. : Laura of Neverland : .

"What is the point of this class?" Agatha groaned.

They had left the castle and were heading towards the edge of the blue forest. Everything in front of them ranged from the deepest blue of the seas to the pale blue of the sky. Laura found herself fond of the sapphire-coloured toadstools on the path. They reminded her of the dark red ones on Neverland that they often harvested for soup. She wasn't sure if these would be edible, but she imagined them tasting like fruit, and it made her smile.

"It's the school's way of teaching us to get practical experience in the woods. Before the forest was created, students had no idea how to survive and often died before gaining the chance to actually start their fairy tales. That is why the woods were created. It's a safe place to train."

Agatha glanced at her. "You spent over thirty years living on a magic island that was likely far more vicious than anything I would ever encounter. So why are you taking the class?"

Laura rolled her eyes and nudged her. "It's mandatory."

They paced through the woods, and into a vast empty clearing. A red flag with the number seven was standing tall in the centre, but other than that, it was empty.

Laura knelt down and ran a hand over the crystalline grass. She had never seen anything like it. It was soft to the touch and still seemed deadly sharp. The blue was a beautiful shade and reminded her of the mermaid lagoon.

She put her books down next to her and smiled at the grass. "This is incredible, I've never seen anything like it."

Agatha smiled down at her. "It's a wonderful shade of blue. We don't have anything remotely like that where I grew up."

Laura straightened up, running her hands over the edges of her pink skirt to ensure it was free of wrinkles. "It's almost identical to the flag of the place I grew up. It's a rare colour in nature."

Laura twisted around to look at the clearing in more detail but stopped at the sudden approach of a Never.

Agatha's face drooped, and Laura knew it must be Sophie. She had heard countless tales about Sophie from Agatha in their few days together, and something about the stories caused chills up Laura's spine.

The girl was gorgeous, with thick blonde hair and emerald green eyes, but it was almost too perfect how well manicured she was. Sophie even had her walk down to a perfect stride as if she were constantly ready to be walked down the aisle at her wedding.

Laura crinkled her nose. It reminded her of her mother.

Laura had heard countless stories about her mother from before she married her father, and had enjoyed them. Her mother had been a quiet farm girl, who had moved to the kingdom when her own mother passed to pursue a new life. She had gotten mixed up with the local legend and it had led her to Laura's father. Apparently, after marrying her father she had begun to act that way. Prim and proper.

It had pissed a young Laura off, and now that she had grown up, it disappointed her. The only reason anyone had acted like that was to impress a prince.

Laura narrowed her eyes. Sophie wanted to impress a prince.

She turned to look at Sophie-- who was actively ignoring Agatha-- and then twisted her neck to look back towards the castle.

Her heart dropped.

This couldn't be happening. The two co-ed classes that Laura had, and both of them she shared with him.

Sebastian hadn't noticed her yet and was laughing at something with Tedros. The sunlight bounced off of the blue trees and onto his face, illuminating his red hair for a moment.

Laura didn't miss the way that Sophie gasped at their approach. Of course. The girl was a never, and had yet to meet any princes. Sophie's eyes were wide and Laura couldn't help the sinking feeling in her heart. This was going to be a dangerous class.

Behind Sebastian and Tedros, Beatrix, Hort, Dot, and a few others Laura didn't know, followed. She scanned the new crowd, and her heart dropped as Kendrick slid in behind.

The pirate made Sebastian look like a saint. Laura knew him and his father before the war on Neverland had started, and the way the pirate smiled had shivers running through her. He was insane, and any time he came near the island, it seemed everything was scared of him.

She drifted her eyes over the group and back to the princes as they approached.

Sebastian noticed her, and his face dropped, his eyes hitting the ground almost instantly. His face wasn't angry, but more ashamed. He definitely took her necklace.

Laura's eyes drifted to Tedros, and she snorted. "Wow, Agatha, you really took a piece out of him."

The blond-haired prince had a large blue and black bruise spreading across one of his eyes. Laura snickered at the expression on his face when he realized who was in the group.

They got within earshot, and Agatha snapped at Tedros. "If you're itching for something to kill, how about yourself this time?"

"Thank you would suffice," Tedros hissed, close enough that they formed a small circle. Laura couldn't help but notice the way Sophie eyed him like meat. "I risked my life to kill that gargoyle."

"You killed an innocent child!"

Laura raised an eyebrow at Tedros and then glanced at Sebastian-- who was shuffling from foot to foot and keeping his eyes on the ground. Kendrick had sidled up near Sebastian.

"It seems like you're in good company then, Tedros," Laura snarled.

Tedros looked at her with wide eyes, and then glanced at Sebastian with confusion on his face. Sebastian refused to meet his eyes.

Laura opened her mouth to say something more but stopped as a small gnome crawled out of the ground.

The gnome-- Yuba-- took one look at them all and grumbled. "Bad group."

The gnome began to trod off into the woods, and Laura paused, waiting for most of the group to start off. She rolled her eyes as Sophie and Tedros sidled together.

Once the group had passed, she fell into step with Sebastian, who was near the back of the group. She wrapped a hand around his elbow. She couldn't help but notice that his bandages had been removed from his hands, and his raw red skin was healing.

