Well, after over two months of waiting, here it is. I'm sorry guys! There's just been a lot going on right now in my life, and I've had no time to spare. But now it's summer! and I'll upload waaay more often. So no worries! What are we waiting for? So, without further ado, here's chapter 2!

After Gladice's ordeal with Brook and Lance, her stomach churned. She felt queasy and awful; but she wasn't sick. No, I am sick. I'm a sick person. How could I? Gladice was left to ponder at what Brook was doing. The events in the hallway led her to sitting in her room thinking about what a horrible queen she was going to be.

As for Brook, she took a carriage back to her home. Her mother made an attempt at comfort, but nothing seemed to be helping, and she couldn't stay there all day, since she had three other children to take care of besides Brook. "I'm going to go now, little Brook." As Pocahontas stood, her daughter's meek voice called out to her.

"Mother?" she asked. Her mother stopped and turned back.

"Yes, little Brook?"

"Are relationships always like this?" Pocahontas gave her a worried glance. "What I mean is, does it always come down to a choice? Love or friendship?" Brook bit her lip and looked expectantly up at her mother. All she got was a weary smile.

Finally, Pocahontas answered, "It is in my experience that every relationship you have is valuable, whether it a friendship or otherwise. If your friend does not approve of your boyfriend right away, give it time. If your boyfriend keeps you from your friends, then there is a decision to be made. But I believe you will be able to keep your friends if you are with Lance." With that, she left.

Lance had taken to fencing with his father, Phillip. It was not an unusual occurrence, but his father worried that the time he spent training was only a distraction. Philip was right. His son did not want to think about the situation. About how one of his best friends, who he'd come to think of as a sister, had such a crush on him that she would treat her friend so horribly over him. He hated himself, thinking that he was the cause of this. But he wasn't even sure if he could blame Gladice, to be honest. She reacted how she normally would have, because he was too blind to see the adoration she had always shown him. He was a fool for it.

Gladice spent nearly a week after the incident sulking in her room. She refused to speak. Barely ate. Hardly slept. She was not sure what exactly she was upset about, though. Was she really sorry for calling Brook that name and lashing out, or was she just sorry that she believed for one second that Lance would consider her anything more than a good friend? Her knees were tucked into her chest, when a knock came at the door. "Hello? Gladice?" a serene voice called. A very familiar voice...

Slowly, she moved to unlock and open her door, and instantly brightened. "Melody!" The raven haired girl smiled brightly back at Gladice. She let Melody in and gave her a hug.

"Thanks," sighed Gladice, "I really needed that."

"Rough week?" asked Melody.

"You heard?" Gladice averted her eyes, grimacing in guilt.

"Who didn't hear?" They shared a sympathetic look. "Do you... wanna talk about it?"

"Well...I-I don't want my mom barging in on us… not that she barges or anything..." Melody laughed.

"Why don't we lock the door, so she'll have to knock before entering." She stood up and locked the door. Gladice raised an eyebrow, but didn't object as she settled onto the bed. Sitting down beside her, Melody began rifling through her bag.

"I brought you something from Atlantis." Melody pulled a shiny seashell from her bag. Gladice looked inside and saw an inscription written inside. She read it aloud.

"I call upon thy ocean, to change the fates and sands of time for all eternity, until the meaning of true love is understood. What does that mean?" A wicked smile crossed Melody's face.

"Oh, you stupid child," she spat, her voice growing deeper. "You shall soon see for yourself." Suddenly overcome by exhaustion, Gladice's head swam with confusion. The last thing she saw before passing out was veiny purple skin. Ursula.

Alone. Weak. Alone. Gladice awoke gasping for air. For a moment, she expected to see the familiar sway of her curtains, the outline of her grandfather clock. The clock that she so hated, and yet wanted so desperately to see. But no, instead she felt the cool night air blowing on her shoulders and heard the rustle of leaves above her. A forest. Of course, there were plenty of those where she lived, so that was no help at all. There was no time to dwell on that, though, because a low growl startled her into pushing herself off the ground. Her knees wobbled, and the growl got louder. A thin lion slinked toward her, the scar over it's eyes only faintly visible in the dim lighting. It eyed her hungrily, and it seemed to be in no hurry. Why won't it just attack? With her back pressed against a tree, the lion roared something similar to.. a laugh? She wasn't sure, but it confirmed one thing: she was its entertainment.

Once she was sure the lion was going to pounce, she shielded her head with her forearms. The impact never came, and when she dared to look back up, Kaise and Keung were tag-teaming the lion, switching a long branch between them and using it as a bow staff to throw it off. Keung managed to get in a good hit between the lion's shoulder blades, causing it to double over in pain. One more hit on its head knocked it unconscious. Kaise blew her bangs out of her eyes. Clearly, she was not pleased with having her clothing covered in mud. "I don't mind getting dirty, but did it have to be the day I'm wearing my nice kimono?" she complained.

"You whine too much," Keung groaned. She stuck her tongue out at him and took Gladice's hand. "We have to hurry back to the camp. We don't want it waking up." Gladice nodded and went compliantly with the twins.

As they neared the camp, the eerie silence seemed an odd occurrence among the usually talkative group of young royalty. They reached the camp, but it did not feel right to call it a camp, since all it consisted of was a fire and the group surrounding it. It looked like there were only a few there. She spotted Brook and Angelica curled up against Lance. Evan sat with his arm around Rosette. It was such an awful realization, seeing them all there. None of them bothered to look up at her, except for Rosette, who merely pursed her lips and looked back down.Thalia brought Gladice a few berries and a cup of water, her flaming red hair frizzy from the humidity. She did not bother sitting next to any of her friends, instead looking around at the few others that joined them. Genevieve and Rei were there... Luke, it looked like? And, of course, those who she'd already seen.

That was it. They had nothing except each other. But that was enough to satisfy her, because they were all she needed.

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~Peace out- Icee~