A/N: A busy few weeks, but finally got this chapter done. Thanks for the nice reviews!

Despite having only a small sample of the entire meal, GoGo's stomach was bulging within minutes and she couldn't bring herself to reach for another drumstick.

"Well?" the clock - Wasabi, she supposed - asked expectantly.

"That was really good," she said genuinely, swirling her fork in the leftover mashed potatoes. She knew she would regret not finishing it later, but the stuff would just come right back up if she tried to swallow any more. She turned to some of the other bouncing objects. "Did you make all of this?"

"Aye, I did," grunted one of the spatulas. A ladle jabbed at him. "Well... a lot of it. I was the head chef around here, see."

"Was?"

"You definitely overestimated the amount of food she'd eat," Wasabi said.

"Oi, I've only ever cooked for the Prince these past ten years!"

"What, so none of you can eat?" GoGo asked. As soon as she said it, she realized it was a rather stupid question. Who'd ever heard of a clock with a digestive system? Still, it wasn't every day you met normally inanimate objects with faces.

"Oh, no, no, we're enchanted objects, dear," the teapot named Honey Lemon giggled. "Only the Crown Prince can eat, since he's a... well... we're not quite sure what he is... Come along, then, let's get you back to your room!"

As she slid off the seat she looked back longingly at the food, which some of the servants were already beginning to carry it away. Were they bringing the rest to the Prince? Or were they storing it for some other time? It would be atrocious to waste such a fine meal. Nonetheless, the cup, teapot, candleholder, and clock tugged at her skirt and led her out the door.

She strode up the stairs quite easily, but she eyed the objects as they jumped along beside her. Ten years, they'd said. Surely they were accustomed to it, but they still panted every few steps and Wasabi especially appeared to struggle with all the cogs and machinery in his body.

"Here," she mumbled, kneeling down and offering her arm to them.

"Oh, no," Honey Lemon protested, "I couldn't - "

"All right!" the cup cheered, throwing himself into her palm.

GoGo nudged her arm at Honey Lemon, who bit her lower lip before relenting and climbing onto her shoulder. Wasabi thanked her graciously, clutching onto the crook of her arm (and he certainly was weighty, but no more than the groceries she brought home every weekend). She agreed to hold Fred in her hand at the risk of any of his candles burning her.

"Do you ever think of finding an easier way to get up the stairs?" she asked.

"If we knew any, do you think I'd be putting myself through this torture?" Hiro replied sarcastically.

Annoyed, she began to lower him down.

"No, wait! You have such a... gentle soul?"

She snorted and rolled her eyes, but carried on into her quarters. She watched attentively as she lowered them to the floor and dusted themselves off. Whatever anger she held on so tightly to moments ago ebbed away. Perhaps she gave in too easily, but a part of her was also fascinated by this place and exploding with questions.

"What are you, exactly?" she asked. Did the question come off as rude? She decided she still had enough annoyance left in her to not care.

"To be honest, we're not too sure either," Hiro answered earnestly. "All we know is that stupid witch - enchantress, whatever she is - "

"Witch?"

"I think it's best we explain to her from the beginning," Honey Lemon suggested. And so, after some clamoring, they told the story of the enchantress who cursed them.

"You tried to poison her?" GoGo said, shocked at the tiny little cup who really couldn't be more than an adolescent.

"Not poison her," Hiro protested. "Just get her sick enough so she'd have to be sent back to wherever she came from and stop ordering us around."

"That's poisoning."

"Well, I wasn't trying to kill her!"

She very nearly pointed out this situation was technically his fault, but decided that was going too far. "Well, I'm not surprised she cursed you," she muttered instead, pulling her knees up. "You guys aren't exactly the nicest bunch."

"Hey, we're not always like that!" Wasabi protested.

"Uh-huh. Is there a way to break it?"

"Pardon?"

"Because, you know. Curses always have to be broken somehow."

"Well..."

"Gee, I wish I knew," Hiro said hastily, "but the enchantress didn't lay it on us before she, you know, cursed us. So, uh, if there is a way..."

GoGo pressed her hand to her mouth to suppress a yawn. Her eyelids felt heavy, but she still had a million queries.

"Let her sleep," Honey Lemon said softly. "It's been a long day."

"I'm not - "

"Hey, we can always chat tomorrow," Fred chirped.

"I have some nightgowns right here," said the wardrobe, swinging her doors open once again.

Feeling as if her body was weighing her down, she nodded with another yawn as the servants wished her good night and hopped out the door.

...

BANG!

