E1pnvn's Note - Here's another uneventful chapter (sorry!). But near the end it'll get a little interesting. Oooh, and there's even a cliffhanger. That's a new thing for me!

FORGOTTEN

Chapter two - The Palace Guards

As the tour progressed, Kaleb became less and less nervous and after awhile seemed almost amicable. But he was still a horrible tour-guide. He was much more interested in Loriel than in showing her around.

"So... um... How are you feeling?" he asked, as the two of them were walking down a hallway.

"Perfect," said Loriel. "I don't think I could be any healthier. Your godmother knows her magic."

Kaleb laughed a little. "Yeah, she can do pretty much anything..."

There was a short silence. Then he asked: "How's your chest?"

"Excuse me?" said Loriel, a little taken aback.

"I mean... Does it hurt at all?" he asked. He didn't elaborate, just waited for an answer.

"No..." Loriel said, slowly. "I don't think so..."

"Oh... Good..."said Kaleb.

Loriel was about to ask why he'd asked such a strange question, but he continued the conversation before she could.

"You aren't scared at all, are you?" he asked.

Loriel looked at him. He was watching her, his deer eyes concerned.

"I was before but...not now," said Loriel. "Is there a reason why I should be?"

Kaleb shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "You've just come back from the dead. I imagine that's an...odd experience."

Loriel considered it. "Yes, I suppose," she said. "But it seems a lot better than the alternative."

Kaleb chuckled. "Right, definitely..."

He led her into another room and she looked around. It was relatively empty, except for a long, thin table that sat in its center. A ceramic vase filled with poppies sat in the middle of the table, giving it a homey look. But what really caught Loriel's interest was one of the walls. There was another mosaic there, this one of a juggler made with black and white tiles. The only colored part of it were the juggling balls which were three shining stones: one red, one yellow and one blue. Loriel automatically walked over to it.

"This is the dining room," Kaleb said, following her. "There's the picture Opa told you about, as you've probably guessed..."

Loriel nodded. "Wow, you're so good at these..." she said. "This one's even better than the last!'

Kaleb looked at it too, a slight smile on his face.

"You helped me make this one," he said.

Loriel whirled on him. "I did?" she said, eyes wide. "What part did I do?"

Kaleb looked a little surprised at her outburst, but laughed.

"You did the juggler's face," he said. "And we did the juggling balls together. We went out and looked in the forest for the right color of stones... It must have taken us hours, but we found them and polished them ourselves."

"Wow..." Loriel said again, and she looked back to the juggler's face. It was pitch black with dark eyes and a mischievous smile curled into the cheeks. "Do you think I'd still be able to make things like this?"

"Maybe..." said Kaleb. "I'm not sure."

"Could I try it?" Loriel asked, turning back to him. "I'd really like to see if I can. I mean... If I have any special talents, I want to know about them!"

Kaleb chewed the inside of his cheek. His eyes were back to looking sad again.

"I don't think there are any tiles left to work with," he said. "I'm sorry, Lori."

"Oh," said Loriel.

She'd actually been a bit eager to do something from her past life. But she tried not to show how disappointed she was, for Kaleb's sake.

"Um... Are there any other rooms?" she asked.

Kaleb nodded, looking a bit relieved, and led her back into the hallway.

- - - - - - - - - - -

The rest of the tour took up the majority of three hours and by the time Loriel had an idea of how to get around the house, Opa was calling for them, saying that lunch was ready. The old woman's voice was incredibly loud and clear, which made Loriel suspect that magical amplification might have been involved. But she was too busy hurrying to the dining room to think much about it. She was hungry and wanted that lunch as soon as possible. Kaleb, looking a little flustered at how eager she was, fought to keep up.

Soon enough, the two of them plopped down next to each other at the dining room table. Opa was already sitting across from them, smiling.

Loriel looked around. There wasn't any food anywhere. No plates or silverware or even trays like the one her breakfast had been on. She felt a little stupid looking around for food, so she finally turned to Opa.

"Umm... I thought you said lunch was ready," Loriel said.

Opa gave her an impish grin.

