It was a mild summer day, as though even the weather was reveling in the calm before the figurative storm. It was the kind of day you never think twice about once you're in it: sunny and slightly humid, with a light breeze like a warm breath across your face. The kind of day you take for granted once you've seen a million days like it; Or, once you realize that just because this kind of day is resting on the precipice of earth-shattering change, doesn't make it any less average.

A young, raven-haired girl was internally wrestling with the significance of this day, with a tiny furrow of her dark brows and a subtle pout on her red lips. The other, slightly older kids around her were more content, as to them this was their last day of freedom. But to her, it was something else entirely. She thoughtfully raked her pale fingers through her curly hair that had been tossed about by the wind, while a friend of hers protectively guarded her from the sun with a blue umbrella.

The dark-haired girl jokingly rolled her doe-like eyes up toward the other girl, a few years older than her, and strawberry-blonde with an absolutely angelic countenance.

"I didn't forget my sunblock this time, Cindy." The younger girl said.

Cindy tilted her head in understanding, a soft smile gracing her lips. "Can't blame me for looking out, Snow."

Snow White nodded and admitted, "No, I can't. But I really am being better about it now!"

Cindy laughed quietly and leaned back onto her elbows, a picture-perfect image of summer with her slightly sun-kissed skin and dainty pink sundress. The two girls sat on their picnic blanket strewn out on the grass and watched as their friends goofed around nearby, in a fearsome exchange of water balloons.

"Are you excited to be a high schooler tomorrow?" Cindy asked after a moment, smirking.

Snow didn't answer right away, which was all the confirmation that Cindy needed.

"Hey." The blonde said gently, prompting Snow to turn and look at her. Cindy offered her a look of reassurance. "The first day of your freshman year is bound to be rough. But you have an advantage that very few freshmen get…" She gestured to herself and sarcastically finished, "…cool older friends looking out for you."

Snow giggled and turned to look over the others, all running around and shrieking, hurling rubber orbs at each other that would explode and drench them. Snow was in fact the youngest of them; all the others were sophomores, juniors, and some even heading into their final year of high school, while she was just starting the first. They all had nothing to worry about, because they'd probably already seen the worst of what high school had to offer.

"Rorie's really excited to have you at the same school as us again." Cindy added.

Snow grinned. "We've only had to be apart for one year. Classes without me couldn't have been that bad."

Cindy shrugged, then suddenly sat up to whisper conspiratorially, "You know, we're all convinced that this might be the year she and Phillip finally get together."

Snow beamed. "Really?" She turned to see where her best friend, Aurora, was frantically running away from a tall brunet boy, Phillip. Aurora was one grade above Snow White, and would be turning 16 this year, in the spring. She was tall and shapely, with enigmatic lavender eyes and cascading curls of golden hair. Aurora and Phillip had been best friends since Aurora's birth, practically, as their parents were all very close. And everyone who'd watched them grow up felt assured that someday the two would wind up together.

Snow's eyes accidentally met those of another boy, who was clustered with some of the others by the grill, and smiled shyly before turning abruptly toward Cindy again. "Speaking of…"

"What?" Cindy asked suspiciously.

"Charlie hasn't been able to keep his eyes off you all day." Snow quietly teased. "What's the story there?" Truthfully, things had seemed awkward between the two of them lately and Snow was tired of being out of the loop.

Cindy smiled and carefully tossed her head so that her hair fell off her shoulders. She laid back on the blanket and the warm golden waves fanned out around her head. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."

Snow laughed in disbelief and playfully poked her friend. "It'll be our little secret, then."

Cindy continued the laughter. "The worst-kept secret in Buena Vista!"

The day carried on much like this, with the group continually rotating between lounging on the blanket, eating hot dogs and fresh fruit or sipping sodas in the sun, or running around playing catch and bombarding one another with water balloons.

For the most part, Snow White was captivated by every detail of what would soon become a perfect kind of daydream. But occasionally her head hung weary with a sense of some unavoidable, unwanted change on the horizon. She wasn't sure where the sensation came from, or why it rested so heavily on her delicate shoulders, but it left a trace of guilt in her each time it came and went. How could she feel anything other than pure bliss when she was surrounded by her favorite people in the world, on this perfect day? What could be coming that was dreadful enough to pull her out of this contentment?

Eventually, the sun started to set, and they all were forced to change into dry clothes as the air turned cool. Snow sat with Aurora in the hazy evening light, curled up together under a blanket to ward off mosquitos. They watched and giggled as the guys argued while trying to set up their projector so that the group could have one last movie night in the little park that they practically owned.

"Rorie?" Snow asked after a moment of watching the sun dip behind the mountains.

"Hm?" Aurora responded dreamily, her violet eyes lingering on Phillip.

"Do you feel like everything's about to be very different?"

Aurora smiled slightly in amusement. "I think we all felt like that the day before we started high school, Snow."

"No, I mean it. And not just about school."

Now Aurora turned to her friend more attentively, sensing the urgency in her tone.

Snow shrugged, suddenly unable to meet the blonde's gaze. "It feels silly. I can't really explain it, but…sometimes, don't you just sense that something's about to happen? Good or bad, you can't tell, but…there's going to be some kind of change that you're not ready for."

Aurora frowned thoughtfully, and said after a moment of reflection, "Well, I'm sure there'll be plenty of changes, Snow. To be honest, I hope there will be. But…it won't be everything. I'm sure you'll get to the end of the year and realize exactly how much didn't change."

"I just don't want to look back and miss days like this." Snow said pensively. "You know, we'll always have summer days. But never exactly like this again."

"Nonsense." Aurora said confidently, surprising her younger friend. "We'll always have today, when we need it." She raised one perfectly manicured finger and pointed it toward her own temple. "Up here."

Obviously, being late on her first day of high school was not the impression Snow White wanted to make. But her alarm clock had failed on her, and then her stepmom had screamed at her all morning while she frantically tried to get ready. Now she was rushing to meet her friends before first bell.

You see, Snow White was not only a freshman, but a freshman at the most prestigious school in the district: Disney Academy. After her disastrous middle school years, (when her father died, and she was very much alone, and she and her stepmom were constantly arguing, and she'd somehow developed an apple allergy...), her stepmom insisted on her attending a good school with her old friends, who'd all moved on to high school before her. Also, it wasn't an overly expensive education by her stepmom's standards. And all the extracurriculars they offered might ensure that Snow White would spend a lot of time out of the house.

Sometimes it seemed like her stepmom couldn't bear the sight of her...

She all but ran toward where Cindy and Aurora were waving wildly at her. She skittered to a halt a mere two inches from them while they laughed at her.

"Alarm clock?" Cindy gave her a poke in the ribs.

She nodded with the lightest expression she could manage.

"Well, make us late, why don't you?" Aurora joked, giving her tiny friend a hug. "You look cute, by the way."

Now Snow really smiled. "Thanks!" It was a simple outfit: a blue blouse with a red cardigan, a yellow pencil skirt, red flats, and her signature red ribbon adorning her black bob. Her makeup was light and simple, she really didn't need much. "You guys look great, too!"

