OK fourth chapter! Enjoy!

Reviews are love!

Disclaimer: Blah, blah, blah... If you speak the language of "blah" you understood everything.

"Maria!" I shouted as I ran to catch up to my sister. She was walking fast…straight at the forest. "Maria!"

I finally caught up to her in front of a very large tree. I caught her wrist.

"Maria, are you mad?" I shrieked. I couldn't help it; she was making me both angry and worried.

"I don't want anything to do with Moonacre," she cried, wrenching her wrist out of my grasp. I looked at her sadly.

"Is that really what you want?"

Before she could answer, we both heard a whisper.

"Maria…Alice…"

We both looked at each other in shock.

"…Hurry…"

The whispers seemed to come from a large hole that tunnelled under the tree trunk we stood in front of us. Without a word, Maria hurried into the hole.

"Maria, wait!" I whispered, and I edged in after her. As we crawled in, we kept hearing the whispers.

"…Hurry up…Alice….Maria…"

I would never admit it to Maria, but the whispers were starting to give me the creeps. It didn't help that I couldn't tell if it was a female or male, old or young. It just seemed to be…there.

At the foot of the stairs that led down we both turned to the light once more before turning back to the tunnel. I shrieked, seeing what appeared to be a very hairy bear. Maria let out a high pitch shriek after me, very similar to mine. But then the bear reached up and took off its hood…to reveal a dazzling young woman with curly blond hair.

"Who are you?" Maria asked, her voice shaky. The woman merely smiled before walking into the tunnel. Maria and I shared a look before following her.

"You look just like the lady in the painting," I said without thinking.

"Come along," she said and we scurried after her. She led us to a door and opened it, ushering us in before closing it.

Not five seconds after entering she was reprimanding a hedgehog for sleeping in her favorite chair. Looking around, I noticed that there were animals all over the room. Maria was inspecting a brown dress that had an embroidered 'L' on it.

I turned back to the woman to see her handling a snake. I gulped really deeply. I hated snakes. I hated them above all else. They scared me enough to send me running.

"Be nice and still," the strange woman was saying. "Don't make any sudden movements. Then she won't be so scared."

"I'll try," answered a weak voice and I turned to see Maria, looking palely at the snake.

"Oh, I was talking to the snake," the woman said and laughed. "I rescue as many injured creatures as I can."

She put the snake in a casket and I felt like I'd now be able to breathe.

"Are you the 'L' embroidered on all those strange dresses in my room?" asked Maria and I frowned. I had found some strange dresses in my room with an embroidered 'L' on the sleeve.

"Yes, I am," the woman said with a satisfied smile. "My name is Loveday."

She took my hand and kissed it before she did the same to Maria. She then took us to a mirror and held her hand up as she spoke.

"Geraniums wither and die,

Rosemary cures the sickest,

Our time is nearly there my dear,

The moon shall curse us forever."

I blinked in confusion at the strange riddle before I noticed something strange. Images were appearing in the mirror. I saw Moonacre Manor, bursting into flames as the moon hit the horizon. I gazed in horror as everything I loved was destroyed. Then, it was gone and I was once again staring at my reflection.

"You saw something," Loveday was saying excitedly. "Didn't you? Didn't you? Tell me what you saw!"

She was shaking Maria's shoulder as she spoke and I wrenched Maria from her grasp before Loveday could hurt her.

"I have to leave," Maria said and she once again picked up her bag.

"No, no, no, no, no," Loveday said in a pleading tone. "Forgive me. I frightened you, haven't I? You see, I'm not used to visitors. I do so want all three of us to be friends."

She came closer to us, holding her hand out.

"It's no use you know," she said. "Your father, he tried to run away too. But there's no where to hide. Alice knew that. He sent Alice here all those years ago because he couldn't avoid the truth forever. But now, he's sent both of you because he loves you. Because Moonacre is where both of you belong."

"Us three are the same," Loveday said. We were sitting in the forest, on top of mount of boulders. "Except…"

"Except?" I prompted, wondering why she had trailed off.

"Where I failed, you two might succeed," she said, her voice a bit broken by grief.

"What about our uncle?" asked Maria. "Sir Benjamin. Can't he help?"

"Never, ever, mention that man to me again. Do you understand?" she said sharply. I looked at her weirdly; why was she being cold all of the sudden?

Maria looked down but Loveday continued, in a much gentler tone, "Your past is behind you. Your future awaits you, if you want it. You decide."

"I want to help with the curse. Moonacre is my home," I said quietly.

"I would help," Maria said. "I just don't know what I'm supposed to do."

"Find the pearls," Loveday said earnestly. "Nobody knows where they are. Each family blames the other for taking them."

"Well, their both to blame," Maria said and I couldn't help but agree.

"The De Noirs took the casket and we must have the key," I said thoughtfully. Just then, Maria lit up as if she had suddenly realized something. "The key," she said wonderingly.

Maria opened her bag and took out the Ancient Moonacre Chronicles. She took the bookmark and from the top tugged the little gold piece…which came loose and turned out to be a small, golden key. I didn't expect that, truthfully.

Loveday laughed, startled.

"Now, for the casket," said Maria and she stood up, leaving her bag where it was and starting to march into the forest. Loveday and me exchanged a glance before following Maria.

"You have to take me to the De Noir castle," Maria continued and my insides froze. I did not want another confrontation with Robin.

"But why?" called out Loveday in a strangled voice.

"To make peace between the families," was Maria's simple reply.

"There it is," Maria sighed. I looked to where her gaze was trained on and saw the tops of a crude white tower, two flags on top waving in the wind. Loveday was beginning to murmur to herself.

"Loveday," I said concernedly. "Are you all right?"

"I'm sorry," Loveday cried all of the sudden. "I can never go back there!" She began running back into the forest.

"Loveday!" Maria and I yelled as we ran towards her. I ran after her, not bothering to see if Maria was behind me or not. "Loveday!"

I finally caught up to her. She seemed as if she were trying not to cry.

"Loveday, what's wrong?" I asked softly.

"I can't go back," she cried. "I will not go back there."

Loveday looked at me with her puffy red eyes.

"Where is Maria?" she asked. I turned wildly but Maria wasn't there.

"Maria!" I shouted. There was no reply. I ran back to where we had been standing but Maria wasn't there. I realized what she had done.

"Maria, you silly girl," I murmured. "What were you thinking, going to the De Noirs all by yourself?"

And with that thought in mind, I walked towards the De Noirs, intent on getting back my sister.

That was a tad short…REVIEW!

Thanks to KyroxIsxSmexy!