A/N: You're all lovely. Special thanks to Ashlanielle for her encouragement with the dialogue in this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or Ever After. *Some lines in the chapter are borrowed from the movie Ever After. Credit for those lines belong to their respective writers.*

"The Lord God had created all animals, and had chosen out the wolf to be His dog."
― Jacob Grimm, Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm

The Baroness Cassandra O'brian was notoriously meticulous when it came to her appearance. She went to great pains to make sure she and her girls always looked their best, but honestly, this was getting ridiculous. She sighed heavily as her eldest daughter denied yet another dress. "What's wrong with this one?"

Reinette rolled her eyes. "It's blue," she answered, as if that should have been obvious to the older woman.

"Prince James loves blue!"

"Yes, and fifty other girls will be wearing the exact same color. Honestly, Mother!"

Unfortunately for Lynda, the younger woman chose that moment to enter the room wearing a dress she was practically bursting from. "This one's too small," she stated, struggling for breath.

Cassandra looked at her daughter with disdain. "Well, we shall just have to get you a tighter cinch."

She whimpered. "I cannot breathe as it is."

"As I've told you before, Lynda dear, one cannot breathe, one cannot eat."

"Enough! If we could put the focus back on what I am to wear and not on Lynda's overeating habits, that would be lovely!" Reinette snapped, blatantly ignoring the look of hurt that crossed her sister's face.

Cassandra grit her teeth. "It would help, my pet, if I knew what you were looking for."

"I need something fit for a queen!" she declared, dramatically throwing herself across her bed.

Pondering through her daughter's display, an idea came to Cassandra. "Come ladies, I have just the thing. But we must speak of this to no one." With both girls following her, she entered the adjoining room, and stopped in front of a large ornate trunk. "Waste not, want not." Reinette and Lynda both gasped as their mother pulled out a beautiful white gown, gold thread shimmering through the silky fabric with delicate lace trimming the edges.

Trailing her fingers down the sleeve, Reinette said, "It's perfect!"

Lynda grinned and pulled out a matching pair of bejeweled slippers from the trunk as well. "Oh, look at these! Where did you get these, Mother?"

Cassandra smirked. "They're Rose's dowry. For her wedding."

"The little cinder girl?" Reinette scoffed. "Married to who, the chimney sweep?"

"If this dress belongs to Rose, perhaps she'll want to wear it to the ball," Lynda suggested.

Her older sister frowned. "Since when does a royal function include commoners?"

"Well...never, but Rose is our step-sister and the invitation did say, 'to the ladies of the house.' She's technically a lady of the house."

"She's not of noble blood!"

"And besides who would notice? No one," Cassandra injected, answering her own question.

Reinette took a step closer to Lynda and eyed her up and down. "Really, little sister, whose side are you on?"

"I didn't realise there were sides to be had," the younger girl retorted bravely.

"I suppose we shall see, won't we?"

Rose hummed a senseless tune as she climbed the stairs to distribute firewood throughout the bedrooms. She felt better having confessed what had happened between her and the Prince to Sarah Jane. The more she thought of it, the more she realised how unlikely it would be for the Prince to track her down having used her mother's second name. It would be a stretch indeed. As long as she never encountered him again, she would be fine. And really, what were the chances that she would see him? Bumping into him twice in one day was a fluke. A complete coincidence. She would be fine. everything would be fine.

Passing through the upstairs hall, Rose was surprised to see her step-family gathered in one of the spare bedrooms. It looked like Reinette and Lynda were in some sort of heated conversation. Knowing how cruel the eldest of the two could be, she instantly felt a protectiveness over Lynda. Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the room and asked, "What are you doing?"

All three woman jumped in surprise. Cassandra immediately shook out the dress she was holding, a dress Rose recognised instantly. It was her mother's wedding dress. The dress she, herself, hoped to wear one day.

"We were just airing out your dress, so you can wear it to the masked ball!" her step-mother answered with a forced smile Rose immediately saw through.

Lynda looked at her mother in shock. "Her dress!? But you just said-"

Reinette cut her off. "We were just saying how lovely it will look on Rose. Perfect for a commoner, I mean look at it. It's practically an antique."

Rose looked them skeptically. Something about this whole affair screamed deceit, but Rose wasn't naive. She knew better than voice her concerns. "You actually want me to go to the ball?" she questioned, hoping to catch them in their lie.

"Of course we do. You're a lady of the house after all," Cassandra assured. "I thought we could all go as one big happy family, that is if you complete your chores in time and mind your manners till then."

