The sound of a metal staff getting knocked over jostled me from my dreams.
Mr. Bog King grumbled an order for everyone to leave the room and go to bed. I began rising once everyone had left the room. Mr. Bog had his head in his hand, so I didn't think that he noticed my stirring until his gravelly voice addressed my presence.
"You're okay, princess, just… go back to sleep…I'll keep watch here," he reassured me in a commanding tone.
I wanted to ask him why my aunt and I just couldn't go home. Why he wanted this stupid potion so badly. However, his startled gasp and the glass shattering above our heads, stopped any line of questioning that I may have had for him.
"Release my sister and my child!" My mother's voice demanded with a fierce determination.
"Oh, no! Not another princess," Mr. Bog King exclaimed with exasperation, before adding on, "Well at least you aren't singing."
Mama, in all her fierce and amazing glory, started rocking out with her own song called 'Straight On'.
I, of course, was cheering for her on the sidelines.
Part of me felt a little guilty since Mr. Bog King was nice enough to not throw me in the dungeon and gave me a nice mat and pillow to sleep on…but he still kidnapped me and I'm a mama's girl through and through.
They were locked in a vicious fight with a matched skillset for battle.
Mr. Bog King was singing back to mama when I noticed that they parried each other perfectly. Mama's song had started as a solo, but the combination of Mr. Bog's voice with hers made the duet…harmonious.
It almost felt like the universe was trying to tell me something.
But, I'm not sure what…
Mr. Bog's underlings kept offering their assistance during the fight, but he continued to decline their offer. Probably wanting to keep their battle fair…it's quite honorable when you think about it.
Either that or his male pride was getting in the way.
If you ignored the trash talk that they were spewing at each other, it kind of looked like mama and Mr. Bog King were dancing.
They were matching each other's moves perfectly and in synch with each other.
It also seemed like their fight would go on forever.
Thankfully, both their stamina gave way and they landed on the ground panting.
Calling a stalemate with their heated gaze.
Mama lifted her sword as a final act of defiance and weakly aimed it at Mr. Bog's throat.
"Go ahead, kill me," Bog rasped out with a sinister sneer on his face, "But you won't get your sister."
With that final note, mama let her sword cling to the ground.
"Need any help?" Thang questioned with an undying optimism.
"No," they both growled at the same time.
"Mama!" I cried out with glee before launching myself into her arms.
She immediately clasped her strong arms around me, still clutching her sword in her right hand.
"Oh, my sweet, baby girl! My precious, little Gen!" She cooed at me, a slight sniffle in her voice. Mama gently pulled me back while running her left hand gently across my face and cupping the right side of my face.
"Are you hurt? Did anyone mistreat you?" She immediately questioned while quickly scanning my small form with her concerned gaze.
"No, mama, I'm fine…Mr. Bog King has actually been…pretty nice—even though he's a jerk for kidnapping me in the first place," I told her, slightly muttering the last part under my breath.
She huffed a small laugh before pulling me back into a hug with her left arm.
"I was so worried about you…I swear I won't let anything bad happen to you again," mama vowed before placing a quick kiss to the side of my temple.
"Mama, you can't watch over me forever," I reminded her with a giggle.
"Wanna bet?"
I didn't verbally answer and just buried myself into the crook of her neck in response.
Safely tucked away in my mama's arms is my most favorite spot in the whole world.
I felt mama slightly shift her body, probably trying to glare at Mr. Bog, when Aunt Dawn's voice cut through the stillness of the night.
"Wise men say, only fools rush in~"
"Ugh, the beast has awoken!" Mr. Bog groaned with a pained look on his face.
Honestly, her singing isn't that bad.
"Oh, no, what did she fall in love with this time?" Mama asked with a worried expression.
"Would you care to see?" Mr. Bog seethed, just barely controlling his rage. He placed his staff down before motioning mama to follow him.
She put her sword away before lifting me into her arms.
Mama made one more fleeting look to his forgotten weapon before sending me a secretive wink.
She had a plan.
We slowly made our way down the dungeon's steps. Mama's face showed nothing except pain and disgust from the bold declarations of love being thrown around the cells. I didn't think it was that bad, however, this was pure torture for mama.
"Do you see what happens when love is loosed upon the world?" Mr. Bog sneered while mama shuddered in revulsion and pulled me closer to her body for support.
