Disney's Reality

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Well that was an absolute waste of time. This old fool knew nothing! Still, she supposed, he could be good for something. She felt a strong magic in him. Stronger than she ever felt before. Clearly this was was more powerful than she'd ever be. She didn't want to be on his bad side should things turn south. She wanted him on her side. Slowly Regina moved across the room towards him. He knew nothing about what was going on, but that was more than anyone else knew. He knew something he wasn't telling them. So did the genie. For that reason alone, she decided, she had to make him trust her. She reached a hand out towards him, carefully cradling the baby in one arm. "I trust that you'll take care of us. Many of the others are too scared to trust anyone at this point, but I see a great strength in you. I know you'll keep us safe." She let her fingers run up and down his arm, smiling softly, trust shining through her eyes. She met his and their gazes locked. For a moment she could feel their bodies drawing nearer to each other. But then the spell was broken. Then baby in her arm cooed softly, squirming and fussing in hunger. She frowned down at the little creature, careful to show concern instead of the frustration she felt. He was such a pain, this little prince. Just like his mother. Regina wished she could just be rid of him!

She looked back up at Merlin after a moment. Slowly she lifted the baby in her arms. "He liked you, I think. Will you hold him for a moment for me? My arm is a bit tired..." Perhaps if she could get this man attached to the child, she could kill two birds with one spell. Perhaps even literally...

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Alice pushed out of his arms, clearly upset that he hadn't followed his rules. He opened his mouth to respond when she accused him of cheating, but she stole his explanation. It was unfair to limit her to guessing only ten numbers when he could choose from any other above of below that limitation. He fought against the urge to pout and instead shrugged on shoulder. "You're just too clever for me, Alice! If I play fair I'd never have the chance to kiss you." He put the paper and pen back in his jacket, gently pulling his arm around her waist tighter. Feeling her stomach pressed against his was a nice reminder of how close they still were, even after she'd pushed him away. "Will you let me kiss you again? Please? I've missed your kisses so much." This was true. He didn't like being apart from her for very long. In wonderland they were hardly apart for more than a few hours at a time. Here they were apart sometimes for days. Her prohibitive family didn't care much for him, so obviously his feelings on the matter meant little to them. Still he'd tried to reason with them. That had been a mistake. They'd restricted their allotted time together by almost half! Her father didn't like him much, and that was perfectly plain to see. But he didn't understand why! Hatter considered himself quite the pleasant person. He'd been extremely popular in wonderland. Liked by many important people, including the queens. So why her father disliked him so much was beyond his understanding. But since he did, Hatter had to resort to sneaking into her bedroom window to see his sweet Alice when he absolutely couldn't stand being alone anymore. Like now. And like now, he had little time actually alone with her. Soon Dinah would return with her snacks and then there'd be no kissing or hugging at all! Hatter hoped to get as much in as possible while he still could.

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John felt the woman at his side. He felt her arms around him and the warmth of her cheek pressed against his. He heard her soft voice, whispering in panicked broken English that they needed to leave. If he'd be able to think straight he would have agreed with her. But the fact was, his head was about as clear as the Thames. Firstly because ten minutes ago he would have sworn on his life that the stories of giant fire breathing monsters were nothing but fairytales, and yet here stood one. A dragon! Alive and breathing and moving and...existing! Right before his eyes!! Secondly, as if the first wasn't bad enough, he'd been completely flattened by one blow. From a woman! His pride was in serious shambles. And finally, thirdly, to make things all worse, the woman he'd been trying to protect was now not only pressed almost indecently against him, but now trying to save his life instead! His pride and his body were both taking a beating and it all sent him reeling. He'd never once in his life had to be protected! And he'd never met a beast he couldn't defeat. That is. Until now.

Trying to recover what was left of his pride, he sat up, pulling the woman up with him. Then slowly got to his feet and helped her up as well. The two who'd attacked them in defense of the beast seemed distracted so he figured they might have a chance to run while going unnoticed. He was wrong. The moment they were on their feet the dragon raised it's long neck and looked down at them, it's eyes wide and glowing with a deep fiery red. He gulped audibly. That look... it was terrifying.

Gavin jumped back when the dragon began to raise it's head. She gave a loud screech and shook her head from side to side. Gavin looked to Daria, not knowing what to do. That was when out of the corner of his eye he saw what spooked the creature. The two who'd threatened it before were starting to get up. Gavin touched Daria's shoulder as he passed her, letting her know she needed to take over now. He stalked quickly to the couple and grabbed the woman's arm rouchly. "I told you two not to move. You'll scare her and she'll start trying to defend herself. People will die. Do you want their blood on your hands??" His voice was low and dangerous. He glared from the woman to the man with almost the same hatred the dragons had shown towards him so many years ago. He'd never understood it before but now he did. Humans were nothing but cowards. They were the monsters. And these two were no better, innocent as they seemed. "Stay here and don't move, or else we may lose her." He turned back to the dragon then, shoving the woman back into the man's arms.

John caught her and held her protectively. He whispered in slow English so the woman could understand "We must stay here. They will help us." It was all he could say. The man hadn't promised to help them, but in taking care of the dragon that's indirectly what they were doing, so it wasn't a complete lie... He hoped...

