ON THE WINGS OF AN ANGEL
Another lovely chapter for my lovely readers. It's longer than the last one, but still notoriously short. Oh, well, quality takes precedence over quantity. I know in my case, I would much rather read a short, well-written story than a long, poorly-written one.
Characters (with exceptions) © Disney
Story © unicorn-skydancer08
All rights reserved.
Chapter 14: Misgivings
It was still raining the following morning. Although there wasn't nearly so much thunder and lightning anymore, water continued to pour down steadily.
Rhiella awoke early; she was considerably surprised to find herself in a bed in her clothes, to realize that she had even dozed off to begin with. Upon realizing she was in Terence's bed, she was wide-awake in an instant and she jerked upright with a sharp gasp. When she looked to the other side of the bed and found it empty, with the other half of the sheets and blankets unruffled, she let out her breath in immense relief.
She also felt a touch of regret, though she wouldn't have admitted it to anyone.
Well, she figured, now that she was awake, she might as well get up.
Slowly, the young woman pushed back the covers and stood on her feet, feeling oddly sore and stiff. With her princess-like gait, she entered the narrow hall and followed it to the parlor, where she found Terence camped out on a small couch at the far end with a blanket spread over him. In the hearth, the fire had mostly died out; only a few meager embers remained. Rhiella caught her breath at the sight of Terence. Somehow, she had expected their reunion to be only her imagination—and she surely would have died had that been the case. Yet this proved beyond a doubt that it was true after all. Waves of elation swept through Rhiella, and the sigh she let out was nearly a sob.
She might have even dissolved into tears, had she not shed so many the previous night.
Terence appeared to still be sleeping soundly, for his eyes remained closed and he lay as still as a stone.
Rhiella began to approach him cautiously. Though she did her best to move slowly and lightly, the wooden floor beneath her feet creaked in more than one spot, but Terence never stirred.
When she finally reached him, Rhiella settled onto the floor next to the couch. She sat there, silent and catlike, for a long time, just drinking in the beautiful sight before her. At length, she touched Terence's face with one hand, tracing his familiar features and smoothing away the strands of white hair. She savored the feel of his warm skin, of his silky-soft hair and stubble. She allowed her fingers to run all the way down his angular jawline, and she half-consciously twined them in his long, thick beard. As she regarded his lips, she found herself leaning over and brushing them with her own. Knowing how long it had been since she'd kissed those glorious lips, she did so again, then again. She felt her whole being fill with a sweet ache: a mix of love and longing, of joy and sorrow, of rapture and regret.
Oh, how she had missed Terence. She'd hardly expected to see him again, though there was always that thread of hope that she clung to steadfastly.
When she found out that he had a child in his care, it nearly shattered her at first; the very thought of Terence fathering a child with another woman was more than she could bear. Now she was awestruck at the love Terence held for Pinocchio, how dedicated he was to the boy. She found the boy most intriguing, from the moment she stumbled across him in the village, and though she couldn't explain it, she could see clearly how he had won Terence's heart.
But now what were they to do? Rhiella couldn't leave this place without Terence, yet she knew Terence couldn't leave Pinocchio.
Of course, she didn't have the heart to separate them; that would be nothing short of plain cruel, especially after hearing about what happened to Pinocchio's father.
Still, how was this going to work for all of them?
A hushed sigh sounded from Terence just then. The young man's eyes slowly opened, and when he looked up and saw his beloved Rhiella hovering over him, she only smiled, as did he.
"This is a dream," he said, his voice but a whisper. "It has to be."
"Then it is a good dream," she gently whispered back.
Her hand continued to rest against his face, and as he had done the day before, Terence clasped her hand and kissed it tenderly. Presently, he sat upright, causing his blanket to spill into his lap. Rhiella saw that, like her, he had slept in his clothes. Terence made her join him on the couch, and she readily snuggled into his arms once more. He embraced her warmly and kissed the top of her head.
They stayed that way for a good hour or so until Pinocchio wandered into the room, looking slightly bedraggled. He seemed startled to discover Terence and Rhiella huddled together on the couch, but he said nothing.
"Hello, son," Terence greeted him, easing his hold on Rhiella a little. "Did you sleep all right?"
"I guess so," was all Pinocchio would say.
"Don't mind me," said Rhiella, seeing the way Pinocchio was eyeing her dubiously. "We're just keeping each other company, is all."
Pinocchio didn't look like he believed it, but again, he said nothing.
Ultimately, Terence was the first to rise to his feet. "Now that we're all awake," he said, stretching his limbs, "who's up for a spot of breakfast? I know I'm hungry."
"So am I," Rhiella admitted, realizing only just now how ravenous she was.
Pinocchio said nothing, but he followed Terence and Rhiella into the kitchen, although the boy made sure to keep his distance, especially from Rhiella.
Later, when they were seated at the table, Pinocchio avoided speaking to anyone and kept his attention mostly on his food.
At one point, Duke and Figaro trotted up to them, and Duke put his front paws right on the table and sniffed the plate of sausages enthusiastically. "Hey, get down!" Terence said, never hesitating to push the dog back to the floor. "You know what I told you about having your paws on the table, Duke. How many times must I tell you?" Seeing the entreating look on Duke's face, he relented and passed him one of the sausages. "Oh, okay…but just one."
Duke promptly snatched the sausage away and gulped it down in less time than it takes to blink.
When Figaro meowed in protest, Terence sighed, but he gave the cat a bit of sausage, too, muttering as he did so, "I swear, Figaro, I'm starting to think you're Duke's second shadow."
Rhiella laughed. "Isn't that cute?" she remarked as she regarded the animals.
"Well, don't let their 'cuteness' fool you," Terence informed her. "They can be a handful." Noticing how Pinocchio was unusually quiet and wasn't eating much, he asked softly, "You all right, Pinocchio?"
"Hmm?" Pinocchio glanced up briefly at him before dropping his gaze once more. "Oh…yeah, I'm okay."
"Are you sure?"
Pushing his plate away, Pinocchio only said, "Guess I'm just not very hungry. May I be excused?"
Terence hesitated for just a moment, then answered, "Yes, of course. Would you like me to fix you something a little later?"
"No thanks, Terence. That'll be all right."
Before either Terence or Rhiella could say another word, Pinocchio had already gone from the room.