An: NymhadoraTonks: The beast was Rose. Lorelai doesn't have beast powers that we know of right now. She's just a sorceress like her mom. No, Rose isn't stuck as a beast, but your theory was close! Thank you!
Almost six years had passed since that strange night, and Everett had long forgotten about the mysterious glowing rose in the woods. The bear was a simple fragment of his imagination. He had drawn the creature a few times, but he could never get it right from his memory. For years he had been practicing his drawing skills with his mother. He had actually become quite good at it, and he liked doing it.
Everett was sketching a scene at that very moment. The teenager was sitting atop a table in the student courtyard. The clear spring day gave Everett the subjects he needed for reference. He was sketching a little blue butterfly perching on a flower bush not far from him. It hadn't moved for minutes, so Everett took his time with the sketch.
With a sudden gust of wind, the butterfly took flight. Everett groaned in frustration as he watched it soar towards the gardens. His attention went off the butterfly when he saw her. Alyssa LeGume, daughter of Gil Legume and Ally Wonderland. She was with her usual crowd of girls, but she would stand out in any crowd. Her golden blonde hair shimmered in the light. Her round face was amazingly beautiful.
She had become a main character of Everett's alternate reality.
As he gazed at the swarm of girls, he imagined himself next to Alyssa. He would whisper something in her ear, make her laugh in a sweet and angelic voice. She would take his arm gratefully, making him feel like he was the only boy in the whole world. Everett would be happy and cared for.
"Don't be such a stalker," a voice snapped him from the daydream. "How did you know I was going to be here at this precise afternoon?" He looked down at Lorelai, who had taken a seat at the table. She wore a smug little grin like her mother. Evie had told Everett that she looked exactly like Mal did when she was a teenager, but Everett could pick out major differences. Her lavender front hairs were pulled back into their usual two braids, leaving the rest of the dark purple and blue curls to fall to her shoulders. She was dressed in a white top and a longer skirt of many patches of different shades of purple and blue.
"I'm not being a stalker," Everett straightened. "I was here first, like every other day. If anyone's a stalker, it's you, Lori."
"Guilty," Lorelai shrugged helplessly. She tilted up her chin to gaze at his sketchbook. He tipped it up from her view, so she couldn't see. "Oh, come on," Lori reached for a book. "Let me see."
"No," Everett stretched the book farther from her reach as if it mattered. She snapped her fingers, and the book flew from Everett's hand with a blue sparkling flame. Just like her mother, Lorelai had developed the powers of a sorceress. It would've been cool if she wasn't always using them against Everett.
"A butterfly," Lori smiled down at the page. "It's so small though."
"I was thinking," Everett pulled the sketchbook from Lori's hands, "that I would do a whole swarm, then have something in the middle."
"Something," Lorelai repeated. She then grinned. "Or someone?"
Everett could feel his ears beginning to turn pink. The thought hadn't really crossed his mind, but he was sure Alyssa's face would look amazing surrounded by millions of blue butterflies. "Maybe."
"A birthday gift perhaps?" Lorelai raised her dark brows.
He hadn't told Lori about his crush on Alyssa, but maybe it was obvious. Her birthday wasn't until late in the summer. She was one of the oldest in the class. She had been sixteen for almost a whole year, while Everett still had to turn sixteen. At least he would only have to wait one more day. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "It's a while away."
There was a small silence before Lori took a deep breath. "What about you? Aren't you excited for your sweet sixteen tomorrow?"
"I'm just ready to get it over with," Everett shrugged.
"That's no way to go about it," Lori turned back to him. "Come on. You must be excited about it. It'll be the last day of school, and your birthday, what could be better?"
"Not being in school."
"Oh, please. You like the attention," Lorelai draped her arm casually over his knees as she chuckled.
"I would if I wasn't being reminded every day of where I truly belong." Even though 19 years had passed since the Isle's barrier had come down, there was still a handful of families who were prejudice against Isle children within the kingdom. Having full "isle-blood" made Everett the main target of this judgment. Many older classmen have told him where he can go and where he shall burn.
