Tangled Magic Chapter 38, a kaleido star fanfic

AN: 2 of 2! Last chapter and it's a long one! Almost 8,000 words.

"Is" pant "she" huff, pant, "following?"

Leon chanced a glance behind, trying to see beyond the scales and red mane. The fluttering sound of Mizu's wings made him look forward again.

"Yes."

"Good!" Sora cheered. She was getting tired of being chased.

Leon only had one mirror fragment and had warned her of it. Now, she gestured for it. Her eyes briefly glowed as her hand touched the item. With a nod to him, Leon threw it before them onto the ground and they jumped into it.

Quickly, Sora looked around in the void for the pieces that Yuri was supposed to have placed around the castle. 'Come on, outer courtyard or the inner court!'

She squinted as she saw a bush through one of the blots. 'No, not that one.'

When she spotted the familiar tiles and pillars of the outer courtyard, she smiled and concentrated on it. The blot zoomed into her view and they passed through it.

She shook off the dizzy sensation. Leon let go of her hand and his arm moved in front of her in order to make her back up. The guards and nobles peered at them curiously, but then they screamed when the dragon appeared through the opening.

Guards came with spears at the ready.

"Hold!" Leon yelled. "We have reason to believe that this is Prince Astiere!"

They hesitantly lowered the spears, but the dragon's hissing made them raise the spears again. Though, they withheld the desire to kill the beast. That bright red hair, a most defining trait of the royal family of the Volaire bloodline, it was unmistakable and for that reason, they stayed their hands.

"What sorcery is this?!" yelled one of them.

"Tell King Volaire that we have found his son, as well as the bewitching item!" Leon looked over at Sora, who then lifted up the amulet. It glowed forebodingly with a purple light and a small amount of green. However, the green intensified suddenly.

Mizu was now in the courtyard, her wings glinting with her green magic. Leon and Sora jumped back as the dragon lunged at them.

"We need to destroy this!" Sora cried. She smacked the necklace against the ground as hard as she could. Mizu yelled out at the sight, but then relaxed when it didn't break.

'I need to get that away from her!' If they managed to break it here amongst her fellow fairy aides, they would most certainly recognize her signature when it was released from within the amulet.

The duo went back through the mirror so suddenly, Mizu shrieked and some of her magic came out threatening. So after the dragon passed through the mirror, Mizu followed.

A few guards' eyes narrowed at the sizzling green magic that had landed along the courtyard.

"Fairy magic's not supposed to do that, is it?"

Another guard shrugged, but his partner brought up a good point. That green, foreboding magic looked a great deal like the magic that was in the amulet…

"Something's not right…Inform the king immediately!"

They were in the void again, this time Leon analyzed the blots as Sora looked for the inner courts one. He looked at the one that was outside the castle gate and pondered upon it.

Originally, he was going to depart, but when he looked at Sora, he couldn't do it. The chance of her being injured by the Head Fairy again made his stomach turn. He couldn't live with himself if he left her to face this alone.

Now though, they could use that fragment for something else.

It depended on whether or not Sarine came to the public courts as he had asked her to in his note. If she was there and he could spare a few seconds to tell her about that mirror piece and if the Head Fairy did what he was anticipating her to do after they succeeded in breaking the amulet…

His eyes darkened with revenge. He knew, without a doubt, that Sarine would be up for it.

He was drawn away from his thoughts as Sora moved them to the fragment of the inner courtyard.

'The final act of the play,' he mused.

Having come to the public portion of the courts from the marketplace, Sarine carried her basket of groceries as she looked around for Leon.

His note from the very early morning asked her to come later on today.

'He undoubtedly wants to know if the plan was a success.' She adjusted the basket as she waited for familiar silver hair. 'Maybe he has news of Sora as well.' She missed seeing the young woman around the inn, even though it hasn't been quite two days since she went missing.

She sadly sighed. She really hoped Leon found her.

The people around her started to fuss and move closer to the center of the room as they could. Sarine tilted her head to a new angle. She thought she saw some silver…

'Ah, so I did.' Leon's form straightened up—why was he crouched, she wondered—and then she gasped as familiar red flashed. 'Was that Sora?!'

She maneuvered herself to the front of the crowd, ignoring the glares and irate people that didn't appreciate her squeezing her way over. "Sora?" she called with motherly worry and longing. "Sora!"

Hearing her name, the young fairy turned her head.

"Sarine!" she cried.

The sound made the chef's heart twinge. It made her think about her young gals when they were around that age. Her eyes narrowed as she took in the mess Sora's hair was. 'Oh sweet pea…'

Leon turned his head and swiftly got as close to Sarine as possible. "Mizu's responsible." He curtly stated. "I think she'll be escaping through a mirror in the greenery before the gate to the castle."

