This has been quite some day. Since my art class in the middle school, and it was downporing when I left...well, what do you think happens to me + rain? Explosion of happiness. So, I was running back to school with a big smile on my face. I felt so alive! Anyways, let's get on with the story. Whew! Got this chapter done. *Falls asleep*

I do no own Pandora Hearts in any way.

Chapter 21: Prayer for the Fallen

Carefully, I made my way down the latter, wary of my every step downwards.

'This is it.' I thought happily to myself. 'This is the place where the scripture lies.'

Finally, my feet found the last rung and I stopped when they touched the floor, which happened to be dirt. Light filtered in from where I had pushed open the lid up above ground, and unfortunately, I knew wherever I was going would be nothing but darkness. So, I took out a mini flashlight that I had left in the pocket of the sweatshirt I was wearing.

Turning it on, I turned to find myself faced with what looked like a tunnel, and as I shined the flashlight down it, I saw a door at the end, designed with the same symbols as the lid that had concealed the entrance.

I walked towards it and looked over each symbol, they're mysterious shapes and what they could possibly mean.

"Put your hand to it." Raven's voice rang out from the silence. "It will recognize your power's signature."

It had been a few days since my Chain, Raven, had last spoken to me. I thought about it's words for a moment, then shrugged my shoulders.

"Whatever you say, Raven." I put my right hand to the door, just like Raven said, then, after a moment, I felt a slight stinging sensation in my hand, followed by a calm warmth. The symbols then lit up the door in a shade of violet. After the warm sensation in my hand died down I heard a click and removed my hand.

The door slowly creaked open a little, then I used the rest of my force to push it completely open.

The sight that awaited me through those doors was a large room, probably the same size as the one from the secret room in the library at Reveil, books, scrolls, and many others things scattered throughout. There was one window on the far end that was letting in a decent amount of light, meaning I didn't have to use my mini flashlight anymore.

"Whoa." I said to myself as I walked around the room. "I'm surprised no one's found this place."

It was truly a wonder no one had found this place, but now, as I looked around, I was starting to realize that finding the scripture would be harder than I thought. I mean, I didn't even know where to start.

"How am I supposed to find the scripture in this mess?" I wondered aloud as I rummaged through books and scrolls.

"Didn't I say it before?" Raven suddenly interupted. "Your power will help you find it."

'Yeah, with a power that I don't even know what it is yet.'

"Just try." The black winged Chain sounded annoyed with me, obviously hearing my thoughts. I might as well try. I mean, if it worked on the door, then it could work here. This was the perfect chance to test my power.

Closing my eyes, I willed myself to find the scripture, the name repeating itself over and over in my mind. There was nothing at first, but when I concentrated harder, I got the feeling that I was supposed to go ahead to the next row of artifacts.

I lifted my hand to run my hands along the various books and such on the shelf. The old leather covers of each book felt cold underneath my fingertips, other than the worn feeling of being underground for so long. Reaching the end of the row, my hand ran over a paper, and a pulse of energy went through me.

I stopped walking and looked over at the paper my hand had come to rest on. It read La Prière pour les Morts.

'This is...the scripture!' My heart began to race, finally finding what I had been searching for. I was about to pick it up, unable to await to see the incantation, the words of what could soon be done, but I saw something lying next to it.

It was a letter that said, 'Anastasia Mouchette and Aaron Chapman'.

That immediately caught my interest. Reluctantly, I set the scripture down and picked up the letter instead, reading it's contents.

This letter details a quick study of two children; Anastasia Mouchette and Aaron Chapman.

Anastasia Mouchette, a child of a third rate noble house. Her closest friends seem to be Jack Vessalius, a girl named Alice, and Aaron Chapman. Although it was quite uncommon, she insisted on learning how to fight with a sword, and thus received lessons in sword fighting and fencing. Most of the time, she would venture around the Vessalius and Chapman houses. A encounter with this young maiden at a gala held by her parents led me to learn more about her. She says that she could speak fluently in German and was at that time well used to handling her sword. A personal detail was also revealed, as she had told me that she was developing feelings for her friend, Aaron. She also mentioned a dream where she saw that his eyes were a shade of violet. When she was 16, she was mysteriously killed during the Tragedy of Sablier.

