EVANGELINE

Evangeline Fox sat alone in a beautiful room, trying to collect her racing thoughts. There was a large gap where she knew a great deal of her memories must only recently have been, and it mocked the paltry collection of facts she had accumulated in their absence.

She was in The Magnificent North.

She had become a princess, after marrying a prince.

That same prince had found her wandering the castle after she had lost all of her memories. She didn't know him, a handsome brown-haired stranger she had supposedly loved enough to marry, though she did think he seemed to genuinely care for her. He had held her close when he found her, and when she had flinched away from his alien touch, he had seemed genuinely aggrieved.

At first, he had answered some basic questions such as who he was (her husband, Apollo) and where they were (Wolf Hall, in the Magnificent North), and it had all seemed more like a story being told to her than her actual life. But as they entered a library and passed a window, she could see the snowy city beyond was definitely not her Valenda.

Then they had left the library, Apollo carrying her, headed for an unknown location. But then they rounded a corner and met a group of servants who immediately screamed at the sight of them both, which caused several uniformed men with moustaches to appear out of the woodwork. Evangeline tensed, trying to figure out why they were about to be arrested, but then everyone dropped to their knees and thanked the gods above that "Prince" Apollo was alive.

It seemed her husband had died shortly after their wedding, but before Evangeline could glean any more than that, Apollo gently placed her on her feet and addressed the crowd.

"I know this must seem surprising, and I fully intend to correct the rumours surrounding my death as soon as possible; but first, my wife has experienced a terrible shock at seeing me, and must be seen to before anything else."

This was said with a gentle squeeze of Evangeline's hand, as if to say "just go along with it for now." She was not a true princess, and as such was not well versed in the art of diplomacy and lies, but she got the sense Prince Apollo was avoiding any "difficult" subjects like his death and her memory loss in an attempt to spare her already strained mind from being further overwhelmed.

But it was the lack of information that was killing her; every face she passed was a stranger's, and the rooms she was escorted to were too fancy to belong to a shop girl from Valenda. Nothing prompted a memory, and nothing, not even her magnificent husband, felt like it made sense.

"How long has it been since I came here?" She had asked a servant when Apollo first deposited her among the velvet cushions and roaring fireplaces, but the servants either didn't know or had been instructed not to say. She had tried to push them, despite Apollo's silent warning to keep quiet about her amnesia. She had even tried invoking her "royal authority," but instead of answering they had drawn her a bath and left without even assisting her out of her dress.

It simply wasn't enough. She didn't even know what day it was, or how much time had passed since her last true memory. A horrible thought struck her and she raced to the mirror hanging in the bathing area; but her face looked much the same as she expected it to, so it couldn't have been too long.

She checked the pockets of her dress before removing it, in case there were some clues to be found from their contents. The only thing to be found was an ugly brass coin. It jogged no memories and did nothing whatsoever as she rolled it between her fingers and pondered its origins. But it was something, at least. She sat it atop the mother of pearl vanity and pulled her dress (a white dress with sunset-pink ribbons and gold flowers that also revealed nothing) over her head.

As she did, she felt several raised bumps on the otherwise-soft flesh of her back, and twisted in front of the mirror to get a better look.

She immediately regretted it. Criss-crossing her back were dozens of spidery pinkish-white scars, and though she had no memory whatsoever of receiving them, she could well imagine. She gently prodded one that curved across the small of her back. It didn't hurt, but it definitely would have done at the time.

She checked every inch of her body for more scars, more clues about her missing time. The only other thing she found was a tiny scar on her right wrist, thin and white, shaped like a broken heart.

"What happened to me?" She murmured to herself, but the answers remained out of reach.

JACKS

Jacks was in a bad mood.

His best friend, who had suffered centuries of torment because of Jacks' foolish desire to save his life at all costs, had finally been freed from his hunger. And he had immediately sated it with Evangeline's precious lifeblood.

But Jacks had been able to rewrite time, just the once, and save her.

It meant that he had been the one who Chaos had bitten. Compared to Evangeline, this was a tiny price to pay. Compared to any of the recently-awakened Valor family it was also a fair price, seeing as Honora had been able to lift the mirror curse plaguing Evangeline, and the others were once his second family, his sort-of friends. He was hard to kill, so no permanent damage was done, but it meant that several days had to pass before Jacks was strong enough to leave his apartment.

