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CHAPTER 13: A STOLEN KISS AND ACE'S SECRET TECHNIQUE
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Ace finally arrived at the castle of hearts, the territory he was supposed to delve in but that he disliked and avoided. However, he now knew that Aria Hadron Scherzi had been here and he wanted to know more about her.
He couldn't deny that he was interested on the resilient mercenary, nor did he need any extra proof that she meant something to him. His clock knew. After all, just before she appeared, he had been far more lost than usual, as if he had lost something important and he was unconsciously searching for it; but as soon as she was 'hired' at the clock tower, he had felt more oriented than in years, as if he had found a compass. Not only that. Julius was also more entranced by her than the clock master admitted and that was fun. It was time that they got more selfish regarding the game, even if it involved a bit more effort on their part; and this time, the executioner was all for it.
Sir Ace of hearts saw a pair of patrolling soldiers, one blond and one with black hair, and stopped in front of them. -"Hey, you two!"
As expected, they stood up and saluted their general while holding firm their spears with a hint of fear in their postures.
The disoriented knight then executed his most secret technique, the one tactic that he never dared use… Ask for a taxi; or in this case, demand to be led. –"Take me to my office."
Yes, his office, the place he dreaded and never used. A place he had seen only a few times in his life; but a place where he might get info from some reports regarding 'her'.
One of the soldiers, the blond one, dropped his spear and the other remained with his mouth open.
Absolute silence reigned and the temperature dropped suddenly when Ace smiled politely.- "You do know where it is, right?"
"Y…Yess, sir" - Said the blond one.
"Then let's go"- Ace said and started walking while the guy recover his dropped weapon.
"Wait Sir! It's this way!"- The other guard called out when Ace was beginning to walk away in a randomly wrong direction.
After some very confusing minutes, they arrived to the space that overlooked the castle's courtyard atop the entire complex of the guard's house and armory. The soldiers opened the door, and at the knave's first step inside, the wooden floor creaking from lack of use. The place, cleaned just often enough by whoever was in bad luck that day, was mostly used to keep the security and guard's stashes of reports that no one read.
Followed by the faceless guards, Ace made his way across the reception towards the abandoned secretary's desk, and looked at the sides. To the left there was a bigger room that held many bookcases and file cabinets; to the right was his personal office rooms, which he didn't hesitate to enter even if he didn't like the mood of the place.
He went to sit behind the big polished mahogany desk that he had never used, and with a serious look, he gazed around and remembered that he had no idea where anything was kept here. So he turned to the guards once again. - "Bring me the reports from before the storm."
The soldiers gapped at the strange behavior of their boss, but obeyed and very soon they figured out where everything was, and piles of papers began accumulating over the knave's desk.
Ace took one of the top reports to carefully look at it with a serious expression. His eyes traveled conspicuously across the paper with scrutiny and attention. Then, he turned it upside down and frowned in confusion. –"I don't know what this is" XD
The soldiers didn't dare say anything, although their expressions spoke volumes about what they thought -_-0 / O_o
Ace scratched his chin and then his smile brightened at the idea that stormed in his mind. Wasn't he the general and boss of these dudes? He smugly reclined in his chair, put his hands behind his head, and crossed his feet over the desk–"Hey guys! Read all the papers about the ballroom event before the storm and just tell me anything odd you find."
The guys looked at each other and, without saying anything, sat down on side chairs to begin the long task of reading over the paper towers while Ace just lounged around.
During that time, progressively more people took a look into the normally empty place to confirm the rare rumor of the knight of hearts being there for once and actually doing some work. Following these rumors, a different visitor arrived.
"This is quite unusual." – The king said as he stopped at the door before coming inside to clear the unusual gossips –"To what do we own the miracle of finding the knave of hearts here?"
"I am checking reports, your majesty." – Ace didn't bother to take his feet of the desk, and waved his hand happily at the papers over it while the soldiers, who were the ones reading, continued to do so.
Suddenly, the blond soldier stood up to take a few papers and compared them. - "Sir Ace. There were two ballroom dances, not one."
Ace smiled very knightly at the boldness of the faceless guard who had dared to interrupt the king; however, the reason merited it. ("Who knew that the soldiers could be mildly useful?")-"Two?"
The king eyed the papers over the table and merely decided to observe for the time being to know what was really happening.
The blond soldier handed the reports to Ace. - "Yes sir. During the first ball, there was an attack on the castle and the foreigner, 'Alice Liddell', was almost kidnapped by a masked attacker. Due to the attack interrupting the first event, a second ball was held."
