Ariel - The Next Generation: Kayla White

Night fell all too quickly on the kingdoms, covering the dimly lit house in shadows. Wolf stood quietly by the window, his eyes occasionally flashing bright green. He watched the bored men hidden in the bushes surrounding the lot, shifting from one foot to other every once and a while and rustling the leaves.

He felt a soothing hand on his tense shoulder, gently massaging it.

“You be careful out there, okay, Honey?” Virginia whispered in the cool darkness.

“I’m a Wolf, Virginia,” he replied. “You don’t have to remind me.”

“I don’t want to lose you.”

He took her hand and pulled her in front of him. He stroked her cheek and found that it was slightly damp.

“I’m scared, Wolf.”

“No, Virginia, no,” he murmured, pulling her close and kissing her hair. She rested her head on his chest and clung to his loose-fitting shirt. He hugged her tightly and breathed in her scent.

“Wolf, just promise me…”

“I’m coming back for you, Virginia. Nothing’s going to stop me.”

“All right,” Chief Farmer said softly to his men. “Let’s go.”

They inched quietly through the darkness when suddenly the door to the cottage opened, and they froze, unsure of what to do. An adult appeared in the doorway, but it was impossible to tell who it was. The men’s eyes searched for the Chief, waiting for him to tell them what to do. But he gave them no signal.

“I know, I know, eggs and bread,” the figure in the doorway called. The voice indicated that it was a man. “Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.”

The man standing closest to Chief Farmer whispered, “What do we do, Chief?”

“I don’t think he sees us,” Chief Farmer replied. “Wait until he gets close enough, and then capture him quietly. Tell the others.”

“Got it,” the man whispered, and disappeared.

The man moved towards them. As soon as he was a few feet away, the men ran out and tried to grab him.

At once, the man fought back as his attackers attempted to tackle him. It was as if he knew they were there.

“Stop! Don’t all go for him! Some of you need to stay behind!” Colin Farmer’s voice was lost in the din, and no one heard or obeyed.

It was then that four others left quietly through the back door, hidden in the night, headed for Queen Jasmine’s castle.

Virginia watched Gregory, Wolf, Warren, and Kayla leave, counted ten seconds, and burst through the front door and outside.

“Hey! What the hell are you doing to my dad?”

She ran to the men and hit them with her fists until someone ordered them to stop, pulling them away from Tony. Tony, panting, managed to limp over to Virginia. He was exhausted, and he had a bruise on his cheek, but other than that he was fine. She put her arm around him to support his weakened body.

“Just what do you think you’re doing?” she asked angrily.

“We have reason to believe that you’re hiding a murderer in your house, Ma’am,” one man piped up.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Tony said weakly.

“Come on, Dad, let’s get you inside,” Virginia said, and helped him into the house. The men were about to protest, but Colin Farmer stopped them. “You stay here, just in case,” he ordered. “I’ll go in.”

He followed them inside, and watched as the woman sat her father down and bathed his ugly bruise with a cool washcloth.

“You had no right to do that to him,” she said icily.

“We apologize,” Colin Farmer said gently. “We only want to catch the girl who murdered the king. You’ve heard about it, haven’t you?”

“Sure. We read the paper. But the princess isn’t here.”

“As the Chief of Police for Her Majesty, Queen Jasmine, I have the right to do a thorough search of the house.”

“Fine. Search wherever you want.”

“Thank you.”

When Chief Farmer walked out of the room, Tony whispered wearily, “I’m getting too old for this.”

Virginia smiled and gave him a hug. “I hope they’re doing all right.”

“I’m sure they’re fine. Now come on, let’s go make sure that police guy didn’t wreck anything.”

Nicholas, a guard outside of Queen Jasmine’s palace, stood erect in front of the large front doors. Flaming torches lit up the exterior of the castle, but despite their warmth, he was cold in his thin uniform. Occasionally, he cast his eyes about the forest in front of him, alert for any suspicious people. He, as well as the rest of the staff, had been told to look out for Princess Kayla. Presently, four figures came towards him, and his gloved hand went instinctively to the sword hanging from his waist. As they got closer, he could see that there were two men and two children – a boy and a girl. The girl’s hair had been pulled into two tight pigtails, and her face was covered in make-up.