Thang started banging on the bars shouting for everyone to be quiet, but nobody listened to him.
The offkey singing mixed with his shouting was starting to hurt my ears. And from the distressed grimaces on mama's face, she was starting to get a migraine from it all.
Mr. Bog took control of the situation and took a deep inhale of breath before bellowing out, "QUIET!"
Everyone, except Thang, went silent.
Eventually, Thang realized that the room was blissfully hushed and also muted his loud ministrations.
Mama gratefully nodded her head towards Mr. Bog before continuing their walk to Aunt Dawn's cell.
"I hope you've got a strong stomach," he ominously warned before opening the door.
"Sugar-pie, honey bunch~"
Mama had steeled her resolve, but the shock was clear on her face when her stern gaze dropped to one of astonishment.
Mr. Bog quickly shut the door, not being able to withstand the sweet, peppy singing of my Aunt Dawn.
Mama quickly set me down on the ground before reaching for the door herself and flinging it back open.
"You know that I love~"
Mama slammed the door closed once more.
"You?" She questioned in shock while pointing at the Bog King.
"Yes," Mr. Bog simply replied.
"Antidote?"
"Working on it."
"I know she's a girl who falls in love with every guy she sees, but this is ridiculous!" Mama shouts in exasperation.
Mr. Bog looks away in embarrassment, lowly stuttering out, "I…uh-uhm…"
Mama doesn't give him a chance to respond and draws her sword, pointing it at him in warning. He held up his hands in temporary surrender while I opened the door to Aunt Dawn's cell and raised the gate made of thorns.
I overheard his minions inform Mr. Bog that he forgot his weapon upstairs, which caused me to snicker at their ridiculous oversight.
Mama pulled Aunt Dawn out of her cell and held her protectively in her arms. However, Aunt Dawn was not making the task of saving her easier. She was rubbing her fingers all over mama's face and sluggishly moving along.
Her behavior kind of reminded me of last year's Fall Ball and mama told me that Aunt Dawn had drank too much 'silly juice.'
Mama says I can't drink it until I'm grown up and have to drink it in moderation…not like Aunt Dawn.
"You know I really enjoyed our fight, but-uh- I'll be taking my daughter and my sister home now," mama said while trying to talk around Aunt Dawn's prying fingers.
"Oh no you're not!" Aunt Dawn shouted while suddenly breaking away from mama and causing her to drop her weapon.
"Aunt Dawn!" I screamed in outrage while facepalming at her insane, lovesick behavior.
"Dawn!" Mama cried out at the same time while Mr. Bog picked up her weapon and pointed it at us.
Aunt Dawn ignored us both and rushed over to Mr. Bog in order to cling to him in a side hug.
"Boggy-Bear!" She squealed in excitement.
"Bog King!" He corrected with a forceful tone.
Mama let out a sigh of frustration while Mr. Bog smirked in triumph.
"Let's go back to our cell, shall we?" Mr. Bog politely asked Aunt Dawn with a fake, sugary tone of voice.
"Anything for you, Boggy-Woggy," she happily responded while walking back towards her prison.
"Uh…Bog," he tried correcting once more.
Mama stared at Aunt Dawn and their exchange in shock, "Don't listen to him!"
"You are not the boss of me!" Aunt Dawn rebuked, "And don't even think about stealing my Boggy!"
"Bog!" He gritted out through clenched teeth, clearly fed up with the pet names.
Maybe I should call him Mr. Boggy-Woggy from now on?
With that final note, Aunt Dawn closed her cell door and left mama standing there with a lost look on her face.
My small fingers intertwined with hers in an attempt to reassure her that everything will work out.
"She stays here until I get the potion back," Mr. Bog's voice cut through the silence.
Mama turned to glare at him.
"Forget the potion!" She shouted, "Get the antidote- NOW!"
She pulled me closer to her body as she made her demands to the king of the Dark Forest.
"Well, maybe you should ask her," Mr. Bog informed with a matter of fact tone of voice.
"Her? Who?"
"The Sugar Plum fairy."
"Oh! Welcome!" Plum greeted in a sing song voice.
"Give me the antidote," Mr. Bog demanded.
"If you let me talk about that fateful—"
"NO!" He barked.
"Then…no," she huffed in an indignant manner before turning her back on us.
"Please," mama begged, "I love my sister…I need that antidote."
