A.N. I don't want anyone to feel fooled into reading this. The pairings are minor. It's mostly the drama and character study.
Side characters in this are Belle, Beast aka Adam, Tiana and Naseem.
A.U. Soul-Mates.
Phillip is a romantic.
He believes in all kinds of romantic love: of the type that grows slowly over years; of the type that passionately throws itself between love and hate; of the type that hits you like a shard of lightening.
He lay on his bed. He was sixteen years old, slim, clumsy and gangling but slowly easing into his adult body. Brown freckles covered tan skin. His eyes and hair were a dark brown with lighter flecks.
The window was open, the cold white light from outside touching the spaces in his room. Phillip looked to side, to the wall where he had put up a collage of photographs of his friends. Most of the pictures were of one friend in particular; a beautiful blonde haired girl called Aurora.
Aurora. His sun. His light.
They had met at the tender age of ten and Phillip had always believed that they were destined for one another. The name of your soulmate would appear on your body after you turned sixteen. On the day of his birthday he had stared in the mirror, waiting for the name Aurora to appear somewhere on his person. He'd been pretty devastated when nothing happened, but today was her birthday. Surely today would be the day they finally realised they were meant for each other.
Phillip would have asked Aurora out before now; he'd been sorely tempted more than once. However, in human society it was pretty controversial to date someone who wasn't definitely your destined partner. It generally caused a lot of trouble, so unless both parties were people who'd lost their destined partner, dating and courtship were generally frowned upon.
The light begins to darken and the room becomes colder. He sat up and looked out of his window. The sky was too wintery and uniform with white clouds to show the sun setting beneath the horizon, but the colours of the sky betrayed the approaching evening as they became a cacophony of soft pastel pinks and oranges.
Aurora's parents had decided to throw her a swanky party at their home. Phillip was certain that tonight was tonight. It was just too perfect. How could it not be? He got dressed, picking out his nicest clothes. He probably was over-dressed, but he didn't care. He plucked a red rose from a bouquet he'd bought earlier and placed it carefully into the pocket of his suit jacket. He brushed his hair carefully, scooped up Aurora's carefully wrapped gift and bouquet and headed downstairs. He kissed his mother.
"I'm off."
She gave him a thin smile, "you'll be all right getting there alone?"
He laughed, "of course."
"You look very nice."
"Go get her son!" Called a voice from inside the living room; his father.
Phillip laughed more loudly this time, "that's the hope dad!"
His parents had met as children, become soulmates at age sixteen, married by eighteen and had been in love ever since. He wanted nothing more than the love they had with one another.
He beamed at his mother and was slightly concerned at her expression.
Her forehead was slightly wrinkled and her smile seemed a little tight and forced. Her brown eyes held worry.
"Sometimes," she said, quietly so his dad wouldn't hear, "things don't always go as planned."
"They did with you and dad," sighed Phillip, having heard this argument before.
"We didn't plan our lives before they happened," she argued back. Then she sighed, "I'm not saying not to hope. I love Aurora and hope she is your soulmate, I truly, truly do! But please, be aware that sometimes things do not go as we expect, but that's ok."
Phillip did his best to put on his best smile, "I know mom. Don't worry."
With one last kiss and a call goodbye to his father, Phillip left his parent's apartment complex.
Despite the natural beauty of Scotland, the city itself is not a pretty place, being made mostly of concrete and iron to keep the Supernaturals away. It was something Aurora had always hated about their home, but Phillip found it quite majestic in an urban sort of way. Whilst there is no green space nor trees, there are vast and might apartment blocks, ranging from cloud white to pigeon grey depending on how wealthy its tenants were. The streets were broad and uniform. There were numerous statues made of iron, ivory and marble, each depicting one of the great men and women from the city's past.
Aurora's father and mother were the Chief of Police and Town Mayor respectively. Therefore they were wealthy and important enough to have an actual house to live in. It was based in the suburbs, which were situated in the centre of the town on top of a hill.
As he walked slowly up the hill, the smell of heather from the wild moors billowing over into the city, he imagined the evening. Everyone would be slowly dancing. Aurora would be there, in a long flowing dress, her hair out and curling. Would she be surprised at his name on her? Or, like him, has she been expecting this all along? They would talk. At long last they would talk; about their feelings; about their long history; about their future. They'd join in the others dancing slowly. Her big sister, Cinderella, would move over with her finance and quietly congratulate them both. Her parents would be surprised but happy because though Phillip was relatively poor compared to them, he was a good guy and they'd known him for years. He would affirm to her father how much he'd take care of her. He'd gain dad's respect and mom's affections.
He stopped walking for a moment, his heart beating too fast. He resisted the urge to laugh out loud; it wasn't a good idea to behave too strangely in public because people could think you were, or were in league with supernaturals. He looked out into the horizon. The sky was deeper, richer and darker. Much like his affection for Aurora, it was deepening with time.
He wondered if he would get her name, at long last, when he entered the party. Maybe when he saw her? Did she already have the mark or would it appear when they met? The pair getting each other's names at the same time and whilst together was terribly romantic. It would make up for the five long months he'd been waiting for her name and wondering why it hadn't appeared yet.
Perhaps the despair he'd experienced in the first few weeks of his birthday was why his mother was being so careful now? "But I don't need to be careful," he thought, looking down at the flowers in his hand, "we're destined, Aurora and I, we must be."
Upon entering the cul-de-sac in which his beloved lived, he saw the street was decorated in her honour. Upon the lamps were tied balloons, and between the lamps were brightly coloured bunting. There was a street party, with everyone out, lining the long tables placed outside their homes with food and drink. All around was good cheer. Music played merrily and a group of children were dancing happily to the pop-star's crooning.
There seemed to be mainly families and adults in the street, so Phillip walked into the house. He met Leila, Aurora's mom, who looked stunning in a tight red evening dress which highlighted her platinum blonde hair and curvy figure.
He greeted her politely and she took a passing interest in him, her focus being on the adults around her. "Aurora's in the back." she stated in response to his hello.
He walked through the crowded hallway, into the kitchen. Sure enough, there sitting by the kitchen table was Aurora with her friends Jasmin, Belle, and Tiana. Aurora was laughing, a wreath of flowers on her head. She had a smudge of chocolate on her cheek which he guessed was caused by chocolate cake, looking at the remains of the girls' plates on the table.
The girls were loud and over-exciting, all shrieking and laughing once spotting Phillip and calling him over. On approaching he saw he was over-dressed, Tiana and Belle were wearing a simple green dress and blue dungarees with a white top respectively. Aurora was wearing jeans with a tear in one knee (not by shop design) and a top that had chocolate smeared on it.
"You're all enjoying yourselves?" he asked, setting down the gift on flowers on the table.
"Noooo," sighed Aurora quietly, "it's boring. Mother and father are only having this as a way to attract votes. Thank you for the present, and flowers!? I love these! Thank you!" she leaned over and kissed him and he couldn't help but feel fondly exasperated that she'd made more of a fuss over the flowers than the expensive gift tightly wrapped on the table.
Tiana passed Phillip some punch, which had a distinctive tang that suggested it was spiked with alcohol, and sighed, "you're the only other sensible person in this group. Tell them they're plan is stupid."
"What plan?" asked Phillip. He was beginning to feel a little on edge. Had Aurora not gotten her soulmate name yet? Surely that would be the focus of conversation had that been the case?
