Into the Woods

[AHeartlessNobody]

Journey Into the Woods With Us....

AHeartlessNobody's Characters

Rose (Daughter of Sleeping Beauty)

"I just want to know who I am and where I came from. Wouldn't you want to know?"

Name:
Rose Williamson

Age:
20

Parents:
Aurora(Briar Rose) and Phillip

Race:
Human

Pendent:
Because her pendant was in the shape of a rose, the couple that found her saw it and named her Rose, which was actually her real name in the first place.

Which Shadow Animal Came to You:
A small deer

Wish:
She wishes to find out who her real parents were.

Voice:

Theme Song:

Biography:
Rose was partially named after the name the fairies had given her mother. She was the last of them all to get kidnapped, leaving all the kingdoms in a tizzy. Hostis, like he had with all the other children, had left her abandoned in the forest of her kingdom and was found by a surprisingly kind couple. They took her in as their own, though they told her at a young age how they had found her. She grew up knowing this couple was not her parents and because of this, even though she loved the couple dearly, was always burning for the answer as to who her real parent were and what had happened to them. Rose grew up into a beautiful young lady, much like her mother, and her 'parents' got many offers to arrange her into marriages. But, because the young girl seemed so unwilling to marry, for the longest time, they refused all offers. Until she turned 18. When she turned 18 they sat her down and told her that they worried about her. She wouldn't be young forever and if she didn't get married soon and have a husband to take care of her, they worried no one would after they had passed. So, they explained to her that they had arranged for her to marry a higher class noble and would not hear any arguments about it. And she didn't say a word about it. She knew it wouldn't change anything. Words never did. But action would. And so, to avoid marrying a man she had never met, ran off, running away Into the Woods.

Other:
Growing up in a upper middle class home in the kingdom, Rose was raised to be reserved and quiet spoken, so sometimes it might seem like she just follows what anyone will tell her. She is also very gullible and doesn't have her eyes open to what the real world can be like. Needless to say, she probably has some waking up to do.

Rapalia (Daughter of Rapunzel)

"Love doesn't exist. People are just natural liars and will try to hurt you any way they can. Love is just a word people can use against others. It has no meaning. It's just a tool people use to move up and get what they want."

(Her eyes are green, not blue)

Name:
Rapalia, though she will often go by Ali because she thinks her name sounds weird.

Age:
17
Species:
Human

Pendant:
The same pendant as her brother, but a little smaller and with a different chain to make it more fitting for a girl. Just like her brother's it has her name engraved into the back of it.

Child of:
Rapunzel and Eugene

Which Shadow Creature Came to You:
A fox

What is Your Wish:
To be able to tell when ever someone is lying to her or telling the truth.

Voice:

Theme Song:

Biography:
Ali was an infant, just a few days old, when the heirs were stolen from the cribs and beds by that evil creature. She was just a baby and so all she could do at the time was cry. She was found by a young man and his wife and taken in. When she was a young girl though, she saw the marriage of the two fall apart and it scarred her.

Yet, apparently it didn't scar her enough to make her shun love. When she was at the young age of sixteen, she 'fell in love' with a young man from her small town. He was kind, caring, and always said the sweetest things to her. But, apparently, she wasn't the only one he said sweet things to. While walking around the town, she found a few situations where she saw him, sweet talking to other women. At first, she brushed it off as him just being a nice guy. That was, until she caught him kissing another girl, much like he had kissed her with his 'true loves kiss'. When confronting him, he stated this was just who he was and that she was stupid for actually believing he had loved her.

From that moment forward, Ali decided that love didn't exist and that she would never fall into a trap like that again.

Other:
Ali truly believes that love doesn't exist and distances herself from any kind of romantic situation that might over wise prove her wrong.

She believes even now that the man and woman that found her are truly her parents, never having been told otherwise.

Not mentioned in her biography above, Ali discovered she had some sort of healing powers when she was seven years old and her pet cat got sick and was dying. She had sat there holding it, trying to comfort the dying creature, and in doing so began humming it a tune. This tune was just a lullaby, though she was so sure her 'mother' had never sung it to her before. She just somehow knew the tune (just the notes, not the words). As she held the cat, continuing to hum that tune, her hands began glowing and suddenly the cat was healed. That was when she first discovered her power but has kept it a secret ever since, only using it when she absolutely needs to.

Mirabella (Daughter of the Witch)

"Witches never win. We will forever be hated by human kind. We have never and will never, get a happy ending."

Name:
Mirabella Carmian

Age:
18

Parents:
The Wicked Witch(named Elphaba) and an unnamed Warlock.

Race:
Witch

Pendant:
Her pendant is a necklace given to her by her father before his death. She holds it very dear to her.

Which Shadow Animal Came to You:
The Shadow Creature that came to her took the form of a cat. She will name him Rino (ree-no).

Wish:
To become human so she can finally be accepted by humans and find her own 'happily ever after'.

Voice:

Theme Song:

Biography:
Though Mira can not remember it, her mother was not always evil. Her mother, although she was a witch with darker magic, hadn't up to that point harmed anyone, and had even done some good with her magic. Her father was the same, using his magic for good as well. Only even when all you do is good, bad things can find you. Even at this point in time, because of term-oil within the kingdoms about some witches that had chosen the path of evil, humans had taken to picturing all witches and warlocks that way, and because of this, her father, when Mira was just a few months old, had been killed by a group of humans passing through the woods. Her mother had never forgiven that, and her father's death had left her mother's heart cold and bitter toward humans. It was because of this, that her mother had turned on the humans and wanted to take over their kingdoms. Mira though never knew anything of her mother's plans. The Wicked Witch, in a attempt to shield Mira from those evil humans, kept her within a barrier. The barrier was not seen, but was created by magic to keep those without magic out. Only magic wielders could break the barrier, leaving Mira safe from humans as long as she was within that barrier that surrounded their home within the woods.

Yet, Mira was a curious child, and when she was seven, got her first taste of how cruel humans really could be. The seven year old girl, curious about what lied in the woods beyond the barrier her mother had set up, left the protection and traveled just a little further into the woods, where she met a group of humans children playing a game of pretend. She was more than happy to join in. They played for about a half hour, when the children decided they wanted to change stories and play prince and princesses, which of course, included a evil witch. Now, Mira didn't think much of this. She thought it was just a fun game, and because she was a witch, offered to play the part of the witch. And it was in playing it, that she had showed her powers to these children, who were immediately disgusted by her. They called her names, threw mud at her and pushed her to the ground, threatening to drag her into the kingdoms and hand her over to the royals to be killed, most likely learning such things from watching their parents say and do the same things to magic wielders. Thankfully, her mother had been near by and had chased the children off, bringing the disheartened and hurt Mira back home, where Mira never dared to leave the barrier again. Still though Mira remained curious.

Her mother always told her that witches never would be considered good. They were doomed to living life in the darkness and to be hated by humans. That humans considered them worthless and would never understand them. And Mira wondered what she could do to make it so that humans didn't hate her. She spent her life reading storybooks(books that told the stories of the princess and princes who lived happily ever after after killing the witches. her mother had stolen these for reference on what mistakes no to make when attacking humans, but Mira read them with the fascination in the fairy-tales themselves), and taking them to heart. It was always a happy ending for the humans, yet not for the witches. After taking this fact in over and over again with every story she read through out the years, she came to the conclusion that she didn't want to be a witch anymore. She wanted to be human. She began to hate her powers and hate herself. She wanted to make a new her. And when approached by one of Hostis's Umbra's, she sees this as her chance to do so, not knowing the danger that lies for her when she goes Into the Woods.

Other:
Mira has come to consider herself evil because she is a witch, even though she uses her powers for anything but evil. She considers herself evil because of what she is, rather than what she does, which is why she wishes to change what she is and wishes to turn human.

Conner (Son of Queen Elsa)

"It sucks, ya know? To have something wrong with you... To be a freak... To never fit in... To never belong..."

Name:
Conner Fenix

Age:
21

Species:
Human (with abilities like Elsa)

Child Of:
Elsa

Your Shadow Creature:
Moose

Wish:
To be normal and to not be a freak that everyone stares at differently.

Voice:

Theme Song:

Pendant:

Biography:
After Conner was dropped in the woods, it didn't take him long to come across a village in which he was soon stopped by an older man. This man had never been able to have kids of his own due to his wife dying at a young age and he never remarrying, but he decided to take in Conner as his own. They worked together selling plants that they grew themselves until the old man passed away. He left Conner everything, but Conner decided that now he had no one he would take off on his own and find out what had happened so long ago to his memory.

Other:
Conner's pendant helped him control his magic as best he can. His mother gave it to him when he was little and told him to always wear it and he's never taken it off.

Rannon (Son of Rapunzel)

"I'll show them. They'll see. They can't push me down forever. I'll be something one day. Just wait."

Name:
Rannon Fitzherbert

Age:
21

Parents:
Rapunzel and Eugene

Race:
Human

Pendant:
His pendant is pictured below. On the back of the pendant it has his name engraved into it, which is how he knows his name is really Rannon.

Which Shadow Animal Came to You:
Lizard

Wish:
His wish is to be the most successful man in the land(fame and fortune wise), to prove wrong those who always said he would amount to nothing.

Voice:

Theme Song:

Biography:
After being kidnapped and taken from his parents, he was left in the woods of his kingdoms by Hostis, where he was found by an old man whom worked as a stable hand for an upper class family in order to earn his keep(in other words, the old man worked there to earn a place to stay and a little money for food). The old man took care of him and when Rannon was old enough he started to help with the work in the stables as well, letting the old man rest more. When Rannon was twelve though, the old man passed away, leaving Rannon alone. he now continues to work as a stable hand, but wishes to get away and discover new things. And his first step to discovering those things is when he ventures Into the Woods.

Other:
The family he works for is a high class family that often have their noses in the air. In other words, they are spoiled and think themselves to be higher than anyone around them, very much so with Rannon.

