Hi everyone! I'm back! Sorry for the delay. Just had a weekend away with my boyfriend for my birthday : ) I've also been coming up with ideas for the next part of the story so hopefully the writing road will be pretty smooth from here on in…for a while at least.
Disclaimer:- Basic plot-property of Walt Disney. Words and waffle-property of me.
Bella was lying in a beautiful rose-garden. Her lungs were filled with the sweet scent of the flowers that surrounded her on all sides. She breathed in contently, and closed her eyes, feeling the sun dance across her eyelids. Someone was beside her, but she could not see who it was. She only knew she belonged here in this garden with this unseen figure. Bang! Bang! Two gunshots interrupted her perfection. The figure beside her was running, and she needed to follow. "Wait!" she cried, and then she was running too, running into a dark room and seeing the blood on the floor.
Bella awoke from her dream to the sounds of birds outside the window. She had forgotten to close it before she had fallen asleep and now the normally melodious birdsong was noisily resounding in her sluggish brain. She had had an uneasy and restless night and had woken several times shivering from something over than cold. As sunlight streamed into her bleary eyes, she was beyond tempting to bury herself in the duvet, in her own little world, snug and undemanding. However, she knew that she should not make herself too comfortable as she had made her decision, having spent several hours mentally weighing up the pros and cons of staying and going. It was this that had filled her unconscious thoughts and prevented her from getting the peaceful night's sleep she desperately craved.
Although every ounce of the adventurer and romanticist in her heart was screaming at her to stay, the rationality of her senses told her that she simply could not, should not, stay in a derelict old house with a potentially dangerous man she hardly knew. She should go. After all, she could always visit if she felt the need. This unconvincing afterthought was of little consolation, but still represented the fine line between Bella's two minds. It was the only thing that allowed her to get up and walk soundlessly out of the room as if she had hypnotised herself to block out everything but the route to the front door.
She paused at the top of the stairs and found herself glancing down the corridor , wondering what Bastian was doing at this moment, unaware he was about to be left alone once more. Bella sighed. She knew that seeing him now would throw her head into turmoil again. One look at his enigmatic eyes and she would be lost. With a heart that felt like lead, Bella descended the staircase wrapping her arms around herself tightly, her head lowered. She made herself think of the little front garden that she and her father had lovingly tended through all seasons. It was full of flowers; spots of colour dabbled among the lush green lawn, and although it was that uncertain gap between winter and spring, she imagined the garden was alive, and in bloom, and something she could look forward to when she left this fantasy world behind her. It raised her spirits just a little.
And now the doorknob was in front of her. It was old-fashioned and elegantly carved with shapes and swirls in between the black-flecked gold. And Bella found herself inexplicably fascinated with it; this thing that marked the boundary between two worlds. Once she placed her hand on the doorknob and turned it, she would have reached the point of no return. She would have left him.
"Everyone leaves me."
That uneasy feeling of being watched once again froze Bella from the inside out and she turned and scanned the vast entrance hall again. She sighed heavily when nothing materialised out of the darkness.
"I'll never get used to this place" she heard herself muttering under her breath. She frowned. That sentence rather implied that she was staying and she wasn't. She was going. Her hand was on the doorknob and turning it, first excruciatingly slowly and then sharply and more determined. . There was a click and Bella pulled the door towards her. She shifted her gaze from the doorknob to the outside…and jumped out of her skin.
The figure staring back at her did exactly the same but slightly more controlled. Both were equally shocked and so they just looked at each other for a moment without blinking, like goldfish in a bowl.
And then both spoke at once, and the result was discordant and slightly unintelligible.
"Who are you?" said Bella.
"What are you doing here?" said the elderly lady at the door.
"I…I…" Bella found herself stammering. She was in shock at finding another human being and this stopped her from being able to form a coherent sentence. The lady in front of her noticed her trembling lip and flushed cheeks, and chuckled softly to herself. She had a kindly face. The tell-tale signs of her age were hardly recognisable beneath her bright eyes and jolly cheeks. She wore a sensible blouse and pleated skirt teamed with a long beige-coloured Mac and deep purple boots, and her silvery hair was pinned back with a ribbon that did not go with any of her clothes, but instead seemed to match her face. She had a well-used carrier bag in her right hand and a small holdall in her left, and she was still chuckling as Bella was taking in the sight of her.
"Well…" said the old lady…"are you going to let me in? It's colder than it looks out here!"
Bella nodded and stepped back to unblock the entrance. She found her voice.
"I…I thought there was no-one else", she said to the back of the old lady's head. The old lady turned and looked Bella up and down.
"So did I, child. So did I, but looks like we're both wrong."
She paused.
"My goodness, look at you! You're a mess.
She tutted as Bella realised that this was actually true. She hadn't given a thought to her appearance because she didn't know that she was going to meet anybody else. She found herself flushing red again and tucking her hair behind her ears.