"Okay," Plum said, instantly changing her mind without a qualm, "I'll just need a few things…"
"What?!" Mr. Bog questioned in exasperation.
I was too busy giggling at his aggravated face to pay attention to what she was listing.
He slightly growled at me before turning to a goblin standing guard outside her cell, "Get those things," he demanded before turning away from the stubborn Sugar Plum fairy.
Mama pulled me along with her as she trailed after him.
"Hey, will it really work?" She questioned him before coming up short as Griselda appeared out of the shadows.
"Ah, who knows," Griselda answered for Mr. Bog.
"And you are?" Mama tried to politely ask.
"My mother," Mr. Bog acknowledged with irritation in his voice.
"My name is Griselda," she greeted with a fake smile before quietly whispering something about a comb in my mother's ear.
Mama was still staring in shock at the tiny creature.
Probably trying to figure out how such an incredibly tall man came from such an incredibly small woman.
"It's drafty down here," Griselda informed us with a small shiver, "Why don't we go back upstairs? I got snacks laid out on the banquet table."
"Well—uh—" They both stammered off while looking at each other. I bet they both worked up an appetite after their duel.
"And we can tuck this sweet, little dear back into bed on the way," Griselda mentioned while pointing to my small form that was in mid yawn.
I quickly tried to cover it up while shooting my mom an apologetic look, "Sorry, mama…I'm just really sleepy."
"Oh, sweetheart, it's fine," she quickly reassured me while brushing a stray lock of hair behind my ear, "You've had a rough night and it's way past your bedtime."
On that final note she lifted me back in her arms and started following Griselda back up the stairs. I curled further into her neck and let out a sigh of contentment.
"Oh, Bog used to do that too," Griselda cooed from up ahead, "He was always such an affectionate boy—nearly broke his heart when he outgrew me, and I couldn't carry him in my arms any longer."
"Mother…please," Mr. Bog begged from behind the group.
I slightly lifted my head to look at him and the mortification on his face.
A twinge of guilt racked through my body.
"It's okay, Mr. Bog, my mama and I think it's sweet that you love your mother," I reassured him, "Right, mama?"
"Huh? Oh yeah…it's…sweet," she quickly agreed with a faint blush on her cheeks.
I let out another yawn before feeling long fingers stroke the top of my head, "I'll take your word for it, Mini-Tough Girl…Now go back to sleep. I'll make sure there are guards posted nearby for you."
Mr. Bog flew off after that.
"He doesn't really think that we're going to try to escape without the antidote for your Aunt Dawn, does he?" Mama peevishly questioned.
"Oh, no, my dear," Griselda quickly corrected, "He's posting more guards to protect her. I mean—no one's stupid enough to challenge my son or try to steal from him. But…it's better safe than sorry around here. It can be extremely dangerous in the Dark Forest and us Foresters have to go through great lengths to protect our young."
"Oh…I…I see…"
"Not that it's isn't a great place to live! It's quite easy to avoid the threats and dangers…well—when you know what you're looking out for, that is. And my son is an excellent warrior; very strong and protective. He'll make a great father one day. In fact, his combat drills with the guards has greatly improved the life expectancy of the goblins."
"How is that?"
"Oh, well, we were having a bit of a problem with the predators. You know snakes, birds…even some frogs have swallowed up a goblin or two. Always on accident, of course, they were riding on the backs of dragonflies at the time…it happens. Anyway, my brilliant boy came up with the idea of posting guards at different stations to prevent the predators from nesting too close to the goblin towns and villages. He also created safe fly zones for goblins so that there aren't any more misunderstandings with the frogs. Such a smart boy…"
"That…that is pretty smart," my mama admitted in a thoughtful manner, "Creating watch towers and protocols to be proactive rather than reactive…"
"I know right?!" Griselda proudly beamed, "I mean the villagers and townspeople of the Dark Forest still have to do their due diligence and make sure that their young don't fall into Venus Fly traps or fall into the marshlands or things like that…But Bog helps teach parents and their children on what to look out for with educative programs about safety. He created these initiatives himself and personally visits the schools every year to check up on his safety program and he is an absolute hit with the children. Something about being tall as a tree makes all the kiddies want to climb on top of him like a playground and dangle from his arms and shoulders, ya know? Bog is such a sweet and caring man…wonderful traits for a good father—"
"Mother, what are you going on about now?"
