Antha1: Ssh...and anyways, now you know.
No one spoke a word on the trip home.
After the confrontation with the Snow Queen, that had been it. There had been no epic battle to reach the ice sleigh; no confrontation with the Snow Queen's guard; no lucky last-second escape from the monarch's cold grasp. The group had simply ran down the hallway, unsure of where they were even going until they finally reached the balcony where the sleigh remained. Then, they had scrambled inside, Aisley took the reigns, and they flew off.
Away from the Snow Queen's castle. Away from the icy regions. Away from her.
But no matter how far they went, how small the castle became as they drew farther away from it, there was no escaping the nightmare that had been etched into their souls.
Nobody had any words to say once they left. They simply remained stricken in silence, all of them pondering what they had just witnessed. The only one not doing so was Kai, but he, too, remained silent, if only out of shame.
Luckily, Aisley hadn't needed to be told where to go next. The moment they had escaped the Snow Queen's castle, the former Robber Girl had set course for the Kingdom of Grimm.
Reaching the kingdom had proved a simple task; in the air, there was no worry of being hounded by the Queen's ruffians or wolves, and judging from the safe flight, the Snow Queen wasn't even trying to stop them. The only challenge was navigating the way to the kingdom, but Gerda and Belle had been able to provide directions.
After what seemed like an eternity, the clouds cleared and the group could see the Kingdom of Grimm looming in the distance. The sight of home had seemed to bring some warmth to the group, but only a little. Kai's pale cheeks vanished, and his breathing, which had been scarce since they left, became deeper and more frequent. Immediately, Gerda took him and held him close to her. After being separated for so long, she wasn't willing to let him go.
As soon as they were above the kingdom, Aisley landed the sleigh in the center of the town, drawing the attention of everyone nearby. Townspeople, several of whom were familiar to Gerda and her friends, rushed towards the sleigh to see who had arrived.
Once they saw the occupants of the sleigh, several of the villagers spoke up.
"Gerda and Belle are back! And they have Kai with them, too!"
"Thank Heavens they are safe!"
"We must tell their families!"
Seeing the townsfolk so happy warmed the hearts of the group. They quickly exited the sleigh, glad to be home; Aisley and the Beast, who weren't residents of the kingdom, merely stood by, hoping not to attract attention to themselves.
Squeezing through the crowd, Snow White rushed towards the sleigh and enveloped Belle in a hug. "Oh Belle, you're safe!" She said as she squeezed the brunette close to her. "I thought I'd never see you again!"
Belle was about to return the hug and explain what had happened on her journey when she heard several of the townsfolk let out gasps of horror. It was only then that she remembered that most of the townsfolk weren't familiar with the Beast whom she and her sister had become acquainted with on their quest.
"Wait, stop," Belle told the townsfolk, quickly rushing to the Beast's side. "He's not a monster. He's my friend. He's. . . just cursed."
This seemed to calm the townsfolk down a bit, though they kept their distance from the Beast. The cursed Prince simply let out an exasperated sigh.
"I guess this is only karma for the way I treated the woman who would become the Snow Queen," He muttered under his breath.
Nearby, Gerda gently pulled Kai out of the sleigh. He was still weak from his imprisonment by the Snow Queen, and could barely stand on his own, so Gerda half-carried him as they exited the sleigh. They had barely made it a few steps when Kai's father, Thomas, roughly shoved his way through the crowd, having heard of his son's return by some of the townsfolk.
"Kai!" He shouted with joy when he saw his son in Gerda's arms. Immediately, he rushed forward and plucked Kai into the air and out of Gerda's grasp, nearly causing the girl to stumble and fall.
"My boy!" Thomas said as he held his son in the air, weeping tears of joy. "You've come back to me! My son has returned!" He hugged his son tightly, protectively, as if silently making ensuring him that no more harm would come to his child.
Gerda watched on, her eyes filled with sadness. Shutting them tight, she turned away.
Soon enough, Gerda and Belle's father showed up. "My girls!" He said, rushing to hug them. "You're back! Oh, I nearly died of worry!"
"It's alright, dad, we're home," Belle consoled him, hugging him tightly.
"Oh, where were you all these days?" He asked, concerned.
"It's a long story," Belle told him. "I'll tell you all of it. But first, can we please go home?"
Gerda and Belle's father hadn't expected to be having two more guests besides his daughters arriving at his house; especially when one of them was a beast. But he figured that everything would be explained to him in due time, and sure enough, it was.
Belle, the Beast and Aisley explained all that had transpired on their journey, leaving no details out. It was quite a shock for the old man, who simply listened on intently, like a child. The only one who didn't speak was Gerda, who sat silently on the stairs, looking distant.
As they neared the end of their tale, however, the three trailed off. "Well, what happened?" The man asked them when they remained silent for a few moments. "You reached the Queen's castle, and then what?"
Slowly, Belle cast her eyes towards Gerda, who sat with her back turned on the stairs. As if feeling the eyes on her, the redhead slowly turned to face the others, dried tears in her eyes.
"Gerda?" Her father asked, worried. "What. . . happened at the Snow Queen's castle?"
For a few, tense moments, there was no response. Gerda simply stared at her father with cold, lifeless eyes. The only movement was her lips, which quivered ever so slightly.
After a few moments, she spoke.
"Why?" She asked, nearly choking out the question. "Why am I the Snow Queen's daughter?"
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