Disclaimer: I do not own the 10th Kingdom. This is merely a fanfiction.

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The drive back to Grandma Nessa's farm in rural New Jersey was done in silence. The first peep came from Virginia as the old ranch came into view and she could see the rolling hills and farms. "It's huge!" she exclaimed.

Nessa turned from the front passenger seat. "You ain't seen nothin' hon'. Wait till I introduce you to Larry!"

"Larry? Grandma, you've got a boyfriend living here?"

Nessa chuckled as she readjusted her seat.

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"Larry", as it turned out, was a simple grey horse that looked well beyond his years. His grey mane fell over a tired, long face with slowly flaring nostrils. Larry had seen better days for sure. Virginia wasn't sure whether he'd see too many more.

Nessa patted the horse on his head as Evelyn carried the napping Jeannie towards the farmhouse. "You two – be sure to be nice to ol' Larry. I've got some things to prepare in the meantime." She began shuffling off towards the cellar of the farmhouse.

"Do you think we'll be safe here?" Virginia asked her.

Nessa paused, her back to Virginia and Wolf. "From those guys? Nowhere is safe." She pointed at several empty pails. "There's a creek that runs through here. Be sure to fill up those pails, will ya'?" She began shuffling off again.

Wolf was taking in the scents as Virginia grabbed a pail. He wrung his hands nervously. "Oh Virginia, not that I'm not eternally grateful that you broke me free from those guys – but Huff Puff! A farm! And a full moon in a few nights. Oh, it's the Peeps all over again! I can feel my blood boiling! And your grandmother's got some nice sheep – oh, but she's half-wolf too! How can she resist them? Unless … she found a way! Oh if I could just learn her secret -."

Virginia pressed a pail into his chest. "Come on."

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The two approached a creek that ran through the edge of the woods. As they entered the woods, they could see the moonlight between the branches. They continued in silence as they knelt down by the creek bed. Virginia went to scoop up some water when Wolf stopped her.

"Wait -."

Virginia looked around. "What am I waiting for?"

"Go ahead – do it slowly."

Shrugging, she scooped up some water from the creek into the pail. In the pail a sudden faint golden glow rose up from the water.

"As I thought," Wolf said. "Magic. There's even more to Grandma Nessa than you thought."

"Clearly," Virginia half-replied, staring at the glowing pail of water.

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The two walked back to the farm, once again in silence. They reached Larry whose knees were trembling. Virginia groaned as she placed the pail on the ground. "I need a minute …"

Wolf placed his pails down and sat next to her on the grass. The two stared off at the moon in silence. Virginia looked away from him, rubbing her arm awkwardly. She opened her mouth to say something.

"I'm sorry," they both blurted out at the same time.

They smiled in embarrassment. "You first," Wolf nodded.

"I'm sorry for going off on you the other night in the restaurant. It's just – you know it's always been my dream to own my own restaurant and getting my loan denied -."

"Virginia, I'm the one who should be apologizing. I should have honored your request and kept the budget low."

"When you were captured, the only thing I could think was that the last thing I said was that you didn't care about my feelings! I could never have lived with myself if anything happened -."

Wolf wrapped an arm around her and held her close to his chest.

"Do we suck at coupling?" Virginia asked him.

"Virginia, no! Of course not! It just takes work. Like all relationships. My parents had their ups and downs. What we kids should wear, where we should go to school, who we should eat." He cupped her face with one hand and stared into her eyes. "No matter what, we are going to make this marriage work. You and me. I'm with you through thick and thin. I'm your wolf! And … for our little cub." His hand went to her belly. Their lips parted and met …

"If you're both quite done making me gag, we appear to have company!"

The couple started at the sound of the male voice and sprang to their feet. "Who said that?" Virginia demanded. She and Wolf looked around. Nothing but the stars.

"Behind you, you idiots!"

Virginia spun around in anger. "I am not an idiot -."

Nobody there. Except Larry the old horse.

Virginia narrowed her eyes. "Did … did the horse talk?"

Wolf nodded. "He must be from the Nine Kingdoms!"

"Figure that out on your own, didya? Maybe next you two can figure out whether the square block can go into the square peg. Or count higher than your fingers and toes!"

"He's an angry horse," Wolf muttered.

"This is all too much for me," Virginia said. "Between my grandmother being half-wolf and glowing water -."

"You saved the entire Nine Kingdoms from your crazed mother and this is too much for ya?" Larry spat. "In any event, you two dimwads might want to get a move on and get that water to Nessa. We got company and it ain't friendly."

On the road in the distance, Virginia could see high beams. "Leone," she breathed. "He tracked us through that collar!"

