The next time William found Hope was entirely on accident.
Every year, King Bertrand of the Western Kingdom held a summit and ball for all the surrounding royals. Practically every kingdom in the land sent representatives, it was a hotbed of trade negotiations, mergers and arranged marriages.
Simply put, it was the go-to event of the year for all ruling monarchs.
This made it also the go-to for all working thieves.
There was not a thief in the land who had not tried their hand at robbing the summit's ball. The jewelry there alone was worth enough to feed several villages for years. But King Bertrand was no fool, he curated the finest security for his event. And in turn, not a single thief had ever succeeded.
William had never tried to rob the summit, until some recent unfortunate events, he had never had a need to. But by this point he was now a thief with a sizable resume, and he couldn't think of anyone who might have better odds than him.
Well, he could think of one person, but he knew for a fact that she only stole for noble reasons. It was highly unlikely she would risk her life for glory or riches.
William had one advantage when it came to robbing the ball, and was that he was decently familiar with King Bertrand's castle. But he also had quite the large disadvantage being the fact that he grew up in King Bertrand's kingdom, and he knew for a fact that the head of security was an old schoolmate of his. This meant it was going to be impossible to lie his way in through the front door.
It was bad enough his wanted posters riddled the kingdoms, but there was no chance in hell that his pretentious old chum, Maxwell, wouldn't see him coming a mile away. He wouldn't be surprised if Maxwell was hoping to be able to arrest him, the pair weren't exactly on the best terms.
So with lying his way into the castle off the table, he decided to sneak through the servant's entrance, which would have significantly fewer guards. Slipping in during the chaos of the ball was easy enough, servants are far too overworked you know. William was even confident he could get to the ballroom unnoticed through a series of old corridors built for King Nicholas.
Legend has it that the poor King Nicholas was so painfully shy that he couldn't even bear to interact with anyone who wasn't his wife or his children. To keep him as a functioning ruler, his wife, Queen Dora, had the corridors built in the walls of the castle, so her husband could go anywhere and hear everything that happened in the castle all without being seen. Very few people knew about the now empty corridors. William was lucky enough to be one of them.
However, the tricky part of his plan was going to be getting back out of the castle once he'd robbed it. For the servants locked off the southern wing of the castle (where the servant's entrance was) shortly after the ball began. Even with King Nick's corridors, William wouldn't be able to exit the way he came. And the only other way out of the castle was the front door.
Which was guarded by dozens of guards who would want him dead on sight.
William decided that these were good enough odds that he could just figure out his escape in the moment. After all, the fun part was going to be robbing the joint.
When the night of the ball arrived, carriages poured in from every road in Bertrand's kingdom and ships came barreling into port. Royals of every nation wore their finest silks, satins and jewels to attend Bertrand's ball of the ages.
Meanwhile, William sat at the edge of the Brunswell Duchy, dressed in finery he hadn't worn in quite some time, waiting for the best time to strike. He had a dagger concealed in his waistcoat but decided against bringing his sword, though it wouldn't have necessarily been out of place, it might have merited a second look from a guard which was a risk he wasn't willing to take.
As night fell, he saw the light from the servant's entrance burn brightly like a beacon, the flurry of preparation for the ball evident inside. He quickly checked that he was presentable before covering himself with a cloak and dashing off the Duchy's boundary towards the castle entrance.
Just as he suspected, he was able to slip past the servants who were so desperately focused on pleasing the king that they didn't notice a well dressed stranger in their midst. He made his way quickly to the hidden corridor's entrance, ramming his shoulder against a seemingly solid stone wall until the ancient hinges creaked and gave way. Years prior, William had broken his foot trying to kick open that very same door, but this time he was not a little boy and had a far better understanding of momentum.
Before too long he exited the corridor just outside the ballroom, music and light pouring out of it, as he slipped inside he was briefly awestruck by the swish of the lady's skirts and the swell of the music. Every piece of the ball like painting, pristine and beautiful, it was a remarkable scene.
His reverie was broken as he spotted his old friend Maxwell standing in the corner of the room, his face stoic and expressionless. William fought the urge to roll his eyes, Max had always been far too serious about just about everything.
William quickly ducked out of Maxwell's line of sight (behind a large marble pole), cursing under his breath as he did, he had been counting on Max leading the guard outside, his odds of robbing the ball successful had just greatly decreased.
He was considering abandoning ship and rushing back through the corridors before the servants blocked them off, when from his new spot behind the pole, he saw the one thing that could give him a fighting chance.
