Page 10 – Wrong End of the Stick

Already, Ever After High was buzzing with the news of what Raven Queen had done. Walked right off the stage without signing the Storybook of Legends, even when Headmaster Grimm himself had confronted her. Some were saying it was exactly what they expected of the kid of someone so evil. Others seemed to have a different opinion: that Raven had the courage to say what they'd been wanting to say for a long time.

A different buzz was still bothering Taylor Valiant, though.

"What kind of bug did you say it was?" asked the fairy looking at the massive red welt on the side of his neck.

The disinfectant she'd put on it was making it itch even more, and Taylor had to fight down the urge to scratch it.

"I don't know," Taylor said, hoping he sounded believable. "It looked big and orange, and flew away into the Enchanted Forest as soon as I saw it."

"Doesn't sound like any insect around here," she mused. "Still, for now, just keep an eye on that. If it starts to hurt more or gets any bigger, let us know right away. Be sure to change the bandages after you shower. And be sure to shower."

"Believe it or not, bathing matters to me," Taylor mumbled while she wound gauze around his neck. After she was done, he got up and stepped out of the nurse's office. With all the battles he'd been getting into, in a way he was relieved a bee sting was the most worrying thing he had to show for it. But why take chances when it had been a monster bee?

A few weird looks came his way from the bandage wound around his neck while Taylor made his way up the dorms, but as soon as he'd passed, most of them went back to their hushed discussions about Raven Queen's display of defiance.

In a way, Taylor was glad they weren't talking about him.

In another, he was worried what exactly they were saying about his friend.

Pyotr was playing video games when Taylor got home, but took off his headphones and looked up.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"Bee sting," Taylor said before he flopped onto his own bed.

"Did you get it fighting that new Dark Mirror?" Pyotr asked.

Taylor flipped awkwardly onto his side, right onto his bee sting, and yipped in pain. "…what?" he managed to ask. "Does everyone know about that?!"

Obligingly, Pyotr picked up his mirrorpad and started playing a video showing Blondie Lockes' smiling visage. "It looks like Ever After High has a new hero!" she cheerfully announced, before it cut to video of Mendyr and Reisender doing a double jump-kick through the Dark Mirror's chest.

Reisender staggered over to the school's front stairs and lay back on them, but Mendyr jumped to a tower and disappeared into the shadows. The video cut back to Blondie, who had a panel next to her with Sol West's face, and a black silhouette of a face with a huge white question mark over it.

"This exciting footage was captured by a school fairy, of two heroes protecting the school from a giant bull!" Blondie informed her audience. "We see one of the mysterious heroes who saved Apple White on Legacy Day, but it appears he still has secrets to hide," she said with a salacious grin. "The other one's revealed himself as our own Solaris West, and he's already pledged to use his powers to defend Ever After High!"

"I wish you'd asked me to help," Pyotr sighed, and put it down.

Taylor sighed too. "Was kind of in a hurry to keep the monster from doing any damage. Besides…I can't ask you help me in a fight!"

"Why not? Maybe if I'd been there, I'd have a suit like yours right now."

"And if you did, maybe you'd have a giant bee sting like this, too," Taylor replied. "Or even worse."

"Is it so wrong that I want to feel useful too?" Pyotr glowered at him. "When you and Cerise went off into the woods to save Raven, I was just stuck here, worrying about you guys all night."

"Yeah, and I was fighting for my life that whole time. It wasn't cool."

Pytor didn't answer. Wondering what was going on, Taylor rolled over and saw him typing furiously on his mirrorphone.

"What are you doing?" asked Taylor.

"I'm hexting Cerise to ask if it's cool."

"Don't ask her that!"

"Why not? Afraid of what I'll find out?"

Taylor sighed, and leaned his head back against the wall. "Look, getting beat up all the time is not cool. I'm trying to say that as a friend."

Pyotr sighed too, louder and longer. "And I'm saying this as a friend: is being worried all the time knowing your best friend's getting beaten up all the time supposed to be cool? I want to help too! It's not like you trained for this, and I didn't, or anything."

"Look, all of us figuring this out as we go," Taylor tried to assure his friend. "Please don't think you're not contributing something, okay? I've been feeling overwhelmed by all the stuff I have to do as Mendyr lately. I'm sorry I can't always come and tell you when I'm running off to an emergency, but it really does matter to that I know I have people who know about my secret, and can catch me if I fall."

"We can't catch you if you try to keep us away, T," Pyotr replied, very quietly. "And how long can you keep it a secret, when other people with Heroic Will powers are starting to show up?"

Sighing again, Taylor stood up. "Then I guess we'll need to figure out a solution," he said, getting his towel and shampoo off the dresser. "After I wash off this day."

Something on your mind, Brooke?

It's kind of hard to watch the heroes of a story struggling with everything. I know that makes for the best stories, though.

Quite right.

As a reader, though…it gets boring if they spend too long without getting close to completing their quest. Or beat their enemy, or whatever.

Different readers have different tolerances.

Our job's to narrate, not to criticize. Is that what you were gonna say next, mom?

…you don't need to get cheeky about it, young lady. I'm really starting to wonder about the ideas your father's putting in your head, especially after Raven Queen's display last chapter.

Are you hoping Pyotr and Taylor can figure this out, and save their friendship?

I've seen enough stories that it seems likely, but one never knows. If you knew, there'd be no excitement from the story.

Yeah, that's what I'm talking about.

What, is what you're talking about?

