Gabrielle - After Happy Ever After

“Yes, Breena?” Virginia asked.

“I think I should go to Danielle. She’s alone and she doesn’t know this land,” Breena said. “I don’t think I can bring us back to you. We fairies try not to zap twice. You saw what happened because of that.”

“If she’s with my sister, tell Fiona I’m okay and not to worry,” Wolf said.

“Your sister! You said she was dead!” Virginia said.

Breena was too impatient to wait through Wolf explaining about his sister. “I will. Farewell,” she said.

Virginia and Wolf waved as she zapped, locking onto Danielle. She arrived in the middle of a group of people, one of which was Danielle. All of them jumped when she appeared.

“Breena!” Danielle cried, “Where did you go?”

“You know that fairy?” a man with a crown asked.

“Who cares? Get it out of here! Fairies are bad news! I learned that in the Swamp,” an older man said, jabbing a finger at her.

“She’s not a Swamp fairy. No Swamp smell,” a red-haired girl who was obviously part-wolf said.

“No, she’s a forest fairy and she’s with me,” Danielle said, holding out a hand for Breena to land on.

“I’m sorry I left you all alone, but I had to save Virginia and Wolf,” Breena apologized.

“Virginia! My Virginia?!” the older man cried.

“You must be Tony, Virginia’s father! Yes, but don’t worry. She’s fine and Wolf’s with her.”

“Oh, how reassuring,” Tony said sarcastically.

“Breena, where are they? Does Fiona know Wolf’s okay? What…?” Danielle started asking in a rush.

“They’ll be here soon. No, Fiona doesn’t know. And I can’t tell her now,” Breena said before she could ask.

“Maybe I can.”

Breena hadn’t noticed the girl standing off to the side. She nodded to her. “Maive,” she said in greeting.

“Breena,” she returned.

“You know each other?” Danielle asked.

“I tried to grant Maive a wish, but couldn’t. Not all wishes are as simple as yours was,” Breena said. Breena could tell that Danielle wanted to ask what the wish had been, but she didn’t. Breena wouldn’t have told her anyway. Most wishes were private. She wasn’t sure how Maive felt about telling hers. She had a feeling that she had kept it a secret. “How do you plan on telling Wolf’s sister something?” she asked.

“A reverse vision. I think it’s been done. I just don’t know if I can do it. Maybe with help,” Maive said, looking at Danielle and Breena.

“This is nuts,” Tony complained.

“I say, let’s do it!” Danielle nodded.

“I’ll help if I can,” Breena promised.

“All right, come help me over here. I really hope this works. On the spot spells aren’t really my thing…” Maive said.

“We know,” everyone said at once.

Ivy waited for the people. She didn’t have to wait long. An angry mob of people burst through the trees, Randal somewhere in the middle.

“See! There they are!” someone shouted.

“Wolf! Wolf!” a woman screamed.

“Murderer!” a man yelled, pointing at Faolan.

“What’s going on?” Ivy asked, confused.

“That wolf killed Shelley Loveright!”

Ivy whirled on Faolan, her eyes wide. Faolan shook his head furiously. She forgot about the tail that was sticking out behind her.

“She’s a wolf, too! There’s three of them!”

Faolan yanked her back behind him, thinking to protect her. Ivy was too stunned to resist. “I didn’t kill anyone!” Faolan yelled back at the people. “Did Wolf kill Sally Peep? There’s a royal pardon now!”

The man in front, apparently the leader of the mob, quieted the others down. He turned to Faolan and Ivy with a look of contempt on his face. “You’re not Wolf,” he spat. “The royal pardon is the only thing getting you a trial and not an arrow through the heart right now. I lived in a farming village. I know what you wolves are capable of!”

There were shouts of agreement. Ivy didn’t like this one bit. Some of those people were armed.

Suddenly, Randal broke free of the crowd and darted behind Faolan. Ivy breathed a sigh of relief that he was with them again and relatively safe. “What do we do?” Ivy whispered to Faolan.

“I think we should go peacefully. Stay close to me, both of you,” he whispered back.

“We? I had nothing to do with it! Randal and I were in the restaurant and then the Storyteller’s!” Ivy said back.

“You’re a wolf now. That doesn’t matter. We’ll deal with everything else later. Now, come on.” Faolan took Ivy’s hand in one of his and Randal’s in the other. He led them past the mob who swarmed around them, making absolutely sure that they went where they wanted them to.

Apparently, in Kissingtown the judge was the judge, jury, and prosecution. Ivy had kept them from chaining their hands, but armed men who were named guards stood at every turn. Ivy’s thoughts were jerked back as the gavel was banged. The sound was too loud and very annoying. Ivy growled as it was banged again, making the “guards” closest to her shift uneasily.

“Order! Order! Thank you. Now, because of the royal pardon, these wolves will have a fair trial. Now, would the first accused approach the stand,” the judge ordered.

