Adrian stepped over to the necklace and picked it up off the grass by its chain.

"What did you think would happen? Did you believe she would simply remember you?"

It was Severa.

Adrian turned to face his aunt, the Enchantress. In his anger he was at a loss for words.

She stood, dressed as one of the mortals in a shimmering dress. She looked nothing like his mother had.

"Don't bother with the necklace anyway," she continued. "I can see she succumbed to the curse that I warned her about. There's nothing you can do about it- and that includes this suicide mission you've cooked up."

Adrian looked at his aunt with fire in his eyes. "You can't have me, Severa. The Beast will be exposed and so will I. If they kill me, you've lost, and if they don't-"

"Enough!" She cried; in a flash Severa was standing in front of him with her fingers tightly clasped against his chin. "You swore an oath to take the throne, as you are the rightful heir- of the Land of Magic and the Land of Men both! We will take it with blood if you do not cooperate."

"You said if I swore it you would spare my mother- but she died because of your treachery! And now I've sworn a new oath, and that's to not use my magic for anything except to destroy you." Adrian grabbed her arm and removed her fingers from his chin.

"You've forgotten," Severa said delicately, "my power over you. I think I'll have to remind you."

Adrian felt a twitch in his brain- the familiar twitch that signified the beginning of his transformation.

"No," he said firmly. "You can't make me change."

Severa gazed at him with the power in her eyes, willing him to bend, to keel over as he resisted. A smile began to form on her lips as she watched Adrian tremble.

"See?" she said. "Despite all your many efforts here we are. I could make you change now, if I wanted to."

Adrian breathed heavily, using every ounce of strength he had in him to resist her pull. He felt like he was going to lose before she suddenly let up, and he buckled to his knees in exhaustion.

"You will be punished for this, Adrian," Severa said.

Adrian spat blood into the grass, clutching his mother's necklace painfully tight. Steadily, he got to his feet.

"I know what your plan is," he said. "I know everything now-"

Adrian gasped in pain as Severa's power assaulted him again, wringing his body's insides to change into the Beast. It was close- he could feel the Beast's claws fighting to emerge from his hands. Blinded with pain, he stumbled back, his feet moving away from the Enchantress.

And then he turned and ran.

King Peter was finishing up dinner and waiting to meet with the victor of the tournament to give him his gold when he was notified of an urgent visitor.

"What's their business?" he asked impatiently, his eyes scanning the room for the boy named Adrian.

"Umm... She said it has to do with your son the prince, sir," the messenger related uneasily.

King Peter shrugged and then stared at the messenger carefully. The boy was sweating.

"My son?"

The messenger nodded. King Peter heaved a heavy sigh and abandoned his spot at the table to lead the way into his private receiving room.

"Fetch some wine and bring it up," the king ordered his cup-bearer. There's not enough wine in the world...

His receiving room was lit with a fire and an open window to the bright night; inside was a woman sitting in a chair by the fire. A goblet of wine was already clasped in her hand. She drank deeply as the king entered. The cup-bearer was told to wait outside.

The king waited for her to stand but she did not.

"You've grown old," she said. "A handsome boy you were though, much like your son. I can only hope that he will one day wear age upon him so proudly as you do."

King Peter furrowed his brow and shook his head. "I don't think we've met. But then a fairy disguising herself as a mortal is a very curious thing- I haven't seen it since my youth. Oh- you thought I wouldn't notice? Then you don't know me."

Severa stood and allowed the enchantment to slip away, revealing herself with her crown of crystals. "I wasn't wearing it for you," she said easily.

"What are you doing here? What do you want with my son?"

"The same thing you do," she said. "I want him to be safe. I want him to be well. He is dying, isn't he?"

The king recognized her voice- though he was sure he had never seen her before. How could that be?

"The prince is being cared for accordingly," he said shortly.

The fairy smiled. "I can help him. I can save him, it will be your decision."

"What? Slow down- I've dealt with fairies in the past, and I know of your tricky nature. What's in it for you?"

Severa's smile faltered. "We can make a deal. I will save your son if you call off the Beast hunt."

"If I call off the Beast hunt," the king repeated. "Hmm, interesting. And why would I do that?"

The Enchantress remained composed, though her insides were writhing in hatred for the man. It is he who is truly the root of all my problems, she thought.

"You would be sparing my nephew a horrible fate. He is cursed, you see, and so he and the Beast are one."

"I've heard of the Beast's power," said the king. "And I've received many reports of those who have seen it; it is a destruction of nature and man. That sort of evil cannot exist in my land."

Here, Severa smiled again. "I know what you've dreamed of. You can see his face as clearly as your own. His name is Adrian."

The king didn't know what to say- but something in his head was beginning to come together, like pieces emerging from a fog to be one again...

"You are Severa," said King Peter.

Severa nodded. "So, you remember now?"

"It's taken many years," said the king slowly, "but I remember you. You made me forget something."