"I want to go and actually do something I wanna do for my birthday," sighed Aurora, "an adventure, not some stuffy party."
Belle smiled almost manically, "we're going on an adventure! At last!"
Phillip felt strange. His stomach was tightening and he felt a bubble of panic and confusion. This wasn't what he'd been expecting…
Also Belle was a little crazy, what was she encouraging them all to do now?
"They want to go to the outskirts of the city," whispered Tiana, reading Phillip's perturbed facial expression accurately, "near the Moors."
"Into the Moors if we can!" Aurora grinned at him.
Phillip found himself paling. He wasn't bigoted against supernaturals, but they were dangerous and the Moors was their habitat.
He felt hips lips thinning, "I don't think this is a good idea…"
The girls shrieked in frustration while Tiana cried, "thank you!"
She then turned to the girls, "seriously, the Moors can be dangerous. I would know guys."
Tiana was from a working class background and so lived on the outskirts of the city, near the Moors.
"They've never hurt you," reasoned Belle, "you even know some of them, like that Shadow guy."
"Shadow man," Tiana corrected as Phillip gasped at this revelation, "and yes I know him, but that doesn't mean we're friends or that he's a nice guy. I told you what he did to my soulmate!"
"What did he do?" asked Phillip, "How did I miss this?"
Tiana sighed, "Naveen only told me a little while ago, he'd pretty embarrassed by the whole thing. Basically he and the Shadow man didn't get along too well when he was new in the Bayou, and so Shadow man turned him into a frog for about a month."
"Are you serious!"
"Deadly."
"So we won't annoy anyone," proclaimed Aurora, exasperated. "Come on, I want to do something fun and exciting for my birthday. You guys don't have to come, but Belle and I are going."
Tiana raised her hands up in a surrender position, "it's heading towards my home anyway, so I don't mind. I just wanted to put up enough token resistance so when this all goes wrong I won't get the blame and get 'I told you so' rights."
The girls laughed and cheered.
Aurora looked over at Phillip, "are you coming?"
"S-sure…"
xxXXxx
The group went outside, unnoticed by the adults and began their way down the hill. The sky was a dark blue turning black, and the street lamps were beginning to switch on. The effect was that of white spotlights on the path, causing Belle and Tiana to laugh and dance around from spot to spot.
Aurora stayed back with Phillip, "are you ok with this?" she asked, "really ok? I don't want to peer pressure you into coming with us."
"It's fine, I want to."
Going down to the outskirts was sort of a Rite of Passage for humans. It usually was fine, teens would go to clubs or bars with fake IDs, maybe make out with a wizard or something. Usually it was nothing more than a fun story to tell the forever afterwards. But, for every hundred cases that went well, there was always one that ended in disaster; kids going missing, kids turning up dead or transformed. Adults often spoke against the risks of venturing into the moors, though this was somewhat hypocritical as many adults had done the same in their youth.
So really it wasn't the idea of going to the Outskirts that bothered Phillip; he was glad to be able to tell the guys at school that he'd been brave enough to go (being the third of their group to have done it) and if he was going to do this he'd rather have someone like Tiana who was a bit more street smart.
No, their adventure wasn't bothering him, rather…
"Aurora?"
"Hm?"
"Has your mark appeared?"
"No," she said slowly and in a low voice, "I'm glad too."
His heart leapt into his throat and he felt himself blushing, "you are?"
"Yeah," she looked at him, "I know you really wanted yours when you turned sixteen, but I'm kind of happy the way that I am. I don't think I could handle a soulmate right now."
"Oh."
"I mean I have school, and my parents, and I like just being around my friends."
He looked ahead and wondered if that's why the marks hadn't come, because his soul-mate wasn't ready…
However, that's not really how the marks worked. As soon as you were of age and in contact with your partner, your mark appeared. Most people got their marks between sixteen and eighteen, though a rare few could wait up until twenty.
As they got closer to the outskirts, they became quieter and grouped closer together. Up in the sky shadows began to fly about. The night life of the city began to perk up. Music from bars could be heard and neon signs began to flash.
They headed to Tiana's home first. It was a small, humble terraced house which she shared with her mother.
"Mom's out at work," announced Tiana as she turned on the lights and everyone settled down. None of them had been out this late.
"Your home is lovely," said Belle.
Tiana looked disbelieving, "it's tiny."
Belle laughed, "so is the flat I share with my dad. This is still nice; you even have something like a garden here! That's really cool!"
Tiana smiled for real now, "thanks Belle. Sorry for being defensive, people usually have a lot of preconceptions about us on the outskirts. Come, you guys can try on my clothes so we look like we're out to party. It's probably better to dress a little more darkly; we don't want to stand out."
The girls disappeared, leaving Phillip to make a hot drink and sit in front of the television. He put on the kettle and stared at it as it boiled.
He felt…numb…and disappointed. He had so much expectation to this night! He pulled out the rose he'd placed in his pocket and looked over it morosely.
"How long am I going to have to wait? Most of my friends have met their soul mates already."
"Hey," a voice shocked him out of his reverie. He turned to see Belle. She looked stunning, as always. Rich brown curls over her bare shoulders and ruby red lips with smoky eyes. She looked vampy and dark. She was the prettiest girl in school, but he wasn't into her look; something about that type of dark beauty intimidated him.
She grinned, "don't look at me like that. You reserve that sort of expression for Aurora only."
He blushed, "what? I mean…?"
Her face became serious, "I know you like her. You're not subtle Phil. I think everyone but Aurora gets it. Or she does know but isn't letting on."
The kettle boiled and she made tea for both of them.
"Does she ever talk about me?" he asked, his voice high and anxious.
She turned to him, "yes. And it's always good stuff. But she doesn't like you like that Phillip."
It was as if he had turned to stone. "What?"
Belle sighed, "I'm not a mean person, you know me, you know I don't want to hurt you. I'm saying this because I was someone's Aurora once and it nearly got me hurt." She stared down at the tea, a frown on her face like she was trying to work something out, "You're nothing like Gaston, but you need to decide if you are Aurora's friend or, if you cannot handle that, then you need to go and free yourself."
She handed him his tea with a warm smile, "people talk about the Friend-Zone like it's a thing the other person trapped them inside. But the truth is these people have trapped themselves. You came to a birthday party in a tux, Phil. You bought a bouquet of roses and I'm betting you've asked her, again, about her mark."
"Do I ask her a lot normally?"
"Honestly, yeah, you do. And you shouldn't."
Phillip felt his eyes burning. He sat down, his knees weak. He felt sick with misery and embarrassment. Belle sat beside him and put an arm around his shoulders.
"You can be her friend," she said softly, "and just be glad of her happiness and look to finding your own. Or you can let her go and find someone new. But it's not happening between you both. I'm sorry."
She kissed his forehead softly and he let out a few tears. He wanted to deny what Belle had said, but in his bones he knew what she said was true. The signs had all been there, but he hadn't wanted to see them.
"I want to be her friend," he said at last, "But I know it'll hurt a lot if she goes with another person."