Faolan was dragged over by two guards and shoved in the witness box.

“Where were you around dawn this morning?” the judge demanded.

“Me? Um…well, I’m not exactly sure…” Faolan squirmed.

“What were you doing?” the judge interrupted.

“Um…I know I was tracking my friends this morning into Kissingtown after I woke up!” Faolan said.

Ivy winced, this wasn’t going too well for him. She even had doubts about him. He had threatened her, after all. He had said he couldn’t control himself on the full moon.

“What phase was the moon in last night?” the judge asked, his eyes narrowed.

“Well, it was full, but huff-puff…” Faolan tried to explain.

“That’s all for now,” the judge interrupted again.

“But…but…” Faolan stuttered as he was yanked down from the stand.

“You, she-wolf, come to the stand,” the judge said, pointing at Ivy.

“My name is Ivy and I am not a she-wolf,” Ivy said, shaking loose of the guards and growling as she climbed onto the stand. That brought a burst of comments from the audience.

“Then, why do you have a tail?” the judge asked with a smirk.

“Because I drank from that stupid brook just now, thank you very much,” Ivy replied in the same tone. Ivy heard a few gasps, but she didn’t really care.

The judge pressed on. “Do you deny being friends with that wolf there?” the judge demanded, pointing at Faolan.

“I…um…I don’t know,” Ivy said hesitantly.

“You don’t know if you’re his friend?” the judge sounded incredulous and more than a little disbelieving.

“That’s correct,” Ivy nodded and tried not to look at Faolan.

“But you have been associating and traveling with those two, have you not?”

“Yes. Yes, I have,” Ivy nodded again, unsure where this was going.

“And what were your whereabouts this morning?”

“Randal and I, “ Ivy said, pointing at Randal, “walked into Kissingtown at about dawn this morning and went to get breakfast. We ate at the Love-At-First-Sight restaurant, then we went to the Storyteller’s place at the end of Main street. Ask the waiter if you don’t believe me,” Ivy added defensively.

“I will. When was the last time you saw this other wolf before entering Kissingtown?”

“Last night, before midnight,” Ivy said, a sinking feeling coming over her as she realized how much that statement wasn’t in Faolan’s favor.

“And could you describe the happenings of that night.” It wasn’t a request.

Ivy didn’t trust Faolan, but she didn’t want him in jail or worse. She searched her mind frantically for an idea. She couldn’t tell them how weird Faolan had been That would be as good as saying outright that he had killed that lady. “I plead the fifth!” Ivy cried, infinitely glad she had been awake that day in Civics.

“The fifth what?” the judge asked, obviosuly confused.

Ivy couldn’t believe her ears. “The fifth amendment? The one that says I can choose not to speak…” Ivy trailed off seeing that they still had no idea what she was talking about. “Nevermind.” Ivy sighed and shot an apologetic glance at Faolan before telling them what had happened.

Faolan buried his face in his hands. He was doomed. And not only that, Ivy wasn’t even sure if she wanted to be friends with him. She was a wolf now. Didn’t she know now that he truly was her mate? Couldn’t she feel it? He could just look at her and tell, just sniff and inhale her scent and know with absolute certainty. He needed to talk to her. He needed to find out what was wrong. And she would need his help if she was going to be a half-wolf from now on.

“We…I…didn’t see Faolan again until after we had finished listening to the Storyteller telling about the ‘Four Who Saved the Nine Kingdoms’,” Ivy finished.

“Thank you. Could someone summon that waiter that was spoken of?” the judge asked.

“That would be me, your honor,” a man said, standing up slowly.

Ivy retreated from the stand to sit next to Faolan and Randal again as the waiter walked up. Faolan didn’t even pay attention as the judge questioned him.

“I’m sorry,” Ivy whispered.

Faolan stiffened. She sat so close to him and yet she didn’t even trust him to tell her the truth. How could that be? How could she not know that he couldn’t lie to her? It hurt to know that. It hurt even more to know that she was still sorry for saying all that and practically ensuring his guilt. Faolan wanted to whine in a way he hadn’t done since he was a cub.

“Faolan?” she asked.

He shook his head. He couldn’t speak. No, not right now. What if he had done something horrible like kill a girl? If he had actually done that how was he to know that he wouldn’t have harmed Ivy? How could he live with himself? Maybe she shouldn’t trust him.

“Thank you, sir. I suppose that clears the she-wolf and the young one. But please now Exhibit A,” the judge said and Faolan finally looked up. He barely had a glimpse of a bloody cloth when a guard was grabbing his hand and pouring ink on it. His hand was forced against another white cloth and then that was set on a table next to the bloody one. Faolan looked more closely. The bloody cloth had a hand print on it. And it looked like his. In fact, it looked exactly like the print that they had just taken. Oh, cripes! He had done it! He was a murderer!