"Did anything happen at the second event?"- This were the details Ace wanted to hear.
"Yes sir. "- The man hesitated a bit as if he couldn't believe what he had read. –"It seems that there was a second foreigner in Wonderland at the time of the second ball. The reports say that because of the lax security at the event, the second foreigner, 'Aria Hadron Scherzi', was attacked. The account is that her drink was spiked at some point during the night, and when she went to the gardens alone, she was abducted."-The man gulped down in astonishment.–"However, she fought her attackers and apparently eliminated all the foes but sustaining severe wounds like a deep slash across her side, and then, she returned on her own to the castle to seek medical help."
Ace removed his feet from the desk to sit up properly and held his chin between his fingers while closing his red eyes and remembering the big scar at her side. –"So she really was here…" – He would need to read that report in detail and go get the info from Sir Peter's office.
The knave was thinking how to get the info from Peter without the rabbit knowing, when his mental planning was interrupted by the least likely person in all Wonderland to know anything. The king of Hearts.
"Yes. The second foreigner was here at the ball and sustained quite the gruesome wounds. Not only that, but she leaved the day afterwards while still injured. She even ended up in the prison soon after."- The king said with a harsh tone completely unusual on him- "It was reckless of her, but Lady Aria is quite like that and very tough for a foreigner. She thought it was safer for her… and maybe it was."
Silence reigned in the room as everyone looked at the monarch with bewilderment.
Ace almost felt from his chair.- "You knew?"- He just couldn't believe it.
"We know. Unlike all, we never forgot about her or all that occurred. We also know that she is currently allied to the Clock Tower. At least for the time being." -The king used the 'royal we' with dignity and turned away with a sly smile under his mustache. –"…We will not tell how it is that we maintained our remembrance."
Ace stood very fast.- "And if I force you to tell me your majesty?"- The knight sounded too readily.
"If you deem yourself worthy of such extravagant and outstanding outsider, then find your own elucidation"- The king used the authority of his role for once and walked away but stopped at the entrance for a few seconds. -"Do tell her that our offer still stands, and we would honor it with all due properness."- Barely turning his head to look at the knave over the shoulder, his gaze fell sharp on Ace- "She has been through a lot and has achieved even more than you can imagine knight. Keep in mind that it may have been indeed 'too much' ,and that her strength may surpass her mind."- With that, the king left the silence of the office's behind.
After a minute or so of trying to think about, Ace turned to the soldiers once more. -"Keep looking for everything about the second foreigner"
"Yes sir!" – Both soldiers saluted at the same time. One of them, the black haired one, was particularly very interested. As a member of the Lullaby, he would find out as much as he could and report Lady Aria's return to the 'Berceuse' as soon as he could.
However, the soldier had not been the only faceless lullaby's note who had confirmed the return of the second foreigner, another one had been called directly to the Clock Tower by the very leader of the territory, julius Monrey, who at the moment observed the bandaged sleeping foreigner with a troubled frown.
A couple time changes ago and after Ace had left, she had come out of the bathroom with an incomprehensible stoic look on her face, and had gone straight to sit on the bed and read the glowing screens of her devices in silence, before leaving her things on the nightstand and laying down on the bed. She had merely said that she was going to be KO'd for a while after taking a couple 'deep sleep' pills, and without warning she swallowed them and was unconsciously sleep again.
While she had been completely out, the director of the Rapanui Clinic, and occasional head doctor for the hatters, had come and checked on her state. The old man had patch Aria up with far more care and revere than necessary, but also with apparent deeper knowledge about her foreigner peculiarities. Julius presumed he had medical experience by having tended to Alice at the mansion.
The old man had mostly ignored Julius until he had was sure that the foreigner mercenary girl was completely treated and as comfortable as possible. After that, he had indicated to the mortician that she needed to rest and not excerpt herself at all; and without waiting or asking Julius for an invitation to come back, the experienced medic had stated he'd be returning in a couple days to continue treating her, or that she should go to the clinic once she was awake.
After the doctor had leaved the tower, Julius had tried to work, but instead, he had found himself back in the bedroom and looking at the woman's laying form on the bed. HIS bed.
"You really are troublesome"- He closed his eyes knowing that it wasn't so. She wasn't troublesome. She didn't even intend to mess with him or anyone.
But why was all the mortician feeling so dire and rushed? Was it just her game? No, it couldn't be just that. Circumstances had just been more dire than troublesome for her, and just troubling for him. But what troubled him more since that horrible morning were her words.
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"…You ask for my time. That is a lot for a foreigner whose game is going on, ain't it?...
