One On One- daz and lacuna;

[vixen;]

Juniper

She had slapped the horse's reins against its back, urging it to go faster. She looked over at Roya who had long since given up on trying to steer the beast. The horse's breathing was ragged, pleading for Juniper to slow down, that or bring in another horse to lighten the load. Juniper looked at the animal, hating to work the horse so hard, it could kill the beast, but the guards were still tracking them. After putting a few miles between them and the guards, who were almost as stupid as the Royal Guard that had accompanied her on her trip to the summer palace. She slowed the horse, letting it rest. She turned her attention to Lark. Juniper stared at the blood on the side of his face, almost terrified as she saw it. Had he been shot? If so Juniper hadn't seen an arrow close by them. She handed the reins to a reluctant Roya, who after some convincing and a brief lesson on the art of driving a horse, took the reins. Juniper sat down on the seat, watching as Roya shakingly tried to steer the horse. Juniper quickly corrected her mistakes. A mistake while driving a horse could be fatal. A ditch, a hole in the road, anything that could spook a horse could spell certain death, or severe injury. Juniper took the reins from her, showing her how to hold them.

How did Juniper know how to drive a cart? Well, recently she had been sending much time alone, which led to a spark in boredom, and boredom breeds brilliance. Many trips into randomly selected villages had provided her with a treasure trove of odd talents and interested. One man had shown her how to drive a cart as she had been traveling with him and his family, it was all that Juniper had ever wanted, a simple family outing. All think of Cinderella as the model mother, pretty, kind, caring. Cinderella was also a Queen, meaning that though her actions would never be questioned by her subjects, she still held herself and her family to a high standard. Meaning a long string of no's. No pets, no dogs expect for hunting dogs owned by her father, no yelling or screaming, no family excursions unless accompanied by heaving presence of guards. This had always made any and every opportunity for freedom seem sacred, and put a burden on family events, not to mention how public her mother's life was.

Juniper had showed Roya how to manage a horse drawn carriage, at least for a short time. Juniper moved to the back of the cart, her focus now on Lark. She begun by prying a top off one of the barrels, it took a little while, but it came off as she found a bar of steel, Juniper forced the bar under the top of the box. The lid slid off, exposing its contents. Juniper had no mention in the content of the box, but instead of the cloth strips used to soften any impact. She grabbed a handful of the cloth, then moved over to lark, she slid across the cart as Roya turned the horse left. Juniper didn't speak, she laid the strips out on a smaller box, arranging them neatly before she turned back to Lark. She did not like the idea of being this close to the young man, but she focused on the wound, shutting him out completely. She began to reason with her actions. In all fairness, he had carried her into the tree top canopy, then pulled her off the tree. Twice he had touched her, now she reasoned, that there was no reason to hold this against her, as of both times, this would also be meaningless, done purely to preserve the life of an ally. She turned to face the barrels, then found one labeled with 'medicine'. She went over to the small barrel, around two feet in height, four feet in diameter. Juniper pulled the barrel over to her, once again using the steel bar to get the lid off. She took the straw out of the box, finding a bottle full of a dark brown liquid. She pushed the barrel away, setting the top on it. She gripped the cork, trying desperately to pull the cork out. She took the cork between her teeth, finally pulling the cork out. She spit it out, then poured the liquid on the strips.

Juniper looked at Lark. "Trust me for ten minutes." She said before taking a strip without the liquid. She pressed it against the source of the blood, reaching for a strip with the liquid, she pressed it against the cut. "It may sting." She muttered, then held it there. She expected him to winch in pain, or cry out, she had considered the reaction that ended up with her thrown back, pushed away from him. She took more strips, wrapping them around the wound. It took more of the bandages than she had expected, Juniper worked quickly, finishing with the bandages. "Ten minutes are up." She said before leaving him to go back to the front, she retook her seat beside Roya, taking the reins from the somewhat frightened Roya.

Roya

Roya sat beside Juniper, completely unaware of Lark's injury. She had been studying her cloak, frowning at the large hole in the back. She looked over at Juniper as the princess reassured her that she could fix it. Roya ignored the comment, frowning as she was handed the reins. She looked at Juniper, holding the reins as though they were cobras, something dangerous yet intriguing, she was instructed on how to handle the reins, but still they remained a mystery to her. She slapped the reins against the horse's back, sending the animal into a frenzy. The reins were taken from her, they now rested in Juniper's hands. She was perfectly fine with the sudden loss of the reins, and had no sorrow over the loss.

Once again the cart slowed, Roya noticed how the horse acted when Juniper held the reins. Calm, trusting. A foolish animal, the horse, give it an apple, or fix something that was hurting the beast, then you would have its trust. To her, that was stupid, she was repulsed by the idea of a horse's trust. Roya's lips puckered as she sorted through her thoughts. She was raised in a home where trust was a wicked thing, jewels meant more than a life and wealth was the prime target. She regretted leaving at some times, at home there was shelter and a steady amount of food always at hand. To accompany that was harsh words, lack of trust and the constant talk of money.

She snapped back to reality, feeling the leather reins placed in her hands again. Juniper began to talk about instructions to driving a cart, she nodded her head as Juniper spoke, trying the instructions for herself. She succeed in following them, she practice more, receiving praise from Juniper, that was different, at home a correct actions was followed by silence, and incorrect action was followed by a sharp word. Roya didn't turn to look as Juniper went into the cargo area of the cart, Roya turned as she heard a top pop off a box, but was told to watch the road.

[daz]

━━━━━━━━━ ｌａｒｋ ;;