"I know you have my necklace, asshole."

Sebastian froze next to her. Kendrick glanced back at the two of them. Laura met Kendrick's eyes as she whispered to Sebastian. Maybe she could drive a wedge in their already rocky relationship.

"I don't know what you are talking about," His voice was steady and quiet. "You must've lost it."

"Quit the bullshit," She snapped, stepping closer so he could feel the raging heat coming off her skin. "I know you took it. It is of no value to you, and you are going to give it back."

Sebastian twisted his neck to look at her. She couldn't help but notice that they were the same height, and his eyes were a dark blue shade. He kept his face steady. "I do not have your necklace, so go fuck with someone else."

Laura glared at him, straight in his eyes. They were close enough that their noses could brush if she moved forward slightly. "You do not know what I am capable of, and if my necklace is not returned soon, I will show you what happens to people like you."

Sebastian held her gaze for a moment longer, before dropping his eyes and stepping back. His ears were flaming red, nearly matching his hair. "I don't have your necklace, and I'd appreciate it if you left me alone."

Laura opened her mouth to snap back but decided against it as the group came to a stop around a stump. The gnome hopped up on the stump and twisted to face the group.

He briefly explained the trial by tale, before beginning the class.

"Now there are five rules that separate good and evil," Yuba began to write them in the air with his staff.

1. The Evil attack. The Good defend.

  2. The Evil punish. The Good forgive.

  3. The Evil hurt. The Good help.

  4. The Evil take. The Good give.

  5. The Evil hate. The Good love.

Laura paused, running her tongue over her teeth, before leaning to Sebastian. "Funny, what one does that make you?"

Sebastian opened his mouth to respond but stopped himself, keeping quiet.

"Laura!"

Laura glanced at the gnome. "You will go first."

Laura raised an eyebrow and stepped forward as she was handed a blindfold. She wrapped it around her eyes.

"I am going to turn Sebastian and Kendrick into birds, and you have to distinguish which is which,"

Laura nodded and waited a moment until she was given permission to remove the blindfold. She blinked for a moment, staring down at two identical cedar waxwings.

One chirped and hopped, and the other followed, bouncing around in circles.

Laura watched them for a second, before rolling her eyes. One was pecking at the other.

"That one's Sebastian, since he can't even defend himself from a bird."

Yuba smiled, and waved his staff, turning the two boys back. They sat awkwardly on the grass, Laura standing over them.

She stepped away, and proceeded to watch vaguely as the lesson progressed. Most would fail to tell the difference, and she could tell that they had minimal experience actually telling the difference between the two.

Something felt off however. Her magic was shifting around, and felt restless. It was almost fully replenished after Dovey transferred her magic yesterday, yet it was rioting inside her for some reason, and it distracted her from the lesson.

She only refocused in when Tedros had to pick between Agatha and Sophie, and failed miserably. The two trolls got into a fight, and ended up turning on Tedros, sending the boy into a pile of boar dung.

Agatha and Sophie were punished with red hot iron shoes, and Laura internally winced as they hopped back to the castle while yelping in pain.

Yuba ended the class, and students began drifting back off towards the castle. Laura remained, reluctant to leave the forest that was somehow so similar and so different from her home.

She stood, watching small birds bounce between the blue trees, chattering to each other. They didn't have species anything like it, and she was fascinated by the way the birds moved. Laura paused, wondering if they would act the same as the ones on Neverland.

She let out a high pitched whistle through her teeth. One of the younger birds immediately launched off the tree, and flew at her. Laura help her arm out, and had to disguise a wince as the sharp claws dug into her skin. She normally had a layer over her arms to stop the claw from hurting.

Laura smiled, and ran a finger over the bird, who preened, before launching off and flying back to the trees. Laura kept her eyes on the bird for a moment longer, before turning to exit the clearing.

She only made it a few steps before pausing. Kendrick and Sebastian were exchanging angry whispers, and Tedros was pulling himself out of the dung.

Laura scowled when they glanced at her, and began to walk towards them. Her magic was picking up steam at her rage. She made it until she was a few metres away from them.

"Are you plotting a way to take over the castles so you can kill more innocent people?"

Sebastian, at least, had the decency to look ashamed. He ducked his gaze to the ground.

Kendrick snarled at her and took a step forward. "It was just a few runaway children with nobody who wanted them. They deserved to die."

Laura clenched her hands into tight fists, increasing the temperature in the clearing. She could see Tedros approaching them out of the corner of her eye. Readying for a fight, she lit her hands on fire.

Sebastian stepped between her and the pirate, and Laura raised an eyebrow. What was he doing?

"It's best you go," Sebastian pushed the pirate away from the clearing. He avoided Laura's gaze. "Save us all the trouble of cleaning up your ashes."

Laura's gaze followed the boy as he retreated. She added him to her kill list, for the day she was no longer at the school. She held out a moment longer, her hands still crackling as the clearing emptied.

She was going to kill him, and she was going to do it slowly. One hour of torture for every person of hers that he had murdered.

Once he had vanished towards the school for evil, she let the flames drop.

That's when she felt it. The reason why her magic had been thrashing all day.

The cardinal balance had shifted.