"You can't let those older tourney boys get to you," Lori shook her head. "They are just entitled jerks whose opinion doesn't matter even to a fly." Everett followed Lorelai's gaze to see the girls and guys have made one huge group. Alyssa and a few other girls listening to Noah, the captain of the tourney team, tell one of his "amazing" stories.
Everett imagined himself in Noah's place. Everyone gathered around him and hanging onto his every word. He would be accepted, and wouldn't be considered a freak or a villain. It was a dream of a different reality, and Everett knew it would never become true.
"You don't belong here, you disgusting Isle trash."
"That's easy for you to say," Everett moved his knees from under her arm. "Nobody tells you that you've got dirty blood."
"They're too scared of me," Lori looked out to the courtyard again. When her eyes settled on the group of girls, she scowled. "In girl world, it's best to be feared."
"You're insane," Everett laughed.
"Just trying to survive," Lorelai grinned again. "Besides, who needs them. We've got each other."
At least that was true. But Everett still couldn't help but wish that he had more than that. Before the conversation could continue, the bell rang, and it was back to torture. "I'll see you tomorrow with no birthday surprises," Everett said as he collected his things.
"Oh, come on," Lori folded her arms.
"Seriously," Everett shot the girl a serious glare. "I don't want you doing anything special. Wipe that mischievous grin off your face."
Lori stuck her tongue out at him as he pulled on his backpack. "You're no fun."
"Yep, that's me," Everet raised his brows playfully at her before walking past her. He moved towards the gardens. He walked it every day as a shortcut to the other side of the school, but he also enjoyed the scenery. He gazed at the various flowers that were in a sudden full boom. Plucking a few small ones, Everett shoved them in his jacket pockets. He would press them when he got home.
As he picked a small pink carnation, the blue butterfly flew across his view. Everett's eyes followed it as it journeyed down a path Everett hadn't taken before. he followed it, wondering where it was going. He stopped chasing it when he as Alyssa wandering down the row of white rose bushes. Everett glanced back at the butterfly. It was continuing its journey without him.
"Hello?" Alyssa called before he could decide to keep following it. He turned to her, a sheepish expression on his face.
"Uh, hi, Alyssa," Everett managed to say. Her round eyes stayed on his as he scratched the back of his neck. "What are you doing here?"
"I always take this route to my fifth-hour class," she shrugged. Her voice was dreamy like a cloud. "I usually kept interrupted by the beautiful flowers, but I've been keeping an eye out for butterflies."
"You haven't seen any this spring?" he asked, raising a brow. He felt as if he were being stalked by them.
Alyssa shook her head. "That's alright, the roses are still very sweet. What are you doing out here anyway? Don't I know you?"
"I'm Everett. I'm in your class. I use this as a shortcut to geometry," Everett shrugged. "Besides I always like to pick th-"
He stopped talking when Alyssa gasped. Everett raised his brows at her. She suddenly held out a finger towards him. He stared down at her finger with confusion and curiosity as she reached out farther, towards his shoulder. That was when he noticed the blue butterfly perched on his shoulder. He flinched instinctively, but the butterfly stayed put.
"Don't scare it," Alyssa kept her eyes on the little creature. She tried to get it to climb onto her finger, but it only flapped its wings in defense. Everett stared down at it with wonder. Why was it so attached to him? Alyssa stroked one of the wings with the tip of her finger as her lips curved into a smile. It flew away then. "Beautiful."
"Yes," Everett agreed, looking at her instead of the butterfly. When her eyes met him, he looked down, hiding the small blush on his cheeks.
"Well, you know what blue butterflies symbolize?" Alyssa asked. Everett shook his head. "A change in luck or fate."
"Oh," Everett swallowed nervously. "Cool."
"Well," Alyssa gave him a small smile. "I better be off to class. Maybe I'll see you here tomorrow, Everett." She already walked past him before he could say anything.
"Yeah," Everett called. "Maybe I'll get butterflies. I mean you'll get butterflies. I mean you'll see more butterflies...tomorrow."
She turned around and gave him a small chuckle. "I hope so." Alyssa then disappeared from the aisle of rose bushes. Everett let out his breath.
