Aelfdene Short Story

1

Aelfdene Short Story 2

A wispy blonde girl walked barefoot on an old stone fountain.  A nearly full moon shone brightly in the sky above her, coating her in its silvery white light.  Water trickled down weakly from the fountain’s jets, glinting and catching the starlight.  The girl was singing softly under her breath, and her voice was carried on the wind.  A few feet away from her, another girl spoke.  3

“Ari, come on.  We need to get back to the house before your Mom realizes we snuck out-again.” 4

Ariena just laughed in a carefree way and carefully dipped a foot into the clear water.  She could see the moon’s reflection rippling on the water. 5

“Ariena, come on,” Piper told her, though her voice was starting to loose it’s resistance. 6

“Piper, come up here!” Ariena said with a laugh.  Ariena walked over to Piper, grabbed her hands, and pulled her up onto the fountain’s edge. 7

“Ari, we have to leave soon,” Piper told her, though she was smiling.  Both girls had an affinity for the moon.  It gave them comfort and made them feel safe, and it had ever since they were young girls.  Now the two of them were almost seventeen and juniors in high school and both still held the moon and it’s beauty close to their hearts.  Piper relaxed a bit and let the moonlight bath her in its silver glow. 8

Ariena kneeled down and plucked two purple irises that were blooming on the side of the fountain.  She fixed one into her own hair, then turned to Piper, who was watching her, and pushed some of Piper’s dark brown hair back and gently placed the flower just above her ear. 9

Ariena gave Piper a playful grin and started to hum a song from her favorite band.  She stood 5’3’’ and had long golden hair that hung about two thirds of the way down her back.  Her eyes were an impossibly deep shade of green with flecks of gold and azure.  Tonight she was wore a flowing lavender skirt that reached her knees and a light purple tank top. 10

Piper was 5’5’’, had dark brown hair that ended just past her shoulders, and had deep dark brown eyes.  She wore baggy black pants and a bright neon green tee shirt with a rainbow arm warmer around her wrist. 11

Ariena’s smile suddenly dwindled and then faded completely.  She stood on the fountain edge and looked around the practically abandoned garden. 12

Piper cast her a critical glance. 13

“What’s up?” she asked, wondering why Ariena’s mood had shifted so suddenly. 14

Ariena put up a finger to motion Piper to be quiet but said nothing.  She continued to look around the overgrown garden, as if searching for something. 15

Suddenly Ariena silently jumped off the fountain edge.  She slipped into her black sandals but continued to glance around. 16

“Did someone see us?”  Piper asked her in a hushed voice. 17

Ariena shook her head, hair gliding across her shoulders, but said nothing.  A far away look was in her eyes.  Then, she seemed to snap back to reality.  She looked back at Piper who stood about fifteen feet away. 18

She said, “Come on, lets go back home.  You were right, I bet my mom will come and knock on my door soon.  We have to be there when that happens or else she’ll have a fit.” 19

Piper nodded slowly but regarded her friend carefully 20

“Everything okay?” she asked her, concern twisting into her words. 21

Ariena forced a smile and responded, “Yep, everything’s fine.  Now come on; I bet it’s almost one.  Let’s go before we get in trouble.” 22

With that, Ariena walked past Piper till she got to the path that led to the gate to the street.  She turned her head and stopped, waiting for Piper to follow. 23

************* 24

The next night, Ariena and Piper found themselves staring back at the old mansion that stood almost a quarter of a mile away from the fountain.  The property was huge and stretched far across the block, taking up nearly all of it, save for a few houses at the other end.  It was one of the oldest buildings in the little Wisconsin town and probably the most mysterious.  Stories of how strange things went on around it had drawn the girls here years ago, and now they returned to it for the peaceful solitude and regal beauty nature had bestowed upon it.  25

The mansion was surrounded by great green lawns, a garden to one side, and an orchard in the back.  How the grass got mowed was another mystery about the house, but it was manicured regularly it seemed, though the girls never saw who did it. Tall, thin black cast iron fencing surrounded the premises, but somehow the gate on the garden side was always unlocked at night.  A few times the girls had tried to come during the day, but there was no way to get in without scaling the fences, a risk neither of them were willing to take during daylight.  The house seemed deserted most times, and Ariena had pondered often if anyone ever came here, how long it had been since anyone inhabited the house. 26

Tonight, the stars were cast low in the sky, and the moon shone brightly, an almost pure silver color in the late spring air.  Piper was studying the houses windows, wishing she knew what secrets the mansion held inside. 27

Ariena regarded Piper with some interest, wondering what she was watching so closely. 28

“See anything in there?” she asked her friend. 29

Piper shrugged, shoulders rolling in the darkness.  “No, not really.  It’s pitch black in there.  Do you think anyone ever goes in there?  We’ve never tried to get in before…” 30

Ariena saw where this was going, and smiled a wicked little smile.  “Well,” she said, “since we’ve never tried…” 31

Piper caught onto this mischief brewing in Ariena’s head before the sentence was out.  Her head was shaking by the time Ariena trailed off. 32

“Ari, you know that we could get busted for that.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t really want to get dragged to your mom’s house in a cop car,” she told her. 33

Ariena sighed, understanding yet longing to see.  If the outside of the estate was this pretty, she could only imagine what the interior could hold. 34

************* 35

“I can’t believe you talked me into this,” Piper told Ariena for the tenth time. 36

Ariena smiled vapidly, knowing Piper was enjoying this as much as she was.  She studied the first looks they had of the old home, noting the elegant furniture, the rich colors filling the room.  Piper took out her lighter, and a tiny flame filled the space with shadows, bringing it to life and dragging ghosts to dance across the walls. 37