"You asked me to," she said. "I only did what you asked. Is it now that you're ready to remember?"

"Get out," King Peter said suddenly. "I can see there is no need to conduct business with you. And watch your back, because my people are ready to go on a hunt to bring justice to this land."

Severa stood, her face pulled tight with rage. "The Beast is mine and I shall protect him with whatever it takes- even if it means war, Peter! When the sun rises you will make your choice. These are my terms: if you allow the Beast hunt to proceed, my nephew and I will be taking the kingdom with blood and magic- and the prince will die."

The king stared at her in a long moment of silence, his mind fighting against something he didn't realize had been there.

The raven pommel on the sword... and the boy who yielded it...

"Give me the serum," said Peter.

Severa gazed at him suspiciously. "If you drink you will remember."

"Give it to me," he repeated.

A slight smile formed on her lips. "Here it is," she said, pulling a small vial from her dress pocket. "You have until sunrise. Oh and by the way- the Necromancer is with me now, in case you were wondering what happened to him. See you soon!"

The king emerged from his receiving room, visibly shaken up. "Find me the girl- Mary. Find her and bring her to me at once," he told his messenger.

Tamsin listened intently as I told of her of the encounter I just had with the stranger. The stranger who had familiar, hazel- YOU DON'T KNOW THIS PERSON!

We were up in my room, far away from any spies or spectators. I wanted to badly to be at Stefan's bedside- but would that only make him vulnerable to even more danger? How could I know, at this point?

"You did the right thing by telling me," Tamsin said carefully. "As far as the necklace goes- well, what did it look like?"

"It had a rose pendant," I said shortly.

"A rose," she repeated aloud, thinking. "I'm trying to remember which house sigil is the rose-"

Just then she was interrupted by a sharp rapping upon the door.

We exchanged nervous glances.

"I'll get it," Tamsin said quickly, jumping up and making her way over to the door.

It was King Peter's page boy. "The king is summoning Mary at once," he said. "Is she in there?"

Tamsin stood back against the door frame, and I stood in complete and utter shock.

What could I have done that he wants to speak with me? I wondered as I followed the page boy.

The music from the ballroom faded gently behind us as we walked briskly through the castle halls, our own party of eerie silence.

We traversed a tower and entered a room that overlooked the outer-lying gardens and hedge maze. To my surprise, King Peter dismissed his men and instructed them to wait outside the door. I looked around; this room appeared to be a private study.

The king nodded towards a chair next to the window and near the fire for me to have a seat. I slid over to it quietly and sat up straight and still, waiting for any further indication of why I was there.

"Don't be nervous, child, you are safe here," he said. The king began searching through a deep desk drawer for something. I watched him curiously as he pulled out a sealed envelope and tore it open, taking out its contents: a piece of parchment paper folded up like a letter. The king scanned the message privately, his face unreadable, holding a small vial in his grasp.

After an extended moment, he set the letter down upon his desk and then took the seat opposite of me. "Tell me, Mary, might you have any magic in your blood?"

I stared at him blankly. What kind of conversation is this going to be?

"Not that I know of, your majesty," I said.

He twirled the vial in his hand, peering at it oddly. "From what I have heard, you are a remarkable girl."

I blushed. Heard from whom?

"I was brought here by your son," I explained carefully, "and he has given me safe haven while I-"

"—try to remember?" he finished.

"Yes," I said honestly, unsure of what he knew of me or how, "something like that."

The king's eyes locked onto mine as he looked at me profoundly. "I know you've forgotten something—something important to you. I know the pain of wonder, and bearing that missing piece inside of you can be most afflictive."

Our eyes were still locked in an odd gaze. "You've forgotten something too?"

"Yes," he responded, "but I chose to do it. It was a curse I placed on myself. You did not choose to forget, and therefore you are the one who deserves this." He revealed the vial to me as it rested in his palm."I've searched for this serum for almost a lifetime. Its power is to conquer such forgetting spells and bring back what was lost."

I looked up at him, startled, my heart beginning to thump.

"But as I said," the king continued, "I made a choice. It's you who must drink today."

The vial was small and delicate in my palm, and the liquid inside amounted to no more than a few drops. It was obviously a rare item, one to treasure or pay a huge price for. And I had nothing to give.

"To remember," I murmured aloud, "could be a curse."

"Oh, no," the king replied immediately, shaking his head vehemently, "to forget will always be the curse. And to forget who you are is the worst of them all."

I could feel in my heart the truth of his words.

So I opened the vial and poured the contents down my throat. And then I felt as if I were falling.

Images rushed through my head like ghosts rising from their graves. I heard the screaming of a boy, and perceived him transforming into a terrible beast. There were warm, loving faces surrounding me—faces of enchantments who did not know they were dead. There was a castle, black and mysterious. Inside was the boy in the demon mask...

Who? Who was that?

The whirring in my mind came to a complete, sudden halt.

Adrian.

I returned to full consciousness screaming.