"What was that?" he muttered to himself. "Don't be such an idiot, Everett."
Everett kept playing his interaction with Alyssa in his head for the rest of the day. He still hated himself for making a fool out of himself, but at least it was something. They had even talked about seeing each other again. Tomorrow in the garden. The blue butterfly was definitely a sign of good luck. His boring life would finally turn around for the better.
After school, Everett got on his bike and pedaled his way down the trails through the woods. Soon enough, his home came into view. Some called it a cottage, other's a castle. Everett wasn't exactly sure what it was himself. In his imagination, it was just a huge cottage that had the interior of a castle. There were plenty of places to host parties for all of his friends and visited by his loving girlfriend, Alyssa.
In reality, it was only visited by his mother's clients. Everett parked his bike outside of his mother's small design shop. Through the glass, he could see the twins Luca and Jamie, running around their mother, Lonnie. She was talking to his mother and holding her latest order. Everett pushed the door open, and the twin immediately stopped their actions.
"Everett!" Jamie ran to him and threw her arms up. He picked the little girl up and spun her around. He did the same thing to Luca.
"You guys are getting a little old for that," Lonnie said with a laugh.
"We are only eight," Luca reminded.
"Nine is the limit," Everett told them. "Otherwise you'll be too heavy."
"Not me," Jamie shook her head. "I've been working with dad and the tourney team."
"Speaking of," Lonnie turned to Evie. "We probably should get going. Jay wanted us to help clean his gym storage room. Thanks again, Evie."
"No problem," Evie grinned. The twins and their mother left after saying short goodbyes to Everett. "How was school?" Evie asked.
"Fine," Everett shrugged.
"Oh, come on," Evie raised a brow. "Something must've happened."
Everett's mind immediately went to Alyssa. He shook his head. "Nope. Nothing."
"Okay," his mother dropped the topic. "Could you look at these? I need your opinion." She pushed two sheets of paper closer to him across the desk. he looked down to see two blue dresses. One, a short blue gown that faded into a dark purple. The other one had lace sleeves and a sheer overlay with a butterfly print. "Which one do you think would look better?"
"Well, who's are these?" Everett asked.
"Oh, I don't know," Evie tapped her chin. "Perhaps a girl who's got a birthday coming up." Everett's cheek immediately became pink. How did she know about Alyssa's birthday? Had she come in here right under Everett's nose? She must've. The butterflies were a dead giveaway.
"I would say the butterfly one," Everett tapped the design with his index finger. "It'll look really good on her."
Evie gave him a small grin as she put away the drawings. Before Everett could step away, Evie recalled, "I remember the days we used to sit in here and draw designs. You were very eager to learn."
"I know."
"We should do that again," Evie proposed. "If you want to."
"Uh," Everett took a step back. "Yeah, maybe."
Evie's smile broke for a second. "Well, I better get back to work. Charlotte is in her workshop if you want to bother her." Everett gave her a small nod before turning away. "Everett," she called after him. He turned around. Her face was very serious. "If you ever need to talk, just know I'm here."
"You think you're special because you've got pure dirt blood? I would say it's just the opposite."
"Okay," Everett said simply before heading into the house. He dropped his bag off on the counter before he heard paws scurrying towards him. "Dixy!" Everett greeted. The golden-colored dog came running in. Her tongue hanging out of her mouth. She hopped up into Everett's arms. "Should we go see what Charolette's up to?"
The dog gave a small bark in response. Everett was glad that she didn't have the ability to talk like Dude did. As a young kid, he remembered the dog trying to teach him words. It was something that just belonged in imaginations. He had died when he turned four, and he remembered his dad being heartbroken. They didn't get Dixy until he was nine.
The small dog stayed in his arms as they went outside. In the backyard, Dixy ran up to the tree and hopped into her little bucket. Everett looked up to see the treehouse and began to climb up the wooden stairs nailed to the trunk. Once he was up on the deck, he used the pulley system to pull Dixy up. She leaped back into his arms before he knocked on the closed treehouse door.
"Wait! Don't open it!" Charlotte's high voice called. Evertt patiently waited while there were distant sounds of metal clanging coming from the inside. The door then suddenly swung forward, making Everett take a step back. He used his tiptoes to keep himself and Dixy from falling off.