Ashton (Son of the Fairy Godmother)

"Good magic needs to be returned before evil can take over the kingdoms completely. If I don't get my powers back, then everyone will fall to the evil that is the Witches."

Name:
Ashton Thomason

Age:
23

Species:
As embarrassing as it is for a guy to say, he is technically a Fairy.

Child of:
The Fairy Godmother and a lesser known male fairy

Which Shadow Creature Came to You:
An owl

What is Your Wish:
To return good magic to the kingdoms

Voice:

Theme Song:

Pendant:
A necklace that his mother gave to him as a reminder that some day their magic will return and that they will then be able to start granting people's wishes again just like his mother did for Cinderella.

Biography:
He remembers the day the magic went away very well. He was six years old, sitting in his home with his mother, being schooled on how to use his own magic that he had just gotten old enough to have, when everything changed. The skies that had just a moment ago been bright blue, grew black and lightening began to flash threw the skies. Everything grew blurry around he and his parents. When he work, his small family discovered something horrible.

Their magic was gone.

Growing up the rest of his life, a fairy without magic, was difficult. He felt so helpless to everything around him, especially when just a day after he lost his powers, the children of the six kingdoms vanished into thin air and they could do nothing about it. Despite loosing his powers though, he was still raised as a fairy and taught all about magic and the different creatures that could(or used to be able to) wield it. He grew up just as any fairy before him had, just minus the powers to go along with the lessons.

Other:
He grew up knowing he had lost his magic because of witches, and even having a few encounters with those people, he found out how to spot the signs of witch's magic, which helps him to stay out of trouble when it comes to avoid conflict with those evil creatures, since he has no way to protect himself otherwise.

MarilynFae's Characters

Skye(Daughter of Snow White)

Name:
Skye Mayson

Age:
19

Species:
Human

Child Of:
Snow White

Your Shadow Creature:
Bird

Wish:
To know her past and her parents.

Voice/Theme Song:

Pendant:

Biography:
After Skye was dropped into the woods she found a path into a small village where a young boy took interest in her. They played to themselves for awhile before he said he had to go home and she asked if she could go with him. He agreed and they went back to his house and his parents took her in. They were a very wealthy family and grew up happy. She worked in the gardens and learned to sew and play music for festivals. Once her and the boy turned seventeen he was entered into the army and a few months later a letter was delivered that he had passed alway in battle. She was distraught that she had lost her first friend and ran away into the woods where a birth brought her a black letter.

Other:
Growing up with enough money made Skye seem like she had everything she wanted, but she also grew up very sad and confused as to why and how she ended up where she was instead of where she was meant to me. She stays to herself, a sad look always on her face when she doesn't think anyone is looking, but tries to look happy while around others.

Beth(Child of Cinderella)

"I don't know what's worse: To be trapped in a world where I know who I am and I hate myself, or to be in a world I hate and don't know myself."

Name:
Elizabeth Gray (Beth)

Age:
18

Child Of:
Cinderella and Prince Charming

Race:
Human

Pendant:
(When the carriage is opened it shows her name, Beth.)

Your Shadow Creature:
A mouse

Wish:
To stop the Rulers from being so cruel to the peasants or classes under them. To have everyone treated the same.

Voice/Theme Song:

Biography:
After Beth was dropped into the forest like all of the other lost children, she roamed around curiously. It was the first time she had ever seen the world beyond the castle walls, and she was curious as to what the world held within it. She stumbled into a barn where the saw the huge horse stabled up and ready to ride. Immediately she fell in love with the animal and was reaching up to touch it when a woman came in and stopped her. The couple lived on a farm, the woman selling goods in the city village and the male working on the farms to earn money. They took her in as their own and raised her. Once she was old enough, they told her how they had found her. She became curious as to who she was before she stumbled into the small barn and the more she began to explore, the more she realized how cruel the world could be. Anytime she got close to a castle or a queen or king her head began pounding so much that she couldn't take it. Once she turned eighteen her parents told her that they had to either sell her off to a family so she could help them or she would have to marry their son. She ran away later that night and entered the woods, later that night receiving the strange letter.

Other:
Growing up on a farm she learned to cook and clean, tidying up everything as she went along. She learned how cruel the higher people could be to some of the peasants and hated the way they were treated. She always stood up for them and tended to blurt the way she felt out and be completely frank and honest. She doesn't hold things in very well.

Brea (Daughter of Belle)

Name:
Breanna Rondelle (Brea)

Age:
19

Species:
Human

Child Of:
Belle

Your Shadow Creature:
Rabbit

Wish:
To know who she is, her identity, and for people to accept her for who she is.

Voice/Theme Song:

Pendant:
(A bracelet with various keys and a clock on the front. If you open the clock up it has a heart with a compass. Her mother gave it to her and told her to always follow her heart, whatever direction it was going.)

Biography:
Breanna was the fourth child taken and dropped into the woods. Her mind took her towards a trail where she followed and found a small town where a young man picked her up. He was the towns doctor, so he helped her and made sure she was okay before deciding to take her home with him. She grew up as the doctors daughter but never fit in. She was never good enough to be in any of the groups of children and she never felt like she belonged anywhere. She was an outsider. When she was seventeen she wrote her father a note and explained to him that she had to leave but promised him she would come back for him one day. She left and tool off in the woods, surviving on her own through learning to hunt and no which berries were good and bad. Although she was very gullible, she was still very smart. A couple years after living on her own she was sent a letter from a rabbit.

Other:
Because she never felt like she fit in, Brea never let people get close to her because when she did she either hurt them or they hurt her. She stands up for herself and isn't afraid to call your bluff, but is respectful enough to stop when she's had enough. She's not picky but she is very stubborn. Because she grew up not fitting in, she learned to take care of herself and keep her heart and feelings to herself.

She is scared that if she finds out her previous life she is going to not fit in again and she won't accept herself. All she really wants is to be accepted and wanted.

Hendrick (Son of Hans)

"Don't punish me for a crime I didn't commit. I'm not the same man my father was. I never will be. So don't put me on his level."

Name:
Hendrick Anderson

Age:
20

Parents:
Hans of the Southern Isles and a noble woman

Race:
Human

Pendant:
A sword charm that he keeps around his neck.

Which Shadow Animal Came to You:
A horse, one of whom he doesn't exactly get along with.

Wish:
To make people stop judging him based on where he came from and who is father was.

Voice:

Theme Song:

Biography:
Hendrick is the youngest of MANY cousins. With all his older cousins in the lead to be ruler of the Southern Isles, he realized rather soon that he had no chance of becoming king and has come to terms with that. He had heard, even as a child, of his own father's mistakes and the horrible things he did in attempt to become king. In hearing these things, he had decided he would never become like that and instead focused on learning as much as he could about politics and war so that he could possibly one day be at least an adviser to his cousin that would take the throne.

Yet, that didn't stop people from looking down on him. He is the only child of his parents and so everyone, including his own cousins, would often belittle him and make him feel as if he too were a criminal, even though he had done nothing wrong. Still, he keeps pushing on and trying his best to better himself in attempt to make others see that he truly is different from his father.

Currently, now that he is older, he is attempting to rekindle the relationship between the Southern Isles and Arendelle, in hopes of fixing what his father did and making things peaceful between the two countries once again.

Other:
Unlike his father, he does have a good heart. Sometimes he's easily mislead and can have a few slip ups or let his anger get the better of him. But for the most part he does mean well.

Damien (Son of Sleeping Beauty)

"When do I stop? When do I stop checking behind my shoulder, or making sure I have my necklace? When do I stop having to look for myself?"

Name:
Damian Long

Age:
20

Species:
Human

Child Of:
Sleeping Beauty

Your Shadow Creature:
Dragon

Your Wish:
To live in a castle and eat the finest foods in the kingdom.

Voice/Theme Song:


Pendant:
(Damian had his name in craved in the back of the pendant of the Dragon)

Biography:
Damian was dropped into the woods and wondered around until a hinter found him and took him back to his sister. The old lady gave him soup everyday and fed him as much as she could spend. She took care of him and showed him how to work in the fields and her neighbor taught him to hunt. Any food he ate either came from him hunting and killing it or the old lady picking or growing fruits and did vegetables. He never had a nice meal and always wore the same old, ragged clothes. Once the old lady died when he was 18, he took off through the woods and then received the message like the other lost children.

Other:
Due to him living in poor conditions his entire life, he doesn't trust many people with anything. He has grown resentful of the rich and thought of them as the bad guys in his story. He doesn't talk much and stays reserved to himself unless directly spoken to.

Gavan (Son of Princess Anna)

Name:
Gavan Magnuson

Age:
21

Species:
Human

Child Of:
Anna

Your Shadow Creature:


Pendant:
(His mother's wedding ring set which he wears around his neck on a silver chain)

Wish:
To find his cousin and bring him home to live with their family again.


Voice:

Theme Song:

Biography:
Ashton was the only kid never captured because he wasn't a threat to the kingdom. The feeling that 'they' were coming for him always terrified him, making him grow up close to both his parents and his aunt Elsa. As the years grew more and more, he became more curious as to why and who would kidnap all the children of the kingdoms. There was a feeling inside of him that told him they were still alive. He could basically feel his cousins presence, almost close enough to touch but just inches short from reaching him. By the time he grew to be nineteen he faced his parents and aunt and told them that he was going on one last mission to find them. It wouldn't be days journeys like the other trips he had made, but instead he would go alone and not come home until he found them.

Other:
Ashton grew up being protected by his family. They never let him even get a scratch on his body, so he was grown up to have no experience in the world. Much like his mother he always saw the good in people and never assumed the worse. Which this made him optimistic and protected, but he came off to others as as spoiled baby who got anything they want since he was now the only child still in the kingdoms.

 

[AHeartlessNobody]

"Stay here and finish up those potions for me. I'll be back in a few hours."

