I would just like to say something before today's chapter. For some sick reason, I like to torment and torture my favorite characters. I don't do that to all of them, but I do torture about half of them. I just like to make them uncomfortable, physically and emotionally.

My favorite character of this series is Kellach. You can figure out the rest.

CHAPTER 5

Moyra almost didn't want to get out Kellach's nice warm bed, but she had to see who this new girl was. She followed Driskoll down the stairs, where they stopped about half way up. Kellach was at the front door talking to the girl, whom Moyra annoyingly noted was taller than her.

"I hate her already," she growled in a low voice to Driskoll.

"Moyra!" Driskoll gasped, "You shouldn't judge people based on first appearances! I mean, I'm not very fond of her either, and I've only known her for about two minutes, but still!"

Moyra decided to ignore his comment. "Do you know her name?" she asked him, wanting to know all that she could about her potential new enemy.

"Her name is Alexandra," Driskoll replied, "Apparently she's not doing too well in her studies, so Zendric wants Kellach to tutor her." Moyra snickered quietly at this news.

The door closed and Kellach turned around, alone. He spotted the two on the stairs and rolled his eyes, but said nothing as he walked into the kitchen. Moyra and Driskoll quickly stood up and followed him. Kellach busied himself walking around the kitchen, putting a teapot full of water over a fire. Moyra and Driskoll sat down at the table.

"So Zendric canceled my lessons for a few days so he could do more research on the beast of shadows," Kellach told them, without turning around, "Something I'm sure Driskoll already knew." He cast a glare over his shoulder at his brother.

"What's the beast of shadows?" Moyra wondered.

"Oh right! We never told you what happened to us yesterday!" Driskoll realized. He quickly told Moyra the details of the shadow that had attacked them, and what Zendric thought of it. When he got to describing its powers, Moyra shivered.

"That sounds horrible," she said, "A creature that can use your secrets and emotions against you? How terrifying! I wouldn't want anything using my secrets against me! Not that I have secrets…"

"Of course not," Driskoll agreed, raising an eyebrow.

"That's not even the worst part," Kellach added, coming over to the table. He set down three steaming mugs of tea and handed one to each of them before sitting down himself. "When it gains enough power, it can exert complete control over someone, dictating everything they do and say."

"Yeah, how did Zendric describe it?" Driskoll wondered for a moment. "I think he said it's like it reads you a story and you have to act it out for it, or something like that."

"Like a demented play," Kellach muttered, summing it up.

Moyra felt a cold chill run up her spine. Then she thought of something. "It seems rather convenient that one showed up right on the Festival of Emotions, the month when everyone's feelings are on display and intensified," she said. "It must be looking to gain a lot of power quickly."

"That's what I was thinking," Kellach agreed, "I was also wondering if it had anything to do with your house burning down. Not that I'm trying to make light of your situation," he added hastily, "but it would be an easy way to heighten your emotions. Your fear for your own life and your parents, your sadness of losing your home, your anger of possibly being targeted."

Moyra muttered something under her breath that the boys couldn't hear. "You may be right," she said in a louder voice, "But how would we find anything out?" She glanced at the letter Kellach had left on the table. "Zendric said not to go looking for the creature."

Kellach scoffed. "You two obviously don't know Zendric like I do," he said, "He obviously wants us to find out more about it on our own."

"But Kellach, it specifically says several times not to go looking for the beast," Driskoll pointed out calmly.

"Besides," Kellach continued, ignoring his brother's statement and taking a sip from his tea, "We don't have to look for it. We just need to find out more about it before it gets too powerful. Zendric can do his own research, and we can do ours."

Moyra sighed. Obviously Kellach's mind was set, and there was no changing it. She took a sip from her own mug. "So what do you propose we do?" she asked, "I don't really want to go back to where my house used to be. It's too traumatic."

Kellach nodded. "That's all right, Moyra," he said, "We don't have to if you don't want to. Driskoll and I understand."

