In The Shadow of Our Choices

Chapter 54 - Revelations

Elizabeth waited until she heard the crack of Sebastian's disapparation before she opened the door a crack. The coast was clear, so she cast a disillusionment charm on herself and crept through the town. It was merely an abundance of caution - in case someone told Sebastian they'd seen her leave. Once she was on the lower road, however, she dropped the spell and walked briskly the rest of the way to the castle.

Part of her wanted to blast the front gates open, but she wasn't entirely convinced that the Ashwinders had moved on. So, instead, she settled for disillusioning herself once more and scaling the broken wall - which was now a much easier feat, as the wall had been significantly reduced during their fight. Elizabeth hesitated, perched on the wall. The Ashwinder bodies were gone. Perhaps Sebastian had cleaned up and not told her, or maybe the Ashwinders had retrieved their dead. Either way, it sent a chill down her spine, knowing someone else had been here.

She watched for a long few minutes before determining that there was no one in the courtyard, at the very least. Elizabeth clambered back down, circling the outside of the castle to find the door she and Sebastian had exited through during their escape. It was with lightly shaking hands that she made her way back into the dark depths of the castle. Elizabeth needed more information on where the bulk of the group was now, and she hoped there would be clues in the study Selina had occupied. Though, she may have waited too long, if they'd come for their dead, they could have come for their information.

The hallways were underground and pitch dark without the braziers lit. All the same, Elizabeth didn't drop her disillusionment charm and didn't light a single light. Instead she crept along with her hand on the wall, wishing she had asked Ominis how to teach her to navigate with her wand. In the dark, memories haunted her. She could recall, clear as day, the turns she'd desperately counted as Nathaniel led her from the study to the cells, and she remembered Sebastian's rescue of her and their subsequent fight to freedom. Or... a sudden image barged into her head, a memory of her blasting open cell doors until, behind one, she saw a rather pale Sebastian, wrists bloody and staring at her in utter shock before... before... her head had slammed into a wall? No, her head was hurting now.

Elizabeth stopped, pressing her fingers to her temples. Someone was lying to her - either Sebastian or Ominis. Which memory was correct? And why did her head have to ache so? When she stopped, silence fell, except for a soft scuff behind her, and Elizabeth froze, listening intently. Her heart pounded in her chest. Was someone else down here in the dark? Or was her mind playing tricks on her? Either way, she decided to hurry.

Lumos.

She lit her wand nonverbally, just the barest hint of light so that she could see the floor. She ran through the passages, and it only took a few wrong turns before she came to an ornate door that she vaguely recognized. The study. As she'd run, she thought she heard a few more noises behind her, reminding her eerily of the time Ominis had followed her and Sebastian into that tomb. With that recollection, Elizabeth realize that it probably was her mind playing tricks on her, dredging up old memories. For she heard nothing behind her now, but there were soft noises coming from the study.

As Elizabeth gently pushed the doors open, she willed them not to make a sound. Inside, digging carelessly through the desk drawers was a well dressed, masked Ashwinder who looked all too familiar. Anger coursed through her veins, overpowering any sense of fear or hesitation. Without thinking, Elizabeth stepped forward, her wand raised, and fury blazed hot and bright within her. It was Nathaniel, the very man she wanted to find so desperately. He froze, his hands stilling in the midst of rummaging through the desk. She tightened her grip on her wand, her knuckles turning white. Memories of Mary's lifeless body flashed before her eyes, and no - now her body was there on the floor between them.