"Yes Mother." Mirabella stated with a nod as she watched her mother put on her black cloak, walking with the older woman to the door. She herself knew when her mother said it would be a few hours, that really meant she would be back after night fall. When her mother went on her outings outside of the barrier it was always like that. What her mother was doing while out there in the woods was a mystery to even Mira herself, but knowing her mother, it was probably her reeking some form of havoc on the humans. Sometimes she wondered if her mother lived only to trouble the non-magic wielders, but she never thought too long on it, a her own urge to leave the barrier as well easy blocked off those thoughts every time it came across her mind.

Her mother turned the knob and was about to step outside of their small cottage when she turned sharply, a stern look on the Witch's face, "And Mira,"

"Yes Mother?" The girl questioned obediently as she could, bringing her mind away from her thoughts of freedom and back to the woman in front of her.

"Do not leave the barrier. Do I make myself clear? Those humans out there are--"

"'Mean and vile. They wouldn't hesitate to slaughter an innocent spell-caster or sell them off to the highest bidder in market.' I know Mother, I know. Now, go on before it gets too late." She commented, having heard the same warning every day for the last ten years of her life, ever since she had wandered outside of the barrier for the first time. It was a moment etched into her mind and always left a knot in her chest. Those human children had seemed so kind to her. They had let her join in and play with them. But the moment they found out she could do magic...they tore her apart and though the physical wounds had healed, the mental ones had left scars.

"Very good. Remember Mirabella, no matter how kind those beasts may seem, they will always hate us. Never trust a human." This warning was one of many, and after her mother had spoken it softly to her, kissing her forehead, the woman went off, ape flowing behind hr as she left the home and passed through the barrier just a mere fifteen feet in front of their home, heading off into the darkness of the woods.

"What's out there that keeps her leaving all the time? What is she searching for?" Mira whispered quietly to herself a she stared out into the woods a few moments, before slowly turning and walking back inside beginning the work her mother had given her. She was to make some simple potions and though it was a very complicated task, because she did this almost every day, it was something she had come to do with ease and great skill. Humming softly to herself, she began taking things off of the shelves and throwing each things at a time, in a certain order, into the calderon that stood in the middle of her mother's study.

She repeated this with every potion, and by noon she had done all of the potions her mother had told her to, leaving her free for the rest of the day until her mother was to return. Smiling slightly, she moved tot he book shelves that stood along the back wall of the study, running her hands over the old bindings of each leather bound book. Tilting her head to the side she was thoughtful for a moment, before deciding which one she wanted to read for the day, pulling a book entitled Sleeping Beauty off of the shelves.

These books were written by two men named the Grimm Brothers, who traveled from kingdom to kingdom, finding stories to write about. Most of those her mother had were the stories based on what Mira was sure had to be the rulers of the three surrounding kingdoms. There were other stories as well, but those were of more far off lands.

Taking the book in her delicate hands, she walked outside and rounded a corner when a creature about the size of a horse jumped in front of her, giving a roar that didn't even make her flinch. In fact, if anything, it annoyed the girl, "Girunii, go bother someone else. I'm busy."

Hearing her disinterest in him, her mother's pet dragon(whom she kept as extra protection for the cottage), snorted and made a grumbling sound, slinking off around another corner to go to the other side of the cottage and likely catch mice or tease the birds by chasing them off.

Shaking her head at the beast, she laughed under breath and flopped down in the grass under a large oak tree, smiling brightly to herself as she flipped open the book, "Once upon a time, in a beautiful kingdom, there lived a king and queen, of whom were blessed with a daughter. Everyone gathered to see the new princess, including three fairies. These good fairies were to each bestow a gift upon the child. One granted her beauty. Another granted her the sweetest voice one could hear. But, before the last fairy could grant her wish, an evil woman with dark magic...." Even though she had read this story countless times, Mira always paused at this part, a frown forming deeply on her face, "Cast a curse upon the child. On the princess's eighteenth birthday, she would prick her finger on a spinning wheel and die."

By now, the dragon had made his way over to her once more, laying down beside her to look at the book as well. Mira scratched his head and looked up at him, "That wasn't nice of her to do, was it Girunii?" The dragon grumbled again as if to share his thoughts, making her laugh and continue reading, "The evil woman vanished soon after placing this curse and the third fairy gave the princess a gift that would save the child's life if the curse were to be fulfilled. She decreed that should the princess prick her finger, she would not die, but fall into a deep sleep." She began flipping through the pages more, trying to skip to the end, "The princess is sent away....she meets the prince in the forest.....falls in love...blah, blah, blah....she gets sent back home to the castle, where she of course pricks her finger." Rolling her eyes she grinned, "Didn't see that coming. Curses are so unpredictable. Not." Finally coming to the end she started reading again, "The prince sat upon his white steed, sword held high as the evil woman shifted into a mighty dragon." She looked over at Girunii, who stood up tall and proud hearing this, giving a roar, causing Mira to laugh more and roll onto her back, continuing to read, "The dragon spit flame after flame out at the prince, but the prince was too quick. He lunged forward and...." She paused once again a deep frown coming back to her face, "he killed the witch, putting an end to her dark magic."

Sighing and not having the heart to read the rest, she shut the book and tossed it to the side, looking up to the clouds as she spoke to herself, "Why does the witch always have to die? Why can't just for once, the witch have the happy ending?" She whispered to herself, turning over on her stomach to stare out into the woods, "Once upon a time....there lived a lonely witch. This witch, was not like other witches, for she wanted a life beyond the boundaries that had been placed before her. She wanted to be a good person, yet knew she would never be accepted by humans, and because of this, hid herself away, waiting for the day she might be able to live a life away from the destiny that lays before every other witch. The day she would be accepted...." Sighing again, she moved to stand, "Which will be never. Only humans live happy lives and only prince's and princess's get happily ever afters."

Trying to shrug it off the best she could, she patted the large dragon's side and shrugged, "I'm going to go inside and maybe organize some of Mother's spell-books. I'm sure she would want--"

"Meeeeeow."

Blinking in surprise at the sound of a meow, she looked around, trying to find the source and from beyond the barrier, stood a small black cat with yellow eyes, staring straight at her. It just stood there, waiting, and finally, curious, Mira slowly approached the barrier, though didn't go past it at first, merely kneeling down to look at it from the other side. It was only then that she noticed a black piece of parchment under its paw in the grass, almost like the animal had brought it to her.

Pausing slightly, she was about to reach out and grab it through the barrier, when the animal took it into its mouth, jumping through to their side of the barrier, putting Mira into a little bit of a shock. The only things that could cross the barrier were those that bore magic. That meant either this animal was magical or was made of magic. Or maybe both. But whatever it was, Mira just had to see what was on that peculiar note it carried. And so, she took it from its mouth, reading.

You are one of twelve chosen to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

The letter was not signed, and right after she ha read it, the white words on the paper suddenly began to fade until she was left with a blank piece of black parchment. She held the paper tightly in her hands, slowly looking up to see past the barrier, an uneasy look on her face, "Into the Woods?" She looked back down at the blank letter, and then at the cat that looked at her with such expecting eyes, "Someone there will grant my wish?" The cat meowed, as if to answer her, and she looked to the woods, slowly stepped forward, "I can have my wish?" She said slowly to herself, letting it sink in before she began to smile again, and this time, it was a hopeful smile, "I can have my wish!"

Rushing into the cottage again, she grabbed one of her mother's black cloaks, slipping it on and putting the hood over her head, as well as grabbing a satchel and placing things such as food and a canteen for water in it, before she rushed back outside, "Girunii, protect the cottage while I'm gone! I'll be back soon!" She stated and went to the barrier, pausing to take in what she was about to do. She was about to leave the safety of her home. Nothing would protect her from the humans out there. She was all on her own in this little adventure of her. She took a deep calming breath before taking her first step out of the barrier and into the woods. Seeing she was ready, the little cat began running a little a head of her, "I guess I follow you then?" And though the cat didn't answer, she knew that was what she was supposed to do and began following the cat hurriedly, attempting to try and keep up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

​

"Alright girl, steady for me. I'll make this as quick as I can." Rannon commented, patting the brown mare on the side as he stood in the middle of the stables, horse shoe and hammer in hand, ready to nail the shoe to the bottoms of the female horse's hooves. He grabbed a stool from off to the side and sat down, patting her leg and having her lift it so he could place it in his lap and secure the shoe on comfortably. He repeated this with each hoof and when he was finally done getting them all on, grinned at the horse, holding out his hand, letting the animal eat the few sugar cubes he had for her.

Once he was done getting the shoes on, he made his way over to where they kept all the riding supplies, picking everything he needed in his arms, throwing the reins over his shoulder, walking back over, placing the saddle on, fastening it, before he went to putting the reins and such on her as well, the horse getting quite fussy about this, stomping her hooves and tossing her head, and all together just giving Rannon trouble. But, the young man had been doing this kind of thing for years and was used to horses that happened to have temperaments. He stayed calm with the mare, and every time she was took a break in between throwing her head he would fasten one or two things.

After a while, he had her all ready and smirked at her, patted her snout, "See? That wasn't so bad, was it?" The horse though seemed to disagree, snorting in his face, causing him to laugh and rake a hand through his dark hair, shifting his weight, "Okay, well, that's your opinion. I think you're just being silly and trying to give me a hard time." If looks could kill, Rannon should would be dead. He loved horses and he knew normally the horses were awfully fond of him. It was only when those high class snoods were about to ride the horses that the gentle creatures would get anxious.

Sighing, he shook his head and began brushing her, "I know, girl. I don't like those inexperienced rag dolls riding you and the others either. But it's not my place to say anything." Once he had her finished, he did the same with two other horses and as soon as he finished with that third horse, three obviously high class people, an older couple and their daughter, came strutting down in their fancy garb, complaining all the while how the stables stunk (as if they expected a place where animals lived to smell like roses. and in reality the stables smelt better than most in the town because Rannon worked so hard to keep them that way), about how hot it was outside, and as though he couldn't hear him, about Rannon himself. Putting him down as if he were nothing but a dog at their disposal.

When they walked into the main area of the stable, the daughter spoke up, getting angry about the horse that was suited up for her to ride.

