What Are You Doing Here? (Isla/Louis & Az/James)

[Louis Facilier]

"If we stop for a second I'll tell you everything I know." 

Those twelve words stopped Louis dead in his tracks. He immediately turned around to face the princess, who was currently clutching onto the villain's arm out of fear, with a mixture of disbelief and shock on his face. Somehow she knew something about what was going on here. She couldn't be serious, nobody knew what was happening. Or at least none of the students knew. One second everybody was going about their own business and the next more security than anybody had ever seen at Seacombe before descended on the village and cleared everybody out. All the students in the village, heroes, villains, and sidekicks, were herded towards the woodland path like livestock. Figuring since a good portion of the student population were actual royalty, nothing like this had ever happened before. To make matters worse none of the authority figures in this situation was being forthcoming about what was going on. 

However Louis and Isla knew. For a split second they saw what was happening beyond that line of security guards. 

The school was arresting students. 

Louis didn't recognize who they were. He only saw a flash of red hair for a second, he didn't really know anybody with red hair. He knew a girl with blue hair, but he didn't know anybody with red. They were also wearing cloaks with hoods, which was rather odd for even this school. No Louis had never seen them before, but maybe Isla did. It wouldn't surprise him with this school. The precious little gems of Seacombe Halpworth were always getting themselves into trouble. After all wasn't it part of their storylines for the princesses to get in some sort of trouble and the prince would swoop into save the day? 

"You know something about this?" He asked in an accusing tone. How could Isla possibly know about this? It was pretty clear that security wanted to keep all of this hush hush. The two of them weren't even supposed to see the students being arrested. Realizing that the two of them just standing there was causing the students behind them to start to pile up, he guided them towards the side of the path away from the crowd once more.

When the students were able to pass them, he turned to Isla and said, "What could you possibly know about this?" He also gestured to the makeshift barrier between the village and the woodland path. How could anyone know anything about this?

Unbeknownst to Louis, a group of students did know what was going on, or at least knew a small piece to this large puzzle. This group included the princess before him, and two other royals that were currently searching the crowd for their friend. A friend who was going against everything this school had been teaching all four of them for the last few years. A friend who was currently clutching the hand of one of the most powerful villains at this school. 

There was going to be a whole lot of explaining to do...

[Isla Triton]

Isla immediately felt guilty about keeping the information to herself. The accusing question and the look of shock and belief made her feel ashamed for listening to the others. She knew she should have stuck to her gut instincts and told Louis straight away. And now this happened. And Isla was stuck with this awful guilt in her stomach. She nodded. "A little bit," she admitted.

Isla let out a breath of relief when they were out of the crowd. She felt like she could breath a little bit easier now that she wasn't surrounded on all sides by people. "I don't know much but other people have noticed some strange things," she admitted a bit uncomfortably. She let go of Louis' arm and rubbed the back of her neck uncomfortably. "We had a small gathering to talk about it. Heroes only which was stupid." She ducked her head. "Those people weren't students. At least not current students. Briar and Grove saw someone run across the courtyard the other day and James and Azalea saw a couple of people in the gardens. And I guess they were trying not to be seen."

She bit her bottom lip as she looked up to see what Louis' reaction was to all of this. "That rumor about students that were expelled living in the woods? We think that might be true."

[Azalea]

Meanwhile, James and Azalea were making their way towards all the commotion, looking for their friend. They didn't know what they would find when they reached the village.

James slowed when Azalea answered him, she caught up with the prince as they almost ran, the noise level increasing with every step. Mostly it was loud chatter of the students being moved back to the school grounds, confused and irritated at having their evenings entertainment interrupted.

Suddenly she was sure that she could see Isla a little ahead of them. "There she is!" she stopped suddenly, realising "but who is she with??"

[James Florian]

James' heart was racing, but he had no idea if it was from the almost running or just the situation. After all here they were just returning from an impromptu world trip and before they left everything was all nice and happy. Now it looked as if all chaos had broken loose at the school, or just the village. Everyone was a little panicked, a little confused, but none more so than James because this little prince had just went out on a limb as well and he could very well be falling from a broken branch without even realizing it; he had asked Azalea to prom with him. As friends of course, James currently didn't have romantic feelings towards anyone. The perks of being a panromantic demisexual, he didn't have crushes often, but if, and when, he did he would fall quick and fall hard. However he didn't really know this yet about himself. He really only had a crush on someone once before in his life and never before had he asked someone to attend a party or ball with him before. Well except for Grove at the winter ball, but that was different. That was completely different then what was going on here. 

