Jadis was unmoving, unflinching at the comments. The 'Queen' was insane, that much was clear already. But despite that, she was still useful, in her own way. The more the lesser folks, the more the fallen heroes focused on Mal, the less focus would be put on her. It wasn't the first time that she had intentionally stirred the mood of the 'Queen'. Mostly by arguing with Hans or Jafar though. She had never tried or implied to fight against the 'Queen' herself.

She smiled softly and looked into the eyes of Mal as she spoke. Before a reply came though the 'Queen' was already on the move, pacing back and forth. Jadis chuckled before she spoke up. "At least it's home. It's too warm in this place. You should consider having winter every now and then." Her gaze went to Jafar and she smiled and nodded towards him. "Or you can use less fire. The lands are warm enough." she said as the mage's energy peaked up. She was confident enough that she would nullify the spell entirely with her snow and ice. Even so, she took no action. Even if she fell, she would be back, and be back with an army.

Even if her purpose here was of a more important matter, she was interrupted by the coming of a bug. "My dear Hans, if I wanted to poke the beast I would poke it, then place the stick in your hands." Jadis smiled a wicked smile as she looked down on Hans. She wrinkled her nose as if she smelled or saw something disgusting before turning her gaze once again towards their ruler.

"I just came here to see if my proposal was still on hold or if I can move the wardrobe somewhere, chillier." she did not get much further than that before the second throne was thrown their way. Her vision changed, everything seemed to slow down in her eyes as she saw Jafar's bird taking to the sky. Soon after Jafar used his magic to obliterate the chair. A smirk on her lips as she used a little bit of her magic to keep one piece more solid than the others and sent it flying towards Hans. Her target was not to kill, or even wound, as it wiffed past between his legs before vanishing.

A chuckle escaped from her lips. "And here I was going to save your precious chair Jafar. Such a waste of good materials.." Her face remained cold and emotionless as she turned. "I expect an answer soon, My Queen," her voice remained sweet as she started walking out of the throne room. She was smiling. She was happy even. "Good....remain insane...sow more fear into their hearts. More hatred. Create more enemies. Soon enough you'll fall." a few slow laughs escaped her lips as she walked out from the castle.

Her real goal today lay much further north, Arendelle. There was a vicious grin on her lips as her chariot in this world stood ready and she took off north.

---

---

---

---

It was late. Magnus could feel it before even opening his eyes. The alarms had gone ignored, the amount of rest his body felt, the image of the sun being far past that of the early A.M. hours he had grown used to waking up with...

Shifting his body, Magnus then became aware of a second thing - rather, a body intertwined with his so closely, it took him a moment to figure out where he ended and the second body began. Once having taken stock of his limbs, his eyes fluttered open softly, the afternoon sunbathing both of their bodies in a soft light that had been filtered by a set of blinds, though still giving them warmth.

He turned his body slightly, his bare torso pressing up flat against the back of a woman's, also bare beneath the crimson sheet they had become entangled in. By the way he could feel her breathing against him, she was still sleeping. He could let her sleep for hours, if just to feel her body pressed so intimately to his. Unfortunately the day was half over, and there were things to be done.

He bent his head forward, pressing his lips to the exposed skin of her shoulder while he ran his hand delicately over her arm, underneath the sheet, and traced nonsense patterns into the soft flesh.

He then inched his body forward, closer into her, letting his weight be supported by his elbow on the bed and extended his head further, now kissing her neck, her cheek, and finally to her lips in a soft, good-morning kiss.

The warmth of the sun’s rays shining down over her body and filling her entire being from the core… the safety of his chest pressed close against her back, holding her ever so lovingly into him… the sweet touch of his lips upon her flesh, trailing gently, slowly until finally, they met with her own…

Stirring back to life as though he had pulled her from deep dark place, Elphaba shifted ever so slightly, her fingers curling just so over the sheets as she leant herself further back into his body, wanting nothing more than to be as close as she possibly could to him without seeming needy- two months… two months of nothing but pure bliss, and the truest love she had ever known in her life.

Nothing could compare… nothing even came close.

Opening her eyes slowly, she blinked a couple of times, doing what she could to adjust to the light shining in through their bedroom window before she began to move, her body turning in his arms, not much though enough that she was able to look up at the man that held her oh so delicately as though she were a precious emerald that would shatter with just one wrong move- the thought had her chuckling softly in her mind, a gentle smile playing over her soft pink lips as she lifted her hand, her touch light as she caressed his cheek, her eyes soft and filled with nothing but love and adoration before finally, she closed the gap between them.

The kiss was soft… delicate; and saying it all: I love you. Pulling back after but those few moments of sheer happiness, she let her hand slip, her nails lightly trailing over his neck… his collarbone… until finally, it came to a rest on his bare chest, the beautiful engagement ring adorned upon her finger shining lightly in the sun’s light, “..morning Shang…”

Her lips graced his by her own volition, and he immediately felt his blood growing warmer. Two months ago he had proposed to Elphaba after years of her trying to decide whether or not her previous marriage was worth saving. But just days after she had made her decision, and informed him that she had left Nick for him, Magnus made it official by decorating her finger with an engagement ring. She was now his - finally. There was no rush for the actual wedding - Magnus had every intention of savoring every moment of their engagement together, but that didn't mean he couldn't plan a thing or two in the meantime.

"C'mon." He pressed his lips to her forehead briefly, soaking in the way her body felt pressed into his for a moment longer before he forced himself away a bit. "Unfortunately, we have to adult today. We've a Pinocchio to corner, for one, and I'm going to extend my help to Elsa for her little Snow Fest... after a nice, hot shower and quick breakfast." He couldn't help it - he kissed her forehead once more before begrudgingly pulling away even further, forcing his completely nude body off of the bed to walk towards their shared bathroom.

The sheets slipped from her torso, pooling upon her lap as she pushed herself up into a sitting position, her hands resting lightly over the mattress as she pouted her soft pink lips, her eyes sad though holding a playful glint to them as she watched him moving away from her and over to the bathroom they shared with one another, “..but Shang… I don’t want to adult today…”

Taking a few more moments to just watch him as he disappeared through the door, Elphaba finally gave in, her body twisting and her feet hitting the ground before she lifted herself up from the bed completely, the muscles in her stomach tensing and her back arching ever slightly as she brought her arms up, her hands coming together above her head so that she could stretch before following along in his footsteps, her hands reaching out to take a gentle hold of his sides as she entered the room before she pressed her naked body against his back, her chin resting lightly upon his shoulder.

“..but if we must; is this a shower for two..?”

"Hmm..." Magnus seemed to think the idea over with serious consideration, even going as far as to tuck one hand under his elbow and use his opposite hand to hold his chin, scratching at the stubble. "Well... I don't see why not..." Holding in a smirk, Magnus slowly turned in her arms until he was facing her, his deep brown eyes meeting with hers. His hands dropped, one moving to hold her lithe waist while the other pointed out a finger and playfully tapped her on the nose. "But only if you can promise to behave. Ancestors know how distracted I can get sometimes..." As if to prove his point, the thumb he had on her waist began to move back and forth against her skin.

“..mmm, I do… and by OZ you know I get just as distracted as you at times…”

Unable to help the small smirk that played over her lips as she felt his thumb toying with her flesh, Elphaba raised her arms, wrapping them purposefully and one by one around the back of his neck, pulling herself closer against his body until there was not even a trace of a gap left between the both of them- by OZ he was perfect… how it had taken her this long to make the choice they both knew to be the right one was far beyond her comprehension…

It was clear by her stubbornness to not let go of her old marriage that her adoptive mother had more than rubbed off on her during her youth…

Tilting her head lightly to the side, she inched herself closer, pausing… teasing for a moment before she let the tip of her nose gently brush against his own, “..now you think..? Or are you sure..? Cause I can always wait… maybe go spend the day at the spa; take some time in the sauna- you know, pamper myself, that way you get the shower all to yourself…”

"You are a wicked witch." Magnus chided towards her teasing, though rubbed his nose back against hers, sharing that moment in eskimo kisses. Moving his hand that had been tapping her nose earlier to hold the back of her head, he kept her there while he tilted his own head a bit and pressed his lips back to hers quietly.

"I'm sure." he said after a few moments, drawing away from their kiss. "Saves me a bit of money this way." he then added on, a clear jest. Being the owner of his own company that reached around world-wide, money was never an object of concern for him and by extension, Elphaba. "And after we find Pinocchio and at least talk to him, you can enjoy all the spa time you want. It can't be coincidence that he's here too. Thirteen years without a word to anyone, and suddenly he shows up here? No, something is up, and we need to find out."

Magnus had ran into Jack by sheer accident just the once a few days ago. At first, Magnus took the youth to be just another tourist, here for the snowboarding, but after catching a glimpse of something familiar out of the corner of his eye, Magnus realized just who the boy was. Only a select few people were given an amulet after departing from Rivenspire to Earth - he and Elphaba, naturally, along with a few others. They had all kept in contact with one another over the years even though their lives took them to different parts of the world, and yet, when Magnus spotted the very same amulet hanging from around the boy's neck, he realized he had either found the missing guardian, or Pinocchio's amulet had been stolen (maybe even simply given away) and the youth he had ran into got his hands on it somehow. Either way, it was a start, and Magnus was determined to find out just what was going on. Pinocchio had a shit-ton of explaining to do.

Shaking his head, realizing quickly that business began to take his mind away from their intimate moment, Magnus gave Elphaba a small, apologetic smile and pulled his body away from hers just enough so that he could swing his hand back a bit and then playfully (and gently) slapped her across the ass, urging her forward.

"Alright. In you go. Hurry. Before I change my mind."

A soft yelp escaped through her lips as she felt his hand coming into contact with her bare flesh, causing for her to chuckle lightly before stepping forward, her body passing the through the glass door and into the rather roomy shower of the cabin the two of them had been calling home for the past few days now.

“Fine, fine… but let me tell you something mister-...” Turning on her heel, she lifted her hand up in front of her, beckoning him to come closer with her finger before she turned it round, her palm resting softly against the center of his chest as she leant in closer, the playfulness she had before still there though mixed with something more as she stared into his eyes, her own flashing lightly with what looked like tiniest flicker of green flames that couldn’t quite seem to ignite in the world of no magic they now lived in.

“..you have no idea how wicked I can be…”

---

---

---

---

Hans turned his attention towards Jadis and glared at her, he hated the witch mainly due to trying to take Arendelle from him he knew that she wanted something that was north of his kingdom which he wouldn't allow her anywhere near it. He wouldn't even let her set foot into his lands either. "How very childish of you then." Hans said glaring at her once more, he was about to open his mouth when he looked towards Maleficent he could see the look in her eyes and knew instantly that she was very pissed off. Then she threw the throne across the room towards their direction, then of course Jadis threw something as it flew between his legs and disappearing. He wanted to say something to her, but when his Queen ordered everyone within the room to leave he did, he wouldn't set foot in her kingdom anymore unless either asked or if she came over.

Without saying anything else Hans walked out of the throne room leaving Jafar to try and calm down the raging woman. as Hans made his way out of the castle Hans would walk towards Jadis and slammed her against the wall Hans glared at the woman angrily. "Do not do that shit again." Hans said as he would shove her away from him and made his way towards the carriage that had brought him over towards The Moors, it was now a wasted trip only to be kicked out of Malfeasant's castle.

Kerchak was patrolling the outskirts of the city, ensuring that no outsiders found their way into Atlantis. His eyes scoured the surrounding area, checking every detail for trespassers. He saw nothing unusual in this area and decided to move on to high grounds to get a better view. He spied a nearby tree that was quite tall, which he made his way to. Jumping up, he grabbed the lowest branch on the tree. The soft rustling of the leaves, and a few that fell, was the only sound around him. He swung his legs up and grabbed the branch with his feet as well as he could, and brought himself upright on the branch. Then he began scaling the tall tree with ease until he was at the tree top, where he could see far into the distance.

Off in the distance he noticed a few people gathered around the outer wall, where someone climbed up and stayed for a moment. There were two of them, one was being carried. Whatever had happened he needed to find out. He jumped down, branch by branch, until his feet hit the ground. Kicking himself off he ran towards the Queen’s palace to find out what had happened, if anyone would know it was Kida. He ran between people as he came closer to the palace until he came to the doors of the palace, where he slowed down as the doors were opened for him.

“کہاں رانی ہے..?” He asked the men at the door, in his native tongue. They pointed in the direction of the room she went into. He rushed over to the entrance of the room and threw open the curtain. There he saw the Queen in the process of healing her ankle, and an outsider by her side.

“Kidagakash Nedakh!” He said with a raised voice as he pulled his spear from his back and aimed it at the intruder. Like a parent calling a child by their full name, it meant she was going to be in trouble. “What have you done Kida? You have brought an outsider not only into our city, but your palace! And in the process of all this you’ve injured yourself!” Kerchak said never once lowering the tone of his voice.

Closing her eyes a moment as the sound of an angered though familiar voice filled her bedchambers, Kida took a moment to herself, shaking her head lightly from side to side before once more allowing her attention to fall back to what it was that she was doing, the gentle warmth from the crystals magic spreading lightly through her ankle as she worked to heal it, “..enough, Kerchak…”

Pausing a moment as the pain she had been feeling finally subsided, she sat herself back up, her vibrant blue eyes lingering upon her ankle for what felt like a lifetime before finally, she lifted her gaze up to meet with his own, her jaw clenching for only a fraction of a second in a show that she wasn’t in the mood for him to lecture her about her actions, “..کیا تم مجھے احمق سمجھتے ہو..?”

Narrowing her eyes slightly, she lifted the necklace back up before once more replacing it around her neck so that it was resting lightly over her flesh- did he really think that she would do something like this without having a reason..? He had known her all her life, and not once had they had disagreement about how those who wandered close to the city should be handled… so why he was getting angry with her now was not only unacceptable, but also uncalled for.

“You go too far- I would slay him where he stood, however such thing is no longer possible. We are connected as one…” Turning her head down so that she was looking at the man she had brought into the city, she reached out to take a hold of his wrists, her grip firm as she turned both of his hands, trying her best to figure out what it was that he had done to her as she explained, “He is sharman… magic pulsing from his hands now connects his mind with my own- I feel as he does, just as he now thinks as I do…”

Kerchak held his ground for a moment then lowered his weapon. Of course his Queen would not act without reason, unlike his own actions just now. He saw the outsider and his blood boiled, he wanted to protect the people and upkeep Atlantian law, but he also had to make sure the Queen was safe.

“I apologize for my outburst…” Kerchak said bowing his head to Kida.“I didn’t mean to insult your intelligence, I only feared for the safety of our people; and you my Queen. I recommend we learn how you are connected to him, and try reversing the effects. When he awakens of course. In the meantime, can you tell me anything more about the outsider?” Kerchak asked as he knelt down to get a closer look at the stranger. He wondered how this man had found Atlantis, ever since the catalyst, Atlantis was practically impossible to find.