"Oh, nothing, just having a nice conversation with this lovely lady and her sweet child about what an amazing father you'd be—"
"Mother! Please, stop talking," Mr. Bog begged again while mama tucked me into the moss mat once more.
"Oh!" I cried out when I saw one of my drawings sticking out from beneath my mat, "I almost forgot to give you your present!"
"Present?"
"Uh-huh! I drew you pictures!"
"Well would you look at that," mama cooed at me as she looked through my drawings, beaming with pride.
"This one is when you train with the sprites. See, I'm over here launching the clay disks," I informed her while pointing out each aspect of the drawing.
"Very colorful."
"This one is Grandpa reading to me in the library and this one is Aunt Dawn trying to teach me the steps of all the fairy dances for the Spring Ball," I announced before gleefully showing her my favorite drawing, "And this is the one where you punched Mr. Bog King in the face!"
She let out a bark of laughter before trying to cover it up with a cough.
"So creative!" She happily chirped, "How'd I get lucky enough to have a clever daughter like you?"
"I don't know. I guess we both lucked out, huh?"
"I guess we did…Here hold onto these and we'll hang them up once we get back home," mama instructed me while tucking my drawings safely beneath my mat once more.
On that happy note, mama smiled warmly down at me before giving me Eskimo kisses and placing a sweet kiss to my forehead.
"Have pleasant dreams, my sweet Imogen," She whispered as I let my eyes close, "By the time you wake up tomorrow morning, everything will be fixed, and we'll be back home safe and sound…I promise you this."
I let out a sigh of contentment before burrowing further into my blankets.
It never takes me long to fall asleep.
Tonight, wasn't any different.
Even though I had been kidnapped and whisked away to a foreign land…I felt safe.
This safety didn't just stem from the fact that my mama was here to protect me…But it also came from the fact that I now know that the Bog King isn't as evil as I initially thought.
Even though he'd probably deny it, he clearly loves his mama—and, honestly, how bad can a man who loves his mother really be?
Maybe we can all be friends once this is all sorted out?
To have more friends…
That'd…be really nice…
Really, really nice…
Marianne's POV:
I reluctantly stood up once I was sure that Imogen was fast asleep.
Stars above, she always looks so precious when she is sleeping.
Part of me knew that I needed to follow the others to try to find an antidote for Dawn, but the other maternal part of me never wanted to leave my baby's side ever again.
I've never felt so utterly helpless nor undeniably petrified than in that moment when she was stolen for me.
I owe Bog another punch to the face for that experience.
At least a thousand more punches should start to cover it.
I guess I should be grateful that he wasn't cruel to her and didn't lock her in the dungeon…
I remember that day when we had been playing Hide and Seek and discovered that Imogen was claustrophobic. Stars, the fear on her tear-stained face when we found her in the cupboard. She had been too crippled by her fear to even move from her hiding spot.
Suffice to say, we don't play Hide and Seek anymore.
Anyway, Bog doesn't seem like a completely awful person…
Not to mention that he never would have even crossed the border into the Fairy Kingdom if Sunny hadn't created the love potion.
Seriously, what was that idiotic elf thinking?
I also owe him a few thousand punches to the face for this whole fiasco.
Great I can feel myself getting angry again.
Just breathe, Marianne.
Everything is okay.
Dawn is…safe—completely nuts from the love potion, but safe.
And Imogen is in front of you…sleeping soundly with, hopefully, happy dreams and no nightmares of getting kidnapped.
Oh, stars above, please don't let this experience emotionally traumatize my little girl.
Okay, so mostly everything is okay.
I can work with that.
Totally fine.
"Uh…Tough Girl? You ready to go?"
"My name is Marianne," I snip at Bog, peeved off that he's trying to pull me away from my precious, little girl.
"Hey, don't get grumpy with me," He snipped back, "I just figured you might be a bit hungry. Or do you fairies only eat rainbows and sunshine to maintain your figures?"
I glared at him in response before turning back towards Imogen's sleeping form on the moss mat. My gaze slightly softening at her little fist tucked beneath her chin.
"Do you think that mat is enough support for her back? How cold does it get in here? Do you have an extra blanket—"
"Whoa, whoa…the mat is thick enough to support her—my soldiers and I use the same material when we're camping in the woods for training exercises. Plus, it's springtime, it'll be warm enough with one blanket. If we give her another one, she'll get overheated," Bog quickly assured me while motioning for me to follow him.