His head swung around in the direction that Azalea was pointing once the princess caught sight of her roommate, effectively shaking these thoughts out of his head. He easily recognized the mermaid princess, but he didn't recognize her companion right away. Which immediately sent up a red flag in the Prince's mind. Thanks to his classes and current friends, he pretty much could apply a name to the faces of all the other princes and sidekicks at this school. Which meant however this stranger was with Isla, they couldn't be good. A bold assumption, yes, but it wasn't far fetched for this school for shadows and scepters.

Shadows. Something clicked in his mind when he thought of that. His eyes widened in disbelief as he said, "Az, that's the Shadow Kid. Isla's with the Shadow Kid!" Immediately his princely protective instincts that both his upbringing and this school had managed to drive into him via the dragon slaying and curse breaking classes kicked into action. Seeing a break in the crowd vacating the village, he placed his hand around Azalea's wrist so he wouldn't loose her in the chaos, and without thinking twice, he ran across before the gap could close. He didn't run so fast that Azalea wouldn't be able to keep up, but still it was like a hurried jog. Like it was almost a run, but not exactly quite. 

Once they were on the other side, James awkwardly dropped his hand remembering how he must look like a fool in the princess' eyes. He mumbled an apology as he once more focus on the situation before them. That's when the prince noticed something that he didn't before, the two of them were holding each other's hands. 

A noise that could only be possibly equated to a growl began to rise in the prince's throat. Everyone at the school knew just how anti-villain James was. Especially Isla after their argument in the library. Villains were bad and all they wanted was to hurt other people. Villains were bad and everyone knew that. Everyone it seemed, except for Isla. His hand automatically gravitated towards the sword at James' side as he sideglanced to Azalea as if to ask if she knew anything about Isla's blatant disregard for safety. 

While keeping one hand firmly on the hilt of his currently sheathed weapon, he said with that powerful tone that everyone would refer to as a leader's voice, "Isla? What's going on here?" Although he was addressing the princess, James' eyes stay locked on the villain, hopefully making it clear through just his stare that if he was planning any curses or other trickery that villains always had up their sleeve, that there would be hell. to. pay. Villains were bad. They tried to kill everyone they met. It was James' job to save the day and defeat the villains. Everyone told him so, but now it might actually be time to prove that being a hero was the one role James didn't have a problem jumping into headfirst. Isla was his friend, he wasn't going to let her get hurt. 

However he realized a little too late that maybe by saying that, James might actually be provoking the villain which would most definitely challenge him to unleash all the bad things villains could and would do, so with great reluctance, he broke his gaze with the villain and removed his hand from his hilt before clarifying, "We saw what was going on in the village, what happened?" 

Sure the damage was done, but at least the villain now had a warning that James wasn't afraid to stick to the stereotypical fairy tale prince mold. Since after all wasn't that what James was deep down inside once you look past all the Snow White in him. 

[Louis Facilier]

As it became clear that Isla felt guilty about whatever was going on in her brain, Louis couldn't help, but feel a little guilty too. After all here he was all, but yelling at her with all this other stuff going on that he had no clue about. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean --" He apologized as the two of them stood off to the side of the crowd rushing past, groaning and griping about their ruined evenings. However he cut himself short because he didn't know what he was apologizing for. Was he apologizing for yelling? That could easily be blamed on not being heard over the crowd. Or was it his tone? He could pinpoint his elevated stress levels on that. Maybe, just maybe, instead it could be something else entirely? Oh Louis didn't know. He was too confused to know practically anything at this point. 

However apparently Louis wasn't too confused to not learn. He listened too what Isla had to say, and when she was done all he had to say was, "Wait... You're saying that this little group of yours seen those people before?" He stated this mostly from the shock of learning that it seemed to be common knowledge that unknown, cloaked kids were running around the school and yet Louis was kept out of the loop. He was a little hurt, but what could he honestly expect? He was one of the most powerful villains here at Seacombe, only rivaled by his ally Aristeides and possibly Cosimia. Louis wasn't exactly on the top of any of those goody-two-shoes buddy list. Well except for maybe Isla. Maybe. 