“..he lays claim that he may speak with animals…”

Furrowing her brows together at the mere thought of being able to communicate with the creatures roaming the world around them, Kida took a moment to turn her head in his direction, her bright crystal-blue eyes lifting to meet with his as her soft lips parted from one another- of all the things that had been spoken between her and the outsider, the idea that he could speak with animals was indeed the strangest, even more so than the claim that he knew not how many seasons were in a years cycle, or what a monarch was.

“..he seemed distressed that I could not do same- even going so far as to lay hand on me… I fear he was in search for something he did not find.” Releasing the outsiders wrists, she pulled her hands back into her body, pausing for a moment to gather her thoughts on what had transpired between Tarzan and herself before finally, she shook her head lightly from side to side, a soft sigh falling through her lips as she turned her full attention back up to the man she had known for centuries, “..I could feel it… his disappointment; confusion as to what he could not explain… emotions that were not of my own…”

"This is strange indeed. Even though you can feel his emotions and thoughts, you must not forget yourself. He is not our kind. And as soon as we can figure out how to break the connection you know what must be done." Kerchak said looking into her eyes. There was no way they could let an outsider live after seeing their city, the only reason this one was still alive was because of his connection to the queen. The fact that this stranger laid a hand on their queen outraged him, but he knew he must stay calm so as to not upset Kida, or hurt her through means of the stranger.

"Since his mind is connected to yours we will treat him well... For now. Does this outsider have a name? If his emotions are tied to yours we will want him to be comfortable." Kerchak said, standing up straight and looking down at the man laying in front of him.

Lifting her hand up from where it had been resting within her lap, Kida held it out in his direction, waiting until he had taken a hold of it before eventually, she used his weight and strength to help lift her back up to her feet, the young woman pausing for only a moment to ensure she wouldn’t fall back to the ground before she slowly pulled her hand back, her bright blues meeting with familiar brown orbs as she held his gaze for just that little bit longer before finally, she tore her attention away, her feet carrying her across the room and over to where her a pile of clothes had been lain out over the table for her to put on.

“..he calls himself Tarzan…”

Turning her head away and off to the side, she lifted her arms up from where they had been hanging before she reached back, her eyes closing lightly as she gathered her long white locks of hair, pulling them across and over her shoulder before she twisted her body ever slightly, her eyes opening once more so that she was able to look back at him where he stood, pausing a moment before she motioned to the ties holding the material around her body with a simple nod of his head, silently calling for his help, “..if you please…”

"Of course" Kerchak said as he stepped over to where Kida was standing and began to untie the ties that bound Kidas clothes. He allowed for them to drop to the floor then turned to face the door to make sure she had he privacy, also keeping an eye out on this Tarzan fellow should he wake up.

"Tarzan? Ok, but he's your responsibility." there was no one better to be responsible for Tarzan than Kida because of her connection with him. He hoped she would see it the same way.

“Gratitude… your confidence in me means much, Kerchak.”

Letting the long locks of hair slip from her grasp, Kida was sure to give him a single nod, a small smile playing over her lips as she began to unwrap the material of her skirt from around her waist, allowing it to fall and join the rest on the floor by her feet before finally, she reached out to pick up what had been lain out for her to wear that evening; her hands lingering a while longer so that she could tie it in place around her lower body, leaving her chest completely exposed before she turned, the tips of her fingers lightly brushing over his flesh as she placed a hand upon his shoulder, a sign to show him that she was done changing.

“..see preparations made; though he is an outsider, we shall welcome him. Oh; as for the councils suggestion… we have much to discuss regarding the future of the city and its people…”

“Of course my Queen. I will make sure the preparations are made…” Kerchak paused for a moment. He knew the council’s suggestion and didn’t much approve. Although the catalyst had changed who he was drastically, Kida and he were childhood friends. She was like a sister to him, which was one of the reasons he felt so protective of her, besides the fact she was the Queen. But doing what was good for the city, was first priority.

“Kida… We have been friends since a young age. You are my closest, and only, friend. But we have to do what is best for the city. You know this as well as I.” Kerchak looked down into the face of his long time friend to wait her response.

The look in his eyes… it was clear he had already made up his mind on the matter. Lifting her hand up from where it had been rested over his shoulder, Kida lightly pressed it against his cheek, holding it there for what felt like a lifetime before finally, she nodded her head softly in understanding of what it was that he was saying to her- the city and its people came first; their feelings toward one another would have to be set aside in order to make the arrangement work.

“..you are like brother to me; it does not feel right… but I understand… the city, the people; they must come first…”

“I feel the same, I would not do it if it weren't for the greater good. I'm glad you understand.” Kerchak said standing still as her hand touched his cheek. It was true, it felt as though they were brother and sister, and going through with this felt wrong. Kerchak sighed, then wrapped his arms around Kida in a loving embrace.

“You are a great Queen, you will do great things in your time” Kerchak said with a smile, and placing a hand on her shoulder.

“..as you will be a great King…”

Tearing her gaze away from his, Kida lowered her head down, letting it press softly against his collarbone as she took a step closer to him, bringing herself closer in the hug that they were sharing with one another; her eyes closing as a soft and almost inaudible sigh fell from her lips- the last thing she wanted to do was be wed to her best friend, but if it was for the good of the city… it seemed there was no other choice…

Jaids paid little mind to Hans. He was not going to change anything. It didn't matter if he was mad or wanted to regulate her visits. He was an usurper, and there was nothing she hated more than that. But he served his purpose right now. She did not have the control to take over the country. She had her agents, but not nearly enough to control an entire country.

But none of that mattered as she had a long journey ahead of her. There was one place though that she had not visited in a long time. Somewhere she could stop by, and work her magic. A little place she had by chance happened upon many years ago. And she had found an interesting person there.



Stuck at work doing overtime once again. While Peter didn't really mind, it was still dull at times. At least it kept his mind off things. It had been thirteen years already. He would never forgive himself for letting his siblings stay in Narnia. He should had pressed for them to leave before the battle instead of giving in.

He stared at the buttons in front of him. The hydraulic hammer kept banging against the metal. His gaze was empty as he was equally empty in his thoughts. Peter was just focused on the task at hand, nothing else matters. What mattered to him was that his job get done well and efficient.

Peter wiped away the sweat from his forehead in the scorchingly hot factory. At least no one had gotten hurt today. He looked around his station to see how everyone was doing. It looked good so far. No one needed help, and his materials were flowing in and out as it should. Only had to fix the machine a few times today.

Finally the horn blew for them to go home. Peter walked back to the changing room and threw off his working clothes and dressed in his normal clothes. Turning from a burly factory worker into someone whom looked like he belonged on the streets. His home was equally modest. A distinct lack of furniture, and no real comforts.

Peter groaned and fell down on his bed, grabbed a bottle and downed most of the content before passing out.

---

---

---

---

The journey had been a long one… though the very sight of the beautiful castle looming overhead was a godsend in both her heart and mind- she was tired… and was more than sure that Phillipe was just as in need of a rest as she was. Letting go of the reigns with one hand, Isabella lifted it up to the hood of her cloak, holding the material for a few moments before she pulled it further down over her face, shielding it almost completely from view before she continued onward, gently nudging her horse in the sides with her heels in an attempt to urge him forward and through the gates that led up to the castle itself.

She couldn’t say exactly what had drawn her to the Kingdom of Lupinis- the constant dreams showing her the exact path to take… the rumors of a monstrous beast roaming the lands... maybe it was just a combination of the both of them; she couldn’t tell, but there was just something that had pushed her to make the journey... and whatever it was, she was going to find out.

Slowing to a stop once she was at the foot of the stairs to the castle, Isabella drew her leg back over the horse, stepping down before she turned to look up at the stunning grand structure standing tall in front of her- it was daunting… It wasn’t as though she hadn’t been to other Kingdoms before; she lived and worked in a castle that once used to be her own… but this-… this felt different somehow…

Turning her gaze over to a few men from under her hood as they approached her, she hesitated but a moment before reluctantly handing the reigns over to them so that they could tend to Phillipe; letting her attention turn back up to the castle, Belle lifted her head up, her hand coming up to slowly lower her hood down off her head so that she could get a better look at it- even if she didn’t get the chance to hunt down the beast that roamed the Kingdom, then maybe… just maybe she might be able to get some answers about the dreams she had been having for as long as she could remember…

"Hey hey hey! Easy! Take proper care when receiving the animal, especially from a guest!" a lone voice rang out. Though not entirely reprimanding, it was full of passion. Clearly the speaker showed more concern for Isabella's horse than the guards did.

A man hurried towards their location, tall in stature but even underneath the scarves and layers of colorful cloth, it was clear that he was built well. He approached the armored guard who held the reigns and began to point things out on Phillipe.

"See there? The ears are back, and the tail is swishing... you're causing him a lot of stress guiding him like that. Relax your hold on his reigns - don't sneer. Horses are to be respected and will respect you in return."

Adjusting one of his scarves, watching on with bright blue eyes, the man sighed softly as the guard and a few others resumed by taking Phillipe into the stalls.

"And get him a bushel of apples!"

Those eyes…

Staying silent through the exchange, Belle let her gaze flick from the man who had come to intervene in her horses care, and the castle guard whom had come to take and care for Phillipe after their long journey across both Kingdoms and waters, before she once more settled her attention upon the man standing before her- but there was just something about those eyes of his… they were so perfect, so blue; so-… so familiar…

“..détendre mon cher, Phillipe…” Her voice was soft… gentle as she spoke out to the creature, taking another moment to just stare at the man before finally, her attention tore away from him, settling on her horse who had calmed down enough to stop and look back at his master, “..I shall tend to you soon at the stables; until then, be patient and be good…”

"He's a fine steed, miss." the man admired, still watching the horse until it was out of sight before turning to look at her fully for what seemed like the first time. "Rest assured, he will be taken care of well while he is here." Crossing his arms over his chest, he gave her a firm nod.

There was barking in the distance, causing his gaze to break with hers and for his head to turn back, watching as a rather large dog came bounding their way, kicking up the snow as it plowed through it. The barks were happy, and it's prancing joyful as he finally came to the man's side. The small tail was wagging furiously, and the happiness in its eyes gave no indication that the hound was cold despite clumps of snow clinging onto sections of its thick fur.

"I was starting to wonder where you went off to... find some squeaks, didja boy?" the man asked the animal, taking a minute to ruffle the fur on the top of his head. He was then met by a simple, singular bark before the dog ventured off towards Isabella, sniffing at her feet.

Nodding softly in understanding to his words about her horse, Isabella turned her attention down to the dog sniffing about at her feet, the large canine’s antics and tail whipping back and forth quickly out of its excitement causing a small smile to play over her lips as she crouched down, bringing herself down to its level before she reached out, allowing it a few moments to grow used to her before finally, she began to shower it with attention, her hands rubbing over its fur as she once more spoke out loud, her voice keeping the soft bell like tone to it as she did.

“..I shall be sure to hold you to your word; Phillipe is my pride and joy… it would break my heart to see him treated as anything less than family…”

Waiting a few moments longer after she had finished speaking, she lifted her attention up from where she had been looking at the dog, her gaze once more meeting with that of the man in front of her before she stood up tall, her arms once more returning to her side and back under her cloak as she let her head bow lightly in respect, “..you have my gratitude for your kindness.”

The man held up a hand, as if to stop her words.

"No thanks are necessary. I know what you mean. I've a horse of my own I would consider the same. Traveling here and there... he hasn't been tended to with the respect and provisions he deserves. I simply can not stand by and watch while I witness another's being treated in the same way."

Shifting in the snow a bit as a brisk breeze suddenly blew through, though only to die off again, the man returned his hand to his chest, tucking it under his opposite arm.

"Where do you travel from, Miss-?"

“De’ fortesque.”

Lifting one of her hands up from where it was rested down by her side, Isabella lightly brushed some stray strands of her long and wavy dark locks back off of her face, neatly tucking them back behind her ear before nodding her head in respect of the introduction she was making, “My name is Isabella De’ fortesque- I travel from the Kingdom of Avonlea.”

Something lurched in his stomach then. That name... The man found himself staring at Isabella even more intently than he had been before, his ice-blue eyes almost piercing her browns as though he were trying to see through her.

"You don't say..." It was a single, almost empty reply, but before either of them had much of a chance to stew on it, the man uncrossed his arms, pressed a fist to his chest and bowed slightly to her.

"And I am Prince Adam Le- uh- Potts..." Adam winced at his own stupidity. Thirteen years of being the adopted son of the family he now knew to be his, even having taken on their name, and now, of all times, for that fractional second he almost reverted to his birth-given name.

But it couldn't be. Belle? His Belle that belonged to him the duration of a single day before... No. He wouldn't think about what happened. Not again.

His eyes met intently with hers again, looking for a fraction of recognition to his name, who he was... something! He didn't want to believe the stories to be true... didn't want to believe that everyone from his past had forgotten about him.

But when there wasn't anything, Adam held his face and pushed forward. It was entirely possible that he wasn't asking the right questions.

"What brings you to Lupinis, Isabella of Avonlea?"

His eyes looked over her once more, though much less steely. This time, he took a moment to simply look at her, trying to find the soft, fourteen-year-old girl he had fallen in love with. It was difficult - her face held strong lines, her complexion almost hard. Her body had filled out to a woman's (not that he minded) making him wonder for that brief moment just what the hell Gaston had done to her to make her this way.

“I have heard tale of a fearsome beast which roams these lands… I am the Kings ward; however, I am also a head Knight by occupation, and a hunter by trade.” She couldn’t help it… the small smirk that then played over her lips at the thought of such a magnificent kill- one that she would proudly remove the head of, before mounting over the mantle in her study as a trophy, “How could such a challenge not draw my attention..? I have learned everything I know from the best- both the current, and late Kings of Avonlea; and I never miss a kill…”

Her smirk grew, her arms both lifting up to cross over her chest, pride seeming to emanate from every inch of her very being as she thought over the years of hunting she had been put through; all the hard work, all the training… it had all been worth it the day she had first been taken out only to return with her first kill, “I look forward to mounting another head upon the mantle of my study.”

It would be glorious- the look upon Gaston’s face when she returned victorious to Avonlea; though the feeling remained short lived as thoughts of her ever occurring dreams filled her mind, causing her smirk to falter slightly and for her to turn her head down and away from him, “..I have… other reasons for finding myself in your Kingdom, Prince Adam… though I fear you would not believe me should I speak them aloud…”

The beast? Of course that's what would bring the two of them together again - the very thing that drove them apart in the first place. Adam tried not to react to her reply, though his mind was reeling with the new information she had just given him. Clayton, Gaston... they had trained her, molded her into the person they had lost. Though he couldn't help but to believe that this would of happened anyway if she had chosen Gaston instead of him.

Finally, nodding his head, Adam relaxed his arms back down to his sides, another brisk breeze picking up, causing the soft snow to flurry.

