A/N: Ta-daaa! Did you miss me? No? Well, that's okay. This little one-shot has been laying dead in my scraps for MONTHS, but when I read some reviews on "Black Mirror" asking for more Aurora/Phillip stuff, I thought... heck, why not? I'm sick, I'm tied to bed... might as well, right?

This is a small "what if" one-short that basically answers a question I've always asked myself since I was a kid: "Er, why doesn't Phillip just follow Aurora into the woods after he runs away? We want more fluffiness!" Right? Right. SO! Here's the result. It turned out quite differently from what I had first imagined, but one can't control the imagination...

It hasn't been beta-ed, so once again you must rely on my spell check :P The one-shot has also been divided into two chapters, to make it easier to read.

Hope you enjoy!

Crazy Fools

by Nikki Anjo

Sleeping Beauty © Disney

"You hear that, Samson?" Prince Phillip tugged his horse's reins and looked back in search of the singing voice that had just echoed throughout the woods. "Beautiful…"

The horse did not share the prince's enthusiasm, letting out a groan before it began trotting again. Phillip pulled the reins harder, bringing the horse to a complete stop. They glanced at each other before Phillip lifted himself off Samson's back, his feet pressing against the stirrups. "What is it?" he wondered out loud.

Samson rolled his eyes, accustomed to the Prince's curiosity and constant urge to chase after things no one would ever remember to chase after. The horse prepared to continue trotting in a straight line when suddenly Phillip pulled the reins and forced the horse's change of direction. "Come on, lets find out!" he decided.

Samson protested by shaking his head and pulling the other way, huffing and puffing.

"Aw, come on," Phillip pleaded, pulling the horse's reins tighter. When Samson came to a stop, the prince leaned forward teasingly, patting the horse's neck with his hand. "For an extra bucket of oats?" he offered.

Samson's eyes widened at the sound of such magical words. He slowly turned his head towards Phillip, trying hard to feign disinterest but failing miserably.

Phillip tipped his red hat slightly upward, smiling like a merchant trying to sell a piece of jewelry. "And a few… carrots?" He said the last word with a convincing nod.

Samson nodded happily, eager to close the deal.

"Hop, boy!" Phillip cried as Samson reared on his hind legs and galloped in whichever direction the prince led him. Between trees and bushes they galloped fast and curiously, the wind offering little to no resistance as they headed their way. When at last the sound echoed again, Phillip ordered the horse to stop and together they tried to discover the source of such a beautiful voice. Determined he had found the right way, Samson led Phillip into the shadows, galloping over stones and flower beds and ducking beneath tree branches. Seeing a small creek in their way, Samson prepared for a long jump, momentarily forgetting about the man that was riding him… As he leapt through the air and reached the other side, he suddenly felt a lot lighter and coincidentally heard the trailing sound of a cry. "Whoa!"

Seconds later… splash.

Samson looked around, trying to get a hold of the situation. As his gaze strolled down to the creek, he found Phillip sitting in it, one leg over a small rock and his hat tilted over his face. The prince was completely soaked and did not at all look that impressed. Samson approached him cautiously, then hesitantly removed the hat with his teeth. Phillip glared at his horse for a few seconds then splashed water in its face. Leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, Phillip spoke slowly and clearly, like a father reprimanding a small child. "No carrots."

After hopping out of the creek and getting the excess water out of his hair, Phillip started by taking off his cape and hanging it on the tree branch. He took his hat from Samson with another glare and tossed it aside the cape. Then he rang the water out of his clothes, taking his time to make sure most of the water came out. At last, a few minutes later, he sat on the broken log and began taking off his boots, seemingly lost in thoughts. Despite all, his mind still wandered away to the voice he had heard in the woods. "You know, Samson… there was something strange about that voice. Too beautiful to be real…"

Samson stood in the middle of the creek and ripped some leaves off a branch with his teeth, paying no attention to Phillip's ranting.