"Char!" Everett scolded. "You should've made it go the other way."
"Well, it made more sense at the time," Charlotte called from inside. "Well, are you going to come in or not?"
Everett walked into Charlotte's "workshop" as she liked to call it. This treehouse used to be a playhouse, but now it was just filled with scrap metal and tools. Everett set Dixy down and tried to maneuver his way through the mess. "You've got to clean this place up a bit."
"It's fine," Maxwell Adam Beast poked his head out of one of the cabinets on the wall. His shaggy chestnut hair swayed when he laughed as Everett jumped back and placed his hand over his heart.
"What is Max doing in there?" Everett caught his breath. Another cabinet opened to reveal Charlotte. Her long white hair was pushed back with her welding goggles and was twisted into two twin braids. Her freckled face was upsidedown as she hung down from her hiding. Before Everett could pull her down, she flipped over and managed to land on her feet.
"He's my assistant, remember?" Charlotte fixed her goggles. Max swung down from his perch and tripped on some metal. The kid was known for being rather clumsy.
"If he doesn't manage to kill himself first," Everett mumbled. There was a sudden hiss in his ear. He turned to see Scales was staring straight at him. "And you brought the cat," Everett grumbled.
"She followed me here," Max explained. "I think she likes it here better than home."
"I think she'll like little kitty heaven more," Everet muttered. "If she would ever kick the bucket." He didn't know why, but he and the old cat have had mutual hate for the other since the beginning.
"No," Max scooped the black cat into his arms. "She's lived this long. She might be immortal."
"I hope not," Everett grumbled.
"Can someone help me out of here?" a muffled voice came from the closet. Charlotte giggled as she pulled open the last cabinet to reveal Holland Hook, Uma and Harry Hook's daughter. "Thank you," Holland took Charlotte's hand and came down from her hiding. She ran her fingers through her curly black hair and straightened her red coat.
"What's with the cabinets?" Everett asked Charlotte.
"I built passages through them," Charlotte shrugged as she fixed the straps of her denim overalls. "You can't see because of the tree's branches."
"You two better go home before your parents come looking for you and I get in trouble," Everett folded his arms.
"Oh, come on," Holland rolled her eyes. "I highly doubt that."
"Max!" a voice called. "Maxwell, are you up there? Please tell me you aren't dead. Mom would kill me!"
"Lori?" Everett moved towards the door.
"Oh, wait!" Charlotte said as she hit a button. The door suddenly flew open, hitting Lorelai straight in the nose. She took a step back, and almost fell off the deck. Everett reacted quickly and pulled her back to safe ground. She gripped the collar of his blue jacket as he held onto her waist tightly.
"You okay?" Everett asked. Her blue eyes met his and widened.
"Uh...yeah," Lorelai nodded slowly.
"Your nose is a little red," Everett commented. Little was definitely an understatement.
"I figured," Lori bit her lip, and Everet gave her a small chuckle.
"Get a room!" Charlotte said with a laugh.
"Gross," Max clapped a hand over his eyes.
"I didn't know you two were dating," Holland said with a confused expression.
"We're not," Everett let Lorelai go. He then took a step away from her for good measure. Lorelai faced away from him and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Just friends. Right, Lori?"
"Yep," Lori said quietly.
"Mhmm," Charlotte looked unconvinced. "Max, it's safe now. Make sure to take Scales."
"Yes, please," Everett added. He began to climb down the stairs again. The pets rode down in the little bucket. Max followed, then Charlotte and Holland. Lastly, Lorelai managed her way down. She stumbled a bit when she got to the ground.
"Ow," Lori held her nose. "I must've hit it pretty hard." When she moved her hand, blood came rushing down.
"You need to fix that door," Everett told Charlotte. "Pronto."
"It's on the list," Charlotte waved his request off. "But first, we better get some ice on that princess's nose."
