A/N: This was brought to my attention so I thought I would just address it here. I know Brooklyn in the cartoon wasn't the first choice for second in command and in actuality it was Demona. But for the sake of my story, like I mentioned before, I am tweaking Brooklyn's personality and background for the sake of my story. You'll see the more moody, sarcastic teenager in the next chapter or two. But I believe that back in 994 people were a lot more serious. Unlike today where people (including myself) get everything handed to them. I think it's just the nature of society. But I won't go into detail on that. That would be another story all together.
Also, remember this chapter will be in Brooklyn's POV. Only because well Alexandra is currently falling off of a cliff…to her death? Not quite sure yet. Will Alexandra die and then be reincarnated or will Brooklyn save her just in the nick of time? You'll just have to find out.
Chapter 5: Death is Silent
I heard the howling scream echo across the castle yard before I even realized what it actually meant. In hind sight I wish I had acted sooner, done something sooner. But what was done can't ever be changed.
"Somebody help!" I heard screamed across the castle battle fronts. My head had turned immediately to the sound. A sickening fear erupted within my chest at the idea that the Vikings had crossed across the cold sea and had finally reached us.
The sun had only just set and I wasn't too surprised to not find Alexandra in her room. She's taken to avoiding me as much as possible. I could understand why, I was doing the same thing. I might be within her presence but that didn't mean I was actually with her. I would take a mental check-out every time we would be in the same room as one another. I was trying in a vain attempt to refuse the building feelings echoing within me.
It never really worked. I could go maybe a few hours before I would have to leave, get away from her before giving into my basic needs. It wasn't right of us to do this to one another. But we really had no choice in the matter. We are both proud creatures, me more so I think. And our duty to our people ruled over anything else.
"Somebody help!" I heard again as I looked down into the castle yard. I watched as Princess Finella raced across the opening of the castle, screaming for all she was worth. Her face was flushed and tears streamed freely down her face. In all of my years I do not think I had ever seen Princess Finella so…human. She was always so made up, always the proper lady. But as she ran across the human side of the castle over to the gargoyle village she looked rather roguish.
"Somebody help!" She cried out again as she ran right into Goliath, clinging to him like he was her one and only life line.
"Princess," Goliath addressed her in all the formality that Alexandra had been teaching us.
"You…you have too…," her words were broken, scattered about between hiccupping sobs; "you have to help her!"
I looked over the balcony leaning over it to hear Finella better. I know if Alexandra was here she would accuse me of being a ridiculous eavesdropper. But knowing her she was probably in side the castle, the only place I couldn't go, eating or laughing it up with Constantine. The thought alone unnerved me to no end.
"Please…you must save her!" Finella wailed as she fell to her knees, collapsing under the hysterics she was creating.
"Save who Princess?" Goliath asked as he tried to hold Finella up and off the ground. I leaned further over the balcony my body half way off of it as I listened.
"Prince…Princess Alexandra!" She wailed and I completely lost my balance. I fell forward and out of my balcony perch. I quickly maneuvered my self so I could glide down next to them. The panic of the situation swiftly over took my heart.
I landed forcefully down next to them, pushing Goliath away as I grabbed Finella by the arms and all but shook her. Her teary green eyes looked up at me. My grip on her softened by the panic in my heart and in my face never left.
"What happened to Lexie? Where is she?" I asked in a rush. Not even bothering to hide the fact that I addressed Alexandra in a rather unprofessional manner.
"She was…," Finella began before another wave of sobs racked her body.
"She what!?" I screamed at her bring her up to my full height.
"She was standing over by the cliffs edge, the bluff that over looks the sea…I was walking by enjoying the sun set. I saw her, she looked so sad, as if her heart was broken," Finella paused during her story and I felt my whole heart clench at her words knowing I was the cause of her broken heart. But Finella would never know that, no one ever would. "I called out to her, but the winds are so high I don't think she heard me. Then she started to cry. I think it was about the letter her father sent her. You know the one that told her about the suitor. She told me in confidence that she never wanted to be with a man she didn't know entirely. She hated knowing that her father had gone out and chosen a prospecting husband for her. The next thing I knew she just…jumped."
I released her the moment those words left her mouth. The vile that began to build behind my throat rose in a heavy wave. I did my best to choke it back. I remember that letter. My whole world had shifted when she explained its contents to me. Some one potently had the opportunity to take her away from me. I would have to sit there quietly and watch as she was given over to some one else. The idea had me wired for days.
I backed away from Finella in shocked horror as I tried to gather my bearings. All I could think about was that she was gone. It only took a moment longer before I turned on all fours and made a mad dash to the cliffs edge.
I ran at full speed all the way there, my heart constricting with every beat of it. I skidded to a halt as the cliff came into view. There flapping in the hectic wind was her fur wrap, caught on the rough outcropping of one of the many rocks that lined the sea base of the castle. I hesitantly edged towards it. I reached out with a gentle hand, my clawed fingers wrapping around it in a tight grip as I pulled close to my body.