We only talk about how to be a good narrator since this story started. Why don't we talk about what's going on in the story?

What is it you want to talk about, Brooke?

Soon, another day dawned over Ever After High, and Raven Queen woke up with a smile on her face that worried her roommate.

She looked…freed.

Apple tried not to seem like she was bothered while she surreptitiously watched Raven get ready for the day, sit on the bed and hext her friends, and get up to head for the door, smiling. Until Apple hopped in her way.

"Hi, Apple," Raven greeted her, assertively.

"Before you go, could we have a little talk?" Apple asked, afraid she was letting her nervousness show.

She was right.

"A little one," Raven agreed. "Don't make tea for it like you do with your friends, okay?"

"Okay," Apple said, and clasped her hands together. "I thought we were going to, you know, sign the Storybook of Legends together."

"Oh, that. Doesn't it sound kind of backwards to you? We lock it in forever, then we find out if you and me can do that? Be frenemies?"

"…What other way? That's how our moms did. That's how everyone did it," Apple protested.

"Yeah. And nothing went 'poof', like he said everything would."

Apple's beautiful face tightened, a glimmer of desperation forming in her perfect blue eyes. "But, then, how do I know you'll stay with our story?"

"Maybe you can give a little, and trust me to help make this work, Apple. Now, I really need to get going," Raven said, and stepped around Apple.

"But, I mean!" Apple stuttered, not sure what to say next. "What will the school be like, if we don't stick to Destiny?"

"Maybe it'll be a new kind of place. One where princesses are powerful," suggested Raven.

Once she was alone in their room, Apple wasn't sure what exactly to do with the whole day in front of her. A good princess could master chaos, Snow White had said endlessly since Apple was nervous the night of her first beauty pageant. While she always tried to live up to her mother's example, Apple was still at a point in her life where she appreciated some structure.

If she couldn't get it from Raven Queen, she'd need to get it somewhere else.

Wasn't there a message on her mirrorphone, asking her if she had plans?

Among all the usual messages, asking if she had plans?

Yes, there was: "APPL, COME HANG OUT W/US. SOL GOT LEGENDARY POWERS AND WERE SPELLABRATING ALL WEEKND"

Apple didn't really know who Sol West was, except from the register of heirs her mom had had her read before school started. She'd already gotten all her thronework was done, like a dutiful princess, though, and Apple couldn't stand the thought of just hanging around in their room all Chapterday. She needed to be with her other people, and could probably do worse than hanging out with Daring Charming and his friends.

Making sure she had everything she needed, Apple left their room and stepped into the hall.

"Hi Apple!" came an adoring call before she'd even locked the door.

She waggled her fingers in a gracious but casual greeting. Sometimes, it worked. This time, it seemed, Apple had met a fan.

Next thing she knew, the girl had seized her hand and was shaking it vigorously, and squealing with excitement. "I'm not a princess, but if I were, I'd try to be just like you!"

"Glad to hear that. If there's one thing my mom always stresses, it's being a good role model," Apple recited her practiced response to praise in that category.

After posing for a few spellfies with her admirer, Apple was able to get on her way. Fortunately, she was greeted by more than a few people on her way, but the rest were happy to just send a friendly greeting or a reminder of something at their next shared activity.

Living up to the High Queen's example definitely kept Apple busy.

Soon, Apple was being ushered by someone's valet through the doors out onto a garden terrace on the side of one of the school's towers. Apple flicked him a gold coin on the way through, which he snatched out of the air and hid behind his back with all proper discretion.

"Apple! So glad you could make it!" Daring said as soon as she had stepped out into the soon. Out of reflex, she raised her arm to shield her eyes from the blinding glare off his smile.

"My pleasure," she said with pleasant diplomacy. "I have a feeling this will be exactly the distraction I'm looking for."

Despite the calibre of student who usually used it, the terrace didn't go back very far, but it had real grass broken up white marble tile pathways, and the view of the Enchanted Forest was absolutely legendary. Apple didn't pay much attention, this being the third time she was invited to a party there. Instead she headed straight to the table with the carved dragon-claw legs to get some tea poured from the one-of-kind white porcelain teapot with inlaid golden floral patterning.

While she sipped, Apple made a quick survey of the other kids in attendance. Daring Charming, of course, and looking slightly uncomfortable standing off by himself was his younger brother Dexter. Watching the goings-on from a seat by the railing was Dexter's twin, their sister Darling Charming. Her dress was a metallic silver with blue accents, like her long wavy hair was platinum blonde, streaked through with pale blue. Darling's face was an impassive mask, and Apple could recognize at once the signs of someone bored who'd been dragged to a gathering by family.

Probably Daring.

The rest of the attendees were gathered around a slightly rugged-looking brown-haired boy, who Apple also recognized after a second: Sol West, one of Daring's friends he'd introduced her at another party once. Though she couldn't quite remember if it was one they'd been here, or somewhere else. He was in the middle of telling a story, the one about defeating the bull monster she'd already read on his Fablebook posts everyone had tagged her about.

Some of Sol's admirers were new faces to Apple, but some she recognized. Hanging on Sol's every word was one girl with dark auburn hair streaked with pink, just like the color of her dress decorated with climbing roses. Briar Beauty, Sleeping Beauty's daughter, who Apple was glad to see was awake, for once. Eager for every bit of excitement she could work into her waking periods. Including stories from newly-ascended heroes, it seemed.

