Life was strange after Rose had written in the old fairytale book. There was a lot in the world that seemed out of place, but Rose couldn't put her finger on it. Instead, the blonde would wistfully skim over the pages of the book, over and over again. There was something missing, Rose thought. The ending she wrote didn't seem to capture what she wants to happen in the story. But how did Rose want to end this tale? Abiding from the story's rules the ending would have been perfect, but Rose wanted a bit more than that.

For some reason, Rose wanted the lonely witch to belong in a world that accepted her.

"Great, another fictional character I seem to harbor affections for," Rose said grudgingly. It's stupid, she has always been attached to characters before, but this is the first time such a character captured her attention merely through three pages. Rose didn't feel this strongly for the other stories! She didn't think about the dragon from page fourteen or the pirate captain from page eight! No, Rose's mind continuously and redundantly thought about the banished witch.

So every night, Rose read the story again, and again, and again. She read it before she left for school, she read it after she completed homework. Rose read these words aloud like it was the gospel and she was the preacher delivering it. Rose read until her throat went dry. The determined teen plotted the ending over and over again. All of her maps, and her notes related only to one thing, and that was the best ending for the witch. Since Rose received the book three months ago, she has been obsessed with this book.

"Rose, c'mon. You have to get out of that room of yours and go hang out with your friends or something," Rose's mother said to during dinner. "You're too caught up in your writing now-a-days, Rose. Even the greatest writers had to take a break," Rose's parental figure lectured.

"I'm fine, I'm just having a rough writer's block is all," Rose replied as she stuffed a spoonful of dinner into her mouth. Her eyes were concentrated on the yellow notepad in front of her. It read:

The witched traveled past the emptiness of this bleak dimension. Quiet and alone, the witch made her journey to the source of this light. Her world drifted farther away, and her powers grew weaker and weaker. She remembers that a long, long time ago, there were multiple worlds and her people were the guardians of the gates. Yes… This was the truth. The witch could not recall anything more, for when she heard that old tale, she was just a child. The witch wondered, why one particular world glowed brighter than the rest.

In the nothingness, the witch thought about many things. She drifted for what felt like years until she was so close to this new world. A thin veil surrounds the entity of the new world, and the witch placed a single finger past it. She realized that her magic was draining in this world.

The witch had found herself in a new world, but in that world her magic would never work. If she were to descend upon this planet, her powers and her ability to return home would vanish. But how could the witch ever return to a place where she doesn't belong? To be an alien in the world in which you were born in was a heartbreaking experience for the witch. She can never go back. She can only move forward.

So the witch approaches this world, and the bright light it emits. Certainly, this would be her new home. One where she would never be ridiculed, one where she would finally break free of the loneliness in her heart.

Rose stared at the piece until her mother called next to her," Goodness Rose. Stare at that any longer and you'll open a wormhole to the next dimension," Rose's mom joked casually. "It looks fine, Rose darling, you're a good writer. So chill."

Rose sighed. "I'm not really happy with this though. I'm not happy with any of the material for this story," Rose said wearily. "I'm just so tired of all of this writing, I want to stop."

Rose's mom looked to her daughter and laughed. "Then stop! You're not obligated to finish something that stresses you out! I'd be real upset if I spent four hours in front of a screen, or notebook or something, just glaring at whatever's in front of me," Rose's mom advised wisely.

"I suppose that I tend to get carried away by my hobbies," Rose groaned as she held up her cup of coffee. She swayed the mug dangerously, and the heated liquid was close to spilling out.

"Rose, look out. You're going to burn yourself again, sweetheart," the responsible parent warned.

"Shit," Rose cursed.

"Damn it Rose, don't curse in front of your parents!" the responsible parent said.

Rose giggled and her mom wrapped an arm around her. "See, chill out. You have too much things to think about, so take a break from all this writing and go talk to your friends."