"You don't have to make a decision now," she said, "you've gone through a shock tonight. You know, I think you've loved the idea of being in love with Aurora for so long you're panicking about being without that. I'm not that sure you are actually in love with her. Hey don't get offended!" she insisted when he looked up at her angrily, "I'm not belittling your feelings, I swear. I just think that you love love and like Aurora, and those have become tied up for a long time. Now we just untie them again." She gave his shoulder a squeeze, "come out tonight, think about having fun and not about how you'll get with Aurora. Then you can take it from there."
He wiped his eyes, "ok. I will."
xxXXxx
Leaving the safety of the city was easy. They followed an ill-lit road which took them across a dark expanse of land. In the distance they could see the neon lights of the Moors. Soon they could smell strange foods and herbs none of them recognised. A few homes appeared, before they found themselves in what was known as The Dark District. This wasn't an accurate description; light was everywhere. Neon signs floated in the air, circulating their respective places of business. Street vendors selling food littered the sidewalks, their vans and carts were decorated with fairy lights. Throughout the sides of the roads were melted candles, patterns and symbols carved into their wax. The air was saturated with small glowing orbs of many colours, all of them floating through the air like dandelion seeds, apparently subject to the air currents rather than will of their own; the quartet were unsure what they were and tried to resist grabbing them out of the air to inspect them further.
Now there were magical creatures everywhere. The diversity amongst the supernaturals was intense and fascinating. Phil stayed close to the girls and tried not to stare. He didn't want to make it obvious that they were just a group of dumb human kids. Tall tree like creatures stood at the doors, looking down ominously at the little quartet. None of the other magical creatures seemed to notice them too much, and it was apparent that there were quite a number of humans amongst the supernatural anyway. Many looked like business men, usually with a sexy vamp or fairy on their arm. More looked like university students, loud and drunk despite it still being reasonably early in the evening.
"You could probably get into a club," Aurora said to Belle, "but the rest of us have no chance."
"I know of a little pub," said Tiana, "Naveen's taken me there before. It's not hard-core Moor, but that's good. They have music there and they'll serve us without asking for ID. Here, follow me."
They split off from the main road, going down a dark alleyway. Music faded from the cacophony of tunes from the high street and instead turned to a modern sort of jazz.
Against a dark brick wall appeared a black door with an oil lamp humming lowly beside it. Tiana knocked and it opened immediately. Music was louder and friendlier now, as was the hubbub and chatter of multiple peoples.
They went inside and found themselves in a merry sort of tavern. It was darkly lit, but there were round tables all about with a dance floor in the middle. The dance floor had a large red and white swirl that was dizzying to look at if one focused. There were many upon it already, dancing wildly to the catchy beat of the band who played energetically on the stage. On the far right was the bar. It was brightest lit area so that all the bottles available could be seen on the shelves behind the counter. Tiana pulled them to the back of the room where there were old but comfy black couches.
They all sat down with a sigh, taking in what they had just experienced.
Aurora was the first to speak, "this… this is awesome!"
Belle grinned, "I knew this was a good idea. I hope to come out here more often. We need to integrate more with supernaturals. Just the little we have seen is so fascinating!"
"It is pretty cool," said Phillip quietly. He was still pretty hurt, but the sights he was seeing were distracting him enough to not focus on his shattered dreams.
Belle leaned over and gripped his hand.
"Let's get drinks," cheered Aurora, riding high on excitement. She grabbed a slightly grotty menu in front of her, "they have deals on cocktails. Oh my goodness these sound amazing; I don't know what half the ingredients for most of these are!"
As the girls cooed over the menu before deciding Belle could go get the drinks, Phillip stared out in to the crowd. The band had finished now and were replaced by a singer with a pianist, two violins and a sitar. The song was haunting and low. The dance-floor became sparse with just a few dancing in a slow hypnotic rhythm.
"Phillip?" asked Tiana, looking at him with slight concern, "do you want to go and dance?"
"Oh," he blushed looking at her. The girls were all looking at him like they were worried. No wonder, he was acting weird. "No, I just really like this song."
"Yeah it's pretty-"
Belle, who had been approaching their table with a tray of tall drinks and smile, suddenly dropped to the floor. The music stopped momentarily due to the loudness of the crash.
They were at her side in a moment.
"How embarrassing," she muttered, as they helped her up. The glasses were shattered and the drinks mixed across the floor, sizzling and popping due to their magical properties.
"I don't know what happened," she said as they sat her down. She hissed in pain as Aurora touched the top of her arm.
They all looked at each other.
Belle had turned sixteen around three months ago.
"Belle? Let's look…"
They crowded around, Phillip getting a candle from the table and putting by her upper arm.
There was a name. In pretty, almost ornate cursive were the words: Adam Luc-Pierre.
"Oh my god," whispered Belle shakily, "oh my…"
Underneath the name a symbol appeared, it seemed to be the head of a lion or very furry bear, but it had horns on its head.
"Why is there a picture?" cried Aurora, "that's not normal is it?"
She looked at Phillip, who was there Soulmate sign expert.
"It's what happens when your soulmate is a supernatural," he said, "it's rare, and no one knows why they have a picture as well as a name. It represents something about the creature they are."
They all looked back at her arm. The picture looked like a monster.
"How do you feel?" sighed Tiana, "are you ok?"
"Y-yeah," Belle kept blinking, but a smile was beginning to form, "I'm just in shock!"
"Belle!" Aurora was excited, practically bouncing, "Belle, he must be here. He must be close for it to have activated!"
Belle went pale, "oh, yeah, you're right."
"Do you want to find him?"
"I don't know…"
Suddenly a low, male voice asked, "Will you idiots move already."
They turned to see a very tall, handsome man with long blond hair and a very pissed off look on his face. "You're standing in the all the mess you made," he continued as they carried on staring, "a mess which I have clean…" He trailed off as he suddenly noticed Belle, small and wide-eyed.
The man, who had looked like a Roman statue with his long nose and sharp edges, suddenly flushed and became a nervous mess, "oh…um…are you all right Miss-?"
"Belle," she breathed, staring up at him, "Belle Villeneuve."
The man's eyes widened, "r-really? You're Belle? You? I…" he brushed a hand through his blond locks, "wow…you're not what I expected. Oh…um, I'm Adam Luc-Pierre." He grinned with a hint of anxiousness and whereas his earlier sneer had made him quite contorted and ugly, his smile made him beatific.
Belle let out a breath, "h-hi. I just got your mark, it's why I dropped…"
"Don't worry about it," he said in a rush, "yeah, I've had your mark for ages."
"We should leave you guys," said Tiana, the first of her group to get a hold of herself. "We'll go get more drinks. Belle, we'll stay nearby."
Belle nodded, but was still staring at Adam so no one was sure how much she noticed.
The trio moved away, heading to the bar.
"We can sit opposite," Aurora was saying, "so we can still see them both…"
Phillip could feel his heart beating hard, his sight was going blurry and the sound of rushing water was in his ears.
"I- I need to go to the bathroom," he barked out, and fled before they could even answer.
He eventually found a door to the toilets, which were apparently for all genders. He stepped inside and rushed into a cubicle. He breathed heavily for a few moments, trying to calm himself down.
Belle had found her soul mate.
Belle who hadn't even been looking; who wasn't even bothered. She'd never spoken of love before, she'd always spoken of travel and adventure.
How…how was this fair?
He began to tear off his clothes, searching every inch of his body.
It was nothing more than an expanse of tan skin and a few brown freckles.