Another princess listening with rapt attention was someone Apple White hadn't seen in years: a girl in a purple dress made of ruffled velvet, with luxurious red locks all the way down to her knees. Holly O'Hair was Rapunzel's older daughter, and already trying hard to live up to her mother's example, if the length of her hair was any indication.

That sounded very familiar to Apple.

Also listening to the end of Sol West's story was Ashlynn Ella, one of Apple's best friends forever after, but she seemed to be enjoying it much less than the other princesses in attendance. In fact, Ashlynn kept looking away, and the expression on her regal face was almost…maudlin.

What could a good friend do, but step in?

"Hi, Ashlynn."

"Hi, Apple," Ashlynn replied, but her expression not changing.

"The party not your kind of thing?"

"It's not that," said Ashlynn, not meeting her friend's eyes. "It's just that besides Sol telling his story about beating up a giant bull two times, the only thing everyone's been talking about is Raven Queen refusing to sign the Storybook of Legends."

"That's been on my mind a lot, too," Apple agreed.

Ashlynn rubbed at her arm, seeming to weigh her response. Like the compassionate princess she was taught to be, Apple waited quietly for her, even though Ashlynn's point made her feel anxious; this was exactly the thing she'd come to the party hoping to forget about. Finally, Ashlynn almost whispered, "Is it wrong?"

"What do you mean?"

Again Ashlynn waited to respond, looking even more unsure. When she did, she said, "Maybe she's got a point? Maybe we are pushed too hard to sign the book and be locked into our destinies."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Daring laughed as he came over. "We train our whole lives for our destinies! That's the way it's always been! I'd been waiting the whole summer for Legacy Day, and then Raven Queen ruins it twice! What's her problem?"

Apple sipped some tea thoughtfully, pondering her own answer. "We're not exactly rushing into our story, are we, Daring?" she reminded her prince. "Our whole lives are ahead of us, and we're taking it slow while we're still in school, even if we end up together at the end of our story. You haven't told anyone we're together-together, did you?"

"Yes, I'm respecting your decision," Daring affirmed. "Although I still don't understand why you asked."

Once again, Ashylnn's expression got even more upset. She found her voice much sooner, and replied, "Raven was right, though, wasn't she? Nothing went poof."

"Yet," Daring interjected with a glower.

"Look, I love my mom. Her story's a classic!" Ashlynn went on. "I love shoes! I got that from her! But…what if there is more to life than being my step-family's maid and marrying somebody at a dance?"

"That is life! That's Destiny!" Daring exclaimed.

Ashylnn stepped away from them. "I'd better go," she sighed. "I've got a project I shouldn't be putting off."

Sol West had finished his story and came over with his admirers then, and he asked, "Is everything okay? Ashlynn looked terrible from the minute she got here, but then she just left? What happened?"

Daring explained to his friend, "She seems to think maybe Raven Queen had a point. Can you imagine?" He followed up his question with a scoff.

"That kind of talk's dangerous," Sol said, his face darkening.

"Why's that?" asked Apple, unable to stop herself from taking a step away from him in surprise. "I mean, I want Raven to sign the book and get our story going too, but…I…I don't want her to be forced to do it."

"Apple," Sol said patiently. "You're being a truly kind princess, your mom would be proud." She smiled a little, feeling reassured, but he went on, "Someone's sending monsters to make us stick to Destiny, though. And they're very, very angry at Raven Queen in particular for trying to resist hers."

Apple gulped.

Why don't we talk about that, mom?

Well, I admit Apple's caught in a bit of trouble. Between trying to stick to her destiny (like she should), and also be a good friend to her enemy.

They're not enemies, mom.

They're supposed to be. How else will their story happen?

I thought we were narrating this story. Don't you have any thoughts on it?

…it's true, Apple White could do a lot better than that Daring Charming boy. She's such a nice girl.

Hehehe.

It was a good walk to where the group had agreed to meet up, but Raven felt good when she met the rest of her group waiting for her, sitting on a cluster of rocks at the edge of the Enchanted Forest. Cerise Hood, Pyotr Lupus, and Taylor Valiant all looked up and waved her over when they saw her familiar dark shape getting closer.

"Hey, Ray!" Pyotr smiled and hugged her as she came up. "Have to say, you were spelltacular telling off Headmaster Grimm."

She scratched the back of her head and, slightly but noticeably, blushed. "I don't know if that's the word I'd use."

Pyotr disagreed. "You're the first person to ever stand up to Destiny! That's…well, what word would you use?"

"Don't know. I didn't think about it, I just did it," Raven replied. "Now, why don't we head into the forest, and see if we can find anything cool to do?"

"Wicked," Cerise grinned.

Taylor rubbed his hair down with one hand. "Think there's any dragon lairs in there?"

"Nah," Pyotr answered. "Questing season doesn't start for a few more weeks."

"Anything's better than hanging around school on a weekend," Raven mumbled, but led the way down the short trail to the trees. It was a cliché to say, but it was like stepping into another world as soon as the trees closed around them. Where everything had been silent only a minute before, now birds called to each other every few seconds. Squirrels were chasing each other across the ground, stopping in the middle of the trail to stare at the two-legged intruders in their forest, and running for cover before the intruders noticed them.

Cerise reached up and pulled out the folds on her hood, letting the window blow into its folds past her ears. She closed her eyes for a bit as she walked, just sighing in relaxation.

"Don't have too much fun," Taylor teased her.