Rose rolled her eyes, but grinned. She grabbed her belongings, (a notebook and her purple pen) and gave her mom just one more hug. "I'll be in my room playing video games with my friends," she said as she got up from her seat.

"Good! Screw all of those productive hobbies like writing or editing! Go do something anti-productive like the good child you are," the older Lalonde woman replied.

Rose nodded as she left the dinner room. Her mother was such a whimsical woman, but her knowledge and advice was always wise. Rose sped her way toward her room, and sat down by her desk. Slowly, the teen began taking all of her writing notes down. One by one, she pulled the old sticky notes that were plastered all around her workstation. She then placed them in between the cover and the first page of the old story book. Finally, Rose opened the bottom drawer of her desk, and gently placed the book down. She sighed contently and grabbed her laptop from one of the other compartments.

Fortunately, Kanaya and John seemed to both be online. They seemed to the only ones online, so Rose pulled up a chat for all three of them.


TT at 20:15 opened memo on board John, Kanaya let's chat for a bit.
tentacleTherapist [TT] responded to this memo.
TT: Hello. I apologize for not coming online for the past three months.
TT: I'm afraid that I have been too caught up my personal activities, but rest assured that I'm currently taking a break as of now.
ectoBiologist [EB] responded to this memo.
EB: whoa, no need to apologize rose!
EB: it's really nice to see you online again and all, but you shouldn't feel too guilty about it.
EB: you know what, i'm going to give you a hug tomorrow.
EB: also hi, rose!
TT: Hi John.
TT: And thank you, John. I shouldn't ruminate about such little things. Honestly, I felt as if I was neglecting my friends.
grimAuxiliatrix [GA] responded to this memo.
GA: It's Not As If We Don't See You Around School Rose.
EB: hey, kanaya!
GA: Hello John.
TT: Hello Kanaya.
GA: Hello Rose.
GA: As I Was Saying…
GA: You're Behavior These Past Few Months Have Been Peculiar, But I'm Sure That All Of Us Have Come To Accept Your Oddities. Please Disregard Any Negative Emotions You Possess Pertaining to Your Relationship With Your Friends.
EB: every body don't panic, i can understand maryamian.
TT: John, you don't have too.
EB: no i must. not every one is proficient at maryam speak as i am.
TT: Really, John it's fine.
EB: translation: kanaya thinks that even if you do weird stuff, we love you for it so don't ever change, rose. also, ignore those dark feelings about neglecting your friends because it's dumb.
GA: Thank You John. Rose Needed Such A Divine Translator. I Should Hire You.
GA: I Especially Loved The "because it's dumb" Line You Wonderfully Pulled From the Magnificent Brain of Yours.
TT: Sentimental dorks, the both of you… But I suppose I am too, because the smile on my face is enormous.
EB: heh, we'll be here all night.
GA: Or Not.
EB: fine! i'll have my new best bud jade on my act!
GA: I Guess The Harley Girl Would Amuse Your Antics For A While, But Eventually She Too Would Inevitably Join The No-Nonsense Side Of Life.
EB: no!
TT: Jade Harley?
EB: oh yeah.
EB: you've been in the library these past few months so you've never met jade yet.
TT: Is she a new addition into our ever expanding group of friends?
GA: I Recommend That You Approach Her. She Stares At You Sometimes When You Are Studying Alone.
TT: Hmm, Kanaya I'm sure that it would be ill-advised to introduce someone who possess psychopathically characteristics to a friend.
EB: i'm pretty sure jade's just interested in your book.
EB: she asked me about it a few days ago.
TT: Okay. I think I would like to meet a fellow fairytale enthusiast.

The following conversation then turned to books, then to school, then to school gossip. John and Kanaya don't seem like the people to follow up on which teacher is cheating on their diet, but they do. It felt really nice to take a break. However, occasionally Rose's thoughts would return to the book by her bed side. Maybe she should really introduce herself to the new girl John and Kanaya was talking about.