Aaron Chapman, a child also of a third rate noble house. His closest friend is Anastasia Mouchette. This boy was never allowed outside much because of his frail health, and used to stay secluded in his room, that was until he met Anastasia. She was known to visit often and snuck him out of his house so they could be together. Since then, his parents took a dislike to the girl and Aaron became more open, especially towards her. His parents commented that when he was sick with pneumonia once, this girl would come and visit every day, which he never seemed to mind. 'Those days, he seemed to be always looking for her.' They would say. When he was 16, he too was also mysteriously killed during the Tragedy of Sablier.

Obviously, what I write here is after that day, and it has been a few days since then, and I feel like this needs to be recorded in case someone should stumble upon the mystery of the cause of their death. But these two people, there was something odd about them. To put it simply, it was like a strong connection; an irrespirable force. So, where ever their souls wander right now, I'm certain that they will meet again.

I glanced down to read the name at the bottom, but it was smudged and therefore illegible. Judging from the reading though, it must of been someone close to both families. Shrugging my shoulders, I folded up the letter and put it in my pocket. My eyes then fell back upon the scripture, still sealed.

This was the one thing I had came for, and this was the answer to what I seeked.

I grabbed it and was about to leave, but not before taking one last look at the room. Somewhere inside, I had the feeling that I would be coming back one day, just not today or anytime soon, but one day.

Making my way back to the latter and climbing up, there was one line from the letter that had stood out the most. The person who had wrote this had heard from the girl herself that she dreamed of seeing her friend Aaron's eyes as violet.

Could that be the reason why when I looked at his eyes in the dream there was something about them that reminded me of my friend, Leo? Could that just be a mere coincidence?

Reaching above ground now, I looked up at the sky, making me close my eyes for a second until they could adjust to the light. I sat in silence as I took in the quiet scenery of the plains around me before looking back down to the scripture in my hands.

Unsealing it, I opened it up, and it was indeed written in French. I was still able to read it though.

Lorsque l'épée de lame, de l'argent métal mélangé avec la croix-rouge sang d'un avenir, l'un des mêmes liniage, appelle le nom, la demande est accordé à cette personne.

Le souhait de la vie maintenant remplie.

That was all that was written at the top, and the words were simple; when the sword's blade, silver metal mixed with the red blood of a future, one of the same liniage, calls the name, the request is granted to that person. The wish of a life now fulfilled.

I glanced down at the three dots arranged in a triangle beneath the first text, then scanned down through the rest of it. It was simple, but the words must be spoken as if you were calling out to someone, and more importantly, it needs my blood to work.

I didn't really care, 'cause I'd do it. If this was the way to do it, then yes, I will do it.

I glanced at the clock on the wall before I headed out the door.

"Damn." I muttered. "I need to make this quick, so I can explain this better to Sasha when she gets back." Yeah, that was true.

On the bright side, I had seen Leo today. He was out on the balcony reading a book, his attention clearly to that. He maintained a conversation with me as he asked me about school, which I really didn't mind talking about. I almost told him what I was about to do, about my plan, but I said that I was just going to collect some leaves for a project. Thank goodness he believed me, although, I'm mad at myself for saying something like that to him.

My plan would need to be done in a hurry, but It would be worth it in the end. I couldn't necessarily be close to the house while performing this, but the grove of trees was perfect.

Walking into there, I chose the river as the ideal place, placing the two items in my hands off to the side and gathering three medium sized rocks, placing them in the pattern of a triangle near the bank of the river. What I had figured, just from looking at the scripture and the symbol on it, this also looked to be part of the process, so I'm just going along with it.

After placing the rocks like this, I opened the scripture once again, looking down at the words below the symbol. I sighed and grabbed the second item, kneeling in front of the triangle. See, when it said the silver metal mixed with red blood, it meant my blood had to be on the blade of a sword, and there was only one that I could get my hands on; Elliot's sword.