"But Kellach, what if there's an important clue at- ouch!" Driskoll cut himself off as his older brother kicked him in the shin under the table. He rubbed his leg, while glaring at Kellach. "I mean, no, we're not going back there."

"Maybe we should go check out that stupid looking castle outside of town," Moyra suggested, "I'm sure there's already a bunch of people there and maybe the shadow will show up again to try to gain more power."

Kellach shrugged. "We've got nothing else to go on," he admitted, "I'm all for it. Driskoll?"

"Sure, why not?" his brother replied, "If nothing else, it gives us something to do."

So it was decided. Kellach lead the way to the front door as they grabbed a few things on their way out. But as soon as Kellach stepped out of the house, he tripped over something and fell to the ground, hard. Moyra and Driskoll quickly raced over to him. Before Moyra could even start to open her mouth to ask if he was all right, a high pitched voice interrupted.

"By the gods! You did it again!" it screeched. Driskoll groaned.

"Serilynne!" he exclaimed, "What are you doing outside my front door? Also, how did you find out where I live?"

"Friend of yours?" Moyra asked, helping Kellach to his feet.

"Hardly," he muttered to her, "We just met her yesterday."

Serilynne blinked up at Driskoll, completely ignoring Kellach and Moyra. "When we met yesterday, I followed you home!" she said proudly, "But I got lost a few times. But I'm here now!" She turned to glare at Kellach, who was still holding onto Moyra for support. "But then he tried to crush me again!"

"How was I to know you would be standing right outside the door?" Kellach muttered.

Driskoll ignored him and addressed the tiny girl. "Serilynne, go home!" he told her, "I'm sure your parents are worried about you!"

Serilynne giggled in a way that Moyra found way too cutesy. "Oh Driskoll!" she exclaimed, "You're so nice, always looking out for me!"

"Always looking out for- we just met yesterday!" Driskoll pointed out in an exasperated tone, throwing his hands up.

"Anyway," she said, as if he hadn't spoken, "I should probably be getting home now. My mommy will wonder where I've been. Bye-bye!" She waved happily to Driskoll, then skipped away, humming a little tune to herself. Driskoll stared after her.

"I feel like I'm going insane when she's around," he said, finally.

Moyra snickered. "Was that your new girlfriend, Driskoll?" she asked, suppressing a laugh. Driskoll glared at her.

"New stalker is more like it," he grumbled, "I can't believe she followed us home last night. She could've followed us right to the fire!"

"It's water under the bridge now, little brother," Kellach assured him, also trying not to laugh, "Anyway, we should get going. I want to see that castle before too many people show up and it gets crowded."

"Ah, we don't have to worry about that," Moyra explained, gently linking an arm with him, "The whole of Curston could be there and it still wouldn't be crowded. Lousy festival people and their stupid over-sized castle."

…

Just outside of Curston, beyond the Old gate, wizards from out of town had conjured up a large, pink-tinted castle especially for the Festival. Once the month was over, they would use their magic to get rid of it, as if it had never been there. The three friends often complained about how big it was, as it could easily fit everyone single person in Curston, plus any visitors inside just the main foyer alone. So they saw no need for all the extra hallways, sitting rooms, ballrooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and other rooms that made it many times larger and harder to navigate around other than the wizards from out of town just wanted to show off. Throughout the festival, parties were being held constantly in the main room, and other rooms could be rented out to smaller parties. But there was always a feast that the whole town was expected to show up for on certain days of the Festival.

Something the children had forgotten when they entered the front room and were clearly underdressed for the occasion.

"What day of the Festival is it?" Kellach asked, off-handedly

"The second," Driskoll answered, simply.

Kellach sighed and hit himself. "I totally forgot!" he muttered, "The second day is the day of the opening party! Everyone in Curston is going to be here."

"I still don't know why there's an 'opening party' on the second day of the Festival instead of the first," Moyra muttered, still clutching Kellach's arm. She pressed closer to him.

"So," Driskoll said, stepping forward, "Shall we have a look around?"

The three of them stepped into the room, but as soon as they did, their path was blocked by a familiar face. "Friends!" the badly dressed story teller exclaimed, stepping in front of them.