"Just nice to be outside," she said, before opening her eyes again. Taylor hadn't noticed how grey they were before. Like a gathering storm cloud, something that seemed gentle, but full of fury waiting to be unleashed.

A lot like Cerise herself, he realized.

Her smile faded a little when she returned Taylor's gaze. "Is everything okay? You're staring pretty hard," she pointed out to him.

"Just…noticing you have really pretty eyes," Taylor said, only realizing what he was saying once the words had tumbled out of his mouth. Cerise gasped and covered her mouth with her hands when she heard it, but when she lowered them, she was smiling ever so softly.

"Thanks, T," she said quietly.

"I speak only the truth," he smiled.

She laughed. "Stop hanging around Cedar Wood so much, then."

"I cannot tell a lie, I've never even met her. You mean Pinocchio's kid, right?"

"Yeah, that's her," Cerise giggled. "She can't lie. Some kind of spell, or something? At least that's what Cedar said at Legacy Day practice.

Taylor groaned and looked up as he walked. "Don't talk to me about Legacy Day! We were finally getting away from that!" She didn't fail to notice he was smiling as he said it, though.

"Okay, okay!" Cerise said, but she laughed when she did. All of a sudden she pointed up toward the trees. "Hey, are those fairies?"

"Yeah, they are! Think they'll give us help on our quest if we prove ourselves worthy?" Taylor asked with a teasing smirk.

"What quest?" Cerise laughed.

"Our quest to be the coolest heroes in Ever After High?" Taylor suggested.

She laughed and pushed his shoulder. "We've already got everything we need for that!"

He sighed, but it was a relieved one. "Man, I already feel better. You wanna hang out tonight, too? Get some pizza, maybe?"

"Sure!"

"Great! What kind do you like?"

Immediately, her face lit up, and Taylor was sure he saw fangs in her grin. "MEAT," she informed him.

"Whoa," he said, and took a step away from her.

Perhaps they should have been looking out for danger.

They might have seen the shadowy figure observing them from behind a tree, before he loaded a Ride Book into his belt buckle.

Meanwhile, Raven and Pyotr got farther ahead of their friends, but were maybe a little glad for the distance.

Not from Cerise and Taylor specifically, but from school. Distance from all the other teens and their expectations. Distance from those who might even have a score to settle with one of them...

"You okay?" Pyotr asked. Quietly, making sure to put no pressure on Raven to answer.

"Yeah! I'm doing great!" Raven beamed, spreading her arms wide and spinning around, looking upward. "I didn't sign for my awful future, and nothing happened! That's something to spellabrate, if you ask me!"

"We will," he assured her, "but let's not forget another Dark Mirror tried to show up and force you to sign anyway. And now, there's another guy like Mendyr running around school."

"Can we not trust that guy?" Raven asked, looking only a little more serious. "Sounds like we're safer with more powerful heroes around, to me."

Pyotr sighed and looked at the ground. "I don't know…before, it was just us, you know? Everything happened to our group, but now somebody else got special powers. I've been asking myself, how long can we keep our little group secret if more kids get powers like Taylor and Cerise? And…should we even bother to keep it a secret anymore?"

"Wow, those are some big truths," Raven said, giving a teasing smile. "You're trying really hard not to end up like your dad, huh?"

He frowned. "I'm serious, Ray."

She smiled. "And I'm being less serious, because I don't want to end up like my mom. To be totally frank, you're starting to sound like Taylor when he gets worried."

Pyotr sighed. "Maybe he's rubbing off on me," he muttered.

"Oh?" asked Raven before she looked at him, eyebrow slightly raised. It was quiet and even, not an accusation, like the kind Pyotr was used to. Sounding to him like just a nudge that she was willing to listen, if he was willing to explain.

In that moment, Pyotr realized how hungry he was for someone willing to trust him like that. "It's just how on the other night, when they turned you into a monster…no offense!" he blurted out.

"None taken," Raven said, prompting him with a nod to go on.

Hearing that, he went on, "While you guys were out here in the forest, I was waiting back at school to hear from you. All I could do was sit around and worry, since I was probably the only kid there who knew what Dark Mirrors are like.

"Everyone's always thought I'm just a troublemaker, and that's not who I want to be. When I ran into you, somebody who doesn't want their destiny either, I started thinking…I don't know, maybe we could actually make that happen. Living some other way. After you didn't sign and just walked off the stage, I was sure we could. But we've got the Dark Mirrors running around still, and how can I help deal with that, that unless I have a suit of armor and magic books like Taylor?"

Right then, he heard Raven snort, and realized she was holding a hand over her mouth to hide the fact that she was holding in a laugh.

"Would you care to share the joke with the rest of class, Miss Queen?" Pyotr asked in a stern voice that sounded more like a joke.

"I mean, you're kidding, right?" Raven asked. His confused look was apparently answer enough, because in slight disbelief, Raven said, "You're not kidding. Come on, Pyotr! Did Jack have special powers when he climbed the beanstalk, and came back down with a fortune? Did Prince Ivan have special powers when he went to hunt Koschei, or did he win because he made a bunch of friends on his adventure?"

"Those stories don't have villains like Dark Mirrors."

She canted her head. "Don't they? Our stories have all kinds of villains, Pyotr. You know they do. Nobody solved them with a suit of armor like Taylor's. Maybe you're thinking too hard about what you can't do."

"Perhaps you're the one thinking too much about what you can't do, Raven Queen," said a buzzing voice from above. Both of them looked up and stepped back, alarmed, but somehow not surprised, to see the dark figure crouched on a branch above them. "Like defy Destiny."