Not that she was a thing, of course.
He nearly didn't recognize her, her weathered leather and trusted sword were nowhere to be found. Instead she wore a lavender ball gown of soft tulle and silk. Her normally somewhat untamed curls were pinned delicately on the back of her head, with a few tendrils hanging around her face. He also noticed that she wore a pair of long white gloves, concealing the tribute to her beloved father. He smiled at that observation, even dressed as a princess, she was abundantly aware that the first attribute listed on her own wanted poster was her curious hook tattoo.
Meanwhile he was becoming abundantly aware that every time he thought he had seen Hope Jones at her most beautiful, she strove to prove him wrong.
She hadn't noticed him yet, she was too busy laughing at something the duchess in red who stood next to her was saying, but he knew he needed to get to her. Hope's brilliance in planning was his only hope of escape.
And so he casually began to snake his way around the outskirts of the ballroom, an upbeat waltz playing jovially as he did. He was careful to mind he didn't attract any attention, he snuck a look back at Maxwell who maintained his intense focus on the other side of the ballroom. William thanked God that Hope chose the stand on the side she did.
When he reached her, even in desperate need of her help, he couldn't resist wreaking a little havoc.
"There you are, I've been looking for you everywhere," he said as he placed a hand on Hope's shoulder, she turned her head calmly, not losing the regal composure she had put on for the night. Her eyes bugged wide for a second with panic, evidently this was not a variable she had accounted for. She was going to ask him to explain himself when she was reminded that were nowhere near alone.
"And who is this?" the duchess Hope was speaking to said with a coy expression, William once again beat Hope to the punch,
"Prince Stefan, her fiance," she flashed his smile as he offered his hand to the lady, Hope looked at him in anger and exhaled in exasperation, this was the exact reaction he hoped he'd get.
"Why Leia, you did not mention you were betrothed," the duchess said as if she had just learned one of Hope's darkest secrets. Hope was met with the conclusion that she now had no choice, denying it would only risk blowing her cover.
"I didn't? Oh surely I must have. Stefan and I have been betrothed since we were children. I thank the stars every night that I found my true love," As she gazed at him in feigned adoration, Hope looked and sounded every bit the lovestruck princess, William had to bite back his laughter.
He wondered if this was what the real Stefan had wanted from her. He remembered her description of her ex-fiance's desire for them to settle down in the kingdom where she grew up. He scoffed at the idea of the starry-eyed Leia before him replacing the brilliant and deadly Hope he knew so well.
"How remarkable, do tell me, are either of you-" William interrupted the lady's gossiping as he eyed Maxwell beginning to move from his post on the opposite side of the room,
"Please pardon me your grace, but my love, I do recall that you promised me a dance this evening?"
He maintained calm but tried to tell Hope with his eyes that they had to exit this conversation as soon as possible, she, of course, got the message.
"Of course darling," she smiled and took his offered arm and let him lead her to the dance floor. The whole affair was so natural, it was not hard to believe that they were a pair of besotted fiances. They immediately assumed dance positions and began waltzing about the room.
"Jokes on you, Stefan can't waltz for shit, this is a refreshing change for me," Hope taunted, this much was very true though. Stefan could scarcely stumble through a box step without crushing Hope's toes, and here was William, who had yet to miss a step.
It seemed Hope had picked a partner who knew what he was doing.
"Yes, well, my mother made quite sure I knew how to lead a lady in a waltz," both partners smirked at his use of the word 'lady', given the trouble they'd had with it in the past. Hope's curiosity was once again peaked by this mention of William's mother, having given him so much of her family, even the secret of her own false hand, she did feel a bit like she was owed some of his story. But it was his story to tell, she surely was not going to be one to pry.
"Before I ask what on earth a noble thief like yourself is doing here, or how you got in for that matter, or most importantly tell you who is trying to kill me and why, I feel I must tell you that you look absolutely stunning Jones,"
Hope blushed and nearly tripped, being saved by the strong hand that rested on her back.
"Thank you, your Highness, you look very handsome" she replied cordially, by this point that had made their way to the other side of the room, WIlliam was pretty sure Maxwell hadn't noticed him, but they now danced clearly within his field of vision. He quickly pulled them around so Hope faced Max rather than he did.
"And as for your other questions, the crown prince to King Rupert's kingdom is trying to break up the engagement of Princess Evelyn and Prince Derek, he wants Evelyn, has for a long time, she's head over heels for Derek, it's all very Archie and Neville Craven," Hope was well aware that he didn't understand the reference but she made it nonetheless.