"Oh it is, dearie," she said. And with that, the old woman snapped her gnarled fingers.

The table exploded. Or, that was at least what Loriel thought at first. Actually, the table stayed intact, but there was a loud BANG and the room was filled with multicolored sparks. When the colorful display faded, the table was covered in plates and silverware and trays of fruits and breads. There was also half of a turkey in the center, near the poppies.

Loriel stared at it all, her mouth hanging open shamelessly. Kaleb however seemed indifferent. Although, he did chuckle at the look on Loriel's face.

"You and your surprises..." he said to Opa, shaking his head.

"You lived with me for sixteen years," Opa said back to him. "Did you really expect a normal meal?"

Kaleb smiled. Loriel was still gaping at the food.

"That's amazing!" she said. "So, you can just wave your hand and make anything appear?"

"Not anything," said Opa. "There are certain rules I have to follow. But I can make ALMOST anything appear."

Loriel shook her head. This place was just full of surprises. Wondering what else Opa was capable of doing, she grabbed a piece of turkey and started to fill her plate. Opa and Kaleb followed suit. Soon, all three of them were eating. Loriel, being the hungriest and the one who liked Opa's cooking the most, wolfed down her food in a way that eventually got Kaleb's attention. He stared at her, his fork frozen in mid-scoop. Loriel didn't notice him until he started laughing.

It started out as a chuckle, then grew into a loud, happy roar. And at that point, it looked like he wasn't able to stop. He laughed for a straight minute, Loriel looking at him curiously all the while. Finally, he quieted down long enough to explain himself.

"I'm sorry," he said, gasping for breath. "But... That's just so funny!"

Loriel blinked. "What is?"

"The way you're eating," Kaleb said, letting out another chuckle that threatened to burst into more loud laughter. "Before you died, you were always worried about your manners. You were princess so, of course, you were trained to be dignified, even around your friends. But now..." He sniggered. "Now you don't even care! I just never thought I'd see the day..."

He broke into more laughing. Even Opa chortled a bit.

Loriel just stared at them, not quite sure what to think. But the pair's cheer was infectious. It wasn't long before Loriel found herself laughing as well and the whole room was filled with their happy din.

- - - - - - - - - - -

When Loriel went to sleep that night, she decided that this first day of her new life had been perfect. It had been frightening and confusing, but it had also been very enjoyable and, for lack of a better word, interesting. Loriel decided that she liked it in Opa's house. And she had two very loyal friends that were willing to help her through all of her difficulties. When Loriel fell asleep, it was with a smile on her face.

She slept soundly and deeply, without any dreams to disturb her slumber. She didn't even awaken when Kaleb came into the room to watch her sleep for a few minutes. And she was still deep in slumber when he gave her a kiss on the cheek before leaving again.

- - - - - - - - - - -

During the next few days, Loriel spent a lot of time learning about herself. She would often sit down with Kaleb and he would tell her about what she was like before she died. He told her how her favorite color was blue and how she absolutely loved horses. He even told her about her horrible fear of spiders, although Loriel had figured that one out on her own when she'd found one of the eight-legged critters under her bed. But the thing that interested Loriel the most was the fact that she had been exellent at art. Kaleb said that she'd taught him almost everything he knew about mosaics and paintings. And one day, about a week after being revived, Loriel discovered that she still knew how to do it all.

The day started out normally, with Loriel going to the dining room for breakfast after waking up and getting dressed. But it had instantly become different when she arrived to find that Kaleb wasn't there. He usually woke up around the same time that she did, so he was almost always at the table when she got there. And even if he wasn't eating, he'd usually wait there just to say good morning to her. But today, he was nowhere in sight.

"Where's Kaleb?" Loriel asked Opa, who was snapping her fingers to make some fruit and porridge appear.

"Last time I saw him, he was uprooting the entrance hall," Opa said, conversationally.

Loriel's eyebrows rose so high, they almost disappeared in her blonde bangs. "What?"

Opa shrugged. "Sometimes he does odd things, my Kaleb," she said. She handed a bowl of porridge to Loriel. But Loriel just put the bowl back down on the table.

