"PRINCE, PHILLIP?"

Aurora turned to look behind her, cringing slightly as she watched Phillip groan and raise his hand, clearly trying to ignore the laughter that tittered throughout the room. The substitute glanced around, unsure as to why everyone was laughing, and raised an eyebrow at the boy, only to receive an unamused look in lieu of an answer.

"Where's your crown?" someone called out, earning more laughs and a quiet hush from the substitute who continued to read off names in hopes that everyone would calm down on their own.

Aurora never understood the story behind all the royalty jokes. There was a girl whose first name was Princess, though she never went by it at school, but she didn't get nearly as much grief about it as Phillip did. She assumed it had something to do with something that occurred when he was at another middle school, but whatever happened, people somehow kept very quiet about it. Very out of character for teenagers, especially ones at their school.

She pushed away her curiosity in favor of trying to stay awake. She had slept all through break, fortunately waking up by the time the bell rang. She had been falling asleep more and more, to the point where even Principal Morita was starting to wonder just how far his understanding could stretch.

She yawned as the substitute passed out their in-class work, meaning that they would be free to break into groups or partners or work alone. If Peter was in the class, she would have made a beeline to him, but she was alone. It wasn't an all too bad feeling, a shy girl herself, she was happy to be alone in the comfort of her own thoughts and company.

"Briar Rose?"

She lifted her head, blinking heavily as she tried to stay awake, nodding towards the young woman. "Yes?"

"There's a note here telling me to tell you that if you fall asleep, you get suspended," she said, glancing around the room, "Is this a joke between you and the teacher or...?"

She sighed and shook her head, rubbing her eyes. "No, um, Mr. Eckland just really doesn't like me or understand my situation. Um, don't worry, I will stay awake. Thank you."

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry," the woman said, glancing around the room again, guilty, "I should have checked with you. You can sleep, if you want, I won't tell him."

She smiled. "Thank you, I really appreciate that."

The moment now over, she turned back to her work, opening to the new chapter in her textbook and trying not to let the noise of everyone else working with their friends bother her too much. She was fine being without friends for most of her life, having lost most of them in middle school, but now that she had friends—or, at least, one—she now felt more alone than ever. This was the kind of alone she wasn't happy with; there was a fine line between alone and lonely, and she'd rather not feel the latter.

"Can I work with you?"

She startled, raising her head to find none other than Phillip Prince looking down at her. He looked uncomfortable, fidgeting and glancing around, his backpack hung over only one shoulder, rubbing his arms like he wished he had worn a jacket that day, if only to have something to mess with.

She nodded, pulling out the empty chair next to her, not trusting herself to speak. She watched as he fell into the seat, dropping his bag and running his hands through his hair, which fell just past his ears on the nape of his neck, her eyes following his movements.

"Sorry, uh, I had to give up my seat," he coughed, picking up his pen and continuing his work, "Did you do number seven?"

"Uh, yeah," she stammered, trying to find the answer on her sheet, "Oh, wait, no, I didn't get what it was asking, sorry."

"You're okay," he said, eyeing her carefully, "Are you? Okay, I mean."

She took a deep breath, clearing her throat. "Yes, I'm fine."

She was not fine. That night, after helping her godmothers bake her cake and after trying on the preliminary design for her dress, she had stayed up for as long as she could, worrying on the bottom of her lip as she tried to come up with a list of all the people she wanted to settle her affairs with if she wouldn't be able to break her curse in time.

Phillip had been the first on her list.

The boy had been helping her since the beginning of the school year, and she had never once thanked him for what he had done. If she died without him knowing, it would be one of her biggest regrets, just above never being able to marathon all of the Star Wars movies and bootleg musicals with Peter like they always talked about doing.

They worked in relative silence, Aurora being careful not to bump arms with him as she was left-handed and he was right. Everytime she did, he just laughed softly, rubbing the spot on his arm where she had touched him, shaking his head and going back to work, brushing back a stray curl that fell into his face every so often.

By the time the bell rang, Aurora had bumped into his arm a total of twelve times and had exchanged no more than nine words with him, not counting the 'sorry's and 'it's okay's that followed every time they made contact.

She also hadn't fallen asleep once.