"By the gods, not this guy again," Moyra scowled, gripping Kellach's arm more tightly.

"Friends! I have arrived to tell you all another fantastic tale!" This time, the man wasn't speaking to the crowd, but directly to the three of them. "My name is-" Moyra was sure the man had a decent enough name, but his outfit was just so ridiculous, that she forgot what it was as soon as he said it. "Today, I will tell you the legend of this marvelous castle that we are now standing in!"

He cleared his throat. "The legend says that this is an enchanted castle of love! Those who share their first kiss together within these walls are destined to remain together forever! But, hear me, my young friends; those who use trickery to get what they want are doomed to a life of sorrow and loneliness. There's more as well! The Festival of Emotions is a very special time for young people. It's a time to share your true feelings with someone. But, there is also a curse for those young people. If, by the time a young adult turns fourteen, they have not shared a loving kiss with another young person at the time of the festival, they are certain to die. A sorrowful and painful death indeed!" He paused to let his words sink in. "Well, then, enjoy yourselves!" Then he danced away, stupid cape billowing behind him.

They waited until he was out of earshot before Driskoll exploded. "He got it wrong again!" he shouted, "First of all, the age is thirteen, not fourteen! Second, of course the castle is enchanted; it was made by wizards! Thirdly, and most importantly, all of it is a baseless story! At least the first one was based on a true story. This one the wizards completely made up so people would be more excited about the holidays!"

"Indeed," Kellach agreed, "I never believed that old story. I mean, just look at me! I'm almost fifteen, and no one's ever kissed me. And nothing horrible has happened to me."

"Well, that's debatable," Driskoll said with a smirk, "But I do agree that you aren't dead yet, at least. That guy really needs to get his facts straight. Now come on, let's go check out the party." He led the way into the room, where long tables of food had been set up in the back and smaller, rounder tables were scattered around. A band played and a large clearing had been made for dancing. Moyra saw Driskoll glance at the tables of food.

"I'm going to see if I can find anything unusual over here," he said to Moyra and Kellach, "Don't wait up for me." Then he took off directly for the food.

Moyra sighed and looked at Kellach, who was staring after his brother, puzzled. "Shall we walk around and see if we can find that shadow?" she asked him. He nodded, so she linked her arm with his again and they started walking the perimeter of the room.

As they walked, scanning the room for anything unusual, Moyra thought back to the story the Stupid Looking Man had told them. About sharing a first kiss, and sharing her true feelings. She scoffed silently to herself. Maybe it should be called the Festival of Sharing Way Too Much, she thought bitterly. Suddenly, she felt like a rock had just dropped into her gut. She looked at Kellach, whose keen eyes were carefully scanning the crowd. She cleared her throat.

"Um, Kellach," she said quietly. Kellach turned and looked at her. "May I please talk to you privately?" She cast her eyes over the dancing crowd. "Where there aren't any people around?"

"Er, sure, Moyra," Kellach replied, "Let's try to find an empty room. Should we tell Driskoll where we're going?"

"Nah," Moyra scoffed, looking over at the food table, "If I know Driskoll, he'll be there for quite a while." They both laughed and headed out of the room, looking for one that was empty. After walking through countless of rooms with private parties, drunk people, couples making out, and horny teenagers, they finally found a room that wasn't being used, and was quite a considerable distance away from anything else, so they wouldn't be disturbed.

The room they had chosen was what appeared to be a large sitting room. Many elegant chairs and couches were spread out in a semi-circle around a huge fireplace. There were many pointless and expensive looking decorations sitting about.

Kellach looked around the large room for a moment to make sure they were truly alone before turning to Moyra. "All right," he said to her, "What did you want to talk to me about?"

While they had been walking, Moyra had thought long and hard about what she wanted to say. She was positive she had the words right, it was just a matter of working up the nerve to actually say them. She took a deep breath.

"It's not that I wanted to talk to you about something," she started, "I… I wanted to ask for a favor from you. A-and you can say no, if you want."