"Do you guys have any proof, or clues who they might be? Or more importantly, what they want so badly they'll rob the village?" He asked once Isla presented the idea of them being expelled students. In truth Louis jumped on board so quickly only because he too had always believed the rumors to be true. After all why else would the teachers be so quick to hand out detention to anyone who was caught spreading the said rumor? Plus it didn't hurt that most legends were based in truth and the wood people were quite the legend at Seacombe Halpworth. 

He was about to barrage Isla with more questions, out of the corner of his eye he noticed a kid with his hand on a sword, looking menacingly at the pair. Acting on a knee jerk reaction to both the weapon and the expression, he pushed himself in front of Isla. He knew that expression, it was a way of saying, "You aren't wanted here" without ever saying a word. He had seen that expression plenty of times back in New Orleans. It was never good to see that expression.

Louis didn't say a word in response to this steel-happy prince, but instead glared right back at him. His amulet hidden underneath his shirt began to glow in reaction to Louis' jack rabbit heartbeat, but he didn't know if these "heroes" in front of him --It wasn't hard to tell what these newcomers were. They were wearing better clothes, they knew Isla, and they carried themselves a little differently than Louis did even if they didn't know it. They stood as if they were used to having every single set of eyes in the room upon them-- could see that. Even if they did, it didn't matter. It wasn't like he was actually going to use it today anyway. 

When the prince broke his gaze and addressed the both of them, Louis was quick to answer. "We don't know. We were having a fine time in Gusteau's and then we were being ushered out of the village. Though of course you probably already knew that, you were just there weren't you?" He managed to say in a calm and collected tone despite the annoyance he was feeling at the moment. There was no reason to go all prince like in this situation. Yet this kid had all, but threatened him with his sword. 

Not knowing about the bad blood between Isla and James, Louis then turned to the princess and asked, "Could you possibly tell your friend to lay off the weapon. I don't think he'll listen to me."

[Isla Triton]

Isla was glad that Louis wasn't sending accusing glances at her anymore. It was a lot easier think about what was happening if she wasn't feeling so guilty. When she was thinking about the facts she could get something accomplished. She could think analytically when she was dealing with facts instead of emotions. "Not everyone has seen them, but there have been a couple of sightings that are suspicious."

Gathering evidence was a bit more difficult and much more time consuming than they had originally expected too. Admiral with his nose hadn't picked up much. And there were only partial clues in the library. Not really enough to go on, but enough to have suspicions. "We're working on that. It's slow going, especially since we're not exactly sure what we're looking for."

Isla didn't notice that anything was wrong until Louis pushed himself in front of her. Then she peered over her shoulder to see Azalea, which would have been fine if she had been on her own, but she also had James in tow. Isla was less than thrilled to see him. It would be her luck to run into the blatantly anti villain prince while she was out and about with one of the villains. "Oh great," she muttered softly.

Isla moved out from behind Louis to stand next to him. She was not pleased to see that James was posturing with his hand on his sword. What tough guy. "I doubt he'd listen to me either," Isla replied tersely, sending James a significant look.

Then she turned her attention to Azalea. "What are you guys doing here?" She couldn't remember how much she had told Azalea about the not date, but she had tried to be vague. She didn't think that Azalea would follow her down to the village to spy, but she was with James who had recently become suspicious about how she wasn't going to think all villains were evil. She wasn't sure what to think anymore. And she certainly didn't have to explain herself to either James or Azalea.

[Azalea]

"We were passing and heard all the noise. You'd said you were going to dinner, we just wanted to make sure you were ok" Azalea said calmly. There were a whole host of emotions whirling around here and she knew it was best not to draw the guards attention with a fistfight.

"Are you ok?" She asked, an eyebrow raised. She recognised Islas date and wasn't entirely sure that she approved. She wasn't anti-villain, but she knew there was a huge potential for Isla to be hurt here. Clearly she wasn't speaking to James either. She wondered what had happened. Az thought they were friends. Louis got points from her for stepping between Isla and James when the latter reached for his sword. But was he just protecting an investment? She wasn't sure.

