The Lonely Prince sighed. He'd gone to school, hoping to find someone there, but found himself all alone. Until he ran into Miss Bustier, who informed him of the call that kept his classmates away.

Oh well, he thought. I guess I just have to find them on my own.

"I really appreciate this, Nath."

"It's no problem." Smiling, Nathanaël sipped his tea. "Eight months, huh?" Eight months since Mylène and Ivan started dating.

Ivan smiled down at the picture of her he kept in a locket. "It'll be a year before we know it. I just want to do something special, you know? And what better than a hand-drawn collage of some of our best moments?"

"Mylène will love it, but it won't be cheap."

"I know. I've been working hard to do this for her. Thank you, again."

"No problem." Nathanaël smiled again and leaned back in his seat, looking over the menu he held. Ivan marveled at how calm he acted outside of class. Normally, the artist was a nervous wreck.

Well, thought Ivan, I know he's done some commission work in the past. I guess you need to keep a cool head for business deals.

Nathanaël's 'cool head' evaporated when he looked behind Ivan. He stood, panic on his face, and Ivan turned to see what was worrying him.

Yeah, that's pretty worrying, Ivan thought as an akuma approached them.

"I need your help," it said, brushing aside its blond hair.

"N-n-no thank you," Nathanaël stammered out. His back stiff, he turned to leave but hit the edge of a bubble as it swallowed him and Ivan. "W-what is this?"

"Just a test," the Prince said. "All you have to do is pass it."

"What kind of test?" Ivan asked, glaring. There was no escape now, might as well play along.

"Just do what comes naturally," he told them. Then he snapped his fingers and the city changed.

The table Ivan sat at disappeared, as well as Nathanaël's abandoned chair. The chair beneath him changed into a stump. Moss exploded from the sidewalk, growing in between freshly sprouted trees. The paved road became an overgrown trail.

"Your house is that way." The Prince pointed in one direction. "That's where the story starts. And one more thing-" He placed two crowns on their heads, frowned, then switched them. "Too much red," he said as he took the one from Nathanaël. The crowns were identical in form - rose bushes and thorned vines tangled around each other in a way that wrapped around the head - but differed in the colored jewels that formed the petals of the roses. On Ivan's crown, they were scarlet rubies and deep garnets. On Nathanaël's, they were white pearls and rainbow opals.

The Prince disappeared. Nathanaël gripped Ivan's shoulder and gulped. "What should we do?" he asked, his voice shaking.

"Go home," Ivan shrugged. "All we can do now is wait for Ladybug."

"It's getting colder." Nathanaël's teeth chattered. He moved closer to Ivan for warmth.

"I'm sure we'll be there soon. We've been walking all day." It was mere seconds after he said it when a light began to glimmer through the dark forest. "See? That has to be it."

They walked to the door and knocked on it. A moment later, Miss Bustier opened the door and smiled.

"There are my little troublemakers!" she said as she ushered them in. "You've been out late today. Come on, dinner's ready." She ladled some soup into bowls and set them on the table.

"Um." Ivan and Nathanaël exchanged glances. Before they could get another word out, she pushed them to the table and sat them down. They shrugged at each other and picked up a spoon to eat. Might as well make the best of this while they could.

It was an hour later, when they had their bellies full and toes warmed, that there was another knock on the door.

"Will you get that, Ivan?" Miss Bustier called from the kitchen. "I'm busy washing dishes." Ivan stood up, walked to the door, opened it, closed it, then sat on the ground in front of the fireplace.

"Nathanaël?"

"Hm?"

"Are there bears in Paris?"

"What?"

There was another knock. Miss Bustier called for them to open it again. Ivan ignored it until a voice came from outside.

"Excuse me," it said, "but it's kind of cold out here."

Miss Bustier yelled for them to let the poor freezing soul in. Nathanaël looked from Ivan to the door and stood. He approached it cautiously, moving slowly to twist the knob and crack it open enough to look through. He gulped when he met nothing but an expanse of black fur and beady eyes.

Ivan's strange question didn't seem so odd now.

He tried to slam the door, but it stuck its paw into the crack and forced it wide enough to get through. "I'm sorry," it said as Nathanaël hid behind Ivan, "but it's cold out and my cave is no longer safe. Could I stay here for a while? I'll be gone in the morning."

"I suppose you can," said Miss Bustier from the hall. "Make yourself comfortable, Mr.-"

"Just call me Bear." He waddled to the fireplace and settled down in front of it. Before long he was snoring, snow melting off his fur to puddle on the ground. Ivan and Nathanaël moved away from him, trying to escape into the hall, but Miss Bustier blocked their way.

"It's too cold in the back, boys. It'll be better to sleep in here, beside the fire. I'm sure Bear will keep you warm, too."

Nathanaël glanced at Bear's massive paws and sharp claws. He opened his mouth to protest but was cut off by a stern look. Miss Bustier locked the door leading to the rest of their small house before settling into a chair just beside the fireplace.

"Look, we just need to hang on long enough for Ladybug and Chat Noir," Ivan said as he sat on the mantle. "Just stay away from the bear."

Nathanaël glanced at it. "Let's hope they don't take too long."

The morning came way too quickly for Ivan's taste. In fact, it felt like all he did was blink. But he still felt rested. Nathanaël woke up not long after him, and together they watch as the bear left the house without a sound.

There's a routine that they settle in to. In the morning they woke up and Miss Bustier rushes them outside. They explore the woods that surround the cabin, eating lunches they were given until night, then return for supper at dusk. The bear came every night, and though it took some getting used to ("Aren't bears supposed to hibernate all the way through winter?") they grew more comfortable around him.