GoGo sprung from her bed with a start, clutching her chest and breathing heavily as she turned to the door. Honey Lemon strode in with a chipper, "Rise and shine! Time for breakfast!"

The wardrobe swung its doors open. "Do pick a more cheerful color, would you? Pink would be wonderful!"

The girl blanched.

"Ooh, what about red?" Honey Lemon chirped.

"Goodness, no! That's too daring, and that should be reserved for a more - " The wardrobe eyed the girl cautiously.

As they argued back and forth over the color of dresses, GoGo peeked in the wardrobe herself (was this a strange thing to do?) and rummaged through the clothing. At last she spotted a simple lilac dress and plucked it out, weighing the fabric in her palm. A cotton skirt, fitted waist, sleeves just about her elbows. Color aside, not too different from what she would wear at home. It matched her streak and oh, what Aunt Cass would say if she saw her wearing a color other than black for once.

"That's so bland," the wardrobe complained.

"I think purple's just the loveliest color!" Honey Lemon squealed. "Hurry and get ready, will you? You must have breakfast with the Prince!"

...

"Remember, she doesn't know anything about the curse!" Hiro hissed.

"Really?" Tadashi asked as he pulled out a chair for himself. "I assumed she'd have some questions about a talking cup."

"Haha. You done? I'm talking about how to break the curse, you stupid sack of shit."

"Hiro, where did you learn that word?"

"Not the priority right now!" Hiro snapped as Wasabi prepared the rest of the dishes and whistled innocently. "You can slap me silly when we're back in human form because honestly, doing it while I'm still a cup is just all kinds of unfair. How old do you think I am, anyway?"

"Your Highness!" Fred cried, bursting into the dining hall. "Your guest is coming!"

Hiro, Wasabi, and the other servants scrambled to their places while Tadashi pulled his seat in and straightened his back (as much as he could, anyway), folding his hands together and squeaking all the way.

The guest - GoGo, was it? - entered and took her seat at the other end of the table, pointedly keeping her eyes off him. Her hair was neatly combed and her dress hugged at her waist nicely, and Tadashi wanted nothing more than to run and hide in such an awkward form. She didn't seem terrified or even angry as she had last night, although her eyes flickered with eagerness when she spotted the food.

"Um, good morning," he greeted, anxiously squeaking his fingers.

She acknowledged him with a nod for a good second before returning to the feast set before her. Ravenously, she reached for helpings of bacon, scrambled eggs, sausages, and fried potatoes and piled them on her plate. He watched in fascination as she wolfed them down, wondering if she'd ever had a meal before in her life.

Beneath the table, Tadashi felt several servants nudging his legs. He cleared his throat. "You... have a big appetite." He heard groans follow.

GoGo didn't seem to mind. She merely nodded as she scarfed down more sausages.

"Um... the food is good, isn't it?" What a dumb question. Why would she eat so much otherwise?

Their eyes met as she smacked her lips. Was she still angry? Well, it wasn't like she'd thrown any of her eggs at him.

"Are you going to eat?" she asked.

She'd spoken! He'd never heard her speak before. "Oh! Oh, yes." He reached for some of the eggs, but his rubber skin screeched horribly against the table, making her cringe. He shoveled a few helpings onto his own plate and pulled back into his seat, embarrassed to death. The noise, unfortunately, did not cease as he brought the food to his mouth, opening the line between his eyes. When he chomped down, he caught the girl staring.

"Sorry," he apologized. "I wish I could do something about the squeaking."

She returned to her breakfast. "Don't care," she dismissed, although she rapped her fingers across the table.

"So... er, how do you like your stay so far?"

"Food's good." Suddenly she flicked her fork to the table and narrowed her eyes at him. "So what is the deal with this 'Prince' thing?"

"P-pardon - ?"
"Are you really a Prince?" she pressed. "Because as far as I know, the Queen doesn't have an heir."

"I-I - "

"Is it just some fancy title? How come I've never heard of you before?"

"How old are you?" Tadashi asked.

She furrowed her eyebrows. This wasn't the response she'd been expecting. "Eighteen."

Eighteen. She didn't seem old enough to know anyway, but still. He rested his chin on his hands, but stopped when that started to squeak as well. "Well, we've been cursed for about ten years. I doubt you would have heard anything."

"Anything about what? Were you dethroned or something?"

"No," Tadashi insisted. He felt a flicker of warmth in his cheeks and tried to change the subject. "Look, that's not important - "

She shrugged. "I suppose it doesn't matter. You would have made an awful king."

The heat intensified and Tadashi was starting to see what the servants were complaining about. He slammed his palms on the table and glared at her. "What would you know? You've been nothing but hostile and sullen since you got here!"