The initial rush over he pulled his socks, underwear, trousers and shoes back on. He was sliding his shirt on before he slumped on to the toilet and began to quietly sob. The tears were hot and heavy and full of bitterness. He couldn't stand the fact that he was jealous.
He had such plans, he had it all worked out. How could he be so stupid, so naïve?
Aurora did not like him the way he did her.
Fate was not bringing them together as lovers. He knew he needed to get over it; he would have to live his life knowing that the one he loved so ardently would always belong to someone else. He knew he'd essentially done this to himself, but that just made his heartbreak and frustration worse. He was sad. He was devastatingly sad.
II
Two years later and the little crew were heading back to the Moors. They were more familiar with it now, what with Naveen and Tina's links and Belle's boyfriend all coming from there. They were a little too cool for the Dark District now, a little jaded with the knowledge that it was essentially a place to impress gullible human tourists. They knew that the moors beyond that small township were a lot more interesting, wild and exciting.
After Belle found her soulmate, the group became more ostracised at school. Adam Luc Pierre was not just a supernatural, but he was quite dangerous; every full moon he'd turn into a large, hairy beast. No one had seen him change, but the rumours were pretty intense. Even her friends, whilst they loved her and were happy for her, all couldn't help but remember the frightening image tattooed onto her arm just below his name.
People in their high school were not particularly enlightened, and the idea that the prettiest girl in school was dating a monster angered and disgusted them. Girls took it upon themselves to make crude jokes and guys used it to demean her. All of this was headed by Gaston, who was out-raged that a girl he'd deemed to be 'nice' to had the audacity to fall for someone other than himself. The fact that it was nature and out of her control apparently meant nothing to him.
The group had decided to stick by their friend, something she was always grateful for. So now, as other teens went to the high school prom, which was a rather lame disco situated in the school canteen and DJ'ed by the Deputy Principal, they were heading to Moors. Adam had invited them to his home which, according to Belle, was 'quite a thing to experience.' Despite their intrigue she'd offer no more explanation, so they did not know what to expect.
They took a train from the Dark District and settled in for a twenty-minute drive. Naveen and Tiana canoodled up to one another, whilst Aurora and Phillip looked out of the window like eager children. The landscape changed from industrial to natural quickly. It was mostly forest, but the magical element was strong. There was the occasional tree walking around, pulling its roots out of the earth whilst it lumbered slowly across the forest. Large families of trolls sat singing on the rocks, the smaller one waving at the passengers as the train past. In the air were numerous birds and larger animals they could not identify. There were very few animals in the city, as people worried that they could be spies from the supernaturals, or the familiars of witches and wizards.
The sky turned a royal blue, the crescent moon, situated amongst the scattered stars that stretched across the heavens like sparkling dust, was a brilliant white.
In the distance they saw orange lanterns floating up into the sky, apparently a tradition of one of the southern Isles.
"Wow," Aurora carefully entwined her fingers with his, slim pale fingers against his dark, thicker ones, "everything out here is so beautiful."
He looked at her, her face shinning from the moon, her blue eyes reflecting the stars of the sky, her hair pale and long and he agreed.
In the two years they had managed to continue on as friends. He'd never told her of his feelings. Instead he tried to genuinely be her friend. One day she was going to fall in love with someone else and he had to be able to deal with that, because, the truth was, being Aurora's friend was awesome. She was funny and fun to be around. She was accepting and kind and he could always go to her with a problem. Her relationship with her parents had disintegrated over the years, but she had never allowed herself to become a bitter person over it. The least he could do was not become bitter over his misfortune.
He tightened their grip.
Being her best friend was not second best to being her lover. It was taking time, but he was slowly beginning to recognise this.
The train finally stopped and they stepped out. A winding path led them through the forest. They followed it until they came to a clearing. There was a vast lake, calm and dark, it's surface reflecting the sky perfectly. Beyond the lake was a large mansion, a castle even, considering it had turrets.
"Adam lives here?" Phillip almost found himself screaming.
Naveen came up next to him and shrugged, "it's not as great as my family palace back home."
Phillip gaped at him. How were all these rich people in his circle of friends?
They followed the white path round the lake until at long last they arrived at the castle. Belle and Adam stood at the door, both beaming. They were quite an intimidating pair individually, both being very beautiful and horribly clever, but together they were a force to be reckoned with. A power couple in every sense of the word. Their children would be terrifying.
They all hugged and extended pleasantries.
"The whole castle is magic," Adam explained, "so everything you want will be done for you without asking."
"Wow," thought Phillip, "no wonder Adam's such a brat sometimes…"
"Dinner's being cooked," said Belle, "but if you like, we thought we could go swimming in the lake."
Aurora shrieked in excitement, making everyone jump. "Yes!" she cried, stripping off as she hurtled towards the lake.
"W-wait!" cried Tiana as Adam turned to Belle and asked if Aurora had her swimming costume on under her clothes.
"I doubt it," she answered, her hand over her face.
"well, I guess we have no choice but to skinny dip," said Naveen in a sad voice but with the happiest grin on his face.
Tiana flushed, "we can go in our underwear," she said awkwardly, and everyone stared at her in amazement.
"Really?" Belle grinned, "I'd thought you'd be against that."
"I can be fun!" she argued defensively, before storming off in the direction of the lake. Aurora was already in the water, laughing and splashing around.
Phillip looked at the others, shrugged and ran after them. He could hear the others thundering after him. Adrenaline surged through his body as he began to tear off his clothes. He burst out into laughter, hearing the others laughing as well. The lake began to light up magically, the little colourful orbs they always saw in the Dark district floating about here. He'd have to ask Adam what they were, he'd never found out. The grass was long and wet. He stripped down to his pants and began to wade into the water. It warmed around his ankles.
"Adam," he called, "does the lake do what you want as well?"
"Yeah," he answered breathlessly and surprisingly close to Phillip, who turned to find himself face to face with the taller man, "for about half a mile things tend to just," he shrugged, "do what I want."
Phillip found himself frowning a little, "well…lucky you. Must be nice to have even nature bow to you."
He then felt ashamed, his jealousy had really shown in his tone. He could feel Adam looking at him.
"To be honest," Adam said, "this was all something of a curse."
Phillip looked at him, the pair now slowly walking into the water together. "Really?"
"Yeah," the water had reached their midriffs and they settled down, watching the others shrieking and splashing further in. "My parents died when I was young. I was doted on by the servants. But… it wasn't really the right kind of love. I ended up with a million toys, dozens of servants to wait on me night and day, all the snacks I could ever want and a forests that would pick itself up and move if I wanted it to. But, I didn't have any real love. I was alone for a long time. I grew up to be kind of…I dunno…weird and demanding. Other children didn't like me. I couldn't communicate. It's like I'm in this glass box and everyone else is talking and laughing and I'm just…here. Even now I find it hard. I had no friends, no family. I thought I'd be alone forever." He let out a bitter laugh, "I locked myself up. Just me and the most loyal servants. I was going to be a very rich hermit. I thought it was my destiny to go insane and old alone. But then, on my eighteenth…"
"Your soul mark appeared," breathed Phillip.
Adam smiled warmly, his face kind and handsome. His whole body relaxed as he looked out at the lake. Phillip knew he was looking out at Belle.