“That is a piece of Shelley, the victim’s, blouse,” the judge said. He waved at a man sitting nearby. “Please examine the two prints for the record.”

The man took out a magnifying glass and examined the two prints very carefully. At last, he straightened and turned to the judge. “Identical,” he said.

Faolan heard a short gasp and his heart sunk even worse. Now Ivy knew it, too. She would never ever love him. He was a killer. A bad wolf. Just like everyone thought wolves were.

The mob had broken out in shouts and their harsh voices made Faolan cringe and sink lower in his chair. He saw out of the corner of his eye, Ivy jumping to her feet and looking at the prints herself. He turned to watch her and saw her shaking her head.

“No,” she said, refusing to believe what she saw. “He couldn’t. He wouldn’t. Not Faolan.”

That’s what he had thought. But he had. How could he have done such a thing? How he hated the wolf in him! It had ruined everything, his whole life! Oh, if only he could rip that part of him right out!

“I find that wolf guilty of murder, proven beyond a doubt,” the judge said and glared at Ivy until she sat back down. Ivy looked down at her hands, silently. “Normally, according to the law of eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth, I would sentence this wolf to death for this horrible crime. But in light of the royal pardon, “ the judge said that last with such distaste Faolan could almost feel it. “I think we will have to settle for life imprisonment and hard labor at Snow White Memorial Prison.” The judge banged his gavel with finality and the crowd burst out in comments again. They seemed disappointed.

Ivy had jumped to her feet again, but she looked lost. Randal looked like he might burst into tears at any moment and he was whimpering loudly. Faolan had been almost resigned to his fate up until now. They couldn’t do that to him! Life imprisonment! Did they know what that was like for a wolf? Cooped up in a cage like some kind of song bird, never to bound again. He got to his feet quickly. “No! You can’t do that! You don’t understand!” he cried.

“Shut up, murderer!” someone snarled from close to him and cuffed him from behind. Faolan dropped back into his seat, his head ringing from the blow. This couldn’t be the same Kissingtown he had walked into this morning. Two guards grabbed him and started dragging him towards a door. Away from Randal and Ivy. Faolan struggled, but the best he could manage was to be able to catch sight of Randal running to Ivy and latching onto her so hard that she stumbled. Randal buried his face against her and Faolan could hear him crying. Ivy was still, almost as if she couldn’t get her body to work. She seemed to be focused inward.

“He did it. He murdered a girl. You can’t deny it, you saw the proof. It could have been you,” the voice whispered to her.

Ivy couldn’t move. Marissa’s scheme had worked to perfection. She had taken a chance on the prints, but it had been worth it. It hadn’t been too hard working the spell to copy Faolan’s hand-print, but she had been afraid that he would be able to sense it, being a wolf and all. Luckily, he had been asleep. Killing the girl had been simpler than she had feared. The girl, Shelley Loveright, or some ridiculous thing like that, had wandered off on her own, putting herself out of hearing range of the town and in the perfect spot for Marissa to intercept her. And now Ivy was slipping further under her spell. With that wolf out of the picture, it would be much, much easier. Plus, wars were erupting across the other kingdoms. The borders of the Fourth Kingdom were still being held, but they couldn’t last forever. In fact, they couldn’t last long.

Danielle and Maive joined hands and Breena hovered between them on the other side. Maive had her eyes tightly closed, concentrating hard. Without opening her eyes, she spoke. “Danielle, I need you to concentrate on Wolf’s sister. You knew her better than either of us, I think,” she said.

“Okay,” Danielle nodded, although Maive couldn’t see that. Danielle pictured Fiona, talking to Wolf. She couldn’t imagine how she must have felt. Her brother, who she had just discovered was alive, might be dead for all she knew. She must be going crazy.

Danielle felt a strong pull suddenly, as if something was being yanked out of her. It didn’t last long, but it was a little draining. Maive dropped her hand and Danielle opened her eyes.

“Did it work?” Wendell asked softly.

Maive nodded. She looked like she might faint. “Yes. Yes, I think so,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.

“Great. What now?” Tony asked.

The guards didn’t want to let her pass, but Ivy was having none of it. She felt herself begin to growl and let it grow louder, hoping to intimidate them. They did look nervous. Ivy shoved past them before they could gather themselves together. Randal was close behind her. The tiny, two room jailhouse looked like it hadn’t been used in forever. It reminded Ivy of one of the jailhouses on old T.V. shows. Although, it did have a unique Kissingtown touch to it. The walls even had red hearts pinned on them.

Faolan sat in one of the cells. He had his arms propped up on his knees and his face buried in his hands. His posture was slouched, he looked dejected. Ivy was torn inside between wanting to go to him and wanting to keep her distance. “Faolan, are you okay?” she managed to ask.

Faolan’s head snapped up and he sniffed deeply. He sighed, as if relieved by their scents. “What are you two doing here?” he asked.

