I Will Find You

* ~ 8 ~ *

Year 1773

Gideon's POV

I'm confused. Why was Gwendolyn back at the soiree? In a different dress she was there originally? Did the Lodge send her back, looking for me? And if they did, did she manage to hear all the details of the count's 'immortality-plan'? So many questions unanswered. Well, answers are never just hanging in the air, so close you could catch them.

"Ready?" I jump on my chair a little bit, the count seems to have the gift of walking silently like a dust bunny. You know, dust bunnies just roll into the room with the air pushing them around. And the count has gray hair, so he kind of looks like a dust bunny too. Makes sense.

"For what exactly...?", I ask. You never know what kind of job the count has in his sleeve to throw at you.

"You're going to retrieve Gwendolyn, to here", the count says calmly without any kind of colours or shades of shame, wrongdoing, guilty. How he's going to live a life of immortality with someone else's sacrifice on his conscience?

"So you can kill her right away?", I raise my eyebrows. "You know that a human like me is not capable to do that". The count lifts his shoulders. He walks slowly to a table near him, like he would want to hear every creek from the wooden floor, feel the floor where he has walked hundreds of times before. He lifts his hand to a silk cloth that is has been put over something, probably a chronograf. He moves his hand on the cloth, like he would want to caress it, like he would get some nostalgic memories from it, wanting to save them, not let them fly away.
Without a warning the count throws the cloth to the other side of the room with a small, simple hand movement. He shows the chronograf to me with an open hand, signaling me to come around the same mahogany table. I place my steps with care, not wanting to make any wrong moves. When I'm standing next to the table, my hands resting on it's cool wooden top, covered in light dust, the count raises his eyebrows:

"Of you go", he says. "Shoo, shoo!"

I sigh, as I put my finger to the chronograf.

"Don't forget to get our little Ruby here", the count adds. My mind is running in circles. I don't like the way how the count speaks about another people, especially the ones he's going to kill. Because a man who scares death could do anything for not being mortal.

"Don't worry", I say. I got my own plans against your selfish ones. I feel the little stab in my finger and in a second I'm in the same spot, I almost don't recognize the change. But then I see the windows. They're clean. In the another room they weren't.
I have to find Gwendolyn, but not from the reasons the count wants me to. I leave the room and step to the hall. Cold air comes from the open door in downstairs, flows through all the halls of the Lodge and moves like a ball which is catapulted on the walls.
It's just an ordinary day, and I don't know if Gwendolyn has already come or not, and if she has come, has she already elapsed? I run from corner to corner, past the Dragon hall...

"Gideon!", a voice echoes behind my head. I look over my shoulder and see Falk walking fast, almost running to me. "How are you here? Did you get back from being lost?". His eyes are like dark wells, you don't know how deep they really are. At this second his eyes seem to send a bucket from the chasm, ready to be filled with information.

"I don't have time", I say. "I have to find Gwendolyn."

"Oh well..."

"Falk, where is she?"

"I saw her walking to the old alchemy-laboratory, she's going to elapse there, as far as I know."

Well, Falk is the person who should really know. I turn around and head to the laboratory, without saying thanks to Falk. I turn from a corner, and see an open door. As I run past it, I see Mr. George with Dr. White, turning their heads when they see me fly past the open doorway.
Couple of corners from that, I turn to the right alley. I see Gwendolyn walking in front of me, just about 17 meters away. Her backpack is on the other shoulder, and the zip is open. I can see schoolbooks from the open pocket.

"Gwen!", I shout breathlessly. Only couple meters now, maybe four steps.
Gwendolyn turns around, and I can see the amazement on her face. Only one step, and I can touch her shoulder.
Suddenly Gwendolyn is not there anymore, and the the only light are torches on the walls.
I take the last step that has now become just a worthless movement of my leg. How long can one step be, if time is in between?

***

I can't believe this, this story has already almost 120 views! I know it's not that much, but for me a hundred is a huge number! I want to thank you for choosing my story to read, hopefully it's been worth it :3

Don't forget to elapse daily,

See you next weekend! <3