by Suzy Turner
'What?'
Emma lowered her voice, 'Sthenelaus was armed. We don't think he made it.'
Diarmuid closed his eyes and shook his head, rubbing his forehead roughly.
'So the stones are lost once again?' Eleanor could be heard saying from the sofa across the room, catching everyone's attention.
Jimble nodded.
'So everything we have done, we have done in vain,' she whispered. 'Ethelle lost for nothing. I'm so sorry, Jimble.'
He shook his head and sighed as his fellow trolls sat down on the floor behind him. They all looked utterly devastated.
'Lana?' said a faint voice from beyond the great hall.
Looking upwards, Lana stood up in shock as everyone stared at her.
Suddenly, she pelted her way through the crowds of people standing by the doorway until she reached the far end of the corridor where he stood, bloody and weak.
'Barber?' she breathed, as he fell on to his knees.
Eleanor soon appeared by her side.
'What happened?' Eleanor asked as Lana brushed the tears from her cheeks and shook her head.
Barber looked at her, stroked his fingers down her cheeks before he collapsed. As the room fell into silence, three stones fell out of his hand and rolled noisily on to the floor.
CHAPTER 39
They stood beside the dark tunnel where, one by one, the pixie trolls returned to their home. When all but one had disappeared down the hidden chute, Emma dropped to her knees with tears in her eyes.
'I'm going to miss you, Jimble.'
He smiled warmly and reached out to touch her face, 'And I you, Miss Emma Jane Morgan.'
She chuckled as he pulled her into a hug.
'You take care of your new queen,' she whispered.
'And you take care of that sister of yours,' he said as Lana smiled behind them. 'Oh, and please thank Amber for my rides in the helicopter. The second one was actually good fun, not quite so terrifying,' he grinned. 'I will never forget it! I hope she recovers swiftly.'
'I'll tell her, but she won't be flying for a while. Her recovery will be a long one.'
'She's strong, Emma. She'll be right as rain in no time at all.'
Emma grinned. 'I hope that doesn't mean the stones will be used again anytime soon.'
Jimble chuckled and shook his head, 'This time the stones have been hidden where no-one will ever get their hands on them. We've made sure of that.'
'Will I ever see you again?'
Jimble dropped his head to one side and grinned, 'For sure,' he said simply before she climbed back to her feet and watched as the little creature waved to Lana and the other Watchers before turning away from them.
'You've got precisely 15 minutes to return to your places on the train,' he said before he climbed down the chute. 'Goodbye, my friends,' he shouted before they heard him yell, 'Yippeeeeeeeeee.'
The sound drifted down into the earth and soon all was silent.
Looking around at each other, they all laughed before walking into the darkness and climbing aboard. Heading back to their designated carriage, Emma noticed that Declan had already carefully placed Nisha, Moira and Liam together on the train.
He then tried to fix the door that Liam had so casually ripped from the side of the train.
Taking a deep breath, Declan looked around and nodded to the others, I think we're about ready. Let's just sit and wait.'
'Declan, I keep meaning to ask if there's been any news about Bryn?' asked Emma as they returned to their seats.
'Afraid not, Em. He's still being treated at the hospital. His condition remains the same,' he answered.
'So they still don't know what happened to him?'
Declan shook his head.
Emma frowned and sat down, gripping her sister's hand tightly.
Within moments, the train was no longer silent and voices filled the carriage.
'Man,' said Liam as he shook his head and then did a double take when he saw they were back on the train. 'What... where... why.... how.... huh?' he muttered as the others laughed. Diarmuid slapped him on his shoulder, 'It's a long story, mate.'
Ava squealed with delight as she practically knocked him to the floor in a dramatic hug.
'I've missed you so much,' she breathed.
'But... it only seems like minutes ago that I saw you.'
Ava blushed and giggled.
'Minutes? But it's been days!' she whispered before Diarmuid started explaining what they'd been through.
Moira turned her head one way and then the other, her brows furrowed.
'What happened?' she whispered as she rubbed her arm. Glancing down she saw the healed scar.
'Don't worry, Moira. Everything's okay now. Sit down and I'll tell you what happened,' said Elliott.
She nodded, confusion clouding her eyes as Nisha flopped down beside her, rubbing her eyes.
'I'm so thirsty,' she muttered as Emma handed her a bottle of water.
Turning away from them, Emma looked at the young women at the back of the carriage who were eyeing up Declan and shyly playing with their hair. She laughed out loud as the train's engine roared into motion and they started to move from the depths of the dark tunnel and out into the bright sunny daylight towards Bath.
oOo
'I miss him,' sighed Lana as they walked through the city, following Shayne as he explained about some guy that had died in the 17th century whose ghost had been seen floating through the streets almost daily ever since.
Emma squeezed her sister's hand.
'I know you do. But we have to do this. Remember what Eleanor said? We must keep up appearances, otherwise the humans who were involved in organising our day trip will be suspicious.'