Cindy wore brown cargoes and a pale green top with flat shoes. Aurora wore a blue pleated skirt with a fancy pink blouse and matching pink heels. She laughed at Snow's words first. "Thanks! You know, I just could not decide between blue or pink today. And then my aunts got into this huge argument about it, so mom suggested a compromise."

Snow laughed with her, but felt a pang in her chest as she shared a look with Cindy, who looked vastly different than she had the day before. Her friend's casual state meant that she was either embracing her lazy side at last because it was her junior year, or...

"Was your morning as disastrous as mine?" Snow joked, regretting the words instantly. But Cindy's easy smile showed that no harm was done.

"Just Anastasia and Drizella. I had to make their breakfast and clean up after them in the bathroom, before driving them to school a solid 20 minutes later than what was initially agreed. So, you know, the usual."

"Right..." Snow felt horrible now.

She and Cindy had enough in common: they'd both lost their fathers, came from wealthy backgrounds, and each had a wicked stepmother who didn't seem to care for them much. But Cindy also had two horrid stepsisters who lived to make her miserable. And while Snow did chores, majority of housework was done by maids. Cindy did ALL the work in her home. "I don't see why your stepmom doesn't hire some help..." But she already knew the answer.

"Well, I work for free." Cindy said absently.

Snow White caught Aurora's eye sadly, and saw a glimpse of something unreadable in the blonde's violet irises. Sensing the impending awkwardness, Aurora spoke to the freshman with a smile while Cindy's mind wandered. "Have you gone to check your homeroom number yet?"

Snow blinked at her. "No..."

"The rooms are posted over here; I'll take you to the freshie section." Aurora smirked.

Snow gave her a playful poke. "You say that like you weren't a freshman just last year!"

"Well, that doesn't matter, because I'm not one this year!"

Aurora led her to the posted rooms with the huge sign over them that read: FRESHMEN. Cindy followed them distractedly. Snow scanned for her name quickly after Aurora fought their way through the crowd. Then they quickly escaped.

"Well?" Cindy prodded.

"I have Ms. Porter."

"Oh, Jane!" Aurora gushed. "Oh, she's a sweetheart!"

"She's a teacher now?" Cindy seemed surprised.

"She wasn't before?" Snow frowned.

"Well, last year, she was a teacher's assistant." Aurora explained. Cindy nodded while Aurora bounced and squealed. "Oh, Snow! She is so nice! You will love her!"

Snow decided to cast her doubts aside and join in her friend's excitement. Then she noticed that Cindy was distracted again, peering at something over Snow's shoulder. Snow turned to follow her friend's gaze and froze.

There stood Charles, their tennis-playing friend who had been aptly nicknamed "Charming". Next to him was Phillip, who was...

Snow followed his gaze to find that he and Aurora were totally having a moment. Typical, but exciting. Then she turned back to the group of boys, and subsequently felt her heart stand still.

There stood the most beautiful boy she'd ever seen… Oh no, she was staring! Was he smiling at her?! She silently prayed as she hastily returned his smile and whirled back around. Cindy didn't even seem to notice the exchange.

"Are you looking at Charlie again?" Aurora asked the other blonde.

Cindy turned tired blue eyes on her friend. "I can't help it. Do you think he misses me?"

"Of course, he does! Phillip tells me all the time! Why don't you guys just get back together?" Aurora pushed on.

"You know how my stepmother is... And my stepsisters would lose it again, like they did last time. They're both still so enamored with him..."

"Who cares? Just meet up in secret! No one has to know! And it's so romantic..." Aurora sighed.

Snow glanced between the two, her eyes lingering on Cindy as she remembered their conversation about Charles the day before. "What's going on?"

"Charlie and I used to date, but we broke up over the summer..." Cindy drifted off as her eyes strayed back to the tennis player.

So that was why Cindy hadn't wanted to talk about him. Snow felt so foolish all of a sudden.

"Because of Anastasia and Drizella?"

Aurora nodded, her lip curled with an uncharacteristic bitterness. "The pair of them threw the biggest hissy fit when they found out, wouldn't stop badgering their mom until she forced Cindy to break it up."

Snow just looked shocked. "How horrible of them."

"Are we supposed to expect anything else at this point?" Cindy said glumly, then turned her gaze to her feet.

Aurora secretively hissed, "Little do they know, you two are just 'on a break'."

"Shh." Cindy whispered.

Snow hadn't even noticed the footsteps approaching from behind her. Then she saw Aurora being hugged by Phillip, and Charles was talking.

"Here are my girls! We were just looking for you…" He looked down at Cindy, who was still averting her eyes. "Hey, Cindy." He greeted her warmly.

Cindy looked up at him with a grateful smile. "Hi, Charlie."

There was a moment where they just kind of smiled at each other, and then there was a brief, stiff hug.

It was the cutest thing Snow White had ever seen.

A silence permeated the group, and Snow realized that the new boy from before was watching her. She cast a shy smile his way, ducking her head a bit. He laughed a little and pretended to look away, but she could tell that he was giving her a sideways glance. She shamefully wondered how red her cheeks must have turned.

Suddenly, Aurora was attacking the stranger and Charles with hugs. "Charlie, you're a senior! Ah!"

Charles laughed. "Yeah, I know..."

Then he and Phillip both seemed to notice Snow for the first time. "Hey, Snow. Totally overwhelmed yet?" Phillip asked as he sent a smile and a wave her way. His voice was soft and innately kind.

Snow shook her head quickly. "No, no. Not totally."

They all shared in a laugh.

"Okay, guys. You have to promise me and Rorie that you'll look out for Snow White in these wild halls." Cindy said with an admirable ring of authority in her tone.

"Yeah! You let her get hurt, and we'll hurt you!" Aurora added, half-joking, as she wrapped an arm around Snow's slim shoulders.

"Don't worry, she's safe." The one very handsome and still unnamed boy said with a grin at her. Snow thought she saw him wink, but she couldn't tell because she was swimming in the sound of his voice. The soft German accent had come as a surprise.

Then the bell rang.

"I'll take you to your class." Cindy spoke as she hooked her arm around Snow's. "I'm in the same building as you."

Snow looked around as Aurora ran off toward a girl with bright red hair. The two girls hugged and squealed before disappearing into the crowd. And the boys were dispersing too. Snow shared one last smile with the mystery boy and Cindy led her away.

Ariel and Aurora rushed to get seats next to each other at the classroom windows. The teacher, a Monsieur Maurice, smiled at them from under his mustache. The girls weren't exactly thrilled to have Physics first period, but the teacher seemed nice enough. Aurora was too busy gushing over Ariel's purple top and sea-green capris to notice her surroundings.

"Look at you in your cropped tank, how daring!" Aurora playfully prodded at her friend's naval, making the other girl shrink away from her and shriek with laughter. "This is a new look for you!"

"Well, I'm growing up, ya' know?" Ariel giggled. "My sisters thought it would be cute. Dad didn't really approve, but he got over it."

