Disclaimer: I got sucked into The Tenth Kingdom, again, and this kinda popped into my head. Hope you guys enjoy it as much as you enjoyed Believe. Need I say more?

FOP

One o'clock and all's well. A soft voice called out into the darkness, slipping a pewter pocket watch into the folds of a golden cloak. Silvery hands rubbed together, attempting to warm against the biting cold. Another voice, light but more green than magical, laughed at the owner of the hands.

I've got a cure for that chill – dwarf moss. Who wants a hit? Decidedly male, it offered its companions some of the hallucinogen, only to be shot down by the final voice, dark as the night around them.

Are you really that much of an idiot? We'll miss them if we're too busy puffing the magic dragon. The voice connected to the silver hands giggled lightly, a vain attempt to diffuse the tension.

I wasn't talking to you, Dominik, I was talking to Lorriana. Besides, we don't have to puff the dragon, maybe just smoke a giant. The green voice shot back, and the silver laughed again. The dark voice growled, before suddenly silencing them with an unseen motion.

Quiet you two – I think I see them coming. Ah, yes, our guest of honor has arrived. On cue, a young woman with hair dark as shadows and amethyst eyes emerged from out of sight. She was being pulled by a short, odd little creature along the sidewalk – stumbling on an invisible crack every now and again. This time it was the green voice that laughed.

Well comrades, I didn't believe it was possible – but I think Dwalin shrank. The silver voice joined in the mirth, but quieted with observation as the girl approached then disappeared up the stoop and behind the door.

I don't know why Feldan wants her so badly, she's just a human after all. The silver voice whined, only to be silenced by the green voice as the dark one turned to face his companions.

Jealous, Lorriana? Green chided as silver removed her golden coat, handing it to her abuser while revealing her naked, silvery skin in the faint moonlight.

My dear Cerridik, I'm Vendoise. We don't get jealous – we get lovers. Here, take my cloak; I shall go make contact with our new ward. Voice sharp with a dagger's edge, she turned to face the apartment and took a deep breath, transforming herself into small ball of silver light and Will-'o-the-Wisping up towards a window whose light had just flickered on. The pair still on the ground watched her vanish through the glass, and smiled in genuine appreciation.

Is it just me, or was she flirting with me? The green voice asked as he slipped into the light of the moon, his body sprouting leaves and foliage, ferns and branches covering only the most intimate parts of his flesh. His black eyes stared at the path the Vendoise took hungrily, ignoring the irritated growl of his last comrade, who also stepped into the minimal light.

Is it just me, or is that the one thing you Fe`verts think about? Unlike his friend, Dominik was fully clothed, tanned flesh covered by a pinstriped, tweed jacket and black trousers. His crème shirt was dirty, and the sleeves the poked out from beneath the coat were tattered. His scruffy, unshaven face held a smirk as he voiced his next thought.

Besides, she's a Vendoise, and they flirt with everything.

Cerridik groaned, before grinning and bending over the sniff the golden cloak he still held within his arms.

Of course it's the only thing we think about. It's the only thing worth thinking about. You Wolves just can't appreciate that, what with your one-mate-for-life bull. The Fe`vert replied cheekily, not jumping when Dominik let loose a barkish laugh while stepping forward in the event that Lorriana needed help. His friend simply laughed a little louder in the early morning stillness.

~O~

Tootie was huffing and puffing as she stumbled blindly up the dark steps of the house, trying to remain quiet lest she rouse the wrath of an awakened Vicky. She and her sister were on much better terms, although just what had caused her evil older sister Icky Vicky to become less neurotic, the young woman was certain she would never know. And that was just fine with her.

So long as she doesn't wake up to find her nerdy kid sister hanging out with a Goblin.

Dwalin, meanwhile, had stormed right into her room and began digging through her art draw in search of a well hidden sketch – he hadn't eaten all night and was craving something sweet. Tootie had gotten clever about where she hid her drawings and homework, given that the little Goblin was with her now almost every day and she couldn't keep telling her teachers Doidle ate this essay or that work sheet. And usually her spots worked well, but hunger, it seemed, increased a Goblin's sense of smell, and he knew just where to find the latest work of art.

Using a bra as a step stool, he had only dug around for a few moments before pulling a new sketch of his head from her underwear draw and began licking it like mad. Tootie was reminded of a cat and catnip, but held her humor in check, knowing fully the distaste Dwalin had for those of feline nature.

Watching her short friend have his fill of her less than mediocre art, Tootie let mind wander back to that night a few weeks ago, where she had a strange sort of quest with her crush and semi-friend Timmy Turner. She kissed him, he kissed her – twice, but who's counting? – but once they returned and the magic faded, it was like they were back at square one. He didn't talk to her, hell, he avoided her at school. Even if he didn't say it vocally, his actions practically shouted. They weren't friends; and if they weren't friends, then they certainly weren't anything more.

She just wasn't cool enough.

Never mind that she risked her life to save an entire Goblin society.

A sound, somewhere between a wind rustling through leaves and blossoms falling to the earth, brought her back from the inner parts of her mind, and Tootie turned to her window to find one of the strangest things she had ever seen.

It was a woman, with long blondish hair and blue-green-silvery skin. There wasn't a single pore to be seen, and she was short, about Tootie's size. But she was obviously more older, her eyes spoke to that, and much more mature, her body said that.

The woman standing in her room was stark naked.

Tootie couldn't help but look over this strange intruder, feeling herself grow envious of the perky and supple breasts, long, smooth legs and flat stomach. She had no doubt that if she looked like that, Timmy wouldn't say she wasn't cool enough.

"Lorriana-Vendoise." Dwalin's voice was a blend of even tones and surprise, as if he knew why she was here but not why she was here. The woman simply smiled in greeting, before holding out a hand to Tootie.

"Hello Dwalin. Dreadfully sorry to intrude, but I'm here for Tootie." And before Dwalin could warn his Man-Brat or even make a move, Lorriana had made contact with Tootie's soft human skin. A flash of white light flooded the room, and then there was just Dwalin and Lorriana, and a pocket-sized crystal which held a small Tootie within its confines.

A smile on her silvery lips, the Vendoise reverted herself back to the small ball of yellow light, and Will-'o-the-Wisped out the window and back to her companions. Dwalin rushed to the window, only in time to see her slip on her cloak, and the three disappeared into the night.

Realizing how little time he had left, Dwalin bolted for the door, and was outside in moments. He had to move fast if he were to help Tootie-Comrade, and in order to do that he would need help from Wanda-Faerie and Cosmo-Faerie and even Timmy-Man-Brat. Because Tootie-Comrade was in danger, real danger, and because she had always been worth it. Dwalin knew that from the first moment he saw her, which is why she was needed to defeat the Roma-Demons, and why she was taken tonight.

It had always been her.

Now he just had to get the Faeries and Man-Brat to believe it too.

FOP