"Evelyn and Derek's kingdom's really want them together, they're good rulers and very popular with the public, Derek is proposing tonight and Rupert Jr. apparently has something on Evelyn that is gonna force her to turn down Derek. Yours truly got hired to stop that from happening."
They stopped dancing and retreated to the safety of the wall, William pulling them none too gracefully behind another pillar as Maxwell started to move again.
"As for how I got in, I just lied and told them I was a princess, which is technically true, I am a princess, just not here. The guards didn't question it since no one is really looking for me." she put emphasis on the last word as she followed his eyes which were darting repeatedly over his shoulder as she talked.
"Now who the hell is after you and if you didn't come officially, how the hell did you get in?" Hope had now deemed it her turn to ask questions.
"I snuck in through the servants entrance," he said with a twinge of pride, clearly he had found a way in she hadn't thought of.
"You mean to say you made your way through this entire castle, from the kitchen to the ballroom unseen?" Hope's eyes had gone wide with awe, she thought highly of William's talents, but such a feat would be nearly impossible for even her to pull off.
William pressed his lips together as if debating what to say next, it wasn't that he was embarrassed of his past, or that he wanted to remain as mysterious as possible as Hope had, it was that he was terrified she'd hate him if he told her the truth.
Her fingers brushed absentmindedly over her right wrist, where he knew, under her glove rested a nearly invisible seam where her hand met her arm. No one in this land had any idea that she possessed only one true hand, except him. If she could share that, he could tell her his story. Though it was hardly the proper time to bear his soul, with the authorities on the verge of apprehending him (and probably her if she was caught with him) he feared he couldn't keep it from her any longer.
"When you and I first met we were stealing the same thing, the Diamonds of the Twilight Vales," Max had stopped moving, so they were safe behind the pillar for a time.
"Yes, a village in the Darnwell Duchy was responsible for finding them in the vales centuries ago and were the rightful owners, an older Duke of Darnwell stole them and the people then hired me to steal them back,"
Hope did indeed remember this event, as she had everything planned out perfectly. She had waited until she knew the Duke had left the manor and ensured minimal guards. It should have been easy, but a rogue thief had showed up and got them both thrown in jail. If Hope didn't have an affinity for using hairpins as lockpicks, they would have both been done for.
Though William had gotten the diamonds first, and even managed to keep them hidden when the guards searched him; it was Hope who picked his pocket the second she got them out of the cell and made off with them.
Though the story was now vastly important to Hope, it possibly being the origin of her love story, she had never really asked why William set his sights on the diamonds in the first place. She had always assumed it was just a big score with minimal security that he thought he could get away with.
"Yes, well I was only there to steal them because the Duke of Darnwell is my father," Hope's jaw dropped, she quickly closed it so as not to be improper, but the shock was still evident across her face.
"Oh if you think that's shocking just you wait," William rubbed his forehead and leaned back on the pillar, he was telling the story, there was no way out of it now.
"My mother was King Bertrand's younger sister, second child of King Nicholas, when she was 18 she consorted with the Duke, I was the result."
Hope's eyes were rife with curiosity and her mind was rife with questions, but she listened obligingly just as he had for her in the forest.
"He refused to wed my mother, and don't let this party fool you, this kingdom is as formal and old-fashioned as they come. King Nicholas and Queen Dora were so ashamed that they told the kingdom that my mother died of fever, and forced her to take on an entirely new life disguised as a royal seamstress. She could still live in the palace, but as she refused to give me up, no one would acknowledge her birth status. And my father wouldn't even acknowledge her existence."
William bit out his last words with venom, his hatred for the man who sired him was evident with every word, as was his deep love of his mother.
Hope couldn't help but embrace him, she thought of her own mother, left alone and pregnant with Henry, somehow William's story was worse. Neal hadn't chosen to abandon Henry.
"I grew up in this palace, receiving the same schooling as Bertrand's son, Derek, and all the other heirs and heiresses of the kingdom, and I knew about Derek and Evelyn by the way. They were all told I was just some lucky boy the King took pity on, no one knew who I truly was. To this day, Derek has no idea we're related,"
William risked a glance around the pillar to see his cousin dancing with Princess Evelyn, both looked blissfully content. A real life example of the couple he and Hope had been pretending to be.
"Just over 2 years ago I was training to be Derek's royal advisor, if you can imagine that, when my mother fell ill, and when she died, I think my father feared I would come to him for money. So he convinced Bertrand to throw me out, banished me from the kingdom entirely," William spoke bitterly as he glanced back over at Max, still unmoving almost directly opposite the pillar where they hid.