The group headed into the house. In the kitchen, Mal and Ben were sitting at the counter. Their little toddler, Maurice, was playing on the floor. Dixy went and licked the little boy's face. Scales hopped up onto the table and sat by Mal's arm. Carlos was preparing them some refreshments when the kids walked in. Mal's jaw dropped. "Lorelai Rose, what on earth happened to you?"
"I tripped," Lorelai lied.
"No she did not," Charlotte rolled her eyes. "My mechanical door hit her straight in the face."
Everett couldn't help but grin at his outspoken sister.
"Char," Carlos shook his head. "You've got to think your inventions through." Everett's dad had many days with Charlotte in her workshop.
"I did," Charlotte insisted. "I just need to adjust the settings. It won't happen again."
"She's a real fine inventor," Max added.
"You should not be near any of those tools," Ben warned. "You might hurt yourself."
"Don't worry, sir," Holland gave a small bow. "He's been very careful and has only hurt himself once today. Just bumped his head."
"Either way, you've got to be careful."
"Can we do something to stop the bleeding or..?" Lorelai brought the conversation back to her injury.
"Oh, yes," Carlos got paper towels. "Everett go get some paper towels and ice."
"You do it to yourself, De Vil."
Everett shook the voice in his head away as he walked to the garage. On his way, he was stopped in the entryway at the sight of Alyssa coming up the drive. He opened the door before she knocked. She was looking down at her phone, but then suddenly looked up. "Everett, what are you doing here?"
"This is my house," Everett gave her a confused look.
"Oh," Alyssa laughed. "I was just looking for Holland. I'm babysitting her tonight and her parents told me she would be at Evie's."
"She's my mom," Everett told her.
"That makes much more sense now that I think about it," Alyssa nodded. "I was wondering why you had blue hair." He thought it was rather obvious that Evie was his mother. Everyone else seemed to know, and never let him forget about it. "You look a lot like Carlos De Vil. Are you related to him?"
"He's my dad," Everett raised his brows. Did she really not know anything about him? They've only been in the same classes together for almost all of their lives. Not to mention that they've been to many of their parents' social events. Although, he did hear someone say that she was a forgetful girl.
"Oh!" Alyssa clapped her hand over her eyes. "Duh. Evie is married to him. I'm sorry I didn't know you were their son."
"Well, now you know," Everett smiled. "Uh, Holland is inside. Do you want to come in?"
"Actually, I need to talk to Evie-your mom I mean," Alyssa stumbled over her words. "I'll wait for her in the shop."
"Okay," Everett gave her a small nod. "I'll see you and the butterflies tomorrow."
"What?" Alyssa asked, clearly confused. Did she not remember? Or was this afternoon just Everett's imagination?
"You know," Everett reminded, "in the flower garden before fifth-hour."
"Oh," Alyssa suddenly recalled. "Yes, you are the butterfly magnet. I'll have to be sure to find you."
"I'd like that," Everett said before he could think. His cheeks suddenly turned pink. She gave him a small smile and wave before cutting across the yard to his mother's shop.
Everett closed the door, then leaned against it, shocked. He couldn't believe what he just said, and he didn't even feel like an idiot afterward. Remembering Lorelai, he ran to the garage and got ice for her nose. When he came back to the kitchen, he noticed that Holland was gone, and so was Mal. Lorelai held a cloth to her nose to stop the bleeding. Carlos and Ben were talking in low voices. Charlotte and Max had disappeared to the treehouse.
"Here's the ice," Everett held up a small bag he had filled. "Where's your mom?" he asked Lori.
"She went to go see your mom," Lorelai shrugged. She took the towel off of her nose. Everett wrapped a fresh towel around the ice and handed it to Lori. "I guess we're staying for dinner."
"I'll be right back," Everett told her as he quickly swept out of the room. He was heading to his mom's workshop, but then he saw Alyssa through the window. She was walking down the drive with Holland skipping beside her. He missed his chance, but he didn't give up hope.
Everett ran up the stairs to his room. Somehow, Scales had beat him up there. She was perched on the windowsill. "Shoo!" Everett scolded. The fat cat didn't budge, so Everet simply picked her up. She hissed at him, but he kept the cat in his hold as he opened the window and climbed out onto the roof. When he caught sight of Alyssa again, he froze.