"Come inside and out of the cold. You can tell me more over a hot pot of tea." He extended his hand out for her to take off towards the castle before he did the same. "Come on, Sultan." The dog, who had become enamored with a patch of yellow snow, barked happily and bounded after them.



The warmth of the castle was a welcome reprieve from the otherwise bitter, cold air from outside. Snow was already melting off their boots and Sultan's fur as Adam led Isabella through the halls and past a few on looking guards. Eventually, they arrived in a cabinet room, a fire already roaring in the hearth and illuminating the walls of filled bookshelves and few select lounge chairs. There was even a desk tucked into the corner, a mess of papers sprawled around with the ink pot and quill lain askew. Sultan pushed forward to cuddle up on the over-sized, red, plush pillow by the fire.

"Le Palais des Thes Melange du cap." Adam stopped at the door frame, speaking to the servant that was stationed there, though his voice was rough, demanding even as he continued. "And tell them not to overuse the vanilla again. My tongue has yet to recover." His blue eyes narrowed a bit as the servant nodded again, hurrying off to fetch their tea.

Sighing, Adam looked back to Isabella and gestured for her to take a seat.

"Please, make yourself comfortable."

She had almost forgotten that she was in the company of a Prince… her eyes had been drawn to the many bookcases that surrounded them, the sound of his voice becoming little more than background noise as she slowly but surely made her way over to one of them, her hands both coming up to unclasp her cloak and to remove her gloves, placing both items down onto one of the armchairs as she passed it by, her eyes sparkling with a slight excitement and curiosity as she drew to a stop, her touch hesitant… delicate as she reached out, allowing her fingertips to lightly brush over the beautifully bound covers before her.

She-… she had never before seen so many books…

It was a magnificent sight- so many titles that she could choose from… so many worlds that she could lose herself in... Barely paying attention to anything that was going on around her, Belle slowly began to move around the room, going step by step so as to allow herself the time to read over as many of the titles as she possibly could in the moment, “..mon Dieu… it is beautiful…”

Adam watched her carefully. Truthfully, he hadn't brought her to his cabinet to show off his books - he would have taken her to the library for that. But the moment he saw her gravitating towards the shelves, he couldn't help the flickering smile. He had almost forgotten about her younger self's obsession with books. With everything else that had changed about her, he was slightly surprised to see that spark lighting up within her again.

"You like it?" Adam crossed the threshold and into the cabinet, moving to stand behind her, watching her fingers brush against his private selection of favorites he kept in that room. "Do a lot of reading in Avonlea?"

“..not since I was much younger…”

Shaking her head lightly from side to side in answer to his question, Isabella continued to gaze almost longingly at the books that were so neatly lined before her very eyes, though at her words, a flicker of sadness crossed the iris’- it was something that Gaston had long ago tried to stamp out of her…

“..’it is not right for a woman to read. Soon she starts getting ideas and thinking’…” Sighing softly and almost inaudibly, she took another moment to herself before finally, she turned her head back so that she was able to meet with his gaze from over her shoulder, a small and rather shy smile playing over her lips though it was clear that her features were tainted by sadness, “..the King does not like my reading… the library doors have been sealed; the book keep is no longer to send books to the castle… though what books I do possess are hidden away within my chambers…”

Lowering her gaze from his, she brought it back around, her head and (in turn) her smile dropping both as she brought her hands together in front of her stomach, her fingers playing with each other as she spoke softly, “..though I am kept busy with my work- I have no time for such childish hobbies…”

"Hmm..." Adam was quiet for a few moments before retreating from her backside and casually sauntered over to the desk in the corner of the room. "I found a passion in books when I was very young. A childhood friend of mine got me into them, got me into their stories. For a while, I'd just let her read out loud to me, pretending not to be interested..." he paused to chuckle. "she saw right through that. But eventually I got my own books, read them quietly to myself when I had moments to be alone." He turned back to face her and gestured towards the bookshelves. "These are my favorites I've collected over the years, but one has always stuck out to me..." He turned back to his desk, spreading the papers around until he found a book. It was well read; the spine was flimsy and the edges worn. The paper had even taken on a yellowish tint from the age, but it was clear that any and all damage given to it was nothing more than being read time and time again.

"But... if you're no longer interested in... 'childish hobbies' as you called it... ah, well forget it..." He shook his head and turned to look away from her again.

The moment the words left his lips, she was already hooked on the bait; her head lifting up and turning back over to look at him, hesitating for only the briefest of moments before she made her way over to his side, seemingly not even allowing herself time to think as she reached out, her touch gentle as she let her hands both come to a rest over his arm.

“..Adam… please show me…”

The sparkle was once more back in her eyes as she met with his gaze, her fingers curling lightly over his skin as she took a step closer in her curiosity, her head tilting lightly to the side, “..please…”

Adam. She said his name. It was the first time in thirteen years he had heard those words slipping through her lips. He turned his head to look back at her, his eyes once more meeting with hers intently for a few moments. Did she truly feel nothing? Had he really been so easy to forget? An entire childhood of memories, gone. Pain tugged at his heart. There had to be a way. He was just hoping...

Adam picked up the worn book and handed it over to her.

"You're welcome to read it during your stay here, Isabella from Avonlea. Far off places, daring sword fights, magic spells, a Prince in disguise..." A brief smile lit up his face. "Childish, perhaps... but it's our inner child who keeps us who we are..."

This book… she knew this book..!

Reaching out slowly with one of her hands, Belle took a delicate hold of the book, drawing it into her body so that she could look at it for a few moments- he was right… far off places, daring sword fights, magic spells, and a prince in disguise; this was…

“..my favourite book…”

The grip she had over his arm tightened slightly, though remained soft to the touch as she turned her head to shoot him a quick look, her eyes filled with her excitement and gratitude as she held the book in close to her chest, practically hugging it into herself as though she never wished to be parted from it again, “Oh, is it not amazing..!”

Pulling her hand back from him, she dropped her attention back down to the book, quickly thumbing through the pages with enthusiasm, seeming to search for a certain part before holding it out so that he could see exactly what it was that she was talking about, “..this is my favorite part because; well, you know… it is where she meets her Prince charming- but she doesn’t discover that it’s him till chapter three..!”

Pulling the book back into her, she once more hugged it into her chest, her expression seeming to light up completely as she allowed he mind to wander almost dreamily over what it would be like is she was the heroine of some grand tale such as the one she held, “..I have not seen this book since I was fourteen years of age… Gaston-… the King; he confronted me about something while I was reading… I do not remember the nature of the argument, but he took my copy and threw it away… I was never able to find it…”

He had been right. The very copy of the book she held in her hands was one in the same with the copy that Gaston had thrown out. It was the last thing Adam saw of his childhood before being cast from his home. Being that it belonged to Belle, he simply couldn't part from it. He needed something to remind him of his past... of her... So he cleaned it up of the mud it had been thrown into, and held onto it fast as he was cast into the forest, to be hunted down like some kind of animal...

Smiling softly, though not entirely into it, Adam crossed the room to sit down in one of the lavish chairs, kicking his feet up on the stool in front of him and relaxed back. Slowly, his fingers worked off his scarves, tossing them to the side by the fire without much care.

"If you like it so much... its yours." he offered. Really, it was hers to begin with... but it seemed she couldn't remember even that.

He… was giving it to her..?

Unable to hide the way that her smile seemed to grow even wider over her features, Isabelle couldn’t help herself as she hurried after him, her legs folding up underneath her as she took up the place at his feet, her eyes seeming to sparkle happily as she reached up, her hand resting softly upon his thigh as she looked up at him, her other arm hugging the book close against her chest, “..oh, Adam… do you really mean that..?”

Her dark eyes met with his own, searching the beautiful blues for any sign that he was jesting with her in some way, though when she saw nothing but honesty behind his gaze, she turned her body back to the front, her hand slipping from his person to instead drop down to the book she held, lowering it to her lap as she flipped open the cover, her attention dropping down to the first page as she began to read the words written before her.

“Adam..!”

The sound of a woman’s voice seemed to fill the room, causing Belle to lift her attention up from the book before she had even entered the room, the woman's lips pursing slightly in disapproval as she let her gaze fall upon her son's figure lounging in the armchair; shifting her grip over the silver tray she held in her arms, the woman made her way forward, stray strands of her greyish-blonde locks falling down over her face as she placed the tray down, moving over to stand in front of where he sat so that she could begin to fuss over her adopted son, “Adam; you are yet to decide on a partner for this years ball… It is traditional; and I will be seriously displeased should one of my sons embarrass the Kingdom in any way…”

Seeming complacent with what she had done with the front of his top, the woman reached out to run her fingers lightly through his hair, trying her best to flatten it before she turned back to the tray she had brought in, picking up the tea pot and using the hot contents to fill up two separate tea cups as she continued to speak, barely even noticing the young woman sitting at her sons feet with her face hidden behind a book, “..and do not think to give me the ‘I do not dance’ spiel; I have already heard it from your brother, and I know you both to be lying. You will do what is expected of you; so be sure to get yourself a partner.”

That voice... Adam sunk lower into his chair, hoping that it would simply just swallow him up so he wouldn't have to hear his mother's fussings. He should of expected that once she caught wind that he was home, she would take it upon herself to see to his needs. After coming to Lupinis, Adam could want for nothing - could do no wrong. He was the perfect child in hers and the Kingdoms eyes.

But now she was going off on him on a subject he had specifically left the Kingdom for the day for - the ball. When would his mother get it in her tight-bunned head that he simply wasn't interested? Oh sure he knew how to dance, she saw to that herself by bestowing lessons on him almost immediately. Didn't mean that he liked it...

"Mother..." Adam warned, sinking even further into his chair. "...we have a guest..."

“Adam; do not test me, dear boy…” Pausing in her actions, Agatha turned her head sharply so that she was able to look over at her son, her lips seeming to purse even more than they already were, and her eyes narrowing slightly as though trying her best to tell him that she wouldn’t be budging or letting him get out of the conversation as easily as he seemed to think he would be.

“The noble house of Potts has commanded the respect of this Kingdom for centuries- I will not have you and your brother, in a single night, besmirching that name by behaving like a babbling, bumbling band of baboons..!”

She couldn’t help herself- the very moments that the words had left the woman’s lips, she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold it to herself any longer. Lifting the book up from where she had been holding it rested in her lap, Isabella did what she could to hide herself behind the worn and well-read pages, a soft and rather amused giggle slipping out through her lips as she listened to the conversation going on between mother and son- she could understand… hell, she could sympathize with the guy… her own father had been the very same way with her after her mother had passed away; fussy, overbearing… but above all, pushy about keeping the De’ fortesque blood-line alive by continuously speaking with her about suitors… it had grown old quite quickly.

"Yes mother." Adam answered in a monotonous tone, shifting his eyes down to look at Isabella for a moment. He could have sworn he saw a flickering smirk on her face before she once more disappeared behind the book. God... if only he could do the same...

Sitting up in his chair, Adam took his cup of tea Mrs. Potts had poured him and inhaled the scent deeply before taking a sip. It was perfect. Which meant she had made it for him specifically.

"If you want to scold a parade of baboons, mother, look to the greeting guards. I caught them mishandling our guests steed as she came in." He paused to clear his throat, one hand gesturing to his feet where Isabella was positioned. "This is Miss Isabella from Avonlea, Province, by the way mother." he finished in an almost scolding tone, reprimanding her for not noticing sooner.

“Well, thank you for that assessment, Adam dear.” Standing up straight, Agatha brought both of her hands together in front of her body, her lips pursing as she looked down her nose at the young man giving her attitude, though her attention only lasted a moment longer upon him before she turned her gaze down to the young woman curled up contently at his feet with a book in her hands- curious… the one time he brings home a woman, and he hides her from the rest of them…

“I should have known… Dark hair, beautiful eyes, and a nose stuck within the pages of a book- you most certainly are the type to give my young Adam here a run for his coin. I cannot begin to fathom how he has managed to draw you across the seas to our little Kingdom…”

Pausing for a moment, she allowed her gaze to flick back up to meet with her son’s for only a moment before it was back upon Isabella, watching on as the girl lowered the book back down to her lap, “..I know it cannot be his charm, for he has never once spent an evening with the same woman twice…”

Chuckling softly as she listened to the older woman speaking about her son so openly, Isabella shook her head lightly from side to side, the smile never once fading from her soft features as she gazed up at her from where she sat, “I find your son to hold a certain charm that many a man lacks within the Kingdom of which I hale… however, I cannot say you are not correct in your judgments my Lady. I sit here before you now with the excitement of the hunt filling my being, and-… well, and with the hope that I might find answers I have been searching for now for quite some time…”

Adam's face flushed a soft shade of pink that extended all the way down his neck and to his chest, though it had nothing to do with the warm tea he felt soothing his chilled skin. Shifting in his seat, Adam cleared his throat and gestured for his mother to hand over her cup of tea, since there wasn't a third.

"The two of you would have been introduced sooner, but I'm afraid I was too busy undergoing damage control from your guards' incompetence." Adam retorted with a bitter bite. Really, how could she simply let something like that go?

Though talk of the hunt... of why she had told him she was there... he couldn't help the sideways glance he gave Mrs. Potts. The subject of the Beast was a touchy one in the castle, and most tended to ignore it altogether. But she would find out sooner than later...

"Isabella is Province's head knight, and quite the Huntress to my understanding." Adam paused to take a sip of his tea. "She's here for the Beast." he then finished, as casually as though he were discussing the weather.

“The beast..? I see…”

Narrowing her eyes slightly, Agatha kept her gaze fixed upon the young girl that seemed to have taken the interest of her son in some way or another- of course this was why she had come… she was not the first hunter to try her hand at ridding the Kingdom of its beastly issues, and it was clear by the look in her eyes that she knew for a fact that the girl wasn’t going to be the last either, “..many have tried and failed; I fear you might be out of your league with this one young Lady…”

It was Belle’s turn to go red- the moment he had turned the conversation over to her, the very moment he had told his mother why she had come to Lupinis in the first place… he was making her out to be some mighty huntress that was only in it for the kill… the thrill that came with ending a life…

That just wasn’t who she was…

“..you make it sound as though the beast is my one and only reason for stepping foot within your most beautiful Kingdom. I give you my word that is not the case- it is not even the main priority…” Sighing softly though mostly to herself knowing that if she went into her reasons for being there they wouldn’t believe her, Isabella dropped her gaze down to her lap, her thumb lightly brushing over the cover of the book that he had given her earlier as she fell into silence- what was the point..? It wasn’t as though they would be able to help her anyway; this was something she had to figure out on her own…

Adam tried to suppress a chuckle from his mother's reaction by taking another sip of his tea but ended up sputtering a bit as it went down. Using the back of his hand to wipe his mouth, Adam sat up properly in his chair, set his teacup and saucer down on the end table and reached forward to pluck his mother's from her hands. God, did he have to do everything here?