"I don't like this one! I want the white one!"

Standing up straight, Rannon spoke, "Blizzard is still injured from your last ride on him. He wouldn't be able to make the trip."

"Yes he would! Get me my horse! NOW!"

He stepped forward a little, trying his best to stay calm with the woman, "Mam, if you take him out, an accident could happen and he could--"

The woman, even before he finished speaking, was unnecessarily angered by his words, and drew a hand back before bringing it forward to make contact wit his cheek, the smack sounding off loudly, "Are you calling me clumsily! You have better be lucky my father doesn't hold your pay for even suggesting such a thing, you filthy rat! Now get me my horse!"

Though Rannon hated the thought of the white horse getting hurt more because of the incompetence of the woman, he knew with the horse not being his that his hands were tied and he had no choice but to suit that horse up instead, her jaw clenched the whole time. When he was done, he silently boiled as he walked the horse up to the woman and stepped back to allow her room to mount the animal.

Only, when she did, the horse immediately bucked throwing her off with a shriek, the woman landing in a unfortunate pile of....well....needless to say it was a rather smelly and disgusting place to land. Now it was the woman's turn to boil as she screamed out in anger, rushing toward the house, and seeing such a sight, Rannon couldn't help but muffle a chuckle. That chuckle though, of course angered the young woman's father more and he turned his rath on the young man, "You think that was funny?!"

Straightening again, Rannon spoke up, shaking his head, "No sir, I didn't think--"

"Don't you dare lie to me boy! You thought it was! In fact, I have a feeling you even planned this!"

"What?" Rannon asked in surprise, now finally getting angry, "What makes you think I would do such a thing? Your daughter was the one who prodded an injured horse to do what it didn't want to! And she got what she deserved for it!"

"You shall pay for suggesting such a thing! You are fired! You better have be off of out property in one hours time! And you can forget about your pay for the month as well!" With that, the old man and his wife left the stables.

The angered and very much annoyed Rannon made his way to the small shack at the end of the property he stayed in, being quick to gather his things, not because the man said he only had an hour, but because h wanted to get out of here before he knocked the ignorant fool's head off. Stuffing everything he owned, which wasn't much aside from some clothes and the pay he had been saving up from his years of working there, and started walking, planning to leave as soon as possible when he paused, a crazy, yet satisfying idea coming to his head.

Hurrying back to the stables, he looked around, grinning when he saw Thunder. Thunder was a large black horse, which he had often used to run to market for the family, but now, he was taking the horse as his own. If they didn't want to pay him for his month's worth of work, then he would take what he felt would suffice for the lack of pay and all the years of being grossly underpaid and abused for the good work he did.

Gearing up the horse, he laughed as he took off, heading to the market first. There, he grabbed a few things; some apples for the horse, loafs of bread to eat, a canteen to put water in for his trip, and a coat, as winter was rolling in and the weather woudl surely be his greatest enemy. Once he had everything he needed, he turned his horse, heading down the road. He traveled for quite some time silently, hours passing, until he saw a stream on the side of the road and decided it would be good for he and horse to take a quick rest. So, hopping down, he lead the horse to the stream and let it drink, filling up his own canteen. Once it was filled, he knelled down, splashing his face with the water, when he saw something from the corner of his eyes.

Over beside him, sitting on a rock was a lizard about the size of his hand and curled in his tail, was a strange black piece of paper. Curious, he moved toward it, expecting it to run, when it calmly stayed there, only moving to let the paper drop and roll toward him. Picking the parchment up, he read it over, raising an eyebrow at the message,

You are one of twelve chosen to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

The message disappeared right before his green eyes and he looked back up, picking up the lizard to look at it When he did, it moved its tail, as if pointing in a certain direction, toward the woods. He looked between the lizard and the woods, before a wide, yet rather charming grin came onto his face, "Well, Thunder, " He said patting this horse's side, "I guess we're taking our trip through the woods now." Giving a happy laugh, he hopped onto the horse, and they took off, dashing through the trees.​

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Rose quietly stood there within the home of Lord Talik, staying obediently and very still by her father and mother as they spoke to the old man and his son. Lord Talik was one of the richest men in the kingdom, as working as an adviser for the king and queen surely payed much through the year. Rose should have considered all of this to be an honor. After all, to be betrothed to the son of such a high class man was something any middle class girl like her would die for. But, Rose was anything but thrilled on the inside. On the outside, in the eye sight of her mother, father, supposed fiance and Lord Talik, she was as poised and graceful as ever, the beautiful girl giving soft smiles and looking about curiously at what was supposed to be her new home with her future husband.

But, on the inside, Rose was dying. She didn't wish to marry this man's son, no matter how handsome or rich he might be. She wanted to marry for love, something her parents thought was silly. Her parents had been betrothed by their own parents, and so they found the only right way for a marriage to work was to be set up by the parents. They spoke to the Lord for a long while on matters such as his plans for his son's employment to the king after his father retired, if they would take over this house or if they would move into a home of their own, the matters of dowry, and other things parents of such a lovely young woman would ask when marrying her off to a man their daughter barely even knew.

The wedding was to be in two days time, but they were having Rose stay here until that time, as they stated, to get accustomed to the household and the people within it. She had agreed once more to do something she didn't wish to do, solemnly going along with whatever orders her parents were giving her. The servants were quick to bring her things in and up into the guest bedroom, where she would be staying until the wedding night.

After the long conversation between her parents had ended, there was a quick goodbye said between she and her parents, she kissing their cheeks and hugs being exchanged between them, before they left, leaving her with her so called fiance and future father in law. Her fiance was bold to approach her and give her his best charming smile, kissing her hand and as he held it, began to lead her away from the front door of their large home, "Come my dear. Let us go dine and then you can get some rest. A delicate thing such as yourself must be exhausted from such a long trip."

Rose did her best to give a flattered smile, allowing herself to be mentally unwillingly taken into the dinning hall, where dinner was already being set up. She sat beside the handsome young man, the food being brought out, and silently the three of the ate dinner. She could all the time though feel the young mans eyes on her and she wasn't too comfortable with it. Still though she didn't let her thoughts reach her expression and finished her dinner in peace.

Once dinner was done, she was led once again by her fiance to her room upstairs, where he kissed her hand and then her cheek with a word of goodnight, before letting her go into her room to rest. She closed the door and leaned against it, letting out a sad sigh, shaking her head to herself as she made her way over to the window, opening it up to look out and get some fresh air after such a tense situation for herself, "What in the world am I to do?" Leaning against the window sill and resting her head there on her arms, she looked out into the darkness of the night, and there at the edge of the woods, she saw something that made her stand up straight, curious.

There at the edge of the woods, stood a small deer. Once that could very well have been a fawn that might have lost its mother as she saw no doe in sight. She continued to watch it for a long moment, but the little thing didn't move from its spot and seemed to be staring back up at her, as if waiting for her to come down.

Looking outside of her window, she saw a trellis to the right of it that went from the roof, all the day to the ground. Knowing she couldn't go outside from the front door for fear of being spotted by Lord Talik or his son, she reached out and with delicate hands and grabbed hold of the wood, climbing out her window and slowly making her way from her third floor window toward the ground. She climbed slowly and even once almost slipped, clinging to the wood with a small high pitched yelp, before continuing her way down.

Finally making it to the ground, she slowly started to approach the small deer, and to her surprise, it let her get close. Kneeling down next to it, she smiled softly as she pet its head, giving a giggle, "Well, hello there little one. What are you doing out here by yourself, huh? Did you loose your mommy?" The deer nuzzled its head against her and it wasn't but a few seconds after that Rose finally noticed the note int he deer's mouth, written on black paper. She tilted her head to the side, taking it into her hands and unrolling it, reading the words aloud to herself,

"You are one of six chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted."

"My....wish?" She thought about it for a moment before looking back to the deer, "You mean, the wish of wanting to know who my real parents are?" She asked, holding the letter tightly in her hands. That was something she had been dreaming of her whole life and to find she might be so close to actually knowing who they were if she found the person that wrote this note, well, it was something that left her excited and nervous all at one. While she dreamed of this, Rose was a very sheltered, and somewhat spoiled, girl. She had never been out on her own or even in the woods.

She took a few hesitant steps toward the tree line before looking down at the small deer, "Will you lead me there? Please?" The little deer seemed to understand what she was saying because it took off a little quicker than she would want it to, leaving her trying to follow it as quickly a she could. it would never get too far ahead of her, but following it through the thick foliage and branches left the inexperienced girl stumbling and tripping, slipping down hills here of there with loud yelps in attempt to keep up.

​

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

​

THUMP! Was the continuous sound that Conner had been making all morning as he chopped a large pile of wood into a stack of firewood. After all, all he had to cook over was the fire place, so in order to make the fire he needed plenty of wood to do so. It wasn't like he needed the wood to stay warm anyway, with his ability to not grow cold. Or was it he didn't mind being cold? He wasn't really sure which way it was. As he moved to pick up a fresh log he saw from the corner of his eyes, a large animal right beside his home, as if waiting for him. He turned fully now to see it was a moose. Strange. Why would any animal be so close to his home? Curious to figure this out, he swung the ax and let it lodged into the chopping log.

He proceeded towards the creature with caution, thinking the moose would either just run away, or try to run at him with those long and broad antlers. He was hoping if either of those happened it would be the first option. As he got closer to it though, it was then that Conner noticed the black piece of paper in the moose's mouth. What was more was that the moose seemed to want to give the parchment to him, bending down and craning its neck toward him, as if holding it out for him to take. So with a gentle movement Conner took the parchment and began to read aloud and slowly:

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

His powers. The things that had been bringing him down and that he had been fighting with for so long. If he went to this person that had sent this letter, would they really be able to rid him of this curse. Surely it was a curse? Perhaps someone a witch had put on him when he was young? He wasn't sure, but either way, he wanted them gone. Then maybe he would be able to figure out the other things about his past, the things before he came into this life he was currently in.