When the bell rang, Phillip rose to his feet, starting to head to the door. Aurora looked up from where she was packing up. Now or never. Finding her voice, she called out, "Phillip?"

He paused, stepping aside to let everyone else pass, moving forward so he could look at her. "Yeah?"

She opened and closed her mouth, searching for the right words. She could feel her throat closing in panic, in fear that he would just sigh and leave, too busy to wait for her to speak, but he didn't. He just stood there and waited expectantly, a patient look on his face.

"Thank you," she finally croaked, clearing her throat and trying again, "Thank you."

He frowned in confusion, shifting the straps on his backpack. "What for?"

She laughed slightly, embarrassment settling in as she brushed back a strand of hair. "For waking me up all the time. I-I really, really appreciate it."

He seemed surprised to hear that. He shrugged, giving her a small smile. "Anytime," after a short pause, he asked, "Uh, where do you eat lunch?"

"I eat in the cafeteria," she replied, closing her backpack and pulling it onto her shoulders, not moving, "Where do you sit?"

He shrugged one shoulder, motioning awkwardly towards the window. "I sit outside. With Harry Osborn and his friends, they started doing that now." He nodded, finally, though he didn't seem to know why. She nodded as well, for no reason other than he did first.

"I'll see you later," he finally said, motioning towards the door.

She smiled, nodding as he went. "See you."

With one last smile, he closed the door, leaving her alone. She looked around the empty classroom, humming to herself. She wasn't sad. In fact, she was pretty happy. She was a generally happy girl, at least as far as she knew.

A generally happy girl who was okay with being alone. It was better this way.

º º º

"Would I look better in this dress or this dress?"

Peter leaned over Aurora's shoulder, peering at her phone screen as she flicked through pictures of dresses, trying not to laugh as her hair tickled his cheek. Her godmothers had asked her that morning to look at dresses online, wanting her to choose what kind of dress she liked the best so they could try their best to replicate it; with the abilities they had, it wouldn't be all too difficult.

"Are you illegally downloading a dress?" Peter joked, reaching out and swiping back to look at a blue dress. "This one is nice, but I think it'd look better in red, the blue is almost black. But, I mean, maybe you like that?"

She smiled, turning to look at him. "I think I'm a little too bubbly for black, but I appreciate you considering my preferences."

He nodded solemnly, sitting back down. "The good lady needs a dress, might as well be one she likes." He laughed as he picked up his sandwich, taking a bite. "Speaking of which, what do you want for your birthday?"

Ned looked up from his phone. "What? When's your birthday, no one told me."

She sighed, rolling her eyes at the irony of it all. "Valentine's Day."

A hopeless romantic, she used to love the idea that she was born on the day of love, but over time it had grown to be a reminder that not everyone was so dead set on finding the right person like she was. It was also a reminder that, really, she didn't know what love was. But that wouldn't stop her from trying to find out.

Michelle made a sound in the back of her throat. "That has to be difficult, you've never had a boyfriend, right? You mentioned you're not into girls."

She pursed her lips, shaking her head. "You'd be right to both of those statements. And it's not that big of a deal, Ned, don't worry about it. And I don't want anything." She directed her last statement to Peter, giving him a pointed look.

He shrugged, eyes wide. "Can't I want to give my second best friend a good birthday present?"

She blinked. "Second best friend?"

"Yeah!" he exclaimed, searching for aid from his other friends who were just as bewildered as she was, "Look, Ned is my first best friend, Michelle is my, um..." he snapped his fingers, trying to come up with the name, "Merciful Overlord Who I Would Be Nothing Without, and Diana is my girlfriend. You're my second best friend."

"Oh," was the only response Aurora had.

"Dude..." Ned sighed, burying his face in his hands. Peter scoffed, asking what he had done and the boy only groaned. "You don't tell someone that they're your second choice."

While Peter argued his case, Aurora just stared at her food. In reality, she didn't mind being his number two. If she was being honest, she didn't expect to even be on his list, the idea of her being someone he cared about was something she never considered, but it took all her power not to grin at the news. He was his number one, but she would be more than happy to be his number two, glad to hear that she was just as important to Peter as his oldest friend was.