“That’s a stupid question. What are we going to do?” Randal asked, going to the cell and wrapping his hands around the bars.

Faolan didn’t even look at them. “Nothing, Randal. I want you to stay with Ivy, at least until you’re out of Kissingtown,” Faolan said.

Randal shook his head, tears welling up in his eyes again. Ivy knew that he had been grasping at one last hope that his big brother would have a plan, some way to make it all better again. Now he had nothing to grasp at. “I can’t leave you, Faolan,” he said, whimpering.

“Yes, you can,” Faolan insisted.

“No,” Randal said, crying freely now.

Ivy was suddenly struck with the fact that Randal was being torn from the last shred of his family. It wasn’t fair. He was just a little boy. But neither Ivy nor Faolan knew how to comfort him this time. Ivy didn’t even know how to comfort herself. “Um…Randal? Could you wait outside, please?” she asked.

Randal looked at her, stunned. He slowly backed out the door.

“What? What is it?” Faolan asked, looking at her finally. He got up, coming to the front of his cell. His face was creased with worry, as if he was afraid that something else had gone wrong.

“I can’t believe you would do something like this!” Ivy shouted at him, almost amazed at what came out of her mouth. She didn’t know why she was yelling. She couldn’t seem to lower her voice. She was suddenly mad at Faolan, as if it were his fault that she felt this way, that Randal was being deprived like he was. Then, it was his fault. He had done the crime.

Faolan cringed as if she had physically hurt him. He looked so sad, but Ivy couldn’t bring herself to pity him, not yet. “It was the full moon, Ivy…” he said quietly.

“I don’t care! Are you saying that you would have killed me?”

“No! No, I couldn’t! Well, apparently I could, but I wouldn’t. Never!” Faolan said in a rush.

“But you would kill that girl?”

“Well, I did. Oh, cripes. You don’t know yet. You don’t understand the full moon. I can’t even remember most of last night. I could have done anything,” Faolan tried to explain, but he saw it wasn’t helping. “Why would you say that you’re not sure you’re my friend?”

“Because, “ Ivy said loudly, then suddenly wasn’t able to yell anymore. “Because you’ve been lying to me, Faolan, and I don’t think I can trust you.”

“When did I lie? How could you not trust me? Huff-puff, I lo…” Faolan started.

“No! Don’t you dare say that word! That’s the worst lie. No one could…” Ivy trailed off, unwilling to say the word herself. “Besides, you’re…we’re…only teenagers. How could we…I mean, you…know?”

“Because I know. Look, Snow White told me I needed to help you, but it looks like I’m not going to be able to. So I want you to get out of here and away from that witch. Go home. Go back to the Tenth Kingdom.” Faolan said.

“Snow White?” Ivy asked in surprise. “You saw her, too?”

Faolan nodded.

Ivy rubbed her temple, trying to get rid of her growing headache. This was too much. “I can’t go home. I won’t. Not yet. I won’t run away from that witch,” Ivy said finally.

Faolan sighed and shook his head. He reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope. “Give this to Wolf for me. It’s from Snow White. She said that it should help with his problem with Queen Riding Hood and that he should give it to her,” Faolan said, handing it to her through the bars. “I probably won’t ever see you again. I’ll die in that prison. But I want you to make sure you keep safe. I don’t want you to get hurt. Keep Randal out of trouble for me.”

“Faolan…” Ivy tried to say something, but choked and nothing else would come out.

“Stop feeling sorry for him. He’s a killer,” the voice commanded.

Ivy closed her eyes. The voice again. She took a deep breath and slowly opened her eyes. Faolan was reaching out a hand through the bars to touch her cheek.

“Killer. Murderer. Liar,” the voice said urgently.

Ivy jerked back before Faolan could touch her and turned towards the door so she wouldn’t have to look at him. It hurt doing that, but she knew it would hurt her worse if she let him touch her. “God, why couldn’t you have just killed me?” she said.

Faolan whimpered as if the thought pained him. “Stop that! You did a bad thing, Faolan. You’re just ging to have to pay for it. This is partially my fault. I should have known never to trust you. I’m sorry. I’ll…I’ll find some place for Randal. A good place. Goodbye, Faolan,” she said and hurried for the door, not daring to look back.

A thought struck her and she stopped dead in her tracks. “Oh, my god!”

“Something wrong?” one of the guards asked her.

“Oh, my god,” she repeated, ignoring the guard. She whirled around and saw Faolan with his hands wrapped tightly around the bars and…tears welling up in his eyes, threatening to spill down his face. “Oh, my god,” she said again. “Don’t you dare cry or I’ll hate myself. Faolan, don’t you see? Wolf and Virginia, you and me. The story’s repeating. Okay, maybe it’s a little different, but it’s…just…oh, my god.”

“Cripes!” Faolan cried, realizing she was right. “Cripes!”