Aurora nodded. She didn't know anything about parents being disapproving, but she pretended she did so her friends wouldn't be afraid to talk to her about issues at home. The only reason why Aurora hadn't called CPS for Cindy was because she'd begged her not to time and time again.

Ariel's situation was a little different. She was the youngest of seven daughters, and her dad was the one in charge. Her mom had passed away back in grade five. But, like most of the people Aurora found herself associated with, Ariel was quite wealthy. Ariel, however, had the luxury of living right by the beach.

Then a tall, absurdly cute boy with black waves of hair and bright blue eyes walked in and took a seat on the opposite side of the room. He sent Ariel a wave and a big grin before beginning to search through his backpack. Aurora sent her dreamy-eyed friend an inquisitive look.

"Oh," Ariel leaned forward and whispered, "I saved him from drowning over the summer."

Aurora felt her eyebrows skyrocket. "Really?"

Ariel sighed and smiled. "Yeah... we were all picnicking on the beach. We're neighbors, you know. And me and my sisters were playing frisbee with dad when his butler suddenly yelled 'He's drowning, he's drowning!' Apparently, he'd been hit by a boogie board and got knocked out, and the undertow started to drag him out. So, I put my lifeguard training to good use." Sigh... "And then he told me about how his parents had died at sea, and thanked me for saving him from the same fate." She clasped her hands in front of her chest and gazed up at the ceiling.

Aurora knew her eyes were too wide to believe the cheesiness, but she pushed on. "And then what happened?"

Ariel got all excited, like that was the best part. "Oh! We just went on with our picnic, but he and I hung out the whole time, and his butler was so grateful that I saved him that he invited us to their place for dinner that weekend- I spent majority of the summer at his place, like low-key… And there was a campfire on the beach that night and we roasted marshmallows and he played his guitar and I sang for him!" Another sigh. "He's so...great!"

Aurora rolled her eyes but shared in her friend's smile as she cast a glance back at the boy. He seemed nice, and he, uh...looked nice. She'd seen him around; he was a skater kid, but he was also captain of boy's swim and water polo teams. He was also in the ultimate frisbee club, and he hung around with her guy friends a lot of the time. So why didn't she know his name?

"And, uh... What do we call him? You never mentioned him over summer." Aurora narrowed her eyes at the redhead.

Ariel looked sheepish. "Sorry..." Then she just smiled, and of course, sighed. "He's Eric."

Aurora nodded. Now she could identify him as the kid who accidentally hit her with a soccer ball last year. But that was his only offense she knew of.

"You two would make a cute couple." Aurora said with a nod.

Ariel gasped. "Oh, I knew it!" She squealed. Then she looked a little lost. "So... What do I do now?"

Aurora had almost forgotten how clueless Ariel was about guys. She laughed and began searching through her bag for a pen and paper. "Just keep being friendly. Flirt here and there, but don't get all weird. And, above all, be yourself." Aurora winked.

Ariel sighed. "You always give the best advice!"

Aurora performed a theatrical hair flip. "I know."

They laughed and then took the time to examine the other kids who had filed in. No freshmen so far, thank goodness. Aside from Snow, they were all so annoying. The key members of the "outcasts": Esmeralda, Pocahontas, Megara, Phoebus (who was actually pretty popular), Aladdin and Flynn Rider, notorious smooth-talker and thief, among other things. They were all seniors. Usually Pocahontas' s boyfriend, John Smith, and their two friends Nakoma and Thomas as well as another girl named Kida, (who Aurora actually really liked), would be there too, but they seemed to be in a different class this time round.

Weird, they're usually inseparable. Maybe Flynn's lost his touch a bit. Aurora thought ruefully. Flynn could usually talk an office lady or counselor into anything. Like, say, making sure all of his friends surrounded him in every class for a certain price, or in order to keep some unfortunate secret of theirs from getting out. Needless to say, the group made enough noise and general chaos despite their diminished numbers.

Then Jasmine walked in, and Aurora waved wildly to catch her attention. Jasmine smiled and strolled over to join her and Ariel.

"Hey Jazz!" Both girls chimed as Jasmine took her seat. Jasmine beamed back at them. "Hey guys!"

"Love the top!" Ariel cheered.

"Thanks!" Jasmine looked down at the teal cropped tee fondly. "I just bought it last week."

"Your dad didn't notice, huh?" Ariel gushed.

"Of course not."

But Aurora was too focused on what lay exposed by the top. "Is that...a bellybutton piercing?!"

Jasmine laughed. "Don't act so surprised. I told you I was gonna do it!"

"I thought you were joking!"

"Wicked!" Ariel cut in, leaning in for a closer look. "Oh, look at the rock on that thing!"

"Yup. My birthstone." Jasmine smirked. "And shaped like a jasmine flower."

"Perfect!" Ariel gushed.

Aurora felt a little disturbed by the foreign object. "I'm guessing your dad didn't notice that, either?"

"Actually, he approved of it as long as I didn't go around showing it off. But then, literally a week later, I saw this top and... Well, I couldn't resist!"

"Oh, it's so cute!" Ariel clapped.

"Yeah... it is." Aurora nodded, before her attention was caught by something else. "Oh, no..."

Ariel and Jasmine followed her gaze. Jasmine groaned while Ariel mumbled, "Gross."

Gaston replied to this with a wink as he passed. "Hey, ladies." Then he took a seat right by Megara so he could harass her. It wouldn't be too long before he got punched...

Then a tall girl in a plain white tee- tucked into blue jeans that had been rolled up a few times- came rushing in, giving the teacher a smile and a wave as she hurried to her seat.

"Hello, dear." He smiled quickly.

Aurora recognized this girl. Her brown hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, a pesky strand constantly falling over one of her hazel eyes, which were hidden behind thick-rimmed classes. Ariel caught her attention and waved at her as she passed. The brunette sweetly smiled and waved back. Aurora remembered now that she'd seen Ariel walking around with this girl a few times over the years, but never got to formally meet her.

And then it hit her: The teacher was this girl's dad. She remembered seeing them together at numerous school events. There wasn't much of a resemblance, but she knew she'd heard that Mr. Maurice had a daughter who was a student, and he didn't call any of his other female students "dear".

Then a dainty girl in a cutesy blue dress walked in sheepishly and wandered toward a seat right in the front. Her brown curls bounced slightly as she walked.

Freshman... Aurora rolled her eyes. The only one so far. And in with this crowd, she'd never survive. But something about this girl called for sympathy. It took Aurora a moment to realize that the girl reminded her of Snow. She made a mental note to keep an eye out for her.

Another nameless face came stomping in. An amazingly tall boy, with long auburn hair framing his dour expression, and wearing dark, surprisingly well-tailored clothes. He looked like one of those pouty angels from a centuries-old painting had stepped off the canvas and was trying to be inconspicuous. He marched to a seat all the way at the back of the room and sat in silence.

Weird. Aurora thought while Ariel and Jasmine talked about whatever. Then the bell rang and everyone was quiet long enough for Maurice to take role.

"Adam?"