"I don't mind," she finally said, raising her head to look at them, "I'm just surprised I'm ranked at all."

"Briar," he began, his tone soft and almost sad, "You're my friend." That was all he said, but she didn't need to hear anything else to get the gist of his statement.

"You're my friend to," she whispered. She let her words hang in silence before clearing her throat, picking up her phone again. "Uh, how about a green dress, I haven't considered that."

"Oh, yeah, you should look at other colors," Peter said, moving to look over her shoulder as she looked at more pictures, his fingers tapping on the table.

Ned and Michelle shared a look while the two stared at the pictures on the phone, struggling to pretend that whatever moment they just shared didn't mean as much to them as they believed it didn't mean to the other person.

That is to say, the two cared about their moment deeply, but would never admit to it until the other did first. Which is to say they would never, ever admit to it.

º º º

"Who was that boy who walked you home, Rory?"

Aurora closed the door with her foot, toeing off her shoes. She sighed heavily, rolling her eyes as she peered in the living room to see all three of her godmothers looking through the window, watching Peter leave.

"Peter Parker. My English partner from last semester," she explained, making her way into the kitchen to grab a lemonade, already preparing herself for the onslaught of questions.

"That was last semester, this is a new semester," Marisol said sharply, stalking over to the girl, the other women right on her heels.

"He's a very cute boy, I approve," Gazelle added, nodding earnestly, "Looks smart, polite. I should do a background check."

"You should invite him over for dinner," Rosalee suggested, the others voicing their agreement, "Why haven't you told us about him, Rory?"

"Because he's just a friend and I knew you would make a big deal about it," she sighed, opening the can of lemonade and taking a long sip, making a face, "Peter's got a girlfriend."

"That shouldn't stop you," Marisol hummed, earning a smack on her behind from Rosalee who frowned, shaking her head.

"What she's saying is that sometimes, the right person isn't always the first person—"

"Why are you always like this?" she demanded, stomping her foot, cheeks an angry red, her good mood soured much too quickly, "Since I started school, every time I mentioned anyone, you immediately start planning a wedding, I mean why can't I just have friends? I want to find someone as much as you do, even more, believe me, but you're ruining it for me."

Her godmothers all looked away, casting glances at each other, urging the others to speak. Finally, Gazelle stepped forward, beating Rosalee to the punch.

"We're sorry, honey, we just got...excited, is all," she explained, "We didn't mean to make you upset."

"Why do you always get excited?" she asked, practically sighing her words, "What about this is so important to you? You act like I should just find someone, but I want to find someone who means something to me. You know, in that way."

They all shared another look and Aurora scoffed, taking another sip of her drink; they never told her anything. Normally, she wouldn't care, but time was running out and communication was not what it used to be.

"We'll explain soon enough," Rosalee finally said, "Why don't you go on and finish your homework. We can play a board game after dinner."

"Yeah, if I can stay awake for that long," she grumbled, reaching into the fridge and taking another can before stalking up the stairs, pushing past them, grabbing her forgotten bag by the door.

Marisol huffed. "Since when did she get an attitude? She used to be so well-mannered. Like me."

Gazelle sighed as Rosalee rolled her eyes. "She might die soon, Merryweather. That can make even the happiest girl more than a little troubled."

º º º

Ever since she was young, Rosalee had warned her not to feed the neighbors cat or else it would always keep coming back. Gazelle, who was always more in tune with animals, begged to disagree, but decided not to encourage the girl for fear of argument. But that didn't stop young Aurora from feeding it what little food she could sneak up to her room.

Now, years later, the neighbors cat had taken to sneaking into her room all the time, stepping in whenever she opened her window which was right in front of her desk. She didn't know its name or what to call it, but she loved it nonetheless.

"You missed it, yesterday there was a bird," she explained, petting its fur, grinning when it purred, "You would've liked him, he helped me with my homework. He didn't get me sick or anything, but I think Gazelle found out. That's her specialty, animals. Like how Rosalee is all flowers and Marisol is weather. But they can really control anything, they've got that whole infinite power thing. Well, not infinite, but you know."

The cat simply meowed in response, letting her know that while it heard her, it didn't really care to hear or understand anything she was saying. Nevertheless, she continued.