Wolf tugged at the electric collar still around his neck. "The infernal thing won't come off!"

Grabbing his arm, Virginia began leading him towards the farmhouse. Larry cleared his throat in a very loud and exaggerated way to get their attention.

"Yes?" Wolf asked irritably.

"You're forgetting the pails of water."

"Oh Huff Puff, who cares about water at a time like this?!"

"Okay, so if you don't mind leaving your only means of escape behind …" Larry's voice trailed off.

"Grab the pails, Wolf," Virginia grumbled as she grabbed two of her own.

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The Humvee jolted to a stop. Booted feet crunched on the gravel. Leone lit a cigarette as his two cohorts emerged. All three heavily armed. Leone took a puff. "She's here. I can practically smell her."

He walked along a henhouse, taking in the starry sky, enjoying the crisp rural air.

"Do we take 'em by force?" one cohort asked.

Leone was enjoying his cigarette. "No. Why rush in, guns blazing when we can … smoke them out?" He flicked a cigarette into the henhouse and suddenly black smoke began billowing out of it.

"Burn the whole place down!"

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Evelyn was racing down the stairs of the farmhouse with Jeannie in tow as Virginia and Wolf burst in, careful not to spill the water.

Evelyn pointed. "Cellar. Now!"

"You have to get to safety!" Virginia shouted.

SMASH!

A window was shattered – a rock covered in flaming paper lay on the floor. The flames spread rapidly across the living room. Jeannie screamed, clutching at her mother.

"I'll take care of Jeannie!" Evelyn yelled as she grabbed her daughter, racing in the opposite direction. "Cellar!" she yelled over her shoulder.

Trying not to gag on the billowing smoke, Virginia wrenched open the basement doors. She and Wolf stumbled down a set of rickety stairs into the cellar.

Nessa was already there, fumbling with a tarp. "I know, I know –" she was saying as she saw them. "I was hoping we had more time to get it ready!"

Virginia was perplexed. "Get what ready?"

"The Magic Well!" Nessa exclaimed.

"The what?!"

Nessa fully peeled back the tarp, revealing a hole in the center of the concrete. "Well don't just stand there like two lumps – fill it up! You did make sure to get the water from the creek?"

Nodding, Virginia and Wolf took turns filling the well as Nessa paced back and forth.

Above, they could see smoke billowing down the stairs. The fire was spreading.

"I had a feeling they would do this," Nessa growled. "Evelyn will have gotten Jeannie to safety by now. Hopefully she's on the phone with the fire department."

"What about Leone?" Virginia asked as she dumped another pail of water into the well.

"Don't you worry – we're not completely defenseless!"

Virginia didn't like the creepy grin growing across Nessa's face.

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Leone reclined on the front of the Humvee, lighting another cigarette as they watched the glowing embers continue to consume the farmhouse.

"They're not coming out," his partner said.

Leone shrugged. "So then let them burn. I'll have had my revenge either way."

Next to them, a grey shaggy horse appeared. Leone's partner tried to shoo him away. "Go on, get out of here."

The horse just stared at them idiotically.

"Forget him," Leone said. "Who cares about a lousy horse?" He took a drag on his cigarette. When he turned his head, two more horses had appeared. He shrugged, staring at the burning farmhouse.

Several sheep materialized out of the night. As well as several hens. Very angry hens covered in ash.

The two partners stared. "Ugh … I don't like the looks they're giving us."

"They're just dumb animals!" Leone spat.

"Who you calling dumb, fatface?!"

Leone started as he heard the horse talk. He and his partners suddenly trained their guns on the animals. "They're from the Nine Kingdoms!"

They never got a shot off. Larry suddenly rose up on his haunches, his hooves smashing both of the partners down. The sheep charged, trampling them.

Leone fumbled with his rifle – BAM! BAM! He fired shots off into the night. Missing. He turned – a billy goat was pawing at the ground and lowering his head.

CRASH!

Leone was thrown across the yard by the billy goat, his rifle flying. He rose up, seeing his partners screaming as they were gnawed on by the sheep and pecked by the hens. "Why?" one was screaming. "Why are their talons so sharp?"

Leone snarled as he grabbed his fallen rifle. He turned to the burning house. Making sure his cartridge wasn't jammed, he left his "friends" to the mercy of the barnyard animals.

He had bigger prey.

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"There now – all finished?"

Virginia nodded.

"This might take a moment …" Nessa waited with bated breath. The water in the well began swirling – and suddenly, a portal appeared. Virginia could see trees through the well – the Fourth Kingdom.

"What is this?" Virginia asked.