“Faolan, did Snow White say anything else?” Ivy asked quietly so the guards wouldn’t hear.

“Um…she said that the Man in the Moon was upset about the full moon and…that we were supposed to talk to Wolf and Virginia?” Faolan said, unsure if that meant anything or not.

Ivy paused, something slowly dawning on her. She looked up at Faolan. “But if the story is really repeating… “ she said slowly, “Wolf was framed for the murder of Sally Peep.”

Faolan brightened as he caught her meaning. Could it be true? Could he be innocent? “Cripes!”

No, no, no. This couldn’t be happening. Not after how well things had been going. Marissa needed to get Ivy away from the pesky wolf. She moved back next to the guards.

“Better get her away from him,” she whispered in their ears. “Probably planning a breakout, they are. Don’t forget, she’s a wolf, too. Get her out of there!”

The two guards exchanged a look, then headed inside. Marissa smiled. Men were so simple-minded, it was always easy to control them.

“Visiting time’s over,” one guard announced.

“Yeah,” the other agreed gruffly.

“But…” Ivy protested.

Before she could say anything further, the guards drabbed her arms and nearly dragged her out. They shut the door firmly behind them and took up their posts in front of it. Ivy stumbled forward when they let her go and looked like she might fall on her face, but apparently the tail balanced her. She straightened and looked around. Marissa followed her gaze to the wolf-cub who was sitting on the ground nearby, crying. Ivy went over to him and helped him to his feet. The two started off when a howl came from inside the jailhouse. The young cub howled back sadly and, after a moment’s hesitation, Ivy joined in. Marissa clamped her hands over her ears. What a disgusting noise.

Virginia’s mood swings were getting worse. One minute she would be fine and the next she would be crying. Wolf would try to comfort her and she would turn around and yell at him. Wolf was starting to really wish they were back at Wendell’s Castle or somewhere where there were people who could help her. She really was getting quite big. His wolf senses told him that the cub was growing very quickly and that this was very hard on Virginia. She was human, after all. Human babies developed very slowly, didn’t they? Virginia needed someone who could tell her exactly what was happening to her and that someone wasn’t him. He was no midwife! His sister would be such a relief right now. She could probably help.

“Stop moping!” Virginia snapped, causing him to wince and whine softly. She must have heard him because her face softened and she held out her hands to him. “I’m so sorry, Wolf. I don’t know what’s gotten into me. Breena must have been right, I am having mood swings,” Virginia realized.

“It’s okay, my delectable little…” Wolf cut off as he sniffed.

“What? What is it? Trouble?” Virginia asked.

“No,” Wolf shook his head. “I smell…Tony! And…and Wendell and Cinnamon and Danielle and Maive and Breena! Human Wendell, too!” Wolf almost started running towards their friends, but checked himself. Virginia couldn’t run in her condition. He took her hand and led her in the right direction. “Come on, love of my life. Let’s go. It’ll be a reunion!” Wolf said excitedly.

Virginia, too, hurried her step. She was as anxious as Wolf to be back with her friends and family.

As if she hadn’t been paranoid enough after following the X-Files since Season One on top of her already crazed mind, this whole "being next on the witch’s list" thing was driving her nuts. Well, she was nuts so she wasn’t really going on a long drive. Just a little skip across the border into insane mixed with paranoia. Not a good mix. Danielle pulled her knees up to her chest and glanced around nervously. Tony, Cinnamon, and Maive had gone to look for food. Breena had gone to scout around and see if Virginia and Wolf were close by. Wendell was sitting on a hill a ways away, staring in the direction of his castle with longing and stroking his crown as if it were a living thing. She was essentially alone. The wind was starting to blow and Danielle was beginning to hear her name on the wind. The way it happens when you’re alone and your mind starts playing tricks on you. It wasn’t helping Danielle’s mood any. She had to do something to get her mind off it. Anything to distract herself.

“Billy was a rocker down in Baton Rouge.
He liked to sing country in his tennis shoes.
He grew up in the 60’s on rock-and-roll,
But he got him a gig in a country show.
He traveled with them all across the USA,
But one night in the middle of a set, they say
He got his rockin’ rhythm and some country confused
He sang the yodelin’ blues.
Hideladyodeledowdow. Hideladyodadoodaledo.
Hideladyodaladyadyadedowdow.”

“What is that horrible noise?”

Danielle’s head shot up and in the direction of Wendell’s voice. In the process, she jerked her neck. She placed one hand on the back of her neck. “Ow! Thanks a lot, Wendell. And it’s not a horrible noise. It’s the Yodeling Blues,” Danielle shouted back.

Wendell stood up and walked down the hill towards her. She waited for him.

“The Yodeling what?” he asked as he sat next to her.