In the setting sun, her hair looked like gold. All of his imaginations of her came flooding through his mind. Only now, Everett didn't feel like they were imaginations, but possible future memories. He had managed to talk to her twice today. The blue butterfly had brought him the change in luck he needed. It brought him to her.
He sighed in awe, but then was cut off when Scales clawed his hand. He dropped the cat immediately. "What was that for?" Everett asked the black cat. Scales stared at him with evil eyes before going back to her perch on the window sill.
Everett hadn't even bothered to go down for dinner. He had forgotten about the rest of the world. He hadn't moved from his place on the roof. Now, it was night, and but he used the light that came from his room to see his sketchbook. He was still working on the butterflies, but it felt different working from just a picture on his phone. The one he saw earlier today gave him better inspiration.
He grunted in frustration as he erased a butterfly's wing. Everett's brown eyes studied the paper in front of him. Usually, when he drew, he had some sort of vision for the sheet. But for this, there were just too many unthinkable possibilities. Even as he envisioned Alyssa's face in the middle of the warm, he still felt that there was something missing.
"There you are," Lorelai's voice came from his room. "Scales, I've been looking everywhere for you." Everett turned around at the sound of the cat's meow. Lorelai didn't seem to notice him.
"Hey," he said quietly. Lori suddenly jumped back in surprise. Once her eyes settled on him, she grinned.
"Hey," Lori crawled through the window. "I was wondering where you went." She hesitantly sat down next to him. Her blue eyes peered over the edge of the roof. She suddenly jerked back, obviously nervous of the height.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Lorelai nodded. "Just nervous considering I almost fell off a treehouse earlier."
"I'll catch you," Everett patted her shoulder before turning his attention back to the sketchbook before him.
"Have you been up here working on that this whole time?"
"Yep," Everett nodded.
"You usually crank out masterpieces in minutes. What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong I just...don't think it's real."
"What do you mean real?"
"Like," Everett wasn't quite sure how to word it, "I need something real to go off of. To me, these butterflies feel fake."
"Well, they are just drawings," Lorelai pointed out with a little chuckle. When he didn't say anything, she tucked her hair behind her ear. "Sorry. So, you need to find something real."
"Or just inspiration," Everett shrugged. "Usually my imagination does the trick, but there's something missing from this. Maybe the color or the-"
"Feeling," he and Lorelai said at the same time. There was a small moment of silence between them.
"Maybe you need to take a break," Lorelai suggested. "Get your nose out of textbooks and sketchbooks and just take a look around you. You might-" He looked at her then, trying to understand what she was trying to say. "You might find that feeling you're looking for." Lori finished her statement in a quieter voice.
"That's the thing," Everett shook his head. He thought about Alyssa again. How they were from completely different worlds just because of blood. "As long as I'm me, I won't find it. I would have to be in a whole new reality if I were to ev-"
"Everett," Lorelai said suddenly. He looked at her expectantly, but she didn't speak. In the moonlight, her eyes glowed in the prettiest of blues.
"Lori?" Max called from inside Everett's room. They both turned back to see Max and Charlotte gazing at them with wide eyes. Scales gave Everett another death glare. "It's time to go."
"I'll see you tomorrow," Lorelai sighed before getting up and crawling back through the window.
"Bye, Lori," Everett called after her. He could hear her and Max walking down the stairs. Everett hoped that they brought Scales with them. When he turned to check, all he saw Charlotte at the widow with a wide grin and her arms crossed. He raised a brow at his younger sister. "What are you smiling about?"
"It's a beautiful starry night," Charlotte said in a dreamy voice. "Very romantic."
"Shut up," Everett shook his head. "Lorelai is the farthest thing from a girlfriend."
"You can imagine all you want," Charlotte shook her head. "But in the end, it's all lies."
"Get out," Everett grumbled.
"You'll figure it out eventually," Charlotte said quietly.
When he turned around again, his sister was gone. He turned back to the night before him. Taking a deep breath, Everett set his sketchbook down, and just stared a the stars. Tomorrow, he would finally be sixteen, and he could only hope that his luck would continue to change for the better.