"Maybe it was a mysterious being… a wood sprite!" he guessed. As Phillip folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the tree trunk, he looked at Samson absentmindedly, his mind far away, thinking about the voice he had not yet discovered. Suddenly, the horse neighed in panic and tried to point somewhere with his muzzle. Startled by this reaction, Phillip quickly turned to see what was going on. All he caught was a glimpse of his red cape and hat, flying across the woods at rapid speed (and were those two rabbits in his boots?). Phillip almost fell off the log and back into the creek again, stunned by the situation. "Hey! Stop!" he ordered, but to no avail.

A few seconds needed to recompose himself were enough to lose sight of the creatures and his belongings. Phillip snapped his fingers and looked down at the socks on his feet. "Just my luck," he groaned. "All I wanted was to find that beautiful voice, and somehow I ended up wet and stripped of my belongings."

Samson nickered, amused by the situation his friend now found himself in.

"How ever are we going to find them?" Phillip asked out loud, putting his hands on his hips and scanning his surroundings. As he finished speaking, the mysterious voice echoed again. Phillip looked up in alert and signaled for Samson to be quiet. The horse swallowed the leaves it had been chewing and opened its eyes wide. "Did you hear that?" Phillip whispered. "Come on, we must be close!" He took the horse by the reeds and quietly walked down the path, his eyes and ears attentive to every sound.

"I know you, I've walked with you once upon a dream… I know you, the gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam…"

They were drawing closer now. Phillip felt a tingle in his skin as the grass tickled his feet, realizing that the voice he was hearing had not belonged to a mysterious being or wood sprite, but rather to a fairly young girl. What did she look like? Where did she come from? How come Phillip had not encountered her before? Such questions troubled his mind as he approached a large bush which he decided to use as his fortress. As his fingers touched the leaves, he looked back at Samson and beckoned for the horse to come closer.

"Yet I know it's true, that visions are seldom what they seem… But if I know you, I know what you'll do, you'll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream…"

With his heart pounding loud and fast, Phillip pushed down the leaves to discover for once and for all to whom the lovely voice belonged to. To his dismay (and relief!), he found a beautiful young girl dancing across the lawn, her feet bare and her peasant dress reaching slightly below her knee. He looked at Samson and grinned, pleased with their finding. Then he looked back at the girl and watched her in silence. Her beautiful golden curls bounced as she danced and flew as she twirled. She danced with what looked like a ghost in a red cape and a red hat, which Phillip soon identified to be his. Amused, he watched as the woodland creatures impersonated what he believed to be her prince charming, though very soon he urged to be the one dancing with his newly found muse. Below two rabbits played around with his boots, trying to keep up with the maiden's graceful dance moves.

"La da, la da, la da da da, da-dum, da-dum, da-dum… But if I know you, I know what you'll do…"

Led by his impulsiveness, Phillip leaped over the bushes and swiftly made his way to the girl. Just as she turned her back to him – not having noticed him before – Phillip gripped onto his cloak and pulled the owl out of his way. At that moment, the girl came absentmindedly twirling towards him, completely lost in her beautiful song.

"You'll love me at once…"

Phillip stood behind her and held her hands. "The way you did once upon a dream…" he sang, his deep voice contrasting with her soft and graceful one. The girl came to a halt, her eyes widened with panic. Her head turned in search of her woodland friends. She found them watching her beside a tree with a hopeless yet amused look on their faces. It was a while before realization hit her, and she finally turned around to see who had replaced her imaginary partner. Gasping when she saw Phillip, she quickly tried to pull away from him.

"I'm awfully sorry," he quickly apologized, holding her hand gently and looking at her tenderly. "I didn't mean to frighten you!"

The girl looked away from him, avoiding his gaze at any cost as she tried to pull her hand away from his. She succeeded for a split second, but he quickly caught her again and stopped her from running away. "Oh, it wasn't that," she replied shyly, her gaze turning towards the floor as she hid her free hand behind her back. She shyly looked up at him. "It's just that you're a…" Her words faltered her, but her concerned expression made clear what she was about to say. As Phillip smiled back at her, her cheeks became flushed and she forcedly slipped her hand out of his. "A…" She turned around and tried to run.

"A stranger?" Phillip suggested light-heartedly, catching her once again and gently holding her hand.

The girl timidly nodded her head. "Hmm-hmm."