I let out a pain screeching roar that shook my entire being. The anger and pain mingled with one another into something almost unrecognizable. I curled around her wrap as I allowed blatant tears to fall, closing my eyes to help dull the pain. I clutched the furs to me as if this was the only thing holding her to me. I opened my eyes then, ready to curse the Gods for taking her away from me too soon when an object caught my attention.
It was flapping cloth of green and white and the unmistakable tangle of auburn hair as it twisted and tangled in the wind. I felt my heart leap inside of me as I saw; laying quietly on a projection of the cliff only a hundred feet below me was Alexandra. Dead or alive I knew not, but her being was more than I could hope for as dropped her fur wrap and began a quick dissention down the cliff edge.
I dug my clawed hands into the cliff wall as I slowly and carefully moved down towards her. I couldn't see if she was indeed dead or alive, all I could see was that she was there. And right now that was all that matter.
With a practiced ease I lowered my self on to the brittle jutting edge that Lexie lay upon. I still couldn't make out anything. Only that an angry wound grazed her forehead allowing a slow gurgling stream of blood to ooze from it.
"Lexie?" I called over the roaring wind; I took a hand and gently moved some of the hair from her face trying to determine if she was indeed still in the land of the living.
I held a breath as she stirred beneath my touch.
"Breukelen?" She murmured and I felt my heart jump into my throat and lodge tightly there.
"Yeah," I said scoping her up and into my arms. I cradled her against me our bodies once again pushed against one another. Her body was so cold against my own and she clung to me in a rather desperate way.
"I am cold," she whispered as she curled her self around me and I let out a dark laugh as I wrapped my arms around her.
"You scared me," I tell her as I begin to press light kisses against the top of her hair, taking in the sensation and smell of her. Doing everything I can to remember her, just like this, for all of eternity.
"I think I scared myself more," she shivered as I continued to press kisses down the sides of her face. She hummed well naturedly as I did so.
"Don't ever do that again," I begged her between my kisses, my arms wrapping tightly around her as I did so.
"I didn't do it on purpose," she answered as she pulled her self into me, cowering against the whipping wind as I clung to her. "Finella pushed me."
I pulled her away from me, only half an inch, as I looked down at her. There was obvious confusion on my face and she could only shake her head at me.
"I'll tell you later. I am really cold; do you think we can go back inside now?" She asked me in that whispery voice of hers.
"Of course," I replied in kind as I lifted her gently, tucking her into me like I had on that first night we shared together. I remember how scared she was as she fought against me. It was laughable now as I held her and planted another kiss on the top of her head. We have come far in so short of a time.
I looked up thinking about climbing back up, but decided against it. It would jumble her to much, so I turned and unfurled my wings. She sighed deeply into me as she snuggled closer, her body lavishing in the warmth of me. I felt my chest swell as I launched us up and off of the precipice we stood upon. The high winds of the sea made gliding back to the castle easier than I had hoped.
We didn't stop at the castle gates where people, gargoyle and human alike, gathered intermingling with one another. We didn't stop when they called my name. We didn't stop until I landed gracefully onto our balcony glad to see the crackle of the fire. In an even more gallant movement that I knew I could possess I sat her down in front of it. She instantaneously moved towards the heat of the fire rubbing her arms to fight against the cold. I marched over towards her feathered down bed and removed a hand woven quilt from the top of it. I dragged it over to her, wrapping her up in it, rubbing her arms as she curled up against me once again. Her head lay placidly against my chest. I couldn't help but hum in pleasure at the sensation.
We sat there like that for what felt like eternity. Her body slowly warmed as she stared blankly into the fire. I wrapped my tail around her bringing her closer to me still. I couldn't help but reveal in the feeling of her against me.
"I don't want this to end," she whispered in a broken voice. I let out shuttered sigh as I leaned down to press a kiss against her temple.
"It won't," I promised her.
She shook her head, "It will."
"You can see the future now?" I asked her smiling into her hair. She didn't laugh though, her body still against me.
"One day they'll take me away from here, away from you. They'll marry me off to some strange man from some distant country. I'll have to be the proper wife; I'll have to love him, be with him, and have his children. How can I do that when my heart belongs to someone else?" She asked me with tears pooling in her eyes. "How can I do that when you're here?"
I didn't know the answer to that. How could I? The future was such an obscure thing. But she was right. One day she won't be mine anymore. One day I'll have to give over to someone else. One day I'll have to wave my white flag in defeat.
"I don't know," I told her truthfully, "but we have some time until then and we both know your father won't marry you off to someone unless you give the okay to him first. We have time to figure it all out."
"Maybe not enough."
And I couldn't agree more with her. There never would be enough time. Not while I had to watch her forcible fall in love with another.
**
A/N: I felt bad about having the last chapter be so short. So I wrote this one and posted before the normal week mark. If you noticed I added a little, tiny bit of sarcasm from Brooklyn. Not a lot, but enough to see that in a comfortable silence he can be sarcastic. I hope you enjoyed it. I'll update again soon. Next we will have some more Brooklyn/ Lexie lovin' and some new characters will be entered. Well okay characters from the cartoon that haven't made it into my story yet. Because the plot is about to thicken.