________lark carelessly chucked the bare apple core over his shoulder after he'd completed it, his stomach still grumbling in dissatisfaction. if he'd been able to go along with his original plan, he likely could've been able to retain far more than a measly old fruit. even a loaf of bread might've helped settle his hunger pains more than something this simple. he didn't find it greedy of him to think that, either. he was a prince. he had every right to wish he could eat more. when you think of royalty, one might assume you're bathing in riches and delightful meals cooked to perfection by a band of humble servants. see, that was likely only the case in a kingdom like juniper's. he could only imagine how well she was treated at her home, given everything she ever wanted and spoiled absolutely rotten. it was a wonder the blonde didn't emerge a complete brat, believing that she should get what she desired whenever she desired it. people like that easily disgusted lark, as their lives were so... perfect. their problems circled around the last million dollar check they hadn't received for their birthday, while lark was more concerned about whether or not his mum would even remember his birthday at all. she had a tendency to be awfully forgetful, and no matter how many times she apologized the blow still sank deep. did he really matter that little to maleficent? it shouldn't have surprised him, as it was in her nature to care for no one else but herself. but he was her son, and for whatever reason he felt he deserved something for simply that. instead, he got a "suck it up" and "don't you have some chaos to cause elsewhere?" the answer was always yes.
________the brunette gently ran his nimble fingers through his hair, one side of it now primarily soaked in his blood. he must've been so caught up in fleeing, he hadn't noticed the amount of damage that knight had caused him. he crinkled his nose in disgust, shaking the crimson liquid off of his hand. he allowed it to splatter on the forest floor, left in their dust as they continued down the dirt path. well, the injuries he'd retained could've been far worse. he could've lost his horn altogether, and then it would've been the ultimate catastrophe. lark took a lot of pride in having his horns, as they were the main thing that caused him to stick out in crowds. they'd been the thing to first turn him into a bad omen, and for that he was forever appreciative of their existence. he wouldn't ever replace them with wings, no matter how awesome it would be to fly. he embraced his pointy ears and ghastly horns, as they had been apart of him all his life.
________lark glared stubbornly at juniper as she climbed into the back of the cart with him, beginning to dig about within all of the barrels. conveniently, the contents in several of them were medicinal products. although, he was a bit reluctant to admit he greatly required them. "it's just a scratch, i'll live," he proclaimed, but the fact that he was lying directly through his teeth couldn't have been anymore obvious. blood was gushing from the wound, so there was no bickering in this situation. although, even when juniper requested a mere ten minutes of his time, he wanted to refuse. admitting to his pains was pure weakness at its finest, or at least... that was what maleficent had told him. yet, he did manage to hold still, shamefully looking down at his hands so she could get a proper view of the top of his head. where his right horn jutted out, his flesh was bleeding rather heavily. she set to work on him, informing him of the likelihood that what she was fixing to do would sting.
________her petite hands combing through the clumpy bits of his hair actually caused his spine to tingle. their bodies were quite close to one another, and lark could've sworn he felt the princess's perspiration evaporating into the oxygen around him. at that thought, quite a bit of pain caused him to inhale sharply and close his eyes. it didn't hurt as badly as it had when the injury was actually retained, but that didn't make this anymore tolerable. he felt utterly weak in june's hands, surprised with himself for not lashing out at her. it was pretty standard behavior of his to burst into bizarre fits of rage, which was why so many corpses haunted his past. if you made him angry, it was all over.
________when juniper finished with him, maneuvering away wordlessly, he couldn't tell whether he owed her a "thank you" or not. it was the sensible thing to do, but out of his ridiculous pride he merely gave her a soft nod. the good princess puzzled him, quite frankly. they'd spent a few hours together, but he still felt like they'd only just met. and then there was the big elephant in the room: his name. would he ever reveal such a personal thing to her? he held his name close to his heart, keeping it hidden and classified. the only person who knew his name for certain was maleficent herself, but asides from that... nobody. it was because lark had yet to meet someone worthy of it, someone who he could truly trust to protect his identity. no matter how much he hated being "maleficent's son," and that was it, it was just the safer route. and, anyway, he would rather not have the poisonous villagers and the palace guards spewing it left and right. it would only ruin it for him, and he actually quite loved his name. he was, according to his mum, her "little flightless bird." an entity without wings, but still with the name of a being who possesses them. that had to be something special.
________the remainder of their journey seemed to remain rather peaceful, all three of them evidently exhausted. their days had taken a heavy toll on them, and they were sinking faster than the sun could set. lark's eyelids drooped, and occasionally he would catch himself nearly dozing away. but he refused sleep for the time being, as he didn't feel secure enough slumbering where he was. he would rather depend on himself for his life, and not jafar's daughter or juniper.
________"jafar's daughter," he finally echoed his thoughts, quirking his eyebrow a tad. "i would ask you why you're so far away from home, but i think i have a good guess. don't worry... i won't go blabbing." because that was an option he had as prince. lark could easily snatch jafar's daughter up and "escort" her back to her palace, forcing her to return to hell on earth. he wished he had the courage to up and abandon his mother and her teachings, but that was impossible. he was better off letting it go. jafar's daughter could now be free, while he would remain in a state of mental imprisonment. his time was sure to come eventually. when he inherited the throne, he could make his own rules.
________"what's your name?" lark asked at last, having fallen silent for a few moments. he didn't know her name, just as he hadn't known juniper's. despite the fact he and jafar's daughter inhabited similar situations, both children of an evil ruler, they'd never communicated. in the good kingdoms, they were constantly throwing pointless parties and social events which made it impossible to not know everyone's names. in the evil kingdoms, they rarely socialized. that was why lark had no friends, because he had been so closed off from people. he was taught to observe from afar, and that was exactly what he did.
________the summer palace, at long last, came into view. it was just as gigantic as he'd pictured it, sitting atop a hill, surrounded by wildlife. it looked awfully empty, with no guards in sight. ah, how convenient! it looked as though juniper would be alone, then, as lark had killed pretty much all of her loyal knights. hopefully she wouldn't mind too terribly? he chewed on his lower lip a tad, realizing something rather sad. as night was falling, he would need to return to his home, as usual. it wasn't that he had a curfew or anything, as his mum normally acted like she didn't care whether he ever came back. but on this particular day, she'd specifically requested he come home. she wanted to chat more about her plans of conquering cinderella's kingdom, which undoubtedly wouldn't interest lark in the slightest. meetings like that were usually such a bore to sit through, and now it would be significantly worse after having hung out with cinderella's daughter all day. but he was tired, and accepting his journey home was something he'd simply have to do. that, or later face his mother's wrath. was it odd to say that he sincerely hoped to encounter the good princess again? if not by accident, but for him to be able to return. truth be told, lark hadn't a doubt on his mind that he'd do just that. she was still a puzzle worth solving, and he wasn't planning on letting her slip through his fingertips that easily.
________"it's nice," lark mumbled, tugging his tired frame out of the cart. he brushed off his dusty, ebony cloak, noting how filthy it had become throughout the day. "looks to be awfully roomy for a place intended to fit only one person. why did your mum send you here again?"

[vixen;]

Juniper

The seat jostled her around as she slapped the reins against the horse's back. She had slowed the animal down so that the work wouldn't kill the beast. Juniper now pushed the animal harder, unsure whether it was safe to do so. She slowed it to a walking pace, the horse's ragged breathing fill the air. Juniper stopped the cart at the wall that surrounded the palace. The wall itself was around ten feet in height going around the entire palace grounds. The gates that led into the palace were rusted, it had been many years since the last visit to the family palace. Juniper stopped the cart, handing the reins to Roya as she got out of the cart. She opened the gates. She waved her hand, motioning for Roya to drive the cart through.

Juniper shut the gate behind them. She got back on the cart, letting Roya drive the cart the rest of the way. It wasn't a far drive to the castle itself, within a few minutes they were at the castle door. Juniper opened the door to the palace, which surprisingly wasn't locked. Having ignore most of Lark's questions since entering the palace grounds. "We use to come here during the summers, we haven't in a long time. There will be no staff here, we're alone here. There should be enough food here, and the supplies from the cart, we can stay for a while. And to answer your question Nameless," She smirked at Lark as she said it, "is that I don't know why I'm here, I go where I'm told, keeps Mother happy."

Juniper pushed the door opened, motioning for them to go inside. Roya rushed inside, laughing as she did. Juniper smiled, watching her. "She seems happy." Juniper went over to the horse, looking at it in detail for the first time. A chestnut with stockings and a star on its forehead. She moved around the horse, unhooking it from the cart. She took the bit from the horse's mouth, holding her hand in front of the animal to keep the horse from moving. Juniper threw the reins around the horse's neck, leading the beast to the stables. Having been unattended for many years, the stables were in good condition.

Juniper left the chestnut standing in the stable as she looked for a brush. She found one, walking back to the horse as it ate hay from a box it had found. "Poor boy. Your tail's a mess." Juniper talked to the horse as she began to brush it. Compared to Juniper, the horse was massive, its size dwarfing the princess. She stood on a bow to reach the horse's shoulders. She finished brushing the animal, thorough out brushing the animal she talked to the horse, the knowledge that it couldn't understand her was present. She knew it could never return the conversation. She finished brushing the horse, the lead it to a stall. She bolted the door, taking care to add the feed to the stall. "You'll need a name if you are to survive." The horse threw its head, then nudged Juniper with its nose. "Okay. Yes, you do need a name though." She smiled at the animal, preferring its company. "How about Annora?" She asked the beast, receiving a bored look from the animal. "Not Annora. So, what about Venus?" The horse couldn't talk, didn't know what she was saying, therefore couldn't react. Juniper shrugged. "Fine, Venus it is." She smiled again, the rubbed the horse's nose. "Sweet boy." She muttered.

