Chapter Twenty - Just Let Me Make It Out Alive
So...I know I didn't get five reviews yet. But I'm dying to get this chapter up so I can find out your reactions. I promise, this isn't the end of the story yet! We have two more chapters after this, plus another possible one if I post one that orders all the glimpses from the past. But, you guys are probably going to react in a very interesting way - based off of what I've seen from those of you that are reading my other stories *coughespeciallyEvxcough* so I hope you enjoy it!
I actually wrote out the remaining chapters while on vacation, except for the chapter with all the glimpses of the past lined up in order, so I hope you guys hurry up and review - haha, sorry for being demanding :p It just means I love you guys - cause I wanna get the rest of the chapters put up!
You know, I'm pretty good at not listening to my own review amounts. cx I never seem to pay attention to them if I really wanna update. But, for the remaining chapters, I will listen to them! No more of me caving in and doing it early!
Evx : Well, I can't change it now that I already have it all lined up, so I would love to know what these two sad endings are.
booknerd00 : I like a good psycho every now and then too! And insane Annalora is super fun...Just not for Mina. cx
themagicalmarissa : Well, if you haven't had a heart attack yet...Well, let's just say today might not be your lucky day. Although I'm glad your excited when I update!
Lights...Camera...Action!
Teague's POV
In The Past...
"Where would you travel, if you could?"
"Anywhere." Mina answers, glancing up in the sky. "Everywhere. I want to get out of here and get to see everything. Meet new people. Try new things. You know, all that good stuff."
"So you're adventurous?"
"Yes, I guess you could say that." I watch her close her eyes in thought, and wonder to myself if adventurous in her mind means reckless. That's what it seems like to me. She's certainly brave, but definitely reckless. Very much so.
Mina's POV
In The Present...
I race through the hedge mazes, fear being my only guide. It's after me. It's going to kill me. I'm going to get killed by it, and my blood is going to stain the maze for eternity. I'll be like that poor guy - or was it a girl? - that I got the shield from to kill the gorgon. I'll be a mere skeleton, a deadly reminder to anyone of what can happen in here.
Well, the thing chasing me isn't an it exactly. It's a girl. A girl named Annalora. A girl named Annalora that is a psychopath who wants to kill me. Here we are, running through a deadly maze to a central tower - at least, I hope I'm going the right way - to win Teague's hand in marriage. It sounds ridiculous. But, it gets worse. Annalora can't open the door to get inside. So, she wants to kill me. It's awful.
Teague was right. He does pick the ultimate winner in the end. Except I don't think he factored in the fact that Annalora wants to kill me when she can't open the door. I'm glad that she can't open the door. Really. But this is kind of horrible, being chased around by a gnome...Dwarf...Small, warty girl that claims she's a princess even though she's insanely ugly.
I slide to a sudden halt. No. No, this isn't good. It's a dead end! And she's still coming, and the hedge walls are still closing behind her. I only have one choice. I have to keep running. So, I run straight into the hedge in front of me. It's painful, pushing my way through the thorns and branches and leaves. When I finally reach the other side of it, I keep running. I'm banking on shock and the hedges to slow the dwarf down...Or did I decide that she was a gnome? They're both so small that I can't tell. In fact, they both seem like the sane thing. Perhaps gnomes are just a wartier variety? Probably not.
I'm still running, and while I was hoping the hedges would slow Annalora down, I have a feeling that she's hacking her way through with the dagger. The little, dirty, rotten cheat! And she said I was the one that was cheating.
I can still hear Annalora behind me, but her footfalls aren't as loud as they were before. She hasn't been slowed as much as I would have hoped, but she is slowed down some all the same. It's a blessing either way.
And then I see it.
The large, stone tower springs upwards, but I don't bother looking up. My eyes immidiately land on the wooden door in front of me. So, I push myself to run faster. Maybe if I reach the door and shut it behind me, I'll keep Annalora from getting inside. After all, she said she couldn't open it.
Unless that was just a trick? Had she just wanted the satisfaction of killing me first, and then go up on and receive her prize, as she probably views it? No. I think if Annalora thought she could open the door, she would've. I hope. Of course, I can't be sure that she can't open the door and that she just assumed she couldn't. I'll just have to hope and pray. Especially because I was almost there.
