Mandatory Disclaimer: Only the errors are mine.

Apples. Everywhere the scent of apples.

I wandered through a sunlit forest. The trees rose to dizzying heights overhead, golden sunlight streaming through the canopy. I walked aimlessly, without direction.

Wasn't I looking for something?

Everything smelled like apples, strong and sharp.

There's nothing I like better than a fresh apple. Who doesn't like apples?

I looked up at the trees, looking for apples, but the light shone too bright in my eyes. Dazzled me.

I could have sworn I was looking for something.

I could smell apples, and I looked around at the towering forest that surrounded me. There were no apple trees here. Why did the forest smell of apples with no apple trees?

I must have been looking for apples.

I set off walking between the trees. They must be here somewhere. Apple trees. Apples. There's nothing I like better than a fresh apple.

I was looking for something. Something important.

For apples to be this important, I must be starving. I had to find it. I had to find...

I looked up. I was surrounded by towering trees. An ancient forest. A forest that smelled strongly of apples.

There's nothing I like better than a fresh apple.

It was too bad I wasn't hungry.

"Glitch? Are you all right?"

Who? "I'm not hungry," I replied.

DG smiled at me. Reassuringly? Did I need reassured? "That's good to know."

"I'm fine. How are you?"

Her brow furrowed. Frustrated? Worried? I wish I knew. "I'm worried about you, Glitch." Ah, worried. I would have to remember that. "This is a pretty big deal."

Sun through the trees.

I smiled at the brunette standing in front of me. She was pretty, with big heavy bangs that almost hid her icy blue eyes. She reminded me of someone I used to know. "Hello. Have we met?"

I could swear I was looking for something.

"Are you all right?"

I smiled brightly at her. "I'm fine, doll. How are you?"

DG toyed with one long curl. "This is a big change, Glitch. How long has it been?"

"Over a decade." Over a decade since what?

Such bright sunlight.

She was pretty. Sweet. Worried about me, even though she looked broken herself. She seemed like someone I could like. "I'm Glitch. What's your name?"

Those big blue eyes went sad. "Don't you remember me, Glitch?"

I drew back, offended. "Of course I remember you, doll. How could I forget my princess?"

I was looking for something.

Something important. I lost something important. I needed to find it.

The sunlight was dazzlingly bright. Overgrown hedges pressed in from all sides, and somewhere I could smell apples.

Everywhere was the scent of apples.

I stumbled back several steps and fell to the floor, my feet flying out in front of me. The girl I'd crashed into caught herself on the wall, grabbing the corner I'd just come around. She was brunette, pretty, even in pajamas.

"Glitch! Where did you come from?"

I looked up at her, confused. Where had I come from? I looked around. I was sprawled on a marble floor in a tall corridor surrounded by branching hallways. At the top of the corridor icy moonlight filtered through a paned glass dome.

Sunlight through the trees.

Moonlight shone through the glass dome overhead. My gaze drifted down, following it. A beautiful young woman, wearing pajamas, was looking down at me.

I smiled brightly at her. "I'm Glitch. What's your name?"

Something flickered in her eyes. Sadness? Pain? Was that what those looked like? She sighed and held out a hand. I took it and let her pull me to my feet. Her hand was soft, shockingly warm in the chilly night, and there was the strangely electric tingle of magic on her skin. My heart raced, beating so hard I could hear it pounding in my skull. I never wanted to let her go.

I let DG pull me to my feet and stood, dropping her hand as I pulled my coat straight again. My heart was beating fast, and I felt oddly breathless. Had I fallen that hard?

I was looking for something.

"Were you sleepwalking again?"

Sleepwalking? I looked around. "Oh. That would explain how I got here."

Her brow furrowed. Concerned? Confused? "That's the fourth night this week, Glitch. Is something bothering you?"

The trees reached impossibly high overhead. How long did it take for a tree to grow that tall?

My head might be empty, but my heart still worked fine.

DG stood before me, icy moonlight shining on her dark hair. She was every inch a princess, even if she didn't realize it. No matter how much trouble she was having adjusting to palace life, she was born to it. She would be fine.

She wouldn't need me.

"It's late, doll. What are you doing out here?"

She shifted uncomfortably, looking away from me. "I was worried about you. After the guards found you sleeping in the observatory, I was afraid you might get lost again."

My chest hurt. She'd make a good queen one day, if that was the path she chose. I wondered if she would even need me as an advisor.

Everywhere the scent of apples.

"I was looking for something."

She tipped her head, searching my eyes. "What are you looking for, Glitch?" she asked softly.

I smiled at her as warmly as I could. Whoever she was, she seemed to genuinely care. "What are any of us looking for, doll? It's one of life's big questions, isn't it?" What was I looking for? Hadn't I been looking for something?

I was looking for something.

Bright sunlight dappled the forest floor. I looked up and stumbled. The sun dazzled me; too bright even through the trees. The trees rose to an impossible height overhead.

Everywhere was the scent of apples.

I was looking for something.

How long had I been in this forest? How long had I been looking... looking...