Gavin joined his wife again next to the dragon who'd lowered it's head again. It shook it slowly but whispered in a broken, long forgotten tongue "Grandmother from...Terranigma... Lost... King caged her... Us..." Gavin could only look at Daria, reaching a hand out to her for emotional support, just in case... ""

[IrelandKiss]

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The man who had appeared from no where suddenly stalked to them, and before she could even wonder why he grabbed her arm in his hand and yanked her half off the ground to growl a threat into her face. She gasped sharply and stare up at him, not responding in anyway. Mostly because she just... didn't know what he'd said. It went by so fast, and she was distracted by the man who was holding her other arm and the giant beast and the woman with hair unlike any she'd ever seen before. Her eyes didn't know where to look and her ears didn't know what to listen to. She only knew it was a threat because of the hatred and anger burning in his eyes. That, of all the things around here, was impossible to miss. She swallowed thickly as the man roughly shoved her back into the other man's arms, looking over at him as he whispered something that sounded more soothing. She could make out that he was telling her not to move, but the rest was lost on her. Finally Pocahontas sighed and shook her head and just looked down. She closed her eyes slowly, then started humming under her breath. To those around her it may sound like one of the English songs John Smith had taught her. But it was more than that, so much more. It was a prayer to her ancestors. To her mother. She prayed for safety, for deliverance from this beast that roared and beat its feet on the earth. There was nothing else she could do at this point...

Meanwhile, Daria listened to the dragon's words, then turned and whispered them to Gavin. She squeezed his hand and murmured, "She needs my help, my love. She's terrified. Just get those two out of here. Take them to Merlin, he'll know what's going on." Merlin always knew things others didn't. She didn't know if it was because he was so old he had all the knowledge from experience, or if he knew everything because he was crazy enough to cause most of it to happen. But either way she knew he was who they should take those people to first. It was clear they weren't from this world... And she had enough problems trying to help this poor creature before her.

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[IrelandKiss]

→ ςคll ๓є ๓єгlเภ ←

♦__Merlin blinked out of his thoughts when Regina asked if he could hold the baby for a while. Her arms were getting tired, she said, and the baby had seemed to like him. He swallowed thickly and looked down at the little bundle as if it was a squirming barking puppy that was likely to pee on him. Which it sort of was anyway. He swallowed again and mumble, "Afraid I can't, madam, I'm not so good with the little things... He's a sweet boy, but I'm..."

But there his words trailed off. His mind split into two directions. One went hurtling back in time to the last time he'd held a child. A baby boy like this one, with the same startling blue eyes and a curious, alert shine in them. It had been Arthur, and he'd only held him for a moment, but it was that moment that Merlin so bitterly regretted (among a thousand others). If he'd done something different in that moment... given the baby to someone else, or refused to take him at all... Maybe everything that had happened would have gone differently... But his mind also was getting drawn in by those dark eyes of Regina's. They were just... dark. So... just.. dark... And even the other half of his mind was slowly getting drawn into them too. That was a feat in and of itself. Few things could capture the attention of his entire mind at once. This could be very dangerous, then... But oddly enough... Right now, Merlin simply didn't care...

He nodded slowly to her and reached out and let her slip the baby into his arms. He blinked and jumped a little when the child's full weight settled in his arms - he had forgotten how heavy baby's could actually be. They looked small and soft but Merlin was reminded of a bowling ball right now. He swallowed and looked down at the boy, suddenly unnerved by those eyes now that he was so close to them, and after a few awkward seconds of silence he looked up at Regina and asked, "I'm sorry, what was his name again...?"

But before she could answer he heard the door to the shop open, the little bell ringing, and his eyes widened and he turned towards his office door with a mumbled swear. Good... God... How many more of these people could there be?! He mumbled a quick apology and then just as quickly passed the baby back into Regina's arms. He rushed from the room then, pushing through the crowd of frustrated and tired people until he reached the front. There he found two more people, a man and a teenaged girl. They were dirty, like the others, and they looked terrified, like the others, and they both immediately looked to him with expectant looks. They wanted answers and explanations, and they wanted them now.

Just... like... the others.

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Gavin left his wife to take the two to Merlin, as she'd asked. He knew that was the wisest choice. Merlin wasn't omniscient, but he tended to know quite a bit more than anyone else. At the very least, it would give these two people a place to go that wasn't anywhere near that poor dragon. When he walked into the normally empty shop, he was surprised to see so many people. This was a big city, so the variant of races, languages, and costumes wasn't what struck him as much as the sheer size of the crowd. He didn't think he'd ever seen so many people gathered in this dusty old place as now.

Rolf looked around, keeping a protective hold on the young lady's arm. He could tell she was terrified. He was too. She was alone here, that much was obvious. So she'd need someone to protect her from the vices that were so plainly advertised in this world. He was alone as well, and it seemed since God had brought them together so neatly, he would be a fool to abandon her.

When an older man hurried up to them, followed by the most acceptably dressed woman he'd seen today so far, John stepped forward. He noted for a later time that the woman with her child may prove to be an excellent role model for this savage woman. Then he noted quickly for the present that the older man seemed to be staring at them expecting something. He bowed briefly and respectively. "Good sir. Pray, tell us what this place is called and where I may find transport to the queen's court. I've a pressing need to be home immediately, else the men and women of the colonies go without supplies from her majesty another month. Also, if it not be much trouble, the young lady I travel with is in desperate need of proper dress. And shoes. Might there be a place to purchase such things near by?" "" ""