"Here." The morose boy in the back raised his hand.

"Ah. Ariel?"

"Here!" She chimed.

This continued for a while. Aurora managed to learn the names of the freshman, (Wendy), and the girl with the glasses (Belle).

After Maurice explained what they would be learning this year and that all they needed was a pen or pencil and a notebook for this class, it was a free-for-all. In the middle of the mayhem, a wild-looking redheaded boy burst in making absurd rooster calls while the petite blonde girl trailing behind him burst with laughter. Maurice got their names, (Peter and Tinkerbell), and the two sat down with Wendy.

Good, she's got friends. Aurora thought. Then, as an afterthought, Tinkerbell's a stupid name.

Three periods passed with no incident, leaving all the students a little stir-crazy and incredibly grateful for lunch hour. Flynn lounged with his group under their usual tree in the courtyard, completely protected from the sun. Esmeralda and Phoebus were flirting-but-totally-not-flirting, Pocahontas and Aladdin were discussing the more evil teachers they'd been stuck with. And Kida was sitting in the highest part of the tree. Life was good. He took as big a bite out of his cupcake- which he totally hadn't stolen from a freshman- as he could manage, not noticing the frosting that clung to his nose. Phoebus laughed and tossed a fry at him.

"What, you couldn't snag me one?" Phoebus joked, eliciting a laugh from Esmeralda. Aladdin and Flynn started tossing food around. Pocahontas took refuge up in the tree with the chuckling Kida. Esmeralda tried to shield herself with her geometry book. It was only when Meg arrived that the fries and grapes quit raining down. Meg took a seat next to Esmeralda and placed the tray of pizza and pudding between them to share.

"Isn't it about time you guys grew up?" Meg drawled, ripping off her half of the pizza and biting into it. She cast Esmeralda an apologetic look and mumbled, "They were out of fries."

"Please! Senior year? Now is as good a time as any to just let loose." Flynn replied. "Especially since we're losing our buddy Phoebus!"

Meg rolled her eyes over toward the blond, waiting for the inevitable...

"Do you really have to join the military?" Esmeralda gave him a little push.

"Well yeah. I've been wanting to for my whole life. It's important."

"Oh."

"Why, you gonna miss me?"

There was a heavy pause.

"Well, yeah. We all are. It's gonna be boring without you..."

There it is, Meg thought with another eyeroll as she went back to her pizza. It was a little awkward after that. Then, Pocahontas and Kida both poked their heads out of the tree.

"We are gonna miss you, Pheebs." Pocahontas said.

"You had better be one hell of a soldier." Kida added a little bitterly.

Phoebus laughed. "Gee, thanks."

Esmeralda used the food in front of her to block the whole exchange out. Then, she heard footsteps approaching.

Nakoma called up into the tree, sitting at the base with Thomas and John. Pocahontas slid down and into John's lap, snatching his orange with a giggle. He laughed and wrapped his arms around her. Flynn almost screamed like a girl when Kida dropped down from the tree and landed next to him. She laughed at him and crawled over toward the center of the group. Flynn suddenly realized that at some point Kida and Pocahontas had ditched their shoes. He looked up to see a pair of boots and a pair of blue flip flops sitting on the highest tree limb. And when he looked back at the group, all the other girls had let their feet free too. He just shook his head.

Suddenly, Mulan threw herself onto the grass in front of them with a baleful moan. Half of them just stared, the other half giggled. Mulan was the newest addition to their group, and one of the only ones who wasn't a senior. (She was a junior. The only other younger member of the group, Jim Hawkins, was a sophomore, and hadn't bothered to come for the first day.) Pocahontas and Esmeralda had met her through some group project last year. Everyone knew by now that Mulan wasn't exactly a dramatic person; only certain things could get on her nerves to this extent.

"What's up, Mu?" Meg asked, only half-interested.

"There's no girls football team!" She said with a groan.

"What do you care? You're already captain of all the other girls' teams!" Flynn exclaimed.

"Not true. Ariel's captain of swim and water polo, Tiana's captain on tennis, Aurora's captain of cheer, I'm captain of dance, and..." Esmeralda trailed off.

"And I'm captain of track and field. Thanks for remembering." Pocahontas chimed in.

"And our ultimate frisbee team is unisex, so Mu's just a co-captain." Phoebus pointed out.

Flynn rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"But isn't it a little wrong that there's no girls football team? I mean, there's everything else, why not football?" Mulan asked, sitting up and crossing her arms.

"Well, have you seen the majority of the girls at this school?" Nakoma pointed out.

"These girls can't even stand to look at each other let alone tackle each other." Meg grumbled, not seeming to care about how weird that logic was.

"Yeah. Who would you get to play?" Kida put in.

Mulan looked so forlorn that Aladdin actually felt like saying, "Why don't you just try out for the dudes' team?"

There was a pause. Then Pocahontas turned to John. "Do you think they'd let her on?"

He ran a hand through his sandy blond hair. "I could certainly put in a good word."

"It's worth a shot!" Esmeralda grinned.

"Who's your co-captain?" Mulan demanded.

"Li Shang." John replied. "We could set up a meeting with him..."

Mulan smiled. "Sounds great!"

"But I should warn you, he's not the easiest person to convince." John finished. "And he can be a little…stern."

"Well, I'm sure Mu will win him over with her unique charm." Flynn responded dryly, finishing the cupcake.

"Speaking of football players, someone's checking you out, Meg." Esmeralda winked at her friend.

Meg rolled her eyes as she continued playing with her ponytail. "If it's Gaston, just ignore him. I told that ass-"

"It's not Gaston." Esmeralda cut in.

Meg turned to send her iciest glare at whoever was ogling her, and felt herself freeze. She'd nearly forgotten about Hercules.

"Looks like he never moved on."

"Ugh. I kissed him once, at a party… I was tipsy!" Meg looked toward the sky.

"Well, he's cute." Esmeralda said.

"And he's really sweet." Mulan added.

"And he really likes you." John finished. "And not just for your looks or the romantically drunken kiss; he seems to think that you're pretty great."

"Poor guy." Meg muttered.

Belle thoughtfully scanned the pages of the mythology book she'd checked out from the school library, only occasionally taking bites of her lunch. Her father cleared his throat and she distractedly glanced up at his smirking face.

"Lunch hour is supposed to be for eating, my dear." He said, looking pointedly at her mostly untouched food.

She gestured toward the odd contraption he was tinkering with at his desk. "I don't see you eating."

He sighed. "Touché."

She proudly went back to her book. But something had been nagging at her for the last few weeks. A general anxiety about being back to school again, something she'd always struggled with and hadn't diminished just because this was her senior year… As well as a new, indescribable sensation of foreboding. As though something unexpected was coming this year, some huge change…

"What's on your mind, dear?" Maurice asked her suddenly. Her expression must have given her away.

She carefully bookmarked her page and set the book down, looking around the classroom thoughtfully. She really wasn't sure how to explain her apprehensive feelings, and even if she could, she wasn't sure what her father could say to make her feel better. But something he could probably speak to would be the consistent existential dread she felt in wondering what comes after high school… She had a plan for what she wanted, but…plans don't account for people. And Belle had always struggled to fit in with people.