Everywhere was the scent of apples.

Leaves crunched underfoot, and the trees rose impossibly high. How long did it take trees to grow that high?

There was a flash of movement through the trees. I needed to reach it, I needed to find...

I could smell apples, and I looked around. I didn't see any apple trees. Was I looking for apples? I must be.

I was looking for something.

DG sighed. "I wish I could make you understand..."

I smiled reassuringly at her. "Oh, that's all right, doll. I've gotten used to not understanding. Everything seems to work out all right regardless. Of course, back when I was the Queen's advisor..." I trailed off. What about when I was the Queen's advisor? I racked what was left of my brains. There had been something, hadn't there? Something important?

Something important.

She let go of the curl she'd been toying with to grab my shoulders. "But this is dangerous! They've never done something like this before, what if-" she stopped, biting her lip. DG ducked her head, her heavy bangs hiding her eyes. "I'm sure you're right. I'm sure it'll be fine."

I couldn't bear hearing her cry.

Everywhere the scent of apples.

We were in the castle conservatory. She was standing away from me again, not touching me. I felt cold.

DG took a step closer to me. "Glitch, who were you before- before you lost your marbles?" She gestured vaguely at her skull.

I drew myself up as tall and straight as I could. This question I knew the answer to. "I was advisor to the Queen," I replied proudly.

"But what kind of man were you?" she asked.

"Important...?" I stumbled over the word. I knew as I said it that this answer was wrong.

What had the question been?

A breeze through the trees, carrying the scent of apples.

A beautiful young woman stood in front of me, near tears. I wondered what I'd done. We were surrounded by trees. It seemed vaguely familiar.

Just out of my reach.

DG took another step closer to me. "If I met the man you used to be, would I recognize him?"

"Yes."

"How can you know? If you can't remember who you were, how can you know how much you've changed?"

I didn't have an answer for that.

She had the most beautiful eyes.

She put her hands on my shoulders. "Glitch, will you remember me?"

"Of course, doll. How could I forget my princess?"

DG's eyes searched mine. Looking for... something.

I was looking for something.

"Promise me you won't forget this," she begged. She had the most beautiful eyes.

"I promise." My mouth was dry. What promise was I making?

She pulled herself up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to mine.

Dazzling sunlight.

The strap was cutting into my forehead, and the green light hurt my eyes, dazzling me.

Such bright sunlight.

Alchemists surrounded me, bald and cold, rubber suits shining in the green light. The green light shone on their rubber suits.

Count back from 100...

Leaves crunched underfoot.

99...

The scent of apples.

98...

Just out of reach.

97...

She was always just out of my reach.

I stood on the dais at one end of the ballroom at Finaqua. The dais was intended to allow the royal family to watch their guests unhindered, but the queen and her husband had barely been on their thrones; every time they sat down they dashed off to dance with each other again. The long-delayed presentation of their eldest daughter called for celebration, and they certainly seemed to be enjoying themselves. I looked out over the whirling throng. Azkedellia, dancing now with Mr Cain, seemed to be enjoying herself as well. She was resplendent in a creamy gown that set off her auburn hair to perfection. As she whirled in his arms, flushed with happiness, one would never guess that she had lost more than a decade of her life to an ancient darkness that had forced her to watch as it destroyed everything around her. I hoped she could continue to be this happy.

Not everyone was so pleased to have her back. Those in the OZ who had lost loved ones to the sorceress, dedicated their lives to fighting her, found it difficult to accept that the woman they had blamed for so long was as much of a victim as they were. There had been incidents, and even now, with the room surrounded by guards, I found myself uneasy.

As I scanned the room, trying to set my mind at rest, I found my gaze drawn inexorably to another princess, this one a brunette, in a flowing gown of deep red. DG was dancing with Jeb, Cain's son, and they were laughing about something. It was good to see them laugh; they were both too young to have lived through so much darkness.

She was beautiful. Dancing and laughing, her eyes sparkling, she was beautiful.

I pulled my gaze away, checking the exits, counting guards to give my mind something to do. Something, anything, other than watching her. If she'd wanted to dance with me, she would've asked me to dance.

It hurt, seeing her with Jeb like that. As much as I wanted her to be happy, as much as I wanted to enjoy seeing her happy, it hurt to see her with him. I'd heard gossip, in the halls. Some of the other members of the court favored the match. I wondered if she would still need me, if she became queen with him by her side, or if I could go into hermitude. The fields of the papay were nice this time of year.

I checked on Azke-D again. She was dancing with Ahamo now. Seeing the pride in his eyes as he danced with his daughter brought another kind of pain. By right, this ball should have been years ago, presenting the young princess to her adoring subjects. Instead, a decade late, it could only be held under armed guard. The sorceress had stolen so much from them. From all of us.

Cain was still nearby, dancing now with the queen. Technically dancing; they were discussing something so intently they had almost ceased to move. She had named him as the captain of her newly reestablished guard barely a day after her return and the sorceress' defeat. He had taken to the role as though born to it, and I wondered what they might be talking about now. I cast my gaze back over the room, searching for anomalies.