Sarine's motherly worry dissipated with those words. Her eyes flashed with dark pixie magic and the chef nodded. Leon turned around when the dragon appeared from the mirror piece in the corner of the courts. Nobles and the common people ran out as the dragon shrieked.

Sarine left with the crowd.

In the scant few seconds that Leon took to talk to Sarine, Sora meanwhile had put on some gloves from her bag and pulled the cold irons out.

The serpent soon came out from the mirror, which promptly left the courts very bare, but not completely.

She could hear the clinking of armor as the guards came in. Fairy aides had their wands out and a few advisors stayed in order to see what the matter was—they had their own guards with them. Even with the gloves, the irons slowly began to sting her fingers. Wasting no more time, she wrapped it around the amulet. 'I hope this works!'

The dragon shrieked and then suddenly writhed half in the air. Its head shook and shook as if trying to get rid of something. Venom spewed out of its mouth uncontrollably. Many took several steps back in order to avoid it.

As Mizu appeared from the mirror, Sora swung it from the leather strap and it slammed onto the stone floor. It finally cracked, but not all the way. However, all heard two things: the first was the shrieking of the dragon sounding like a hybrid of man and beast; and the close second was the loud cry of "No!" from the Head Fairy.

Seeing Mizu's rapid approach, Sora grabbed the amulet itself and slammed it again onto the floor. With dread at the sight of it still being in one piece, she braced herself for the collision of Mizu.

However, Leon was there before it could occur, throwing a ripped tapestry over the Head Fairy. As Leon struggled with containing the fairy, a guard yelled out, "Break it!" He had come from the outer courtyard when the dragon first came.

Putting all of her strength into it, she crushed the remaining glass of the amulet. A strong blast of purple and green magic came out and threw Sora into the air. She cried out as the malicious magics burned at her gloves and ate at the sleeves of her tunic. Abandoning the Head Fairy, Leon ran over and caught her before she hit the ground.

Meanwhile, the remaining advisors gasped at the sight of the exhausted Prince Astiere in his tattered hunting tunic as he fell down onto the floor. They came down from their post and several aides came over to check on his vitals.

"The Prince has returned!" The rest of the guards cheered.

Distracted by their prince's return, they failed to notice that the Head Fairy was out of her tapestry prison and had escaped into the mirror fragment.

On the other side of the room, Leon set Sora down.

"Get rid of the sleeves!" she croaked, the blast left her winded.

A guard came over and with a short knife he cut off the sleeves. The material slowly corroded as sizzling green ate at it. She had peeled off the rest of her gloves and an aide came over to treat her hands.

"The front!" the young fairy aide cried out. Sora's eyes widened as some sizzling magic ate at the front part of her tunic. She eeped, startled and embarrassed at what was occurring.

Quickly, Leon undid his sash and shrugged off his outer tunic as the guard stepped back to allow Sora and the female aid to remove the rest of the tunic. Leon turned his head as he blindly offered the young aide his tunic. With Leon's glare to the guard, the man recalled himself and sheepishly turned his head around as well.

Leon heard the young aide fuss over Sora as the rustle of cloth let him know that they were quickly slipping Sora into the new tunic. He softly chuckled. She had just gotten her own clothes and now she was back to borrowing his tunic.

He was sure she was thinking a similar thing.

"You are a lucky one," the young aide lightly commented. "None of that stuff went on your face."

"Yeah…" Sora had instinctively thrown up a strong barrier around her head, seeing as it was the only part that was not protected by some clothing or material. But she didn't feel like correcting the young aide.

She told Leon that she was decent and by the amused glint in his eyes, she knew that he was aware that it was not luck that kept her face safe.

"That sizzling magic, it looks a great deal like…" the young aide absently trailed off.

"It's the Head Fairy's!" a blonde aide cried out. "Right Julie? It so felt like her signature when all of that magic had shot out of the amulet!"

The fairy aides began to murmur to each other, even the ones over by the prince.

"What," came the low, but strangely booming voice, "happened?"

All in the court quieted and stilled as the king appeared and stood in front of his chair on the platform.

One of the advisors bowed and stayed bowed until the king gave him permission to straighten up. "Speak. Is my son alive?"

"Yes, your majesty."

Hawk eyes drifted over the forms in the court. They narrowed onto the tall form of Leon. "Did he" the king gestured with his chin, "curse my son?"

"No, your majesty."

"Who did?"

The room as a whole held their breaths. The advisor felt sweat form on the palms of his hands. Discretely, he wiped them against the side of his clothing.

"Who!"

"…the Head Fairy, your majesty."

The king's sharp eyes were deadly. "What proof do you have?"

"The amulet that powered the curse…when it broke, traces of the Head Fairy's magic came out of it."