Sitting back, Adam handed Belle the cup and saucer before picking his back up again.

It was true. For thirteen years now he had been hunted. Hunters from across all Lands, even his own father back in Avonlea... but no one had managed to bring him down. They were lucky enough to even see him. Mostly, it was a week of shutting himself away in the dungeons of the castle, away from prisoners. His friends, Cogsworth and Lumiere - servants - his only company during the otherwise isolated time. Mrs. Potts would check on him once on a while, but never to stay. He knew she loved him, unconditionally, but he also knew she feared him. Why wouldn't she? His temper was unruly, the beastly nature forcing him to do things he did not want. Once in a while he would work up such a rage he would leave the castle and take to the villages or surrounding forests. It was these times that gave those hunters hope. It was those times that created stories - the very same stories that brought Isabella back to him. Though it wasn't with open arms and a warm kiss like he had always dreamt. It was to kill him.

"Yes... you mentioned that before..." Adam noted, biting his tongue from making a bitter remark on how all hunters were the same. If Gaston and Clayton had trained her... it most certainly was about the kill, the bragging... the trophy.

She could hear it in the tone of his voice… the way that he spoke… he didn’t believe her. But why would he..? Even if she told them the truth about why she had actually taken the long journey from Avonlea to Lupinis, she knew it would do no good. They would just think her insane or over-imaginative.

“..it matters not… I shall not burden you long with my presence…”

Closing the book slowly, Isabella slowly lifted herself up so that she was once again standing, her actions reluctant as she reached out towards him, placing the book he had allowed her to read down upon the arm of his chair before she moved to collect her cloak and gloves, holding them folded over her arm as she bowed her head to the both of them out of respect, “..forgive me; I made a promise of which I intend to keep... my steed awaits me. I apologize for having wasted your time; it is clear that those of my trade are not welcome in these lands. It has been a pleasure, my Prince… my Lady…”

Standing up straight, she shot another quick glance over at the Prince before finally, she turned on her heel, holding her things close against her body as she began to cross the room, doing what she could to remember the path that they had taken when they had first come into the castle.

Adam closed his eyes softly, exhaling a short breath and relaxed further into the back of his chair. Sultan perked his head up, watching Isabella leave and let out a few short whines of not understanding.

She was leaving, but what could he do to stop her? Short of coming across as a madman, forcing her to listen to his tale of how they knew each other and belonged together, he could do nothing but let her go.

Quietly, he finished his tea and sat up from the chair, setting the empty china down on the end table and stood.

"No mother. I don't yet have a partner for this year's ball. And I don't think I ever will."

Whistling to Sultan, Adam left the cabinet to retreat into his chambers for the rest of the day, the large dog quickly catching up to him. "Have supper sent to my room." He pushed open his door, waited for Sultan to go in first, and then followed, slamming it shut behind him.

---

---

---

---

Squinting his eyes tighter before letting them slide open slowly, Simba lifted up his arm, using his forearm to cover up his eyes as the afternoon sun filtered in through the cut-out windows that weren't covered up by the nearly transparent curtains. Resting his arm down, he jerked it back away feeling something cool and damp connecting with his skin. Furrowing his brows, causing the skin on his forehead to move, he suddenly became aware of a soft pressure resting on his head; what felt like a wet rag to keep his otherwise warm body temperature at a tolerable level. Groaning a bit as his eyes re-opened, his stomach muscles flexed on his bare abdomen - his shirt had been removed at some point - as he raised himself up to a sitting position. The wet rag slid down his face, covering up his eyes for a moment before his mind was able to register what was going on and used his hand to take the wet rag off.

The first thing he noticed was the fire crackling in the stone hearth a couple of feet away from him, his brown shirt hanging over a wooden pole laid horizontally to dry, his white pants still on his person (which he was eternally grateful for) but practically dry from his close proximity to the flames. It was then, after noticing the fire, that Simba realized that he was inside, and not just in a cave.

Like a ton of bricks, everything came down on his mind with impenetrable force. The girl, the hidden city, the bond, the... memories that were not his own. Blinking his bright blue eyes, Simba's head spun on a swivel, trying to place where he was (though he had a pretty good idea already) and where the girl had gone off to.

Lifting her hand up, Kida allowed her slender fingers to run back through her long pure white locks, pushing them back and off her face as she once more crossed the room she called her own, her hips swaying lightly from side to side; the woman no longer looking like the warrior she had been, but as the Queen she was expected to be as she extended her arm, using it to sweep away the material hanging over the door so that she could duck under, her bright crystalline blue eyes falling upon the outsiders figure as she stepped further inside, a small smile playing over her lips causing her features to soften with the knowledge that he was indeed alright.

"You are awake- I hope you are well; you have been out for quite some time, Tarzan."

Moving further into the room, she wandered past him, her bare feet carrying her over to a table which held a bowl full of different fruits and a pitcher with a few goblets to go with it and its contents; reaching out towards it, she grabbed up the jug, being sure to pour each of them some water before she returned to his side, extending one of the goblets out for him to take as she held his gaze, the sash of her outfit swinging lightly from side to side with each and every movement made, "Your attire was soaked through by the waters of the cave. I did all that I could to dry them, however, I had Kerchak fetch you a change of clothes should you wish to make use of them."

The corner of Simba's eye caught a glimpse of white. Turning his head to spot the woman, who he now just understood was named Kidagakash Nedakh (apparently she wasn't swearing at him earlier) but more importantly than that, he noticed her clothing... or lack thereof. He could feel his ears filling with blood, turning them into a brilliant shade of red that was thankfully covered up by his long mess of blonde hair, though he didn't have the same luxury for hiding the blush on his cheeks that ran down his neck and into his chest. As a boy, Simba didn't really remember being around women enough to know what, well what a woman looked like, and frankly his child-like mind hadn't even stopped to think upon it as the years turned him into a man. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, but this... this wasn't it. And thirteen years of being away from people altogether, let alone females, just drove him into more confusion... and curiosity. All he knew was that women, back in The Pride Lands, were regarded with grace and beauty, their bodies to be embraced and left little to cover as clothing would disgrace what the Gods had given them. But to a child, it was simply second nature, and not another thought to their bodies. Until now.

Her word were completely droned out. Simba hadn't heard a single syllable she had said to him as all he could do was stare, feeling very much like the curious little boy he had been before being banished to the wilderness but his adult mind stayed his tongue. She wasn't acting any differently, from what he could tell, and now that he was awake and their closeness opening up their bond again, he could feel her calm demeanor, helping to calm down himself... a little... so he pushed past it and forced his eyes to look up and at the woman.

"Kidagakash... that is your name..." He said with a new wave of understanding. Sitting up on the bed a bit straighter, he looked around the room with more interest now, taking in the size and it's contents rather than just looking for a single thing and then happened upon the man standing there. He was slightly taken aback, startled, but Kidagakash trusted him. He could feel it as though it were his own trust for the man he did not know. So he continued to survey the scenery, listening to his heart and mind, making sense of the pieces she was giving him through their bond. "And this... this is your home... Atlantis..." Moving his blue eyes back to her, his eyes lowered down the strong lines of her neck, coming to rest on the blue crystal resting between her breasts (somehow managing to keep his eyes on the crystal). "And that... that is your life source, or at least... a small part of it..."

Simba raised his hand to his head, rubbing his temple as he felt his brain beginning to pulse, though not quite the same thing as a headache. He had experienced this only once before with his friend Timon when he was on a rant on the smell of the buffalo herd and he had severed their bond then to keep his own sanity for a couple of minutes. But that was very small-scale compared to this. Bonding with another human was turning out to be a very, very bad idea...

"But then... you're not human, are you? You really are four-hundred and seventy-two..." He stated, following his train of thought and speaking it out loud after a small pause.

Nodding her head lightly in understanding to what it was that he was saying to her, Kida let the soft smile that already played over her lips to grow ever so slightly, her gaze dropping to look at the goblet she had been offering before she brought it back, placing both of them down onto the table behind her- there had been a slight change in his expression... in his emotions... she could feel it; the strange feelings seeping through the bond they shared with one another causing her own cheeks to take on a soft red tinge as she let her eyes flick back up, her gaze lingering upon his bare chest for what felt like a lifetime... He was just so... different to the men she knew from the city...

"..my name is Kidagakash Nedakh; Queen of Atlantis. I brought you to my palace, Tarzan, so that you may rest, and be well again." Pausing for a moment, she brought her hand up, pressing her fingers lightly against the crystal that hung around her neck, "..I had attempted to use its power to heal your wounds; however, I soon came to the conclusion that you were merely sleeping, and suffering no pain..."

Moving herself away from where she stood in front of the table, she let her arm fall back to her side before she moved, her body gracefully kneeling down beside him over the cushions before she brought her hands together, resting them gently in her lap, "..and you are correct; though I am still only young- nothing more than a teenager... In truth, my mother and father should still be within rule, and I only now beginning to learn what I must to take their place on the throne; however, they are no longer with us... so responsibility falls to me as their only child."

Simba was doing a good job of paying attention to what it is she had to say, as well as feeling the serenity she herself was putting out there through the feeble bond that he could still feel holding on. But then, she said his name. Well... not his name, but the name he had given himself after he had run away from The Pride Lands. He didn't recall ever giving her his name. Their communication had been so brief before he had tried to bond them... So perhaps that was it. She had learned his self-given name by the bond. It was remarkable, really. Her mind-power was much more advanced than a meerkat and a warthog. But there was still so much to learn about her, so much to learn about this place she had brought him to.

"I, uh... a teenager...?" He was just repeating words now, he didn't know what they meant, or what she was trying to imply until she brought up her parents and how she was still learning how to rule the city. The sudden connection to his own past life calmed his mind once more, helping him to relax despite the man in the room quietly spectating. "I... I'm sorry to hear that..." He replied earnestly, unable to help the dip in his head as his own mind traveled back to the night he had witnessed his own father's death; by the blade of his very own uncle, though the mental walls he had built up about those memories and everything beyond were impenetrable, she would not be able to read them even if she had the know-how like himself and even Rafiki. Even after thirteen years, his own two best friends Timon and Pumbaa didn't know who he was, not really.

Shifting slightly in place, Kida lowered her gaze down to her hands as she began to play with the end of the sash that was rested over her lap, her fingers lightly thumbing at the light blue material while he spoke, the young woman doing what she could to give him the space she believed him to need until few of his words managed to catch her attention causing her to lift her gaze up to meet with his.

"You need not apologize..." Dropping her gaze once again, she lifted her shoulders ever so slightly before dropping them in a light shrug- there was no need for him to apologize for such things; especially when they had happened over three hundred years prior, and at the hand of a disaster none had seen coming, "..it was something that could not be stopped. The ocean... it grew angered and attacked the city; there was nothing we could do..."

He was quiet for a few moments, letting the new information sink in with the learned information from the bond they shared. Then, something struck his mind. She was royalty... just as he used to be. And by living as a royal for the younger part of his years, he had been (forcibly) taught the proper way to greet another royal.

Standing from the bed and extending his hand, Simba offered it to her for her to take, making sure to reach out with his mind to make use of the bond that was now instilled to help her understand what it was for, and took her hand in his in a light shake.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, your Majesty." he said softly, though firmly, having to rack his brains for the proper way to greet royalty that used to be embedded into his mind like second nature so many years ago, when he had thought it was pointless, boring and dull. Remembering then that there was still one more thing he needed to do, he hesitated before turning her hand in his and kissed the top of it. He half expected his tongue to hang out with a "yuck" as he had done so many times before back home. But to his surprise, the reflex to want to gag never came, and instead it felt... right.

Widening her eyes as she felt his lips pressing softly against her skin, Kida's soft pink lips parted ever so slightly from one another, her already red cheeks flushing a brighter shade as she felt her heart freezing in her chest leaving the young woman unsure of what to make of just what it was he was doing, "..u-uh..."

Lingering in the moment for slightly longer than she probably should, she pulled herself away, lifting herself back up to her feet and causing her hand to slip from his own in the process, her free hand lifting to press lightly against her cheek as she turned her body away to instead present him with her profile- she was flustered by the situation, but why..? What about him had her reacting in such ways..?

"..there-... there are clothes upon the table for you to wear... should you wish to change your attire that is..." Biting down softly upon her lower lip as she caught Kerchak's gaze from the other side of the room, she furrowed her brows, doing what she could to understand just what was going on within her mind as she turned herself away, allowing her feet to carry her out the room and into the hall. They would join her... but only when they were good and ready to do so...

Turning his neck a bit, bending at his torso, Simba looked back over his shoulder at the pile of blue and gold cloth that she had laid out for him at some point. Turning back to nod and thank her properly, he instead saw her backside, watching her hips sway as she exited the room quietly.

Kerchak stood by and watched over his Queen as she spoke with the stranger. He had to hold back his instincts to come between them when he reached for her hand. It would take a lot of willpower for Kerchak to treat Tarzan so that the Queen would not experience his discomfort. He stood by the door and waited for Kida to leave the room before approaching the outsider.

“Kida may welcome you warmly, but I do not share her welcome. If you didn’t bond with her you would be dead right now. For centuries our people have protected this city from outsiders like yourself; you’ve been given an opportunity that they weren’t. If you betray our people, or our Queen, your opportunity ends.”

"Um..." Simba's eyes opened a bit wider, the soft blues looking Kerchak up and down a few times as if trying to gauge if his threat were genuine. Simba swallowed back the lump that was growing in his throat when he realized the man wasn't bluffing. He had seen that same look in the eye from his Uncle... back when he had been young enough to think that he wasn't serious. Gods, how wrong he had been...

Fighting the memory image of watching mass amounts of blood spurting from his fathers chest where his Uncle had run him through, Simba shook his head, closing his eyes a bit to help right himself and then looked back to Kerchak.

"This place is starting to feel more and more like home..." It may have come across as sarcastic, but Simba meant it. He was wanted dead back in The Pride Lands as well. And already, here in Atlantis, he was overstaying his welcome. "Words are well received. I shall keep them in mind." he added on, this time much more genuine sounding.

“Good. So long as you understand.” Kerchak glared at him for a moment before turning around to leave this room and meet his Queen. He saw pain in the boy’s eyes while he was in there, but it made him feel no different. He walked up to Kida in the hall.

“Now we wait for our guest” Kerchak said reluctantly.

---

---

---

---

Having taken more than enough time that morning to get ready, Shang was finally dressed, fed, and headed towards the cabin the Brie's inhabited. In a matter of speaking, Shang was rather lucky he had that extra while with Elphaba before heading out to "adult." He managed to check his e-mail before heading out, and in doing so, he printed two different documents, folded them into an envelope, addressed them and tucked them into his suit pocket for safe keeping for a later use. Now, his visit to Eliza was much more dignified than just simply popping in to say "hey, need any help?"

Brushing the softly fallen snow from his brows, Magnus warmed his hands with a hot breath before rapping at the door, not sure whether to expect Anna, Eliza or their father. Either way, he was well-versed with all of them. His sudden appearance to their home wasn't exactly an uncommon thing. Though he was Eliza's sponsor, he was also a friend, and would be welcomed as such.