The news piled up around his door in the form of Kristoff Knightlinger's scandal sheets. The top one, the most recent, read:

IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING: PRINCE APOLLO CONFIRMS BALL WILL PROCEED "COME HELL OR HIGH WATER"

He flicked back through the pile, reading the week's events in reverse chronological order.

NEW BALL DATE SET FOR TOMORROW EVENING: LET'S HOPE THIS ONE STICKS

PRINCESS POORLY? PRINCE APOLLO DENIES RUMOURS THAT CELEBRATORY BALL CANCELLED DUE TO INFIRMITY

BALL CANCELLED: PRINCE APOLLO APOLOGISES FOR DELAYS, CITES "FAMILY ISSUES"

PRINCE APOLLO TO HOST "BALL TO END ALL BALLS" CELEBRATING HIS RETURN; NORTH REJOICES

A MIRACLE! PRINCE APOLLO RETURNS FROM THE DEAD, IMMEDIATELY DENOUNCES FALSE HEIR

He grabbed the one that mentioned Evangeline and let the rest fall back on his stoop. The article was entirely speculative, in true Knightlinger fashion. It seemed Princess Evangeline had been avoiding contact with others, possibly after experiencing a terrible shock at the sight of her dead husband returned to life. Knightlinger managed to suggest she was overcome with guilt from killing him in the first place without saying anything openly treasonous. He went on to state that Apollo categorically denied all rumours related to his wife, and that she was as excited as anyone for the ball to proceed as planned.

Jacks contemplated the article a moment, before tossing the whole paper into the fireplace. Part of him wanted to believe that if Evangeline really had withdrawn from others, it was less to do with her husband's return and more to do with her heartbreak over losing Jacks. But that was a dangerous thought, one that tempted Jacks to meddle when he'd promised to leave and never come back. Seeing Evangeline again would achieve nothing but heartache, but at least he would know if both their hearts were aching, or just his own.

"Damn thing," he muttered, rubbing his chest. The beating was still a new feeling, especially when it raced at the thought of a certain Fox holed up in her den, crying her eyes out over his rejection. She didn't seem to understand that his actions were a kindness, not a cruelty. The love of Evangeline Fox's life was Death, and it courted her passionately. Jacks refused to be the weapon of her destruction.

But surely it would be alright to see her one last time? Just to confirm that her "avoiding contact with others" wasn't a cover-up for the fact that she was lying dead in a dungeon somewhere. Just to confirm she had moved on from him; and if she hadn't, he could twist the dagger a little as a reminder why she should.

He could justify it all he wanted. He could wrap it in concern for her safety or a desire to tease her just to see the face she made. But even as he turned to search his wardrobe for an outfit that hadn't been torn to shreds, he knew the real reason he wanted to see her again was far simpler, and far, far more complicated.

He arrived after all the boring speeches about how happy everyone was that Prince Apollo had returned from the dead, and thanking his new friends the "Vales" for their assistance in achieving this feat (Jacks has gone back and read the other newspapers, learning that the Valors were doing a very poor job of avoiding the public eye). He had a fairly high profile, and even though he hadn't seen any specific mentions of his involvement in recent events, he knew Apollo would probably be less than thrilled to see him here. Evangeline too, possibly.

But that was why he was dressed as unassumingly as it was possible for an immortal Fate to be, with all buttons in their correct holes and both sleeves intact. He'd even tucked in his shirt. The only ones who paid him any mind at all were vapid young ladies (and a few gentlemen), but none of them had pink hair so they may as well have been ice sculptures.

Just as he was beginning to despair of never finding her, the crowded dance floor suddenly dispersed until only one pair remained. Evangeline hung off Apollo's arm, looking nervous and uncomfortable. The music played their intro, and Apollo leaned forward to whisper something in her ear. Jacks watched, eyes narrowed, as Evangeline not only smiled at her drip of a husband, but blushed .

They stumbled through a dance, but Jacks couldn't watch. He wanted to hurt someone. Yes, he had told Evangeline to get over him, had even said she was nothing to him. But she was supposed to see through that lie, and refuse to give up on him. Or at least, not quite so easily.