As she nodded in agreement, Rose couldn't help but notice the tears that had built in her youngest step-sister's eyes. "Lynda? Are you alright?" The young woman opened her mouth to respond, but all the came out was a squealed sob. Throwing the shoes she had been clutching onto the bed, she raced from the room. "What's the matter with her?"

"Oh... she doesn't want you to go," Reinette told her with a pout.

Somehow, she doubted that was true.

Jamie knew he was being watched. He paced back and forth across the lake's shore and knew he was being watched and judged. There was just so much going through he mind, he wasn't sure if he could properly vocalise his concerns. When he had requested this time alone with his idol, he was hoping that they would have a great heart to heart. That such wisdom would be imparted, Jamie would know exactly what he should do in terms of his future marriage. But he couldn't seem to find the words needed to start the conversation.

"You know, when you asked to take this jaunt, I was under the impression you actually wanted to discuss something? If not that's perfectly alright. Just a curious old man, me. Of course, if I had to guess what was troubling you, I'd have to imagine it would have something to do with love," Wilfred said with a chuckle.

Jamie ran a hand through his hair, unsurprised the Wilfred had guessed exactly what was bothering him. "Can I ask you something?" he requested.

"Yes, yes. Go on."

"Do you think there's only one perfect mate out there for everyone?"

Wilfred nodded. "As a matter of fact, young man, I do."

"Well, then how can you be certain to find them? And if you do find them, are they really the one for you or do you only think they are? And what happens if the person you're supposed to be with never appears, or she does, but you're too distracted to notice. Or too busy running?"

"You learn to stop and pay attention."

Jamie's thoughts turned to his mother. He knew she had loved another man before she married his father, and had that other man not fallen ill and died, it was very likely she would have never married her now husband, the King. She claimed she loved him, Jamie's father, but could she really? Her true love had died. Was it possible to have more than one true love?

"Then let's say," he continued, "God puts two people on Earth and they are lucky enough to find one another, but one of them passes. Well then what? Is that it? Or perchance you meet someone new and marry them, is that the lady you're supposed to be with, or was it the first? And if so, what if the two of them were walking side by side, were they both the one for you and you just happen to meet the first one first, or was the second one supposed to be first? And is everything just chance or were some things meant to be?"

Wilfred furrowed his brow as he began pulling large wooden shoes out of the cart he had insisted on bringing with him for their walk. "Blimey, boy, you've got a lot going on up there don't you? Listen, you cannot leave everything to fate. She's got a lot to do. Sometimes you must give her a hand."

"I suppose." He sighed. "What in the world are those?" Jamie asked, looking at Wilfred's newest project.

The old man wiggled his eyebrows. "Would you care to see if they work?"

Rose took a deep breath as she left her home behind and entered the woods. Taking this moment to herself was much needed after what had happened that morning with her mother's dress. They were lying to her, clearly. It worried Rose that her step-mother was going through her dowry trunk and showing Reinette the dress that, by every right, belonged to Rose. Oh, they could claim they wanted her to go to the ball, but there was no doubt in her mind that when the time came, she would not be allowed to attend.

A small bark tore her attention away. She smiled when the grey and white wolf trotted forward.

It had been several months since they had first encountered one another. At the time of their first meeting, the wolf had been a mere pup. Rose was leery of getting close, remembering her father's warnings about such things. Wherever there's a pup, there's a mother wolf lurking nearby. Not once, though, had Rose caught sight of any mother wolf. Actually, she hadn't caught sight of any other wolves in general. And this one seemed harmless enough. She'd merely walk beside Rose as she gathered truffles, or flowers, or whatever else Rose found in the woods. She was still cautious, but knew she had nothing to fear from the animal.

"Well, come on then," Rose called out, allowing the wolf to come closer. She walked in silence with the wolf, only stopping occasionally to pick up pretty rocks she found for Rhys to turn into jewelry to sell at the market. It didn't bring in much money, but it did bring in some, and with the baby on the way, Rhys and Gwen could use any extra bit they could get. As she bent down to pick up another rock, she was surprised to see how dirty her hands had become. Reinette and Cassandra's comments about her cleanliness came back to her. It wasn't that she enjoyed being unclean, they just seemed to forget all the work Rose had to do that involved dust and dirt. There was no way Rose could stay as immaculate as Reinette doing the chores she was assigned to do.

She lifted her head in the direction of the nearby lake. It had been ages since she'd gone for a dip and had a proper soak, and with all her chores currently completed, and her step-family in town, she had no reason to rush back to the house. Standing to her feet, she gave her wolf a whistle and set off.