Her grandmother smiled sadly. "How I first came here to New Jersey from the Fourth Kingdom. You didn't think mirrors were the only way to travel between realms? Now hurry, it can only stay open for a minute!"

"I can't go to the Fourth Kingdom!" Virginia protested.

"We're getting married soon!" Wolf agreed. "And I charged $250 a plate to Virginia's credit card!"

"There won't be a wedding if Leone gets his hands on you!" Nessa yelled back. "You can't stop him here – but there might be a chance if you can get some aide! Now go!"

Above, the door to the cellar was blown off its hinges. Leone appeared, his eyes lusting for blood. He saw the well. "No ...!"

Virginia took in her grandmother and her eyes welled with tears. "Grandma -."

"GO!"

With a firm but loving shove, Nessa pushed Virginia and Wolf into the now glowing well.

"NOOOO!"

Leone leaped down the stairs, unloading his rifle's clip into the well as Virginia and Wolf disappeared through it, screaming madly.

It was too late. They were gone.

He turned his rage on Nessa. "You crazy old bag!"

He aimed his rifle at her stomach. Nessa closed her eyes in resignation, waiting for the gunshot …

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BAM!

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Nessa dared to open an eye. The flames had spread to the basement. She coughed and gagged on the smoke.

At her feet lay Leone, unconscious. Evelyn stood above him, holding a wooden board.

"Nice one, hon'" Nessa grinned.

"We can't leave him there like this," Evelyn said.

"You're right," agreed Nessa. "I've got an idea …"

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The firefighters had arrived in earnest and were working to put out the flames. Leone's two partners were gone, having been chased off by the magical livestock who were now, in the presence of the firefighters, acting like normal barn animals.

Nessa sighed as Evelyn put her hand on her shoulder and Jeannie watched in awe and horror. "There goes my whole life," she lamented.

"We can rebuild," Evelyn said.

"Your Pa and I lived here our whole marriage. Eh, it's for the best. Burn down the old to bring in the new." She turned to look at Evelyn and Jeannie. "Best we lay low for a while. In case those dirtbags come for us looking for information. I'm thinking Florida. A nice pool with a handsome pool boy serving me drinks as he pours lotion on my -."

"We get the picture," Evelyn cut her off as she covered Jeannie's ears.

The trio stood there, watching the house burn away, hoping that Virginia and Wolf made it safely to the Fourth Kingdom.

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Leone awoke to find himself tied to a tree next to the creek. He thrashed against his bindings, snarling, vowing revenge. He sighed, staring up at the moon through the trees. "I'm sorry," he said to his family. He allowed his tears to flow.

"Leone …"

That voice. No, it couldn't be.

"Leave me alone!" he screamed into the night.

"But you're not alone. You can never be alone … they will always haunt you, won't they? What the Evil Queen made you do to them … come now. Be my child again and you will have your vengeance …"

An icy tendril emerged from the stream. It fashioned its tip into a blade, slicing Leone's bindings free. He fell to his knees and stared into the creek. A portion of the water froze in place, turning into a mirror.

The Snow Queen was staring back at him.

"I'll never be your child again!"

The Snow Queen only smiled. "You belong to me. Even after what the Evil Queen did to you, your heart remains frozen to mine." Her hand reached out through the icy mirror, extending to Leone. He stared at it.

"Let the Devil take you," Leone spat. "You and the Evil Queen, may he take both your souls for what you both did to me!"

"Oh, the Evil Queen is paying for her crimes," the Snow Queen smiled. "Her soul is trapped in the Devil's Mirror. Do you remember my mirror, Leone?"

"I remember the horrors it showed me!"

"Horrors that I can inflict on your enemies. Will inflict on them. Come to me, and you will have your revenge." The hand was still out for him to embrace.

"How?" he asked.

"Come. Trail them. But do not kill them -."

Leone spat at her hand. "You said revenge! I want that girl dead! I want to watch the light leave her eyes!"

"And you shall," the Snow Queen promised. "But death is not enough. Why only kill her? The Heroine of the Nine Kingdoms … let the people have their hero."

"I don't understand."

The Snow Queen continued to smile. "My plan … from the very beginning. All of them have been my puppets. Even the Evil Queen was my marionette that I dangled from my icy prison. And she introduced Virginia Lewis to the Nine Kingdoms. Their savior. Let them have their heroine, their idol that they can all rally around. Let them stand behind her banner, hold her ensign. Let them place all their hopes in her. Let them lift her up high – so that when she falls, she has further to plummet. Come to me, my child, and I will make all things clear."

Leone hesitated … and then took the Snow Queen's hand.