Taking it from its casing, I looked at my own reflection in the blade, then holding my hand out and making a cut across my palm with it. I let out a gasp at its sting, removing the blade from my hand and glancing at the blood, on both my hand and the blade. I winced at this, but ignored it, taking the sword and, by instinct, plunged it into the earth in front of the triangle.

I took the scripture with my unwounded hand and laid it next to me, my other hand on the handle of the sword. With a careful voice, I began to speak the words written on the parchment.

"À travers le stary nuit reflète il y a longtemps, je peux voir dans le passé, et maintenant, voici."

It wasn't really much, but the blood that dripped down my hand had made my hand now tingle, which was strange. Like I said, this was just the start of it, but I was hoping I wasn't just imagining the sensation in my hands.

"Perdu à travers l'obscurité, une demande l âme, je proclamer par le sang et un nom, une réponse de ma prière"

This time, where the blood was on the blade, it had started to glow a bright silver and was now seeping into the earth, sending faint lines of the same color into the triangle. My hand was now hurting, well, almost like it was burning. I tried my best to ignore the pain as I continued on.

"Suivez une mince thread, que vous seul pouvez suivre, conduisant vous hors de la sombre."

"Who's there...?" A voice called, but this one wasn't like those faint familiar ones.

'Wait!' I could still see the stream in front of me, but it felt like I was calling out to someone. I don't know why my thoughts were calling out to this voice, but they were just forming in my head automatically. 'Are you lost?'

"Don't know." The voice answered again. "But...it's too much."

"Grâce à mes larmes, venu dans le monde."

My hand felt like it was on fire, and I could see something glowing in the center of the triangle. I didn't know if I could handle it, but there was only and couple lines left, and it would be done.

"I can't...go on."

'Just take my hand, quickly! I'll pull you out.' I really couldn't take it anymore, but what if I stopped? Then, if I did...I could never bring Elliot back.

"Je te prie, de sorte que maintenant, venir."

I needed to finish what I had started. I had to do this for myself, for Elliot, and...for Leo.

"Que votre âme renaître et à pied cette terre à nouveau!"

'Elliot!'

The growing in the triangle became like a blinding flash, cutting off my vision for a long moment, my hand still burning. There was a gust of wind, and then, all fell silent. I was no longer blinded, but when it cleared, I could see white sparkles raining down. The searing pain in my hand had faded away, and as I looked up from the ground, trying to catch my breath, I couldn't believe what my eyes were seeing.

There, in the center of the triangle, was Elliot.

For a moment, I felt like I couldn't move, my mind slowly realizing that I had done the impossible.

After I knew that I had done it, I let go of the sword, my hand still stained with blood. My eyes still locked on Elliot's still form, I quickly used the water of the stream to wash my hand and the sword, returning it to its case soon after.

Setting it aside, I went over to him. I knew we looked so much alike, but never like this. His hair was the same shade as mine, except shorter. Looking over his clothes, I could see that they were stained with blood, but as I soon found out, he was indeed alive, his chest gently rising and falling. He looked to be alright, which was good.

I sighed and sat back. "Wow. What a day, huh?"

I laughed, knowing he couldn't possibly hear me right now. Then I started to wonder how long I had been gone. Minutes most likely, but not even an hour. My wandering soon took me up into the trees looming over us, their branches like shadows in the sky.

My thoughts were soon interrupted when I heard a small groan coming from beside me. I looked over at Elliot to see his head moving slightly off to the side, his eyes wincing as he was regaining consciousness.

"Looks like you're coming too." I softly whispered.

There was nothing. A black empty space, and there was nothing. The only sound was the dripping of water from somewhere nearby, but I couldn't see it, much less move. I had tried several times to move any part of me, but it was like I was paralyzed.

'What is this place?' Apparently my mind was the only thing working. Well, my eyes were open, but all I could see was black.

I suppose it wouldn't be correct in saying I had just realized this. Actually, I had been in this place for a while now. I had no sense as to how much time had passed since I awoke here; minutes, hours, days? I don't know, there's no sense in even trying to guess.

