Manic giggling sounded in the dim corridor. She began to turn back every few steps, more fits of laughter erupting as she heard the creature stirring. Alice's crystal blue eyes scanned the hall as she ran, her smirk wide and devious. Loosing her footing as she looked back again, the statue tripped over her own feet and fell to the stone floor.

"Merde!" She laughed, propping up on her palms and brushing off the dust off of her white button down shirt.

She had modified an outfit from her wardrobe with just a pair of scissors, a needle, and some thread. She cut off the sleeves of the shirt and hemmed the edges, then took it back a little so it just barely hugged her form. The pair of black pants had been shortened so she wouldn't trip over the legs, the seam now a bit tighter so they weren't baggy. The statue quickly checked to make sure she hadn't ripped anything. Looking up, her eyes met a pair of gold ones. She flashed a smile, tilting her head to the side as she sat up.

"Hi Stephano!" She said in a sing-song voice, beginning to stand.

Stephano grabbed her hand, pulling her up and giving her a nod in greeting. He raised and eyebrow in question, a faint trace of a smile on his face.

"Oh! C'mon, we gotta run." She laughed, grabbing his arm and pulling the golden statue down the hallway.

"What? Why? What are we running for?" Stephano questioned, trying to keep up with her energetic pace.

"You'll see..." The brunette trailed off, dragging him into an open doorway and watching from inside.

Stephano tensed at the sound of a monstrous groan. Drawing his golden sword, he took a step in front of her.

"I can take care of this." He whispered, watching for the familiar hideous face of The Bro.

"No, you don't understand." Alice giggled, putting his arm down. "Just watch."

With a confused look, he dropped his sword into its sheathe and watched as she stepped back in front of him. The Bro staggered around the corner, slashing around at nothing in particular with its long, blade-like claws. A potato sack covered his head, a short scrap of rope securing it to prevent it from falling away. Stephano's golden eyes widened in horror.

"Alice, what in hell did you do?" He hissed, turning to look at the giggling brunette.

"I found him sleeping so I decided to have a little fun." She replied, stepping out into the hallway. "Like a game of tag!" The statue-girl shouted, drawing the attention of the disoriented beast in front of her.

The Bro charged forward, blindly swinging his claws as he pursued her. She turned to Stephano, ding a quick salute to him before dashing away. Stephano stood frozen in the doorway; his eyes open wide in surprise as he tried to comprehend what had just happened. Without fully understanding, he ran after them.

Alice turned on her heel, running the other way. She got behind the monster and pulled out the whip hooked to her waist, slashing it with ease at its back. The sound of flesh being torn by the hooks and barbs made Stephano cringe. Alice smirked, hooking the angered beast around the ankles and roughly yanking it off balance. Groaning and hissing in frustration, The Bro flailed and tried to stand again.

"C'mon!" Stephano growled, grabbing Alice's hand and pulling her away before The Bro could get up and maul her.

Alice gasped as she was suddenly dragged down the corridor. His grip on her hand was firm and tight, yet gentle. The gusts of air from the grunt's thrashing claws ghosted her neck, eliciting squeaks and gasps as she willed her legs to carry her faster. She shrieked as the blade-like claws grabbed her by her long tresses, yanking her backwards and bashing her in the skull with a club-like hand. She cried out, crumpling to the floor and covering her throat and face with her arms. Stephano stopped and turned, drawing his sword and lunging forward at the monster.

"Run! Now!" Stephano ordered, his sword clashing with The Bro's long, razor sharp claws.

Alice stood up and hesitated for a moment before taking off around the corner. Stephano grappled with The Bro; the sound of sword against claws echoing. The Bro began stumbling around and loosing its balance when Stephano's foot made contact with its chest and toppled it over. The statue ran while it was down, going to find Alice.

"In here!" She called, drawing his attention to one of the dimly-lit storage rooms along the corridor.

He ran inside, noticing her waving him over from behind a stack of crates. He ducked behind it, hearing that The Bro was back on its feet again.

"Mon dieu, Alice! What the fuck?"

"I don't know! He's coming! What do we do?"

Stephano sighed, peeking at the doorway and seeing it grope its way around the darkness.

"It'll be okay... Just don't... make... a noise." He whispered, crouched in a defensive stance just in case.

She nodded, pulling her knees to her chest and rocking herself as she attempted to calm her breathing. Reptilian eyes met nothing but burlap and darkness as it fumbled about, the sack still secured. Despite being blinded, it was still very dangerous. Roaring in defeat as it lost his prey, he staggered away; his lip leg dragging lazily behind.

Stephano sighed a breath of relief, turning to look at the trembling statue-girl beside him. "Are you alright?"

The brunette nodded, flipping her hair around and showing him where a chunk of it was missing. "But look!"