A sudden whisper echoed through the room that was carried from the hallway. 38

Piper and Ariena, eyes huge, gazed at each other. 39

“Umm…Ari, what was that?” Piper asked her friend, forcing her voice not to betray the first tendrils of fear. 40

Ariena swallowed hard, making a silent decision. 41

“There’s only one way to find out, I guess,” she told Piper, reluctance revealed in the tone of her voice.  42

Piper just stared at her for a bit, as that statement registered.  She then nodded her head, and took Ariena’s elbow, leading the both of them down the dark and haunting hallway. 43

The first thing that Ariena noticed was the absence of dust in the house.  The hallway was long, looking as if it divided the house in two.  So maybe someone does live here, she thought to herself.  But then why do we never see anybody? 44

She then thought about last night.  More than once, she had the feeling of being watched.  Last night, she swore she could have saw someone outside. 45

“Ari…” Piper said.  “There’s a light on at the end of the hall.” 46

Ariena looked up, seeing what Piper was talking about.  Advancing a bit faster now, she and Piper almost ran down the hall, fear mixing with pure wonder.  She felt like she had to find this mini mystery she had stumbled upon out. 47

The two girls had reached the edge of the doorway.  Ariena could now tell that a candle or two was lit by the way the light flickered, as if spooked by the quiet night. 48

Looking at Ariena and gulping, Piper walked through the doorway with Ariena right behind her. 49

“What the hell?” Piper said, after standing in the doorway for about thirty seconds and obstructing Ariena’s view. 50

“What?  What is it?” Ariena whispered into Piper’s ear. 51

Moving aside, Piper let Ariena see what she had been staring at. 52

Sitting in a tall, ornate chair was a man with dark, violet eyes.  His raven black hair  framed his face, coming just past his chin in light waves.  He wore black silk pants and a silver button up shirt.  His porcelain skin almost glowed in the candlelight, and he smiled at them as they stood in the entrance. 53

“Hello, Arienh,” he said, and Piper caught Ariena as her knees went out. 54

************* 55

After recovering, Ariena stared at the man.  He looked young, like he was in his early twenties, just a few years older than the two girls themselves.  But here she was, staring at the same man she’d seen in her dreams off and on ever since she had started coming to the fountain and it’s gardens.  His crystalline violet eyes couldn’t be mistaken. 56

Piper stared at the young man sitting before them, confusion mixing inside her brain with defense-she knew that if this guy even threatened to touch a hair on Ariena’s head, she’d go crazy on him. 57

“Who are you?” Ariena asked, finding her strength after a few beats. 58

He smiled warmly and openly at her.  59

“My name is Aubrey, and I’ve been waiting for you.  I was surprised it took you two so long to come down the hallway tonight,” he told them. 60

Piper watched the mysterious raven-haired man with careful eyes.  She then looked to Ariena, who seemed to have recovered completely from her shock and now even looked a bit…comfortable. 61

“Did you wait every night, or just tonight?” Ariena asked him in a strange voice, sounding detatched and distant. 62

“Just tonight, though I think you know I’ve seen you two here before,” he answered, in a velvety voice like falling leaves. 63

“Yes…I dreamed about it.  About meeting you,” she amended. 64

Piper looked at her dubiously, wondering when this had happened. She knew her friend had odd dreams sometimes, but this was just an anomaly too weird for her to comprehend yet. 65

Flashbacks of vivid dreams danced in Ariena’s mind as she looked again at the young man before them.  He resembled a painting she had on her wall at home-of an elf prince who lived in a secret valley in the forests.  His mysteriousness made her seriously wonder who this man truly was.  66

Aubrey smiled again, knowingly.  “Arienh, this place is yours.  It’s why you’ve always loved it,” he told her.  “It was your fathers, and probably one of the reasons he left in the end.” 67

Ariena nodded, words clicking together like puzzle pieces in her brain.  68

“Your father left when you were about two, right?” Aubrey questioned her, but she knew he already knew the answer. 69

“Yes,” she told him, and he carried on. 70

“He left after all heirs to his bloodline died, afraid for you and for himself.  He knows deep down that the truth is he’ll have to come back someday, but I don’t think he’s ready yet,” he said, words lingering. 71

“Who are you?” Piper asked, knowing the question was already asked, but wanting a different answer. 72

He smiled again at this, and said, “I guess you could say I’m a friend of the family’s.  I just wanted Arienh to know this place was hers, to meet the girl who will have so much to do with the Aelfdene someday.” 73

“The Aelfdene?” Ariena and Piper said in unison.  74

Aubrey told them in a quiet voice, “The story of the elfin valley will have to wait for another day.  For now, this house is yours.”  75

Aubrey got up from his chair and took out a silver key dangling on a purple cord.  Silently, he handed it to Ariena and walked out of the room. 76

“This place is really yours?” Piper asked her after Aubrey had exited. 77

“I guess,” Ariena answered. 78

“That guy was kinda weird,” she confided. 79

Ariena nodded, not really having a comment to respond.  Yes, he was weird, but she also felt a strange connection to him, like he knew a world of things she didn’t-and felt that she should.  She knew she would be seeing him again. 80

On the table next to the chair she found the deed to the house.  She left it there, and they walked out together. 81

************* 82

Ariena woke with a start, breathing hard.  She glanced around her.  Tiny purple Christmas lights twinkled at her, and for a moment she felt out of place and confused. 83

She looked around and saw Piper sleeping in a ball on the couch across from her bed.  So it was all a dream? She asked herself.  She tugged her comforter off and sat cross-legged, staring out into space.  She checked her clock and it read just after two am.  If it weren’t a dream, they would probably just be getting back now.  Ariena glanced around her room again, feeling awkward. 84

Laying on the floor next to her bed was a purple cord with a silver key at the end. 85