Az was sure that this behaviour of James's was part of these prince rules he had, like helping her on the steps that first night. So she didn't say anything about it. After all, he removed his hand from the sword voluntarily. She couldn't stop him glaring at the boy, now could she.

Instead she tried to gloss over the nature of the dubious couple in front of them. "I see they arrested a redhead. I wonder if there's a connection"

[James Florian]

Although Azalea and Louis might possibly confused as to why there were waves of hatred rolling off of Isla in the direction of James, our little prince sure wasn't. He knew exactly why Isla hated him so, and quite frankly he knew that he deserved it. After he had stormed off and cooled down, James had a chance to realize just how badly he had screwed up. After all before stumbling across the mermaid princess in the library, he had considered her to be one of his close friends and now he doubted if the two of them would ever be able to look at each other without thinking of the spiteful things they said. Naive, foolish, little child, too anyone else they may be just petty, but to them it had quickly escalated into something ugly. Oh, he should have known! Out of everyone in this academy he should have known just badly the "petty" insults would hurt the both of them. James should have remembered just how deep those words cut, after all how many nights did he cry himself to sleep in that wretched year. Or how many times he could barely keep his anger in check when a side-remark about himself crossed his ears. James thought he learned that lesson with Daae and with Cyrille, but he was wrong. He was oh so wrong!

However as much as he wanted to apologize for what he said, he just couldn't. Or at least not here, not now.  Not in front of Azalea, not in front of this villain, and especially not after he screwed up... again. Besides there was also the simple matter of James not truly being ready to forgive and forget. Sure he could forgive how she had continually insulted the way he grew up and slandered his homeland's name. Not to mention the slew of names she called him, but he probably wasn't ready to forget. James had a real problem with forgetting the wrong done to him. 

So his physical expression remained hard and cold as he regarded the couple before the pair, but if Isla had looked closely she could see how his eyes kept darting to the ground and how the weight of his mistakes changed his posture slightly she would be able to tell that he really did feel bad about the things he said. However he didn't know how to approach the subject of apologies while they were surrounded by everyone else. As a coddled prince, James understandably didn't have to tread that subject often back home. Or at least the apologies that really counted and needed to be said. 

"I'm standing right here..." James quietly muttered as the pair debated on who was going to actually talk to the prince before them. The way they talked about him as if he really wasn't there... It really hurt inside, like Isla's glare was a knife that was thrust deep inside him, puncturing his old scars that only one other person really knew existed. It made him feel disgusting, like he was an old gym sock that was starting to smell and all for what? Some stupid moral code that told him nothing was better than his kingdom's military and whenever confronted with the threat of villains, he was to confront them with violence before they could hurt him. Nobody else here acted in such a manner. It was just James and it made him different, but not a good kind of different. He hated that he had made himself different than everybody else. 

However he snapped himself out of these thoughts when Louis mentioned something about being at Gusteau's before all hell broke loose. He glanced back and forth between Louis and Isla as the realization dawned on him. So this was why Isla had been so defensive about villains in the library... It explained a lot, but it didn't put James at ease. If anything it made him a little more tense. 

"Yeah, we just--" He started to say, but he cut himself off early. It was already clear to him that Isla wasn't going to listen to anything that this prince was going to say. The last time she listen, he called her a naive little girl. So of course he didn't blame her. If they were in each other's shoes, James would be doing the exact same thing after all. 

"Grove saw a redhead..." He said to Azalea in response to her question about if there was a connection or not. He remembered Grove talking about how he and Briar saw someone in the courtyard. "Could it be the same person?" He cautiously asked, with his body facing Azalea, however his eyes darted to Isla hopeful that it could open up another conversation. This time that wouldn't be about war or villains. 

However he couldn't take this rejected feeling any longer. He couldn't stand it. So he just blurted out with the lack of a single thought behind it. "Isla, I didn't really mean what I said. I'm sorry, I was angry, upset, and stupid. I wasn't thinking." He then paused for a moment, and then continued with his voice cracking a little from the weight of the shame he felt as he thought back to that afternoon in the library, "You do know that right?" His brown eyes begged her to say that at least she knew that he wasn't thinking, that she knew that he didn't really think that about her. It was the anger and stress he felt from her words. 