I grab the door handle the moment it's in reach, and I wrench it open with a big tug. I can hear an animal-like noise behind me, which I take to either belong to one of the creatures that live in this maze - unless they don't? - or belong to Annalora herself. I wouldn't put that past her. I almost feel guilty because I want it to be her making it, because it might mean she's being attacked. Almost. But the moment my feet are through the door, I pill the door shut behind me as fast as I can. And then there's a sickening thud. Did she just run into the door? Was that some creature that was attempting to follow me? Did she sling some body at me? I can't decide what could've made that noise, but due to the blood-curtling scream I hear next, whatever it was isn't doing good. Or the other thing isn't doing good. All this thinking is distracting me and probably isn't smart because it'll mean I'm wasting time, so I just choose to ignore whatever is going on.
Making the noise into background sounds, I focus on my dark surrounding. There's a stone staircase, which spirals up this circular tower and has no railing, so I'm a little freaked out. But a new sense of urgency fills me. I begin to run up them, even though moments ago I thought I would collapse from exhaustion. Look what love has done to me. But is it a good thing, or a bad thing? I'm going to go with the former.
Finally, after what seems like decades but is probably only minutes, I'm standing a large room surrounded by glass. There was no door into it. The staircase just lead right into it. I see that nights has fallen, and the stars are now lighting the sky. Have I really been in the maze that long? i had completely ignored the sky, even when I was looking at it to catch a glimpse of the tower. I'd been in here for almost a day, since we started early in the morning. There's someone in the room too, sitting a large chair. He's wearing a cloak as black as the night around us.
"You finally made it." His voice is soft - gentle, even - as he speaks, standing and turning so he can face me. But he keeps the cloak on, hiding his face. Not that it matters. I'd recognize the voice anywhere.
I step closer, and gently move the cloak's hood off. Teague's blue eyes stare back at me, exactly as I expected. I find myself frozen by his gaze once more, unable to break away and hardly able to even remember how to breathe. "Teague..."
And then he pulls me into his arms, his warm arms that are safe and comforting. And then, not only does he pull me into his arms, but he pulls me into a kiss as he spins me around. As soon as my feet are firmly planted back on the ground, as I'm a bit wobbly at first, he lifts my chin so that I'm looking into his eyes once again, once more pulled into their depths. "I told you you would win, Mina, didn't I?"
"I wish I'd believed you sooner. It would've saved me a lot of worry and butterflies." That manages to coax a smile and small chuckle out of him, and I smile a little too. Aw, who am I kidding? I never stopped smiling.
"Will you stay? Will you stay with me?" His eyes bore into mine, begging me for an answer. Not just any answer though. The right answer. And I already know my response. I always did.
"Yes, Teague, I will."
He pulls me into another kiss. I shut my eyes as we stand there in that glass room at night. Thoughts spin wildly around in my head, almost as wildly as when he spun me around and kissed me. The loud boom of fireworks kissing the sky disorients me.
Is this real? I think it is. I'm here, with Teague. I'm going to marry him. I'm safe her, in his arms, and I feel like I could stay here forever. Not that I can. But I almost wish that were possible.
And then the safety is torn away. The warmth of Teague's arms and lips are replaced by cold air. I feel something strong shove me backwards after pulling me away from him. I stumble back into the dark, unable to see anyone else but Teague in the room. Is he dong this? And if so, why? What did I do to deserve this? There's pain and hurt welling up inside me as I feel something even colder than the night air touch my arms. And then my back. And then my head makes impact. But with my speed, and my luck, I don't stop when I touch the glass wall. I tumble straight through it, and the glass shards follow, as if there to surround me and keep me safe. Not that they actually are. They won't make any difference in this situation, unless they just inflict more pain.
Because now I'm falling from the tower.
Hehe. I told you guys you might have a heart attack. And that you guys would react in an interesting way. Just...Don't kill me. Then you'll never know what happened! Trust me, it's all necessary. c; Not that that eases the pain in anyways! Feel free to freak out in the reviews if you feel the need. I'll withstand any terrified reviews that are put on. xD
And now we need our five reviews so that I can put the next chapter up! I won't be caving and putting it up early, so you guys will have to do five reviews! :p
~ Dagger