“Excuse me,” one of the men said, “we have to see the queen. Immediately.”

“Your names?”

“I am Gregory Sampson, son of Lord Sampson. This is –“

“Do you have proof of this?”

Gregory held out a gold badge that symbolized royalty or high ranking in the kingdoms. Kayla had one as well, but of course she didn’t show it to Nicholas. The guard, satisfied, nodded his head.

“And who are the others?”

Gregory motioned to the other adult. “This is Warren, my secretary, and these are his children, Warren Jr. and Kristi.”

“State your purpose.”

“This is a private matter between the queen and ourselves, I’m afraid.”

“Are the children’s presence necessary?”

“Quite necessary. They’re learning their father’s trade – apprentices, if you will.”

The guard looked them over again. He could have sworn that he’d seen the girl before. He motioned to her. “Come here.”

She stepped forward casually.

“What did you say your name was?”

“Kristi.” The girl had a familiar voice as well.

Princess Kayla!?

“Lift up your right sleeve,” Nicholas commanded.

“Excuse me?”

“Your right sleeve. I want to see your arm.”

The girl turned back to her father, unsure of what to do.

“It’s okay, Sweetheart,” Warren told her. “Do as the guard says.”

Reluctantly, she lifted her sleeve. Nicholas inspected her pale arm by the light of the torches. He searched and searched, but the birthmark that had been on Princess Kayla’s arm wasn’t there. This girl was obviously who she claimed she was.

“All right,” Nicholas said, stepping out of their way. “Proceed.”

As they walked through the doors and into the palace, Kayla thought with relief, Thank goodness for Virginia’s face powder!

Queen Jasmine sat in her bedroom, gazing out of the window. Elliot the messenger had not yet returned, and she was getting worried.

A sharp knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.

“Who is it?” she asked, annoyed.

“It is Jonathon, Your Highness,” a voice on the other side of the door called. “A servant.”

“Come in, then.”

Jonathon entered the room and bowed.

“What is it?” Queen Jasmine asked, seeing the anxiousness on his face.

“You have visitors, Your Highness,” Jonathon said hurriedly. “Two men and two children.”

“How do you know this?”

“The guard at the door, Nicholas, told me. He asked me to warn you.”

“Warn me? What for?”

“One of the men claims to be Gregory Sampson, Lord Sampson’s son,” Jonathon replied, and the queen inhaled sharply. “The other claims to be his secretary, Warren, and the children – one boy and one girl – claim to be Warren’s. Nicholas said there was something strange about the girl.”

“The girl?”

“He said that she reminded him of Princess Kayla, but when he searched for her birthmark, he found nothing.”

“Where are these visitors?”

“They are somewhere inside the palace.”

“Find them. Bring them to my room of mirrors immediately. I will be waiting there.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Jonathon said with a bow, and hurried off.

The four friends walked quietly through the dimly lit halls, trying to draw as little attention to themselves as possible. Gregory had pinned the badge to his shirt so that nobody would question them. Warren held tightly to Kayla’s hand, afraid to let go.

“So, where does she keep her mirrors?” Wolf whispered to Gregory.

“I don’t know,” Gregory whispered back. “We just have to look around.”

Wolf narrowed his eyes. “This is your plan? Spend our time looking for a mirror in a palace that has over a hundred rooms? I was under the impression that you actually knew what you were talking about.”

Gregory shrugged. “I’m open to other ideas.”

Suddenly, a man rushed up to them. “I am Jonathon, a loyal servant of Queen Jasmine,” he said in a superior voice. “I am to bring you to her at once.”

Gregory secretly nudged Kayla’s arm – once, twice, three times. It was their signal. She did the same to Warren. Immediately, the children took off.

Alarmed, Jonathon was about to go after them, but Wolf caught him by the throat and growled ferociously. Other servants, seeing this, dropped their things and rushed to help him, forgetting about the children. Gregory picked them off like flies.

Wolf still had Jonathon in his grasp. “You breathe a word of this to anyone, especially the queen, and I’ll rip your throat out,” he whispered icily.

Jonathon nodded fearfully. “Not a word,” he squeaked.

Wolf let go, and Jonathon scurried out of the palace, ignoring Nicholas’ calls. He didn’t know if he was ever going to come back again.