"I think I'm going to see if he's ok..." she said. And before Opa could protest, she hurried out of the dining room and made a beeline for the entrance hall.

Sure enough, Kaleb was there. He was standing in one corner of the room with Opa's shovel in his hand. He looked up when Loriel came in and gave her a small smile.

"Good morning," he said. "I was just going to go get you... But I guess I don't have to now."

"What are you-?" Loriel began, but she stopped.

Just then, she realized what he had done. In the corner where he was standing, the floor was bare and there was a small pile of blue tiles near his feet. He'd taken apart a piece of his mosaic.

"What have you done?" Loriel cried, rushing over to him. "Your beatiful picture... It's ruined!"

Kaleb shook his head. "Only part of it is," he said. "The rest is perfectly fine without this one corner. And besides, there's going to be tiles here again soon."

Loriel looked at him questioningly.

"You said you wanted to try your hand at mosaics again," Kaleb said. He motioned towards the bare corner. "So here you go. Now you have your tiles and your space."

Loriel finally understood. She kneeled down by the stack of tiles on the floor, shaking her head.

"You did want to try it, didn't you?" Kaleb said, sounding a little worried.

"Yes, but..." said Loriel. "I didn't mean like this! You didn't have to ruin your picture just for me to experiment..."

"Lori," Kaleb said with a smile. "It's a floor. People walk on it; it really doesn't matter."

Loriel could tell that part of him was lying, but it comforted her anyway. She smiled.

"Ok..." she said, a little tentatively. "Um... How do I start?"

Kaleb kneeled down beside her, a huge grin on his face. He grabbed a handful of tiles and gave them to her, then handed her a bottle of some thick, gooey liquid.

"Just try to remember," Kaleb said.

And suprisingly, Loriel did. She suddenly knew what to do and found her hands moving the tiles about as if of their own accord. Whenever she stopped to think about what she was doing, she'd get confused and forget everything. But as long as she just let her hands do the work, everything worked out perfectly.

It was as if she was in a trance. She worked on it all day, Kaleb watching over her shoulder almost the whole time. He went to fetch breakfast and lunch to bring to her, but other than that, he seemed as much entranced by the mosaic as she was. It was dusk when Loriel finally finished and looked down to admire what she had done.

It looked as if the corner had never been bare. Loriel had made a mermaid, with long blue hair and a turqouise tail, that matched almost perfectly with the rest of the floor. She was completly stunned. The mosaic was even better than Kaleb's work.

"D-did I just do that?" she asked.

Kaleb, who was standing over her, nodded. "Yep," he said, something like pride in his voice.

Loriel beamed.

But then her triumph was suddenly interrupted by a hard knocking on the front doors.

"Open up!" a harsh voice boomed. "In the name of the Queen!"

Loriel got to her feet, confused. "Who's that, Kaleb?" she asked.

But Kaleb didn't answer. He was looking more deerish than ever. His face had paled and his eyes were huge.

"Come on," he said, suddenly breathless. He grabbed her hand and hurried her into a nearby closet. When they were both squished inside, he slammed the door shut behind them.

"What's going on?" Loriel asked, frightened, but Kaleb just held a finger to his lips to silence her.

Loriel obeyed, although reluctantly. She squinted through the crack in the door to try and see what was happening.

The pounding on the door continued.

"I said open up!" the same voice bellowed.

"Alright! Alright! I heard you," came Opa's voice.

The old woman suddenly appeared in the entrance hall and hobbled over to the great front doors. She opened them, revealing a very muscular man standing on the doorstep. He was clad in full armor and a sinister-looking broadsword hung at his belt.

"Good evening," he said, his voice still deep and booming. "I am Tarence Ferguson, head knight of the royal Palace Guards."

Opa nodded. "Yes, I recognize you," she said. "You're quite famous around these parts. But why have you come to visit little old me?"

Tarence gave her a look that could melt steel.

"You know why I'm here," he growled.

"I'm afraid I don't," said Opa, returning his glare.