……………………………………………………………………………………
Ten minutes later, Bella and the old lady (who had introduced herself as Audrey Potter) were sat at the kitchen table with freshly made cups of tea. Bella had just finished explaining her reasons for being in the house, carefully editing some of the moments involving Bastian. Audrey was listening intently and could tell that she was holding some things back. She didn't query it though. She was starting to like this young girl now that she had satisfied herself that she was not a trespasser, and didn't want to unnecessarily intimidate her. Heavens! The girl looked exhausted and anxiety was written all over every inch of her otherwise pretty face. She noticed that when she spoke about the young master, her eyes seemed to flash ever so slightly and her hands tightened around the mug of tea.
"…and well, I was just about to leave when I opened the door…Oh, and I'm sorry for being rude. I didn't expect to see anybody else."
Audrey chuckled again.
"That's perfectly alright, child. You startled me a bit too. I wasn't expecting to see a nice young lady such as yourself in a place like this. Of course, I try to pop in and keep the place tidy from time to time but it's in no kind of state for visitors at the moment."
A light bulb clicked on in Bella's mind.
"Ah! That explains a lot. You clean for him?"
"Well, I like to help out here and there, clean a bit, buy food. I promised his parents I'd look after him, you see."
Bella cleared her throat and tried to think of a good way to phrase what she thought might be a delicate question.
"What happened…I mean…where are his parents?"
"Dead."
"Dead?"
"Murdered."
Bella gasped, and in doing do almost knocked over her tea. She took a tissue out of her pocket and frantically dabbed at the few drops of the liquid that had splashed onto the table, taking her time as she was unsure what to say next, but she didn't need to worry.
"Ten years ago" said Audrey suddenly. "Somebody broke into the house and killed them. Young Sebastian found them. I don't know much else than that."
She sipped her tea as Bella listened, wide-eyed on the opposite side of the table. A wave of crushing sympathy flooded through her and a thousand statements resounded in her head.
Oh my god!...Poor Bastian…It must've been so awful.
And then images of her mother came to her, as she remembered her own pain. Watching as she lay dying. The emptiness, the gaping hole within her, when she had finally succumbed to the disease that had eaten away at her as long as Bella could remember. Tears started to form in the corners of Bella's eyes but she did not let them fall. Murdered. That was so much worse. She had no right to cry for her mother now.
"Before…it…happened, I promised them that should anything happen to them, I would look after him the best I could. And that's what I've been doing ever since. I hardly ever see him though. Very solitary, he is."
"I've noticed."
"Kind heart though. I remember when he was little-he was so happy, and so smart. I always used to say he'd be Prime Minister one day."
She chuckled contently, lost in good memories.
"But that was then, before…everything. I always used to hope that one day he'd find some companionship, a kindred spirit maybe. After all, I can't take care of him forever."
Bella squirmed slightly in her chair at what the old lady was implying. True, she was starting to reconsider leaving, but now Audrey seemed to be developing a whole life for them in her head, despite them having said hardly anything to each other. She coughed, breaking the wistful spell.
"I…I was just about to leave actually."
Audrey seemed to consider this for a while.
"That's perfectly understandable, child." She chuckled. "Ignore me! I'm just an overly sentimental old woman. That boy is, or was, like a grandson to me. Naturally, I want the best for him. It can't be easy for him on his own. Such a pity. Anyway…"
She rose, picked up the tea cups and walked to the sink.
"…it's been nice to meet you…
She paused as if she had temporarily forgotten Bella's name
…Bella."
She smiled and walked out of the door, leaving Bella alone once more in the kitchen.
Ta-da! How does everyone like my little reference to a certain teapot? I'm actually not entirely happy with this chapter. Can't really explain why, but I can always go back and change it later.
As usual, a few shout-outs to my wonderful reviewers…
TrudiRose- Yep! This Morris is much more sensible. I always thought he was a bit naïve in the movie. Bless 'im! I'm hoping my version of the 'getting to know eachother' scenes is gonna be just as magical, if slightly more realistic. Not quite there yet though. Need to build-up to it. I mean, I can't picture these two suddenly having pleasant little breakfasts together. (I wish it was that easy!) Sorry this update was later than usual but I have reasons, honest! Thanks a lot for your continued encouragement and support. It means a lot to me to get such helpful feedback from a talented writer such as yourself.
LumBabsFan- I'm glad you liked that chapter. It was just a bit of happy fluff really, apart from the Morris bit of course. I'm sure they'll be more little contemplation scenes like this cos I like writing them, but at the moment I've got some convincing 'we-like-eachother-really chapters to do!
Bellamegs- Thanks! I like adding little bits of humour here and there cos otherwise it'll be all doom and gloom, and that's just not me! Hmm…I didn't think about the predicatabiltiy thing in the musical that much, but it is a bit like that the 'Home' song. I loved the testing names bit too. I'm soooooooo gonna enjoy writing the romance bits (cos I'm a hopeless romantic) but I don't get to do it just yet, not fair! 'cries'
Erm….Hazaah to you too…(if only I knew what that meant lol)
Rosakara and gigiglen- Thanks a lot, you're great!
And a big general virtual hug for everyone! Hurray!