Juniper walked back to the palace, unsure where the other two had gone. She opened a door, not the main one. No, this door led to the servants quarters, as well as the library. She walked through the palace, making her way through the back halls, they were easier to navigate, no flashing paintings, or dead ends. These halls were meant only for servants, leaving them bare expect for a few paintings the servants had brought. Juniper finally found the main hall way, it wouldn't be hard to find her room now. That was always difficult, the palace was like a maze, always confusing. Third door to the right. Juniper opened the door exposing an lien closet. Third door on the left. The left. Juniper turned around, opening the door that led to her room. She smiled, letting the door shut behind her.

Juniper walked to the massive closet within her room. She stared at all the dresses, many of which she hadn't worn in years. The dresses went from one side of the color scheme to the other. Juniper took out a blue dress, smaller than she would have prefer. She changed quickly, brushed her hair and stepped out of her room. The dress was a light blue almost sky, but not quite, it came to just below her knee, which bothered Juniper slightly, she had forgotten about summer dresses every year, growing so use to the large winter dresses that dragged behind her. She felt more free in this smaller dress. She could move around more, move faster. It was strange.

Juniper ducked into a servants hallway again, disappearing from the main parts of the castle. She walked down the hallway, her pace quickening before she finally began to run, her hair flew like a kite behind her. She laughed as she ran, not having experienced this form of freedom in months. She slowed down again as she neared a door leading to the larger, more public parts of the castle. Her hand reached out to the doorknob, hovering there. She stared at the doorknob, then darted away from the door, turning down another hallway. She ran faster, her lungs seemed to burn as she ran. She found another door, throwing it open. She ran into the library, her footsteps echoed as she slowed. She turned in a circle, the smile had faded long since, she found a ladder. She climbed up, using the ladder and the selves themselves, she reached the top, pulling herself onto the bookshelf. She stood there, feeling as though she had just climbed a mountain.

Juniper climbed down the bookshelf, her shoes hitting the ground. She dropped in height as the heel of her shoe broke. She pulled the heels of her feet, throwing them to the side. She stared down at her feet, then walked out of the library. She walked down the hallway, her footsteps were softer, yet the still echoed. She walked alone, no one around her. She stopped as she her a soft whine, she followed the noise, seeing a broken window as she entered a servants' quarters, she followed the noise, seeing a white kitten. The animal cowered in fright as Juniper reached out to touch the animal. She picked the kitten up, the young cat moving around as she held it. The kittens's chest rose at an alarming rate as she held it. She walked to a room, filled with light throw the window, she set down on a sofa, setting the kitten beside her. It meowed as Juniper ran her hand over the kitten, noticing the small cut in its ear as well as the foot that had a splatter of blood. Juniper picked the kitten up. "Etselle." She spoke softly. "I call you Etselle."

Roya

She had run inside the palace, amazed by its size. A person could get lost in this place. She was alone, this only fueled her happiness. She ran up the staircase, taking her time to get the second story, the palace was nothing like that of her father's. His was a big palace, streching miles in distance, but this on was not like that, it went up. Roya found staircase after staircase, she continued to climb up to the top, the top floor was nothing more than an attic, a brown oak floor was nothing more than usual boards that were the prefer choice of wood in villages. She did nothing more than she could, walking around in a circle in the attic. Roya loved the seclusion, deciding that this would be where she would stay. She ran down the stairs, walking on wooden beams that were close to the ceiling. She jumped from beam to beam, it was easy, like home. She climbed to the floor, opening doors in her search for blankets. She found a closet filled with them, and gathered many in her arms. She neglected the beams, using the staircases to make her way back to the attic. She set them on the floor, beginning to make a bed, she layered the blankets, making a soft bed. After several trips to the closet, she had a bed that she liked.

Roya ventured into the kitchen next, staring in awe at the pantry, stack high with food. She grabbed what looked freshest, carrying it back to the attic, multiple times she had dropped the the food. She grabbed a bag, stuffing the food into the cloth bag, the was room to spare, and Roya traveled to the kitchen, she stuffed yet more food into the bag, grabbing glass bottles of water. She went back to the attic, setting her supplies out. She looked around, finding a key. She tried it on the door, smiling when it worked, now the attic was hers. She could come and go as she please, and no one else could. She stuffed the key into the pocket of her pants, then went to explore. She quickly took to hiding in the shadows of the palace, feeling out of place when she stepped into the sun light. She stayed close to the wall, keeping out of sight of the other two. She checked around her, keeping guard. Occasionally she would take to the higher floors, then to the beams. She walked across them confidently, the knowledge that she could fall was present, and still Roya darted across the beams, then scaled her way down. She was clumsy, with led to her tripping and falling many times. Her knee hurt from one particularly bad fall.

She now walked down the hallway, looking for a staircase. She found one, then took it to the attic, she stayed there for the rest of the hour, then walked out of the attic. She ran down the staircase, doing nothing more than exploring. She found many things thqat were new to her, the servants quarters were strange, actually beds lined the walls. Strange, her father would never allow the servants beds, she smiled at the beds, then walked out of the room, strange how she hadn't seen Juniper. Roya began to track the princess's movements, losing her many times. She found a trail of strange things, stumbling into the library on her search for the princess. She scanned the room, walking over as she saw the heels, they gave away no details, yet Roya studied them anyways. She couldn't find a door leading to anywhere expect the main hall. Roya gave up on her search, she had no powers, and very limited knowledge of the castle, while the princess had grown up coming to this castle every summer. Roya accepted defeat, making her way back to the kitchen. She was glad she had at least found the kitchen.

She followed a servants' hallway, leading to yet another servants quarters. She walked over to the window, frowning at the large hole in the glass. She used a blanket to cover the hole, hoping no animals had invaded the castles.

[daz]

━━━━━━━━━ ｌａｒｋ ;;