Stephano facepalmed. "You are an idiot, Alice."

"Hey! If it weren't for you, I would've ran the other way and been perfectly fine!"

"Oh, so now it's my fault? Your brains were about to become an area rug!"

Alice glared for a minute, only to shake her head and laugh. "I'm sorry... I should be thankful that my brain is still in my skull, so thanks for saving my ass... I guess." She admitted, perching on her toes to give him a kiss on the cheek. "It's just boring as hell around here."

He rolled his golden eyes. "You don't have to risk your life being stupid for fun, moron."

"Shut up!" She snapped, slightly slapping him on the shoulder. "What do you do when you're bored?"

"Training."

"Okay! Let's spar!" She offered.

"Do you have your coustille?"

Alice shook her head, holding out her whip. "Only this."

"Not a fair fight..."

"What about hand-to-hand?" She asked, standing up and grabbing a candle from off the wall and using it to light a few others.

"I don't know if that's a very fair fight either... I'd hate to accidentally hurt- Woah, holy shit!"

He caught the punch she threw before he could finish, his eyes wide. She smirked, pulling her hand away.

"No hits below the waist, no hair pulling, try not to hit the face, and don't bite too hard. Got it?" She asked, casting her whip to the side.

Stephano grinned, nodding and setting his sword off to the side. "Define 'too hard'."

Throwing a couple of punches that he easily blocked, she laughed. "Don't make it weird."

Circling him, she tried hitting his pressure points, only for him to dodge. Stephano's eyes were narrowed; analyzing her every move and anticipating where she might strike next. He could tell that Alice wasn't trying all that hard. She grinned playfully, seeming to almost dance around him as she tried to get behind him. Shaking his head, he stopped her and grabbed her hands. He pried open one hand and flattened it, re-positioning her fist so it was more relaxed.

"Try hitting like this if you're punching something really hard. If you clench your fist like that, you'll break the skin on your knuckles. Okay?"

She nodded, smiling. "Okay... But, I need my hand back."

The golden statue blinked, looking down to hide his slight blush. "Oh! Right, right... Sorry." He mumbled, releasing her hand.

He put up his hands to block, taking each of the blows to his palms. "Don't hold back."

The brunette huffed irritably, settling herself for a bit. "How come I'm the one doing all the hitting? You're the one who isn't fighting back. Throw some God damned punches already!"

"I don't want to hurt you."

"Shut up!" She growled, throwing a right hook in a fit of anger.

Stephano stepped to the side, grabbing her wrist and twisting it. He pinned her against the wall with her still clenched fist above her head, the other useless off to the side. Their faces were only mere inches apart, her eyes wide in shock an cheeks flushed pink. He tilted his head to the side, a few stray golden locks falling in front of his eyes. Leaning forward a bit and clicking his tongue, he smirked

"Watch your temper, sweetheart." He whispered huskily.

All traces of her frustration had melted away like ice in the scorching sun. The diamond statue's mouth opened slightly as if she were about to say something, but she closed them again; her mind drawing blank. All of her focus was trained on his golden eyes studying her intensely.
She leaned forward slowly, his eyes snapping back up to meet her crystal blue ones. Stephano began to loosen his grip and was about to step away when he noticed her eyes flutter closed. Taking a deep breath and closing his own eyes, he leaned in and kissed her.

He let go of her wrists, instead gently holding her at the waist. Alice hesitantly rested her hands on his shoulders and stood on her toes to make up for the height difference. Closing the gap between them, he pulled her close with his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. She trailed her fingers along the back of his neck, twirling the ends of his hair around them. Stephano was the first to pull away, still holding her against himself.

They both stared silently. Unsure of what to say, he started to let go of her and step back. Alice quickly wrapped her arms around his torso, nuzzling his chest and sighing contently. Taken aback, he just blinked.

"Your heart is racing." Alice purred softly, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Stephano placed a gentle hand on the side of her neck, tilting her face up to look at him. Feeling her pulse under his fingertips, he smiled. "Yours too."

A/N

... I'm uh... not sure what to say here... So just pretend like I had something witty to say.

So, school starts back on Monday! 3: So sad! I'm gonna try my hardest to make sure this doesn't make me post any less! Speaking of school... I posted that thing on my profile. Go check it out if you want to contribute to my next story! I'd greatly appreciate it!

Piggeh: So does this count on them being "together"? I'm sure your lovely readers would love to know how I'm going to torture- I MEAN... uhhh... What I'm going to do once I win the bet. *looks out at readers and smirks*

Me: Ehehehe~ Well, maybe! *to readers* Leave a review for Stephano and Alice? Or take a guess at what Mr. Chair is gonna have to do? :3