I bit my lip once more before slowly stepping down from the elevated throne.
"…Maybe I should stay here with her…You know in case she has a nightmare or wakes up in a strange room," I reasoned, "I don't want her to panic because she's in unfamiliar surroundings—"
"Marianne," Bog called my name while placing his hands on my shoulders to stare into my eyes, "I placed two goblins at the front entrance and one at each door that leads to the throne room. Nothing will happen to your daughter."
I wanted to make a snarky reply that he already happened to her and was the reason that she was here in the first place.
But I bit my tongue instead.
He's trying to be patient and reassuring.
He didn't need me spewing venom at him because I was insecure of my capabilities of keeping my own child safe.
I took a deep, calming breath before, reluctantly, nodding my head and following him into the banquet hall. His mother, Griselda, was leading the way, but she kept looking back to us with a devious glint in her eyes.
What was she planning?
My hand instinctively went to the hilt of my sword before I shook my head in denial.
What am I doing?
Acting upon unreasonable paranoia.
This poor, elderly woman was just trying to be hospitable and feed me while we regroup and try to figure out a solution.
I know I'm not known for my diplomatic tact, but, stars above, I've never been this irrational.
My eyes inadvertently fell upon Imogen one more time before we exited the throne room. I felt Bog gently place his hand on the middle of my back to quietly usher me out of the room.
She'll be fine.
She'll be fine.
She'll be fine.
I repeated this mantra in my head until we reached the banquet hall.
Foolheartedly believing that if I say it enough times, it'll become true.
…Please let it be true…
~~~~~~~~TIMESKIP~~~~~~~~
I could feel my temples throbbing.
I hate riddles.
Imogen was the one who adored them.
She's clever enough to figure them out and a good enough sport to appreciate the ones that stump her.
"Something that is stronger than the potion…" I mumbled to myself.
"You do realize that repeating the question over and over won't solve the riddle right?" Plum asked me with a raised eyebrow.
I gave her a steely glare in return.
"Hey, I'm just saying…Maybe you should wake up Gen and have her solve the riddle?" She offered with a shrug of her shoulders.
Wait…
What?
"How do you know that my daughter loves riddles?" I interrogated, skepticism lacing my voice as my hand reached for the hilt of my sword once more, "And how do you know her nickname is Gen?"
"I know everything about your daughter," Plum answered with a bored snort, "Her favorite color or I should say colors, since she loves all of them. Her age; seven years old. Her species is human. Her birth name is Jennifer Deeremont, but she was called Jenny for short. Her birth parents' names—"
"Enough!" I shouted in a panic, not wanting to hear anymore.
"…Ah…you're still afraid that someone is going to come along and steal her away from you," Plum knowingly revealed.
"No, I'm not! She is—Well that is to say that legally she is my—And they never came—She's mine, dammit!" I finally cried out after stumbling with my racing thoughts and my jumbled words.
"Of course, she is," Plum placated with her hands raised, "I'm not disputing that, and no one will ever challenge your claim. Besides, those people gave her life, but they never loved her enough to ensure that she kept it. I mean they're the reasons why she—Oh, well, you don't have to worry about that."
"What? Worry about what?!" I cried out in apprehension while stepping towards her webbed prison.
"No, trust me, we'll discuss that bit of information another day. Just rest easy in the knowledge that no one from her past life is searching for her. You are, and always will be, her only mother."
A sigh of relief escaped my chest.
"I've just always been so afraid that…" I trailed off before finally voicing my fear, "It's so hard for fairies to have children of their own…and our law dictates that birth parents hold all the rights to the child—"
"I know," Plum simply stated with a reassuring smile, "Just like I know that Imogen is safe with you and will never have to face them ever again…trust me…"
"Okay…" I finally agreed, beginning to finally unshackle myself from the grips of my darkest fear.
"Wonderful…now, you should focus on the antidote—"
"Right! Right…the one thing stronger than the potion…"
"…Great…we're back to just repeating the question again…" Plum mumbled bitterly to herself.
I turned my back on Plum to help ignore her sulky grumbling when I noticed Bog watching me with an unreadable expression on his face.
My eyes quickly averted themselves from his gaze. I could feel the heat of my embarrassment flush my face when I realized that he heard my deepest fear.
"…You okay, there Tough-Girl?" He kindly whispered, his eyes still searching my face.