________lark stuffed his hands into his pockets as he trailed aimlessly behind the two women, his eyes trained on the castle before him. he hadn't received an answer concerning jafar's daughter's name, so she would remain a mystery for the time being. she seemed too caught up in the presence of the palace to care about him anyway, already running ahead to immerse herself in its wonder. upon entry, he noted how barren the enormous household appeared to be. judging by its outer shell, one would assume a whole army could be hiding within. although, now that he had crossed the doorway himself, he realized how alone they were. it was simply the trio, all mashed together to form the most hodgepodge group to ever see the light of day. evidently, he wasn't the only one to be amazed by what all he was greeted with. jafar's daughter abandoned him and juniper instantaneously, dashing off to explore the never-ending maze of hallways now available to them. lark was fully aware of what her palace looked like, and it definitely was nothing like this. even though it wasn't the cleanest it could be, everything still bewildered the two villainous people. the luxuries that came with being a good's princess were now far more evident than before; if they hadn't been already, especially considering the shimmery carriage he'd first found her in. it still confused lark how june wasn't the biggest brat on the planet, but he wasn't complaining. thus far, the sort of person she was had contributed in the continuation of his freedom. for that, he was... thankful. although he despised the word on his tongue, it was simply the truth. she was a good, and he was an evil, but they had yet to destroy one another. but she wasn't his friend. no. no way, absolutely not. he was supposed to despise good people. he was only sticking around to perform his mum's flower trick, and squash her like a bug once he'd found out what he wanted. there wasn't a chance he would ever genuinely look at juniper affectionately. he was disgusted by the mere thought of it.
________and then, there was one. he was alone, surrounded by the masses of endless halls and overwhelmingly large rooms. it felt odd, wrong even, to be waltzing around a good's palace. summer palace or not, he was still wary. it all could've been a trick, set up as some sort of trap. guards could come out of nowhere, and with the element of surprise they could kill him in an instant. they were likely not to hesitate, as he'd performed countless crimes in this day alone. not to mention the dozens he'd committed in the past, wracking up a plentiful amount of bodies. it was only a matter of time before his mischief became too much, and they'd become smart enough to capture him. but he ignored that thought, actually laughing aloud at his foolishness. lark could not be defeated. he was unbreakable. he would never have to bend over backwards just to protect his life, as no human stood any match for his power. or, that is what he thought. that was what maleficent told him.
________in spite of his suspicions, lark did his best to enjoy his time in the castle. he roamed around, comparing this location with maleficent's home. it was much darker in his mum's kingdom, with a lot less decoration and class. most everything looked to be broken, battered, and abandoned where it was left. here, there was order. it was a massive difference that he couldn't see past, quietly amazed by the great change in atmosphere. the architecture was also highly notable, with well-created statues formed to honor all of the members in the royal family. the biggest of them all was, of course, the one resembling cinderella. it could use a polish, but otherwise the state of it was impeccable. simply gazing at the statue, surprisingly taller than lark himself, made him want to gag. it didn't matter that this was june's mother, it didn't change his opinion about the queen. she was the ruler over the thing he hated the most, so one ought to not blame him. maleficent had given him a bad impression on the woman, so it was in his nature to dislike her. truth be told, he'd never been face-to-face with her. he suspected the moment he looked into her eyes would be the day he was obtained, and he didn't plan on that anytime soon.
________lark came across several rooms intended for hosting balls, made obvious by how large they were in comparison to the others. one he came upon in particular had a set of thrones at the end, led up to by a musty carpet of blue. he journeyed all the way up to them, resting his hand on the one meant for cinderella herself. it was covered in a layer of dust caused by disuse, but the temptation became overbearing. the dark fairy hoisted himself up into it, settling down on the available cushion. he maneuvered about until he was comfortable, resting his hands against the armrests. lark had never sat on a real throne before, let alone one intended for the queen of goodness. maleficent refused to give him one, stating that it shouldn't matter to him. his "throne," to him, was a tree. who needed some fancy, overly glorified chair when the skyline belonged to you instead?
________lark didn't stay there for too long, as it made him feel a bit sickly. he located his way through the castle, truly surprised he hadn't begun to consider himself lost. he never came across anything else interesting, most of the hallways consisting of dozens of locked doors. that is, until he spotted a completely random one left ajar. he pried it open the rest of the way, it creaking in protest as he did so. he stuck his head in, automatically greeted by a narrow room consisting of only photographs. some of them were painted, some of them were legitimately taken by a camera. he went the rest of the way in, deciding to explore what was available to see. each wall was dedicated to their own subject, and he was a bit stunned to discover what they were. at his left were all of the good royal families, primarily consisting of self portraits or life shots of when juniper was a child. but at his right, they were of the evil royal families. the boy ignored the left for the time being, scanning the wall of villains. truth be told, he was shocked to find such a thing in a palace intended for the good. perhaps he shouldn't have been, however, as it was in their nature to be utterly... good. despite the fact the two societies despised one another, the good would always have their demented dedications. them and their statues, museums, and the like to represent the opposite kingdoms efficiently.
________then, he found it. it was a frame near the center, as the primary queens were positioned in the middle of each wall. beneath the gigantic painted portrait of maleficent, rested him. he stood before it easily, his eyes cast downwards as he was so tall. the painting itself was about the size of his torso, as apparently the sizes of the photos were meant to indicate their position of power. lesser villains had pictures the size of his hand, but his was only a few inches smaller than his mum's. lark had to admit it, the picture was... gorgeous. it stunned him into silence, especially in knowing someone had painted him with such care and divine motion. he wasn't sure what he'd been expecting; maybe a big red x over his face, but that was exactly what he didn't get. the image consisted of him, showing a bit of his chest and up, reaching the very tips of his horns. whoever had done this had been incredibly accurate, even including the slight inward curve the tips of his horns had. he was clearly meant to be sitting down, leaning forward a bit. he had his hands placed underneath his face, his pointer and middle fingers resting against his lips; his thumb was positioned underneath his chin. lark was smirking in the painting as well, his own crooked grin all too familiar to him. it was surreal to be looking directly into his own eyes, and it not be a mirror.
________the prince stood there longer than he'd like to admit, marveling at the painting dedicated to him. it was just so unlike anything he'd ever seen. it took a lot of forceful dragging to get him to leave the picture behind, left to roam the halls again. he eventually came upon a window that had been smashed open, likely by a stray rock, which he chose to climb through, of course. he loved climbing trees, so why not climb the palace? he did just that, emerging outside and using his skills in scaling things to reach the rooftop. it was pointed, with a skinny flag erected on it. lark grabbed ahold of the pole which kept the flag there, using it to keep him balanced as he casually leaned outwards. the view was spectacular, giving him the chance to see the moon as it was gradually emerging in the sky. it was becoming awfully humid, even with the mild breeze, so he shouldered his cloak off of his body. he didn't need it anyways. lark released it into the air, allowing it to blow away, leaving him in his fully black attire. he wore extremely tight jeans, a turtleneck without sleeves, combat boots which reached his knees, and finger-less gloves to top it all off. truth be told, if you didn't realize he was a conniving villain at first glance... you had to be blind. not only did he have horns, but he dressed like that? it was no surprise he was the prince of malevolence.

[vixen;]

Roya
The young girl had retreated to the attic, locking the door behind her. The windows had begun to bother her. Roya used a blanket to cover the windows, which was quiet the problem. She was short, truth be told, she was short. So putting a blanket to cover the window, that was almost twice her size. A single window of reguler height would have been enough trouble. But there were two. Not one, but two. Two! She had considered giving up, but the pros outweighed the cons by a wide margin. She finished with the first window, then moved on to the other one. After having figured out of a way to do it quickly, she had finished the window in minutes.

She had kept a bag with her thorough out her travels of many small village, shockingly it hadn't been torn. The bag itself could be considered ugly, its dull gray fabric had stains on its. A single strap ran across the top, the only way to carry it. In all honesty it was a sack really. She had picked it up in one of the villages she had traveled through. It was a trade. A fair one too. She had helped a small child, and in thanks the young child had wanted to give her a horse. Really, a horse. It wasn't the child's fault, the young boy was at most three, and innocently stupid. Strangely the child led Roya back to its house, once at the house Roya convinced the child that the bag would be better than any horse. After that Roya went on her way, leaving the child behind. She had been reluctant to leave the child, but finally did after the child promised their father would be home soon. Turns out, though Roya was never informed, the child was an orphan.

Roya let her thoughts drift back to the child, now she pictured the child's face as a blurry image. She regretted not staying to find out if the child was safe. She lay down on the pile of blankets, rolling one up to form a pillow. She looked at the blankets, one on top of the other, about seven blankets deep. She had pulled one blanket up to her chin, curling into a ball. She yawned, laying her head down on the makeshift pillow. She lay there, her eyes closed, her body still expect for the steady rise and fall of her breathing. Roya slept for a few hours, tops.

Roya awoke suddenly, hearing a noise. Ever since running away from her father, Roya had become paranoid. It had been a useful skill, keeping her away from her father's forces and the guards as well. Now, within the safety of the palace, the skill had turned against her. She now a woke to nothing more than the wooden floor creaking, she knew trying to sleep was useless. So she threw the blanket off her, pulling it back on as the cold air touched her skin. She wrapped the blanket around her. She walked to the window, pulling the blanket down. She frowned as she looked out the window, there was no sun in the sky, yet it wouldn't be long until the sun was in the sky. A pale blue light seeped into the attic, drenching everything within its reach.