"Papa… Do you think I'm…odd?"

He sat back as though shocked. "My daughter? Odd?" He scoffed and chaotically pushed his trinket aside, making much noise. "Where would you get an idea like that?"

Belle giggled and ducked her head, pushing that stubborn strand of hair behind her ear. "I don't know… I guess… Well, it's not like I don't have friends. But… At some point, I stopped being able to be close with anyone. I don't get invited to things, I don't have a group I belong to. I'm just kind of…there. And when I think about trying to get more involved, it's just… Well, it's overwhelming. And I love having lunch in here with you, I do, but… Well, is it normal?"

Maurice got up and walked over to lay a hand on her shoulder. "I think it's much more normal than anyone realizes, Belle. And I also have worried whether or not you're really happy, spending so much time in here or with your books as you do. I love having you here, and seeing you expand your perspectives through your reading, and exploring your passions through writing. But… Sometimes, I have to wonder, if it's more of…an escape. You know, and if you're actually living how you want to. I don't want you to look back on your youth and feel regret."

"Did mom ever feel regret?"

"No."

"Do you?"

He shook his head. "Honestly, no. I've loved the life I've lived. Even with all the struggle…" He gave her a comforting look. "Because struggles will come. But you have to live any way."

Belle nodded thoughtfully. Growing up she'd always wanted adventure. But now, faced with the unknown, she wasn't sure how to navigate. She felt so torn.

"Whatever it is you want to do, during this last year of childhood, do it, Belle." Her father told her. "You deserve it." He walked back toward his desk. "It's your senior year, after all. Time to get a taste of the freedom that comes with adulthood!" He laughed. "Before responsibilities come into play."

Snow White crept in through her front door around 3:00. As she passed the kitchen, her stepmom's voice called to her.

"How was your first day as a high schooler?"

Snow prepared herself as she entered the kitchen with the most pleasant expression she could manage. "It was good. I picked up a bunch of flyers for electives I could join. I'm thinking of joining drama and choir, and maybe the tennis team."

"That's great." Her stepmom drawled as she glanced through papers.

Grimhilde was a tall, striking woman with the face of a 1950's starlet and the composure of a malevolent fantasy villainess. Her long, dark hair was usually tamed in an intricate up-do, and she always dressed neatly and professionally in dark, rich tones. Her vividly green eyes remained disinterested and cold most of the time, only occasionally flashing with warning when someone had done something to displease her.

Servants were rushing around everywhere which meant someone had probably been yelled at moments before… or even fired, if they'd made Grimhilde mad enough.

"I might try out for the musical this year. Apparently pretty much everyone participates."

"Hmm."

Snow paused, then asked carefully, "How was work?"

"Oh, you don't have to pretend you care, dear." The woman retorted sarcastically.

"No, I really wanna know." Snow even scooted a little closer to prove it.

Grimhilde gave her a long, tired look before letting out a sigh and returning her gaze to the papers. "Well... Traffic was a bitch, and then my project that I've been working on for the last three weeks got sidelined."

"Oh."

"Yes. Very tiring. But I'm on my way to that promotion."

"Oh, well that's good."

"Yes." Her stepmom looked at her again, momentarily narrowing her eyes. "Listen, Snow. I want to apologize for this morning. High school is stressful enough without me giving you a hard time."

"It's fine." Snow looked down at her lap.

"Well, to make up for it, I got you this on my way home." She pulled out a shopping bag and pushed it toward Snow.

Snow White reached in and pulled out a box. She read the label and smiled. "A new alarm clock?"

"Yup." Grimhilde smirked. "Consider it my way of saying, 'Let's be friends'."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I think you and I should go back to the good old days. You know, like when your dad and I first got married. Movie nights and baked goods. That kinda stuff."

"Wow." Snow honestly couldn't believe it.

"If you want, that is."

"Yeah, I do."

"Good."

They smiled awkwardly and then looked down, sitting in silence. Finally, Grimhilde spoke again. "Do you have your list of school supplies so I can pick them up for you during this week?"

"Oh, yeah." Snow pulled numerous papers out of her bag and handed them over.

Her stepmom glanced over them. "Right. I'll get on it tomorrow. I'm working from home most of this week."

"Thank you."

"Mm-hmm."

"Um..."

"Yes?"

"Cindy and Aurora were wondering if I could hang out with them tonight. At Aurora's. I could eat over there."

"Of course, you can. Home by nine."

"Okay. Thanks." Snow took off for her room to text Aurora to come pick her up.

Grimhilde watched her go with a tired expression, a bittersweetness resting in her chest. She absently cast a glance toward her cell phone, sitting on the counter, blinking to signal that she had numerous missed called and unanswered texts. She sighed heavily as she considered who was trying to communicate with her and why. It had come so fast…

She didn't feel ready for what this year would bring.

That Friday, there was an assembly that took up the first three periods of the school day. It was basically Principal Disney (whose family had founded the school and run it for generations) explaining all the school policies to the incoming freshman, and announcing things like pep rallies, musicals, clubs, electives and, of course, sports try-outs. By the end of this, the entire student body was so riled up, lunch hour was a blessing.

Phoebus, Flynn, and Aladdin raced each other to the lunch line. Poor Phoebus came in last, and he knew the other two would snatch the good food before he could. Meg, Esmeralda and Mulan hung back at the tree and lounged there. They were soon joined by Kida, Pocahontas, and the others. Everyone except Meg, Esmeralda and Thomas was up in the tree in less than 10 seconds. Then the boys returned with their conquests. Phoebus had somehow managed to snag a pudding cup.

Esmeralda laughed at Phoebus's expression and Meg rolled her eyes at Esmeralda. Then Naveen strolled up to them, his dimples on full display.

"Hey, Esme."

"Oh, hey!" She jumped up and hugged him. "What's up?"

"Can I, uh...talk to you?"

"Of course." They shared a secret smile as they wandered off.

Meg rolled her eyes again, her gaze wandering lazily to Phoebus, whose jaw was set in an unpleasant way. Aladdin clapped a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"I don't see why you don't just ask her out, man."

"Because of..." Phoebus sighed and gestured up ahead, "...that."

They all followed his gaze to see Esmeralda playfully touching Naveen's arm and laughing while he smiled down at her.

Meg shook her head. "They're just friends with benefits. You know it means nothing to her. Stuff like this never does."

"Exactly!" Phoebus ran a hand through his shaggy hair. "So, who's to say it wouldn't be any different with me? I don't just want...that." He sighed. I want it to matter, he almost added, but stopped himself.

Meg focused on her apple with a frown. "I did the FWB thing for a while too, Pheebs. Trust me, she'll get bored eventually."

This situation was exceedingly awkward and increasingly stupid.