The sound of knocking at the front door had Eliza furrowing her brows slightly, her head turning lightly to the side for a moment before she lifted herself up in her seat, her hand reaching out to turn down the volume of her music so that she could listen out again- the sound of someone knocking (for what she assumed was the second time) on the front door causing her to drop her feet back to the ground, her body lifting up from the chair before she hurried out of her bedroom, her step falling into a gentle rhythm as she made her way down the steps and over to the door, not bothering to hesitate as she then reached out, opening it wide so that she could see whoever it was that was calling.

“..Magnus..!”

Unable to hide the way that her lips split into a wide grin at the sight of her sponsor and long-time friend, Eliza took a few steps forward, closing the gap between the both of them and wrapping her arms tightly around his neck in a welcoming hug, the young girl holding it for a few moments before finally, she pulled herself away from him, moving to the side and motioning for him to come inside before she shut the door, smiling softly as she led the way towards the kitchen, “You made it; I’m so glad you called me the other week- I’ve already put you down on the guest list for tomorrow night, with that plus one you asked for… oh, and I know I haven’t gotten round to it, but I’ll be sure to make your normal reservation for dinner tonight.”

Turning her head back so that she was able to look back over her shoulder at him, she bit her lower lip softly, her shoulders hunching slightly as she shot him an apologetic look, “I’m sorry I haven’t done it yet, I’ve been up to my head in paperwork this whole week…”

"Eliza, it's good to see you!" Magnus returned the warm hug and then quickly stepped inside the Brie household where the cold weather couldn't penetrate through his thin (though expensive) suit jacket. At the mention of dinner, Magnus smiled, nearly forgetting that he still had the rest of his evening to plan. With what he had received in his e-mail, he had been too excited to think on much anything else. Feeling the weight of the letters in his suit pocket, Magnus decided to drag it on just a little bit longer.

"Thank you, Eliza. Tonight is going to be a very special night, and I need your help. But first, I came here to extend my own help. You throw this Snow Fest every year, and you put a lot of work into it. I want to help out this year, so whatever you need, I'll do my best to see that it happens."

“You know I’ll help you out; anything you want, just let me know what I can do.”

Smiling brightly, Eliza made her way into the kitchen, her body lifting up onto the balls of her feet as she reached up towards the cupboard, opening one of them so that she could pull a couple of mugs out, placing them on the bench, she closed the cupboard door before making her way over to first fill the kettle with water, and secondly put it on to boil, getting started on her hot chocolate and his tea as she waited for the water to be ready- no milk, one sugar. It was simple enough, and his order never seemed to change.

“And I’ll be sure to keep you posted; I can’t really think of anything I need help with right now… not off the top of my head anyway.” Turning her head back round to look at the kettle as it clicked, she reached her arm back to pick it up, pausing a few moments once it was in front of her so that she could think over everything she still had to do before finally, she began to fill the mugs, her shoulders shrugging lightly, “..but you know these things… you never really finish organizing and planning for them until the event is over and done with completely.”

"Oh I know. Believe me." Magnus chuckled, taking his tea as he sat himself down at the dining room table. The cup warmed both his hands as he had it clasped between the two, and simply used it to heat his body for a few moments before raising it to his nose to inhale the smell. Had he really become that predictable over the years? Chuckling somewhat to himself, Magnus blew cold air onto the surface of his tea before attempting a sip, and then slowly lowered his arms to the table, though kept the teacup in both hands.

"Well, you have my number, and I'll be around until after your Snow Fest. Don't hesitate to call." Shifting subjects, Magnus quickly cleared his throat. "...I'm... going to be getting married, Eliza... and tonight's dinner... I need it to be something special- no, more than special... it needs to be... magical..." He raised his gaze to look up at her, his soft brown eyes almost pleading. A woman's touch was definitely needed in these matters. He was a romantic, yes, but his ideas could only go so far. He needed a woman's perspective. Opinions, ideas, influence... whatever it took. He needed tonight to be a night that Elphaba would never forget.

Eliza almost choked on her hot chocolate- he was getting married..?!

Lowering her mug down to the counter, she lifted a hand up to cover her mouth, her body turned away slightly as she began to cough, taking a moment to make sure she was completely finished before she hurried over to take up the seat next to him, being sure to bring her mug with her, “Y-You’re not being serious are you..? You’re getting married..? Oh my god; Magnus, that’s amazing..! Congratulations; I can’t tell you how excited I am for you..!”

Almost squealing with her excitement, Eliza put the mug down completely, her arms wrapping once more around his neck as she hugged him tightly, her eyes flashing with not just her happiness at the situation, but with what also looked like slight jealousy as she sat back down in her seat, her leg lifting up to fold in underneath her body as she made herself comfortable, “I think I have a few ideas for you; but only if you trust me enough with something like this- I’m thinking a private… romantic dinner for two out on the balcony of the ballroom. Candles, fairy lights, wine or campaign- whichever you and your fiancé prefer… and of course, a personalized menu consisting of all both yours and her favorite dishes…”

Lifting her hand up, she lightly tucked some of her long blonde hair back off her face before neatly tucking it behind her ear, her smile remaining as she once more brought her hands back to wrap around her mug, “So… what do you think..?”

Chuckling lightly, Magnus patted Eliza's back briefly before she pulled away, watching the light in her eyes as she excitedly began to spout out ideas for him and Elphaba for that evening. It almost sounded practiced, like it was something she had wanted for herself.

"I think..." Magnus started, lifting his teacup to his lips to take a small drink, drawing out the pause even longer. "I've come to the right event planner." he finally finished, a teasing smile playing at his lips as he took one more sip and then set the teacup down. "You've always been great with these things, Eliza. I trust you completely."

“In that case, I should definitely get to work..!”

Abandoning her almost still-full mug completely, Eliza was once more on her feet, the balls making soft thuds against the wood as she hurried up the staircase and back into her room for a few minutes, gathering all the paperwork (along with a few magazines) and her pencil case up in her arms before she hurried back down the stairs, coming to a stop at the bottom, she twisted her body slightly, her gaze dropping down to watch what she was doing as she tried to slip her feet into her shoes- there was just so much more she had to do now; but it was all going to be so worth it when she was done…

“I need to go speak to the staff- have a chat with Jimmy about drinks… not to mention work on a menu with the chef, and get the balcony ready for you guys-…” Pausing a moment once she had gotten her feet into her boots, she shuffled back over to the open archway that led into the kitchen, “Speaking of talking to the chef; I’ll need you to shoot me a message with whatever dishes you want to be served tonight, try and think about her favorite things to eat, and yours- the sooner you do that, the better too.”

She was so full of life and energy. It took quite a bit of effort on Magnus' part to even keep up with the young blonde as she zipped this way and that. Watching her in her element almost made him forget of the other reason he had decided to pop by that afternoon.

"Oh! Eliza! Just... one more thing." he said, carefully standing up from the table and reached his hand into his pocket. Remembering which envelope belonged to who, Magnus pulled the first one out and quietly handed it over to her. "I have your new roster for this winter's season - it came today and I wanted you to look over it really quick. Wouldn't be much of a sponsor if we didn't talk about your future, now, would I?" He was trying so hard to hide the smile he could feel hiding underneath his otherwise serious expression.

“..my roster..?”

Seeming to have slowed down almost completely thanks to the change of topic, Eliza reached out a little awkwardly so that she could take the envelope from him, her eyes lingering on it for a moment before finally, she began to move, hugging the rest of her things tightly against her chest as she turned the letter over and began to open it, “Oh, sweet. Yeah… coach did mention something about training starting up again soon, but didn’t give me an exact date yet… I’ve been waiting for this so that I could start organizing my work schedule arou-…”

Her words trailed off into stunned silence as she pulled out the letter, her soft pink lips parting ever so slightly from one another as she read the words in front of her once… twice… a third then fourth time just to be sure that she wasn’t dreaming before finally, she lifted her head up slowly, the beginnings of a small excitable smile playing over her lips as she met with his gaze, “..is this-… am I-… please tell me I’m not dreaming…”

Magnus' hidden smile finally cracked as he looked back at her, stuffing his hands into his pockets and rocked back and forth on his feet a bit, if a bit smugly.

"I didn't want to say anything earlier because I didn't want to get your hopes up if you didn't get accepted. I've been sending over your videos and statistics to the Winter Olympics team for the last few months, and Eliza, they like what they see. Nothing is written in stone yet, of course. They'll want an interview, and then there's the qualifying rounds... but Eliza... this is your shot."

His words… This wasn’t some cruel joke he had thought up on a whim; this was real- this was her shot at achieving everything they had ever spoken about when it came to her career…

Snapping out of her daze after a few moments of letting the news sink in, Eliza rushed forward, closing the gap between them for the third time as she wrapped her free arm tightly around the back of his neck, pulling him as close against her as she could in a hug while her lips sought out his cheek, pressing an excited though thankful kiss against it before suddenly, she was pulling back again, her eyes wide as she stared back down at the letter, re-reading it at least one more time.

“I-… I can’t believe it..! Everything we’ve ever wanted- everything we’ve ever spoken about..! And now I finally have my chance..! Oh, thank you Magnus..!”

"Alright, alright, settle down. I know this is big, but I've got something else." Magnus chuckled, able to feel the sheer amount of energy Eliza was expelling in her excitement. Reaching into his coat pocket, he pulled out the second envelope and handed it over to the still bouncing girl. "Here... I've been doing a bit of Sponsoring for Sebastian as well. This is his acceptance letter into the X-Games. It might mean even more to him if he got the news from you." Magnus gave her a playful nudge. The two had been best friends since they were young. Despite Eliza's "secret" relationship with Jimmy the bartender, he had high hopes for Sebastian and Eliza one day. That might have been the very reason he extended his sponsorship to motocross in the first place - getting them together. But he'd never admit that.

Squealing slightly as she seemed to jump about on the balls of her feet, she reached out, holding onto the sleeve of his jacket and causing his arm to bounce up and down with her movements before she was more on the move, taking the second letter from him, she slipped it away into her folder for safe keeping before she turned on her heel, flinging open and not even bothering to grab a jacket, or close the front door behind her as she rushed out into the snow and off in the direction of the lodge, her voice getting further and further away as she yelled back at the man she had left standing alone in her home- she had to find Jimmy; she had to tell him the news..!

“Oh my god..! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you..!”

---

Cinderella awoke, hours too early, drenched in sweat, with a barely muffled scream. She sat up, and dropped her head into her hands. Even after all these years, those days with her stepmother and sisters still haunted her. When she had the dreams, it was like her life as it was now was imaginary and nothing had changed. She looked around the room that had once been her mother and fathers, but was now hers. Spacious, it was touched with them, but also her own unique style.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to sleep, Cinderella drew her own bath, and soaked in it for a time, washing off the nightmares taint, and simply letting herself relax, to drift. Time slipped by, and light filled the room, the water gone from hot to tepid to cold, and Cinderella climbed out the water, drying herself. She was dressed even before her-she detested the word servant-friend and handmaiden entered with food to break her fast. Cinderella smiled, and patted the chair next to her as she did every morning “Sara. Sit and eat with me, won't you?”Cinderella hated to eat alone, and Sara was a darling woman. Her husband tended the gardens, and their son, a little rascal, filled the yard with his laughter.

They were a constant happiness for Cinderella. She paid them too much, treated them better than many would, and she loved them. “I am going to see Gaston today. So you may leave early, and spend the time with you husband and son” cinderella spoke cheerfully, but Sara had been with her too long not to know. “Miss Cindy, you've had a nightmare”

Cinderella didn't try to deny it, merely spread butter and jam over the toast and bit into it. Sara gave a soft sigh, and didn't say anything, accepting the knife Cinderella passed her. “Yes. Don't worry, it wasn't a bad one. Sometimes I just need to be reminded of all that I have, and Gaston gave that to me. Besides, no doubt he has need of me as well. I'll take buttercup” the horse no doubt would enjoy a little bit of exercise that wasn't simply around the yard, and Cinderella didn't spend nearly enough time with the horse.

It was not long before Cinderella was on the saddled horse, trotting down the road. And then galloping, enjoying the freedom. Buttercup was one of two horses she had, to drive the carriage when she went on business. A large strong animal, Buttercup enjoyed a good run, and had the sweetest nature. It wasn't long before Cinderella was smiling, and laughing as she breezed passed the landscape, enjoying the simple freedom. Yes. Sometimes she simply needed to remind herself all she had.

Turning into Gaston’s grounds a short while later, Cinderella felt a peace that would last throughout the day. She patted Buttercup as she slid off her, stroking her neck. “Thank you for the run, my girl” she said to the horse, as she looked about her. This place was as much home to her as her own house, and both she owed Gaston, as well as her freedom.

“Ciiiiiiiiiiiiiiindy..!”

The sound of his voice filled the space of the courtyard as he made his way out to meet her, a heavy pout on his lips and his shoulders slumped as he wandered over to her, kicking aimlessly at the ground under his feet as he shoved his hands down into the recesses of his pockets- his Belle had already been gone for the last month… and he had no idea when in the hell she was supposed to be coming back… he had been given no time frame for this particular journey of hers; and it was this fact that had him sulking through the grounds of the castle more and more frequently each day that passed them by.

“Cindy; she left again..!” Finally reaching where it was that she was standing, Gaston didn’t bother to hold back as he wrapped his arms around her lithe frame, pulling her close in a hug (more to comfort himself than in greeting) as he whined lightly about the current situation he had found himself in, “My Isabella has left me again to go on some stupid hunt, or quest- maybe it was shopping… I don’t really know… All I do know is that I don’t know when she’s coming back, ‘cause she never told me..!”

Cinderella knew from the drawn out 'Cindy' that Gaston was upset, and she could guess the topic easily enough. Still, it was good to see him, and she felt a little better for it. Returning his hug, she allowed herself a quick moment to just relax, before she turned her attention to the topic at hand. She had been correct. Isabella occupied Gaston's mind more then anything else, and she would often be the one to comfort him, when things like this happened. "Perhaps she didn't know herself, Gaston. Maybe she didn't want you to worry if she didn't return by a specific date, if it took longer than she thought" She said, her tone soothing and compassionate.

"You have to remember Gaston, these hunts and quests of hers are important to her. And just think, when she returns, what stories she'll have that she can share with you!" She said brightly, always careful to choose the right words that wouldn't make things worse. "It could simply be that this time it's just a long journey, and a timeline might make things harder for her. She always comes back, doesn't she? This time will be no different" Cinderella hoped that this was true. Gaston could be a wonderful person, the boy who had rescued her from the life she had had after her father had tragically passed away was still within this man, who was really her best friend. However, his obsession with Isabella twisted his perception at times. She supposed that that was why she was there, to bring him back around. Or at least make him less sulky.