Roya squinted as the light hit her eyes, she blocked the sunlight from her eyes. She paused, considering many things. She finally let out a sigh, before selecting a clothes much like the ones from the previous ones. A pair of pants, silky and of foreign cloth. She found a top, decently matching. She opened the door to the attic, locking it again, before she walked down the stairs. She ended up running down the stairs, almost tripping twice before she reached the kitchen. She ran into the kitchen, prepared to steal a quick meal. She stopped, almost crashing into a chair as she saw Juniper standing there; cooking.

Juniper

Juniper had gone to bed shortly after it had gotten dark, though she was indeed a night owl, she feared the dark. It had always been a source of fear for the young princess, but more on that later. She went to her room, Etselle followed behind her, the tom cat meowing loudly as the princess walked to her room. The kitten trotted behind her, wanting more attention. Juniper turned, picking up the kitten. Of all animals, kittens were her softest spot. Though she had many soft spots, Juniper preferred to favor this spot above any of the others. The little kitten was no in her arms, his meowing had ceased and was now replaced with a soft purr. Juniper smiled down at her new friend.

Third door to the right. Juniper walked down the hallway, opening the door, leading to a closet. Same mistake. Juniper scolded herself, she turned to the left, opening that door. She went into her room, closing the door behind her. The door didn't close all the way, but instead stayed open, Juniper looked back at the door, her own brand of paranoia, she shut the door, ensuring that it was closed. She walked to the bed, setting the kitten on the gray colored sheets. She moved the blankets back, she changed into night clothes, then slipped under the blankets. The cat walked up to Juniper, curling up next to the princess. Juniper smiled, then turned to the side, after a short while, she fell asleep.

Juniper awoke to the sound of loud, annoying meowing followed by a hiss. She opened her eyes, in the night she had moved til she lay on her back. Now Etselle stood on her chest, alarming close to the princess, the kitten licked Juniper's chin before putting a paw on her nose. Juniper reached up, picking the cat up. Etselle meowed in protest, Juniper laughed, moving out from under the blanket. She set the kitten on the floor, Juniper's bare feet dwarfed the small kitten. She walked to her closest, changing into a stunning blood red dress. She picked the kitten up again, before walking to the kitchen. She entered the kitchen, setting the kitten on the table that dominated the kitchen. She heard the kitten meowing, it seemed to be the only thing the kitten did. Juniper found food, that seemed to be decently okay. She picked the kitten up, setting it on her shoulder. If it was to stay here, it would first: need a name. And second: need to learn how to balance while Juniper walked. Juniper walked down a servant's hallway, finding wood to stoke the oven with. She walked to the kitchen again, beginning to cook.

Juniper turned to the door as she heard Roya run in. She looked at the girl, not surprised. Though Juniper had been raised in a Good environment, she was not stupid, contrary to popular belief she was smart, decently. She had figured someone had been in the kitchen before she did, food was missing. Food a bandit would take, small stuff, apples. Juniper gave a friendly smile, looking back at the other girl as she set a plate of food in front of her. "Sorry about the selection. It's all we have. And also, did you see No Name leave last night?" She asked Roya, referring to Lark. Roya looked at her, confused then realized who Juniper was talking about. She shook her head no. Juniper shrugged, then turned back to the oven.

[daz]

━━━━━━━━━ ｌａｒｋ ;;


________it had been just as the callous boy predicted. he had fled the good princess's castle without uttering a single word to her or jafar's daughter. he had been tempted to, but had refrained for the benefit of his sanity. he wasn't going to befriend these people, no matter how much they attracted him to them. yes, they were fascinating specimens. they had such distinctive pasts, and he hadn't even begun to scratch the surfaces of them. it would take a fair amount of effort, and accomplishing it all in the single day they'd had wouldn't have been enough to dissect it all. he would stick to his mother's method if it killed him, so help him God. he would swoop in, snatch their deepest and most personal secrets, then steal away into the night. all the while, the dark fairy had no intentions of disclosing his own personal information. his name being one of those multiple "fun facts" about him, likely deserving a placement at the top of the list of "don't tell anybody." the only person that had a right to utter his name was his mum, but everyone else could remain oblivious. he still disliked the title of "maleficent's son" with a passion, but it was better than hearing "lark" spewed left and right like a curse word.
________upon returning to the dark side of society, he found himself rather disoriented. it was always such a bizarre change of pace transitioning between kingdoms, heading from cinderella's hometown and into maleficent's. one moment all was quiet, and he was surrounded by beautiful wildlife and wide expanses of nature. the very next, he was walking through the door frame that brought him into hell. the plants were all dead, charred, and thorny. the sky seemed to remain this permanent shade of black, fog primarily lingering about near the muddy floor. it shielded the earth's crust from view, making it impossible to avoid inconveniences like quick sand, thorny ditches, or inconspicuous lava pits. yes, they existed. there had been many unfortunate cases where people had taken a tumble into them, and had, of course, never returned. this was why lark remained in the trees, whether they were dead or not. he didn't require foliage to hide behind in his home, as he practically owned the place. as next in line for his mum's throne, he didn't have to follow any laws. he had a few standard rules placed down by maleficent that were specifically intended for him as her son, but even those weren't too restrictive. it was a free world of ultimate possibilities, although he rarely visited it. lark found himself frequenting the good society more than home, as more interesting things happened in the opposite side. he could also cause chaos there as he pleased, not having to worry too much about anyone potentially overpowering him.
________maleficent had fired a mass of information into his head the moment he had returned to their palace, the adult halting her son before he could scurry up to his bedroom. he had hoped and prayed she wouldn't still have the desire to speak with him if he was a bit late, but no such luck. the brunette had been intervened immediately, his dark mother pulling him aside to discuss "important matters, for the good of their kingdom" with him. to avoid getting all wordy about how the conversation went, one could simply say it wasn't too interesting. it was, once again, exactly what lark had foreseen. maleficent was updating him on her plans for overtaking the good society, leaving not one detail out as she depicted her thoughts. truth be told, it was also made awfully awkward to listen to her as she began speaking of cinderella and the princess. lark wasn't going to tell his mum what all he'd been up to that day, not like she was interested anyways, but she wouldn't have been too thrilled to hear he'd willingly hung out with her arch nemesis's daughter. like, surprise, mum! i spent the day with juniper herself, and i never laid a violent finger on her! haha, silly me? no.
________sleep was bliss. the dark fairy had at last been permitted to abandon maleficent's side, his mother tucking her wings into herself and waving him off. "you're exhausted. go, go... get some rest. these next few days are bound to be eventful for you." her words were very out of character for her, as usually she didn't show much concern for her son. although, out of his exhaustion, he hadn't questioned it. what lark failed to notice was his mum's wicked grin as he traipsed away, her mind secretly filled to the brim with evil plots that weren't directed towards cinderella. her prey was her own child, and he was unknowingly falling directly into the trap's outstretched jaws.
________morning came as a violent surprise, the sunlight suddenly smacking into his closed eyelids and forcibly jerking him awake. his bed was a hammock, as a legitimate mattress would never have worked comfortably. not at his height, and especially not with his horns. the boy had changed his outfit, although it truly didn't differ much from the one he'd adorned himself in the previous day. full black, as usual. his closet bore no color, and it had never occurred to him that it ought to. the only object of coloration he had was a purple cloak, which was merely that way to represent his parentage. purple and green were her main "shades," as they coated every flag that you came upon in this monumental palace. although, the place wasn't nearly as impressive as juniper's summer palace. perhaps he only thought that because he had grown up in his mum's kingdom, and knew what every single nook and cranny held. at juniper's place, there was a sense of adventure he could partake in.
________the boy stood before his reflection in a musty, slightly crooked mirror. more tight jeans, standard combat boots that, for once, didn't reach his knees, and a black tank top that was slim-fit to advertise his muscle. despite the fact his powers revolved around mental strength, he was still an extremely able-bodied individual. this was likely due to the fact that he climbed trees like it was his job, giving him plenty of opportunities to exercise his biceps and such. the final touch would always be his finger-less gloves, the little accessory simply something he was accustomed to. leaving the house without them made him feel too odd, so he'd eventually just settled on wearing them everyday without question.
________words could not express the confusion lark felt as he soon found himself at the doorstep to juniper's palace once more, his cold hand pressed against the rustic door. he had emerged from his home, essentially allowing his legs to carry him wherever they pleased. he'd traveled by tree, as usual, avoiding any pesky villagers down below. he couldn't help but notice how many more wanted posters of himself there were, clearly indicating the concern that had radiated from the townsfolk after the chaos he caused yesterday. they were seeking out the princess, too stupid to investigate the most obvious option: her summer palace. but no, they'd insist to point fingers at lark instead. they'd hang him before they genuinely went searching for the princess, and he'd be dead before they found her.
________yet, here he was again. lark had crawled back. he had shoved aside the enormous door, and carefully closed it behind him upon entrance. he had returned for reasons he couldn't understand, but he settled on the fact his brain had likely become impatient. he still wanted to solve the puzzles that had formed here, with the two women located inside, so it was only logical he steer himself directly to the puzzle's core. the dark fairy was also a tad bit embarrassed to have retraced his steps in this way, but that was something he didn't intend to mention to anyone. instead, he padded along peacefully. that is, until he came upon a bit of noise. two girls chatting, which was definitely juniper and jafar's daughter. lark plastered his back against the wall, holding his breath for a moment. was he supposed to just... walk in there? he didn't care whether he was interrupting anything, as manners were the least of his concern. the boy simply didn't want to appear desperate, or like he had no one else to be around. he was an evil prince, so one might assume he had more important matters to attend to. surely, anything better than casual banter between two unusual allies. but no, this was it. unless you considered causing more completely pointless chaos in the villages, this was the first priority on his mind. although, he still remained out of sight and out of mind. he slid down into a sitting position, having stationed himself just outside the door the two girls were within. it must've been a kitchen, as the sweet aroma of food was catching his nose and causing his mouth to water. the only thing he'd eaten in quite a while was an apple, and even that had been a luxury. meals weren't commonly offered to him in maleficent's palace, nor was there anybody around to make them for him. lark cared for himself, and that was the gist of it.
________lark remained outside of the kitchen for the time being, remaining quiet. he was awfully good at it, too. he'd been doing things like this since he was a child, first learning how to perch in a tree and stalk someone from high advantage points. this was greatly similar, he just didn't have any foliage to hide within. he was wide out and in the open, but not in the same room as the conversing girls. still, it got the job done.