King Volaire stood still. His face was rage and then suddenly, it calmed.

"Scribe," called the king. "Send out a notice, a message to all for the capture of the Head Fairy Mizu, who is charged with high treason and will be promptly executed."

Mizu frantically looked around the blots in the void.

'There has to be somewhere I can escape to that isn't in the castle!' She still had the upper hand at the moment; the nobleman thought he had her contained, but she had faked it in order to get him to release her.

However, she needed to move fast. They could travel through the mirror to come and find her. Seeing some wild greenery that was definitely not within the castle, Mizu concentrated on that piece and came out of it.

She took in some air and looked around her.

She recognized the main road nearby and the gates a good distance away. Her lips triumphantly smirked. Quickly, she took one of her heels and proceeded to smash the mirror fragment into tiny little pieces. When they were all the size of small rocks, she stopped. 'Those are far too small to travel through.'

Just as a precaution, she took a stick and pushed the pieces away from each other.

Proud of her ingenuity, she slipped her heel back on.

As she was getting up from her knees, some rustling in the trees overhead made her flinch. Her eyes darted about the branches, searching for what made the sound. Black feathers greeted her sight.

"Just some crows."

She stood up and was hit with something sticky. "Eugh!"

"It's honey," called a voice from the shade of a tree, "it won't kill you, even if you're nastier than sin itself."

Mizu blinked and tried to see the form that was speaking. "Who's there?"

The form shrugged. "Just a pixie, a cousin of the fairies, though…we're not the nicest of beings." The form's eyes glowed with magic. It was the color of rust and dried blood. "You've been terrible, haven't you? Hurting innocent people and fairies alike."

Mizu's eyes glowed green as her magic came out. "I'm not afraid to harm you."

She hadn't become Head Fairy through ordinary means. Her drive and tenacity for power, prestige…it's what made her team up with a wandering witch. Mizu got her position by being able to "identify" the signatures around the missing prince's campfire. She kept it by being the leading person with useful information about the prince.

In return, she gave the witch Leon. Though, that end of the bargain hadn't ended the way the witch had wanted it to.

Eventually, Mizu was going to lead the guards to the caves where the witch had the dragon and get an even greater reward. But things were deteriorating faster than she could handle and she couldn't possibly contain the secrets that were spilling out.

The shadow humphed. "That wasn't very nice."

When the figure moved, Mizu's wand shot out some magic. The shadow dodged it by coming forward. Mizu saw that it was an older woman she had never seen before.

"Who are you?!"

The woman shrugged. "Just a concerned citizen." Her eyes narrowed as she spoke the next words, "You are a worm."

The last word echoed in Mizu's ears. Too late, she saw some glittering magic in the honey that had been thrown on her. She shrieked and then her form seemingly disappeared. Her wand clattered onto the forest floor.

Sarine came over and stared at the sickly peach colored worm squirming on the ground.

"You won't be in that form for long; I'm a little rusty when it comes to transformation spells." Sarine heard the flutter of wings, which brought a dark smile on her face. "But it will be for long enough."

The chef picked up the wand and then left.

The nearby crows landed on the ground where the worm was.

The quill of the scribe's scratched against the paper as he continued to note the king's commands.

"Guard," the Head of the Guards came over. "Release the guest related to this man." The king pointed over to Leon. "He has brought my son back; a deal is a deal, Nobleman Leon."

The Head of the Guards bowed. "Forgive my impertinence, my liege." The king told him to continue. "Earlier, the Head Fairy requested that this man be arrested."

"On what grounds?"

"Suspicion of the disappearance of said guest."

"Disappearance?"

The Head of the Guards cleared his throat. "Yes, my liege, however…I had been told that the Court Physician had placed his seal of approval on the guest's death certificate earlier this morning."

Sora's eyes widened at the information, but she dared not look at Leon. 'Sophie's…dead?'

"What?" came Leon's disbelief. "How did—why was I not informed of her condition?"

The Head of the Guards inclined his head towards Leon. "My condolences, nobleman. I'm afraid I do not know."

Leon's hands shook and then they clenched into tight fists. His sister…dead? It couldn't be true. All he fought for… all that he and Sora had done…it couldn't have been for naught…could it? 'I need to see Morin.' He would know for sure after talking with his cousin.

King Volaire spoke. "Nobleman Leon, regardless of this turn of events, our deal is still concluded."

With that, the king continued to decree notices. "Inform Prince Yuri that he is no longer a long termed guest and is free to return home now. Also, tell…"

The king's voice was tuned out. Leon narrowed his eyes. He had never before met such a callous man, nor did he ever want to continue with the acquaintance. With a bow to the king—one that was most definitely done in order to not somehow incur his wrath—Leon left the courts with Sora mimicking the bow and following after him.