I was watching DG again. I wasn't sure when my eyes had drifted to her, but she was dancing with Raw. In contrast to her sister, her ivory face had gone pale. As I watched, she pushed herself out of the seer's arms and dashed across the room, lifting her skirt to an undignified height and bolting through one arched door into the night. Raw turned to the dais and looked up at me, waiting.

I looked around the room, increasingly desperate. She hadn't spoken to me since I'd gotten my marbles back; would she really want me to be the one to follow her? But the guards hadn't done anything to stop her, knowing that the savior of the OZ wouldn't be at risk, and Raw apparently wasn't going to give chase. I couldn't leave her alone out there, obviously distraught, but could I afford to leave? I looked back at her sister. Azke-D was dancing with Cain again, flushed and smiling, oblivious to anything that was happening around her. Regardless of appearances, the Tin Man would be armed; she'd be safer in his arms than anywhere else.

Not wanting to draw too much attention, I squashed my urge to run after her and instead walked briskly through the door and out into the garden. I didn't slow my pace as I walked down the dimly lit path toward the lake. If I knew my princess, and I did, she wouldn't have stayed in the castle garden. But I knew where she'd go.

DG stood in the gazebo, leaning against one of the posts and looking out over the lake. The moonlight shone on her dark hair, much as it had back in the northern palace. A lifetime ago.

"Princess, is something wrong?"

She didn't even look at me as I joined her in the gazebo. "I don't want to talk to you, Ambrose."

That stung. It shouldn't. It had been such an inexpressible relief to hear people start using my real name again after so many years, and yet it felt wrong coming from her. Even more so in that hollow voice, so unlike the DG I knew. The DG I fell in love with.

I tried not to let it show, but I doubt I did very well. We'd been friends once, more than friends. Had I really become a stranger to her? I crossed the gazebo and leaned against the next post, facing her. "Would you want to talk to Glitch?"

She flinched, biting her lip, and I saw tears glistening in her eyes, catching the moonlight.

"DG, it's me!" More desperation showed in my voice than I had intended. "Why can't you see that I'm still me? Don't you remember what you made me promise?" I closed the distance between us and caught her hand. She looked at me at last, startled. She was beautiful. Out here in the night, her hair and her dress were equally dark, and her eyes shone moon-pale, unearthly and magical. Her hand in mine was soft and warm and familiar. As familiar as the way she made my heart race. "I remember... I promised..."

DG looked down at our clasped hands, and I felt her fingers trembling. "Ambrose would know better than to hold my hand..." she said softly.

She was right. I realized as soon as she said it. I was only an advisor, and she was a princess, and she was not mine. Not now. As distant as she'd been of late, taking her hand in this way was almost impossibly rude. There was a time when taking such a liberty never would've crossed my mind. And yet... I remembered. She'd kissed me. She'd made me promise. There was still a chance, however small, that her hand was still mine to hold.

The tears that had gathered in her eyes finally spilled out as she looked up at me. I brushed them from her cheeks. "And I know even better than that," I said, and smiled at her. I tried to keep that smile, for her, even as my thoughts became more serious. "DG, you know me. Back when we met, when I was just another zipperhead, you saw that there was something more. You saw me. Why can't you recognize me now?"

She looked at me. She looked at me for a long time. I barely dared to breathe; she hadn't met my eyes this way since that night in the conservatory, and now my future, our future, depended on what she saw there, on her seeing the same man now that she'd seen then. Was I the same man? My mind had changed, but my heart was the same. Hers, as always.

Her tender kiss against my cheek shocked me from my fears. She lingered there a long moment, her cheek just brushing mine, that familiar tingle of magic on her skin, and my racing thoughts finally stilled. When she pulled away I found myself shocked again, this time at the cold of a night that moments ago had seemed warm. It took me a moment to recover and turn to my princess again.

She'd moved away from me, down onto the first step leading back down to the path. Her tears were gone, and her smile took my breath away as much as her kiss had. She gestured back toward the palace. "We should probably get back to the dance before they send a search party. Are you ready to go?"

No, I wasn't ready to go; I wanted to stay here where she could kiss me again. But her demeanor had changed. She'd relaxed; her smile was warm, her eyes teasing, everything as it should be. And she wanted me there. My princess wanted me by her side.

I stumbled slightly joining her on the step, but caught myself in time to offer her my arm. DG took it, walking closer to my side than propriety really allowed, though I would never say it. "You know, I've never actually seen you dance. Are you any good?"

"Am I any good!" I couldn't stop beaming. "I'm not saying they called me Twinkle Toes or anything, but I cut quite the rug! Oh, you can laugh, but it's true. There was a time I was a fantastic dancer." She was laughing, comfortable and happy, and I turned my smile down to her. She was there on my arm, exactly where I wanted her, exactly where she wanted to be.

Impulsively, as we walked back to the palace of Finaqua, I leaned over and placed a kiss on the top of her head. My DG. My doll. My princess.

Her hair smelled of apples.