It was hard to see details, but even from the ground they could see his skin lacked the glass-like glint of a true Dark Mirror monster. It was as if he wore armor instead, with short stubby horns and round, glowing yellow eyes that remind them both of an owl. His hand had a gauntlet on it with a frontward-curved spike on the back.

Around his waist, was a silver belt with what looked an awful lot like an opened Ride Book in the buckle.

"Who are you?" demanded Pyotr, stepping in front of Raven, but she walked around him.

"What are you doing out here?" demanded Raven. "Looking for me?"

The mysterious figure told her, "I am here, to protect this world from its enemies."

"Hey, what are they looking at?" Cerise asked suddenly.

Taylor squinted. "What do you mean? I don't see anything—" he started to say, but then he noticed the bright yellow eyes of the figure crouching in the crook of a tree. He started to sprint over, and despite himself was a little dismayed when he saw Cerise easily running ahead of him.

Without warning, the ground erupted in front of them, knocking both onto their backs. Brown leaves were blown all over them, and Taylor had to wipe them away from his face to see what had just attacked them. Not surprising him at all, a pair of Dark Mirror monsters with glistening black skin were looking down at the two of them.

One was massive, and round. A dome-like head stuck out of the top, and two stubby arms reached from holes in its shoulders while two thick emerged from holes near its bottom. Next to him was another Dark Mirror who was the exact opposite, thin and lean with sharp angles. He had tall ears and was leaning forward, poised on a pair of large feet.

"Taylor, am I going mad, or is that the Tortoise and the Hare?" Cerise exclaimed.

"You're not, I see them too," Taylor said, already summoning his sword and belt. "These guys are trying everything, aren't they?"

"Let's take care of this fast," Cerise said back. "Turn the page!"

Power surged out of their Ride Books, covering the two teens in mighty armor. Mendyr brandished the slender sword of Needle Sharp Hero, and Scarlet growled while she flexed the claws affixed to her wrists.

Before they could make a move, Hare had dashed the distance between them and crashed into Mendyr with his shoulder, knocking the masked warrior into a tree. He pried himself out and had his sword up in time to meet Hare's throat when the monster charged him again.

"You're pretty fast, yourself," chirped Hare.

"Maybe I'm getting used to you guys and your tricks?" retorted Mendyr.

"Oh, you'll be sorry for thinking that!" Hare said with a sharp laugh that had a screech like two panes of glass rubbing on the edges.

"I'll never be sorry for doing what's right!" Mendyr snapped. Hare suddenly jumped back one step to have enough room for a kick, which gave Mendyr the second he needed to jump, tucking in his legs to avoid the attack. Hare's long foot smashed into the trunk of the tree, and sheared right through it. The top of the tree collapsed, falling their way, forcing Mendyr and Hare to dodge in opposite directions.

After it hit the forest floor with a crash, the two of them faced each other across the span of its broken branches. With another screeching laugh, Hare said, "You're not doing what's right! We are!" His smile faded into a vicious scowl. "We're preserving this kingdom!"

"Then I guess we're the ones who see the problems, and want to fix them," Mendyr countered.

Meanwhile, whereas the Hare had charged Mendyr, Scarlet was the one charging the Tortoise. Her claws were raised for a downward slash, but with surprising speed the Dark Mirror hopped around so his back was facing Scarlet, and the curved tips of her claws skidded against the thickest part of his shell.

"Too slow!" Tortoise taunted, his voice nearly singing.

"Don't you dare call me that word!" Scarlet actually growled, but it died a little in her throat when she pulled back her claws, and saw the tips were badly chipped from hitting the Dark Mirror's impenetrable shell.

"Fine! I'll call you flat instead!" laughed Tortoise, who suddenly bent forward and formed his body into a ball! He rolled backward toward Scarlet, making a noise like thunder as his shell crushed rocks and roots on his way to roll over the warrior herself.

She saw the danger, let out a gasp, then turned and ran into the forest with a speed she'd never have managed on the school track. Her path took her through a pair of trees angled like a V, which Scarlet planned to catch Tortoise when he tried to roll through them and leave him vulnerable. After she'd made it through them, Scarlet whipped around and readied herself.

Tortoise crashed into the trees, but kept rolling, grinding his shell against their trunks and filling the air with splinters. Tension started to fill Scarlet's mind, as she waited for him to slow down or show her an opening so she could attack.

Unfortunately, she wouldn't get the chance. The tree trunks snapped in half from the pressure of Tortoise's body rolling against them, and Scarlet actually heard him laughing over the sound of the trees slamming to the ground around him.

It called for a drastic change of plans, and so Scarlet whirled around and dashed off again. Looping through the trees to evade Tortoise, who stayed right behind her the entire time, smashing saplings and rocks out of his way.

"Imagine if the Gingerbread Man were here! I might actually have to try!" Tortoise taunted his opponent.

"He can't run anymore! All he does is teach PE!" Scarlet yelled over her shoulder.

"In another second, you won't run anymore either!"

All of a sudden she put on a burst of speed and dashed off to her side, then straight up the trunk of a tree. Before gravity had a chance to assert itself, she grabbed a thick branch and hauled herself onto the top. Smirking behind her mask as Tortoise went down the slope she'd turned just in time to avoid, and chuckling as he cried out in surprise while he bounced down it.

"Now, let's see how Taylor's doing," she said to herself. Scarlet crouched, then jumped for a branch on another tree.