He cast about the room for a pretty girl he could pretend to care about, so that he could leave her heartbroken in a few minutes when the dancing began for everyone else. That was when he saw a familiar face.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I could ask you the same thing," Marisol Tourmaline looked him up and down, and even though he could tell she actually liked what she saw very much, she made a show of turning up her nose at him. "It seems they really did invite everyone to this thing, if you're here."

"Says the witch. How are your fiancés? I can't imagine they keep in touch, after what you did to them."

Marisol had the decency to look abashed, but what she said next ruined any chance of changing his mind about her. "You better not be here to hurt Eva."

"As if you care!" he laughed in her face. "I'm surprised dear 'Eva' hasn't thrown you in the dungeons for everything you've done."

A few people had glanced their way, and some were even whispering behind their hands. Marisol went pale. "As it happens," she hissed, "Evangeline has forgiven me for our…spat, and the Prince has cleared up all the nasty rumours about me. We have an understanding."

Jacks snorted. They weren't 'rumours' if they were true. "How kind of them."

"I'm one of Eva's closest confidants now." She said it with pride, even though the Marisol Jacks knew was probably seething at the sight of her stepsister getting everything she ever wanted. "And I don't want anything to come between us again, so you'd better leave us both alone, Lord Jacks."

So Evangeline hadn't told her 'closest confidant' who he really was? Interesting. "Believe me, I have no intention of seeing either of you again after tonight."

"Good."

The first song ended, and despite what she had said Marisol glanced hopefully between him and the dance floor.

He stalked off without another word.

EVANGELINE

Evangeline's head was spinning.

She had never been to a ball before; or at least, she had no memory of such a thing, despite being assured that she had, in fact, attended several. Prince Apollo had even proposed to her at a ball just like this one, which had apparently been the reason for her coming to the Magnificent North in the first place.

The last year of her life sounded like a fairy tale, full of colourful characters and heroic deeds. According to Apollo and Marisol, her father had remarried Marisol's mother before he had died. Marisol had then gotten engaged, but on the day of their wedding an evil curse had befallen the party. Evangeline had heard about her own sacrifice, the daring act that had won her and her stepsister a ticket north, and felt nothing. She must have loved Marisol dearly, to do that for her, but there just wasn't enough memory left to make that love seem real.

It was the same, she had to admit, for her husband. Apparently they had married shortly after meeting, a whirlwind romance befitting a Northern tale. She just wished she could remember why. Her memories of home were hazy, but she felt like someone, a man, had been in her life other than her father. What had happened to him? Was he the reason her chest ached with something like longing, even when her handsome husband wrapped his arms around her? Or was it just the memory of her grief for the period when the entire kingdom, herself included, must have thought that very same husband was dead?

She would never have married for anything less than true love, so all of these feelings must have just been latent confusion from her memory loss. Still, she released Apollo immediately after their dance and made excuses about needing fresh air.

"Shall I come with you?" he asked, attentive as ever. He'd spent the last week answering every question she had, postponing the ball so that she had more time to catch up on her situation, even producing her stepsister so that she would have a friendly companion during her secret convalescence. Marisol was the only one other than Apollo and a few palace healers that knew about her memory loss. Everyone else thought it was shock at the sight of her 'dead' husband's return.

She slipped out of the grand ballroom and into a courtyard garden. Suddenly all the music and laughter of the ball became muffled, lost in the gentle whumph of falling snow and the crunch of it under her slippers. She shivered, but couldn't bring herself to retreat back inside for a cloak. Instead, she moved further away from the light still visible through the tall glass windows, misted with condensation. She didn't want anyone knowing she was out here and coming after her.

What she hadn't reckoned on was somebody coming out before her. She rounded a frosty grey statue of a man on a horse and stopped before she could intrude upon their solitude in the exact way she feared someone intruding on hers. The person had their back to her, and didn't seem to react to her arrival, so there was a chance she could turn around and go back inside without bothering them. But something about them intrigued her, and she lingered by the statue to watch.

They were covered from head to foot in a dark cloak, to the point that she couldn't see an inch of skin, but she would have guessed they were male. They knelt, hand extended, to something on the ground, and Evangeline watched in fascination as a fox (an animal one) sniffed their gloved hand. The fox was as pure white as the snow it sat on, except for a darker patch around one eye. And, strangest of all, it didn't seem to be quite solid. If she looked carefully, she could see flakes of snow falling through its body, as if it were more ghost than fox.