Often times, Conner felt a sense of not belonging where he was. As if he was a puzzle piece in a puzzle and nearly fit, and almost completed the picture anyways. He felt as though he belonged to a different puzzle. This feeling had only grown stronger over the years. If this person that sent this letter could help him then surely he must take whoever it was up on their offer. Decided then and there to go with the letter he stood up strong and proud, as if he knew the choice he was making was right.

"Listen moose. I have to finish these chores at the very least alright. And at least find someone to take care of the animals here before I do go. So if you can wait I'll go with you." He didn't expect an answer from the wolf and before pocketing the letter he looked at it only to find the letters had gone. This puzzled him some but he couldn't change his mind now. He had given the moose his word.

Here at his home, he had a healthy lot of animals that had once belonged to the old man that had found him. Of course after that man died, they belonged to him now. A milking cow, a brood of chickens, and then a flock of goats. There were more goats than chickens, but the chickens provided more for the family, and of course the cow was the most important. So he had to make sure everything was okay because if they weren't then he might now have anything to come back to after getting his powers released from him. He found a bucket and loaded it with feed and brought along the egg basket. After herding two of the hens back into the pen he threw down the feed before going into the coupe and gathering a basket full of eggs. Being responsible and wise enough, after he had dropped a basket of eggs trying to carry to many things at once, he placed the eggs on the kitchen table. He then went out to feed the goats which had never given him any trouble and even though the large moose was behind him they didn't frighten.

Finally he went over to Envera and gave her, her feed before sitting down with a bucket under her. He rubbed his hands together to warm them up as she hated cold hands and had come close to kicking him in the past. He touched her gently to make sure she was okay with. She mooed lightly and watched him with big brown eyes before going back to eat. Knowing she was okay with his hands he milked her and then brought the milk inside.

Before leaving the house he knew he would need a few things. He found this hatchet that had been given to him when he was 12 and gave it the once over. Decided it might need to be sharpened he grabbed the honing stone and slipped it into his pocket. He also found his knife so that he could skin and clean an animal if he caught one as well as a piece of flint for fires. He then went into the kitchen and took half a loaf of bread which was to be his lunch anyways along with some cheese and butter made by Envera. Satisfied he had most everything he went to the door and grabbed his bow and quiver that only had 5 arrows left in it.

The bow had been had made by him and the help of their closest neighbor who was about a thirty minute walk from his home.Conner had worked as a farm hand once for about a month and in return the man had guided him into making his own bow. Finally satisfied he opened the door and began to walk his way with the food he had collected from the animals just moments ago, to the neighbor thirty minutes from him. Once there, it took very little to convince the man and his wife to take care of his animals in his leave. If they went to feed them, they could keep whatever supplies came from the animals, whether it be to use or sell. He even gave them what he had collected from the animals that day as well.

Once he knew his farm would be taken care of, he began walking toward the woods, ready to rid himself of the trouble that was his powers.

​

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


​

Magic.

Oh how things were so different without it. Even though it had been over 17 years they had been powerless, Ashton still remembered so clearly the feeling of magic coursing through his veins. The feeling that with his magic he could do almost anything and help just about anyone. Just like his mother had did with so many people, one of those even being the current queen of one of the surrounding kingdoms. They still associated with Queen Cinderella from time to time, but with their good magic gone, there really wasn't much reason for the fairies or other magical creatures to enter into the kingdoms, unless you were a witch wanting to cause trouble that is.

Those cursed witches. He hated them with a strong passion and he had no doubt in his mind that their kind was the cause of all the good magic disappearing. And even more so he wouldn't be surprised if one of those evil being were behind the disappearance of the infant rulers. It made him sick to know that someone could be so cruel as to snatch such young humans from their cribs and take them away from their parents. He could only hope whoever did that didn't kill the poor things.

It was a shame, that no one knew what had become of the eight heirs to the countries surrounding the forest. They had searched and searched, Aston himself even joining in a few of the searching when he got old enough to look, but nothing ever turned up. No signs at all that the children were alive. No signs that they were dead either. But honestly, what would have been worse for their parents and the people worried about them? Knowing that the children had been killed? Or not knowing what had happened to them at all? He wasn't sure, but either way, he felt for the children and their families.

Sighing, he walked from his room, a small book in his hands that held much information about different sorts of magic creatures that he had fashioned together during his studies with his mother. Flipping to the next page of his reading, he spoke to his mother while never looking away from the pages, "I'm going out to get some more parchment for my writing, mother. Is there anything you need me to get while I'm gone?"

"No dear. I don't need anything at this moment." His mother, white hair and all, sat in a chair by the fireplace, sewing something. He had no idea what it was she was making, but with how often she did sew it would become a bother for him to ask about everything single thing. After magic had been taken away, his mother had went on to learn other trades to occupy her time, trades only humans really knew, such as sewing and painting. It was all any of them could do now without their magic.

Nodding, he finally looked up from his book and place it into his pocket to walk over and give his mother a hug, grinning down at the old woman, "Alright. I don't know how long I'll be gone this time, but don't worry. I'll be back before you know it." With that, he turned and walked out of their small cottage home, hoping to get tot he nearest village by night fall. Not being a human, they didn't live in human villages, yet didn't live int he forest either like a lot of other magical creatures did. No, they lived in a large grassy plain, far away from both human kind and other magic wielders. It was quiet. It was safe. And it was home.

The only problem was the long walk to get to the closest human village and its market. Normally he and his mother grew their own food or got it from the forest, which was closer, but when it came to things such as parchment and other everyday supplies, most of the time they had to retrieve it from the humans. So, that's what he planned on doing right now.

That is, it was what he planned to do, until something strange happened.

As he walked along the road, intent on getting to that village as soon as possible, an owl (strange that such a creature would be out and about with the sun still up in the sky) landed in the middle of the road, causing him to stop and look at it in confusion. Just what was an animal like that doing here? Well, perhaps it would just fly off once he got close enough. No need to worry over such a encounter. Yet, as he got closer, it make no move to leave and in face just stared at him, something rolled up in its talon.

Confused, the young man approached the bird, slowly crouching down to look at it a moment. It didn't seem afraid of him, nor did it seem like it was going to attack him either. Looking down to see the thing in its talons was a letter of sorts, he curiously took it. So, was this a messenger owl? Possibly from the way it had brought this ting for him to reach. Unrolling the paper, he began reading it, curiosity coming to his eyes,

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

His wish to bring back the good magic? Is that what it was talking about? He sure hope that's what this meant. If not he was going to be sorely disappointed if he really did make it to that tree. He read over the paper a few more times before nodding to himself, "Hmmm, interesting." Rolling up the parchment, he stuck it into his waist band to hold it before looking back to the owl, "So big guy. Are you going to join me in the forest as well?"

With that question, the owl gave a small screech noise, hopping onto the male's shoulder as the young man turned his direction, now heading into the woods.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"Come on Rapilia. Just one night out? We can go horse back riding and--"

"First of all, its Rapalia. And second of all, no. I will not go out with you tonight. Nor any other night for that matter. So just leave me alone or else I will have my father after you." With that, the young blonde girl walked away from the young man trying to win her over. She was so over men trying to hit on her and trying to win her heart over. Some girls had ropes binding their hearts. Well, Ali had chains around hers, along with a few locks for extra measure. No one was getting into her heart again. Not after finding out the way he truly was.

She had loved him. He had become everything to her and she had though the feelings had been mutual. Just how many girls had he told the same things to? How many girls he courted? Kissing their hands and whispering sweet words to? It made her sick just thinking about it. She had been betrayed, thrown to the side and then laughed at by him for the fact she had believed his lies and had cared about him so.

Never again. If someone who had seemed to love her so much had betrayed her and made her feel like this, then she obviously couldn't trust any other man out there. That four letter word they might try to use on her. The one that would have any other girl swooning and falling into the man's arms, it didn't exist. Love was for fools. It was just a tool those men could use to get what they wanted and that was that. Once they had tricked the woman into thinking what they said was true, they would get bored, dump her to the side, and go after another woman. And she surely wasn't about to let that happen to her twice.

Sighing, she walked into her home and smiled as she greeted her mother in the ktichen, the older woman stirring a pot of stew, "Hello mother." She kissed the woman's cheek and the woman smiled back at her,

"Evening sweet heart. Could you pass me the salt please?" Nodding, Rapalia grabbed it and walked over, sprinkling some of it into the food as her mother continued to speak to her, "How was your trip to the market? Did you get the apples?"

Ali nodded, "Yes mam. I got the apples. The trip itself was....frustrating."

"How so, dear?" The woman looked up at her and Ali sat down in the chair beside her mother with a sigh, "One of the men, you know, the Bakerman's son, was trying to court me again. He and all the others in this village just won't give it up."

Sighing herself, her mother hugged her, placing a gentle kiss on the girl's forehead, "Men can be such cats when it comes to women. Always chasing and not giving up when the mouse says no."

"Mom, don't compare me to a mouse. That's just weird."

She laughed softly and nodded, "Well, you know what I mean. Just stay strong sweetheart. And next time if you have to, bring your father along."

"I suppose I might have to. Those beasts just won't give up." Standing up, Ali brushed a strand of her hair back, "I'm going to my room to read for a bit before dinner." Once her mother gave her a nod, the young woman went to her room and sat down on her window sill, reading when she could have sworn she saw something outside. Looking up, she gasped when she saw there was a fox outside. They couldn't have foxes here on their land! Those things would eat their family's chickens.

Finding it quicker to open up her window and climb out of it, the young woman rushed up to the fox, thinking she would scare it off like she normally did when those things came around, but the fox, strangely, was not attacking the chickens and just sat there, its fluffy tail curled around itself, blinking up at her as if she were some crazy person. More so, between its tell and its body as a rolled up piece of parchment. When she seemed hesitant to get it, the thing uncurled its tail and nudged the thing forward toward her.

Carefully, Ali knelt to take the letter, unrolling it and reading it.