Danielle sighed and dropped her hand from her neck. “It’s a song. Forget it.” Danielle was not an incredibly patient person and she couldn’t take this waiting. She turned to Wendell quickly. “Couldn’t we just sneak back into the castle and have another go at fighting that witch? I’m sick of just sitting around. What are we waiting for?” she demanded.

Wendell nodded with understanding. “Believe me, I would give anything to be back on my throne. Anything could be happening across the Kingdoms that I don’t know about. The Fourth Kingdom needs a king and as much as I sometimes tire of all the royal duties and hearings and such, it’s my place. It’s what I have been groomed to do my whole life,” Wendell said and he couldn’t help but glance towards his castle again.

“You know, my…um…alter-ego in those stories I told you about, Princess Aaliyah, she was trained to be a princess her whole life, but she wasn’t really the princess-type and ended up being a warrior and a queen when she does drop by at her castle,” Danielle said, unsure why she was blabbing all that to Wendell.

“Aaliyah, huh?” Wendell asked.

Danielle nodded. “Um…Wendell? I…well…I had a dream where I met your grandmother, Snow White. It was weird ‘cause I felt like I was in other people’s minds for a few seconds. One was Ivy’s, I know that. I think the other might have been Virginia’s. The last one…well, let me put it this way: ribbit.”

Wendell looked startled. He spluttered in a very unking-like fashion for a moment. Danielle smiled uneasily. “Sorry, Kermit.”

“I’m not going,” Randal said stubbornly, latching onto a tree. “You can’t make me.”

Ivy sighed. She was in no mood to deal with this. She understood that Randal didn’t want to leave his brother. She didn’t want to leave him either in light of her recent revelation. There was so much she needed to talk about with him. But now wasn’t the time, she could feel that. They needed time most of all, which they didn’t have. She had to remember, she still had to find Danielle and fight that witch. “Please, Randal,” Ivy said. “I’ll think of something, just give me some time. But we have to get away from Kissingtown. At least, for now.”

“Will we come back for Faolan?” Randal demanded.

Ivy paused, knowing that was the last thing they should do. She was just going on a feeling she had; she didn’t know at all if Faolan was innocent. They could get caught and thrown in jail, too. How was she going to deal with being locked up in prison in a fairytale land? But she was a wolf now, too. Didn't wolves always trust their instincts? And she had to think of Randal, as well. “Yes,” she said, throwing everything else to the wind. “We’ll come back.”

It was getting even darker in the jailhouse so Faolan knew that night was again falling. Already he was feeling claustrophobic, closed up in the cell. Wolf was right, wolves shoudn’t be locked up with no room to bound. “I’m guessing that I’m not getting dinner,” Faolan called to his jailers.

“You guessed right, murdering wolf,” one of them snapped.

Faolan nodded. He should get used to this. From what he had heard, the only meals at Snow White Memorial Prison were beanstalk soup oriented. What a fate, locked up and fed beanstalk for the rest of his life. Just about a fate worse than death for a wolf. Especially if you had to leave your mate behind. Faolan felt like howling again, but the last time he had done so, the guards had thrown things at him and said that if he did it again they would make sure he couldn’t howl a third time. “Can I at least use a bathroom?” he asked. He could tell that he was annoying his jailers, but he didn’t particularly care. They said something to each other, then rose from their seats with a sigh. One took out a pair of keys and unlocked the door. The other went inside and jerked Faolan out. Faolan was hauled outside and thrown into a small, run-down, probably forgotten by all the other inhabitants of Kissingtown, outhouse.“Huff-puff, thanks guys,” Faolan said sarcastically as they slammed the door behind him.

“Two minutes,” one of them said.

Faolan grumbled under his breath, but he knew this was probably better than it would be at Snow White Memorial.

Suddenly, Faolan’s head snapped up and he cocked his head to one side. Yes, it was Randal! He could hear Randal howling from some distance away. The howl said that help was coming. Faolan was about to reply to the howl when there was an impatient knock at the door. A moment later, Faolan was yanked back outside and dragged back towards the jailhouse.

Faolan had to stop Randal from coming here, no matter what the jailers did. He couldn’t have his little brother getting caught and thrown in jail, too. Faolan howled back. A “stay away” howl. He could vaguely hear Randal’s reply. A repeat of the “help coming” howl, this time with a stubborn edge to it. Faolan shook his head and started to howl back, but was cut off by a punch to his stomach.

“I said shut up, wolf,” the jailer snarled.

“But…” Faolan protested.

Faolan was punched again. He coughed painfully. “How stupid are you?” The other jailer laughed gruffly. Faolan was struck at how out of place they seemed in Kissingtown.