"They're mutants like me. I'm not supposed to tell anyone that, but you're a cat, so it doesn't really matter. They fought with my parents. Like, alongside them. They were put in charge of me after Maleficent killed them. I don't know her real name, but it doesn't really matter, we all call her the old hag."

The cat simply bit her hand, signaling for her to continue petting it. She obliged, if not miffed at the course of action, shaking her head.

"That's very rude, you know. There are nicer ways to get what you want." She scratched behind its ears, smiling when it practically fell onto her desk, glad to have found its bliss.

Her eyes widened when she caught sight of a few squirrels perched on the tree branch near her window, staring at her with their heads tilted, as if trying to figure out her relationship with the cat and whether it was safe to continue.

"You should go," she whispered to the squirrels, "I don't think this one likes your kind all that much."

The squirrels seemed to puff out their chests, remaining in their spot, defiant in their choices; why should they move just because someone bigger and more powerful didn't like them?

Aurora pondered over that.

If anything, she was the squirrel, and her curse, the one who cursed her, they were the cat. The squirrels shouldn't have to leave their tree because the cat decided that it didn't like them there, it wasn't fair. She shouldn't have to give up her life just because some hag didn't think she deserved it.

"Thanks for your help," she said, smiling at the squirrels and grabbing her granola bar from her bag and placing it on the window sill.

She smiled as one of the squirrels carefully made its way over, grabbing a piece of it and eating. Her smile dropped as the cat turned to look at it, immediately falling into a crouch, eyeing it carefully. The squirrel stood its ground. Just before the cat was to pounce, it scurried off, leaving it in the dust.

Upset, the cat went to sulk in the corner of her desk. But that wasn't the end of it. She laughed as the other two squirrels scurried over and grabbed the rest of the bar, leaving before they could get caught.

"Cute," she cooed, leaning over to see them hiding in the higher branches, happily consuming their prize, "You're friends, that's so cute."

She smiled as she tilted her head at the first squirrel. "It's nice you have friends, that's always nice." She hummed, frowning as she thought. "Maybe I could get some friends..."

The cat meowed, nudging her arm, as if reminding her that she did have friends, though they were few in number. Or it could have just been asking to be pet again. Nevertheless, she ran her hand through its fur, glancing back to the squirrels only to find that they had disappeared.

"I think this was a sign, what do you think?" she asked, bending down to look the cat in the eye. It just reached out to pat her nose, not scratching her. She giggled and buried her face in its fur. "You're sweet. Sorry I had to compare you to that hag."

It meowed, as if to accept her apology. She patted its head, glancing out her window to the streets where she had seen Spider-Man swing through every so often on his search to fight crime. Petty theft and the like, it seemed, though he did have those large stunts with the Avengers and Adrian Toomes.

"I have an idea," she whispered, "Do you think it could work?"

The cat almost shrugged, as if to remind her that it was a cat and therefore didn't have any say in what ideas she had nor whether they could work. She nodded sagely, understanding its setbacks as a feline companion.

Movement in the corner of her eye drew her to the same three squirrels that ran to the edge of the tree branch, stopping to survey the street. She smiled at the sight of them; she was always told the best things came in threes.

"Yeah. I think it'll work."

AUTHOR'S NOTE

( 02.16.18 )

Pretend that his hair is long in that gif, okay, it's supposed to be long for now.

I know this chapter was a little all over the place, but I wanted to show that Aurora is, or at least usually is, a very carefree girl, she likes talking to animals and is really shy around new people, used to being alone and getting really flustered when someone she doesn't know tries to talk to her. She loves her godmothers and even if she disagrees with them, she always does what she's told, as to why Marisol asked what had happened. She's also really idealistic, despite her curse, but the upcoming date has ruined that for her.

Also, here's Phillip! I really love his character and I'm really excited to show more of him, as well as his little habits because he has a lot and I love my boy.

As for that moment with Peter, Aurora and Peter both really care about each other, they understand that the other has gone through an experience similar to their own and so they relate to each other, but they're both really shy and don't want to say anything about it.

That's really all I have to say, Aurora is kind of a character who contradicts herself, but I hope I'm portraying her alright. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!