The young aide's magic helped her hands and allowed Sora to conserve her own energy.

Instead of going back to the manor, they went to Sarine and Jerobi's inn.

Sora wanted to ask Leon why they would come here instead of his place, but she figured she'd find out soon enough. Jerobi quickly stood up when they entered. He shook hands with Leon and gave Sora a rare hug.

"It's good to see you again, young lass."

She smiled and hugged him back. "It's good to be back."

"Has Sarine returned?" Leon inquired.

"Not yet. She said she had to visit the marketplace while she was out. I'll send her up when she comes, so just rest for now. Before I forget," Jerobi gave Leon a note from his tunic pocket, "My son-in-law sent this not too long ago from your cousin."

Leon's eyes widened. "Thank you."

The tall man started up the stair, but then halted when Sora wasn't following him.

"I'll be right there," Sora told him.

Leon scrutinized her face. 'Is she now uncomfortable with the idea of being in my presence in closed areas?' He had been planning on explaining his plan to her regarding his family, but he wasn't sure if now would be the right time. 'Would she be receptive to what I have to say if she is not comfortable with me?'

He didn't think she would.

With a silent sigh to himself, he gave her a nod.

He climbed up the stairs by himself. It was his own fault that the trust had been broken to begin with. The problem was, he didn't know how to fix it except to give her some space. 'If I allow her to come to me on her, that would be better than me pushing, correct?' His brows furrowed. 'Or would the space simply make it harder to connect again?'

He didn't know.

He opened the door of her old room a little too forcefully, but he managed to catch it before it hit the wall. His eyes looked at the mat and blankets still on the floor. He couldn't help but recall how wonderful it felt to have woken up with her against him and seeing her messy hair and sleepy eyes.

Unable to bring himself to sit there, he sat on the edge of the bare bed.

He switched focus as he undid the wax closing his cousin's note. Nervous and a little afraid, his hands slightly shook as he pulled the paper out.

Was Sophie dead? Or was there something else at play here?

In the kitchen, Sora found some leftover bread from lunch and some cheese and thick pieces of sliced ham.

She borrowed a tray and placed the items on it along with some goblets. Healing made her hungry and she was sure Leon could use some food. Adding some apples to the tray, she picked it up and slowly went up the stairs.

She hoped that her detour gave Leon time to read the note.

'Was Sophie dead?' She hoped she wasn't, especially for Leon's sake. After all the intrigues and troubles Leon went through, it wouldn't be right for his only sister to be dead. 'Not that things always are fair,' she mused with some bitterness. Her eyes blinked at the thought.

"What's wrong with me?" she mumbled to herself.

Shifting the tray to be balanced on her hip, she knocked and found that the door was slightly ajar. As she made her way inside, she saw that Leon was standing by the window with his back to her. "Leon?" she cautiously called out as she placed the tray down. She stepped closer, almost afraid to see his face, but she swallowed that fear long enough for her to stand by him.

His eyes gleamed with triumph.

"Morin got her out," he said with no small amount of satisfaction. "The certificate is fake."

She blinked at the information. "Why do that, then?"

"He thought it would help to prevent the king from going back on his word and keeping her as a means to get me to do another task." A grin started to form. "She cannot be used as a bargaining tool if she's dead."

She felt a smile forming on her face. "That's good news then. All we have left is to break her curse."

At her words, Leon's grin faded away. "It's not all we have left to do."

Sora swallowed as he continued to stare at her. Just when his hand lifted to touch her, they heard the rush of footsteps along the staircase.

Sarine came in with her hair slipping out of her bun and out of breath.

"Sora!" The woman cried with her arms wide open.

Unable to deny the offering, Sora went over and hugged the woman. "Sarine."

"Oh my dearest, my little sunflower," Sarine crooned to her as she embraced her. "You're safe now, you're safe."

The words brought tears into Sora's eyes and she let out a small, pitiful sound. Her eyes closed and she basked in the warmth that Sarine gave her.

Leon briefly watched as Sarine rocked Sora back and forth. Over Sora's head, Sarine looked up and made eye contact with Leon. By the flash of her magic and the dark satisfaction he found in her eyes, Leon knew that she had run into the Head Fairy.

He relaxed. 'That takes care of one more worry.'

The duo stayed at the inn for a little while as they ate.

After Sora finished, Sarine tutted at her appearance and took the fairy to her room. That had been almost half an hour ago. Leon entertained himself with a book from Jerobi as he sat on the bed. His foot tapped the other in a restless motion. Ideally, he wanted to see his sister tonight and have Sora check on her just as a precaution. Then, when Sora was better, she could try out the detoxification—though, he was still worried about Sora taking it onto herself.