The whole reason behind Phoebus's frustration was that he'd basically been in love with Esmeralda since grade six. And he, Esmeralda and Naveen had all been close friends since elementary school. So, when Esmeralda and Naveen began their little "arrangement" last year, Phoebus and Naveen's friendship had been summarily ruined. And Esmeralda was far from clueless about the whole thing, but had gotten very good at ignoring it. What Esmeralda didn't seem to realize, somehow, was Phoebus' reason for being so upset. Meg suspected that maybe Esme thought Phoebus was a judgmental prude, which couldn't be further from the truth. Every time Meg tried to talk to her about it, Esme would blow her off.

"I still think you should just talk to her." Meg stated plainly. "It's obvious that she likes you too."

"Well then why is she still sleeping with Naveen?" Phoebus frowned.

Meg raised a brow. "Is that honestly anyone's business but hers?"

"And Naveen's…" Flynn whispered theatrically. When they all glared at him, he quickly said, "Sorry."

The conversation had to end because now Esmeralda and Naveen were coming back. Phoebus barely heard Esmeralda say something about seeing Naveen that night before his jaw locked and he tried to block out Naveen's reply in the affirmative. God, he'd like to punch that smile off Naveen's face...

Esmeralda was re-taking her seat as Naveen casually nodded to the rest of the group. They welcomed him except for Phoebus, Meg and Flynn. Then Naveen's gaze was set on Phoebus.

"Hey, Pheebs."

Phoebus looked up, and they just stared at each other. Meg and Flynn watched in anticipation, and now Aladdin was interested as well. Phoebus was about to reply when Pocahontas suddenly pointed toward the center of the quad. "Guys, look!"

Milo Thatch was being stopped by Gaston in the middle of the quad, where the whole school could see. When Gaston, who towered over poor Milo, knocked the books out of Milo's hands and then placed a foot on top of them to keep Milo from retrieving them, Flynn started laughing. Naveen glanced back at the group with wide eyes. "Shouldn't we help?"

"On it." They all heard Kida say it, but when they looked toward her spot in the tree, she was already gone.

Milo's attempt to convince Gaston to release his books was met by getting grabbed by his shirt collar and hiked up off the ground. Milo grimaced and raised his hands in self-defense, anticipating an impending blow.

"Excuse me."

After a few seconds, Milo's feet were back on the ground. He lowered his arms to see an intensely beautiful girl standing nearby with her hands on her hips, a bemused expression on her face.

Gaston chuckled in a way that was probably meant to be charming, doing his best to smolder at the girl. "No, excuse me… Uh…" He trailed off, searching for a name.

"Kidagakash." She said with a smirk.

He just stared at her. "Uh..."

She sighed. "Kida. My name is Kida."

"Oh. Pretty name." He smiled devilishly. At her lack of expression, he shook his head and stepped forward. "This doesn't concern you, Kida, so why don't you-?"

"Why? So you can torment him some more?" Esmeralda's voice now rang out. Gaston rolled his eyes at the sight of Esme and a few more of Kida's friends walking toward them. Now much of the student body who sat and ate around the quad was interested in what was happening.

Gaston scoffed. "Oh, give me a break."

"You've had your fun, Gaston. Now leave him alone. This would be a stupid thing to get kicked from the team over." John said, crossing his arms over his chest. Pocahontas glanced up at him with slight pride.

Now Gaston openly laughed. "You wouldn't kick me."

"I could text Shang and have you removed in a second, bud." John said with a small, bored shrug. "Your choice."

Gaston was obviously offended, but after a moment of dramatic indignation, he rolled his eyes again and finally took his foot off Milo's books, stepping away from the small group that had gathered around him. "Fine, whatever." He shot Milo a particularly malicious look before stomping away.

Milo appeared to have been holding his breath for most of the conversation, and the air came rushing out of him in relief. He stumbled forward to gather up his books, which had been scattered a bit when Gaston had them pinned.

Kida knelt down and grabbed a couple for him while her friends were muttering about what an ass Gaston could be.

Milo didn't seem to realize that Kida was helping him until he glanced over and saw the books in her hands. He blushed as he met her gaze. She held the books out and smiled at him.

"You are alright?" She asked softly.

He nodded, quickly taking the books from her and looking down at them to avoid her eyes.

Her smile grew bigger. He was kind of adorable... "No need to be shy."

He glanced nervously at her for about a second, and attempted a smile in return. Then he suddenly stood up and stared back down at his scuffed shoes. "Sorry…"

Kida rose to stand next to him and waited for him to finish his sentence.

His eyes eventually met hers and he said, "Guess I'm just not used to…help."

She watched him push his glasses up the bridge of his nose. She stepped closer to him. "Does this happen often?"

He feigned casualty and reached up with one hand to rub the back of his neck. "Ah…you know…yeah…"

Kida regarded him quietly for a moment. "Hm... Well, are you eating with anyone?"

He shook his head sheepishly, blushing again.

She smiled, which seemed to grab his attention. "Do you want to join me and my friends?"

His face seemed to light up. "Sure."

She giggled. "Great. Come with me."

"Tianaaa!"

Tiana glanced tiredly up from her book. "Yes?"

"Help me decide what to wear!" Charlotte whined.

Tiana placed the book next to her on her best friend's very pink quilt. Charlotte was giving her puppy dog eyes from her seat in front of the vanity, a few feet from Tiana's perch on the bed. Tiana sighed. "Why don't you just wear what you did for school today?"

"Nooooo! Not for hanging out with my girls! I need to look extra pretty!" Charlotte pouted.

Tiana rolled her eyes, but couldn't hold back her smile. "Okay, Lottie."

Charlotte squealed and leapt up from her seat. She skipped over to her closet while Tiana walked over to meet her there. Tiana and Charlotte had been friends since childhood, so Tiana knew that Charlotte's love language was excessive amounts of attention and quality time…which could be draining...

Charlotte was excitedly searching through her shirts, pulling a few out and holding them up to her torso. She shook her head and tossed them over her shoulder. Tiana carefully retrieved them and lay them on the bed.

"Ooh, Tia! What about this one?"

Tiana glanced back at the shirt, which was obviously pink, and brand new. "I like it."

"I know! I just bought it last weekend!" Charlotte hurriedly changed from one pink blouse to the other. Then she moved on to bottoms. "Pants or a skirt?"

"Pants. The cold weather's moving in early this year, it's been too chilly at night for my taste." Tiana stated as she hung up the shirts that Charlotte had cast aside. Charlotte handed her the outfit from before and Tiana tossed the blouse and skirt into the hamper by the closet. When she looked up, Charlotte had on a pair of dark blue skinny jeans that were holding on for dear life. Tiana joined her friend at the opening of the walk-in closet, inspecting the shoe options.

"Heels?" Charlotte asked.

"Well, if we're just sitting in Aurora's room..."

Charlotte was already pulling her favorite pair of bright pink pumps onto her feet. Then she moved over to her vanity and sat down to fix her hair and makeup. Tiana retook her seat on the bed.

"Who all is gonna be there?" Tiana asked.

"Well, Aurora and Cindy, obviously. And their little freshman friend, Snow White. Also, Ariel and Jasmine."

"Jasmine?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"She doesn't like me, I think..."