"Yeah," he said, turning back to Phillip with bright eyes, "Yeah. I can't tell you what it was like. I thought no one would love me. But there it was; the name Belle Villeneuve. It's like the whole world suddenly opened up for me. I know it's cheesy," he shrugged, looking a bit embarrassed, "but my life really started with that mark. I knew she was human, as there was no picture, so I got a job in the Dark District. I began to look after myself again. Began to care again. I'm not perfect…I know I can be a jerk sometimes. But, I swear, I'm trying."
He stared at Phillip for a moment before holding out his hand, "I want to be your friend, not just because of Belle, but because you're the kind of guy I want to be."
Phillip felt himself going red, "what do you mean? I'm nothing special."
"You are a good person," insisted Adam looking very earnest, "you put the feelings of others before your own. I…I know you don't have your mark yet."
Phillip looked away. He felt a little nauseous. Most people had their mark long before they turned eighteen. Most had found their soulmate by his age.
"But," Adam continued, "but you will. And when you do you will have a love so intense. You deserve it."
Phillip felt tears stinging in his eyes. He shut them tightly, feeling stupid and overly emotional.
"I'm not a great guy," he spat out, "I like Aurora and can't get over it. I think badly of you sometimes; I think you're a brat. I think Naveen can be stupid. I'm not a nice person. If I was…" he paused, not sure if he wanted to spill a fear that had been growing since that night in the public bathroom, "if I was, I'd have my soul mark by now. You were a jerk but a good guy underneath. Your situation made you what you were. But for me…everyone thinks I'm nice but I'm not. I don't deserve love. The sooner I stop being a sap who believes I deserve love, the better it'd be."
"You're not a jerk for thinking that way," said Adam quietly after a moment's silence, "everyone has thoughts like that. I think Naveen can be stupid too. And I know I can be a brat."
Phillip know Adam is trying to make him laugh, so he gives him a watery smile, which is the best he can offer right now.
"Don't give up hope," pleaded Adam.
"But don't you see?" Phillip looked up at Adam, "It would be so much kinder on me if I did."
Unwilling to continue the conversation he struck out suddenly, reaching the others and joining in on their game of splash.
After a few minutes they were all soaked and exhausted. From the house, musical instruments, moving on their own, sat out on the lakeside and began to play tunes that turned from jovial to romantic. The lights around them corresponded, changing from bright multicolour to a calm, hushed blue. The couples hugged, rocking slowly in the water.
"I guess this is for the lovers," whispered Aurora in his ear.
He looked at her and grinned, "let's leave them to their romance. Shall we go explore?"
She beamed, "you know me too well!"
The swam further out to the other side of the lake. It was a little darker here, but they were still in sight of the house and felt safe. They swam under a willow tree, hiding themselves from the couples.
"I love those guys, but it's a pain being the third wheel sometimes."
"You have me still," he said after a moment, "your fellow free agent."
"that is true. And, don't tell the others, but you're the best. I know you want to find love," she put her arms around him and looked him in the eyes, "but I'm glad I get to keep you a bit longer."
He smiled and put his forehead on hers, "to be honest," he sighed, "I'm not so sure if I want romance now anyway."
He felt her fingers curling through his hair, "you will be a great boyfriend to someone someday."
He kept his eyes closed. He didn't want the hurt to show. "Someday," he whispered, but he knew he no longer believed it.
Aurora felt his heart beating hard. She could sense the tension in the air. Old worries that her best friend was in love with her came to the forefront of her mind. She thought about their current position. Was this hurting him? She had no intentions of leading him on, none at all. Phillip was the dearest person in her life. She'd known him the longest out of all her friends. But…she found him so hard to read sometimes, especially as they'd gotten older. He was a puzzle to her. She had been tempted to ask her friends if he was in love with her, if she should back off or stop being his friend completely, but she'd always been too afraid to ask. She didn't want to make assumptions on how he felt about her, and lose him in the process. But she also didn't want to be cruel.
"You are a mystery."
Phillip looked at her, his large doe eyes soft. He always looked on the verge of tears. "What?"
She blushed. Had she said that out loud?
"Nothing," she muttered. "Hey! Um, let's go see if we can grab one of those lights and finally see what they are!"
She practically fled the confines of the willow tree, leaving him in the shallow water.
He watched her go with a slight frown, but then realised something. They had been hugging, wet and mostly naked, in the water. Yet, his body hadn't reacted at all. Phillip wasn't stupid, he knew that romantic love usually meant sexual attraction as well. Cautiously he felt down to his crotch. No. No activity at all. And then it hit him; he'd never been sexually attracted to Aurora. He liked the way she looked; he thought she was beautiful, but he'd never wanted to have sex with her.
That was…weird…right?
Was he asexual perhaps? But then…he had masturbated. Granted, it was always in the dark and he always kept his fantasies very dark and minute. He focused more on the activity than any thought process.
Frowning at this information, he climbed up out of the water and followed her along the lakeside.
There was a layer of thick, blue fog on the forest floor now. He fell into step with Aurora. It was a little colder on this side of the lake, perhaps where the magic was not so strong.
He looked back at the castle. He could see how it could be looked upon as a curse, for how grand and ornate it was it was also over-bearing and intimidating; a little like Adam himself. The house embodied him.
"I was thinking," he said, hoping to relax the tension that had sprung up between them, "it would be nice to celebrate Midsummer here, don't you think?"
She smiled, "I've heard Midsummer was amazing. I've always wanted to celebrate but was worried about appropriating their culture."
He put his arm around her shoulders, "well I'm sure the others will guide us through it, make sure we celebrate properly with the natives."
As a blue humming orb passed them slowly, she reached out, trying to guide it into her cupped hand.
"I think Adam likes having us here."
"He was lonely," answered Aurora, "Belle says he locked himself for a long time, and cannot believe his luck with how many friends he has now."
Phillip looked back at the lake and wished he hadn't quite laid on all his emotional baggage on the poor guy; he clearly had enough issues of his own.
"Look!" The orb had successfully nestled into her palm, she bought it down so they could both see. It was hard at first, due to the intensity of the light. But there, in the middle was a shape.
They were extremely small figures, from the waist up they were humanoids, with long hair and flat chests. But below that they had bodies like sea horses.
"How strange," he whispered. It was a testament to the creativity of the supernatural that the moors still found new ways to surprise them. "I wonder what they're called?"
"They're beautiful," she whispered back, awe in her tone. She raised her arms, and the creature floated back out, bouncing off her palm and drifting back into the air. She turned to him, "we'll talk to Adam tonight about Midsummer, see what he has to say."
He grinned at her, relieved that she was smiling and happy again. Whatever nervousness was in her before had gone now.
There was the sound of cracking branches out in the woods, making the pair look out. "Can you smell that?" she asked.
"Yeah, it's like, fire."
They both looked at each other and silently agreed to venture further out. They did so covertly, stepping carefully with their bare feet through the forest. They came to the path and sure enough, near the bottom, were a line of people all carrying flame torches.
"I cannot imagine this is good." He said.
"We need to get back to the castle!"
They broke out into a run, ignoring the slight pain of roots and rocks, before they found themselves splashing into the lake with no grace.
"Where have you guys been?" asked Tiana, in her best Mother Hen voice.
"We were worried," answered Naveen.
"There's people," shouted Aurora, "they have fire. Were you expecting them?"
Adam looked serious, "no. Humans don't really come out here."
