White And Gold

Chapter 14

    

    The clock struck once more, making the count into nine, he have already turned from his street and made it to the main street, it was about time for people to go home so it wasn't as filled as usual, but he couldn't risk being seen here, he swallowed hard as he remembered one of the few other times he was here. The one he hated the most was about two years ago, it ended up with ten guards chasing him. Thankfully he was fast and he knew how to swim.

 

He hid behind some flower bushes and looked around, he started running again when he spotted the first ally in the street and looked around. It was long yet thin, three people his size could walk next to each other here in they were walking with shoulder against each other.

 

The bandit found some kind of boxes for food and clothes there next a large, metal garbage box. He studied it then and looked up at the building there, it was about five feet higher than him, not too bad compared to other things he climbed. He put the boxes on each other to make them into a step like pile, he didn't care much that it looked like it could fall easily, and he just needed something climbable. He would deal with how to go back afterward.

 

He looked back at the street that began to empty more and took a deep breath. "She's worth it... She is worth it...." He repeated it few more times until he was sure enough.

 

He took three steps back and ran to the box pile with all his speed. It took him five seconds to climb to the building's roof. As he expected, the boxes fell and a guard passing by went to check. The bandit laid on the roof and stared down.

 

The guard looked around and saw a movement behind the boxes, a cat jumped on a box, making it fall more and making the cat startled. The guard reached for it and patted her back, calming her down before making his way back to the street.

 

Drake sighed in relief and looked around, he then made his way from roof to another, jumping the gaps between them and crouching when someone passed by. By the time he reached the last house he turned back to stare at the large clock building, it was only thirteen minutes pass nine. He jumped down the building, landing in a cat like manner, and looked around. He was near a garden like wall, he remembered it from the time he walked back with Lilian, he remembers her showing him another way she came from but it was a longer trip there and he had no time to change plan. He slowly climbed the wall and looked around, a large maze like garden laid there and he looked at it, it was filled with flowers and roses, trees with all shape, color and sizes. There were few statues here and there. He was a bit creeped out by them, how they seem to watch every step he took.

 

He tried to ignore them, and he did well with that, until, at the middle of the maze, he saw a golden statue. His eyes widened, as this statue’s features were almost, no, exactly like Lilian. He stared at it for a long moment, admiring it with both awe and confusion. He noticed a small writing on the bottom. It was almost faded but he made out words in the end. They said:

 

Lady Akuma, Mother of All Royals. The Golden Lady.

 

He bandit examined the statue once more and sighed. It looked old, older than his own lady. "Maybe a family member..." He gave it one more glance and moved on into the rest of the maze. He made sure to go to the eastern way, following the blond royal's instructions. He found a small metal gate at the east side and walked through it. He found the wall that he carried Lilian up and climbed it slowly. Drake looked around and spotted three men near the side door to the large castle like mansion. He studied them for a moment and looked at the surrounding, they seem to be away from others and it would be easy for him to knock them unconscious.

 

The bandit reached for his mask and wore it, making sure it's not covering his vision. He jumped down the wall swiftly and found a rock nearby. He aimed it at the guard far left's head and threw it.

 

It was all so fast, the left guard let out a loud a cry that the two others turned to him. The bandit reached behind the two and held their heads in his hands, making them hit together strong enough to knock them down. The third guard turned to see the bandit reach him, his eyes widened and he was about to say something, but the bandit easily touched a pressure point on his neck and he fell unconscious as well.

 

Drake smirked and walked forward to the eastern door, “I better tell that blond to put a harder challenge next time..."

 

The eastern hall was dark and empty, the last time he was here he was in the western hall, near the aquarium and the large balcony. He looked around at the walls and floors and noticed how white and gold were the main color, with red and brown as the color of the carpets and curtains. It all reminded him of Lilian, how inhumanly white her skin was, how her eyes were golden and shining like a sun, or how her cheeks and lips were crimson red against all the light and how her hair was simple brown but also had some of the sun's rays in them. His heart ached a little as he thought of her, how warm her smile was and how her white skin was cold yet somehow managed to send a shock of warm feeling into his heart, how she made him from the first time he spoke to her feeling the urge to be near her. He remembered that night at the wall, how she was under the moon's light, how her eyes glowed and stared into his own. How close she was to him...

 

It felt like all the feelings he denied and tried to stop from popping into his mind just came back the moment he stepped in. Is it because I'm near? He smiled faintly and walked through the hallway into a main one, stopping as he saw some light at the end of the grand stairs, he hid and tried to see who is it before going further in.

 

And like the other time he was here, with the exception of no one standing near her, a lady stood at the top of the stairs, her hair was down, the sun rays still shining through her brown hair, her skin as pale as snow. But her lips were paler than usual, her cheeks had no color, and her eyes were looking ahead with no light in them.

 

His lady walked slowly down the stairs and put a cloak's hood on her hair to cover it. She looked back and another woman followed her. They looked at each other and walked together to the eastern hall.

 

Drake made sure he was out of sight as they passed him and when they were feet away from him he followed slowly, making no noise at all.

 

The woman and Lilian walked to the end of the hall and turned to a long hallway with other side hallways every few feet. Each hallway had a painting on its own, some were quiet beautiful and the others were confusing. They stopped at a painting of a basket with tiny children playing in it and turned to the hallway. There was only one door on each side and they went to the left one.

 

Drake walked in after them and hid instantly. He looked around and saw a room full of little beds and kids sitting on the floor in a circle. Lilian sat in the middle and the light seemed to glow again in her eyes. She then patted a girl's head and kissed a boys cheek. There were fifteen kids in the room; the youngest seemed around six and the oldest ten.

 

"Lily! Tell us a bedtime story!" A kid said with a grin and Lilian smiles and giggled lightly before speaking.

 

"Which story shall I tell you today?

 

Drake’s heart skipped a beat at the sound of her voice. He then made an escape when she started telling the story about the boy who spoke to animals. He walked back to the main hallway with the grand stairs and waited there, when she goes back to her room he will follow and apologize. But for now he wanted a moment for his heart to calm, for the beating seemed to be getting louder than it ever was.

 

It took her about an hour to get back up the stairs, she waved at the lady who bowed at the bottom of the stairs and left to a hallway in the other side.

 

Drake took a deep breath and he follow up the stairs. Lilian walked up two floors and went to a hallway with a painting of a vase full of roses. He watched her enter a room there and he walked to it. He stared at it for a long moment and he slowly knocked at it.

 

He heard some movement inside and then the door knob turned.

 

His Lilian was on the other side, in a long cotton sleeping gown. One hand was fixing her hair and the other was on the knob. Her eyes looked up to see him standing here. They widened and her mouth half opened, for a second he thought she would scream or call for help, but she just looked in shook and moved one foot a step back.

 

“Drake...? Is that you?" She finally said after the silent second that seemed like forever.

 

Drake smiled and bowed a bit, for once he felt comfortable doing so.

Author's Note

Found also on tumblr on Akuma-Drabbles under the same tags.

Tell me if mistakes are found~