'Yeah I know. I just wish we didn't have to. I wish we were back in London.'
'It's only a day. We'll be back later tonight, Sis.'
Lana nodded and sighed as she let go of her hand and walked to the front of the group alone, with her head down, leaving Emma with Diarmuid.
'She still going on about him?' he asked.
Emma nodded and raised her eyebrows, 'She'll see him soon enough.'
The edge of Diarmuid's lips curled as he leant sideways and kissed her on the forehead. 'Remember when we first started going out? She was saying the same thing about you.'
A giggle erupted from her lips. 'Yeah, you're right. Now I know what a bore I was.'
'You, a bore? Never,' he said, sliding his fingers through hers and then bringing them to his lips.
'What was the ghost's name, Diarmuid?' asked Declan suddenly with his eyebrows raised and a smirk on his face.
'Erm...' Diarmuid blushed before Lana interrupted and answered the question for him.
'I guess we should start paying attention, they might test us on this tomorrow,' Emma whispered with a grin.
CHAPTER 40
'Honey!' yelled Audrey Morgan as she rushed through the entrance of the Praxos Academy a few weeks later, straight into the arms of her daughter.
'Mum,' sighed Emma as she enjoyed a long hug before Lana pulled her out of the way so she could have one.
'Hey, Dad.'
'Hello, sweetheart.'
Patrick embraced both his daughters before reluctantly releasing them so he could shake Declan's hand.
'Declan, good to see you got an invitation too.'
Declan laughed, 'I did. But I also do a bit of volunteering here at the academy from time to time.'
'Really? That's wonderful. It's good to know you're still looking out for our girls. I hope they've been behaving,' grinned Patrick.
With a smirk, Declan nodded. 'As good as gold. I'll let you get on. Catch up after the show?'
Patrick nodded, 'We're here for a few days. Let's go out for a meal.'
'Wouldn't miss it for the world,' Declan replied with a wink.
'Where are Lucy Jo and Greg?' asked Lana as she looked around for her young brother and sister.
Patrick nodded his head behind him, 'Your Headteac
her, Miss Hayden-Jones, took them to look at something so we could catch up first.'
Lana and Emma grinned at each other.
'Come and see our room,' they squealed as Declan smiled and left them to it for a while.
Following them down into the dorm rooms, Audrey and Patrick echoed their daughter's excitement at seeing their family members. Bouncing into the large room they shared with Moira and Cassie, Lana pointed to her bed.
'This is where I sleep. And this is Emma's bed. We each have a large wardrobe too, although I've already borrowed part of Em's,' she grinned.
Audrey threw back her head and laughed, 'Honey, you're never going to change.'
'And we wouldn't want you to, either,' Patrick added as he sat down on Emma's bed, placing his arm around his daughter.
'So, how's everything going?' he asked.
Emma looked briefly across at Lana and they both smiled and shrugged.
'Okay, Dad. You know what college is like, classes, classes and more classes....b.o.r.i.n.g,' Lana said raising her eyebrows.
Patrick and Audrey laughed.
'But you're actually enjoying it, aren't you?' Audrey asked.
Lana nodded her head enthusiastically.
'It's just like any other school, Dad, but I love it,' she giggled.
'In that case, we're super happy. We've been a bit worried about you two being here in the big city without us. But as long as you're happy, we're happy for you,' said Audrey as she pushed Lana's hair behind her ear.
'You're growing up so fast,' she sighed before standing up.
'Come on then. Show us around the rest of this place.'
Lana was first to jump up from the bed and so she pulled Patrick up and led them down the corridor towards the classrooms.
'Here are our main study rooms,' Emma said as she pushed open the door to the Lux Room. 'They've all got Latin names. This one is the Lux Room.'
Patrick poked his head around the corner and nodded.
'And this one is the Veritas Room,' Lana continued, opening another door.
'Tempus, Concordia and over there is the Arcana Room. There are more but you get the drift, right?'
Patrick smiled and nodded. 'It's great,' he replied.
'Oh, we nearly forgot to show you the music room,' said Emma.
Lana led them further down a brightly lit corridor until they reached a large room where a number of people had accumulated.
'So this is where the magic happens, is it?' Audrey asked with a grin.
Lana and Emma looked up in surprise before smiling.
'This is where we started rehearsing for the show, before we moved to the theatre that is,' Emma smiled.
'Oh, there's Diarmuid,' blushed Emma as she pulled her mum inside.
'Mum, I'd like you to meet someone,' she said as they walked up to the handsome young man.
'Mum, this is Diarmuid.'
Audrey grinned.
'Ah, so you're the one I've heard so much about whenever I ring Emma,' she said, making Emma's cheeks turn crimson.
'It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs Morgan, Mr Morgan,' he said politely shaking their hands. 'I would have liked to introduce you to my mother but sadly, something came up and she wasn't able to make it.'
'Oh that's a shame, dear. Perhaps next time?'