They all began to swim quickly to the castle. "Lumiere!" shouted Adam, "Cogsworth! Everyone, someone is coming!"
A few people began to spill out of the house, all looking anxious. One short lady came out with towels.
"We do not know who they are Lord," cried a thin man with blond hair and a long nose.
Before anyone other than Naveen could get to the bank, a crowd of people emerged from the path.
"There they are!" cried a familiar baritone, "look at them all, naked in the lake together! How lewd!"
The people shouted, offended and angry, and began to run at the castle.
"Who the hell is that?" sneered Adam.
"It's Gaston," said Belle shakily. He looked at her in alarm before his face became a frightening snarl;
"The monster who has harassed you all these years?"
He stood up and climbed out of the lake. He began to walk towards the crowd, despite Belle crying for him to come back. Phillip couldn't help but respect the fact that, even mostly naked and wet, Adam still seemed impressive enough to make the crowd slowly down and even back off a little.
"Come no further!" he shouted, "or you shall regret it!"
Gaston let out a very fake and stupid laugh, "we're not afraid of you Beast!"
Naveen and Phillip ran to stand beside Adam. Phillip felt stupidly scrawny, sopping wet in his panties, compared the chiselled abs of the tall men beside him, but he stood his ground anyway.
Gaston looked to the side of them. "Belle," he called, "we've come to rescue you!"
"I don't need rescuing you dolt!"
Gaston sneered, "you've turned her against her own kind. Race traitor bitch! You can burn with the rest of them."
With the insult thrown at his soulmate, Adam let out a completely inhuman roar that damned near made Phillip pee himself from fear. Looking at Naveen's face, he'd nearly done the same.
Getting down on all fours, thick brown hair sprouted from his skin. Two curved horns tore their way out of his skull at the same moment his face contorted to push out a snub snout. The creature grunted as small, white teeth fell out of its mouth and were replaced with large, sharp canines.
Several men screamed and ran for their lives whilst the transformation was still happening.
Above them, the storm clouds began to swirl in the sky. The atmosphere became charged and tense. They watched as Adam's hands became large paws complete with very sharp, jet black claws. He let out another earth shaking roar, so loud that the corresponding screams of absolute human terror could just be made out. He then began to run, full steam, directly at Gaston. It seemed that all the bravado had left the man, who fell onto his arse and shrieked in fear.
"Adam!" cried Belle, terror in her voice.
Suddenly a figure landed in front of the prostrate fool. "Stop," said a voice, rich and feminine.
Adam did as she said. The figure, very tall and slim, turned to face the crowd. What she said, none but Adam knew. However, the people all began to run, very quickly, in the opposite direction.
The figure suddenly let out two huge wings and shot into the air.
She let out a cry that sounded vaguely bird like. On cue, thousands of ravens, creating a black cloud of feathers and beaks, flew down after the crowd. The woman herself flew in a low semi-circle, landing softly on the lake, her bare feet delicately touching the water's surface. The orbs brightened, revealing her.
She was clearly a supernatural, more otherworldly than Adam, who was now slowly returning to his human form. She had two very large black horns on her head just like Adam when in beast form. Her skin was vaguely blue in the light. Her hair was long, straight and brown. Her eyes were dark. Like Belle, she was another dark beauty.
She raised an eyebrow, "a little birdie told me you'd lost your temper, again."
"I had good reason," he bit out, sounding breathless and looking worn out. Belle was gripping his arm, looking up in concern.
"There are better ways of dealing with humans," she said, walking slowly towards them. Her dress was long and brown. It looked like it was made of bark, but it was supple like cloth. Her arms were bare but tattooed with swirling, writing black vines.
Aurora, who'd been frozen in shock in the lake all this time, suddenly took in a deep breath and stood up. Her back was to the rest of the group, who watch, in amazement, as black ink began to appear on her shoulder blades.
The winged woman stopped coming towards them, looking down at the young girl in front of her with a slight, confused expression.
The others wold not see, but Aurora looked like she had been hit by a bolt of lightning. Her eyes were wide, pupils dilated, her mouth open wide, her body taut and tense.
Phillip watched as the lines, pretty and curving, much like the tattoos on the woman's arms, began to form the pattern of a pair wings. Then, writing. Between the wings, just above, was the word: Maleficent. Just below: Fae.
"Maleficent Fae," he whispered.
She looked at him, "that is I," she stated, "you know of me?"
There was a tense silence broken only by Aurora's desperate gasping for air.
"Aunty," said Adam at last, "I think we ought to go inside. There are things to discuss."
III
The years rolled by. Naveen and Tiana were married first. They opened up a restaurant just on the edges of the Moors, attracting humans and supernaturals alike. They played a lot of Jazz in their place. It was fun. Not many restaurants could claim to have a talking alligator as part of their musician ensemble.
Adam and Belle began to work in politics, one on the Supernatural side and one on the human side. They campaigned for equal rights and free movement. Progress was very slow, but things improved for everyone. Animals returned to the city, to the joy of those who wanted pets or simply enjoyed nature. Further trees and flowers were allowed to grow. Some even began to have proper gardens with grass and bushes and flowers. There was even a school in which both supernaturals and humans attended. It was only one, but it was better than nothing.
Aurora was thrown out of home due to the nature of her soul mate. Her older sister, Cinderella, and her husband, commiserated with her. Together, the three of them went to live in the Moors. With the steady trust being built between the different races, the small family unit soon found themselves being accepted and even welcomed amongst their new neighbours.
Aurora continued to date Maleficent, though she often complained to Phillip at how slowly Maleficent was determined to take the relationship.
Phillip left. He travelled around south Asia for a little while, teaching English and immersing himself in a culture in which the supernatural and humanity all worked alongside one another and always had. It was when travelling that he realised that he was more attracted to men than women; that is, he liked women, but men were the ones he became sexually aroused for. It was strange, until he realised about pansexuality. Then he began to relax, as having some sort of label made him realise how pointless labels were.
He returned eventually for the wedding of Tiana and Naveen. He was blown away by how beautiful all his friends were, and how love had truly made them glow.
He had embraced Aurora, "I'm so happy for you," he had said. There had always been a slight desperation to her happiness before, for her desire to always push further and further afield. But now there was contentment there. Maleficent was an anchor for her.
Adam and Belle were next. Both looked like something out of a magazine, he knew that very little effort on either of their parts was taken into their appearance. He had to laugh at them for being so ludicrously beautiful. It was good they had each other to moon over equally.
Naveen and Tiana were still adorable, but always had been. He was impressed with Naveen most of all, who always seemed a bit of a slacker. He was wiser now. He had Tiana had grown together, matured and become something quietly efficient and resourceful. He respected them and the strong bond they had.
He had left soon after, a wanderlust in him, his mother had said. He went around East Asia, travelling down to Australia for a year, before settling a few years in Arendelle.
Phillip returned to Scotland age twenty-eight. He'd never really dated and his mark had never appeared. He was a rare case, but not unknown. Love didn't happen for everyone. But he was happy with his life. He had seen the sun rise over the mountains of Arendelle and watched it set on the desserts of Agrabah. He'd met a number of amazing souls and learned a lot about himself.
In Scotland he found a prominent teaching position in the mixed school. It was interesting having a class with humans, pixies, minotaurs and a host of other creatures. Luckily, his travels abroad meant little phased him now. He was popular amongst students and staff, though some tutted and sighed and wondered about his being single. He ignored it all.
