Change of Heart (NaNoWriMo 2011)

Chapter 25

            “I did work my way to the top!” she screamed back.

            “Oh yeah? Because the last I looked, ticking angels is like hitting below the belt. That’s not work. That’s just plain pathetic.” What Jariel said must have made Elise more than a little angry, because she stormed right up to him and tried to punch him in the face again, but Jariel was quicker this time and he grabbed a hold of her arm before she could do any damage. As easy as bending a twig, he twisted her arm and held it behind her head, causing Elise to let out a yelp of pain. Elise kicked him in the shin but, despite the immense pain, Jariel stood his ground. He wasn’t going to let Elise win, not this time.

*     *      *      *

Words couldn’t describe how happy Dawn was to see Annette. A sense of hope overwhelmed her and she thought that they might actually be getting out of here. That was, until Elise stepped in and ruined everything. They had been so close, so close, to escaping. To becoming free from Elise and her torture. That dream was cut short though, and Dawn’s hopes were shattered.

            Jariel fought back this time and, from the looks of it, he was winning. Elise had managed to kick him a good couple of times, but Jariel stood his ground. He had managed to pin Elise to a wall, but quickly lost his hold when Elise brought out her excessively large, black wings, which, unlike Jariel’s whose only reached to his knees, hit the floor. Elise’s wings put up a barrier between herself and Jariel. Jariel grabbed her wings and pulled on them, causing Elise to yell out in pain. In response, she whirled around and scratched him in the face. It went back and forth like this for what seemed like forever.

            “Dawn, are you alright?” Annette whispered, directing Dawn’s attention from the fight to herself. Dawn let out a very weak sigh.

            “My whole body aches. I’m bleeding and bruised. I’m tired, as well as cold and starving.” Dawn said, annoyed that people kept asking that instead of just taking one look at her and figuring it out for themselves. “Do I bloody look alright?”

            “I was just trying to help…” she trailed off, making Dawn feel a bit guilty.

            “Look, I’m sorry. I just really want to get out of here.” She apologized.

            “I understand.” Annette smiled shyly. “We’ll be out of here soon enough, I hope.”

They continued to watch as Jariel and Elise fought each other. It was like being at a boxing match, except ten times deadlier. Dawn didn’t know if Jariel could die or not, it wasn’t something he really talked about it much. Either way, she really didn’t want to find out right now.

            Elise had gone off earlier about Jariel falling for her, and then yelled about it again just before the fight. The look on Jariel’s face, it was filled with so much anger, Dawn didn’t think that it could be true. After all, he had said that he hated humans, why would he bother falling in love with one? Dawn could help but hope, in the back of her mind, that it was true though. Maybe it was silly, she couldn’t tell, but she did hope it.  There was just something about Jariel that gave her stomach butterflies whenever they had their conversations together. Also, he believed in her, in her art work. Nobody else, besides Annette that is, did. Not even her own family. Her own family said that she was foolish for going to art school; that nothing good was going to come out of it. It’s like they had forgotten about all the great artists in history. Dawn wasn’t about to let her family’s doubt in her ruin her dream though.

            By now both Elise and Jariel were pretty scratched up. Feathers from both of their wings were scattered throughout the room and were blowing around in the wind. They kept yelling things at each other, but Dawn wasn’t really paying attention, for her head hurt too much. Annette was protectively sitting close to her, ready to jump out and protect her if it came down to that. Dawn lay on the cold floor, curled up in to a ball to try and keep herself warm. Her breath came out in short bursts and her chest hurt if she tried to take a deep breath in. It felt as though some of her ribs may have been broken.  Dawn already knew that she was going to have some pretty bad bruises tomorrow, but that was really the least of her problems if they couldn’t get out of here.

            Dawn knew that she had to go see a doctor, and quickly, but she knew that it wasn’t going to happen as long as Elise was still here. Jariel had the upper hand now and was trying to knock her unconscious by slamming her against the walls, holding on to her wings. She looked worse than Dawn did right now. The thought made her smile.

            “Looks like Jariel is winning.” Annette said, smiling.

            “Yeah. Maybe we will make it out of this alive.” She muttered.

Elise had gotten free from Jariel’s grip, but she was beginning to slow down. Her blonde hair was matted, her face was scratched up, blood rushed down from her face and on to her clothes. She looked like a royal mess. Dawn hoped that she was hurting; after all, she deserved to be in pain. It suited her.