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

"What?" She asked in confusion, looking up at the fox, "So, something at this weird tree is supposed to grant wishes?" What did she want as a wish? Hmmmm, well, thinking back to her own personal experiences, her wish would have been to tell when people were lying to her all the time. That would make her life so much easier. But, was it worth the trip to the woods for such a thing. After a moment of thinking she nodded, deciding it was, "Alright. I'll go. But....I want to tell my parents first. I don't want them worrying about me."

With that, she walked inside of the house, having the fox stay outside, hidden away. Surely if her father saw it he would have a fit seeing the animal on his land. But she did carry the black parchment, letters long since disappeared, in her hands as she walked back in. Sitting them both down, they were both clearly worried and upset that she would be leaving so suddenly, but they understood. She was seventeen now and thus almost grown. One thing she loved about her parents was that they always understood her and supported her in anything she wished to do. And this was just one of those times.

Her mother packed her enough food to last her a long while, while her father brought her a knife in which the blade would flip out when she needed it, though otherwise was hidden. She at first was hesitant to take it, but he insisted, saying one would never know when such a thing might come in handy. And so, she took the things she needed and after an emotional goodbye and promise to return, Ali set off, heading into the woods.​

 

[MarilynFae]

It was almost the second year that Gavan had been out on his own. He remembered the day he told his parents farewell easily. It was the worse day of his life, but somehow he had convinced himself it would be okay. He would come back with his cousin and hopefully the rest of the missing children. Although now while he roamed the mountains, the seas, the deserts, and the woods it seemed nearly impossible. But that didn't stop him. He had found something to believe in, he didn't know what yet, but he just felt it. And for Gavan, that's all he needed.

It was a cool morning, winter soon to kick in he was sure, as Gavan roamed through a small village. It seemed familiar, somewhere he had probably been on on one of his previous outing or searches for the lost children. No one recognized him though, or if they did they didn't say anything. Instead of being known as Princess Anna's son, he was now just known as the helpless one around most places. They didn't understand why he wouldn't give up on it. Everyone else thought it was as good as gone, the search was over. But unlike everyone else, Gavan had inherited his mother's optimistic side. Just like her, he never gave up if he saw just a glimmer of hope.

He strolled through the market, picking up loads of bread, some eggs, meat, fruits, veggies, anything that he could hold in his arms. Once he paid for it he walked back to his small resting home for the next few nights and sat down on the chair he made from the tough cedar wood. After allowing his stove to warm with the hot fire he had built under it, he tossed some food on there to cook and soon was eating away at his breakfast.

The leftover he tossed carefully into a sack before hiding it under his chair in a small box he kept most of his needed belongings. He wasted no time grabbing his bow and arrows, knifes, and even a sword that he had gotten from his aunt Elsa before he had left. His mother had been cautious about even allowing him to take a bow and arrow although he had been shooting for years. Then her father slipped him enough money that was still to this day helping him survive, along with the material to make his own knifes. Then when walking to tell his aunt Elsa goodbye, he promised her to bring Conner back. As he did so she slipped the long sword with a crystal handle on the top. She told him it was Conner's, and he still carried it with him as his good luck charm, hoping to run into his cousin and reunite once and for all.

He strolled through the village, careful to hide his weapons and when he made it through the entire city, he stopped at a crossing. He sat on the bench and held his hand in his face. Yet again, it was nothing. There was nothing. Not one child was here. Everything at the end of another lost day seemed hopeless, but Gavan never gave up. He didn't let the pity sink in, instead he was forced to brush it away as he noticed a movement to his right.

Immediately on instinct he jumped up and pulled the bow from his cloak. He had it positioned with the arrow ready to shoot when his head cocked to the side. Standing in front of him, crunching on some grass and leaves was a reindeer. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion, having never seen a reindeer away from Arendelle.

He lowered his bow but kept it at his side as the animal looked up. It was almost like he was staring directly at him. He again raised his eyebrows and slowly made his way towards the animal. Maybe if he got close enough he would run and leave him in peace, but the animal stood there and stared back at Gavan. With a loud huff from him, Gavan noticed the piece of black letter in the animals mouth. He cautiously leaned his hand out to touch it when the reindeer pushed his own head forward so that the letter was on his fingertips.

As he opened it from its folded spot, he read the crystal white words aloud:

You are one of the twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

His... wish? The only wish he had ever bothered to make on every passing star or every celebration in the kingdom? The wish to not only reunite with his cousin again but to give all the lost children back their old lives?

The thought that the past two years of searching had finally paid off. Even if this letter wasn't true, Gavan held on to it. He knew that this was the one opening he had been waiting for. With a loud laugh, Gavan wore his proud smile and nearly jumped from his spot on the earth excitedly.

"This is what I have been waiting for! Don't you understand? I can free the children from whatever curse has been laid upon them and I can prove all of the villagers who didn't believe we had a chance! I can see my cousin again! I can fulfill my duties and I can go back home to Arendelle and see my family again! We could finally be a family again.."

As his excitement roared on, he paced back and forth, thinking of everything they could do once he found this so called Tree of Truth. With great thunder now in his heart, he again turned back to the large animal that stood a few inches above him. He patted the animals head like he had the reindeer in Arendelle and smiled proudly.

"You will come with me? To this great tree? I will need to get my things from my resting area, but you brought me this letter. You can show me the right way!"

The grunt coming from the animal left Gavan satisfied. They walked home together, nearly sprinting by the time they got to the campground. He gathered everything he owned into two small bags which he tied and slipped over the reindeer's neck. They then took off, Gavan running to catch up with the large animal as they ventured into the woods.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
​

Beth sat staring at her mother and father. He hands clenched the woolen seats beside her as she tried to take in the words that they were explaining her. While she was growing up this was the kind of thing that they joked about, but never thought would happen. Now that the king was requesting more money for taxes... Everything was becoming real.

The words from her father's mouth and the tears from her mother's eyes blinded Beth. She couldn't even hear what they were saying, it all jumbled together into the stupid, cruel world that she lived in. All she had wanted was to know who she was and now she was being sold off to a man to marry him. It was digesting in her eyes. Cruel. She hated it, and she hated the king for everything he had done to the innocent villagers that lived around her.

It seemed like nothing he had was good enough. She finest diamonds and jewelry, more cattle than anyone else around them, but yet he still wanted more. Why couldn't he settle with what he had like they were all forced to? She had seen babies die of starvation because their mothers were too weak and starved to feed them. She had seen elder veterans be homeless because the king wouldn't give them a shelter. All the king wanted was more and more and more. And she hated him for that.

"Oh, honey. You know this is the last thing that we wanted but what other choice do we have? We cannot support three people anymore. We met the young man. He is kind and gentle. He will treat you right! And his father has money and will be able to support you, you will be better and happier there. We are getting old. Our bones are going to break and you'll have no one left."

Her ears tuned back in as she listened to her mother finally speak. She knew they were right. As much as she hated to admit it, she knew that it was just a matter of time before her parents vanished away from her like everything else in her life. She felt like poison. Anything she touched would turn bad and die, the only thing that stayed with her for more than a couple years had been her parents.

She had died a little inside when she found out that they weren't her real parents , but to her they would always be her mom and dad. She just wanted to know. Who she was, why she was here and not there, if she had always been so bad at running people out of her life. She couldn't remember anything though. The only thing she did have from her parents was the small carriage necklace around her neck. Once it opened a woman's voice sang a lullaby and Beth's named was carved into it. That was all. One necklace was all she got. That wasn't even half of an answer.

The talk with her parents left her emotion and vulnerable, so in avoidance of others seeing her, she simple walked to her room in the barn and locked the upstairs door. She laid down on her blue sheets and crossed her legs. She shook her head in disbelief as tears ran down her cheeks. What was she going to do?

Just as she asked herself this there was a small mouse hop onto her stomach. She looked down at the sudden feeling on her stomach and squealed as she saw the mouse. He immediately jumped away from her and on to her floor where a black envelope was under him. She sat up suddenly and was surprised to see that the mouse stared up at her, not moving nor running away. He was just staring at her.

She lifted the envelope up as the mouse nudged it towards her feet with his nose. As she lifted it and pulled out a black letter, she opened it and began reading quietly to herself.

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

"Wait.. Did you bring this to me?"

She squeak coming from the animal surprised her. She looked over the letter again, reading it another time right before the white letters faded. She gasped in surprise and thought about what it said again before standing up. She scooped the small four legged creature into her hand and let him sit on her window seal as she gathered clothes into a bag, along with some food and anything she could put water in.

"I have to go! It's better than staying here and being sold like a slave, right?! Oh no. I have to leave mother and father a letter. I'll come back for them. Once I know who I was before. I'll save them and I'll help them. I won't let them die."

Beth wasted no time writing a quick farewell letter to her parents before she snuck out of the barn doors with the small mouse sitting up out of her dress pocket. She turned towards the barn and house she had lived in as long as she could remember, and with one last wave towards it, she hurried into the woods.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
​

"Come on Hendrick. You know that we are just messing with you. But you better control that attitude before you too turn out like Uncle Han." The mocking from his cousins seemed to never stop. It seemed like everywhere he went there was something he would try to fix and it would turn out that his father was the one who broke it. Do you know that feeling? Of everywhere you go, people hate you because the assume you're like your parents?

That's how Hendrick felt. No matter how hard he tried or how much he pushed himself to be better, it seemed like no one cared. People think that you will amount to the same thing your parents did. If he would have been the son of a king who slain the dragon and saved the village, people would look at him like he was the hero even though he didn't do anything. But because his father had a skill at hurting off everything and everyone, he was known to ruin things.

And it was times like this that he got defensive about it.

"I will never turn out like my father. I'm better than him. I will be better than him." Hendrick pushed his cousin away from him and stormed off towards the house. He was forced to stay with his cousins right now since his father was probably away ruining more things for him. He sighed as he finally made it to his bed and decided what he would do.