One rainy afternoon, an hour after the school bell had rang out signalling the end of the day, he sat in his classroom marking work. He liked to get it all done before going home, even if it took out a chunk of his afternoon. He had hoped to go to the art gallery for anew showing this evening, but he felt tired and wondered if he wanted to deal with walking about in the rain.
His mobile chirped.
It was from Naveen: It's the Winter Solstice tomorrow evening. Would you like to celebrate with us?
He smiled: Of course, he texted back.
He looked out at the rain and decided to weather it, but not for the art gallery, rather, to get a gift for his friends. It was the custom for winter solstice, or so he had read, this was his first one.
He packed away his things and headed out. He stood at the door of the school looking out. The rain was relentless. Ok, now or never. He ran out, wishing he had learned to drive. He ran down the high street. Things were different now to when he was a lad. The town was much nicer; it suited having trees and animals. Speaking of which; ahead was a large tree, it's head so thick with leaves that the ground beneath it was dry. He ran and stood beneath it, sighing in relief at a break from the rain.
There was a very loud caw next to him, which made him jump. He looked to his left and saw a raven staring at him, its beak open. He almost laughed at its expression; it looked surprised. Suddenly, it opened its wide wings and flew away down the street. He stared after it, wondering if it was more than an ordinary bird.
The rain seemed to soften just a little. He silently thanked the tree for its temporary shelter and ran back in to the deluge. He walked more carefully now, taking in the shops. Most were independent in this area, and run by humans and supernaturals. It was the reason he spent his money here; he was happy to support local, open-minded businesses. One shop caught his eye. It was strangely lonely, at the end of the street and a little gas lamp by it. It was darker than the other shops. As he stepped in front of it he saw it was a bookshop. 'The Inked Feather' was written on the old, worn shop sign.
One thing an educator cannot resist is a bookshop.
He stepped inside, the bell ringing.
It was a small shop, cramped with shelves full of beautiful books, many leather bound. He could smell the age and intelligence of many. It was the right amount of dusty.
To the right was a small counter with an old fashioned phone and cash register juxtaposed with a closed laptop. There was a mug filled with large, black feathers.
What was missing was the shop-keep.
"Hello," he called, "Hello?! Anyone here?"
"Shhhhh!" was an irritated reply, followed by a very wet man.
The pair stared at one another.
The man was young, with scars on his face. His hair and clothes were jet black and sopping wet. His skin was porcelain white. His eyes were brown but so dark they also looked black. He wasn't exactly handsome, but he was very striking even if he was half drowned. Phillip felt his heart picking up and his breathing increasing just slightly. Another dark beauty; he'd always found this sort of attractiveness a little frightening.
The man blinked, breaking whatever spell had been over them. He seemed flustered, "what?" he bit out, "what do you want?"
"Um," Phillip frowned, a little put off by the rudeness, "I want a book."
There was a beat.
"For a friend," he continued, feeling stupid, "well, acquaintance. I don't know her well. I'm sorry, are you ok?"
The man stepped away, seemingly curling into himself a little, "no…I'm just wet. I'll be all right. Who is this friend?"
"She's a fairy. A powerful one." He sighed, "I'm sorry, but you look really cold. Here, can I help at all? Go and get warmed up, I can come back later."
The man said nothing for a while, looking around the room nervously. "Well, what's the fairy's name?"
"Sorry?"
"Her name!" he bit out, Irish accent stronger when he was cross, "I know a lot of them."
"Maleficent…"
The man smirked at some private joke. "I know what you can get her." He disappeared around a corner suddenly.
Phillip blinked, then chased after him. The man was standing on a stool reaching at the top of a bookcase.
Phillip ran over to him, steadying him on the stool by putting his arm around his middle. The waist was small, Phillip felt that the man's stomach was flat and firm without being very muscular. The man flinched as if burned and stared down at Phillip.
"Sorry," he said, "I just wanted to make sure you're safe." Phillip found himself not removing his arm all the same.
"I'm fine," answered the man. "Here, here, take this. This book. Give it to her."
Phillip looked at the book that had been shoved into his hands, making him release the smaller man who hopped off the stool with almost inhuman lightness. The book looked quite old, but well-looked after. It was called, The Epic of Snow White and Rose Red.
"It's a romance," the man said quietly, not quite looking at Phillip, "about two very different people who fall in love and manage to stay together despite all the odds. She'll like it. She'll relate."
"You know her personally?"
The man shrugged and made his way to the counter. Phillip trailed after him and paid dutifully.
"Thank you," he smiled sweetly at the man, who just seemed even more miserable, and who simply shrugged in response. "Um, I hope you get warm soon…don't catch a cold."
The man didn't respond and so Phillip left. As soon as he stood outside he felt the urge to run back in, but he didn't. Instead, he went home.
xxXXxx
That night the wind howled and a storm blew over the city. Phillip ate a light dinner and watched some Telly as he wrapped Maleficent's gift. He hadn't bought anything for the others in the end, but he had all day tomorrow so would get stuff then.
He rubbed his side; it'd been aching for some hours. He wasn't very fit nowadays, so maybe it had been all that running about in the wet streets earlier. The image of the man flashed in his mind. It had been a strange encounter. He wondered if the man was ok. He hoped so.
He made a hot chocolate, read a little, then went to bed.
He lay in the dark, listening to the storm. He remembered various storms from his travels, the tropical downfalls, dramatic with lightning and thunder. How the world was born anew after such storms, wildlife bursting awake over-night.
Striking.
Like the man.
In his memories forever.
Like the man.
"Why didn't I get his name?" he chastised himself.
He rubbed his fingers over his throat, lowering to his chest. The man had been warm, when he had wrapped his arm around him. Comfortingly so.
He sighed. His bed was a single. It felt small. His side itched and burned and bothered him.
Phillip closed his eyes, feeling himself stirring below. "It's just a sexual attraction," he thought, "I've had them before…never this strong…but they're nothing new."
He lowered his arm to deal with the situation, quickly and efficiently. Only, this time it was slower, and it seemed to be more wanting.
And maybe…for the first time…there was a clear image of another person in his mind.
xxXXxx
Morning came slowly, bringing him out of his slumber.
He lay on his bed, the covers kicked off in the night. Dark brown eyes opened. He stared up at the ceiling. It was Saturday. He'd go shopping, then go to his friend's home for the celebrations.
Feeling stuffy, he knocked open the window beside his bed. The cold white light from outside touched the spaces in his room. Phillip looked to side, to the wall where he had put up a collage of photographs of his travels. Landscapes and the faces of friends he'd made and students he'd taught looked back at him. He smiled softly. Maybe he'd go off on travels again someday. He didn't think he'd stay in Scotland forever, much as he loved it.
He sat up and winced from the dull pain in his side. He walked stiffly to the bathroom and scrubbed his teeth. He then sat on the side of the bath and pulled off his top to see his side.
He imagined there'd be something grim, like a sore rash or maybe he'd scratched himself somehow yesterday instead.