His random musing was cut off as he was thrown back in his cell. He stumbled a step or two before regaining his balance. His stomach hurt where he had been punched, he felt a bruise forming already. But he didn’t care. That wasn’t important right now. Faolan sprang to the barred window he had to the outdoors. He looked out, searching, sniffing, listening for his brother or Ivy. He silently prayed that they would stay away. He knew that if they were found near here, they’d be in prison with him. Even though he brightened a little at the thought of not being alone, he still would rather have them free and safe. But that nagging part of him, a large part actually, wanted them to come. Wanted to see them again, even if just once. Faolan whined to himself, wondering which part of him would win out.

“Look who I found!” Breena called, flitting around Danielle’s head once so fast that she looked like a ball of light, and then settling on her shoulder. A moment later, Virginia and Wolf came into view.

In spite of Breena’s report that Wolf was fine, Danielle had been worried. It was amazing how close you could get to someone when you’re lost in a strange land. Even so, Danielle surprised herself by bounding over and hugging Wolf. When she realized what she was doing, she jumped backwards and quickly stamped down on the blush that wanted to come over her face.

Wolf smiled in amusement. “Huff-puff, you weren’t worried about me?”

Danielle shook her head. “Nah,” she said, but she had a small grin on her face.

Wolf looked around and saw Wendell. “Wendy! Great to see you back to your old human self,” he said.

Wendell beamed. Finally! His proper greeting after being turned into a dog and then a frog. “Hello, Wolf,” he nodded and shook Wolf’s hand.

Wolf ignored Wendell’s obvious attempt at being formal and hugged him, patting him on the back. Wendell coughed and pushed him away. “Lighten up, Wendy,” Wolf grinned.

Wendell pretended not to hear him and brushed himself off, trying to retain his regal manner. He turned to Virginia and kissed her hand. “Virginia. Good to see you. I trust you’re well?” he asked.

Danielle rolled her eyes at Wolf and motioned to Wendell. Wolf nodded and grinned. Danielle mimicked Wendell mockingly behind his back. Wolf’s grin widened. Virginia saw what they were doing and tried very hard not to burst out laughing. Wendell saw her looking behind him and spun around. He eyed Danielle and Wolf suspiciously. Danielle smiled innocently and raised a questioning eyebrow. Wolf copied her.

“So,” Virginia said loudly, drawing their attention to her. “Where’s my dad?”

“Anthony went with Maive and Cinnamon to find some food for dinner,” Wendell informed her.

“Oh, good. I’m starving,” Wolf said.

Virginia smiled at that and gave a sigh of happiness. “I’m just glad we’re all back together.”

Danielle shook her head. “No, not all. Ivy’s still missing,” she reminded them.

Wendell nodded solemnly. “Perhaps we should ask Maive to scry for her. If my grandmother thinks we should all be together, then we should be.

Danielle nodded in agreement. She felt a small stab of guilt. Ivy was her friend and she hadn’t even worried about her. Who knew what could have happened to her? “Oh, shut up, Danielle. This isn’t a melodrama,” she muttered to herself. “Ivy can take care of herself. Can’t she?”

Randal, I can’t believe you talked me into doing this,” Ivy hissed as they edged closer to the jailhouse on the edge of Kissingtown.

“Shhh,” Randal replied. “Faolan says to be silent when hunting.”

Good advice, Ivy thought as she ducked down and peered through the dark. They were around the back of the jailhouse, good. Even better, the cells had windows. Ivy motioned to Randal to stay put, then crept towards the jailhouse wall. It seemed to her now more sensitive ears that she was a lot quieter on her feet than she had been before. Maybe there was more to this wolf-thing than she had thought. Maybe she had overreacted a little. Maybe now was not the time to weigh the pros and cons.

Ivy sunk in the shadows, hoping that her blonde hair wouldn’t give her away to anyone she didn’t want to know she was there. “Faolan,” she breathed, trusting that his sharp hearing would pick it up. Ivy glanced up at the window and saw Faolan was already there. His eyes brightened when he saw her and he looked dangerously close to doing something that might reveal her presence. She motioned for him to be quiet. She pulled out her tail to remind him that she was a wolf now, she would hear. He nodded ever so slightly.

Ivy edged up until she was nearly level with the window. Faolan glanced back at the guards nervously. “Can you get them to take you outside?” she asked.

Faolan mouthed no with a slight shake of his head.

“I didn’t think so. Wait and be ready. We’re going to get you out,” Ivy said, then disappeared back in the shadows before he could answer. She motioned to Randal and a moment later he was at her side. She nodded to him and he took off again. Another momentary lapse and a howl, short and loud, broke through the air. Randal made as much noise as he could and Ivy could hear him throwing rocks at the walls and door of the jailhouse. Angry shouts came from inside and the jailers emerged, one holding a lantern. Randal grinned wolfishly in a way that reminded her very much of his brother and began aiming the rocks at the jailers. It didn’t take more coaxing than that to get them to chase after him.

The moment they were gone, Ivy slipped inside. She sprang to Faolan’s cell to find him already there, waiting.

“You’re insane!” he said in a loud whisper.