As she pondered what this meant and whether she should fetch someone about it, the cloaked figure stood abruptly and began to walk away in the opposite direction from Evangeline. She tried to follow him, but the darkness swallowed him instantly and not even his footsteps could be heard.

She turned her attention to the fox, who had not run off but was watching her curiously. She still wasn't sure what it was, but it was undeniably cute, and her heart melted a little.

"Hello," she said softly, kneeling down and extending her hand like the cloaked figure had. The fox approached her willingly, pressing its cold nose into her hand. She could feel its whiskers tickling her palm, and she giggled at the sensation. It occurred to her that it was the first time she had laughed since losing her memories. It felt good to laugh, a little more like the old her; but a curious fox was a far easier companion than a castle full of people she didn't know.

"What do I do?" she asked, not expecting an answer. Her problems were up to her to solve.

The fox stared at her with its mismatched eyes for a moment, then bent and gently dropped something into her outstretched hand. Then it disappeared, fading out of existence as if it had never been.

She stared at the coin in her hand, a perfect copy of the one hidden in her pocket at that very moment. She'd made careful enquiries about the currency of the Magnificent North, even asking for some money to spend on frivolous items in town with Marisol. Apollo had immediately given her a fat purse of gold and silver coins, but none had the ugly broken head design of these coins. The shopping trip itself had been delayed until after the ball, to ensure she could "manage the stress" of such an expedition. He'd said it kindly, but Evangeline was sick of being treated like glass and denied things for her own good. She could appreciate the wisdom of keeping her condition a secret, lest some villain weasel their way into her life with lies; but hiding from the world wasn't getting her any closer to regaining her memories.

And now she had two strange coins, which felt like a clue.

She put the new one in her other pocket and went to slip back into the ballroom just as someone else slipped out. Instead of passing her, he stopped in the doorway.

"There you are, Little Fox," he said, and Evangeline glanced behind her to see if her furry friend had returned. But nothing was there, and after a moment she realised the man was talking to her.

"Excuse me?"

The man was very handsome, with golden hair and sparkling blue eyes. The only thing that ruined his otherwise angelic appearance was the sharp, teasing smile on his lips.

"Don't worry; I'm not staying long. I just wanted to make sure you were actually leaving me alone, and not just pining to death or fighting off murderers again." The smile became crueller, edged with something hard. "It seems I needn't have worried. You and your prince seem very cosy these days."

"Do I know you?" The man's words certainly suggested she did, even if it might have been in a less than proper way if she read between the lines. But at this point, she'd take an upsetting truth over the comforting placations everyone else seemed to be offering.

The man's smile faltered, and for a moment he looked genuinely hurt. But then he gave a short, sharp laugh and began to walk by her.

"I suppose not."

"No, wait!" Evangeline grabbed his arm before he could disappear into the night. "I'm sorry, but if we have met before then I genuinely can't recall it."

He went still, and then slowly spun back to face her. His expression seemed blank, but his eyes glittered and he suddenly seemed more dangerous than before.

"Was it in the last year or so?" She asked softly, feeling strangely apologetic. Neither her husband nor her stepsister had seemed so upset to learn that she couldn't remember their history, but this stranger seemed almost murderous.

"You seriously don't remember me at all?" The man asked, also speaking quietly.

She shook her head. "I don't remember anything at all. Everything's hazy past a year or so." I wish I remembered you.

"Perhaps it's better if you don't," he murmured, but he didn't seem happy about it. Evangeline realised she was still holding his arm, but instead of letting him go she gripped him even tighter.

"Please, if you know me just tell me who you are. I promise that no matter how bad it is, not knowing is worse."

Oh, if only that were true, Little Fox.

Evangeline started, the man's voice reaching her ears despite his mouth never moving. "How did you do that?"

"Don't worry about that." He frowned, but Evangeline could tell it had bothered him. She concentrated carefully.

Can you hear my thoughts?

He gave her a blank look that she didn't believe for a moment. "Seriously, leave all of this alone, Evangeline Fox."

"But how can we do this? Is this some Northern magic, or is it something special like…" True love. She hadn't meant to think it at him, but she could tell from his expression that he had heard her.