In midair, she ran right into a wall she couldn't see.

"That looked painful," snickered the masked man, still crouching on a tree branch overhead.

"What are you doing?" Raven demanded. She twirled one finger and sent a puff of dark magic zipping near to where Scarlet was lying on the ground. It splattered itself against an unseen wall, just like she had, and disappeared in a little puff.

"No one can escape Destiny," the masked man replied cryptically. "Your friend just found that out more painfully than most. All combatants are confined to the battlefield until one side is victorious."

Raven and Pyotr exchanged a look, but said nothing. What could they say to someone who put them in a situation this weird? Still, Pyotr rolled his jaw, as if determined to try. Maybe he had his father's blood in him after all, Raven thought.

But was that a golden glint around him she'd seen, just for a second?

"Look, man, you're one of those guys who's all hung up on Destiny, right?" Pyotr asked. "What exactly do you want from us? Tell us, and maybe we can make a deal."

"Absolutely. Sign for your futures, stop rebelling against Destiny, and all this can go away," the masked man replied.

Pyotr shut his eyes, shook his head, and chuckled. "Look, man, I don't know about your family, but my dad's story was about breaking the rules! How do you expect me to tell lies for fun, and respect the rules at the same time?! Right, Ray?"

She nodded at him before she looked up at the masked man. "Yeah, he's right! I'm the daughter of the Evil Queen! If that's the way you really want me, then you don't want me just doing whatever I'm told!"

The masked man continued to stare down at them, but after a minute, they realized he was laughing quietly. "All you children, who think you can rewrite the world with a persuasive argument. That isn't how the world works…Headmaster Grimm person tried to guide you to your destinies gently. The Keeper tried to warn you of the consequences of defying your destinies. Now, I will be more direct.

"Ever After High will embrace Destiny again, no matter what it takes. Seriously, you want to argue logic? You smart-mouth kids had your chance to obey logic! Now, you're going to have the right way shown to you by your betters!"

To punctuate his statement, he stood up, revealing more detail. His armor had a dark silver image on the chest of a swooping horned howl seen from the front. His boots were the same silver, and had taloned feet.

"As soon as your little protectors are dealt with, you can go back to school with a warning," he informed them.

"Oh yeah? After we get back, who do we say sent us?" Raven asked, as incredulously as she possibly could.

The masked man glared down at her in angry silence, but Raven didn't flinch. Whether she accepted it or not, Raven had taught been by the best—or the worst—to be the most intimidating villain in the kingdom. Her mother had warned her that when you were the best villain, someone else would always try to challenge you for your spot, and she'd need to be able to stand firm when it happened.

But he replied, "The Keeper tried to convince you to remain true to Destiny, but I am the Seeker. I seek out the children who rebel against Destiny, and show them by force the error of their ways."

"Uh-huh," Raven said, trying form an expression her mom had called "casual cockiness". Eyelids slightly lowered, one side of her mouth turned up in a smirk. Inside, she was about to scream. Only the fact that the Dark Mirrors needed her alive kept her safe at all; they'd been ruthless enough to take over her body once, and right now were fighting her best friends.

A glance over her shoulder showed her it was getting even worse: Tortoise had come zooming up the slope again, blasting through the top of a tree, bouncing off another coming straight at Scarlet.

Meanwhile, Hare was chasing after Mendyr with a series of fast leaps as the masked warrior tried to retreat and get enough room to make an attack of his own. Hare bounded suddenly and came at Mendyr with a jump kick, his wide foot slamming into Mendyr's side with a sound like glass breaking.

Pyotr was watching the battle too, and seeing his friends being battered by the Dark Mirrors made him clench his fists in anger. Slowly, a golden glow flowed up his body, and he said one word.

"Wolf."

The forest had indeed turned into a battleground. Tortoise careened into Scarlet after ricocheting off a tree trunk. Instead of knocking her away, he rammed into her and dragged her along until uncurling himself and leaving Scarlet flat on her back, gasping for breath.

"Bet you were expecting me to be all 'slow and steady', like in the story, huh?" Tortoise sneered.

Gasping a few times before she managed to find her voice, the aching Scarlet managed to say in a raspy voice, "I learned to stop expecting anything, around you guys."

"I'll tell you right now, there's one thing you can expect!" Tortoise laughed, then curled himself up to roll over her again. "Me crushing you!"

All of a sudden a wolf's howl cut through the air, and Tortoise stopped and looked around in confusion. An unexpected sight caught his glassy eye, and he froze where he stood. A huge wolf, as big as a carriage, and covered in a shiny black shell like the Dark Mirrors, was standing between Tortoise and his helpless target. As suddenly as it had appeared, the wolf lunged, jaws gaping and spewing shards of mirror slaver.

Tortoise flinched.

Scarlet, though, looked around in confusion, wondering what her opponent had seen. But her predator's instincts took over, and whispered into her ear that she saw an opening, and to take it.

She did, hurling herself at Tortoise, claws held out in front of her, and raking them across Tortoise's underbelly in an X-strike. Her claws were still damaged, one of the tips broke off from the force, but the air was also filled with broken glass flying off Tortoise's body from taking a hit in a more vulnerable spot.

In fact she'd hit him so hard, Tortoise toppled onto his back with a mighty WHUMP. Scarlet threw herself at him, launching a flying kick at the very center of the X left by her previous attack. Her boot dug in hard and sprayed even more glass dust, while Tortoise could only gag in pain and flail around helplessly, trying to get back up.