Charlotte sighed. "Jasmine doesn't like a lot of people. Have you heard that girl's standards for dating?"

"She's probably trying to protect herself from the idiots at our school." Tiana interjected. "She seems nice enough. She just doesn't seem to like me. I don't really fit in with your group, Lottie."

Charlotte whirled around in her chair. "Are you sure you can't sleep over at Rorie's with me tonight, Tia?" She pouted.

Tiana laughed. "I told you I can't. I've got to be at the diner by 10 tonight. I got the graveyard shift."

Charlotte rolled her eyes and turned back to the mirror.

"So, who else is coming?" Snow asked as she stretched out on Aurora's bed. Cindy was searching for a movie to watch and Jasmine was scrolling through the Postmates app on her phone. Aurora emerged from her adjoining bathroom in pink sweats and a blue tank top, fluffing up her blond curls with both hands.

"Uh... Ariel and Lottie. And Lottie's bringing Tiana."

"Tiana's coming?" Jasmine asked coldly.

"Yeah. Why? Tiana's cool." Aurora did a quick makeup check in the little mirror hanging by her door.

"No reason..." Jasmine impatiently tapped at her phone's screen. "She's just…kind of a downer, right?"

"Well, she's not sleeping over." Aurora stated.

"I thought Giselle was coming?" Cindy broke in.

Aurora laughed. "She backed out. She has, uh...plans with Edward."

Cindy rolled her eyes and laughed. Giselle was a sophomore, and her boyfriend, Edward, was a senior. They were a picture-perfect high school couple, both being beautiful and kind, but a little...spacey. In the best possible way. Also, Giselle was a cheerleader and dancer Edward played football. He'd played on-and-off in other sports as well, but football was where he truly shined.

At the mention of Giselle and Edward, a silent worry had permeated the room. The couple had been together for close to a year now, but there still didn't seem to be any actual love there.At this point, their relationship seemed to be just for show, and neither of them seemed to realize it. They were all anticipating the day when the couple broke up and it turned into such a big deal.

Jasmine spoke up suddenly. "Chinese or Indian? Ooh, or sushi?"

"Chinese." Everyone chimed simultaneously.

Jasmine huffed playfully and shook her head. "Cowards," She muttered. Cindy laughed.

Then Ariel came bursting in. "Hello, all!"

"Hey! There's our little mermaid!" Aurora laughed as she gave the redhead a hug. "How was the swim meet?"

"No actual swimming happened. But I think we're in good shape."

"Well, yeah. You still have two of your sisters on the team." Cindy pointed out.

Ariel nodded with a smile. "I know. We're gonna be so screwed when they're gone." She glanced around. "Where can I put my bag?"

"Right by the bed." Aurora said.

"Cool." Ariel dropped the bag, then seemed to see Snow White for the first time. She grinned and extended a hand. "You must be Snow White. Can I call you Snow?"

"Sure. Everyone does." Snow smiled back as she shook Ariel's hand.

"Sorry we haven't gotten to meet before now. Guess I've been pretty sidetracked 'cause of…" Ariel giggled and cast Aurora a sheepish glance. "You-know-who."

Aurora laughed. "It's alright, Ariel. We've been taking advantage of lunchtime to show Snow around, any way."

"Snow went to Andalasia Junior High with me, Rorie and Giselle, you know." Cindy said.

"So I've heard. How's the academy treating you?" Ariel asked Snow.

"Well, I like it so far. It's way different than I expected."

"I bet. You were probably expecting some stuffy old school with uniforms, huh?"

"Well, yeah. But it's so relaxed, and there's so much emphasis on sports and extra-curriculars and stuff. It's awesome." Snow smiled.

"Yeah, we're pretty well off." Aurora had disappeared back into her bathroom.

"Okay, guys." Jasmine turned to them. "Come look at this menu, will you?"

"Was that good?" Esmeralda called toward Naveen, who was preparing a shower in the bathroom adjoined to his bedroom.

"Wonderful, as always." He leaned in the doorway, completely naked. "And for you?"

Esmeralda grinned and stretched. "Ditto."

"Wanna join me?" He winked.

"Nah, I'm good. I barely worked up a sweat." She bragged playfully, returning his wink.

He laughed, exposing his dimples. He turned and went to the shower, leaving the door wide open.

Esmeralda chuckled to herself and relaxed on Naveen's bed, enjoying the feeling of the silk on her skin. She pushed a strand of hair off her face and reached for her phone, which had been sitting on the nightstand next to the bed. She replied to a couple of texts from Meg and her mother, then saw that she had a text from Jasmine.

She frowned. She and Jasmine hadn't talked in a while. They'd been best friends through elementary school and junior high, but since Esmeralda was two years older, she went on to high school earlier than Jasmine and they talked a lot less. By the time Jasmine came into high school, they both had completely new groups of friends and the two girls ended up traveling in different social circles. The pair of them had really changed over the years.

Esmeralda was initially excited to have Jasmine join the dance team. For the last two years, that was the only time they had together. But they just weren't as close as they used to be. Esmeralda couldn't help thinking that Jasmine felt superior to her, and didn't really think Esmeralda was worth her time anymore. Which made these random attempts at texting feel that much weirder.

She opened the text and read it with furrowed brows.

Hey :)

Esmeralda figured that Jasmine must have wanted something. She sighed, deciding to respond.

Hey Jazz. What's up?

Sleepover with my buddies. How are you doing?

Good. You?

Same old, same old.

Esmeralda rolled her eyes. Jasmine made it sound like her life was boring or lame in some way. It definitely is not, Esmeralda thought.

Then she heard the shower stop and turned her phone off before placing it back on the nightstand. Naveen wandered back in, a towel wrapped around his hips. Esmeralda had to bite her lip to keep from saying anything. It wasn't that she considered Naveen as anything more than a friend, but she did catch herself under his spell at times. He was definitely romantic, as well as being gorgeous and a huge flirt. But he was also self-interested and, at times, an idiot. She'd known him long enough to know that he was inconsiderate, irresponsible and unfaithful; definitely not boyfriend material. Still, with the way he treated her- particularly in the bedroom- sometimes that was easy to forget...

"You aren't dressed." He was surprised. Usually, she was getting ready to leave by now.

She gave him a cheeky grin. "I thought maybe you could make me dinner?"

He laughed. "Sure thing, beautiful. Let me go see what I have to work with." He headed downstairs.

Esmeralda dawdled over getting dressed and cleaning up. She didn't notice her phone buzzing as she fixed her hair.

"What time does your dad get home?" Eric asked.

"Like, two in the morning." Phillip's dad was a pretty successful movie producer; he was gone a lot.

Right now, four of the guys were sitting on the living room floor. Ferdinand and Charles were looking for a movie to watch.

"Okay, cool."

Charles was zoning out, and Ferdinand, his cousin who'd come from Germany via an exchange program, laughed at him.

"What's going through that head of yours, Charlie?"

Charles shrugged, obviously distracted. "Just thinking."

"About Cindy?" Phillip asked sympathetically.