Tarence looked furious. But he continued in a calm and level voice.

"You're Opa Heartridge, high-status witch and member of the Warlock Circle," he said.

Opa nodded, looking bored.

"And you were also a good friend of a Mrs. Claudia Brown," Tarence continued. "You were even given charge of Mrs. Brown's son when she died, am I correct?"

Again, Opa nodded.

"And I'm sure you're fully aware that your godson has been wanted for over two years, now," said Tarence.

Loriel tensed. She noticed that Kaleb had started shaking.

"Yes," said Opa, still sounding bored. "And?"

"Your godson was spotted just recently in this forest," Tarence continued. "And YOU were seen with him."

The knight moved closer to her, his armor clanking slightly.

"I want to know where he is," he said, his face only inches from Opa's. "And you're going to tell me. Understood?"

But Opa still looked completely unworried. She didn't even flinch at the knight's harsh words.

"I admit that I was in the forest with him a few days ago," she said. "But I wasn't helping him. Hell no, I would never help a wanted man. What kind of idiot does that?"

"Then what WERE you doing?" Tarence asked, his expression still menacing.

"I was trying to lead him to you and the rest of the Guards," Opa said. "How else do you think you lot were able to come so close to catching him?"

Tarence was struck speechless. He straightened again, taking a step back.

"I tried to use my magic to capture him, but it's against the Circle's rules to use spells for such things," Opa continued. "So, I simply tried to let you lot do the work. But alas, he escaped anyway..."

Tarence was now looking at the old woman with what might have been respect. He bowed to her.

"My severest apologies," he said. "I should have known..."

"Yes, you should have," said Opa. "But don't worry, I forgive your insolence. Just please, leave me be. If I ever find my awful godson, you'll be the first to know, I assure you."

Tarence nodded and with another bow he turned on his heel and left. Opa closed the doors behind him. She heaved a sigh.

"Alright, you can come out now, dearies," she said.

Kaleb, who was still shaking a little, opened the door to the closet and led Loriel out. He let go of her when they were beside Opa.

"Thank you, godmother," he said.

"You're quite welcome, dearie," said Opa. "It was easier than I thought. That Tarence has never been the brightest candle in the bunch. He'll believe anything..."

"What's going on?" Loriel interrupted. She turned to Kaleb, waiting for an explanation.

Kaleb suddenly became even more pale. He looked at his feet.

"What does the queen want with you?" Loriel asked. "What did you do?"

Kaleb didn't answer. Loriel's voice grew a bit louder and higher in pitch.

"D-did you steal something?"she continued. "Did you hurt someone?"

Still he didn't answer. He was shaking again and Loriel shivered a little herself.

"Please tell me, Kaleb..." she said. "Please... I really need to know."

At last, Kaleb slowly looked up. His eyes were unreadable and his face was blank.

"I'm wanted by the Queen," he said, quietly, "because I killed you."

The Thank You So So Much Section

Sorry if my writing was a little unclear. I kind of had a bit of writer's block that I was working through. But anyway, on to the thank-yous!

Lunchelle Kay - Thank you so much! You make me so happy!

Kbmulloy - Wow, that's a lot of suggestions! Thanks, these are all pretty nifty... I have stored them all in my head for further reference.

Jessica Wright - Thanks! Keep up the good work on your stories.

Doray - Hey, Doray! Thanks for the review! Letters to Christopher was really cool. Any folks reading this should check it out!

Alteng - Um... She didn't decay because... Opa made her un-decayable. Yeah, yeah, that's the ticket... (cough)

Teffie - Thanks! That reminds me: I have to get back to reading your story!

Daviot - A minor inconvenience, haha... Anyway, thanks for the tips. I realize that I probably stuffed a lot of the information in at the beginning 'cus I was eager to get to the exciting stuff. Heh heh, oops...

Eyetk - Oh my god! ANOTHER Stargate fan?! THAT'S FANTASTIC! Anyway, thanks for the useful CCs. Yeah, Kaleb is kind of a wimp... I hope he was a little better in this chapter!

Thanks everybody. I send you mental hugs.