I'm back (finally).
I was having a small case of laziness and writer's block...but I'm here now and I'm going to try my best to finish this!
Thank you very much for the support (reviews and messages that you guys sent me), you guys are the best!
I'd love to get feedback from everyone. (:
Hope you guys enjoy it!~
Luna
Luna fidgeted uneasily as Hayden silently swept the floor.
She turned to look up at the clock.
9:40
Luna's chest stiffened.
She grabbed the hem of her red dress and began to tug on it. Her breath quickened as her mind dwelled onto unhappy thoughts. She looked down and closed her eyes, hoping that her eyelids would serve as a strong barrier against her tears.
This is irrelevant! Why is she crying anyway? There is no news that Molly was hurt in the first place! She is fine…she is completely well, healthy and fine…- but why wouldn't her heart believe it? Her mind is able to digest it, but her heart refused to. It burned and ached with each agonizing throb. Luna moved her clenched fist and placed it over her heart. She dared to open her eyes and the result were steady torrents of tears, sliding down her cheek. Luna shook and gasped, allowing her heart to win the battle.
A pair of footsteps was approaching her and she was soon greeted by Chase's warm smile. Chase leaned down next to Luna and placed an arm around her shoulders; he gently pushed a napkin in her palm.
"Thank you," she sobbed as she dabbed her cheeks.
Chase's grin widened slightly, he rose and gave Luna's shoulder a comforting squeeze,
"My pleasure," he replied.
This is not normal of Chase. He was never a kind-hearted, caring gentleman; as a matter of fact, he was the exact opposite. Chase was quite rude and very critical of everyone and everything. He is well-known for continuously battering Maya-the innkeepers' daughter who dreams of becoming a great cook and a good friend of Molly- and harshly criticizing her cooking; even though Maya's cooking is as horrid as he claims it to be, however, Luna always felt that he could always be a bit gentler with his verdicts. Chase usually greeted everyone with his usual frown and his slightly furrowed eyebrows. Luna never understood Molly's attraction towards him, but then, Molly never understood Luna's attraction towards Gill either. Even though Molly constantly tried to impress him by learning how to cook and by giving him gifts, as well as talking to him every time she got the chance to- Chase never seemed to recognize Molly's efforts , but then again, neither did Gill.
Hayden harrumphed impatiently. Chase narrowed his eyes slightly and gave him a dirty look. Luna saw something flicker in his eyes. His mellow blue eyes hardened, overflowing with icy, cruel rage. The warm smile he gave to Luna earlier was evolving into a feral snarl. Chase was clenching and unclenching his fists, in an attempt to restrain himself- then finally, he ignored him altogether. Panic bubbled in Luna's stomach. Chewing her lips, Luna tried to calm herself down and think positively.
"Maybe she fell asleep and forgot!" she suddenly chirped, "you know…because she works really hard all day at the farm and…and she got tired!"
Just as suddenly as earlier, the haze evaporated from his eyes and a smirk began to carefully meander its way across his face.
Feeling hope and calamity settle in her flustered heart, she smiled and rose resolutely.
"Yeah…yeah that's it!" she cried, "if we go right now to her house, we'll probably find her sleeping on the sofa!"
"That's right," Chase nodded and stood up by Luna, "we might even find her sleeping in the barn."
"Exactly!" Luna laughed uncontrollably at his joke, clearing her throat she continued, "I can't believe I didn't think of that earlier…I mean, she works really hard, so it's only natural for her to fall asleep and forget."
"Maybe you were thinking too hard," Chase responded calmly.
Hayden cleared his throat- announcing his displeasure from having to keep the bar open a long time after its closing time. Chase's face was sculpted into a grimace once again.
"We get it!" he snapped. Hayden flinched slightly, but he quickly recovered and stood firmly.
Luna, on the other hand, cringed at the smoldering, bitter and serrated edge in his voice.
A new layer of fear sank into Luna's heart. This was another new face of Chase's that she hadn't witnessed before- and she didn't like it. She didn't like it at all. In fact she was afraid of what would happen next.
Who is this man?
He didn't look like the same sandy-haired, blue eyed cook with the dry-humor and sarcasm.
Chase is like a jigsaw puzzle to her, that she cannot solve. Every time she thought that she got the outlines right, she would realize that there are missing pieces from the box and that another jigsaws' pieces were mixed together. It was a frustrating and daunting game. Yet Molly always enjoyed looking for the missing pieces and rearrange the puzzle all over again.
She watched Chase as he silently and abruptly walked over to the kitchen area and took off his olive green apron. Carefully folding the apron neatly, Chase stuffed it into a battered black messenger bag, which he slung over his shoulder, then solemnly walked towards the door. He stopped right before the door.
"Aren't you coming?" he mumbled without turning back.
Dumbfounded and still lost in thought, Luna gaped at him and replied with a "Huh?"
Sighing, Chase smacked his palm onto his face and turned around shaking his head in annoyance. Luna instantly recognized the familiar expressions. He's back to normal.
But for how long…?
Instantly remembering the current situation at hand, she got up- nearly knocking the chair onto the ground- and galloped towards Chase.