"Ok," Kellach replied, his calm blue gaze never leaving her face.

Moyra bit her lower lip and looked away. Stop staring at me like that! She wanted to scream at him, You're making this so much harder!

She absent-mindedly started pulling at a loose thread on one of the couches, refusing to look at him. "Um, I was just thinking about that story that guy told us," she said, stumbling a little over her words, "And how you said that no one's ever kissed you." She paused, but Kellach said nothing. She tried to give a little laugh. "Not that I give any credibility to that guy." She waited for Kellach to agree with her, but he continued to be silent. She cast a quick glance at him to make sure he was actually paying attention and in that brief moment, her green eyes met his blue ones. She turned away again.

Damn it, Kellach! Say something! She thought bitterly.

"So, I was just wondering…" she continued, picking at the thread some more, "Um, if it's all right, of course… and it wouldn't mean anything! It would just be as friends… to get it over with…" She was slightly annoyed that Kellach continued to not say anything. She sighed slightly, deciding to just say it.

"I want to kiss you," she said, quietly. She looked up at Kellach, who finally averted his own gaze to the floor. She felt herself hold her breath in anticipation.

Kellach shuffled his feet a little. "Why do you want to kiss me?" he asked eventually, "Why not ask Driskoll or something?"

"Because, Driskoll would make it all weird," Moyra replied, relieved that she at least had an answer for that, "Besides, you're older than both of us. I-I've always sort of wondered what it would be like to kiss someone older than me. And other than you, I don't really know any other boys."

Kellach said nothing, but continued to stare at the floor. Moyra suddenly felt a sense of panic and embarrassment rising up inside her, and she felt her eyes grow a little watery. She turned away so Kellach couldn't see her.

"Maybe this was a mistake," she muttered, fighting to keep her voice steady, "We should just go."

"No, wait!" Kellach called out quickly, grabbing her shoulder before she could walk away. He gently turned her around. "Yes," he said.

Moyra stared at him. "W-what?" she asked, cautiously.

"Yes, we can kiss," he told her, "I mean, it would just be to get it over with, right? It wouldn't really mean anything?"

"Of course!" Moyra replied hastily, finally letting out the breath she had been holding in. "And it's not like we would tell anyone about it. It would just be between us."

"Right," Kellach mumbled. He looked up as Moyra stepped closer to him. "Just as friends?" he repeated.

"Just as friends," Moyra assured him.

Then she gently leaned in and kissed him fully on his mouth. Instantly she felt more excited and her heart raced. She carefully held his shoulders and leaned him in more so she could kiss him more deeply. She closed her eyes and parted her lips slightly so she could taste his breath, which, in her opinion, tasted nice and sweet. She could feel Kellach shaking slightly, but right now she didn't care. She pressed herself closer, so that she could press every inch of her body against his. She knew that this was probably far too intense for a simple first kiss between friends, but at the moment she didn't care at all. All she cared about was making this kiss as long and powerful as possible. They were alone, and Moyra didn't need anyone else but Kellach right now. She felt like, at the moment, Kellach belonged to her and her alone. She was aware of Kellach leaning back a little, but that just made her kiss him more deeply. Using her own lips, she parted his mouth slightly so she could taste him better. A sensational feeling overcame her as his breath flowed through her. She could feel her own heart beat match his and she grew a bit more excited. Just when she thought that her excitement would pour over, she felt him gently push her away. Reluctantly, she pulled her mouth away from his, breathing heavily as he did the same. Neither of them spoke for several moments.

"Well," Moyra eventually said, awkwardly looking at the floor, "Now that we have that out of the way, I guess we can enjoy hating the rest of the festival, huh?"

"Yeah," Kellach said, breathlessly, "Right." He looked up and over at Moyra. "Come on," he told her, "We should probably get back before Driskoll misses us." With that, he turned and started to head back the way they had come, with Moyra closely following behind.

Told ya I like to torment my favorite characters. It's just gonna keep getting better and better from here on out. ;)