"Until then, I'm here." She said, "Besides, she can never truly leave you, so long as she is in your heart. Sometimes, she's just further away"

She was right… why was she always right..?

Keeping the pout upon his face, though admittedly smaller than it had been moments beforehand, he nodded his head lightly against the nape of his neck, his arms slipping to move from where they had been wrapped around her neck to instead wrap tightly around her middle- she was so smart… Cindy had always been the voice of reason behind his almost each and every action; the pretty little blue-bird who whispered in his ear and told him to not to that stupid thing that popped into his mind… or at least was the one person who was there to comfort him after he had gone out and done the stupid thing that had popped into his mind…

Tightening his arms around her waist, Gaston lifted her up, his body turning on his heel as he threw her over his shoulder, his feet guiding them back across the courtyard and in the direction that he had first come to greet her from, his left arm wrapped gently though firmly around her lithe figure as he held her while his right dropped back
down to his side, swinging back and forth in time with each and every step that he took back to the castle, “..you know; you’re right…”

Seeming to think on the matter just a few moments longer, Gaston nodded his head a few times in agreement to what had been said- Belle always wandered off here and there on those cute little adventures of hers… ones that seemed to make her smile and believe herself to be a match for any man she came across- well at least she wasn’t walking around with her nose in a book anymore like she used to do all the time…

“She always comes back eventually; Avonlea is her home after all…” Shrugging his shoulders, but being careful enough not to jostle Cindy too much with of the action, Gaston wandered through the door and into the entrance hall, by-passing the grand staircase altogether as he continued on his way, wandering into the trophy room and taking his place in the large armchair by the fire before he moved her again, perching her upon his lap and keeping his arm wrapped around her body as he made himself comfortable, “Ah; I don’t even know why I was worried.”

Gaston always had a way with making her feel half a child, still. The ability to lift her as if she weighed less than a sack of flour had been annoying at first, but Cinderella was used to such actions now. Gaston seemed to have the most curious opinion that she wasn't capable of walking. Or maybe it was just that his strides were longer and faster than hers. Either way, Gaston-mode of traveling was something that always seemed to happen, especially when he was in a mood over Isabella. She didn't particularly mind, and was glad she had decided to wear rider slacks, instead of one of the few skirts she had.

He could be half a child still, himself. She could practically follow his train of thought as he mulled her words over. "That's right, and home is important, she'll be back" she said, although she wasn't sure if Gaston had even heard her.

Finally settled upon his lap, Cinderella smoothed imaginary creases from her slacks like a good little lady, although a good little lady wouldn't be sitting in a mans lap, "you worry because you care" she said, "that's not a bad thing, Gaston." Gaston was actually a very comfortable seat, or perhaps that was because she was use to it. Yet the simple fact was, she felt safe in his presence. There were times when her home didn't feel safe, generally that was after a nightmare. There was always that fear that her stepmother and sisters would one day creep back into her life. If that day happened, Cinderella hoped she would do what had to be done.

"Isabella knows that, so if she knew when she would return she would have told you." She said as if her thoughts hadn't changed direction, giving him a smile, "in any case, I'm pleased I could help, like always"

“..you do help…”

Holding her gaze for a few moments longer, Gaston relaxed back into the cushions, his arm draped around her pulling her closer into him until finally, she was rested up against his chest, his hand rested softly against her hip as he made himself comfortable, his other hand reaching down to scoop her legs up and over his lap, “So tell me… I know it’s not my dashing good looks, or my dazzling smile that lured you to my castle today; so to what do I owe this wonderful visit of yours, my dearest Cindy..?”

Essentially laying against Gaston, she felt the last dregs of the nightmare slip away, and she closed her eyes, giving a soft, contented sigh. She pondered what to say when he asked why she had visited. "It was just a rough night, and I just...wanted to see you" She said, softly. Cinderalla wasn't one to dwell too much on her problems, preferring to focus on others, especially those she cared about, and help them.

"It's the same then, over and over again, when the nightmares come" She said after another moment, "and I just need to be remind about all I have now, and who's to thank for that" She said, opening her eyes and giving Gaston a smile. "A day with you always makes me feel better." Cinderella typically maintained a stoic and business attitude, however with Gaston who had seen her in the worst time of her life, she could let that slide.

Shaking his head lightly from side to side, Gaston sat himself up slightly, his arms seeming to wrap even tighter around her body as he pulled her as close as he possibly could- sure he had helped her out when times had gotten tough… he looked after her; but it was nowhere near as much as she looked after him.

“..hey now.” Lifting his hand up from where it had been resting over her leg, he let his fingers brush gently over her forehead, brushing some stray strands of her long blonde locks back off her face before neatly tucking them behind her ear, though his hand didn’t stop there, lightly caressing her cheek for a few moments before once more, it returned to rest upon her leg, holding her in place against him, “..you owe me no thanks, Cindy. I made you a promise I would get you out of that life- I made a promise, and I kept my word, did I not..?”

Giving her a small smile in hopes that it might help to calm her fears, he tensed his stomach muscles, leaning forward slightly until he was able to press his lips softly against her forehead in what he hoped was a comforting kiss, “And now I give you my word again; you will never return to such a life… not while I continue to breath.”

Gaston never ceased to amaze Cinderella. From immersed in himself one minute, to this the next in a smooth transaction that showed it was genuine. Cinderella had never doubted Gaston's word for one moment. As a child, he was her shining knight, that saved her from her step mother. She knew he wouldn't like the fact she still thought of that woman as her step mother, yet Cinderella was always proper. She couldn't very well think of her as that evil woman, could she?

She accepted his comfort with ease, and grace. "You did, and I never doubted that. It's what kept me going, day after day, week after week and month after month. And that's what I'm thankful for. And you still do it now" She said simply, and as he leaned in, she wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"Then I know I am safe" She knew that already, of course. Had known it since the day she was freed, but it was the right words to say, "Sometimes i just need to be reminded of that. And that's why I'm here" It was easy to admit that. "And besides, it's been too long since I visited."

Releasing the hug, she knew that this was a good way to spend a day. And she should do it more often. She was well set, and could take a day off every so often. "So. What do you want to do, today?"

"Ahh....London..." she said with a smile as her mechanical chariot came to a halt. It had taken a while but she was finally here. Where she intended to pick up a new pawn for her games. A pawn that she had eyes on for some time now. She had a good idea on how to win him over, even if just temporarily.

Jadis dismounted from her chariot and started walking through the city. People were staring at her from all around. She guessed she stood out after all. She was at least a foot taller than most around her along with the winter coat and furs. Jadis could not make up her mind if she liked it, or was disgusted by it. It felt good though, in a certain way.

No matter, she was not here for the common folks. She walked with confident strides through the industrial quarters of the city. She was heading towards one specific house which her spies had discovered. Jadis walked up and knocked on the door. A groan came from inside before a young man opened the door. "Hello Peter."



Today had been another hard day at work. A long day in the factory. He had found solace in the bottle once again. He wasn't sure why though. It wasn't like it helped a lot. It made him feel slightly numb, but it did help him sleep. After a while of drinking it did make him fall asleep.

He closed his eyes. He could still see his sister dying in front of him. The blood splattering against his armour as she had tried to save him. The despair on his brother's face as he knew they were all going to die. He could see the shambles of the resistance army falling around him.

His eyebrows twitched as someone knocked on the door. It tore him away from his living nightmare as he groaned and put the bottle down. "I'll be right there!" he shouted towards the door as he scrambled to put on a pair of pants. His wobbly legs took him to the door and he opened it. "Yes?" he asked towards the person as he slowly raised his gaze. Until...he saw her.

The hello came as a shock as he fell backwards. "Jadis!" his mind was panicking. If she was here it must be to kill him. He stumbled before dashing towards his sword. Peter drew the blade with shaky hands and aimed it towards Jadis.

---

"You have nothing to fear from me Peter," Jadis said with a coy smile. She walked into the apartment with a calm demeanor. "I'm here with an offer." Peter did not seem to listen as he charged at her, swinging his sword. Jadis easily deflected the blade with her palm before shifting her weight and grabbed onto his sword hand. "If I wanted you dead I could have done so already. I have something to tell you,"

Jadis grinned and leaned in and whispered something into Peter's ear which caused him to drop his sword, his mouth wide open.

---

---

---

---

She couldn’t believe it... this was more than she could have ever hoped for- more than she had ever dreamed of. Well, that wasn’t exactly true… she had been dreaming of getting a shot at the Olympics for as long as she could remember, and now, thanks to not only hers, but also Magnus’ hard work, she had her chance..!

Kicking up snow as she hurried along the familiar path that led to the lodge, Eliza let her bright ice-blue eyes flick about, searching for the one person she knew would be just as excited as she was about the news she had not long ago been given- he had to be around here somewhere… he just had to..! Smiling brightly as she caught sight of the familiar figure shivering slightly as he headed towards the entrance of the lodge, she picked up the pace slightly, her hand tightening around the letter as she hurried to close the gap that was lain out between them.

“Jimmy..!”

Breaking her arms apart from where they had been hugging her chest as she drew closer, she let her grip on her things relax, causing them to slip from her arms and down into the snow as she took the last few steps, her arms lifting up to wrap tightly around the back of his neck as she pressed herself close against him, “Jimmy..! You’ll never believe what just happened..!”

"Who now?” Jimmy blinked as a whirlwind of blonde hair completely enveloped him, his caught-off-guard mind taking a few moments to realize who it was that had their body wrapped around his so suddenly, breasts being pushed into his body tightly.

"Oh, hey boobs- I mean butt- I mean babe." Jimmy fumbled around his words as he attempted to try and hug Eliza back, though a bit awkwardly as she was continuing to wiggle around in excitement. "Guess what just happened? Um... you found an abandoned polar bear cub and tried to take it home but the momma bear got pissy and ate your sister so we have the house to ourselves tonight?" he tried, sounding a bit more hopeful than he should've with the far-fetched story he had just come up with. Alone time with him - what could be more exciting than that?

Rolling her eyes, Eliza shook her head excitedly, the smile never once fading from her soft features as she pulled a single arm back from around his neck, being sure to keep her body pressed against his as she held the open letter up for him to see, her bright ice-blue eyes sparkling slightly as she gazed up at him.

“Jimmy-... I got my chance..!”

Biting down softly upon her lower lip, she motioned for him to take the letter with her head, her free hand slipping back around to instead rest against his shoulder, her fingers curling slightly as she took a hold of his shirt, “I have a shot, I-... I could be going to the Olympics..!”

Jimmy quirked a somewhat skeptical eyebrow but took the letter from her and read it over. It all seemed pretty legit, but what did he know? He barely graduated high school. Then again, her coach and Chinese sponsor guy hadn't ever led her astray before.

"Damn... the Olympics, huh?" he said out loud, giving her a sideways smile. "You know, if you end up medalling they just tax the shit out of your winnings, but if you're cool with that then I guess I can be cool with you being plastered all over TV for three weeks." He was teasing, as evident by his smile. He really was happy for he - this was all she ever wanted.

Huh... must be nice to have an inspirational goal. Honestly, he never knew what he wanted to do with his life. Was there something wrong with being a bartender for the next sixty or so years? That seemed... kind of easy. But Jimmy liked easy. Maybe that wouldn't be so bad.

“I think you mean us.”

Biting down softly upon her lower lip, she leant herself back slightly so that she could look him in the eyes, trying to gauge his reaction before she began to explain, “..there are two stages I need to pass before I know if I made the team… I’m nervous, but I think I’ll be able to handle the interview; but I want you to come with me when I go to the qualifiers.”

Unable to hide the way that her cheeks took on a gentle shade of pink at her next thought, Eliza once more let her arms wrap around the back of his neck, her head tilting lightly to the side and her eyes seeming to take on a both excited and playful glint to them as she spoke her mind, “..if I do make the team; dad won’t be able to travel with me cause of work… Anna would, but she’d do nothing but chase guys and shop… and well; I found out my sponsor is getting married, so he’ll be a newly-wed, and I can’t expect him to leave her just so he can be with me…”

Pausing a moment, she let her eyes flick back and forth between his, trying to figure out if they were on the same page as each other or not, “..if I make it, I want you to come with me. Three weeks, just the both of us, and we’ll be in another country… and once my event is over; I’m all yours. We can do whatever it is we want…”

Us? She was getting a little friendlier with him, hugging onto him a bit longer than "just friends" would. He broke her gaze and looked around, making sure that no one was around that might start spreading rumors. True rumors, sure, but he wasn't ready for that. He wasn't sure if he ever would be. The idea of leaving for a three week vacation to another country where no one would know about them started to sound better and better. He grinned.

"So am I supposed to spontaneously break my leg and get on medical leave for three weeks at the exact same time you are leaving the country?" he teased. "Your dad's gonna ask questions." he then pointed out. "Don't get me wrong, baby, I'd love to go with you, but we gotta be smart about this, alright? We can talk about it more later, I'm late for work as it is. You can finish walking me there though..."

“Let me handle it…” Pausing for a moment, she couldn’t seem to hide the small though obvious smirk that played over her lips- three weeks alone with the guy she loved… talk about incentive to make the team. Breaking her arms away from one another, she slid her hands back around until she was gently cupping each side of his neck, her touch soft… gentle as she lifted herself further up onto the balls of her feet, bringing herself just that little bit closer to him; seemingly not caring if anyone saw them or not, “..besides; daddy won’t let his little girl travel for that long alone. He knows you and I are close to one another; that I trust you, and that you wouldn’t let anything bad happen to me… I’m sure I can twist it in our favour… and get you paid leave to boot.”

Chuckling softly to herself, she closed the gap between them, pressing her lips softly against his for a few seconds before she pulled herself away, her body crouching down so that she could gather the rest of her things up from the snow where she had dropped them- thank God she had her paperwork and Sebastian’s letter in a folder… the last thing she needed was for it to get damp and ruined, “Just give me a minute, and we can go in… I can’t afford to lose this stuff- especially not Sebastian’s acceptance letter…”

He kissed her back, having already deemed the immediate area safe for the time being, but it was quick and hardly much to blink at. He crossed his arms over his chest, running his hands over the sleeves on his upper arms in hopes to get a bit warmer. He had lived here his whole life and still he hadn't learned to throw on a jacket on his way to work.

His eyebrow quirked at the name she casually threw out.

"Sebastian?" There was an incredibly hidden undertone of jealous venom in his voice. "Didn't take that Aussie as much of a winter... anything..."

Shaking her head lightly from side to side, Eliza hugged her things close against her body as she stood herself back up, an amused sort of smile creeping onto her lips as she turned her head back to look at him from over her shoulder, the slightly jealous tone of his words not lost on her as she chuckled lightly, “He’s not a winter person; I mean when he comes to stay with us, the heating bill goes through the roof…”

Turning back around so that she was facing him once more, she shifted her belongings in her arms, freeing one so that she could reach out and take her own letter from him, being sure to slip it into her folder where it was to stay with Sebastian’s for the moment, “No; his acceptance letter is actually for the X-Games. He’s worked so hard for it, I’m so happy for him..! Magnus seems to think that the news would somehow be better if I was the one to tell him.”

