when he said Clark and Lana would be treated as royalty. For hours, people surrounded the "prince", helping him choose a suit, fixing his already perfect hair, giving him cologne, and making sure he looked utterly handsome for the ball.
Everything was very surreal to Clark, who'd only worn a tuxedo as nice as the one had on now once before: in his dream wedding with Lana. It seemed like poetic justice. Peculiar questions began to surface in his mind…
What if this accident that landed them in Sogni Dromen wasn't really an accident at all? What if this whole place was created so he could finally reveal to Lana everything about him. Sure, it sounded a little insane, but what wasn't? If she believed in all of Sogni Dromen, why wouldn't she believe in him?
That settled it. Tonight, Clark was going to tell Lana everything. Tonight he was going to tell Lana his secret.