Charlene and Willa had no success finding the others. They kept searching till dark, at which point they reluctantly agreed that it was just them two.

"But…why us? There's no reason for Maleficent to target just us and no one else…is there?" Charlene exclaimed after deeming the last hay cart empty.

Willa bit her lip. Think, she told herself over and over. Think, think…. But she couldn't come up with anything. They could ask the king, but good luck getting an audience with him. The villagers probably knew nothing…

The villagers? Willa jerked up so that she was standing straight and spoke in a nervous voice to Charlene.

"The villagers are awake still. So when in the story are we? And….what happens to us when everyone goes to sleep- where will our DHIs cross to?"

Willa was speaking as quickly as possible, her mind jumping from one idea to the next. But Charlene wasn't even looking at her. Eventually Willa noticed this, and, slightly irritated, shoved her a little.

Charlene grabbed her friends shoulder and turned her around, pointing at a stack of barrels maybe 30 meters away. Willa frowned at her, still a bit annoyed that her thoughts hadn't been heard. She opened her mouth to speak, but Charlene intervened by putting a finger to her lips urgently.

"I saw some movement over there. I think someone's watching us." Charlene whispered into Willa's ear. Willa nodded, her earlier feelings of irritation forgotten.

Some would've followed the instinct to run in the other direction, but these girls were naturally curious. Together, they stepped forward. Tentatively at first, their walking became faster and faster until they broke into a sprint, determined to find their observer.

They turned the corner and immediately spotted a small cloaked figure trying to make an escape. Charlene quickly caught up and tackled them from the side.

The hood fell off to reveal a girl about their age, with beautiful golden locks flowing about her face. Even Charlene wasn't so stunningly beautiful. The girl's ruby red lips and clear, intelligent blue eyes belonged to a princess in a fairytale.

Well, that's where we are, in a fairytale, Willa thought numbly. If only this were the…Willa gasped.

"Princess Aurora?" she whispered in awe. Charlene's eyes went wide and she released her very firm grip on the girl.

Aurora's expression quickly flickered from surprise to dejectedness.

"You know who I am? You're going to turn me into my father, aren't you?" She sighed.

Willa and Charlene exchanged glances before hurrying to console her. "No, of course not. Just…what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with the fairies?" Charlene said.

Aurora rolled her eyes and sat up, rubbing her sore muscles and new bruises. Charlene must've tackled her a bit too hard.

"I come here whenever I can, usually at night. Life gets so boring out in the woods. All there is to do is pick berries and sing stupid songs."

Willa nodded in sympathy. It would be dull. But wasn't the princess supposed to like singing about unfound love and making flower chains for the animals? Maybe the stories didn't get everything right, Willa guessed.

Aurora stared up at both of them, obviously noticing that they didn't belong here. No matter how much they tried to blend in, they still looked out of place.

"So, what are you two doing here?"