Instead he found himself staring in disbelief. On his side was an extremely large, ornate and jet-black tattoo. He could hear his breath, hard and ragged. The tattoo began at his hip; there were black swirling lines that curved up in strands to become a menagerie of different animals including a horse, a reindeer with large antlers tangled in the black lines, a snarling wolf and even a dragon's head breathing out black flame. Every animal had black feathers as part of it somehow, whether on its mane or wings or above their hooves. The branches were decorated, if one looked very carefully, with strange symbols and signs which hinted at magic, and all stretched upwards to wear the name 'Diaval' stood in large, simple text. There was no second name. Above the tattoo was a raven in mid-flight.
He touched it gently, barely able to believe what he was seeing. Soul marks didn't happen for people his age, and he'd never known of one to be so large and complicated. The lines curved and danced between each other, too jagged to be vines, but reminding him more of tree branches or roots of a plant. There were small black dots, like ink stains, besides some of his freckles making a sepia effect. The main theme, other than animals, was feathers. Feathers, large and black, seemed to be casting themselves away from the main portrait, spreading around to his stomach and down to him back.
Phillip suddenly leaned over the toilet and dry heaved a few times before collapsing beside it. He had a soul mark. He had it! He looked at it again, almost afraid it had vanished. But it was still there, the itching and pain gone now. He touched it over and over again, tracing the patterns and the name.
"Diaval," he whispered, "Diaval."
He must have met him yesterday. A flash of a pale face and dark eyes burned in his memory. He didn't want to determine it was definitely that man (he'd made the mistake of certainty before) but it was unlikely to be anyone else. There were no Diavals in his school. He hadn't seen anyone in the street other than the bird. The Raven.
He touched the bird in mid-flight.
Was the bird his soulmate? That was…strange…
He got up and showered quickly, rubbing at the tattoo, frightened it would wash away. It didn't, of course, and it began to really settle in his mind that it really was a soul tattoo.
He got dried and dressed. He brushed his hair and hoped he didn't look too much of a dorky mess before he fled his apartment and headed to the Bookshop.
After twenty minutes he stood outside it breathing hard. The Inked Feather.
Oh god, it was TOO MUCH. This had to be his soulmate!
And, true to the continual misfortune of Phillip, the shop was closed.
"Of course," he muttered, "for the winter solstice."
He was so stupid; how could he forget? The man inside this shop was clearly supernatural, and his tattoo had an image attached to it, confirming that his beloved was a magical person.
Phillip walked away. He continued on his day, procuring gifts for all his friends. A nasty part of his brain told him he'd ever meet Diaval, that his bad luck would continue and that right when he'd learned to lie a happy life as a singleton, his chances of love were robbed again.
However, Phillip tried to ignore it. The shop would be there tomorrow. The man even said he knew Maleficent. That meant they ran in similar circles. "I'll ask Maleficent tonight," he decided, "she can help me."
He finished shopping in time to get a text from Belle: Dress nicely. We're having a ball. As in, an actual ball. Wear a tux or something.
He stared. He didn't own a tux; he was a high school teacher not James Bond.
He sighed, remembering when he was young and often over-dressed in order to seduce Aurora. Those days were long gone and looked upon with wry humour now. He decided he'd wear his nicest slacks, shoes, a reasonable shirt (forgoing the tie) and a very teacher-like blazer. It was his nicest stuff, so he wore it. He wasn't out to impress, he just wanted to see Maleficent.
He set out just as it was getting dark. Through the streets there were people lighting their homes with faerie lights and candles; seems some of the ways of the moors had truly made a home in the city.
He caught a tram and travelled out to the Dark District which unlike the city looked largely the same minus the fact that many more humans were now here most of whom were walking and talking with Supernaturals. He was in such a rush to get the train on time that he almost ran over a poor old lady. He gripped her shoulders to steady her.
"I'm sorry, are you all right?"
She chuckled, "I'm fine dearie."
She was a small, round woman with a friendly face, rosy cheeks and bright blue eyes.
"My, my, off to see your one true love?" she asked.
He smiled patiently, often hearing this sort of thing from older people, "actually I do not have a soul mate," he began out of habit before stopping, "well, actually I do now. But I am not seeing him. I'm going to see friends."
"Well, I have a little something for you," she answered, searching in her wide sleeves before pulling out a black lily.
He stared at it. "Wow, can it do anything?"
"It's just unusual." She answered, "it was a normal plant that grew in the garden of a good witch. Being in close proximity to magic, it changed and became this. It's quite old now, living passed its natural age."
"It's…it's a dark beauty," he said slowly, "almost scary, intimidating. You know?"
She smiled and nodded.
"How much would you like for it?"
"It's a gift, from me to you, for holding you up."
"But I nearly ran you over!"
"I don't mind, take the gift, it's bad luck to refuse."
He smiled good naturedly and accepted. He thanked her as she went on her way. He walked more sedately to the station, smelling the lily. It smelt of rainwater.
The train chugged along steadily. It was busier than normal, being the last train and everyone wanting to get home to celebrate with their families. Several got off the same stop with him and they all walked down the same winding path. He noted how well-dressed they were; they all looked like royalty and he wouldn't have been surprised if they were. He'd long suspected Adam of actually being a prince of some sort.
No one spoke to him, but he was ok with being alone in a crowd. He was used to it.
The castle appeared ahead. Music played, sedate and stately. The atmosphere became one of awe and magic. Despite the anxiety he felt over the lack of meeting his soul mate he found himself smiling.
The doors to the castle were open, the hallways full of chatting people standing with sparkling glasses of fizzing magical champagne.
He walked to where the music was playing, which bought him to the main ballroom. The lights were mainly a low, pale blue, much like that night on the lake. It cast shadows all about the floor, but highlighted the darks and lights of the people upon the dance floor. He stood in the corner, watching the dancers and keeping an eye out for friends. His bag of present was at his feet, but he held the lily in his hand, fingering its smooth stem.
"You." Said a voice.
Phillip turned and gaped. In the doorway behind him was the man from the bookshop. He was still wearing all black, though now he wore a top which showed the expanse of his pale chest and stomach.
Phillip felt himself going hot, "oh…hello." He found himself holding out the lily and bluntly stating, "I'm your soulmate."
Diaval, for that is who the man was, looked down at the lily, interest in his dark eyes, before glancing back up at Phillip. He smiled, not beaming like Aurora, but quiet and mischievous. "I know," he answered, "I knew for a long time."
"You did? How and why did you not say anything?" Phillip felt a little hurt. He'd been alone a long time.
Diaval stepped closer, steering them away from the door and into the shadows.
"I saw you when you were a boy here. You were playing in the woods with Aurora." He smiled again, soft and sad, "you were in love with her, I could tell. I didn't want to take that away from you. It would have hurt more, losing your predicted love and being hoisted upon a stranger. I'm nothing like her," he said, gesturing at his face vaguely, "in looks or nature. I thought it best. Plus, I was scared," the smile became self-deprecating for a moment before sliding off his face, "I'm not a man. I'm a bird. A raven." He picked up the lily and studied it, "I'm like this, a normal thing affecting by circumstance. I'm not special. Not really."
Phillip held out his hand, shaking slightly, and took Diaval's into his own. "I think that makes you really special."
Diaval looked at him, a soft look of surprise on his face.
The two men overserved each other, and there it was, that moment: hearts beating in time, fireworks going off internally.
Phillip let out a laugh and bought Diaval close to him, pressing their lips together.
They hardly knew each other, but the spark was there and they had the rest of their lives to discover one another
Title: Before you discover your soulmate, first discover your soul.