Chase
Chase was tackled by a wisp of cold air. He shuddered inwardly and continued walking, with Luna a few inches behind him. He can't believe he was doing this. Especially after swearing that he'll never be weakened or slowed down by emotions again; he was betrayed once and the fall left him battered for years afterwards, it took him immense courage and power to stand up again. But here he was, jumping from the pan and into the fire. Again. Chase keeps forgetting. He keeps forgetting the distress and torment he went through; was it because of her? Or is it the people of the island? Or…is it the distance between himself and them that gave him the false sense of safety?
He shook his head, hating himself, loathing himself for letting something like this happen.
Let what happen?
He can't go through it again, it's not worth it- she's not worth it… no one is worth it.
Who's not worth it?
He's losing control.
Losing control of what?
Losing control of the feelings he locked up behind bars of steel.
Why did I do that?
Yes. Chase stopped abruptly, making Luna run into him with an "oof". Why did Chase do that? Why did he chain and restrain himself like that? Chase looked up towards the sky and then at the shimmering moon. A very familiar moon. A very familiar sky. Instantly, he was drowning in sea of familiar faces and familiar voices…
" He looks useless"
His voice…
"It's not that hard of a task! Do you enjoy watching me suffer all the time? "
Her voice…
"You were supposed to follow and continue in my footsteps, but you failed me again."
He hated His voice…
Screams…
Yelling…
"Chase…"
Slamming doors…
Shattering glass…
"Chase…"
Blood…
Faces…
"You're nothing special, Chase, don't come back again."
He dreaded those words…
"Chase damn it!"
A violent shake made Chase tumble from his memories and back into reality. He was greeted by a pair of blue eyes and slightly twitching eyebrows.
"What happened to you?" Luna cried furiously, "did you forget what we were supposed to do?"
As a matter of fact, he did. He gave her a blank and confused expression. Then it hit him.
Molly.
Looks like he forgot, but then again, he's been forgetting more often lately. Before dosing off and day dreaming again, Chase nodded at Luna and began to walk towards the farm. Her farm.
"Why are you panicking?" He said nonchalantly, "I thought we both agreed that nothing was wrong with her."
"Exactly, nothing is wrong with her," Luna replied somewhat agitatedly.
"Hmm…really? Because you sounded a bit anxious."
"But I'm not"
"You sure?"
"Yes."
"Then wh-"
"Goddess! Chase! Molly is fine and is sleeping in the barn on a tree!"
Luna angrily passed Chase and stormed off. Chase couldn't help but grin at the nonsense and her absurdity; Luna was always so easy. The grin vanished quickly though. He realized he did it again. That he released some of that tightened grip he usually had on himself…she really did change him, didn't she?
Trying to catch up with Luna, he increased his pace. The sound of the waves crashing against the cliffs roared loudly, but his heart throbbed owl watched attentively as Chase passed by. He took the path that led to Molly's farm and he began to see the outlines of the house. Out of the blue Luna stopped and then ran really quickly towards the farm house. Chase began to feel uneasy and baffled. Why did Luna run? His question wasn't left unanswered for long, though. Upon reaching the farm, Chase was greeted by three cows that wandered drowsily, four chickens and a duck that huddled under the orange trees sleeping and a grey horse, Jupiter, neighed in discontent as he approached. Molly would never leave her animals outside after sunset. As if vines with sharp thorns wrapped his heart, he felt it pound uncomfortably. Looking ahead, he found Luna standing still by the gaping door of the house. Pushing his feet towards her, Chase realized that there is no light coming from there either. He felt like he swallowed a bag of rocks, he felt ill in the stomach. It felt like years, but Chase finally reached Luna and peered into the house.
Empty.
That's what he found.
And Chase felt equally as empty at that moment.
Finn
A sweet breath of wind blew the cherry blossoms gently, under a starry night sky. The silence was slightly shattered by the sound of tiny gasps, which erupted from Finns' tiny lungs. He batted his wings furiously and pushed himself forward and outwards, his small body and strong resolution piercing through the tranquil, rich spring air. His forehead was glistening with sweat as he fought the blackness at the edge of his gaze, seducing him into giving up and just drowning in it. But the little creature kept himself firm and strong, he can't give in now.
Slightly weakened by a sudden pulse of pain, Finn staggered and fell to the ground. He skidded a couple of feet before stopping in front of a light pole. Gingerly sitting up, he sighed desolately. What is he going to do? He's a Harvest Sprite and not everyone can see him. He can only name a handful who can, excluding the Harvest Goddess, the Harvest King and the rest of the Harvest Sprites, they are Molly, the Wizard and the Witch. But both of the sorcerers live too far for Finn's weak body to carry him. Even if he tried, he won't be able to reach in time. The morbid thought made Finn feel distressed. Who can he ask? Irritably he pounded his little fists on the ground. He felt useless and drained. Looking up he saw light flicker through one of the windows, in the upper floor of the Blacksmith's shop. A silhouette of a small figure appeared and pulled the window open. Finn recognized the familiar bundle of orange hair.
"That's it!" Finn exclaimed.