[vixen;]

Juniper
The princess stood by the stove, smiling as she looked at Etselle. The white kitten walked on the table, meowing as he did. Juniper laughed again as the kitten rolled onto his back, then hissed as Roya pet his stomach, both of the girls laughed at the kitten. A bonding point. A snow white kitten bringing two people together. Wow. Juniper stood up, taking Roya's plate with her. She walked to the wash bin, picking up the pale of water next to it. She washed the plates, looking back at Roya. She frowned as she tried harder to get a stain off the plate. She set the plate down, giving up. Juniper walked back to the table, sitting down on a chair. Etselle walked over to Juniper, tackling Juniper's thumb.

Juniper looked over as Roya began to talk about the kitten, describing him as a playful, annoying kitten. Juniper laughed at the description, Roya joined in as though the laugh was contagious. Both the girls ended up laughing wildly, Juniper reached over, petting the confused kitten. Etselle hissed at Juniper's hand, tackling her hand again. A new roar of laughter erupted between the two, the small kitten ran, jumping off the table and darting out the door. Juniper called out after Etselle, then erupted into laughter again. She pointed out the door, causing Roya to laugh again.

Finally the two calmed down, both still smiling. The two girl's had never met before their chance encounter, but now the two girls seemed like they had known each other for years, when in fact this had been the first time they had actually sat down at a table with each other. Juniper got up from the table, walking over to the oven again, she put more wood into the furnace. She winced as she cut her finger on the side of the oven. She grabbed a cloth, pressing the cloth against the bleeding cut. She sat back down at the table, smiling at Roya. When questioned by Roya about her finger, Juniper brushed it off. The cut did hurt, but not as much as you'd think. She held the cloth against it, watching as the previously light blue fabric turned a deep ugly purple. She moved the cloth away from the cut. It was bleeding pretty badly, and Juniper had to admit she was a little worried about it. But it had to stop bleeding eventually. She grabbed another cloth, setting it on the table so it would be within reach.

Juniper walked to the pantry, opening the door with one hand, her left hand was practically useless. She opened the door, looking in the pantry, she grabbed a loaf of bread, bringing back to the table. Roya offered to cut the bread, Juniper agreed. A bleeding finger might not be ideal when you try to cut a loaf of bread. She took the cloth off her finger, setting it on the table as she got the other cloth, pressing it against her finger.

Juniper called for Etselle again, muttering as she looked back at her finger. It continued to bleed, Juniper set the now bloody rag on the table, Roya got another cloth, dipping it in water. Roya handed the cloth to Juniper, taking a thin piece of cloth, Roya formed a makeshift bandage, then smiled at Juniper before walking to the pantry.


Etselle
The kitten ran around the corner, its tail raised as the kitten ran blindly. Etselle ran into Lark's leg, smacking into his leather combat boots. Etselle fell back, landing on his back. The kitten scrambled to his feet, hissing at Lark, the hair on the kitten's back raised up as he hissed again. The kitten circled around Lark, continuing to hiss. Etselle jumped onto Lark's boot, chewing at the laces.


Roya
Roya stood in front of the pantry, she had started to mess with her hair, twirling the ends of her hair. Jafar didn't have many positive features. He was lazy, rude, had a bad temper, is greedy and ignorant. She knew what the villagers had said about her father. She liked to think that she hadn't inherited those traits, but some times she found herself with those same traits, especially the temper. Recently the temper had been harder to control, not mention the slapping of Peter Pan's son. But, hey, he deserved it. Roya nodded to herself, once again trying to justify the actions of herself. She wished more than anything that she hadn't been Jafar's daughter. Her mother had left her father right after Roya was born. Jafar had always told her that her mother was nothing more than village peasant who wanted to steal from his palace. Roya hated her father for speaking about her mother like that.

Roya had spent most of her free time trying to find her mother, whenever her father let her out of the palace, Roya convinced guards to take her to nearby villages to search for her mother. She looked every within her father's kingdom, but never found her mother. Then, years after having given up on finding her mother, Roya got into a hated argument with her father. Both yelling at for two days, doors slamming, both of them throwing things at each other, more shouting and even more throwing. It seemed endless, until her father 'dropped off the edge' as he liked to call it, told her the true fate of her mother. Her mother wasn't a peasant, but the daughter of a wealthy townsman. They had met when she came to the palace on business. Shockingly the two fell in love, and were married about two years later.

