She had been gone too long. Aelf felt himself twitch as he stared out into the inky blackness of the night, trying to gauge if his nerves were playing tricks on him. Perhaps it had really only been a few minutes, and he was stretching it out into something worse than the reality. He wished he had some sort of sun or shadow to look at, to know for certain-but as he tried to settle himself to wait just a few minutes longer, his instincts screamed out such a protest that the Celt promptly gave up. There was no use in ignoring what his soul was telling him. He'd been a watchman for thirty years now, and had guarded Elena since the day she'd turned three. Despite the differences in rank he was truly a father to her and right now every nerve was screaming that something was wrong.

Aelf cast one final glance over the darkened landscape before he whirled and went inside, long strides carrying him to Elena's other friend in the manor. Aelf slept in a chamber off Darien's room-well off Darien's room. The master might have been a dolt but he was smart enough to know that his own bodyguard would probably not be interested in giving his life for him and might even take it for himself if he thought it necessary. The warrior wiped off the cold sweat beading on his forehead and wrenched the door open, not even bothering to knock. Elena was in danger, and the two of them were the only ones who could be trusted with getting her back safely.

He moved over to the bed and shook Albert awake, roughly and with such an urgency that his hands left bruises. "Up. Elena's gone."

Albert had been having disturbing dreams about Darien wanting to take over the throne of Thiasa. He watched in horror as Katherine and Elena were brought before Darien on his new throne, and he cast them out of the Kingdom.

Suddenly, Albert became aware that he was being shaken. His hand was about to go for his knife that he kept under his pillow when he heard his friend's voice.

"Up. Elena's gone."

"What do you mean, she's gone," it was all Albert needed to hear to be up and awake. He began looking around the room for his clothes, but decided that time was of the essence.

"When was it last you saw her? And why the bloody hell did you not go with her?" Albert said as he marched out the door, making sure to be quiet as he passed by Darien's and Katherine's chambers. Albert knew that if Aelf truly had no idea where she was, then he would have at the very least told the guard. But seeing as Aelf came to him, it meant he knew where she had gone and it was some place that Darien nor Katherine would have approved of.

Albert released the door to Elena's room and saw the open window. Darien would laugh about this, Katherine would have a tantrum. Aelf may very well lose his home if Katherine found out about this.

"Start talking as I take a look around the room, maybe there's a clue as to where she went," Albert said as he began looking.

Aelf took his colleague's chastisement in stride, simply shrugging his shoulders and moving to search around the room. "I've been letting her go for weeks now. She cries out in her sleep and holds the pillows sometimes; when she's awake she sits for hours and just stares out the window. She doesn't want to be married; you know that. Often she'll go out in the middle of the night and just...wander for an hour or so; her way at beating at the cage. She always comes back, and I left her with her horn. She hasn't sounded it. I think...."

His heart started to thunder, and he passed his hands up the wall. "I think she left of her own will. I hope that's all it is; then there's some chance of coming to her senses and coming home. It seems like this was planned..." But he fell silent, and shook his head. The worry wouldn't leave, it was throbbing more strongly than ever. Without much hope he forced it back, and moved over to a different wall. "Maybe she left a note. "

Surely she wouldn't do this to him; put him out of a job for the sake of some childish mischief? She had a wild spirit to be sure, but she loved him. She wouldn't forget that his fate was tied into hers. She wouldn't. Elena was, well, Elena. She wasn't Katherine or Darien, and up until right this minute she had been a responsible and mature young lady. This wasn't like her at all. Unless...

Memory flashed back to a certain blond young man in the armory, and he let out a groan. "Oh, my God. Albert. " Aelf had to lean against the wall. "A while ago-months now-I found her in the armory.....kissing a.....but she said she ordered it; I haven't seen him since....a young man with two fingers on his left hand.."

Albert turned to look at Aelf. He cast his friend a worried look. "For weeks now? Don't you understand that it is our duty to protect them, even from themselves? How could you be so careless?" Albert went to searching around the room and headed to the fireplace. He looked inside the fireplace, for no other reason than the sheer hope she was hiding from the two of them.

When Albert came out of the fireplace, his foot came upon a tile that seemed loose. Albert stopped and looked down at the tile. Albert pulled the tile up and saw a small journal that seemed to have found a home there. As he looked through the pages, especially at the most recent entries, Albert began to see all to well what may have happened.

Memory flashed back to a certain blond young man in the armory, and he let out a groan. "Oh, my God. Albert. " Aelf had to lean against the wall. "A while ago-months now-I found her in the armory.....kissing a.....but she said she ordered it; I haven't seen him since....a young man with two fingers on his left hand.."

Albert looked up when Aelf mentioned these things. For it was almost the exact same thing he had just read in the journal.

"The boy's name appears to be Brian Farraday. That surname sounds familiar, but I can't quite place it," Albert started searching through the folds of his memory. Trying to determine where he had heard that name before.