"So you tried to steal the diamonds to hurt your father," Hope filled in with sorrow in her voice. The care in her face was clear as she grasped his hands, as if trying to tell him that she would sooner die than let go.
William could barely find it in himself to tell her the truth. He let out a humorless laugh,
"No that's just it, I hadn't done any of the planning, I didn't go to the Duchy that night to steal from my father, I went there to kill him." He choked out, tears threatening to fall from his eyes.
"When I realized he wasn't even there, I made a new plan. If I could get my hands on the diamonds he so dearly loved, maybe I could use them to make him give me my life back. Maybe even give me the life my mother so desperately wanted me to have,"
William blinked back tears as he remembered his mother telling him that he was a prince at every chance she got. He could still hear her muttering about how they could take her title but they would damn well never take his.
He laughed again, but this time genuinely, a small but real smile appearing on his face.
"And so I started chasing you to get them back. And you were brave. And you were brilliant. And you were better than me at everything," he reached up to brush a lock of hair behind her ear, his other hand pulling her as close to him as the prince inside him would allow.
"And suddenly I didn't want my life back, and you told me you didn't have the diamonds but I didn't care because I wasn't chasing them anymore, I was chasing you."
Emotion poured from his voice, tears had begun to form in Hope's eyes. He rested his forehead against hers,
"I just wanted you," he whispered only to her.
Their tender moment was interrupted as in the heat of his confessions to Hope, William had taken his eye off Maxwell for a second too long.
"WILLIAM," the guard hollered as he rounded the pillar, now staring directly at the two thieves. William instinctively stepped in front of Hope, who though she resented the idea that she needed protection, did think it helped their odds if their new enemy thought she needed it.
"Also I went to school with the current captain of the guards and he hates me," he said to Hope over his shoulder to clarify the situation, which had now drawn quite a bit of attention from other guests at the ball. The music had begun to slow as the musicians became interested in the altercation.
Maxwell smiled evilly as he withdrew a small vial from his pocket and held it out in front of him. William didn't recognize it, but Hope did.
"Not that I would expect you to know, tailor's boy, but this is fairy dust, immobilizes anything it touches. I've been saving it just for you, there will be none of your clever escapes tonight,"
William might not have known what it was, but Hope's claw digging into his shoulder told him it certainly wasn't what Maxwell claimed it was.
"Now step away from the lady," Maxwell ordered, William froze, Hope's claw retracted.
They don't know who she is.
William stepped away, but he froze as Hope's hand ran down his back, dislodging the dagger concealed under his coat which hit the floor with a clang.
"HE'S ARMED, RESTRAIN HIM," Maxwell shouted to the other guards who advanced towards them from all corners of the room. As the captain himself unscrewed the cap of the vial in his hand, William tried to move but was stopped by Hope's hand reaching out and holding him in place.
He soon understood why, for as the dust touched Maxwell's hand, the guard erupted in a puff of charcoal smoke, which dissipated quickly, revealing a large beetle in his place. The advancing guards froze in horror.
"Pity, no one's ever told him," Hope said, moving forward to hold William's hand.
"Told him what?"
"All magic," Hope paused and flicked her hands theatrically, "comes with a price,".
With that flick of her wrists, William felt a familiar weight appear in his left hand, he looked down to see the sword he had left with his horse gleaming under the light of the ballroom. He turned his head to Hope who smiled and raised her own suddenly present sword.
He flashed his grin and the pair took off.
They tore through hoards of royals as they made their way towards the castle doors, each occasionally clashing steel with a gaining guard, but they were more talented than the guards by far.
Before long they had made it outside, and as William turned to run through town to the forest, Hope pulled him in another direction, leading them, he quickly realized, towards the docks.
They could hear guards behind them, and William knew that on foot, they didn't have long before they were caught. He in turn realized that they weren't going to be on foot for long.
They reached the docks but did not approach any of the regal looking vessels that bobbed at the front. Instead, Hope ushered them far down the line to a weathered ship with black sails. No one was on deck save for a few drunken sailors who had passed out.
Pirates, he realized suddenly.
No gangplank was down, so naturally, Hope grabbed a rigging rope and swung on board, looking back at William in annoyance as if asking why he hadn't already done the same.
"Captain Drake!" Hope called as she ran towards the ship's wheel, an unsavory looking man in a bloodstained leather coat emerged from below deck.