"Yeah, I'd imagine he would." Jimmy muttered under his breath following behind Eliza. He never really liked Sebastian - always popping in and out of her life whenever it was "convenient." Even he could tell, from a sidelines perspective, Eliza's sponsor wanted Sebastian and her together. Was that even legal? He opted not to think about it as he opened up the door and entered the building.

"Paid time off for three weeks, huh? Yeah I guess I could go with that." Jimmy brought up, casually changing the subject as he walked the memorized path to the Lodge's bar where he had been working the last few years.

“Good; cause there’s no way I’m going to South Korea on my own.”

Chuckling softly to herself, Eliza shook her head lightly from side to side, her arms tightening around the items she was holding against her chest as she turned herself around, her pace slowing down as she began to walk backwards, her bright ice-blue eyes sparkling playfully as she met with his, her head tilting thoughtfully to the side as they made their way into the busy lobby, “..by the way, we need to make a quick stop before we head to the bar. I have to hand in some paperwork for the decorations for tomorrow; after that, you and I have to have a chat about drinks for tonight- I need your opinion about what alcohols will work with hot chocolate.”

"Yeah, no that's fine but we gotta be quick. I don't think Brenton will be too happy with me if I'm any later than I already am - wait, did you just say hot chocolate?" Shaking his head a bit, trying to discern just what the young blonde had going on in her mind, Jimmy ran his fingers through the short strip of hair on the top of his head. "Yeah, you can't sit at the bar or anything yet, but you can stand at the counter and talk to me about... whatever it is you need."

“Why, yes… yes I did say hot chocolate.”

Moving ahead of him just that little bit, Eliza hurried over to the main desk of the lobby, her arms relaxing and letting everything she had been holding rest over the counter as she quickly began to flick through the papers in her folder, managing to locate the ones she was looking for before she handed them over to the person working reception, “Make sure to call me if you have any issues; I’ve also written up and attached extra instructions to the wait staff; their new uniforms for the event will be here this afternoon, please let them know that they need to head to the supervisor on call today to collect them… they have to try them on before they leave today..! Thank you..!”

Sighing, waiting for Eliza to do her thing, Jimmy leaned up against the wall, his interest soon piqued by the gathering crowd in the center of the lobby. There seemed to be a magic show or something going on. That much wasn’t new - the guy had been seen in the lobby for almost every day this week. Nothing harmless. Just annoying. But then he noticed a flash of red hair, and tilting his head and walking a few steps to the left, was able to confirm his suspicions that the redhead watching some other chick getting kissed was in fact Eliza’s sister.

“Um… Eliza? You might wanna come check this out…” It looked like Annelise was going to be next.

---

---

---

---

Anna looked towards Jamie for a moment and shook her head slightly. She had never seen the magician here before, and he seemed to be drawing in quite the crowd.

"Nope. I haven't seen him before." Anna answered Jamie as she leaned herself up against the wall and watched him with a little bit of interest. Even though she didn't believe in anything like magic, it was always interesting, though confusing, on how it all worked.

The group in the lobby had visibly doubled since Jamie and Anna had arrived, each and every onlooker seeming noticeably interested now in the man in the center of the room instead of steeling glances every now and then. The elaborate display of magic, good magic, had their full attention. One viewer even went as far as to mention "Vegas" but Jack pretended to not be able to hear. It took years of practice - years of living like crap and being treated by society as such to get where he was today. But every moment was worth it, especially when he was able to nick a few things from his volunteers that caught his eye.

Having just finished a trick with a "broken" piece of string that he had made whole again, the girl who had been helping Jack with the trick was still laughing, unbelieving of what she had just seen as she handed the string back to him, but Jack just shook his head no.

"Keep it. I've got enough random crap filling my pockets anyway." Gods... she, and everyone else there, wouldn't ever realize how true that was. Between his magic trick props and various nicked nick-knacks, he'd be glad to never get that piece of string back. He gave the girl a smile and she, in turn, flushed a brilliant shade of pink as she shyly recessed herself back into the crowd to join back with her friends.

Anna ran a hand through her hair as she witnessed the piece of string mysteriously being put back together in one piece, her eyes following the girl who had been assisting him with the trick as she went back to her group of friends.

Jamie watched the trick as well, finding it interesting, and smiled as she heard the magician say something about cluttered pockets. She imagined that was so, and wondered how he kept everything organized. Would that hinder a trick? Like Anna, she watched the girl go back to her friends, wondering briefly what booger girl was doing, before looking back at the magician.

Taking that half of a moment between tricks to run his fingers through his long, brown hair, Jack looked over the doubled-in-sized crowd by habit, seeing if he had yet to draw securities attention or that other guardian that seemed insistent on talking to him, but instead his gaze landed on two girls towards the back that had their eyes trained on him with interest.

Now... just how many licks would it take to get to the center of their tootsie-pop? Jack thought to himself, his smile somewhat betraying his thoughts as he motioned them over. With his free hand, he reached into one of his many pockets and pulled out a deck of cards he had been using for various other tricks that afternoon.

"Hey, don't be shy! You lovely ladies want to see a magic trick?"

Anna looked towards Jamie for a moment as Jack addressed the both of them. Smiling softly, she shrugged. A little detour from the skiing lessons wouldn't hurt that much.

"Sure. Why the hell not?" she said as she stood up straight and looked over her shoulder and motioned for Jamie to join. His look seemed slightly more than just calling them over to watch a trick, but it seemed harmless enough, and would more than likely make the crowd of girls a little bit jealous as well.

"Sure. I can stand to be amused. And maybe figure out how it's done." Jamie gave a wink to Jack, and smiled, waiting for the trick as she played with her necklace.

Jack's blue eyes flickered between the two, beautiful (and hopefully legal) women as they approached him, pleased at how easy it was for him to get their attention and cooperation in the next trick he had in mind. And Gods, did he have a good one.

Handing over the deck of cards to Jamie first, he began to explain as he pulled out a black sharpie from one of his pockets, handing it over to her as soon as he managed to find it.

"Take the marker and pick any card, any card you want; doesn't matter. It doesn't even matter if I see it. Just write your phone number on the card and then hand the deck back to me, but keep your card. Then, I'll pick my own card, write down my number, and do the same as I've instructed you. Make sense?"

Jamie took the sharpie, listening to the instructions even as she took a card. Even before Jack was halfway through explaining what the trick was, she started to laugh a pleasant laugh that was full of merriment.

"Cute trick." she said once she had composed herself, still holding the sharpie and card she had taken, amusement in her voice. She wondered how many times he had used that, and how many times it was successful, "A unique way of trying to get girls' numbers. Has it ever actually worked before?"

Jack replied simply by giving her a light chuckle.

Anna looked towards Jack as he turned his attention towards Jamie and couldn't help but smirk slightly to herself - getting a guys number through a magic trick was new.

Still, he was cute, and Jamie could stand to have a little fun. She took the lid off the sharpie, and shifted the card to write her number on the back.

"I guess I just answered my own question, huh?" The amusement was still there, as she held out both the card and the sharpie to him, smiling.

Anna leaned slightly closer towards Jamie as she started to write down her number.

"Well this should be interesting." Anna said with a soft smile nudging Jamie slightly as she turned her attention towards Jack as he explained the trick.

After Jamie returned the deck to his possession, Jack thumbed through the remaining cards and pulled out the Jack of clubs, briefly showing the intrigued crowd the card he had chosen. Taking back the sharpie, he made sure to brush his fingers against hers for a fraction longer than what was necessary. Winking over at Anna, he turned his attention back to his card and wrote down his own cel phone number on it.

"Okay fold your card up, and I'm going to do the same. Go ahead and put it in your mouth-" He was immediately drowned out by the onlooking girls who were giggling at the absurd request. "No I'm serious! Fold it up, put it in your mouth and I'm going to do the same."

Intrigued herself, Jamie raised an eyebrow at the odd instruction, but she nevertheless folded the card in quarters, wondering where he was going with this. She glanced over at the giggling girls, rolling her eyes at their behavior, before putting the card in her mouth, holding it between her teeth. At least doing a trick, she couldn't seem foolish, no matter the strange request.

"Okay..." She couldn't, for the life of her, figure out where he was going with this. She waited to see what would happen next, glancing to Anna to see if she had any idea, before looking back to Jack.

Anna looked towards Jamie as she glanced to her and gave a slight shrug towards Jamie, she wasn't sure what Jack had up his sleeve. Anna watched as the girls all either giggled or gave Jamie a glare, she ran a hand through her hair gently. Anna still didn't believe in magic - it was always rigged.

"Alright, so you want her to swallow the card or something?" Anna said sarcastically and laughed slightly to herself.

Jack chuckled at the two of them, though said nothing as he folded his own card, keeping his eyes now on Jamie.

"Well, actually..." he smirked. "Alright, so you know how they say that true loves kiss is the best kind of magic?" He looked between the two girls before going on. "Lets see what kind of magic this will do." He raised his folded up card, as if to show Jamie that he still had his, and opened up his mouth, his eyes never leaving hers as though he were challenging her to back out of the trick. Popping the card into his mouth, he closed his lips around it, and attempted a cheeky-sort of smile. He took a few steps closer to Jamie, his look once more daring her to back down before he bent his neck forward and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, causing the girls around them to practically scream in their giggling. Pulling back just as quick as it had happened, Jack opened up his mouth and began to remove the card, motioning for Jamie to do the same, though waited for her to reveal hers before revealing his.

Ever one for a challenge, and never one to back down from a little adventure, Jamie met Jack's eyes indefinitely, daring him to go ahead and do what he was going to do. She stayed where she was as Jack drew closer to her, merriment dancing in her eyes. She let him kiss her, and just as quick as he approached, he was gone. She had to admit, there was a slight disappointment that, that was all.

Rolling her eyes again at the giggling girls, Jamie gave a small laugh as she removed the card from her own mouth, unfolding it, she held it out, wondering just what the quick kiss had meant to do. Perhaps it was all just a move. But then, what would be the fun in that?

"Well?" She asked, her tone cheerful, glancing down at the card, about to ask what it had meant to do, seeing that her card had changed to the Jack of clubs with his phone number written on it. She stood, feeling baffled. Just how did that happen? "Wha-?" She looked up, frowning slightly as she tried to figure it out, but failing, "How did you do that?" It did not seem possible, and yet her she was, holding the card.

Slowly unfolding the card he had in his mouth, finding her face card with her phone number on it, Jack simply looked up and smiled at Jamie as she tried to figure out what had just happened and gave her a quick wink.

"Hey... if you're interested in the second part of the trick... you've got my number."

It seemed impossible that it could happen, and Jamie looked down at the card, sure something else had happened. She looked back up, and quickly composed herself. "Well now, I might just be. If only to get the answer to how the heck you did that!"

Jack pretended to ignore the onslaught of noise he was getting from the other girls around them, offering themselves up for the next trick, but Jack's eyes were now on Anna. "And you? You wanna try your hand at it, see if we got something special going on here?" he asked with a sly smirk.

Anna looked towards Jack and blushed softly for a moment as she rubbed the back of her neck and looked towards the other girls that were around them and then nodded slightly. She had watched Jamie do the trick with him and noticed the group of girls around them cheering and giggling when he actually kissed her, but the trick happened rather quick. Trying to think about it, she hadn't seen him use tongue and the kiss itself was too quick or him to just force the cards and switch them. "Sure. Why not?" Anna said with a soft smile.

Jamie stepped back to allow Anna to have a turn, and still perplexed, she put the card in the pocket of her jeans, more then ready to watch closely to see if she could see what had happened.

“..I think not.”

Anna turned around jumping slightly as she heard Eliza's voice as she stood there in front of her biting her bottom lip for a moment.

Clenching her jaw in annoyance, Eliza shot an apologetic glance over her shoulder at Jimmy before she let her attention turn back over to the scene going on in front of her very eyes, her arms lifting up to fold over her chest as she slowly made her way forward, the crowd not even needing a warning and instead parting on their own to let her through as they fell into a silence- she couldn’t believe what she was seeing… not only were these people falling for this guys scam; her own sister was being stupid enough to be pulled in by his bullshitting…

“Anna- don’t you have work to get done..? If I remember rightly, you have a class to get ready for; not to mention you have set up duty in the ballroom later for tomorrow’s event opening.” Pausing for but a brief moment as she came to a stop beside the three seeming to demand the attention of everyone else in the room, Eliza quirked her brow, a look of disgust crossing over her features as she looked the guy who had been playing little sister and her friend, not even bothering to hide the fact that she was indeed looking him over, “..besides, you should know better. How many times have I told you not to waste your time on guys like this..?”

"I was about to go do that; I wasn't going to fall for his tricks or anything." Anna said awkwardly. She was hoping that Eliza didn't overhear her.

Turning her attention back over to her younger sister, Eliza slipped herself in between the two girls and the guy biding for their attention, being sure to block his path but not bothering to lower her voice as she continued to speak her mind on the subject, “..he’s a player and a scam artist… he shouldn’t even be here; and you deserve way better anyway. Now go on; your students are gunna get pissed if you keep them waiting again.”

Jamie looked over as a woman that she soon figured out was Anna's sister, stalked over, appearing angry. Yet it was more of a cool, controlled one. "A bit of a poor scam artist, he didn't even ask for money." she said, the laughter echoing in her voice. The crowd seemed intimidated by Anna's sister, but Jamie had always been one to test the boundaries, and to take risks. "As for being a player..." She looked around Anna's sister, and gave Jack an almost wicked grin, "Mayhaps I'm one too."

With that she looked to Anna, her smile more friendly now and said "Is that the class I'm meant to be taking? Well, gear seems rather important for that, shall we continue? You can blame me if we're late." she said, "Although as long as it fits, I'll be happy."

Anna turned her attention towards Jamie and gave her a soft smile. "I was just about to get this one here, fitted for some gear." Anna told Eliza as she looked towards Jamie.

"I'm teaching skiing today, and don't worry about it." She looked back towards Eliza seeing her sister checking him out as well. "Well, don't fall for this scammer's tricks then." Anna said as she gave Eliza a gentle nudge. "I'll get to work on the ballroom as well."

Jack shifted awkwardly. One moment, he was being swarmed by women, begging to get a kiss from him as well as his number, and the next, some blonde that was acting like she owned the place was spoiling their fun. The darker-skinned girl seemed to stick up for him enough - at least he had her number to call her up later for a bit of... magic. But the red-head he had taken an interest in, she seemed to go with whatever this blonde girl had to say. Nevertheless, the blonde was... quite attractive... in her own little, bossy way. There had to be a way to get her to see things his way... and by his way... he simply just wanted into her pants.

Shaking his head, he waved off the blonde and returned his attention to Anna, extending out his hand that had the deck of card exposed for her, ready to take.