Three years later Roya was born. For a year the three were happy, Roya was just a child, but they were happy. Her mother had always been more Good than she was Evil, unlike her father. Because of this, her father allowed a man to stay in the palace for a night, after a lot of convincing from her mother. The man and her mother became close, her father hadn't noticed, he was too busy becoming more and more greedy. Her mother had begun to talk with her father on the thought of her leaving the marriage, her father, who had though all was well became increasingly jealous, his suspicions turned to the man he had recently let stay at the palace. With her mother's friendship with the man, her father thought he knew why her mother wanted to leave. So, he had her executed, yep. Details? Okay. He agreed that they should get divorced, and let her go. He gave her a carriage, a horse and guards.

The only catch? The guards were instructed to kill her when they got out of the kingdom. With the fear of her father was motivation, the guards killed her mother. Oh yeah, they killed her. Shocking. After Jafar told Roya this, she left, starting the trip on her own. Running away. Roya had never bothered to look back, she left at midnight, sneaking out of the castle as fast as she could. It was a week before she was out of her father's kingdom. Later she heard about him sending guards out to find her as she passed through a village. She was shocked, the urge to return home was amazing, she almost did, in fact she returned to her father's kingdom. She was amazed by her father's actions, thinking he had changed, that was until she saw her face plastered on a wanted poster. Roya left then, terrified and shocked by her father's actions. She fled the kingdom, skip a few details, a here she was, in the summer palace of the Queen of Good.

[daz]

━━━━━━━━━ ｌａｒｋ ;;


________lark didn't know how long he sat there, outside of the kitchen, simply listening to their ongoing conversation from within. it had started out simple, but sometime later the two women had burst out laughing. they'd stop for a few seconds, as if they were desperately attempting to catch their breaths, then dive right back in. they were discussing a cat, so he could only assume there was one present in the room with them. he hadn't a clue what it was doing to make them cry with boisterous giggles, but it had to be pretty hysterical to receive such a startling reaction. he squinted at the wall before him, a bit irritated. he hadn't the faintest idea why, but hearing good and evil conversing with such ease was extremely frustrating. it likely stemmed from the fact he was so used to being around his mum, or the stereotypical villains that inhabited the evil society. they were all disgusted by the mere thought of communicating willingly with anyone remotely good. that sort of attitude was the only one the dark fairy was familiar with, which was what caused him to instinctively feel almost sick to his stomach at the common ground jafar's daughter and juniper were sharing. lark may have even lashed out about it had it not been for the lick of sanity he did have, being the thing that caused him to introduce himself to juniper in the first place. he was a curious boy, interested in learning new things about the ways others did things. if his head was screwed on just right, perhaps he'd be an introspective, nerdy boy who simply wanted a friend. instead he caused chaos wherever he went, making himself out to be public enemy number one. at the rate he was going, no one would ever want to be around him ever again. jafar's daughter and juniper likely had only tolerated him yesterday, secretly wishing he'd vanish back into the trees from whence he'd come.
________the dark fairy was summoned back to attention when something small and unlikely crashed into his leg. it emitted a soft, startled squeaking noise, before it landed with a thump on the hardwood flooring below. lark maneuvered about where he sat, peering downwards to inspect whatever had just rammed into him. among all things it could be, turns out it was the kitten the girls were making such a fuss over. huh. it wasn't as cute as lark suspected it would be, nor did he feel an unnecessary need to burst into a fit of laughter. although, he flinched back in surprise when the seemingly innocent creature hissed at him. it circled him thoughtfully, the same noise repeating itself as if it were trying to prove a point. lark had placed his forefinger over his lips, helplessly attempting to silence the roused animal. he had never been that great with them, after all. they were rowdy, difficult to care for, and such a hassle. it took far too much responsibility to look after them, so he'd avoided them like the plague. and, anyway, animals were always terrified of him. he was extremely tall, and had a huge pair of horns which would easily cast a shadow over any smaller beast. they fled the moment he came into view, not even giving him the chance to sight them.
________lark didn't know the first thing about cats and their behaviors, so he didn't have a clue what the hissing even symbolized. hunger? irritation? fear? the thing's tail was bushed up, flicking violently, its eyes intent on whatever its decided prey was. the moment it pounced for lark's shoelaces, he legitimately found himself jumping. despite the fact he was a gigantic, domineering, and slightly petrifying being, something as simple as a kitten had just caused his heart to start violently pumping in his chest. thank goodness no one had witnessed that, or else the girls would've been laughing at him instead. he scowled at the kitten, reaching out and grabbing ahold of its scruff. he dragged it off of his shoe, not wanting its teeny claws to dig into the fancy leather, hoisting it up into the air. it dangled before his face for a few moments, squirming a bit but otherwise immobile. the girls, he noted, had stopped laughing. in fact, they hadn't done much talking at all. he wouldn't be learning anything if they didn't communicate with one another. despite his reluctance to let his presence be known, he forced himself to get over his ridiculous pride and rise to his feet. the cat still dangled carelessly in his hand, having gone limp out of annoyance.
________"i found your friend," lark remarked, rather aggravated. he dropped the cat down on top of the table, earning another hiss the moment its teeny paws made contact with the wooden surface. when neither of the girls were looking, lark made a face at the creature that caused it to meow and hurriedly scurry away from him. good. screw animals anyways. certain relationships just weren't meant to be, much like how he felt he, juniper, and jafar's daughter were. he couldn't shake the feeling of being on edge around them, remotely distrustful. they'd yet to do anything to make him so on edge, it was simply in his nature. thanks, maleficent.
________the prince's head hung, his arms crossed over his chest as he leaned forward, putting all of his weight into the available surface. "okay, look... i'm only back because there was nothing better to do. you two weren't my first, or only, option. i just didn't have anything else." he paused, placing his chin in the palm of his gloved hand. "any eventful plans today, princess?" he asked coolly.

[vixen;]

Juniper
She had almost walked out to find Etselle, she still sat at the table, holding the cloth to her finger. She was about to walk out of the room. By about, I mean thinking of leaving. She had been staring at the table, just thinking about what was going on. Her thoughts always went back to her mother and why she had been sent to the palace. She had begun to twist the the cloth around her finger, it hurt, but she continued to do this, her thoughts else where. She forgot about the kitten, or why he had run out of the kitchen in the first place. Juniper let herself think about whatever, her thoughts settled on the last ball her parents had hosted. She stopped twisting the cloth on her finger, now squeezing her finger. She looked down at her finger, wondering why it was hurting, she looked back at the table, her hand on her lap.

Her thoughts settled on the ball. It was marvelous, a grand ball, no expense spared. Her parents had requested nothing from Juniper, except for two things. One: that June wear a blue dress, so long that the end of the dress was dragged behind her. It was a strange fabric, Juniper wasn't a big fan of the dress, but still her mother insisted. For Juniper this was nothing big, it was understandable, her mother wanted her to wear a dress that she picked out, what mother wouldn't? Two: She meet a prince from a faraway place, also that she be nice to the prince, not 'hi, how are you?' nice, like 'you are a great prince, your subjects are lucky to have you' type of nice. That was what Juniper hated about that dance. She refused to go, her first real rebellion against her parents, so bad. She locked herself away in her room, the ball had begun down stairs, her mother's reasoning didn't help, it only stung worst. 'You're a young woman now, you need to meet someone you like.' Juniper insisted that she didn't need to meet anyone, but her mother didn't want to hear it. Juniper stayed in her room for the majority of the ball until finally her father came to talk to her. He explained that he hated the prince as well, to just put up with her mother for a few hours. He was the one that coaxed her out of her room. That night she danced with her father, ignoring the prince completely much to her mother's horror. It was a good night, followed by an awful morning as her mother and father argued loudly throughout the day.