He wasn't asking for much. He wasn't asking for forgiveness, he was just asking for acknowledgement for his mistake. He just wanted to know that she too at least realized the fact he screwed up. That he screwed up bad. 

[Louis Facilier]

Louis listened intently to what Isla was saying about the heroes evidence collecting abilities, and frankly the New Orleans native wasn't all that surprised that they didn't turn up with much. After all it wasn't too hard to guess that it was the royals jumping headfirst into this mess and dragging their sidekick friends with them without a single forethought of what was to come. After all it was never their jobs to make the plans, there were always other people to do that for them. It was just their jobs to rush into danger and be stupid, impulsive, little brats. Too bad there was always some sort of help to save them at the last moment. The world could do with less of these egoistical jerks thinking they were all high and mighty because they won the genetics lottery. He knew though it meant nothing because Louis knew, unlike these other pampered and sheltered gems that royals never stayed in charge for long. After all King George III of England lost the United States, King Louis XVII of France lost his head, and nobody really knew what happened to the Romanovs, but Lenin was now in charge so it was safe to assume they were no longer alive. Revolutions happened and Royals lost their thrones if they weren't careful.

However there was definitely a few students at this schoo he would never share what he knew of history with. Let them learn on their own, Louis says. Though he really didn't say this figuring since he was now basically surrounded by three perfect little gems, one of which was his not date, her best friend, and... well Louis didn't know how James fit into this. But regardless though it was 3:1 and one of them already made it clear they wouldn't think twice about running them through. 

His thoughts then went back to Isla's words, and suddenly a realization dawned on him which became evident through his expression. Very quickly, as if his brain might instantly forget, Louis said to Isla, "We've seen them too." He then quickly reminded her of what Louis had seen dart past the window that day in polka dotted hell. Sure maybe it wasn't the best memory that popped up since it involved him apologizing for being a jerk, but he did recall Isla questioning him on what he saw in the window and he just brushed it off as nothing. However he did recall thinking that he couldn't identify them on sight, but even looking back on it now he still couldn't place a name to the faces. "So do you think that it could be connected as well?" He asked once he was done reminding them of the incident not too long ago. 

Louis nodded solemnly when Isla also stated that she didn't think the prince would listen to the either of them. It didn't take a genius to realize there was some bad blood between Isla and James. Not that he really cared either way. They were both gems, and they had gem problems while Louis was coal and as a result didn't have the same problems. Just as long as he stayed on Isla's side to gain her trust no matter how depressed and dejected le petite roi got. It wouldn't matter in the long run anyway. 

"Yeah it seems like there would be one," Louis responded to Azalea, effectively ignoring the prince who was talking about how his friend saw something. "Isla explained what you guys found." He added as an explanation with a small shrug in case if the two of them began wondering just how Louis knew about this mess. He paused for a moment before finally saying, "However even if there is a connection, what are you guys going to do about it? It was pretty clear those security guards didn't want any of the students to know what was really going on. They aren't just going to come out and say who they are." Louis looked between the two princesses with the curiosity evident on his face. He wondered just what these two were going to do about this problem and just how low the odds were of it actually working. 

When the prince actually started to apologize about whatever he had done, Louis moved a step closer to Isla to show her that he supported her in this situation. Even though he didn't give a damn. However he knew it was a chance to get a little more trust from the princess if he did which would make it so easy to betray her in the end. 

[Isla Triton]

Isla was still annoyed at how everything had turned out, but she was trying not to be annoyed with Azalea. She did have to live with her after all. And she wasn't even the one that Isla was angry at. She was just an innocent bystander to the thing between her and James. "I'm fine," she assured her friend with a curt nod.

She looked at Louis when he told her that they had seen them. She gave him a confused look. "Have we?" she asked, thinking over their last encounter. And she did remember that towards the end of their conversation Louis had seen something out the window. "Oh. Is that what you saw? They probably are connected."

She shook her head. She had no idea what they were supposed to do. They were a mostly a bunch of royals trying to figure out something that the school was trying to keep completely covered up. Everyone would be watching them like hawks. "I think our best bet would be to break into the school records," Isla said honestly. There was no way they could sneak into the woods with this kind of border up. They would be watching it like a hawk.