Scarlet, though, didn't intend to give him the chance, and backflipped off him onto solid ground. She hit her amulet, making it roar, "Red Ride! Lone Wolf Slaughter!" Again, she jumped, coming down on the X-shaped wound she'd left on Tortoise, slashing and tearing with attacks so fast they were impossible to see. In a matter of seconds she'd torn through this body and out the other side, leaving gouges in the dirt.

Around her, Tortoise's body erupted in a burst of black dust.

"Slow and steady won the race, but fast and furious won that fight," Scarlet panted.

Meanwhile, Mendyr went flying from Hare's kick and slammed into a huge rock on the forest floor. His left an imprint, and the entire rock cracked in two from the powerful impact. He was still recovering from almost being splattered when Hare charged him again, mouth open to reveal large, very sharp-looking teeth. Thinking fast, Mendyr raised his sword defensively and aimed the tip at Hare's face. Instead, Hare twisted his head and caught the blade between his teeth, then threw it with a twist of his head. The sword whistled through the air and imbedded itself through the trunk of a tree.

And since it was fastened to Mendyr's wrist by its taut cord, he was trapped…

Hare laughed as he jumped up, then came down on Mendyr's chest with both long feet. Another vault off Mendyr's ribs took him into the air again, and he slammed down right on top of the dazed Mendyr again.

"You feel too soft to be a hero to me," Hare mused before he stomped on Mendyr's chest hard.

"Heroes come in every shaaaaaaAARRGH!" Mendyr tried to retort but yelled out as Hare sank his huge glass teeth into the warrior's shoulder. The Dark Mirror cackled around Mendyr's arm while he chewed as painfully as he could.

"Forget carrots, where can I buy more of these?!" he jeered.

He stopped when out of nowhere, he heard the howl of a wolf. With Mendyr's arm still clutched in his mouth, Hare looked up and froze when he saw a big black wolf rushing toward him. Letting go of Mendyr, he bounded backward to get some distance between him and the wolf. Next he crouched, then hurled himself at the oncoming wolf.

Only to go right through it, as if the beast was never there.

"Why…of course!" he snarled, and whipped around to see Pyotr Lupus running by him. "That was one of your tricks, wolf boy!"

"You sure sound mad," Pyotr snapped. "I thought you freaks wanted me to trick people about wolves attacking!"

Hare laughed. Quietly. Angrily. "That's cute, kid. Want to see my best trick, maybe?" he said with a snarl that it seemed a rabbit should never have been able to make.

"No way in hex, bunny man," Pyotr retorted.

"TOO BAD! We're here to show you your place, whether you want it or not!" Hare shouted, and crouched to launch himself at Pyotr and Mendyr.

Before he had the chance, Pyotr said another quiet word.

"Wildfire."

A sizzling sound reached Hare's long ears, causing him to glance behind, and freeze in fear. A wall of fire was rushing through the forest, leaving blackened trees and bushes in its wake. In another second it had passed over Hare, who was unharmed. The forest was unburnt. There had never been a flash of wildfire.

But it'd given Pyotr Lupus time to grab a heavy stick and was standing in front of his friend, while Mendyr struggled to get to his feet.

"Is that all you've got, now that I've seen your trick? A stick?" Hare asked, sneering again.

"Ain't you ever heard the story where one finger held back a flood?" Pyotr retorted. Hare jumped at him, and Pyotr smashed the Dark Mirror on the side of his head.

Hare was barely even fazed, turning his head and biting down on the stick to show the kid how useless it was to resist. When he expected his teeth to cut right through it, suddenly they met resistance, and he realized Pyotr's entire body—along with the stick in his hands—was glowing gold.

Not only that, but Mendyr had managed to get up and grabbed the other end of the stick. He and Pyotr shoved, knocking Hare on his back, and knocking off the tips of his teeth when they hit the edge of the stick on his way down!

Mendyr looked over at his friend, and said, "I wanted you to stay out of danger so you wouldn't get hurt by a monster." He sighed. "But I'm glad you didn't listen."

"Me too," Pyotr said with a weary smile. The golden glow of Heroic Will spread over both of them, and then flashed so brightly they had to look away. Pyotr opened them again soon as he dared, as the shape of the object in his hand was changing. By the time he could see again, the stick had changed to a Ride Book. Icy blue-white frame, with an image of a ghostly face blowing a stream of snowflakes.

Its title was "North Wind Boon".

Pyotr handed it to his friend. "Take it, T," he said. "Show me what this power we earned can do, okay?"

"You bet, wolf boy," Mendyr chuckled.

"Hey," Pyotr protested, but he was smirking.

Mendyr fitted the Ride Book into his belt. "Turn the page!"

"A bold lad travels north and seizes power."

A wave of power spread from his Tale Driver, changing the colors of his armor the icy blue-white color of his new Ride Book's frame. The dark stripes on his armor turned blue, and the lenses in his mask turned an unsettlingly bright white. On his chest, the emblem had changed to a dull golden image of a face blowing a stream of snowflakes like on the book's cover.

And completing his transformation, in his hand was pale blue staff, with a dark blue stone on either end.

"Nice color," Hare snorted. "Wonder what you taste like now!" He screamed, and launched himself at Mendyr. This time, however, Mendyr seemed to be ready for him. The masked warrior held his new staff out and leaned forward to jab the end into Hare's midriff, then he raised the staff in an arc over his head, letting Hare's own momentum carry him up and over Mendyr's head.