Juniper looked up startled as Etselle's nail scarped against the table, Juniper put her hand to her ear. She watched as the little kitten darted out of the kitchen, running down a servant's hallway. A shadow fell over Juniper, she turned to look at what had caused the shadow's appearance. She was stunned to see Lark standing there. She looked back at the table, looking down the hallway to try to find Etselle. "Well, Nameless, first I'm going to go find my cat. Then I'll try to make sure its not scarred for life. Then I'm going into a nearby village." She got up from the chair, walking over to the stove. She walked away from Lark, going to Roya as the girl stood in front of the pantry. Roya looked up at Juniper, then nodded, mumbling about the cat. Roya walked down the hallway, retrieving the shaking cat. Roya walked back to the kitchen, handing the cat to Juniper. Juniper held the kitten, looking over at Lark. "So No Name, you're no good with cats. Shocking." Juniper set the cat on the table. "Don't worry, cats are hard to handle. They can hate you from the moment they meet you or, give it a week and you'll be best friends." She ran her hand down Etselle's back. "This is Etselle. He''s a loving thing, just give him food." Juniper smiled at the cat. "He's a sweet thing, really playful." Juniper stood up, walking over to Lark. Juniper grabbed Etselle, taking him with her. She set him in front of Lark, holding the squirming cat under one hand. She used her other hand to take Lark's setting his hand on the kitten. Etselle hissed, trying to get away. "Hush." Juniper told the cat, she looked up at Lark. "See cats aren't so bad. Just takes a little getting use to." She walked away from Lark, picking Etselle up. She held the cat, laughing as it hissed at Lark. "Hush." She set the kitten on the table.

"He'll get use to you. If you stick around long enough. Or he'll hate you with a passion, try to bite your toes off, ruin your life." Juniper laughed at her own joke, Roya rolled her eyes. "Hey. That's funny." Juniper glared at Roya before smiling again. Etselle stalked over to Lark, hissing at him. Juniper walked over to the kitten, picking him up. She held the kitten with two hands, frowning as it went limp in her hands. "You annoying brat." She muttered, looking back at him. "Hey, some people just aren't good with animals." She set the kitten on the table again. Etselle crawled over to Lark, the hair on his back raising up as Etselle got closer. Juniper walked back to the kitten. "Here. Just hold him." She took Lark's arm, moving it till it was placed over his chest. She set the kitten on his arm, holding it in place. "No matter what. Do not drop my cat." She took his hand, moving it til it was on top of the cat. "Don't break my cat."


Roya
Roya watched the two interact, which was followed by many, many eye rolls. She sat there, extremely awkward, eating an apple. She smiled again, watching the two. "Okay, love birds. Get a room." Roya said as she laughed. "Don't worry buddy, Juniper's way too good for you. In fact, back off, she's mine." Roya smiled widely, Juniper put her hand to her mouth, stifling a laugh. "Kidding. Kidding." Roya said before walking away from the two. She was almost out the door as she turned around, smiling at the two. "Just kidding. Don't freak out." She laughed, walking out of the room. Roya's laugh echoed as she walked down the hallway. It faded as she walked down the main hallway.

Roya turned down the hallway, no destination in mind. She walked through the main hallway, turning down a few hallways, exploring. She opened a door, stepping into a hallway full of paintings. She expected them to be of all the royal families, but no, this was the same room Lark had found earlier. Roya glanced over each painting, dreading yet eager to find the one of her and her father. She found it, her, her father. And her mother. Roya stopped everything, walking, breathing, thinking. There she was. Roya's mother. Roya stared at the painting. She found herself walking to the painting. Her mother stood the portrait. It must have been done when Roya was a baby. She stepped to the painting, reaching out to touch it. She stopped, standing there. The painting was nothing special, it was an oil painting, a regular oil painting. But it wasn't. Jafar stood juts off center, standing tall and proud, everything he wanted to be. His head held high, steel eyed gaze fixed on the painter. In the center was Roya, who looked about four at the time. Sleek black hair, tan skin, she had freckles then, they had long since disappeared. Roya's gaze was the polar opposite of her father's. Anyone looking at the picture would have seen a family. Roya's eyes were drawn to her mother. A truly beautiful woman. Her hair match Roya's, her face dotted with freckles. Roya pulled her hand back to her side. Walking out of the room. A normal person would have been hurt, probably crying, running out of the room. But Roya didn't, she walked calmly out of the room.

Roya soon found herself in the attic, shutting the door behind her. The room was a cone shape, peaking at the top. Roya climbed up to the top, perching in the rafters. She looked down at the floor, seeing her bed, really just a pile of blankets. She smiled at the wall, which was strange, maybe she was insane, probably. But Roya had done what she had always wanted. To find her mother. This was a form of truth, she knew what her mother looked like. It was all Roya needed. She was happy, not a trace of sadness.

[vixen;]

Juniper
Juniper sat in the library, annoyed beyond reason. She held Etselle by her leg, her mind racing with thoughts. She frowned, it had been the most common feature in the past hour. She deeply regretted her trip to a neighboring village. Along her way to the village, Juniper had been walking along a trail through the forest, she was walking, nothing strange, then suddenly she heard something crack under her foot. She lifted her foot up, revealing a crushed pile of twigs and leaves. A small brightly colored fairy buzzed around the remains of its house, an angry squeaking sound could be heard from the tiny ball of light. Two inches tall at the most, the fairy buzzed around Juniper's face as the princess tried to explain that it had been an accident. She backed away from the fairy as the thing flew at Juniper's face. Juniper looked down as she heard another cracking sound. Juniper looked back at the ball of light as a second one joined it. Juniper rapidly tried to explain, though it was no use. The first fairy stopped squeaking, and began to chant something Juniper stopped walking and talking. She held her hands out in front of her. The fairy stopped chanting, a pale blue smoke came from the fairy, wrapping around Juniper.

The two fairies began squeaking again, flying in Juniper's face, Juniper abandoned the trip to the village, retreating to the palace. The fairies stop following her when she got to the palace grounds. She ran to the door throwing it open. She walked through the palace, walking through the palace. Juniper found herself unwilling telling what ever was on her mind, "Roya you need to stop talking, no one is listening", "that stupid cat needs to shut up before I kill it". She had turned to Lark, asking him for help to break whatever curse the fairies had put on her. Juniper now sat in the library, talking to Etselle. The white cat lay against her leg, yawning as Juniper talk.

"Those annoying fairies. It is not my fault that they built that poor little twig house right in the middle of the trail. Honestly. It's not my fault. I couldn't have known about that stupid little house. I apologized, I could have rebuilt it with ease if those little Tinkerbells hadn't been flying in my face." Juniper snapped at no one, it's not like the cat could make a person anger by talking to them. Juniper stood up, sitting down again. "I swear, those stupid fairies. They were two inches tall, how on Earth was I suppose to see them. I mean look at Nameless, he's some type of fairy thing, and he's like a tree." Juniper had stood up again, pacing in front of a book shelf. "I mean really, if you are going to build a house in the middle of a trail at least make to where you can see it. I understand that they are two inches tall, but still, put a sign, move your house. There are plenty of places for a two inch fairy to live. Really, go kick a mouse out of its home." She sat back down again. "Aren't you a sweet little cat?"

Juniper walked over to a candle, looking at the flame. "How does that feel, to burn, to try your hardest to finish, only to die when your work is completed." Juniper rolled her eyes, walking away from the candle.