Things could go horribly wrong and both could end up cursed.

He took a breath in and reread the same sentence he just finished reading.

"Leon, she's ready to go!"

Upon hearing Sarine's voice coming from the stairs, he closed his book. He met the chef on the staircase as she gave him his tunic back.

"I think you enjoy seeing her in your clothing a little too much," Sarine teased in a low voice.

Leon rolled his eyes as he shrugged the outer tunic back on. "It was an emergency."

"Riiight." After a few seconds, the older woman's tone changed. "In all seriousness, you need to talk with her sooner rather than later." Seeing that she had Leon's attention, she pushed on, "It's been quite a while since she's learned of the issue between you two. She needs the reassurance."

Leon slowly nodded. He was aware of that, but the times he has tried to reassure her, she told him to stop. 'I will have to try harder, but with delicacy.'

They walked down to the front of the inn. Sora stood in a new tunic and her once choppy hair had been trimmed. Leon's eyes noted how the short hair flared out and he found that he liked what Sarine had done to it.

"I call it a pixie cut," Sarine's voice injected amongst his thoughts.

"It looks good."

His compliment brought out a timid smile on Sora's face.

As they traveled, Leon explained where they were going.

"Sarine offered her daughter and son-in-law's inn as a rendezvous point in order to make it even more difficult for the king's guards to find Sophie if something went wrong."

"So then, does this mean we'll meet up with your cousin?"

Leon's eyes briefly looked at her. "No. It's better that we don't meet in person that way we avoid drawing attention to ourselves. I would rather be cautious then regret it later."

Sora nodded in understanding, but said nothing else. They continued to walk in silence. Leon fished around for a way to broach the sensitive subject without her immediately shutting down.

"Thank you for earlier," he started, his voice bringing her attention back to him. "The food was appreciated."

"It was no trouble."

Conversation ceased again. The dirt pathways began to clear as the day ended. They found themselves in short periods of solitude before a straggler passed them by.

"You don't have to come," Leon quietly said before he could decide whether or not to say it. Regardless, he continued since the words were already out. "If you are uncomfortable with…the situation, you can return to in and stay with Sarine or go to the courts and find Prince Yuri."

Her hands played with her sleeve. She wasn't entirely comfortable, but her word was stronger than her emotions.

"I said I would help and I meant it."

Leon's eyes connected with hers and then withdrew. He looked at the directions Sarine had given him and then at the signs around them.

"It's over here."

A smaller inn than Sarine and Jerobi's greeted her eyes, but it was in good condition. The flower beds under the window made her smile as it gave the place a cozy cottage feeling. Leon opened the door and let her pass. The bell tinkled as the door opened and shut, bringing the attention of the woman at the front. Sora smiled as she noted that the woman had Jerobi's black hair—what she could see beyond the older man's white hair—but the wild look of Sarine's.

"Welcome! Would you like to check in?"

Leon stepped up. "Yes, we would like a room with a hearth." His eyes had been looking around the place and now slid over to the woman's. "I hear that the bluebirds like to visit this place."

Sora blinked, but didn't interrupt. She hadn't seen a single bluebird since staying here…

The woman's smile did not falter. "But of course! Right this way!"

The lady led them to the back of the inn. As she neared a door, she took the keys from her pocket and casually flipped through them. "You'll be finding the fireplace already lit, so if you need to feed it some more, there be a pile of wood off to the side," she said as she unlocked the door.

The room wasn't large, but it had a table for four, a side dresser with a water pitcher and bowl on it—a small pile of folded hand towels nearby—the fireplace, and a small bed with the curtains covering the person inside it.

"Will you two be needing anything else?"

Leon politely declined; Sora shook her head.

As Leon turned his back to them to go walk over to the bed, the lady looked him over. Sora caught the woman staring and nearly eeped out loud when the lady suddenly looked at her.

With a grin and a wink, the lady gave her a copy of the key and then left the room.

'That's Sarine's daughter alright,' Sora wirily thought as she forced the blush on her face to disappear. 'Impish grin and all.'

What did the innkeeper think they were going to be doing with Leon's sister in the room?

"The door to the right leads to a connecting room," Leon stated as he looked over Sophie's form. "Go ahead and put your bag in there, if you would like. That is your room for the night."

"You can take it," she murmured. "I'll need to be here to monitor her condition."

She walked over to the fire and unrolled her mat. That done, she walked over to Leon to check on Sophie. Leon stepped aside to allow her to look.

"She's still cold," Leon murmured. "Does she need to be closer to the fire?"

Sora took in the numerous blankets on the young woman already. "I don't think it'll make much of a difference."

