Timeline: Shortly after Queen of Hearts.

Shadows Keep on Changing

It almost felt too good to be true, Aurora thought as she stared down at her chest. Was it really that easy to pull out a heart? Was it even easier to put it back in? Aurora had only been up for a short period of time, but it was easy to feel haunted as she walked through the forest, a few steps behind Mulan.

Emma and Snow were gone, but with that came a new adventure to get Phillip back. It seemed impossible before, but now, almost nothing felt impossible. Besides, this was the man she loved, the man she had lost while she had slept for years. If they could bring him back, it was worth the journey ahead.

Aurora glanced up at her companion, remembering how she had once been his companion. Despite the time they had spent together, the extent of Mulan's feelings for him were never fully revealed, but Aurora wasn't arguing considering how often Mulan had helped her since waking up. Oddly enough, they had built a decent rapport, and dare she say, a friendship.

However, Mulan also refused to tell her how she got her heart back from Hook and Cora, just that the only thing that mattered was that she was okay. Afterwards, her eyes had pulled away just the slightest, enough for Aurora to know there was more to the story. But she would never receive it.

And that was fine, considering she felt dumb enough for believing that a pirate would really want to help her, but for a second, she saw something in his eyes that made her believe in him. Now it was clear just how much his path of revenge had consumed him. At this point, it was only a matter of time before his own heart turned to dust. Then again, maybe it already had.

It grew dark, so they set up camp, the shadows setting into the background. Soon after Mulan got the spark they needed for their fire, a flash of flames appeared in front of Aurora's face and her breath hitched. There was only so much that a girl could get used to a room like that, even if she held her strength a little better in the past few experiences. Mulan looked up at her, as her rushed breath likely gave her away, but Aurora easily smiled once their eyes met. Despite her reaction, she was fine, better than she had been in a very long time.

It was true that what she was experiencing was far from her comfort zone, but Aurora didn't want to shy away from it. She may have been a skeptic initially, possibly a little blinded by heartache, but the adventure had opened her eyes to the world outside the palace walls. For while sleeping curses leading to flaming nightmares combined with a life with a stolen heart were hopefully far from adventure quotas, it had taught Aurora plenty.

Seeing Mulan struggle to stay awake, Aurora tells her that she'll cover the first watch, insisting that she slept better once it was fully dark.

"I'll be right here when you fall asleep okay?" she replies in her normal protective tone. Aurora just nods her head, knowing that Mulan meant well, but she was tired of being the weak link in everything. However, Aurora stayed silent even as the hours passed and the darkness settled around her.

Staring up into the pitch black sky, Aurora knew she was different. The dark normally scared people or it forced them to be alert, but she felt at peace right now. For this scared her less than the crazy world that appeared when she closed her eyes.

It almost felt strange now, thinking back to when her life contained a sense of normal. Being a royal had its challenges, but nothing like this. However, it did give her certain advantages, as sometimes stubbornness could be considered a strength. Even when her heart wasn't attached, Aurora liked to think she had a mind of her own. Certain skills she could learn, but her will to be better, to make their world a better place, that couldn't be taught and Aurora was ready to contribute to the world around her.

When Mulan woke up, Aurora knew that it was her turn to sleep, although this time, facing the darkness alone tonight made her realize that she was also ready to face the curse she didn't want or choose. As she closed her eyes, she knew that the flames would rise, but they wouldn't take her. She would live another day and from here, she would begin to fight her own battles.

~End~

Sera's Scribbles: I know it's late, but I had forgotten about this little drabble. My memory of the series is a little hazy now, but I hope that it turned out okay.