I was aware of one thing though; pain. For as long as I had been here, it existed. It was sharp and didn't show signs of letting up, coursing through my body with every second that I had spent here. After a while, it became normal, even though it hurt like hell. At times, I would forget about it, but I would be reminded soon after. I wasn't even sure how I had...

Oh, that's right.

I remembered; the party for that kid, Oz. Everything had turned for the worst. There was blood, and a fire, and my brothers and sisters, even my mother, they were all dead. I...killed them. I faintly remembered stabbing my own hand with my sword, and then, I rejected that despicable Chain that had made me do those horrible things. The last thing I remember, was whispering something to Vincent, and then my eyes falling upon Leo. Then there was nothing.

Speaking of which, I wondered what my servant was doing right now, how he was right now. I knew he had been out of harms way, but I wished I could see him again.

But the events of that night, everything was over and done with, and I had atoned for the cruel things I've done. So now, there was nothing to worry about as time continued on. Well, I did still think about Leo. I couldn't help but wonder if he had, maybe possibly, forgotten...me.

"...conduisant vous hors de la sombre." A voice faintly said into the darkness.

"Who's there...?" I had to muster up all the energy I had left to say it, and it was a bit of a surprised that my voice still worked. I had no idea where this voice had come from, seeing as it was only me here.

'Wait!' The voice called out again, a girl's voice. 'Are you lost?'

Lost? Well, that was hard to say. "Don't know." My eyes closed again, the blackness still not changing, the same pain still inside me and I don't know how much more I could take. "But...it's too much."

If her voice came back, I could barely make out what she had just said, clearly speaking another language, possibly French.

"I can't...go on." Now I wasn't really sure what I was saying anymore, maybe it was the pain talking.

'Just grab my hand, quickly!' Her voice rang out. 'I'll pull you out.'

I opened my eyes, and this time, I could see a faint white glow in the shape of a hand reaching out. Whoever this was, did they expect me to grab this hand? I couldn't even make any attempt to grab it. But what if this was a way out, what if...? No, it could be a trick, but then again, I don't think it was. Could this hand lead me out of here? Could it take me back to the real world? Could it...take me back to Leo?

'Elliot!' The voice was desperate, and right then and there, I made up my mind. Through some hidden strength, I found the energy to bolt upright and grasp the hand. Our touch glowed a blood red for a second, but then everything flashed to white, a intense wave of heat crashing down on me.

Then there was silence.

That heat faded and the pain I had felt was subsiding. For a moment, I thought that I was still trapped there, but then I realized that I was laying on leaves, and I could hear the flow of a stream nearby. The air around me was chilly, and I was wondering where exactly was I now.

I tried once again to move, and this time, my hand twitched; I could move again. A groan escaped my lips and I moved my head slightly to the side. I felt my face scrunch up as I moved my hand again and my eyes wearily opened.

The scene that greeted my blurry vision was that of what looked like a woods. There were trees above me and a blue sky through its branches. Something else then entered my vision, and as I focused in on them, their form became clear.

It was a girl, long beige hair and blue eyes. Wait, this girl has some resemblance to...me?

"E-Elliot?" She carefully asked. Her voice sounded just like the one I heard in the void. Was she the one calling out to me?

"Um, who...are you?" I managed to say. My whole body felt sore, but at least I was able to talk with this girl.

"I am Carrie Strata. Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Elliot."

Yeah, that's right...Elliot is back! XD How awesome am I? I decided way back while writing out the frist few chapters that I was going to do this.

If you're wondering, here's the translation for the scripture:

Though the starry night reflects a long time ago, I can see in the past, and now behold. Lost through the darkness, a request for a soul, I proclaim by blood and a name, an answer to my prayer. Follow a thin thread, that only you can follow, leading you out of the dark. Thanks to my tears, come into the world. I pray thee, so now come. Your soul revived, and to walk this earth again.

I used a translator to get the French words, 'cause the words just came to me while I was trying to write it. Next up, a reunion between Elliot and Leo. Feel free to reveiw and I'll try to have the next chapter up tomorrow.