She looked at James when he blurted out his apology. She wasn't ready to forgive him yet. She was pretty angry that he had just written her off as silly and naive because he didn't agree with her. "Silly little girls don't know anything," she told him, a hint of ice in her voice. It was clear that she was still hurt.

[Azalea]

"I hate to say it, but I think you might be right, Isla" Az began. "About breaking into the records" she qualified, aware that James might think she was taking sides in an argument she knew nothing about. "Half a photograph isn't much to go on and we need more information. It's a big risk though, what if they're as edited as the yearbooks? If we get caught, then it could all be for nothing!"

The princess fell quiet again as James apologised and she really felt for the boy as Isla rebuffed his attempts. He really did look sorry but at the same time, she knew better than to get involved without knowing all the facts. Last time she did that it lead to them standing here having this conversation...

[James Florian]

It was clear to James that Isla was not ready to forgive the raven haired lad anytime soon. The bitter tone was enough evidence for that notion, but it was a real blow to James when he recognized her words to be the same ones he said to her not too long ago. Well they weren't exactly his words, but they were still pretty damn close. His eyes turned towards the ground and his body physically turned in the other direction, a clear conveyor that he wanted to go, but at the same time he didn't want to. He didn't want to leave without Isla seeing just how sorry he truly was. He didn't mean those words he said, they were just spat out in anger when she went too far. By bringing up his father and the lack of a relationship James had with the ruler, she had brought up one of his two biggest insecurities and figuring since the both of them were tightly interwoven, at the same time she brought up the other one as well to bring up his biggest fear. He would never be good at being what everyone wanted him to be, because he was nothing like his father. 

Everyone already knew that James had a very short fuse and although he had been working on controlling his emotions, there wasn't much to show for it. (After all it did take quite a bit of time to reverse ten years worth of damage.) So it wasn't very surprising that between the two donkeys, James had been the first to snap. There were just a perfect combination of forces. She wasn't listening, she insulted his way of life, and she had brought up her insecurities. Surely he could justify walking away like that, but was calling her a silly little girl really necessary. 

James knew the answer was no, but he had to learn that the hard way. 

When the topic of possibly breaking into the school records, James was tempted to object, to protest. It was a bad idea, even a simpleton could see that, but he doubted Isla, Louis, or possibly even Azalea would listen to that opinion for that matter. They could get expelled, or even worse they could possibly be turned out to the woods themselves. James didn't know about Louis, but as royals the other three teens had lives that they simply couldn't abandon back home. Especially James and Azalea since after all they were direct heirs in the line of succession. Who knows what would happen to the throne if they couldn't go home and there wasn't any immediate relatives to take their places? 

However James also couldn't lie to himself. This could be a good oppertunity to show Isla that he was sorry and he did believe that she was not a silly little girl. "I'll do it." James offered to the group looking between the three of them before continuing, "I used to sneak around the castle all the time. How could it possibly be different?" He said with a faked nonchalant shrug. In reality he still thought it was just as bad of an idea as it was that day in Pride Rock when the idea was first presented, and of course Az and Isla would remember this. However as he mentioned it was the best way in his mind to show his forgiveness and how he had been a stupid, naive boy. 

Now if the others would only agree...

[Azalea]

"Are you sure,James?" asked the very worried Sultana. She remembered his earlier opposition to the idea and really hoped this wasn't his sense of princely duty coming out again. "It's really risky" she continued, not to change his mind, more to settle her own conscience that he was doing this voluntarily,"and we really don't have much to go on."

Azalea knew that there would be real repercussions if he got caught. Was he trying to make amends for some little spat he had with Isla? She felt this conversation was leaving her with more questions than answers.

[Louis Facilier]

"Are you sure ché
ri?" Louis asked Isla with an honestly concerned expression as the princess affirmed that whatever was going on here between these two little gems, that it wasn't a big deal. Which even a blind fool could see to be untrue. It was blatantly clear to the Shadow Kid that the events that transpired between the girl beside him and the boy with the sword left very deep wounds in Isla. Louis could just feel the waves of hatred just rolling off of the royale de mer in waves that transformed into the most powerful tsunamis right before they came down right over that poor fool's head. Something big had happened between the two of them, and Isla was most certainly not okay with it. Louis had a feeling that whatever it was, the mermaid princess would much rather snap the prince's neck then ever be okay with whatever happened. 