Jamie laughed from his place on a nearby hill, as he watched Wilfred literally walk on water with his strange wooden shoes. It really was a remarkable invention and when he was done testing them out Jamie hoped he would be allowed a turn. He was surprised when the older man stopped in the middle of the lake and said something down to the water before toppling over.

"Lord Mott!? Are you alright?" Jamie shouted, racing to the edge of the lake shoreline as the elderly man made his way out of the water, clutching a young woman to his side.

The man grinned brightly, despite being soaked to the bone. "Clearly, I should leave walking on water to the Son of God, fortunately I tripped over an angel."

Jamie turned to the young woman and was pleasantly surprised to find the very person he feared he would never see again. "Comtesse!"

Her eyes widened. "Your Highness," she greeted before tripping over something unseen in the water. "Oh! Be careful, it's very slippery right there," she muttered, desperately trying to clutch at her sodden dress to protect her modesty.

Jamie blushed brightly when he realised her dress didn't offer much coverage when wet. "Uh, here," he took off his cloak and threw it around her shoulders, as he helped her back onto dry land, "allow me."

She smiled gratefully. "Thank you."

Wilfred look between to two and chuckled. "Well, I shall leave you be while I go dry myself. Excuse me, my dear,." He nodded to the lady.

With Wilfred gone, the Prince was unsure of what to do or say. He felt young and silly. "Would you like to sit?" he offered.

She nodded. "Sorry," she said as she took her seat on the ground, "but did I hear you call him Lord Mott?"

"Yes! That was Lord Wilfred Mott. Brilliant man, he is, painter, inventor, philosopher. I wish I could be half of what he is."

"Mmm. Me as well," she agreed as a lone grey wolf made it's way out of the trees and trotted to her side, folding itself next to her.

His jaw fell open in surprise. "That's, uh... That's a wolf!"

She gave a cheeky grin. "Very good, your Highness."

"Is it your pet?"

"Not really. More like a friend. She likes to accompany me on my walks through the woods."

"You are..." Incredible. Fascinating. Frustrating. Beautiful. He finally took a moment to look around and was surprised to find that she was all alone. "Where are your attendants?"

"I decided to give them the day off," she answered.

"A day off?"

"Yes, sire, a day off. Don't you ever tire of having people wait on you all the time?"

"Yes, always, but it's what they do."

She inhaled sharply. "They?"

"Servants," he clarified, knowing he was probably saying the wrong thing, but not sure how to respond any differently.

She turned away and looked at the wolf resting next to her. "I wish I could dismiss mine as easily as you do yours."

"You're angry with me."

"A bit, yes."

"Because...?"

The Comtesse bit her lip. "If you could do anything anything in the world, never mind the fact that you're the Prince, what would you do?"

"Oh," he exhaled, not expecting that turn. There were a great many things he would like to do, the biggest one though... "Adventure. I want to run and go on adventures."

A smile played at her lips. "You want freedom," she said knowingly.

"Yes."

"And do you think you are the only one to feel that way?"

He blinked. "Well, no. Obviously not."

"See, you are not so different than a servant," she pointed out. "You both are confined by what society says you must be, what you can or cannot do. You both want freedom, even if that means just taking an afternoon to sit by a lake."

Jamie felt is breath leave him in a rush. He had, he had never thought about it like that. He'd never heard any of his servants complain, but then, they wouldn't complain in front of him, would they? And of course they must feel just as constricted to the palace as he, only he had the option to at least go for a stroll if he so wished. Most of them did not. "How do you do it?" he found himself saying.

"Do what?"

"Live each day with this kind of passion. Don't you find it exhausting?"

She giggled. "Oddly enough, only when I am around you. You like to irritate me, don't you?"

"Well," he drew out, "you always rise to the occasion when I do."

"I do, despite my better judgement," she said under her breath.

"Alright, young people," Wilfred started, having dried off and rejoined them, "who would like to see if my flying contraption works?"

Out of nowhere, a voice began calling out for someone in the distance.

The Comtesse turned around in surprise, looking nervous. She jumped to her feet and took off the cloak he had draped around her. "Forgive me, your highness. I've lost track of the hour."

"But the wind, it's perfect!" Wilfred told her in disappointment.

"I'm sorry, my lord. Perhaps another time!" she replied, as she began making her way up the hill.

Jamie felt his heart sink when he realised he was going to loose her again. "Wait," he called out. "Comtesse, I'm playing tennis tomorrow with the Marquis Lethbridge Stewart. Will you come?"

She looked back and shook her head. "I'm sorry. I really must go."

"Why does she keep doing that?" He looked to Lord Mott. "She keeps walking away."

The old man sighed. "Perhaps one day, when the time is right, she will stay."