Her hands went up as she started to check on the curse. An icy chill went up her spine. Her brows furrowed. In the corner of her eye, she caught Leon looking at her. Her fingers curled.

"Leon, I just remembered that I haven't told Yuri about the cure for Layla." She turned her head to him. "Do you think you can write up a note and send it to him? I'm afraid of him leaving before he knows."

Leon's head tilted to the side. "Can't you send a note to the Hamilton Castle directly?"

"Yes, but I don't think that would be a good idea." She heavily sighed. "My mentor will want to debate and analyze it in depth if it comes from me directly. She doesn't trust me at all." Her eyes lowered. "But she'll trust Yuri."

"…What will you have me write?"

"The idea about the Kiss Cure and then add in that it would be wise to have someone slowing the serpentile curse down so that Yuri doesn't get bitten by it when he's trying to kiss Layla."

"It will be sent," he stated and then went to the other room to write it.

When the door closed, Sora quickly turned back to Sophie. Her hands pressed on, quickly scanning her prone body. A violent shudder traveled throughout Sora's body as she sensed the curse. Her hands withdrew as her arms hugged herself. Shakily, she went to sit on her mat by the fire.

'It grew,' she silently thought as her body slowly warmed.

The connecting door opened; Sora straightened up from her hunched over position.

"How is she?"

"S-She's still alive," she said, trying to control the chattering of her teeth. "But it got a little s-stronger." It was actually a lot more than a little, but if she said that, Leon won't let her take it on.

Leon frowned and walked over to her. "Are you alright?"

"P-Peachy. Just, on your way out-t, ask for t-tea."

He nodded. When he got to the door, he paused and turned around to look at her. "Promise me that you won't try it while I'm sending this out."

She blinked, but then gave a shaky nod.

The inn was quiet as the occupants were asleep.

Her body moved with her breath, giving the illusion of sleep. When Leon re-entered the room, he had found her lying down on her mat with her back to the rest of the room. He brought over a cup and softly told her that the rest of the tea was on the table in the off-chance that she was only barely falling asleep. She murmured something and sleepily took the cup. Calling it a night, he went to the other room. He returned to place his hare cloak over her and then took the spare room to sleep in.

She placed the now empty cup on the floor, but instead of falling back to sleep, she blankly stared at the flames in the fireplace.

On their way over to this inn, Leon had said that she could try removing the curse in a few days when her magic was at its peak, but after feeling the intensity of the curse earlier…she wasn't sure if it would be a good idea to wait.

The strength of the curse had nearly doubled and she had a feeling that the breaking of the amulet had attributed to that.

It was her own fault. She hadn't thought about the consequences of breaking an active amulet. All she knew was that they had the opportunity to break it, in front of the court as their witnesses, and clear Leon and Yuri of suspicion. It had not only Mizu's magic, but May's as well. 'Where else would loose magic go to?' she admonished herself.

Of course it would go find its kindred signatures if its originator was dead.

She messed up again; she wasn't willing to do it yet another time when she was aware of the growth. It might not make another growth spurt, but she didn't want to risk it.

'Any bigger and I know for sure that I won't be able to handle it.'

Mind made up, she rose, taking the cloak along with her. She was going to need all the warmth she could get.

Pulling the bed curtains aside, she sat on the bed next to Sophie. Her fingers tied the cloak and with a breath in, she raised her hands. Her eyes and hands glowed with magic. She waited until she built up a large amount in her hands and then placed them on Sophie. The warm amber magic rapidly spread over Sophie's body, completely covering it. Sora furrowed her brows. 'This next part has to be fast. Taking another calming breath in, she allowed the magic to sink into Sophie, then, she quickly curled her fingers, shrinking the once body length coverage into a much smaller size. Sweat rolled down her temples as she compacted the curse with her magic. Then, lifting her hands up, an amber ball with a sickly purple core rose from Sophie's body, but she didn't completely take it out.

"Here it goes…"

She manipulated the top part of the ball to turn into a short tunnel as it connected with her hand, and once it touched her hand, she immediately felt the chill of the curse. Finding a new host, the sickly purple rushed through the tunnel and into her hand. Her arm violently shook as the curse traveled through it. Her other hand rose to steady it, but soon, that hand shook as well.

Within a few seconds, the curse transferred from Sophie to Sora.

Sora abruptly fell over on top of the bed as indescribable cold penetrated every cell of her body. She whimpered into the mattress as she pushed her magic to detoxify at a faster rate. The venomous ice chilled her blood, traveling to her lungs, her heart and her brain.

Thoughts and feelings from the time in the cell with Mizu came to the forefront of her mind. She remembered with an intensified sadness how Leon—no, that was Mizu! She tried to recall—forced her to drink that awful stuff, how he had even ordered someone to keep her mouth open as he fed it to her.