"Why Miss Jones what the bloody hell are you doing here?" He asked with surprising formality, looking genuinely concerned for Hope's well-being. William then realized how absolutely ridiculous Hope looked, her lavender ball gown, now muddied and torn along the edges, was completely out of place on the filthy pirate ship.
"I'm so sorry to come aboard without permission Captain, but I'm afraid my friend and I are being pursued by some guards, is there any way you could hide us?" she pleaded, WIlliam noticed with curiosity her apology at the beginning. He guessed they had broken pirate protocol, if there was such a thing, by just jumping aboard the ship.
"Say no more," he rushed to open a trapdoor behind them before turning to face them, "Brig's empty right now, and ye can be certain no guard'll be lookin' down there so long as I'm breathing, now go, we'll come get ye when we're sure they've gone,"
There was no time to argue, the pair practically threw themselves down into the brig as they heard the tell tale thundering of horse's hooves indicating the guards had nearly found them.
They settled in the jail cell below, the ground was made of rotting wood, but the bars showed little rust and the lock couldn't be reached from inside the cell. William suspected the brig being empty was a rare occasion. And that it was used to experienced thieves like him and Hope.
"I don't know why I'm surprised you're friends with a pirate captain," WIlliam said as he discarded his jacket.
"I saved his crew during a robbery one time, he's a good man, many pirates are," she was trying not to be defensive, but Hope was almost physically incapable of not defending pirates.
"Besides, pirates respect pirates, I told him about my father, he's from a different realm, but he still merits the same respect,"
"When you say different realm-" William had heard her speak of such things repeatedly, and it made less sense every time she did.
"I mean that there is a whole other world, multiple actually, all with different rules, I was born in one without magic but my parents were both born in a place called the Enchanted Forest. My dad spent a long time in a place called Neverland. There's tons of different realms, you open a portal and the universe is your oyster" she flashed him a smile as his eyes widened at this revelation.
"So how do you open a portal?" he asked, now very intrigued. She laughed coyly,
"A great deal of magic, of course!" he laughed too, even now she was prone to vague answers.
"Speaking of magic, I must say I am fascinated by yours. First of all, how exactly did you turn Maxwell into an insect?" his mind harkening back to their great escape.
"I didn't do anything, what your friend thought was normal fairy dust was actually dark fairy dust, such a substance turns foes into a form that is easily squashed. What I'm interested in is where he got dark fairy dust, it is extremely rare, at least in the realms I know"
William moved to ask another question when he heard many boots stomping overhead. Dust fell from the edges of the trap door, indicating that someone stood directly above them.
Guards, he mouthed to Hope, she nodded silently. Both parties moved their hands to their swords, just in case.
"Believe me, if a princess was on this ship, I think my crew would know," They heard Captain Drake say, a few cheers erupted from the crew in drunken support.
Hope and William sat frozen in silence for some time before they heard the guards leave the ship. William moved to open the trapdoor but Hope stopped him,
"They didn't really believe Drake, I'm sure they have plenty of reports of us boarding this ship but not disembarking, I'd bet they've posted themselves just over on the dock. In the morning Drake will leave port, we can get off at wherever their next stop is and circle back here on foot if we need to,"
William tried not to get excited at her use of the word 'we'.
"Sounds like a plan. So returning to the topic of your magic, how exactly did you learn to use it?" he asked.
" I wasn't easy at first, magic is all emotion and as you may have realized, I like to deal in probabilities and facts. My mom and my aunt both tried to train me but neither were successful." Hope paused and laughed,
"Regina said the only time I ever looked like my mother was when I couldn't get a fire to light,"
"So who taught you?"
"My dad's old nemesis, who is also Henry's grandfather by the way, he was one of the darkest and most evil sorcerers in all the realms, but eventually he came around. And he was the only one who was able to get me to use my magic,"
Hope pulled hair pins out of her hair as she talked, letting it fall down past her shoulders one curl at a time. She had taken her gloves off so her old tattoo was on full display again.
"What did he do?" William asked eagerly, he took in every detail she gave him about magic with a childlike wonder.
"He tried to burn my favorite books," she said with a snort, William looked at her confused.
"Like I said, magic is all emotion, love, hate, desire. It's about wanting something and having it," she spoke like she was reciting out of a textbook, an image popped into William's head of the little girl from Hope's old photograph being told the very same things.