Phillip delicately pulled her closer to him. "But don't you remember? We've met before!" he told her with a comforting smile.

The girl, despite her discomfort, seemed to question his words. "We… we have?" she asked him hesitantly, leaning back as he leaned forward.

"Of course!" Phillip replied cheerfully. He pulled her towards him until their faces were only inches apart. "You said so yourself…" At last he let go of her hand and pulled back, confident that she would not try to run away again. "Once upon a dream."

Recognizing her own words, the girl shyly looked away as she rubbed her hand on her dress. As he spoke, she cautiously moved away, though part of her seemed very reluctant to do so.

Phillip began to sing the familiar tune, taking slow steps towards the girl. "I know you, I've walked with you once upon a dream…" As he sang, the girl stopped in her steps and shyly looked back at him. She turned away again then walked towards a huge tree trunk and slowly hid behind it. She could hear his voice drawing nearer, and cautiously tried to peek from behind the tree to see if he was coming towards her.

Phillip followed the girl with a small smile, relieved to see she hadn't run away and longing to be closer to her again. He came to the tree and saw her peeking in the opposite direction. He felt the urge to embrace her right there and then, but fought against it. Instead he delicately touched her hand and continued to sing. "I know you, the gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam." The girl pulled back her hand abruptly, and held it against her chest. Although his gaze was tender and loving and his voice so very comforting, she felt obliged to move away and quickly slipped towards a rock. He followed her more quickly this time, and smoothly walked around her so that he could have another chance to look her in the eyes.

This time, as he drew nearer, she looked back at him, but with the same tenderness and lovingness. With a smile he took her hand again and walked away from the rock and towards a clearing hidden by the shadows of the tall pine trees and guarded by a small stream. As he looked her in the eyes, he felt a sudden urge to sweep her off her feet and dance with her away to a forgotten place where only sweet dreams could come true. He knew it would have been appropriate to invite her to dance, but his impulsive desire was too strong to resist. Phillip took a few steps back and pulled the girl along with him, sweeping her into a graceful waltz. She laughed in return – oh, what a sweet and innocent laugh – and did not show even the smallest intention of running away. It was as if they could both hear the sweet melody inside their heads as their feet swayed gracefully across the fresh clean grass.

As Phillip stepped back and lifted his arm to spin the girl around, his heart stopped as the streaks of sunshine reflected on her golden locks and her peasant dress lifted slightly above her knees. She grinned, reminding him of a sweet innocent child who looked upon a colorful rainbow for the first time. He could do nothing but smile back, wondering to himself if it would seem to rude if he just took her in his arms at that very moment and stole a kiss. As if suddenly his mind had taken control over his actions, he pulled her closer and leaned forward. However, she pulled back playfully, though her cheeks blushed so intensely that they reminded him of two juicy strawberries.

He took her hand and with a laugh ran backwards until they were no longer under the protection of the pine trees, vulnerable beneath the hot blazing sun. With his arm stretched out and his hand gripping tightly onto the girl's so that she would not let go, he twirled her around until at last he pulled her towards him again. Their faces were now only inches apart. Phillip felt his insides cringe with desire as the sound of her deep breaths (signs of tiredness from the dancing and the excitement) penetrated into his ears. Again he felt the need to kiss her, and this time she did not pull away so soon. In fact, she lingered closer to him now, her gaze occasionally slipping onto his lips and her lips curling into a small smile. As he leaned forward, accepting her gaze as an open invitation, she shyly turned away and closed her eyes. However, unlike the beginning of their encounter, she did not seem the least bit inclined to run away. Moreover, she slowly led him towards a big tree right at the end of a cliff, almost as if she was inviting him into her refuge. Phillip gazed down at the girl, his mind so lost in so many thoughts that he simply allowed himself to be towed away by her until they both leaned against the tree branch and stared into the distance.

Alas, far in the horizon, shining like a light at the end of a tunnel, lay King Stefan's castle. It felt like someone had just plunged a dagger into Phillip's heart, for Stefan's castle was nothing but a painful reminder of a responsibility which had been so unfairly bestowed upon him. How cruel fate had been to him… or, alas, how generous, for only fate would have led Phillip to the mysterious owner of his heart, precisely on the day that he was to meet his bride. Was it perhaps a sign from God Himself?