Diarmuid nodded as Barber walked into the room, looking for Lana. When he spotted her, his face lit up.
'Mum,' Lana said.
'Yes, my angel?'
She gulped nervously, 'I haven't told you about my boyfriend but...'
Audrey turned and stopped when she saw him.
'That's your boyfriend?' she asked, not sure where to look.
'He's a little old for you isn't he?'
'No,' Lana blurted. 'He's only just turned 18... honestly. He just looks older than he is, that's all.'
Audrey and Patrick shared a look and Lana bit her lip as Barber approached them, holding out his hand.
Patrick took it and shook firmly, before Audrey followed suit.
'It's an honour to meet you both,' Barber said quietly.
The moment he spoke, Audrey blushed slightly and her face broke out into a smile.
'It's lovely to meet you too... Barber. That's an unusual name.'
Barber smiled, 'It's quite an old name. My parents were fond of old fashioned names.'
Lana grabbed his hand and held on tight as they stood chatting about the academy. Barber's pretence of being a student was completely swallowed by the Morgans. In fact, they seemed to relax in his company, much to Lana's relief.
When Eleanor appeared and their younger brother and sister waltzed in, Lana let out a yell as Lucy Jo jumped into her arms with a giggle.
Greg attempted to swagger over but couldn't resist his sisters’ hugs as he erupted with giggles.
'This is awesome,' he said when Emma and Lana finally put them both down.
'I want to come here when I'm old enough,' he announced.
Eleanor laughed and patted him on the head as Emma and Lana shared a look.
'Is he your boyfriend?' asked Lucy Jo, pulling Lana's sleeve and pointing to Barber. 'He's really, really good looking,' she whispered, her face blushing as he approached them and crouched down in front of the little girl.
'Hello,' he said. 'My name's Barber. What's yours?'
'Lucy Jo Morgan.'
'That's a beautiful name. Just like the girl it belongs to,' he said before ruffling her hair and standing back up again.
'I'm Greg and I'm Lana's brother.'
Barber laughed and shook the young boy's hand.
'It's a pleasure to meet you, Greg. I'm pleased to see Lana has such a strong brother to look out for her.'
Greg and Lucy Jo both beamed before Emma introduced them both to Diarmuid.
'So, what time is the show?'
CHAPTER 41
'Ladies and Gentlemen, girls and boys, we are honoured that you were able to join us this evening. The students have been hard at work over the past few months, not only in the classrooms of course, but also here, in the theatre, preparing to show you the extent of their musical talents. So without further ado, please put your hands together for... the Praxos Academy students...'
Eleanor grinned, clapping as the theatre filled with applause and the red velvet curtain was opened to reveal an elaborate stage background that looked remarkably like a boat in the Thames with a backdrop of London.
Numerous students stood motionless scattered around the set, while Diarmuid, Elliott, Liam, Imran and Rupert walked slowly in and out of them as the gentle beat of the drums got louder and louder. Accompanied by the slow strum of a guitar, they moved gracefully across the stage until the music came to an abrupt end and the boys stopped mid-movement.
Suddenly, the twangs of an electric guitar filled the theatre at the same time as Emma, Lana, Cassie and Ava appeared. They each stood before one of the boys and began to quietly sing.
The boys began to join in as their voices grew louder and before long, their bodies began to sway along to the music until it looked like the boat they were on was moving along the river.
The audience applauded as the singing continued with a slow melodic and eerie undertone. Claps of thunder echoed throughout the theatre, followed by expertly produced lightning bolts behind the boat. Again the audience cheered and applauded at the fabulous special effects while the singing slowly quietened down until BANG, it ended with an even louder clap of thunder and the boat sank beneath the stage, the students slowly drowning. The heavy red drapes closed.
Immediately, the audience leaped to their feet, applauding, whistling and yelling.
Lana turned to face her sister behind the curtain as she grinned and laughed.
'Wow, what a rush,' she said.
'That was amazing,' Emma replied as Diarmuid high-fived Liam behind them.
'That's our performance done and dusted,' Cassie said as they climbed out of the boat. 'We'd better hurry and get out of the way ready for the next group.'
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They all nodded and cleared the stage.
Lana rushed behind the scenes, straight into the arms of Barber, who stood grinning at her.
'That was something else,' he said, looking down into her eyes. 'You were incredible.'
'Really?' she sighed.
'It was unlike anything I've ever seen. Lana, you continue to amaze me.'
Shaking her head, she leant back and looked up at his face, 'This coming from the man who defeated Sthenelaus.'
Barber shook his head with a chuckle, 'I didn't defeat him, Lana. I merely stole the stones from him,' he said with his eyebrows raised.
'Oh, that's practically the same thing. Besides, you crashed his helicopter and escaped. For all we know, he could be dead.'
'Tonight is your night, babe. Let's not talk about that anymore.' He whispered as he very gently pushed her curls away from her face before he leant forward and kissed her passionately on the lips.
oOo
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