One night, when it was warm out, he didn't come back. Ivan and Nathanaël had a fleeting moment of concern for him, but brushed it off. They shouldn't be worried about a strange bear in the middle of an akuma attack. Illusion. Whatever this was.

It was another warm day when they were exploring that they saw Rose.

"Ivan! Nathanaël!" she called. She waved them over to her, a nervous smile on her face. "Can you guys help me?" she asked when they were closer. "I got stuck..." She gestured behind her, and they noticed something they hadn't seen before - her normally short hair was longer than they'd ever seen it, and a tree had fallen on it, trapping her in place. Ivan and Nathanaël exchanged a quick glance, then put their hands on the trunk of the tree.

"I didn't... think we'd run... into anyone we knew here," said Ivan as he started pushing.

"Yeah, I wasn't expecting it either." Rose started pushing as well, trying to help. "But Adrien's become an akuma. He's going on about something that happened last year, on his birthday." She slumped down onto the rough bark of the trunk to catch her breath. "He told me he was looking for a princess, someone in our class. He's been putting us to the test, apparently, but I failed mine. It looks like you're next."

"I don't know..." Nathanaël panted. "All we've done since we ran into him is live normally."

"Except for the bear."

"Yes, except for the bear."

"Bear?" Rose was confused.

Ivan explained their situation as Nathanaël threw his hand up in exasperation.

"This isn't working," he told them, then showed them his palms. "I'm getting all scratched up."

Rose sighed. "Do you have any scissors? We could cut my hair. I don't like it being so long anyway."

Nathanaël dug through his bag for his scissors, and ten minutes later, Rose's hair was back to its original length. She ran her fingers through it, smiling widely. Nathanaël eyed the pile of hair still stuck beneath the tree and asked, "What happened, exactly? How did it fall on you?"

"Oh!" Rose gasped, then ran to the tree's exposed roots. She looked around them for a minute and pulled a sack from under one. "This! I saw this shining in the sun and came over to see what it was. There was a strong gust of wind and I guess the soul here is loose, so it just kind of fell. I was lucky it only got my hair." She opened it and gasped again.

The boys leaned in together, almost knocking heads, and felt their eyes widen. Breathless, Nathanaël reached out and scooped up a handful of the bag's contents.

"Is this gold?" he breathed, the coins reflecting in his eyes.

"I... I think so. It looked liked it was hidden," Rose answered.

"We should put it back," Ivan said. "Hide it better." As an afterthought, he grabbed a small handful and gave it to Rose, another one to give to Nathanaël, and a last one for himself. "Whoever hid it won't miss such a small amount." And it'll help pay for Mylène's collage, he thought to himself.

Rose and Nathanaël nodded, then buried the bag in the tree roots again. Together, the three of them decided to return to the temporary home the boys shared with their teacher. The house was in their sight when a voice from deeper in the forest startled them.

"What are you doing with that thief?!" it yelled, and all three shivered at the anger they heard in it.

Ivan turned, an apology already falling from his lips, and stopped when he saw Bear lumbering toward them. He waved to him, bashful to be caught taking the gold.

But Bear ignored him. He stood in front of Rose, a growl rising from his throat. She whimpered, but was otherwise quiet, and threw her hands up in surrender. Her eyes were wide, blinking quickly, and Ivan knew he had to step in.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, pulling Rose behind him.

"The gold under the tree," Bear replied. "It was mine and I saw her take it. Besides," he mumbled to himself, "this isn't how the story goes."

Ivan was confused, but he needed to diffuse the situation. "Taking the gold was my idea. It was only a few pieces, and I didn't think you would miss it. I'm sorry."

Bear turned his gaze to him. "It was you who took it?" He glanced at Nathanaël. "And you agreed?" Nathanaël nodded, and Bear sighed. "You failed. I can't believe you failed."

Ivan wanted to ask what exactly he failed, but was cut off when Bear shoved him aside and struck Rose with his paw. She yelped in surprise and fell to the ground, blood dripping down her face. Nathanaël took his jacket of and knelt next to her, pressing it to her face. She sat up, panting. Tears glistened in the eye that wasn't covered, and Nathanaël helped her stand, pulling her away when Bear tried to swipe at her again.

"What are you doing?" he exclaimed, pushing her towards the house.

"It was my idea to take your gold, not hers!" Ivan added.

"The curse says I can't change back until she's dead."

Rose sobbed. "I didn't curse you." Her voice was weak, quivering with fear. "Is this what happened to- to whoever that was last time? Did you kill them?"

Bear considered it for a moment, and they took this time to run. "I suppose she's dead by now, yes." He blinked away his contemplation, then charged after the retreating thieves. He raced past Ivan and Nathanaël, ignoring them in favor of attacking the one that would turn him back into a human.

Only when Rose lay dead on the ground did Ivan and Nathanaël stop, sorrow halting their steps.

Bear stood, shaking the fur from his shoulders. The prince from earlier discarded the skin, throwing it over Rose's body. He glared back at the boys, and before either could shout for them to run, flicked his cane at them, and they fell through holes that appear beneath them.

A/N: Snow White is a common Fairy Tale name, apparently. You didn't think I'd skip the boys, did you?

Also, I'm sorry for not updating sooner. And that this chapter was so short. And kind of bad? It's really rushed lmao. But the next chapter shouldn't take so long. I'm excited for it~