"He had to hurt something I love to get me to act on it, later in my life he would hold my brother over a cliff, but at age 7 all he had to do was threaten to burn Anne of Green Gables and I knocked him across the room. After I understood how to activate it, I just had to learn to control it. I think you'll find I've got that figured out by now," she gestured down to his sword, reminding him how she'd made the swords appear back at the ball.
"You were brilliant back there," William changed the subject. Hope smiled smugly.
"I know," He laughed at her arrogance, even though it was well earned. He wondered if that was a trait she inherited from one of her parents.
"I knew I had to get him to dump that dust on his hand, sorry I couldn't warn you before I knocked your dagger down," she explained, her plan now making perfect sense. She had needed Max to throw the dust, so she revealed that William was armed, which she no doubt knew after feeling the dagger while dancing.
"Why didn't you just, I don't know, freeze everyone with magic or something?" William still could only imagine what he would do if he had Hope's abilities.
"I told you," she suddenly grew serious, "All magic comes with a price, and more often than not it isn't one worth paying. I only use magic if I absolutely have to,"
"If I had magic, I'd use it for everything," William lamented.
"That's what Hugo always says," Hope smiled at the mention of her brother, "He used to say that if he had magic he'd change his hair color every day, he loves dying his hair. When I was 14, I enchanted the handle of his sword to change with his hair. I think that might be the best gift I ever gave him"
She rambled on for a minute but William didn't mind, Hope lit up every time she spoke of her family. He could tell she loved being on the run and her adventures, but it was apparent just how much she missed them.
"May I ask you a question?" it was Hope who asked this time. William smirked,
"I strongly suspect you are going to ask it regardless of my answer,"
"Why did you choose to tell me about your family at the ball? And why were you so hesitant?" It was not lost on Hope just how difficult it had been for him to tell the story, even though she felt that he had done nothing wrong.
"Because you told me about your family, it was only fair I tell you about mine. And I didn't want to tell you because I was afraid what you would think about the fact that my initial reasons for chasing you were less than noble." he took a deep breath before continuing,
"Or about the fact that you had lain beside a man who was capable of murder," He rested his head in his hands, he had forever tainted the meeting of the woman he loved with the idea that he had only met her because he was going to commit murder.
"Oh Will," she said sadly, moving across the cell to kneel before him, dirtying her dress even more, she lifted his head to look her in the eyes. His heart jumped at hearing her call him Will again.
"Your desire for revenge is perfectly understandable, and the fact that you didn't act on it or let it consume you only shows your strength," she held his head in her hands, he still didn't yield.
"You have the purest heart of anyone I have ever known, you deserve one of equal merit,"
He thought of all the times he had witnessed Hope not kill someone, the promise she had made to Xandyr the giant that she fully intended to keep or how she only took worthy jobs. She truly was a princess, and he was hardly a prince.
Hope moved her hand down to his chest, right over his heart.
"What I want is your heart," she said softly.
"Well that makes no sense," he abruptly stood and crossed the waterlogged cell.
"I disagree, I am technically a princess but act more like a pirate, you are technically a prince but act as a thief, I think we make perfect sense," She stood too but made no effort to move towards him.
He turned around as if to say 'Gotcha!'
"I thought you didn't want to be together," he cocked an eyebrow, his insecurity having died away quickly.
"I don't, not yet, but I'm getting there," she sat back down on the ground, "Catch me one more time and you just might have caught me for good,"
It was the most frank about their relationship that she'd ever been, the very notion made his spirits soar. For some reason, Hope Milah Swan Jones wanted to be with him, and he couldn't convince her otherwise.
He knelt down in front of her and kissed her deeply. It wasn't urgent or longing like their kisses had been in the tavern that night, it was slow and gentle.
"Then I'll just have to find you again," he said as he pulled away, sitting against the wall next to her.
This time it was Hope who said it.
"You'll always find me," she smiled and lay her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes to sleep. William followed suit, with the image of them at the ball waltzing in circles around his mind.
Hope's mind was equally as at peace, his compliment to her at the ball still replaying in her mind. But she did have one nagging concern. She had used her magic rather obviously at the ball. Jones was a known thief and hero, some even knew of her connection to pirates, but until that night no one had seen her use magic but William.
She decided that worry was not necessary, she had only used magic to fetch their swords and it was quite unlikely anyone dangerous saw them. Instead she decided to let herself waltz into the night while feeling William's body pressed against her side.
Sadly, Hope was quite wrong. The revelation that the bandit Jones had magic was a detrimental one. Hope would soon be forced to see once again, that all magic comes with a price. And she was going to be the one to pay it.