"Oh, gee!" she burst. "You people imprison my aunt for no reason and drag me here to pick her up and kidnap me instead! That's every peasant's dream, you know!"

"What right does that give you to act as if you're some expert on something that happened ten years ago?"

"Your Highness, please!" Honey Lemon cried.

"Again with the ten years? I would have been - " GoGo stopped talking and looked away. Tadashi felt he must've stepped on a land mine because she immediately rose from her seat without so much as a glance at the rest of her meal. "I'm leaving." To the frustration of the servants, she fled back to her room.

The flame died. Tadashi slumped back in the seat, rubbing his face. "I messed up."

"Yeah, you did," Hiro admitted. "But to be fair, she's mean, too."

"She got upset about ten years ago, so maybe something bad happened when she was six," Fred suggested.

"Ten y - Fred, she would have been - " Hiro stopped when Wasabi tapped his shoulder and shook his head.

"Just let it go," he whispered.

Honey Lemon primly hopped closer to the Prince. "Learn to relax," she instructed. "Don't ask so many questions about what she thinks about the castle. And don't get too into detail about the curse if she asks. It'll only remind her about what's happened. Ask about her."

Tadashi rubbed his arm. "But won't she get angry about her aunt?"

"Well, surely not every memory is connected to her aunt! Ask about her hobbies. What kind of things does she like? And more importantly, what kind of clothing is she interested in? What I would give to give her a decent makeover - "

"Honey!" Wasabi hissed.

"Well, she can't reject all my ideas forever!"

"Tell her about how much you like monster stories," Fred added.

"I don't like monster stories," Tadashi said.

"Well, why don't you?!"

"That's not a bad idea," Hiro said. "Talk to her about yourself. Maybe then she'll stop thinking of you as a freak of nature."

Ignoring his brother's insult, the Prince thought about it. Yes, it was possible this strange form made it impossible for them to connect, but if he could prove to her that there was indeed a human side to him, perhaps something could work.

"But what if she starts acting rude again?" Tadashi thought aloud.

"Then control your temper!" the servants yelled.

Before they could get out another word to him, a flurry of bobby pins stampeded throughout the kitchen, squealing and shrieking.

"OH, WHY - I keep telling Danforth and Nicholas to keep their trainees - " a plate fumed.

"Perhaps you should go tell them," Honey Lemon said.

"Right... Dan! Nicky! Your bobbies!"

...

Here he was at the door again. In his rubber hands, he held one of the novels he'd taken from the library. It had to spark some kind of conversation? But what if she didn't like books? Perhaps they could discuss hating novels. But he didn't hate novels.

Shut up, Tadashi, he thought to himself. He would have to do something. Hesitantly he knocked his squishy fingers against the door and cleared his throat. When she didn't answer immediately, a slight panic rose in him. What if she was still angry? What if she never wanted to come back out? What if -

At last the door slowly creaked open, Tadashi anxiously anticipating each second. The guest poked her head out with a wrinkled nose.

"Er... hello," Tadashi greeted, waving.

"What do you want?" she snapped.

Tadashi flinched, but he held out the book. She stared before gingerly accepting it. "Well... we didn't get exactly have the best start this morning and I was thinking..."

She snorted derisively.

He huffed. "All right. I understand. I was being unfair this morning and yes, I would be an awful King. I know that. It's not a position I'm vying for anyway. So you can keep the book, and I won't ever bother you again - "

"Wait," she said suddenly.

What now?

"I chose to be here," she said firmly. "Er, in that... I volunteered to be here in place of my aunt. So it was partially my choice, too." She looked away and clutched the book more tightly. "I'm sorry for being rude this morning. Staying angry hasn't exactly helped me, anyway."

That was about the last thing he'd expected. He watched her stunned.

"So what was it you wanted to say?"

Tadashi shuffled awkwardly. "I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."

"Water under the bridge."

"No, I really shouldn't have." He cocked his head at the book. "I just wanted to know... do you like reading?"

She peered at the title, and her eyes widened. "The Lady's Conquest?"

"It's one I'm particularly fond of, but I understand if you're not really interested..."

"This is one of my favorites," she interrupted. If he wasn't mistaken, the corner of her mouth tweaked.

"I have an entire library in the east wing if you're interested," he said cheerfully.

This time GoGo smiled genuinely, and her entire face softened. It was warm, inviting. And he'd be lying if he said it wasn't a bit dazzling. "I'd love that."

Excited, the Prince beckoned her to follow him, and it seemed neither of them minded all the squeaks.

"So could you explain this Prince thing for real on the way?"