He had to start somewhere, and why not where most of this started: Arendelle. This was the place that his father had tried to take over and nearly killed a princess while doing so. So, he decided he would go there and make up for it. The journey would long though since he'd probably travel on foot, but who knew what would happen along the way.

Hendrick wasted no time as he packed a few pairs of clothes, a thick coat, some foot and something to pack water in, and even some snow boots. Before noon he was gone, without even bothering to tell anyone where he was going. It's not like it mattered. They would have just assumed he was going to ruin something and follow in his father's footsteps, but that was the opposite of what she was going to do.

With a sigh he began walking through the grassy lands when he heard something behind him. He turned face to face with the large black horse. It stood with its eyes narrow and his head down, stick g straight out towards Hendrick. His first instinct was to shift his arms and smack the creature, which didn't work out well when the horse bit his hand.

Hendrick shrieked as he held his hand close to his chest and backed away from the horse. He could have sworn he had seen the horse roll his eyes as an envelope dropped from the horses mouth and in between Hendricks feet. Cautiously Hendrick picked it up and read it.

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

Hendrick smiled as he read the letter, but drowned once again as he looked up and the horse had its forehead pressed against him.

"Do I have to go with you? Well this is going to be a painful journey... But if I get my wish in the end, I'll survive."

Hendrick sighed in frustration and felt the horse push Hendricks back towards the forest. He sighed and pushed the horse away from him before the horse tried to bite him again. He sighed, knowing that this was how it would be for the rest of the trip as they walked into the woods.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
​

Skye walked passed each house that she had lived beside. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she remembered memories of her and the small boy long ago. She had grown up here and now there was no reason to stay. Her best friend was gone. Her parents were gone. The only people she had ever felt safe with were just there one day and then slowly... they weren't.

How could she stay in the village? In that house where she lost the only people who loved her? She couldn't. It was as simple as that. So, she packed everything she could fit in her bag and then packed food, money, and a canteen before heading through the village. She wanted to say farewell to her friends, but found that was too hard on her. So instead she wore her father's old cloak over her dress and hurried away from the village as soon as she could.

She had made it a couple towns away before she finally decided to stop and eat for dinner. She made herself a small camp area to sit as she cooked her food over a fire and ate a sandwich and some berries she had picked. Not long after she was back on her feet to keep moving.

As she came up to a house, she stood at the driveway and looked around. To her left was the woods and to the right was huge grassy meadow. She sighed and began to walk towards the house itself when she was stopped by a bird that fell out of the sky. She gasped and fell to her knees and looked at the bird to see if he was injured, but found that he wasn't. He just had a black envelope in his mouth weighting him down.

She furrowed her eyebrows slightly and took the small envelope. She slipped open the flap and pulled the dark black paper out. As she read the small white words, her eyes widened.

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

"M-Me? I got chosen? B-by who? Who knows me? Who sent me this little birdy?"

The bird of course did not answer her but with a small peep. She chuckled a little and thought about all the the things she could wish for. She turned to look at the thick woods and looked back at the small blue bird.

"W-will you come with me? I've never actually been in the woods. What if I get lost? "

The bird jumped from its spot on the ground and flew up on Skye's shoulder. He began pulling at her cloak, into the woods.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
​

Brea walked through the light colored meadow and made her way to an empty spot. She rested her cloak on the ground before laying her head on it and staring up at the sky. She reach to her left and picked a dandelion. She blew it and watched the small pieces float away in the wind. She let her lips curl into a soft smile, them reminding of her.

They started out in one place and then someone they were blown into a whole new world, a world where they don't fit it or belong. She sighed as she picked her book up and read through it.

Tales of a Forever Heart.

It wasn't very popular, in fact, barely anyone had ever read it. But to Brea, the book was the one thing that defined who she was. A reader, writer, an orphan, a mistake, a mess up, a weirdo. She had been called much worse than that, but more than anything she was the one who didn't pity herself.

She wasn't going to let them get the best of her. Even the nasty thought she had about herself she hid in her journal. Another other thing she always carried with her in her bag. It had all of her personal information. How she felt about herself... What she thought of others... what was happening in her life... It told everything about her.

Her fears, her failures, her achievements, her happy moments. Everything binded between two dark pieces of wool. It was such a full life she had lived, right?

She had left her house and her father nearly a year before. She didn't even say goodbye to the man who raised her when he didn't have to. She left him a note promising to come back someday. Would she? When? When would she figure out who she was? Who she was suppose to be? Where she was from? If she was good enough then...

She had learned to hate herself somehow in the process of being born and now. She couldn't even look in the mirror because the girl she saw was not the person she really was. While living in the village she was forced to act like someone she wasn't so that she would fit in, but even that didn't work with the kids there. Now, she tried to be someone who others accepted, but somehow found the more she tried to do that, the more she found she hated herself.

Because the person she was trying to be isn't who she really is.

With a sigh, the dark haired girl sat up from the grass and turned to her right ad she saw a sudden movement. With her left hand she slipped her belongings into the small black bag and with her right hand she pulled out a knife. She stood with her bag on her shoulder and jumped as a small, baby rabbit jumped at her feet. She looked down at it and bent down as it stared right back at her.

She looked at the small white ball of fluffiness and chuckled as she picked it up. "Well, well, well. What do we have here you small thing? What are you doing out here? What... What's this?"

Brea picked a small black envelope up off of the grass where the bunny was sitting before. She opened it up and pulled out the folded black paper. As she opened it, she read the white letters aloud, glancing to the bunny once she finished.

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

Brea raised curious eyebrow as she looked towards the woods all around her. "Well, it's worth a shot I suppose. Right, bunny? Will you come with me?"

The bunny hopped into the end of Brea's bag. Brea let out a simple chuckle and grabbed the rest of her bags, the whole three that she had, and headed into the woods, a determined look on her face.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
​

They were running. They were dancing. They were swimming. They were talking. They were... perfect. He could remember it all. He remembered everything perfectly.

He remembered her hair. The way it smelt like strawberries. The way her eyes shined in the moonlight. How hard it was o just get close enough to feel her skin against his.

Her lips. Red and full. Her cheeks, soft. Her hands, small, gentle. Everything about the girl was mesmerizing. It was.. Amazing. Beautiful. Beyond that even. It was magical. Like all the good magic in the world flushed away the bad and she was the outcome.

So innocent ... so soft ... so ... beautiful.

A thump against the roof awoke the male from his dreams suddenly. It was always the same. The same girl, but a new adventure every time. The girl? He had never once seen her before. But there was just something about her he just couldn't let go.

Part of him thought that it had came with the dragon necklace he had always wore. He had never taken it off, ever. And he always had strange dreams. ALWAYS. They were usually different every time but recently they all had this girl in them and he couldn't put his finger on who she was.

He didn't know, or at least he didn't think he had seen her before. Now he had no idea. He had trouble figuring out what was a dream and what was real, but slowly.... very slowly Damian was surviving.

He jumped up from the cot where he slept and walked outside of the small hut to see what had landed on his porch. With eyes wide, he held his breath in as he saw a small, baby, red dragon fly down from the roof and land at his feet.

Damien stumbled back in shock and looked at the thing as he coughed and shot out fire. He jumped again and this time landed a few feet away and his butt while staring at the animal. He could have swore he seen the dragon laughing as a black letter was pushed towards him and landed on his thigh.

Cautiously Damien opened it up and read the white words as they disappeared.

You are one of twelve chosen few to receive this letter. You were chosen, because you wish for something with a great desire. So I shall grant you your wish. Into the Woods you must travel, to the Tree of Truth. There you will find me and if you follow my commands, you shall have your wish granted.

He again looked at the dragon as the small creature tugged at Damien pants legs, trying to urge him towards the woods.

"Wait! I have to get somethings! I need food and water. Clothes. How long will I be gone?"

The dragon continued to pull on Damien's legs until he finally just grabbed some water and a canteen, along with some food. He was finally pushed into the woods.

 

[AHeartlessNobody]

"Alright Thunder! Keep it up!" He said with a laugh as the horse made another sharp turn, barreling through the trees within the forest without a care in the world while the little chameleon, who had had soon after named Liz (hey he was never creative with names) sat upon his shoulder, making small noises of compliant when a turn was too sharp or the ride got too bumpy. What a little character this lizard was. He would just chuckle and keep Thunder going, hooves pounding against the ground. It was finally a few hours into his little trip and the sky was beginning to grow dark, meaning very soon he would have to settle down and make camp. After all, it was a very bad idea to wander the forest at night with predators and possibly loosing one's way in the dark.

Pulling Thunder's reins, the horse came to a stop in a small clearing, where Rannon slipped off the tamed beast and looked around, nodding to himself, "Alright. This looks like just a good a place as any to set up camp." With that he slid his satchel from off of his shoulder, letting it drop to the ground before he began to gather up firewood from the surrounding area. Once he had enough, he began stacking a good bit of it in the center of the small clearing and tossing the left over pieces to the side in case he needed them later to fuel the fire some more. Once he had all the pieces, the young man knelt down and started to use the flint from his bag in attempt to cause a spark.

It took a few tries, but finally some of the sparks caught the wood and very soon he had it lit, the bright flames lighting up the small area, as well as giving some warmth to the small clearing, something they needed with the summer season beginning to cool down. It wasn't necessarily cold yet, but it did get a little chilly at night. He knew that very well from his days working over night in the stables for those ungrateful nobles. Never again. He would never again force himself to work for people like that. Once this journey was over, and he had his wish, he would have everything he ever wanted. Never again would he ever have to put himself below someone else. He just wound't allow it.

Grinning to himself he leaned back against Thunder, the little lizard sitting on his lap. Rannon first pulled one of the apples he had bought at market from his bag and began to cut the thing into slices, feeding each piece to Thunder, then once that was done, Rannon himself started to slowly eat one of the loaves of bread he had bought for himself, thinking back to the letter he had received from this little lizard, thinking back to the first five words in the letter. You are one of twelve. Twelve. So, that meant others were in this place, right?