"Practice is important, I get it, but one magic trick won't hurt. Just a couple seconds. I promise you won't be disappointed."

“It’s not practice- it’s an actual job that she’s employed to do.” Frowning heavily at not just her sister’s response, but also that of the other girl, Eliza turned back around so that she was instead facing the man that was the cause of all this commotion in the first place, her hand reaching out to take hold of the deck he was offering, being sure to gather all of the cards up before she let her bright ice-blue eyes trail up the length of his body, eventually slowing to a stop once she had met with his gaze.

“..but then again; that’s not something you would know anything about, is it..?”

Neatening the cards into a single stack within her hand, she lifted them up, shoving them roughly into the center of his chest, her head tilting lightly to the side as her brow quirked, showing that she was in no mood for his bullshit like all the others seemed to be, “Stay away from my sister, and stop trying to scam the guests… or next time, I might just go ahead and have you thrown out of my father’s lodge.”

Anna was about to take one of the cards from Jack when Eliza took them and roughly shoved them into Jack's chest causing her to chuckle slightly. She wasn't scared of her sister that much, she just wanted to make sure that she was doing her job. "Right, I'll get to work now." Anna said as she looked towards Jamie and gave her a soft smile.

"If you need some help with this ballroom thing, I'm happy to do so. I don't really have anything planned, except trying to skii" Jamie said, quite happy to help a new friend. Besides, Anna seemed like a nice girl, albeit one that seemed a little intimidated by her sister. Jamie decided if there was one thing she'd do on this trip, it would be to try and give Anna a little bit more confidence around her sister. A challenge, Jamie decided, but Jamie rarely backed down from one. "Okay, so what gear do I need?" She asked, "I know the skis, and I assume boots...and those stick things?"

"Well first we get you fitted with some skis, and they are called ski poles." Anna said as she took Jamie's hand and started to lead her over towards the rental area of the lodge.

"Wow." Jack watched the darker-skinned girl and the red-head leave, blinking a few times as he still wasn't entirely sure what had just happened. Folding his cards back up, he forced his gaze from the two girls to the angry blonde (supposedly the owner's daughter) and tilted his head to the side. "What's the matter, Princess? Afraid you won't get a turn? I assure you... I can make an exception." Jack gave Eliza a sly wink and a nearly cocky grin.

Jimmy had, had enough. Having witnessed the entire thing, he was sure that Eliza had the situation handled. But the jack-ass just didn't know when to quit. Rolling his eyes and scrunching up his sleeves above his elbows, he joined in on the conversation, making sure to be a bit obvious in his movements as he put his arm around Eliza and kissed the side of her head.

"There you are, babe. Been looking everywhere for ya. C'mon, we gotta hurry if we're gonna make our reservation for lunch..."

Feeling the warmth and strong hold of a familiar arm wrapping around her waist, Eliza couldn’t help the small smile that played over her soft pink lips, her eyes closing for only a moment as she felt his lips pressing against her head, her body leaning further into Jimmy’s as she turned her head so that she could look up at him, her own arm lifting to wrap around his back as she nodded her head lightly, more than willing to play along if it meant that the magic creep in front of her would somehow find a clue.

“Sorry for keeping you waiting; some people just can’t seem to take a hint…” Shooting a quick glance back over to Jack, she let her eyes flick up and down his figure, seeming to take in his appearance for a few moments before she turned it back up to Jimmy, “I just have to grab my things, and we can go… also; I was thinking I might stay the night at yours, is that okay..?”

"Yeah, yeah sure. We'll have to wash the sheets first though." Jimmy gave Eliza an obvious wink before turning her away from the crowd - mainly the magic man that seemed like he believed himself entitled to everything.

Jack just shook his head and laughed softly to himself. Alright. So they were going to play that game. He knew a rescue mission when he saw one. And it didn't help that during his stay at the lodge, he had gotten quite familiar with the bar, and with it, those who worked there.

"I'll see you around, Princess. And tell your bartender that I like his style!" Jack called after them.

"I'm gonna kill him. I swear I'm gonna kill him." Jimmy muttered under his breath for only Eliza to hear, doing everything he could to just keep walking and not go back to rearrange the magician's face.

Inside she looked towards the man who was running the register and smiled at him. Anna led Jamie towards the ski section and started to search around, before pulling out a set of skiis and handing them to Jamie.

"Now to get you some boots." Anna said as she motioned for Jamie to follow her towards the boots, she looked at Jamie's feet for a moment before pulling out a pair that looked like they would fit her. "Go ahead and try those on."

Jamie smiled, accepting the equipment Anna gave her, gently setting it aside to accept the boots sitting down to try them on. They seemed to fit well, and Jamie stood up, smiling happily. "It seems good. You've got a good eye, for that" She said, picking up the ski's and holding them in the crook of her arm. 

She still couldn't believe she was going to be skiing. She couldn't believe she was here, in the cold. Well, she did want to experience everything the world had to offer. And to simply have fun. and that's why I kept his number she thought to herself with amusement. "Well. I'm probably going to fall over a lot, and end up half frozen, but fun is fun, so lets get out there"

"Working here for most of your life you could know a thing or two about getting the right sizes for people." Anna said with a soft smile as she held Jamie back up to her feet, and then went over to grab her own which was set up in the back of the store. Anna came out holding her own pair of skiis and motioned for Jamie to follow behind her. "C'mon lets go hit the slops and i'll teach you everything that I know." Anna said.

She headed out of the little shop and headed out through the back doors back into the cold mountain air as she looked up at the skii lift that would take them up the mountain and where most of her students that had signed up for the class will be.

 

 Jamie followed after Anna, juggling the ski'sand ski sticks. at the crunch of snow under her feet, Jamie looked down and about her. She had never seen so much white. It seemed...almost magical. But the bench would always be her favorite place. 

 

 Once they were at the lesson, Jamie tried to put the skiis on, but failed, ending up landing flat on her butt, laughing. "I'm sorry, I'm normally much more graceful then this" Chuckling, she scrambled up, poking the sticks into the ground, she once more tried to put the skiis on. 

Anna looked at Jamie and laughed slightly seeing the girl having a little bit of trouble trying to get the skiis on. "Here let me show you." Anna said as she set one of the skiis down into the snow. "So you put them on one at a time, and they should just click right in." Anna said as she set her foot down until there was a click and then she got down onto her knee and strapped her foot in.

"Then you do it with the other." Anna told her as she did the same exact thing to her other skii she lightly adjusted her foot and slid her feet around and through the snow. "Now you try." Anna said with a soft smile.

Jamie smiled at Anna, watching as she showed how to get onto the skiis. Jamie tried again, copying Anna's moves, and eventually with a bit of difficulty she got the skiis on. It felt quite odd to be standing on bits of wood, that didn't like to stay still. She constantly shifted, trying not to fall on her butt again. She had a feeling she was going to freeze it. 

She tried to use the sticks to keep her balance, "Okay" She said when she managed not to fall again, "What now?"

Anna gave Jamie a soft smile as she managed to get the skiis on her feet and didnt fall this time, though she was having a difficult time staying still. "Now just watch what I do." Anna said as she slowly slid one foot and then the other at least to get her used to moving.

"Just move your feet like I am, its how you walk with the skiis on." Anna said as she watched the other skiiers going down the mountainside. "Now when you are going down a hill and you want to slow down move your feet to a triangle position, that will slow you down or move your feet horizontal the way you are moving."

Jamie listened. She really tried to take it in, and to transfer it into the movement, but perhaps Jamie just wasn't made for the snow. As soon as she tried to put her feet into a triangle position, the skiis slipped out from under her and she fell on her backside. "I have a feeling my butts going to be well known to the ground by the end of the day" She said with amusement, as she tried to figure out how to get up. 

It wasn't easy, but she eventually managed it. "Well. No time like to present to try, right?" She drew in a deep breath, and gave Anna a wicked smile, before pushing off frm the hill. 

She didn't realise just how fast she could pick up speed. Her heart leaped into her throat, and a cry struggled to be released. She tried the traingle thing, tried to stop herself with the ski sticks and then just gave up, and practically dove into a fall. She had no idea where her sticks ended up, as she sat there just about spred out like a star fish. 

She burst out laughing, and looked around for Anna "I might need a hand to get up, I appear to have got myself into a pickle"

Anna watched as Jamie got up and couldnt help but let out a giggle as she watched Jamie ending up and falling onto her ass, she watched as Jamie got herself back up to her feet again. "It just takes practice i'll get you to be a professional skiier in no time." Anna said with a smile as she watched Jamie suddenly turning herself down the hill and quickly went after her. Anna pushed herself down the hill passing by other skiiers and snowboarders.

Eventually Anna caught up to Jamie at the very end and watched as her little pupil falling out onto the snow once more. She laughed again as she quickly stopped herself as her skiis kicked up snow and came to a stop just by Jamie.


"Let me help ya out there then, the snow seems to really love you." Anna said with a laugh as she helped Jamie back up onto her feet. "I think we should take a break, and get you some hot chocolate." 

---

---

---

---

The sands were hot upon the soles of her feet- of course he was going to be out here… sweating and beating away under the strong heat and rays of the sun; was it not where he was always found when things were bearing down upon his mind..?

Having taken only but a moment of pause in the open doorway, Odette had already taken it upon herself to make her way across the eatery, and out into the open space of the King’s private training grounds, only coming to a stop once she had come but a few feet away from the man who had given her the allowance and the freedom to be able to call the Pride Lands her home. Scar had done much for her since their chance meeting at Swan Lake… given her a home, cleaned her up, put clothes upon her back, taught her just what it meant to be a royal…

..to be a Princess…

“..how could you..! Speak your mind- tell me what it is that I have done to anger you so that you would see fit to have my studies doubled..!” No longer seeming to fear the wrath of the blade as much as she had upon her first arrival, she moved herself around the other side of the training dummy which her father had been using for practice, her bright light blue eyes flicking over to it so that she could watch on for a few moments as small chunks of the wood splintered away at the force before she once more let her gaze meet with his, the gentle breeze causing her long though delicately curled locks of blonde hair, along with the beautiful material of her dress to flutter lightly around her.

“You knew… You knew that I had plan to meet with Shenzi and Ed in the marketplace..! They were to take me shopping before accompanying me to the races..!”

Dropping her hands down to the front of her dress, Odette took a gentle hold of the material, balling her hands up into fists and holding it up ever so slightly as she took a couple more steps closer to him, her expression showing that she was truly unhappy with how things had gone down, “I had to send word with the guard that I would be unable to meet with them..! ..they are my only friends… and I broke word thanks to your actions…”

Grunting, with one final, powerful swing, the edge of the sword became embedded into the wood, the tang of the blade wobbling with the force it had taken to do so. Taking a moment to wipe the sweat from his brow, Scar took a moment to look at the tiny blonde who had mustered up the courage to speak to him in such a way. He couldn't help it... he smiled. Two months ago, she was barely able to meet his eye when he had brought her back with him from Swan Lake. The Pride Lands had been so overwhelming, the poor girl wanted to do nothing but study so she didn't have to worry about socializing with others.

Shaking his head though still holding his smile, Scar grabbed the hilt of the sword and with a powerful jerk, wrenched it free from its entrapment, only to return it to the sheath attached to his hip on the batters.

"Anger has not driven me to action today, promise made.." Scar chuckled, turning once more to face her keeping his hand on the sheath of his sword by sheer habit and placing his free hand on top of it to rest.

"And involvement with the Hyenas held no place in my decision, either." he assured her. "The shopping can wait - they have had... larger upsets with me before... it is not something they can't handle now..." Clearing his throat, pushing aside a few series of specific thoughts that had then entered his mind, he returned his attention to Odette.

"Your studies have been doubled this day because tomorrow, there will be none."

It was an outright lie. His reasons behind extending her classes had nothing to do with tomorrow. But after he had finished with his late brother's wife and was able to take to the sands to work off a bit of extra testosterone, it gave him time to think of what exactly he was going to tell her.

"Your sixteenth birth year approaches. I will have plans made and seen to, by your instruction. I've the rest of this day and all of tomorrow to see desires met."

She couldn’t help but take pause at his words; confusion clearly written all over her soft features as she continued to stare up at him where he stood before her.

..her sixteenth birth year..?

They had spoken of her birth a few times past since she had first been brought to live within the Pride Lands; never before had she celebrated the fact that she had been born… it wasn’t exactly something, that after her fourteenth year, that Rothbart had ever really taken seriously; and it was because of such a fact, and the knowledge that each year the day seemed to change, that she had been unable to answer Scar when he had first asked her the date of which she had been born.

“..see desires met..?”

Relaxing the grip she had upon the front of her dress, Odette allowed her gaze to wander for only a few moments before eventually, she was able to bring it once more back up to meet with the man she now called her father, her body still holding firm in its place before him, “..I would not know where it is to begin… never before has such celebrations been held in my honor; nor have I ever dreamed that they would be… Is-... Is such a thing truly of importance to celebrate..?”

Scar's smile faded somewhat, and his gaze turned to that of sympathy. Slowly, he dropped his gaze and shook his head, opening up his arm to her as he then approached her and put it around her small frame.

"Walk with me." It was a command, but it came out soft. He started the pace, slow and casual, as he guided her across the sands he had been training on and back into the castle.

"Do you not think your life worth celebrating?" he asked, taking on the tone of a scholar, pushing for questions that they already knew the answers to. "Becoming a woman in The Pride Lands is a day of celebrating, unmatchable to any other. Birth years are celebrated annually, recognizing achievements and growth made in year past. But when a woman first passes blood, there is so much more to celebrate. A girl becomes a woman, and a woman can become a mother, and mothers produce heirs - future Princes and Kings to lead this Kingdom into prosperity." He stopped walking, pulling his arm back from around her shoulders and instead turned to face her, resting then both his hands on either shoulder and made direct eye contact.

"There is much worth celebrating. And what's more... you will be announced to my Kingdom as Odette, Princess of The Pride Lands. You will, by bond and blood, truly become one of us."

He-... He wished to celebrate her becoming a woman..?

Unable to tear her gaze away from his once he had taken a gentle hold of her shoulders, she bit down softly upon her lower lip, chewing on it nervously for a few moments as she allowed her mind to wander over what it was he had been explaining to her… She was to become a woman when first she began to bleed..? It was something that had happened a few years prior; when she had emerged from the waters of the lake to find part of her dress stained crimson with that of her own blood.

It had been something that had terrified her… enough to call upon her captor for help.

“..I have bled for a few yearly cycles past… and though explained to me that it now meant I was a woman; I knew not of its importance… only that such a thing frightened me enough to call upon Rothbart for guidance…”

Scar nodded in understanding. He had figured as much. Rothbart was an idiot. She was nearly sixteen - such a milestone in her life was sure to have already happened. But that didn't make her any less of a woman, and the thought had him smiling once more back at her.

"Then we've years of neglected celebration to catch up on."