… You have nothing I may want…
…The price for me is far too high for you…"
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It was true. All of it. There was nothing he could offer her. This woman that saved his life and got hurt because of it. This female who may, or may not, have shared something with him (and Ace), but if she had it was clear she didn't want anything anymore and that was even worse. This girl that knew all that happened but was unwilling to share it. The person that stirred so many emotions inside him that he questioned the time past, present and future….
The problem was that this time he just wasn't stepping away. Something about having this foreigner around eased him. Perhaps it had to do with when she disappeared. He shared Ace's ominous feeling that if she went away, it would be a bad ending for the game.
Julius changed into his pajama and slid in the bed besides her. Back when he started to fall in love with Alice, Ace had told him that it was okay to be selfish once in a while instead of being a doormat to please the outsider like all others. At least that way he would get something in return. He had been too awkward and too coward to act then, but now he understood that he could not remain idly with this fierce girl. Without guilt, he decided to indulge into his selfish desire to keep the foreigner near him.
Having decided that having her near would answer his doubts and questions, he pulled her sleeping form against his chest, hoping that next time she woke up would not be so painful, and now that she was out of commission and unable to reject him, he held her into a tight possessive hug. This would be his secret. He leaned his head down to her face and grabbed her chin with his fingers to make her face him. Looking at her made his clock ache in his chest. His hand put a couple stray blond locks behind her ear, and he hungrily connected his soft lips with hers to steal a doting kiss he felt he didn't deserve at all, but that he was willing to earn. He loved every second of the spicy taste of her forbidden mouth and ignored the clutching sensation over his clock or the stirring of memories that could not surface in the back of his mind.
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Wow, the king remembers! and his proposal still stands? can anyone remember what he proposed her? ;D
Also you might have noted the wink at Sleeping Moon's 'Carrot Cake' fic. .
NOTICE: I'm cowriting a fic with Coy Serum called 'Unconventional Players for a Game of Hearts' . Its about A new foreigner that comes to Wonderland after Aria reappeared but it was her faction who found her and decided to study a game where roleholders were forbidden to participate. A big experiment that takes the faceless into account for the game as active participants. Please check it out, I promise you it will be full of cool drama.
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ABOUT WRITTING IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER
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How you ever read a paraghaph that somehow seems wrong even if the grammar seems fine? Like if you need to go back read it again to get it? That is probably because the actions are out of chronological order.
This is another tip to accompany the one from last chap. I hope it serves you.
Remmeber that even if various things are happening at the same time, the main chara (the POV) perceives them one by any movie scene and observe what camera focus. Also AlWAYS actions before reactions. Think of this:
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Example:
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Character saw the strange armored female mercenary step forward from the portal while shadows danced like flames around her frightful visage. That being was not human anymore. She had heard the rumors about the woman, and if she really was all she'd heard, then she was a fearsome enemy, yet she had to be stopped.
Without waiting for the foe to take the initiative, Character charged forward with a quick and straight dash. The mercenary only smirked and Character jumped aside, barely in time to avoid a spike of darkness that sprouted from the floor; her move had been expected, but it had been her fault for trying such an obvious and reckless attack.
The mercenary murmured something in a language that Character identified as spanish, and Character heard the voices in the back of her head telling her that it was some sort of spell. Shadows formed below Character and she rolled away to evade another spike that came from below.
Character raised her palm towards the mercenary, then she felt the pull of someone on her mind taking a hold of her movements and forcing her lips to speak words that otherwise would have been unknown to her. The next instant and only for a second, she felt some sort of natural but not unpleasant warmness crawl over all her body towards the center of her open palm and when the heat finally finished concentrating in that spot, a ball of fire was shot from it and towards the other female, who gracefully sidestepped to avoid the fireball.
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Yeah, I know that its a bad, dirty and quick example, but take for example the first line:
"Character saw the strange armored female mercenary step forward from the portal while shadows danced like flames around her frightful visage. That being was not human anymore. She had heard the rumors about the woman, and if she really was all she'd heard, then she was a fearsome enemy, yet she had to be stopped."
Analise it. It's all from Character 's POV.
-she sees the mercenary + a brief description of the mercenary in the order Character a sees it. -the action is that she sees , then what she sees, then her reaction and last her thinking.
Because that the order things happen. You see something and get the visual info, then you have a gut reaction to it and last you think/reason/abstract about it.
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If you have a paragraph already maybe I can help better by using it rather than giving random examples.
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5 reviews for the next chapter. Tell me if you want me to continue this or update some of the other stories.