So...did he have to try and find the others here in the woods? Would he even run into any of them at all? After all, he had no idea just how big this forest was. For all he knew there could be miles and miles in between them all. He supposed it was just a matter of waiting. If he ran into one of them, he ran into one of them. That was that. It didn't mean anything more.

Raking his brown hair from his face he let out a sigh and continued to eat the loaf of bread that was his dinner, quietly enjoying the night while he could.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Following a fox was a little easier than Ali thought it would be. The white fox would run a few steps, even hoping on rocks and such to pass the time, looking back over its shoulder with its golden eyes as it waited for the blonde girl to catch up. It never went to fast, but never too slow either. Ali supposed she should be grateful for that. She wasn't the best at traveling through the woods and would sometimes have to stop and rest, but she surely wasn't as horrible at it as some of those high class people that pranced about and hated to get a spec of dirt on them at all. She couldn't stand to be around them. But then again, who was there that she could stand to be around?

"Luna, are you sure we're heading in the right direction?" She asked after what seemed like forever of them being the forest, yet not seeing any signs of the tree that the letter had talked about. Luna simply hopped up one a rock, looked at the girl once again, her fluffy tail swishing back and forth, before the fox hopped down and started to walk again. Ali sighed, shaking her head slightly, "Well...I guess I can take that as a yes." She muttered, following the fox for a little while longer when she could see something in the distance. It seemed like a light, and confused, she began to make her way through the trees until she could make out just what it was in the distance.

It was a campfire. And not only that, but there was a young man sitting there, chowing down on a loaf of bread while leaning back against a large black horse, an expression on his face that said he probably didn't have a care in the world at the moment. She huffed and shook her head, starting to walk off before the young man could see her from the distance. As chilly as it was getting, and as much as that fire did look warm, she was not about to try and socialize with a man just to get warm and rest. No, absolutely not. Especially since that man was a stranger.

Shaking her head a little more, she began walking in the direction that would take her around this man's campfire (as it seemed this man had set up camp right between her and path Luna was trying to take her down), so that she could keep going and get to this tree she had read about in the letter as soon as possible. And right now, she wasn't going to let anything stop her. Or at least, she was hoping she wouldn't let anything stop her. Of course, one never knew what kind of things would happen in the woods.

 

[MarilynFae]

Beth had no trouble walking through the woods. There was a few times she would stumble and find herself face down on the ground, but she didn't let that stop her for even a second. Instead she stood back on her feet, readjusted her bag, helped the mouse back into her pocket, and allowed the mouse to tug her pocket in the direction they needed to go. They traveled for quite a few hours, stopping a few times to take a short break and breath or get something to drink.

Eventually they stopped at a nearby river and she filled her canteen back up. After she allowed the mouse to have a bite of her bread and get some water from the stream, they continued on their way. Time passed and eventually Beth looked up through he limbs and trees to see the faint sunset. She smiled at the beauty but realized she needed to find a spot to rest for the night. That's when she felt the mouse going crazy in her pocket and pushing forward.

She did as the small creature asked and she continued walking, her body and mind both physically and mentally tired. She stopped suddenly as she felt the warmth of a campfire and she could hear the crackling of the firewood. She looked around before she saw a faint glow in front of her. After she turned her head again, she saw another blonde headed girl about the same height as herself standing behind the Tree watching the man in the center of the clearing.

Maybe this is what the letter meant. Maybe they were also part of the twelve who were chosen to get their wishes granted. What could their wishes be? Should she go forward and talk to them, or at least to the girl and ask her if she had received the letter, or would that sound crazy?

Beth simply shrugged as she found her way over to the other blonde slowly. She made sure to stand a couple feet away before she finally spoke up the girl. "Excuse me... Um, I am Beth. I know this may seem weird, but... Did you happen to receive a letter from a mouse?" She pulled the letter from her pocket and showed her the blank piece of white paper. "The words disappeared, but this mouse brought me it and led me here. I thought that maybe you had received it too and the mouse brought you here also?"

Beth looked at the girl, her blue eyes shining brightly as she stared at the other girl. She had to admit, she was a very beautiful girl indeed, but she had never seen her before. At least not that she remembered although she did look faintly familiar.

----------

The dragon had been dragging Damion on for hours and hours. He wouldn't even let the male stop to fill up his empty water canteen, or use the restroom. Apparently wherever he was suppose to be couldn't wait five minutes, or at least that's what tell dragon thought. He had finally decided to call the dragon Mase. Why? He wasn't sure. It just looked like the type of dragon that needed the name Mase.

Eventually the blue sky began to darken, so Damion stopped and leaned against the tree beside him, completely out of breath. When he looked up, he saw the dragon hovering in front of his face, not a happy look on his face. "Oh come on Mase. I need a break. I'm dying over here. I get it, I need to get to this tree but it's getting dark and we need to rest. Or at least I do! And besides, it won't matter if I make it to the tree and get a wish if I'm dying! Come on, how much further?"

The dragon rolled his blowing green eyes at the boy and pushed against his back with his nose. He kept Damion walking for another good thirty minutes before the dragon and Damion both stopped in their tracks to see fire ablaze in front of them. Damion and the small dragon exchanged small looks before shrugging and walking their way into the clearing.

Although Damion wasn't connecting the letter to this other boy like other the others, he wanted to take precautions. He pulled his knife from his belt and held it to his side in a definite position as he walked closer to the male who was eating bread.

"Who are you? What're you doing out in the middle of the woods while the sun is setting? It'll be dark in a few hours, don't you know?"

 

[AHeartlessNobody]

"Slow down kitty! It's getting kind of hard to keep up!" Mira called to the black cat as it darted between trees much faster than Mira could ever hope to achieve. The cat slowed down though, waiting for her to catch up and looking up at her with bright yellow eyes, "You know, I need to think of a name for you. Calling you 'Kitty' just isn't too suiting." The young witch stated, putting her finger to her cheek in thought before she smiled brightly and looked back down at the animal, crouching to pet him gently, "How about Rino?" The cat simply meowed and if he could talk, Mira would think he was saying he didn't care what she called him.

Smiling more she stood up straight, "Okay then Rino, let's keep moving." She said then the cat took off again, but this time would stop to wait for her every few minutes or so so that she wouldn't get left too far behind and get lost. Mira stepped over logs and walked carefully down hills, trying her best to avoid the more overgrown paths and make her way around to where the cat would always be sitting. It was getting to become darker, the sun slowly fading, and the surrounding trees that shielded the sky overhead left the woods even darker.

But, Mira wasn't too worried about it like most people would. She had grown up in the forest technically, seeing as that's were her mother's cottage was. The only difference was that the barrier had kept her from the thicker parts of the forest. She simply sighed and looked over at the cat who was a few feet ahead of her, "Hey Rino, how about we stop for the night? We could make a fire and warm up. Its supposed to get chilly tonight." She stated, and the cat didn't seem too pleased with the suggestion, but complied, walking a little further into the thicket until a place they could settle in for the night came into view.

She stepped up to the little cat and nodded to herself, patting him on the head, "Good job. We'll stay here. I'll go find some sticks to make a fire." And that was just what she did, walking around and gathering some before piling them up. Once that was all settled, she held her hands close to the sticks, concentrating for a just a moment before sparks starting flying from her hands to the woods, the wood rather quickly catching fire. Smiling to herself, she stayed right by the fire, keeping warm as the wind howled every once and a while through the trees.

A couple of hours passed and she stood, looking to the cat, "I'll be right back Rino. I'm going to gather more sticks." The cat yawned and curled its tail around itself, making her laugh softly at how lazy he was being. Shrugging to herself, she began making her way through the trees, picking up a few sticks, when the sound of leaves and branches crunching and cracking came to her ears. Standing up straight rather quickly, she pulled her hood off of her head to get a better look around her, "Who's there?" She asked, holding one of the sticks as if it were a sword, ready to swing at whoever it was, turning and trying to find the source of the sounds, walking a few steps through the brush before a small rabbit hopped out in front of her and ran off.

Shaking her head to herself, she laughed nervously as she slipped the hood of her cloak back onto her head, "Okay, so maybe I'm just a little more scared of the dark than I thought I was." She stated, making her way back toward where she herself had set up camp with the bundle of sticks in her arms, hoping Rino hadn't made a complete mess of things while she was gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What have I gotten myself into?" Ashton muttered as he made his way through the thicket of the forest, the owl flying around, seeming more interested in searching for mice than leading the way to whatever this tree was. At least that's what he would think before trying to veer off in another direction. Needless to say when he did that, the owl would not be too happy with him, flying over and pecking at his head or using its talons to grip onto his shirt to drag him in another direction. Just like the owl was doing now, claws clutching his sleeve and half dragging the young man through the dark forest, "You know, just because your nocturnal and can see really well, doesn't mean that I can!Come on, I can't even see where we're going."

With an 'oomph' he had to stop for a moment because the owl had finally let him go, but in turn he had ran straight into a tree, causing hi to fall right on his backside, sitting on the leaf covered ground and rubbing his forehead, "Why couldn't another animal send that letter? Something more useful? That I could, I don't know, ride on?" He muttered, slowly standing back to his feet and getting another annoyed peck on the head from the owl, "Come on, Merlin! Cut it out already!" He swatted at the owl until it gave up on its slight attacks on him and setting on the branch of one of the trees, peering down at him with big golden eyes.

"Well," Ashton began, rubbing his head where the thing had been pecking him, "I guess we should stop here for the night? Maybe make a fire and get warmed up?" The bird seemed disinterested and instead puffed out its feathers and nuzzled its head down to rest for a moment while letting the human do all the hard work for now. Huffing in annoyance, Ashton nodded, "Okay, fin then you stupid bird. I'll go do everything. You just sit there and do whatever for all I care." He said, turning on his heal and heading back out into the woods, being sure to remember the way he had come. Wouldn't do him very good if he got lost, right?

Walking deeper into the forest, the young fairy pushed his blonde curls from his face and began picking up wood he could use to build a fire, hoping to at least get it started before it got very cold that night.