She saw in her mind's eye the cynical look on his face as he chopped her hair off and then viciously threw the remains into her face.

And then that laughter, that terrible, heartbreaking sound…

"Stop it," she hissed into the blanket. "Not…true…"

Those words fueled her and detoxed a large portion of the curse, but it still was within her. She shuddered as another wretched shiver coursed through her. "Heat… nee-d heat…" She attempted to stand, but her legs were shaking so bad, she merely ended up sliding off of the bed. Her head lifted up and she wanted to cry at how far away the fire looked.

The curse capitalized on that feeling and made it feel like aching despair.

She shook her head to get rid of that feeling, but it only made her remember the other times she felt that way. When Leon left her alone in the woods, alone and without a friend or companion when she so desperately needed one.

Heartless…the curse whispered. How worthless you must be…

The sense of failure and worthlessness when they realized that Layla was cursed flooded her senses. "What sort of friend does that?" she whispered to herself. Her brows furrowed in realization. "I didn't place the curse."

But you did cause her to be.

That was true, and deep down, she knew it was. "What a quaint color your hair has, little fairy," a younger voice of Mizu echoed in her head. "It reminds me that not all fairies come out pretty."

Sora's eyes watered. Her insecurities made her heart feel colder and her head fuzzy. Amidst the pain of old scars, a familiar voice called out to her in her head.

Leon's rich voice sounded. "If you are in need, come to me…"

His old promise batted off the chilling sleep that made her eyes droop.

"Come to me…"

Her voice choked on his name as she tried to call him into the room.

"Come…"

With a breath, her mouth finally opened. "Leon…"

Leon restlessly turned in his sleep.

His mind was tired, so he had actually fallen asleep rather quickly, much to his surprise. Not that he was complaining about it. However, something drew him away from his sleep. His brows furrowed as his mind slowly awoke. There were no sounds that were abnormal, no smells other than the firewood burning in the other room, but there was still this niggling feeling in the back of his mind.

With a frustrated sigh, he rolled onto his back and concentrated on the sensation.

'This feeling…there's magic nearby.' As he focused on it, he could feel it struggling and very faint, but somehow familiar.

His eyes widened as he recognized it. He roughly kicked off the blankets and threw his door open. Upon seeing her mat empty, he looked over at Sophie's bed and was alarmed to see Sora on the floor.

His knees hit the floor as he turned her onto her side. "Sora!"

Her lips were blue and her skin was icy cold, like a person who was developing hypothermia.

"You took her curse?" he murmured in disbelief. "Oh Sora, why didn't you wait?"

He didn't wait for her to respond as he picked her up and laid her on the mat by the fire. Quickly, he picked up her cup and went to the teapot. It was no longer steaming, but it still carried some warmth, which was better than nothing.

"C-Curse…g-grew…f-fast-t…" she shuddered out as she curled by the fire. Before he could prop her head up, she grabbed his arm in an icy tight grip. "C-Check…h-h-er…"

He was alarmed at how cold she still was, but knew that she would not let go until he agreed.

"Alright."

She released him. Her eyes followed him for a little until she had to close them as another violent shiver overcame her. She concentrated on another burst of magic and set it upon the curse. Her body greatly calmed, but still was cold.

"Her cheeks have some color and her skin's not so cold."

Sora cracked her eyes opened. The good news shook off the despair long enough for another chunk of the curse to be detoxified. She gave him a flinching smile.

"She's been released," Leon gratefully stated. His hand touched her cheek. "Is it still in you?"

"S-smal-l-l pi-e-ccc-e."

Her lids started to grow heavy and Leon could see it. A bit frantic, he sensed out her magic. He deeply frowned at how little there was. 'There's not enough.' Dismayed, he pulled her up and held her to him. His hand ran through her short hair.

She greedily took in the body heat he offered when she felt his hand in her hair stop moving. His hand moved from her hair and tipped her head up. Before she could pull away, he kissed her cold lips.

He kissed her long, not knowing how exactly the Kiss Cure worked.

Leon pulled away slightly and looked over her face. Her lips weren't quite as blue, but her skin was still far too cold. He kissed her again.

Her hands attempted to push him away, but the curse had sapped a lot of her strength. She simply waited for him to stop. He pulled away and she caught the flash of confusion that flitted across his face.

"I don't understand," he mumbled to himself. Her skin was not quite as cold, but her lips were still a faint bluish color. 'Didn't it only take one kiss for it to work?'

"D-Don't," he heard her faintly say. "No…mo-re…"

His hand kept her face tilted up. His eyes slightly widened as a cold thought pierced his heart.

"You don't love me."

Her lashes fluttered. He saw the pain etched in her eyes. "W-Wh-at-t do-es it-t matt-tt-e-r?"