"Y-yeah…it's just well you know…illogical fear of being a parent—"
"It's not illogical," Bog gently interrupted, "All parents are scared of something happening to their children and them being taken away from them."
"…Is it?" I mumbled, "By fairy law, if I was her birth mother I would never have to worry about anybody taking my child away. I just…It's not fair! I know I love Imogen more than that woman who birthed her ever could. I mean, I've never met the woman before, but something inside me just screams at me that this is my little girl and that nobody loves her as much as I do. And I know that, that's completely insane for me to feel this way—"
"Hey, you're talking to a goblin, remember?" Bog interrupted my tirade while cupping the side of my face, "Our orphanages in the Dark Forest would be completely overrun if we didn't have parents like you in the world. That maternal instinct that you possess for a child that isn't related to you by blood it's such a-well- it's a spectacular characteristic. I mean—well you see—Marianne, that bond that you share with that little girl out there. Your little girl. It's the most beautiful and sacred connection that I've seen in a long time. You're a natural mother when it comes to her and I can tell that Imogen feels like she is the most loved and treasured daughter in all the realms."
My mouth was hanging open in shock by the end of Bog's speech.
Blinking my eyes a couple of times, I was finally able to shake myself from my reverie.
"Bog…that was…you didn't have to…do you really think?...What I mean to say is—thank you…" I murmured the last part while trying to convey my feelings of gratitude with my eyes.
The corners of my lip began to quirk up in a comfortable smile.
Bog returned the gesture with a warm, lopsided grin of his own. Fully showcasing his crooked teeth.
It was nice…
Finally, able to see his face without an angry sneer on it.
If I'm being honest, it made me wish that he would smile more often.
"So…are you two going to stand around grinning at each other all night or are you going to solve my riddle?" Plum called out from her webbed prison, breaking the spell of our tender moment.
We both leapt away from each other in embarrassment.
I tried to cover my face to hide my blush while he cleared his throat.
"Right, uh, where were we?" He asked while averting his eyes and trying to change the subject.
"Something that is stronger than the potion," I reminded him, happy to get my mind onto other things than his jagged, crooked teeth that were encased in the sweetest, warmest smile that I have ever—
No.
No!
No. Marianne.
You need to focus.
Focus.
Something stronger than the potion.
Dawn is depending on you.
You can reevaluate your pounding heart that is about to beat out of your chest later.
…Much, much later…
~~~~~~~~TIMESKIP~~~~~~~~
I was feeling both mentally and emotionally exhausted.
Traipsing down memory lane about my failed loved life with Bog proved to be more taxing than I had originally thought it would be.
But it only felt right to divulge my own tale of heartbreak after Plum spilled the details of his sordid past.
"Maybe we should go stretch our wings for a bit?" I quickly suggested to help ease the stifling tension in the room.
"Good—good idea!" Bog quickly agreed while handing me my sword off the table.
"Thanks," I gratefully replied with a hint of shock in my voice.
This was a…different side of Bog.
I wonder what other sides the King of the Dark Forest keeps hidden away…
"Maybe you should rethink this entrance?" I told him in a half joking manner as I pointed at the creepy animal skull. My body suddenly lurched as I stumbled into a large, toothy goblin.
Said goblin began growling at me and showing off how sharp his large, pointy teeth were.
Bog quickly intervened and stepped in between the two of us.
"Try to think of this as an adventure," Bog recommended as he flew up into the air.
Deciding not to push my luck with the temperamental goblin, I leapt into the air and swiftly followed behind Bog.
Only stopping once to look back at the castle.
"Are you sure that Imogen will be okay with your mother," I nervously asked, "I really shouldn't leave her by herself—We should go back."
"Hey, it's okay," Bog reassured while coming to float next to me, "Trust me when I say that my mother is over the moon with having a little one in the castle right now and won't let anything happen to your daughter. It'll be good for us to stretch our wings for a bit. Not to mention that it's such a beautiful night."
With that last statement he let his arm broadly sweep out and point out the beautiful moonlit scenery surrounding us.
It was a beautiful night…
"Okay, maybe just a quick lap around the castle grounds and then back before Imogen wakes up," I eventually decided while taking his extended hand to fly on our quick adventure.
"That's the spirit, Tough-Girl," Bog praised with the sweetest smile on his face.
There goes my heart again.
It's fine.
I'll figure out why it keeps pounding a 1000 miles a minute…later.
Much, much, much later.