The prince had little time to dwell on such thoughts, for in a moment he felt the girl's head rest comfortingly on his shoulder. He slowly rest his head on hers, his arm slipping around her waist as she slipped her hand around his. Like two forbidden lovers they stared into the distance, most likely neither aware that the castle they gazed at before them was to become a lot more than a simple symbol of royalty.

The silence, as lovely as it was, only made Phillip want to know more about the mysterious girl who had just conquered his heart. "Who are you?" he asked softly. "What is your name?"

At first the girl did not reply, and when Phillip looked down at her he noticed that her eyes were closed and she was smiling dreamily. He soon regretted his own words, for they seemed to have awakened her from a sweet dream. "Hm?" She lifted her head off his shoulder and looked around, slowly turning her body around to face him. "Oh, my name. It's…" The girl smiled shyly, as if no one had ever asked her such an obvious question. However, as she looked into his eyes, something in her stirred. She hesitated for a moment. "Why, it's…"

Phillip smiled comfortingly, urging her to continue. However, the girl's eyes widened and her once sweet gaze had now transformed itself into a pale, worried look. "Oh, no, I… I can't!" she said hurriedly, shaking her head. Before he had time to react, she pulled away from him and ducked under the great tree branch which they had been leaning against. "Good bye!" she called out to him, moving away in such a rush that Phillip feared that he had said or done something to displease her.

"But when will I see you again?" he called back to her worriedly.

She waved her hands in the air and shook her head as if his question had been a profane blasphemy. "Oh, never! Never!" She lifted her skirts and scampered away.

Phillip's heart fell as he hopelessly began to run after her. "Never?"

The girl leaped over a small stream then suddenly stopped in her steps. She seemed to give his persistence some thought, and for a second looked back at him hopefully. "Well, maybe someday," she said before quickly turning away again.

Phillip felt a tinge of hope again as he stopped by the stream. The woodland creatures – which Phillip had seen the girl dancing with earlier – surpassed him at this moment and accompanied the girl in her chase. Samson, who had been on the other side of the stream, perked up when the girl ran past him and turned his head to see Phillip desperately trying to chase her. "When? Tomorrow?" the prince cried, trying hard not to lose sight of the girl.

"Oh, no!" the girl cried back, grabbing her belongings (a scarf and a basket) which she had left beneath a tree. "This evening!"

Phillip continued to chase her, but started losing speed as he saw the girl head into the woods, following a path he did not recognize. "Where?" he called out, reaching out his arm.

The girl looked back for a moment, though she did not slow down. "At the cottage, in the glen," she answered before hurrying down a small hill.

Samson joined Phillip at this point, more bewildered by all the woodland creatures than the girl herself. He only really looked at the prince when he heard his voice. "Who was that girl? Why did she not tell me her name?" Phillip wondered out loud. He tugged Samson by the reeds. "This evening, we shall gallop to the cottage in the glen!" he decided eagerly. "It might take us long to find it, and therefore we must leave early! I… I must be with her again again," he added blissfully, gazing at the tree where they had once embraced each other.

Samson nudged Phillip's arm, trying to snap the prince out of his gaze. More importantly, it troubled the horse that Phillip had not yet realized one very important detail…

"What? What is it?" Phillip asked with a playful laugh, pushing the horse's nose away. Samson neighed, even though he knew his owner would not understand him. Phillip looked at him in confusion at first, but a few seconds later snapped his fingers and gasped. "This evening! God dammit, it's the royal celebration!" he cursed, running his fingers through his hair.

Samson nodded. There was also the slight detail that Phillip was about to meet his bride, Princess Aurora, whom he had been betrothed to for sixteen years (not that it mattered to Samson, as a horse, but Phillip's endless rants and complaints about his betrothal had become hard to ignore at some point). Samson sighed, disappointed for the prince, but happy at the prospect of returning to the castle and feasting upon his well-deserved buckets of oats… and carrots.

However, he was wrong. When he turned his head in search of Phillip, the prince was… gone.