His thumb rubbed against her cheek. "It matters," he murmured, "whether you think it does or not." His eyes continued to watch hers carefully. "Do you love me?"

Her face distorted. "D-Don't" she croaked, "as-k-k m-me t-tha-t-t."

He felt another sting to his heart, but persisted. "I plan to break away from the Oswalds. I've been meaning to do so for a while now, but when Rosetta got sick, I held it off." The back of his hand ran along her cheek. "When Sophie's curse came, I couldn't cut off the ties yet. But now…thanks to you, I can."

Her lids lifted up more as she stared at him. His head came down and kissed her. She felt a tingle of warmth travel from her lips down her neck and into her limbs. He lifted his head and noted that her lips simply looked pale now.

"The restriction I once had will not stay," he clearly stated. "I will not have the prestige of the family or the connections and that will be fine with me."

His warm palm rested on the side of her face. Her eyes were wide with what he was telling her and what the words were implying, but the small doubt in her was attacked by the curse and she could not take as much hope from his words as she originally had.

"What…does t-that…have t-to do …with m-me?"

His eyes were warm as he leaned down to her lips again. He felt the hesitant brush back and it filled him with hope. "Choose me," he murmured against her mouth, "to be yours." His lips moved over hers again, shooting another thrill of warmth down her body. "Let me in," he rumbled, "let me stay."

He pulled back to see her face. Some pink colored her face and lips; her once chilled body. Her eyes watered and a few drops fell down her cheeks. This time, instead of him coming to her, she gathered the strength still within her and raised herself to him. Her eyes glimmered with an emotion that had been missing for so long; he realized then how much he missed it. It was small, but he knew the small hope meant that she was willing to allow him to fix the trust he had broken.

"Ok," she whispered before she kissed him.

Her body trembled as his hand went along her back. She shuddered but not from the cold inside of her, rather from the heat that was entering in. It felt like steaming tea was pouring into her, chasing the last traces of the artic curse from her. She did not see, but her body glowed with her magic, the Kiss Cure powering her detoxing as well as the rest of her healing.

Leon watched from half lidded eyes as she was rejuvenated.

Her arms wrapped around his neck and she kissed him with so much heat, his eyes closed as he basked in the affection. They lay down on her mat as she pushed against him, her mouth thirsting for him, wanting to taste him after rebuking him time and time again. Her legs wrapped around his waist as he adjusted their positions. Her now healed back met with her mat as he pressed against her, his forearms holding most of his weight.

"Be my fairy wife," he murmured between kisses, "accept me as your life partner."

She wanted to laugh at his "questions" but the uttered words had her transfixed. Her hands pulled his head down for a crushing kiss. Their mouths hungered for the other as her hands buried in his hair. "Yes," she half moaned into his mouth, "Yes."

His mouth tore away from her. He littered kisses along her cheeks, her chin, her forehead and nose. When he reached her mouth again, he gave her a hot, opened mouth kiss. He felt her squirm beneath him in delight, making him prolong it for as long as they could go without air.

He released her and breathed against her neck. The touch of the bandage around her throat made him stiffen in realization. Appalled that he forgot, he hurriedly got off of her.

"Is your back in pain?"

She laughed at his concern, though it warmed her heart. She sat up with him and took his hand into hers. "It's healed now, along with my other injuries."

The tension drained from his face. "Would you like me to remove the bandage on your neck?"

She was aware that she could easily do it, but she felt like letting him do it. She gave him a nod and he rose from the mat to go over to the pitcher on the dresser. As she watched him move about, she blushed as the innkeeper's grin and wink came into her mind. Her hands pressed against her cheeks in embarrassment.

Leon kneeled down in front of her and he wet a towel. When his head rose to take off the bandages, he noticed the rosy color of her cheeks.

"Something the matter?"

She furiously shook her head. 'There's no way on middle earth that I'm telling him my mortification over necking with him and his sister is only a few feet away.'

Granted, the young woman was out, but still…She'd never live it down if she told Leon what she was thinking about.

She blinked as a thought occurred. 'Sophie's going to be my sister-in-law.'

The thought of having a sister warmed her heart. When Leon came close to undo the bandages, she leaned up and stole a kiss from him. He had no complaints about receiving kisses, but he arched a questioning brow at the sudden action.

"You've made me very happy."

His eyes softened. "The sentiment is not one sided."

AN: There is an epilogue to come!

But I would like to say thank you to all of you who have read this story! This was my first ever fan fic and while I cringe at the earlier chapters, I'm glad you stuck with the story! It was fun to write the magical aspects. :)

Oh and just to let you know, I made up that alternative story ending of "Snow White" with fairies being called in to help. Forgot to mention that when it came up.