In Pursuit of a Diamond [On Hold]

In Pursuit of a Diamond (Chapter 12)

Brief word from the author:

Dear Reader,

Before I do anything else, I would like to thank those of you who have been keeping up with my story to such an extent that you're here to read Chapter 12. A lot of you have voted or commented; several of you have even become my fans. All of this is duly acknowledged and greatly appreciated.

However, there remains something that I really need to get off my chest. As much as this is a website for sharing and collaborating writing, this is my story. I have no problem whatsoever with people pointing out grammar errors or plot inconsistencies, or anything that is necessary to fix. What bothers me is when people try to tell me how to make my plot or characters better. I wrote this story because I had an idea that I wanted to put down on paper and share, not to get it professionally published or critiqued.

So, if I want to give a character a personality flaw or trait that I like, but isn't popular with the readers, I'm not going to change it, because I put it there for my own reason. If I decide to put romance into the story, it will be between characters and in the method of my own choosing. And the plot is going to go wherever my train of thought decides to take it.

Basically, I want to encourage you, as my readers, not to focus on the small things that you dislike about the story, but to appreciate the story as a whole. Take a break from thinking, and just sit back and enjoy!

Thank you again for choosing to give my story a chance, and thank you in advance for any feedback!

Yours in spirit,

RaeF1994

---

Aubrey wasn't sure what awoke him. It could have been merely that he had been dead to the world long enough, and was simply ready to return now. But, more likely, it was the slight pulsating pain, both in his head and his leg.

He groaned as he lifted his head, cradling it in his hand as best he could. There was a frighteningly large lump, and some of his hair there was matted down with dried blood. He opened his eyes and looked over at his leg, then breathed a sigh of relief to see that it was not-or, in any case, was no longer-broken. He chanced to move his leg a little, and bent it at the knee. It was tender still, but otherwise in good shape.

Relieved that no worse damage had been done, Aubrey began to look around at his surroundings. He was in a small room, almost bare save for the bed he was lying on and small table in the corner. There was a single window, right next to the ceiling, about three inches in height, and this was currently the source of light, since the bare lightbulb hanging from the ceiling was turned off. Despite its desolateness, the room struck him as somehow familiar.

He realized it with enough force to cause his injured head to throb. This was his room. Or once had been his room. This was where he had lived when he was in the Movement.

He groaned again and set his head back down onto the pillow. A Movement base. Of all the inconvenient places to be right now, this was certainly among the worst. Although, the fact that he now knew exactly where he was could certainly be helpful. He knew this to be the Movement base in the Rockies.

The Rocky Mountains. Funny, how that had been more or less his destination in the first place, and he had made it after all, one way or another. Except now, he didn't have the Diamond.

Carefully, Aubrey lifted himself off the bed and limped over to the door. He turned the knob; it was locked. He could have guessed as much. He reached into his pocket for his wand, before remembering that Macer had taken it from him earlier today... or was it yesterday?

With a sigh, he eased himself back onto the bed. He then stared distantly at the door, thinking of all the past times when he would spend nearly the entire day shut up in his room by his own choice, waiting for the hours to pass. He could never remember the door being locked before. And now, when he wanted nothing more than to leave as soon as he could...