Rifiuto: Non Miriena

A/N: Written: 2015, Found: 2018- Licia

Eyes widened and mouths dropped. And not just from the other children of the Seven Kingdoms but from her friends, all except Raven, Mika and Cedar, who, being Cerise's roommate, had known about the ears not long after they first met, and had somehow managed to keep her mouth shut.

"Are... are those..."

"Real?" Cerise finished for Laia, who dropped into the other armchair beside the side of the sofa Raven was sitting on. Cerise had moved to stand by the fire when she unveiled her ears, and now the heat from the flames could really be felt. She nodded, a blush coloring her cheeks. "Yeah, they are. My parents are Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf."

More silence. It was starting to get tedious. After a moment, Veryu, Aqiztar's younger brother, made his way towards her. He circled her for a moment, before reaching out to gently brush his fingers over her ears before stopping. "May I?" She nodded, meeting his hazel gaze. Everyone seemed to hold their breath, before he stepped back. "You're a hybrid. A mixture of two cultures, two people from very different worlds, regardless of whether your father is part werewolf." Cerise's eyes widened, surprised at such a dignified response. "You are what Mikalos and Ravenna's children will be some day- a child of two worlds. The only different between you and their future children is that they come from the same ruling class, and I'm guessing your parents didn't."

"My mother grew up in the village. Her father was a carpenter. I... haven't had the guts to ask my dad where his family comes from." She whispered. The teenager nodded, giving her a small smile.

"You have nothing to fear, not in the Seven Kingdoms- or, well, six." He turned to Raven, who shook her head.

"She has nothing to fear here. Marberly is not like Ever After. Our traditions and our customs may be steeped in the ancient times, our religion may be paganistic and ritual in practice, but we don't turn away those who seek asylum and have a good reason for requesting. Should you ever need shelter, Cerise, Marberly will give it to you." Raven spoke softly, a queen addressing a subject on a personal level. The others nodded.

"Vispen as well." Cleon added.

"And Hestav."

"Minlex also."

"Andorilia will not turn you away."

"Palmarneae will also give you asylum, if you so choose." Mika added, sipping his drink. Tears came to Cerise's eyes as she studied the others, taking in the gazes and the words of the royal children. Most of them didn't know her, had only met her once before or were meeting her for the first time, and already, she had received more acceptance for being her true self than she ever would have in Ever After. She whispered a soft 'thank you' quickly wiping at her eyes.

Slowly, the questions were being asked; what fairy tales they 'came' from, what their true passions were, if they truly believed in 'Happily Ever After' as the storybooks said. The students answered the questions as best they could or wanted to, and soon, things began to loosen up to the point that Cerise and the others were quite enjoying themselves.

And then the page showed up.

Raven had since returned her legs to their place over Mika's lap, and was nursing a second glass of champagne as she debated the merits of weaponry with Hunter. A throat cleared, causing all conversation to stall, and Raven looked up. "Yes? Is everything all right?"

The young man stood by the door he'd slipped through, an apology flashing through his eyes at having to interrupt the evening. "The Duke of Handoreli is here, Your Majesty. He wishes to speak with you."

The queen groaned in annoyance, quickly downing her champagne glass and setting it on the table. After a moment, the man nodded to her, slipping out of the room. She peeled her legs from Mika's lap, taking a deep breath before standing. "I may need another drink before this is all over- or even after the man leaves."

The others shared glances, before Cleon reached out, grabbing her wrist as she moved past. "The Duke of Handoreli? He's still trying to-"

"Get me to marry him?" She finished. "Yeah. And he's going to keep trying, until either he dies or I die, whichever comes first. Frankly, I'm hoping it'll be him." She gently shook his hand off and smoothed her skirt, moving around the table, only to stop as the door opened and the Duke entered.

"Ah, Your Majesty!" He bowed extravagantly, and Raven grit her teeth.

"Duke. You dare interrupt me on the eve of my wedding?"

"Wedding?" The man looked confused for a moment, his gaze taking everything and everyone in, before lighting on Mika for the briefest of seconds. "Ah, yes, your... wedding..." With his long, greying brown hair and exceedingly thin figure, the Duke reminded the majority of the occupants in the room of a sleazy walking skeleton. He was before her in two strides of his long legs, snatching her hand from its place folded within the other and pressing his lips to it, lingering for several minutes, his dark eyes latching onto Raven's small chest before slowly moving up to meet her gaze.

She forcefully pulled her hand away, laughing nervously. "What do you want, Duke? If you are here to ask for my hand, or demand that I stop the wedding and instead marry you, you can forget it. I will never give you my hand in marriage, so you may as well stop asking. I am marrying Prince Mikalos in twenty-four hours' time, and nothing you say or do will change my mind or stop it. Am I clear?"

"But Your Majesty-"

Raven held up a hand. "Am I clear?"

He forced a smile, gaze darting to Mika, who had stood, making his way to her, to protect her, until Cleon grabbed his arm, reminding him softly that Raven was a grown woman and could take care of herself. He narrowed his gaze, never taking it off the young prince, even as he spoke to Raven. "Of course, Your Majesty. As clear as the finest Handoreli crystal." Slowly, his gaze returned to hers. "I'll take my leave. I'm sorry for interrupting you."

And then he turned, heading for the hall, but stopped in the doorway. As if in thought, he turned back, gaze once more going to Mika. When he spoke, his voice was cold, and it sent Raven's heart stalling. "You had better plan on enjoying what little time together you will have after the ceremony, Your Majesty. You never know when fate will deem to step in and steal it away."