"Impossibbbbbbble!" Hare exclaimed before he crashed to the forest floor, head-first.

"A lot of things seemed that way, before we found out what Heroic Will was," Mendyr replied with a tone that made Pyotr sure he was grinning behind his mask.

It seemed like Hare had lost the desire to banter, because he just went on the attack, making fierce kicks at Mendyr with his long feet. His masked opponent was just a bit faster every time, batting them away with swipes of his staff. Hare bounced back, clenching his glass teeth in anger. Without warning he suddenly jumped and landed a kick on Mendyr's shoulder, the one he'd been chewing on before.

Mendyr landed a sweeping blow on Hare's neck that knocked him away, and let his injured arm hang by his side. Letting out a triumphant laugh, Hare went into another jump-kick aimed at Mendyr's sore ribcage.

But Mendyr hit his Tale Driver, and his body filled with the power of a finishing blow.

"Miracle Wind Smiting! Batter and Blow!" it announced. Under its own power, the staff flew from Mendyr's hand and belted Hare hard on the side of his neck, leaving a hideous crack in his glassy body.

Going for another kick, Hare was blocked by the staff again, leaving a new crack on the Dark Mirror's ankle. He started to open his mouth to cry out, but was shut up by Mendyr's staff flipping on its axis and striking a blow to his chin.

Incredibly, the staff began spinning in front of Hare, like fan blades, but faster and faster, until it was nothing but a blur. Small bits of Hare's body were broken off by the winds, and kept getting bigger and bigger, until he was completely disintegrated. Mendyr's staff slowed and stopped spinning, then embedded its tip in the ground.

"Whoa," said a voice, and it was only then that Mendyr and Pyotr noticed Scarlet watching them. "That new weapon of yours is crazy!" she breathed.

"Uh, thanks," he said, and Pyotr grinned. Mendyr grabbed the staff again. "Let's go see what that guy with Raven thinks of it!" he declared.

Even though they'd just been attacked by Dark Mirrors, Raven Queen didn't look disturbed at all by the armored figure standing above them on a tree branch. Light flashed in the bright eyes of his horned mask when Mendyr and Scarlet ran up, stopping at their friend's side.

"You okay, Raven?" Mendyr asked.

"I'm fine," the dark princess smirked up at the Seeker. "It's not like this guy can actually do anything to us. We can't live our stories if we aren't alive."

The Seeker made a weird noise that was half-hoot, half-laugh. "Don't underestimate me, Raven Queen. There are so many things I can do, without threatening anyone's lives. If you won't play your role by choice, you can be forced in other ways." Grey feathered wings spread from his back, and a mighty pump pushed him into the air. "I'm looking forward to showing them to you!" He sped away into the treetops, and almost immediately was out of sight.

Mendyr couldn't hold in a sigh. "Looks like whoever's behind the Dark Mirrors…didn't take long finding somebody to replace Headmaster Grimm."

"We beat the last one, we'll beat this one," Scarlet replied.

With a look over at Pyotr, Mendyr nodded. "That's right, we will, because we're putting together an awesome team. I'm sorry for trying to keep you guys from getting involved, before. Looks Heroic Will comes in all kinds of different forms."

Pyotr smiled and shrugged, and looked over at Raven. "Yeah well, somebody awesome told me there's more than one kind of hero. Maybe telling lies about stuff like wolves is good, if I do it to save my friends."

"Guess this means the Dark Mirrors are more powerful than we thought," Mendyr murmured.

Scarlet laughed a little laugh. "Good. With them around, I can be the real me for a while."

"There was that thing he kept saying about us…rebelling. Rebels," mused Raven.

"Yeah?" Mendyr prompted her.

"Yeah! Well, they think I'm a rebel? Fine, that's what I'll be! A rebel!" Raven declared, thrusting her fist to the sky. "That's what we'll all be!" She paused and looked over her friends. "You guys okay with that?"

It was Pyotr's turn to laugh. "It's nice of you to ask, Ray. But I think I speak for the group when I say, at this point, we're committed."

Mendyr tapped the end of his spear against the ground. In a voice that was only a little joking, he said, "Hear, hear! From this day forward, the Rebels will stand against Destiny!" Scarlet and Raven exchanged a look, and snickered. "Let's hope we'll find some other awesome friends to join our cause."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that, T," Raven said. "There's a whole school of story characters. There's probably a lot who have other dreams besides their destinies."

"That Seeker guy's gonna have a lot more than us to worry about," Pyotr smiled.

There we go, another chapter. A whole new villain's replaced the Keeper, and in toku replacement villain tradition, seems like he's even worse than the guy he's taking over for. Taylor and his buddies will have to brace for even tougher opponents, but even heroes who aren't Riders can have special powers, turns out. Might be more help than the Keeper realizes.

Mendyr's new form goes out to reader Raidentensho, who suggested a staff/lance/spear-type weapon. It took a little thinking to come up with something within the guidelines I set up for things I can include, but I thought of The Lad Who Went to the North Wind, and how that story had a magic attacking stick.

The story with Prince Ivan and Koschei that Raven talked about was a Russian folktale I've alternately heard called "Vasilisa the Beautiful" or "The Frog Princess". Baba Yaga was in it and she's a teacher at EAH, so I figured it was fair game. I checked and an animated adaptation's still up on Youtube, with Richard Newman himself playing the villain!

Thanks for reading, see you next time!