Seeing just how angry Isla was made a part of Louis angry with the prince as well and not because this lad was a representation of everything the New Orleans native was not. Yet at the same time he just wanted to stand back and just watch this fight play out with a bag of popcorn on the sidelines. It was so confusing, and why did he once again call Isla ché
ri? It was just a stupid nickname he used whenever he wanted to charm someone and it worked --when they didn't know french. However she already knew what it meant, so Louis should've stopped using it. That's what always happened when he realized that whoever it was directed too was catching on, but yet it slipped out. Oh Louis was so confused, nothing here was making sense. Especially not his own head. 

He nodded when Isla then questioned what Louis had saw outside the window that day, effectively shaking him out of his thoughts, but not leaving behind the confusion. "I'm not completely sure, but I know for a fact that I didn't recognize them." He stated as he looked between Isla and Azalea, still ignoring the prince. It could be nothing, it could be everything. All mystery fans know that even the smallest of clues could be the missing puzzle piece in the end. 

When the subject of everyone possibly breaking into the school records, Louis just had to interject which was completely ironic figuring since he was a villain. "Woah wait a second." He said as he held his hands up to get the planning princesses and Katniss Everdeen wannabee prince to shut their mouths. "Nobody knows who they are, and it also sounds like you didn't even get a good look at their faces and yet you want to break every rule this school has to go on some wild goose chase that could get you all expelled? I know I haven't been as deeply invested in this as you guys have, but it's a stupid idea. Especially when you have absolutely nothing to go on, no inkling as to where to look, and absolutely no true experience breaking the rules." He said the last part eyeing the prince who claimed that sneaking around a castle was identical to cat burglarizing. Which it most certainly was not. Louis suspected that although this kid might have tiptoed in the hallways and slinked down corridors, somebody had to have seen him and just turned a blind eye because he was a royal. Castles were just teeming with people, there was no way this kid got anywhere undetected. 

His slightly harsh, but --hopefully-- eye opening tone disappeared though when Isla turned to the apologizing boy and said six little words that clearly had an effect on the only male gem in the group. He didn't understand the true significance of these words, but he could sense that whatever it was, it was huge between the two of them. He also didn't understand the strange urge he had to reach out his hand and interlace her fingers with his own. This had nothing to do with him, and he was only here by chance, just like the other pair. He didn't know what happened between the two of them, but yet he still felt as if it concerned him. He felt the strange need to physically show Isla that he was there for her during this mess, but he held back. This had nothing to do with Louis, and no doubt she would turn her anger onto him if he so much as put a toe out of line. Oh this was oh so confusing to Louis. 

Why was he feeling this way when he knew that by the time the starry, starry night ended, Isla was going to hate him more than anything she could have possibly hated before? Especially more than James Florian, if everything went according to Louis' and Aristeides' plan...

[Isla Triton]

Isla turned at the concern n=in Louis' voice at the question. He seemed genuinely concerned about her and clearly could see the tension. It certainly felt thick enough to cut with a knife from her vantage point. And yet she didn't really want to discuss how not alright she was in front of James and Azalea. So she merely nodded confidently. "Yes."

Isla was truly surprised that James of all people would not only agree with her, but also agree to be the one breaking and entering. For a moment all she could do was stare in shock. James, goody two shoes little prince, had volunteered to potentially get expelled.

She kind of deflated when Louis broke in with his logical view of the whole thing. And Isla had to admit that he was kind of right. "We tend to be pretty conspicuous." She sighed. "It was a rash comment to make in light of the fact that we only have a vague idea of what we're looking for. And who knows? Maybe they destroyed any evidence we could find and this is actually hopeless."

Isla couldn't accept that this was hopeless. She wouldn't. Things were strange at this school and Isla was determined that as a team they could get to the bottom of this strangeness. And they could solve this. She held her head up, straightening her body to stand tall. "Maybe we've been looking at this all wrong. We have to look where they won't think we would look."