Charles sighed. "Yeah." He suddenly looked very tired and sad.

Eric shook his head. "Just get back with her, man."

"I can't. Not until we're sure her stepfamily isn't gonna be a problem."

"Who cares about them?" Phillip said. "Those girls are just gonna move on any way. They know you'll never get with either of them." Usually, Phillip's voice was low and calm, but his anger for his friend gave his tone a rough edge.

"Exactly. They think that if they can't have me, Cindy definitely can't." Charles rubbed a hand over his face.

"Don't worry, cous." Ferdinand clapped a hand on Charles' shoulder. "She's a loyal girl. She'll wait for you."

Charles almost smiled. "Yeah, I know. But I don't want her to. We should be together now."

Phillip clapped suddenly. "I have an idea. I'll throw a party here, tomorrow night. My dad has some dinner to go to, and he'll be gone all night. I'll make sure Anastasia and Drizella have no clue about it, and you and Cindy can have plenty of time together."

"A party? Tomorrow night?" Eric was skeptical.

"Kinda last minute..." Ferdinand added.

"I'll say it's to celebrate surviving the first week of school. First big party of the year; everyone'll go for it." Phillip insisted.

"It does sound like a good idea..." Charles spoke up. "Better than anything I've thought of."

"I'll start texting everyone. Cindy's sleeping over at Aurora's, so I'll just text her right now." Phillip was already whipping out his smartphone.

Eric laughed and excitedly threw up his hands. "This'll be great! Hey, what time is Naveen getting here?"

"Probably in the next hour. He's got some girl at his place." Charles said.

Mulan had been texting Meg when she fell asleep. Her mom wandered in through the open door and smiled at her daughter sleeping in the chair on the opposite side of the room. She grabbed a quilt from the hall closet and covered Mulan with it. She pushed a strand of hair off Mulan's face and smiled. Then she saw a flyer on the table next to her. She picked it up and frowned. It was a flyer for boys' football try-outs. She glanced back at her daughter and sighed, setting the paper back on the table.

At first, she was worried. But then she remembered the numerous times she'd seen Mulan hurt in a game, and how quickly her daughter had come back from it. Mulan played almost every sport available to her, and she was excellent at them. She was a tough girl.

She cast her nervousness aside and decided to trust in her daughter's abilities. She also knew that she would be fully supportive of Mulan, but couldn't say the same about her father…

Aurora felt her phone buzz and immediately checked her messages. When she grinned at the notification, she became very aware of everyone's eyes on her.

"Phillip texted me." She explained, blushing slightly.

Cindy smiled and the others laughed. Tiana tried not to roll her eyes. Charlotte squeaked and leapt onto the bed with Aurora and Cindy.

"What did he say?" Charlotte demanded.

Aurora squinted at the tiny print. Then she grinned and bounced on the mattress. "He's throwing a party tomorrow night!"

Charlotte shrieked and bounced around. The other girls (aside from Tiana) immediately crowded onto the bed.

"Who's gonna be there?" Ariel asked.

"Says that everyone is invited except for a couple of..." Aurora stopped and glanced at Cindy. Charlotte had been reading over her shoulder and now gasped.

"What is it?" Cindy asked.

"It says that Anastasia and Drizella are not allowed to know about the party." Charlotte said.

Cindy felt her eyes widen in realization. "Oh, my God..."

Aurora grinned. "They're trying to bring you and Charming back together!"

"Aww!" Ariel and Jasmine both sang.

Snow wrapped an arm around Cindy. "Will you be able to go?"

"I doubt it. If Anastasia and Drizella aren't going..."

Tiana cleared her throat as she stood and retrieved her bag. "I gotta go, guys. Thanks for having me."

"I'll text you tomorrow, Tia!" Charlotte waved goodbye.

"Later, Lottie…"

Tiana left as the others absently murmured goodbyes. Then they all turned back to the matter at hand.

"I don't think I can go... My stepmom will probably have company during the day, and Saturday nights are important for keeping the place clean..." Cindy bit her lip.

Aurora rolled her eyes. Then, a mischievous look crossed her features. "You know...they don't have to know you're gone."

"What?"

"Well, your room is in the attic, right?" Aurora hadn't been inside Cindy's house since her dad's funeral, but she remembered hearing about it.

"Yeah..."

"Well, the window's big enough to pull yourself through... And there's that big tree right there. It would be an easy climb..."

Cindy shook her head. "I dunno about that..."

"Come on! I could pick you up in my car! I'll text you when I get there, and you can climb down and we'll go!" Aurora plotted aloud, her eagerness growing.

"You kinda have to..." Jasmine said.

"Yeah. You're the reason why this party's happening." Ariel added.

"Charming must be pretty miserable without you..." Snow chimed in.

Cindy bit her lip. They all waited to see if their guilt trip was working. Finally, she asked, "What time does the party start?"

"Ten."

"I can't get there till, like, midnight."

"Fine by me." Aurora was already typing expediently. The other girls cheered and bounced around and clapped. Cindy shook her head and laughed, but inside, her heart was racing and her mind reeled with excitement and anxiety.

Naveen was checking his messages while Esmeralda washed her dishes. He looked up at her. "Wanna go to a party tomorrow night?"

"What?" She frowned as she dried her hands.

"Phillip's throwing a party tomorrow at his place. Wanna go?"

"Uh... I doubt I can. I've got, uh...work tomorrow night."

"You have a job?"

She laughed. "Yeah."

"Where?"

"What time is the party?"

"Uh...ten."

She shook her head. "And what time does it end?"

"Says people have to be gone before four a.m."

She moved to the front door and picked up her purse. "I'll try to make it by two."

"Can you get a ride?"

"Probably from Meg or Pheebs. Otherwise, I'll just call you." She smiled at him. "Speaking of which, you driving me home?"

He smiled back, grabbing the keys. "Of course. Will your mom be mad? It's kind of late."

"She won't care." Her mom probably wasn't even home.

They talked about things like school and friends on the way home, laughing at each other's little anecdotes about exes and evil teachers and various dramas. As they pulled up to her house, Naveen noticed no car in the driveway, and all the lights were out.

"Are you gonna be able to get in?" He asked, trying not to seem too concerned.

"Yeah. There's a busted window in the back." She unbuckled her seatbelt and turned toward him with a smirk. "Thanks for dinner."

He grinned. "Thanks for sleeping with me."

"Ah, no problem."

They both laughed before leaning over to hug each other. He pressed a soft kiss into her hair. As she started to pull away, she felt his arms tighten around her. She looked up at him curiously, then froze when she saw how his lips were hovering over hers. They stared at each other for a moment. Esme could feel her breath becoming shallow as she waited for him to move in closer, unsure of what he might be thinking, or how she might feel about what he might be thinking… It was when he started rubbing his thumb back and forth on her shoulder that she was snapped back to reality.

She smiled and pulled away fully. This time he let her. "Bye, Naveen."

"Bye..."

She hurried out of the car and up the driveway. He watched her disappear around the back, but waited until he saw a light come on inside before he started driving to Phillip's house.