“I know. Where are the keys?”

“I…I don’t know. One of the guards had them when I saw them,” Faolan said, spreading his hands helplessly.

Ivy cursed under her breath and began a frenzied search of the room. There wasn’t really a whole lot in there so it was basically just tearing apart a desk and scattering the contents. She prayed the guard hadn’t kept the keys on him.

“What are you doing? You’re helping a killer!”

Ivy growled. She didn’t need the voice bothering her right now. “Wait! Oh! I found the keys!” Ivy said, snatching them up and clutching them so tight that it hurt her hand. She hurried over to Faolan’s cell. He was practically bouncing up and down.

“You said yourself that the story is repeating. Wolf worked for the Evil Queen originally. What about Faolan?”

Ivy stopped a pace away from Faolan’s cell. She shook her head fiercely and started unlocking the door.

“Stop! Are you out of your mind?! You let him out and all the lies start again. All the confusion. All the worry. The full moon rolls around again and yours will be the next body they find!”

Ivy froze again, but at that exact same moment, Randal ran into the room. “Hurry! They’ll be back soon!” he panted. He saw that Ivy wasn’t moving and growled in anger and frustration. He jerked the keys out of her hands and hurriedly unlocked the door.

“He’s not even human, girl! If he doesn’t kill you himself, he’ll get you killed soon enough. You are not a superhero! You will die!”

Ivy felt herself being dragged somewhere, but she couldn’t get her eyes to work and tell her who was pulling her along and to where. The next thing she knew she was being almost thrown to the ground.

“Ivy, snap out of it!” someone whispered sharply from very close to her. Ivy just blinked. “What’s wrong with you?” the same person asked and Ivy felt herself being shaken.

“How can you trust any of them? They could all be lying to you! What if you’re on the wrong side? What if the evil witch isn’t even evil? What if she’s the good guy?”

“Okay, Ivy. I really hate to do this.”

Ivy gave a sharp yelp when she felt her tail being yanked, hard. A hand clamped over her mouth quickly. Ivy started to panic, struggling wildly. Her eyes went wide and she felt herself bare her teeth and growl.

“Shhh. It’s okay. It’s me,” Faolan said in a quiet voice. He glanced around nervously as if her outburst might have alerted someone. Ivy realized they were hiding behind some bushes. She had no idea how far they had come, but they had all made it, at least.

Ivy looked down at her hands and discovered that she was holding her tail protectively. She quickly dropped it and acted as if nothing had happened. She looked over again and saw Faolan was grinning. The grin disappeared all too quickly, though. He turned so he lay flat on his stomach, looking out through the bushes, and sniffed. Ivy sniffed, too. She still wasn’t too sure about her senses, but she could smell people. She couldn’t distinguish how many or how far away they were, but she could guess it was the jailers and since the smell was kind of faint, they probably were a good distance from them. She heard Faolan sigh with relief and turned towards him.

“We lost them,” he said. “Now, what was with you? It was like you weren’t there for a minute or something.”

Ivy shook her head. She couldn’t tell him about the voice. “Let’s just get out of here. I still have to get to that castle, remember,” she said, then stopped. Why was it so important to her to get to Wendell’s Castle? She wasn’t even sure if she was on the right side anymore. She wasn’t sure of anything. She couldn’t even think or her mind would explode at what had happened to her, mixed with all her doubts.

No! She wouldn’t do this to herself. She wouldn’t start second guessing everything that came out of her mouth. She would get to that castle and figure out the rest from there.

“That hurt, you know,” she said, just to distract herself. “Why’d you have to pull so hard? I’m just getting used to having a tail.” Her mind wanted to panic at the thought that she had a tail. That she wasn’t totally human anymore. But she wouldn’t let it. If she kept her distance from everything, she would be okay.

“I know and I’m sorry. I just had to get you back to yourself,” he said apologetically. Then, he smiled shyly. “Did I really pull that hard?”

It was a line. A line to get her to react. She could see that now. “Yes,” she said stiffly and got to her feet. “Now, come on. If we start now we should reach that castle sometime soon.”

Faolan seemed momentarily disappointed, then shrugged it off and got to his feet as well. Randal was quick to follow. He looked from Faolan to Ivy curiously. “Are you two having a fight?” he asked innocently. “’Cause I thought you had to be married before you had fights.”

“Randal!” Faolan hissed.

“What?” he demanded. He rolled his eyes at both of them and started walking. Faolan glared at him and Ivy pretended she hadn’t heard. “Sorry,” he said sarcastically. “It’s not like I’m the one who got your girlfriend mad at you.”

“Randal!” Faolan said, even harsher than before, a growl in his voice. Randal ignored him and kept walking, forcing both of them to follow. Faolan looked at Ivy with a worried look on his face, like Randal might have ruined his whole plan. Ivy pointedly kept her gaze on the surroundings and the path ahead.