"Definitely not." His tone was adamant, and Evangeline wondered yet again what kind of relationship she had with this man.

"Evangeline!" Her husband's voice called out from the crowd, which parted a moment later to reveal the man himself. He was accompanied by Marisol, who looked flustered, and a beautiful young woman with violet hair, who looked amused. The heads of nearby guests, which until that moment had been preoccupied with their own conversations, all looked up at the entrance of the striking trio, before turning as one toward Evangeline and the mystery man.

But the mystery man was gone, slipping free of her grasp and disappearing into the dark garden just like the cloaked figure and the fox before him.

Wait! She thought desperately, even as she schooled her expression into a smile for Apollo and the onlookers. At least tell me your name.

The silence stretched on so long that she feared he was already out of range, or it only worked when they touched. But then:

Jacks. But I wouldn't mention that name in front of your husband if I were you.

"Here you are," Apollo said, reaching through the doorway and pulling Evangeline back into the bright ballroom. "Your hands are cold as ice." He rubbed them gently between his own large, warm hands.

"Thank you," she murmured absently. Ten minutes ago the touch of Apollo's hand as they danced had seemed so intimate. Now, she could only think of the man named Jacks, and why he had warned her to keep him a secret.

"I assumed I would find you with Miss Marisol." Apollo glanced toward Marisol, who swallowed nervously. Evangeline had indeed used her stepsister as an excuse for stepping away from him, as she had promised to always be at one of their sides tonight. "Who were you out here talking with?"

His tone remained mild, but Marisol looked even more nervous, and the violet-haired woman leaned in as if eager to hear her answer.

Evangeline forced herself to relax. "Oh, I was just introducing myself to a little white fox. At least, I think it was a fox. It was sort of…" she waved her hand vaguely. "See-through."

The others continued to stare at her for a moment, before Apollo smiled. "A ghost fox? How lucky for you. They say that if you manage to charm one, you may receive a gift."

"Really?"

"Yes. In fact, I had several ghost foxes rounded up and invited to our wedding." Apollo spoke too quietly for eavesdroppers, but the purple-haired girl was right beside him and didn't seem terribly surprised to hear what he was saying.

He seemed to realise where Evangeline's attention was directed, as he hastened to introduce her. "By the way, this is Aurora Vale. Her family recently rendered some assistance to the crown, and I thought she might make a good friend for you."

Aurora extended a slender hand and gave Evangeline a perfect smile. "I've heard so much about you, Evangeline. Including your 'condition,'" she added in a whisper.

"I'm afraid I haven't heard much about you." She hoped that didn't sound rude, but she couldn't help but feel a little annoyed that once again, others knew more about her than she knew about them.

"That's alright; there isn't much to tell. I'm a very boring person, really." She laughed modestly, and her bright purple hair shimmered as if to remind everyone that Aurora Vale was clearly anything but boring. "Still, I hope we can be friends. Seeing as you don't have any others at the moment."

Marisol made a strangled noise, and Aurora glanced at her before adding. "Of course you have a sister, which is even better. But friends are still important to have." She winked, and Marisol's scowl deepened.

Evangeline wasn't sure what to make of Aurora. Apollo seemed to trust her, but Marisol clearly disliked her, and she could sort of see why. She was so beautiful that it would be easy to chalk it up to envy, but she also got the sense that Aurora was, if not purposefully rude, then the sort of person who spoke carelessly, fully trusting that things would work out for her anyway. After at least a week of feeling very careful about what she said and how she was perceived by a kingdom full of people (many of whom had apparently suspected her of regicide) Evangeline couldn't help but resent Aurora's carefree attitude just a little.

However, Aurora was correct that she needed more friends, or at least more people that Apollo would trust to chaperone her on outings to the city. She wouldn't learn anything trapped in Wolf Hall; and besides, Evangeline hadn't lost so much of herself that she wouldn't try to see the best in people wherever possible. Aurora might end up being the best friend she ever had. Certainly, nobody else (other than Marisol) had come forward to ask after her in the last week.

Apollo and Marisol had answered all of her questions about her life in the Magnificent North to the best of their ability, but she got the sense that sometimes they weren't telling the full truth. She had thought this was to prevent her from being overwhelmed, but possibly they were sparing her feelings. Perhaps she truly didn't have any friends here. Perhaps princesses weren't meant to.