Fancy Meeting You Here (James)

[James Florian]

    "Not always Grove, not always." James countered the lumberjack's argument about how he changelings were prettier than him, which for the thousandth time was not true. Although his friend refused to believe it, the miner was actually quite handsome with his sturdy and larger than average build, and the red fiery hair that set off the picture quite nicely, despite what Grove believed. Evil fairies on the other hand were often grotesque, with wrinkly, baggy skin that seemed ready to fall off their bones, beady dark eyes that pierced your very soul, fangs for teeth, cobwebs for a heart, and clothing made of the shadows of darkness. Not exactly the epitome of beauty and perfection if you asked James or anyone for that matter.

    However it looked like the talk of changelings and evil fairies was over when Grove admitted that he indeed knew he was human and not a troll or giant, so James said with a stern yet joking expression, "Don't you dare forget it. I don't want to have to track down an actual troll to prove it to you." No doubt the young prince would try to find one to convince his friend that he actually was prettier than one of those monsters that lurked in the unknown parts of the forest back home, and of course prove that James was right. Like always.

    James playfully shoved Grove back when he knocked his shoulder into the younger lad's. Of course it wasn't enough to hurt him, the prince wasn't strong enough to make the woodsman do anything more than wobble. After all Grove was a block of stone, both emotionally and physically in a metaphorical sense. Heck probably that troll James was thinking of tracking down earlier wouldn't be able to move the dwarfs' son more than a few inches. Grove was just that stoic at times. 

    When the idea of Grove building a room in his cottage for the Prince, James' first thoughts were that it would be cool being able to go to visit Grove and the dwarfs without worrying about getting out of the forest before dark. However after thinking for a few seconds, James realized that maybe it just wasn't worth all the hard work Grove would put into it. After all the two of them would have only maybe a year or two tops to actually use it often before James would be expected to take on more responsibilities that would keep him home bound for longer stretches of time than now. Not to mention that year James would have, he would be here a Seacombe Halpworth instead of the castle back home. So unfortunately the room idea just wasn't practical. However James didn't want to bring Grove's own mood down after trying to raise it after the whole changeling conversation that occurred a few moments ago, so instead James said with a touch of sadness in his voice, "Yeah, Grove that'll be fun." 

    Jim shuddered at the mention of possibly running into a bear, the raven haired lad did not want anything to do with their maw or claws, because no doubt they would leave the young lad in pieces. He read far too many survival tales to even let the stupid idea of crossing his path with one tempt him. Bears were not a creature to mess with. He did though want to keep the joking atmosphere going, so he continued the joke by saying "Or lions, possibly even tigers, but worst of all hidden deep in shadows, just waiting to jump out at you and tear you to pieces is a creature so vile and moody that it's rumored not to even smile on Christmas day! Why it's none other than Uncle Grumpy!" James felt safe in the garden which is why he joked about big cats and annoyed relatives lurking in the darkness as well. After all he could see what was around him, this area was the closest thing to home territory the prince had, not to mention he had a mini-giant by his side. What could possibly harm him here?

    He laughed at Grove's response, "Oh Grove, you need to relax a bit. What's the worst that's going to happen here? I know to stay away from the forest as well as the villains, and given the fact that I'm not the only one here with a crown waiting back home don't you think the school would make sure that we all follow the rules. I'm not going to get hurt, in fact I think it's far more likely for you to get lost in the woods back home than for anything bad to happen. This is a school after all." James already knew what the lumberjack's concerns were for his safety. After all hadn't he been worrying about the same things since the two of them were playing together as toddlers? Quite honestly James believed that Grove was spending far too much time thinking like his mother. He just needed to have a little faith that nothing bad would happen here. Especially since Grove had been here a year longer than James. 
            

[Grove]

Grove snorted at the suggestion that James would track down a troll and bring it to him just to prove his point. Poor kid would probably get eaten before he even knew what was happening. "Right," Grove agreed, dryly. "I'd like to see you try." He smirked at his friend. "You'd get eaten in a heart beat. Or lost on your way back." For all that James was a prince, he hadn't really seen anything monstrous. The queen never let him go too far from her sight. James probably wouldn't know how to actually handle a troll.

Grove had expected something a little more exciting from the prince at his announcement that he was getting his own room at Grove's place. Grove hadn't even told the dwarves his intention to build James his own room. It was something that he hadn't really admitted to anyone yet. So James' reaction was kind of a let down. He seemed sad about it, but didn't want to let Grove know that. The woodsman narrowed his eyes at his friend suspiciously. "I don't have to if you don't want me to," he told Jim honestly. He probably would anyway, but he could call it the guest room. Not that they had many guests in the deep depths of the forest.

Grove chuckled at the joke. Grumpy certainly lived up to his name after all. He could be pretty sinister when he wanted to be. "He'd scare all of the students from ever going into the forest. Maybe the school should hire him to guard it and scare everyone away," he suggested. Grumpy wouldn't do it in reality. He couldn't leave the others, but it was funny to think about."

Grove frowned. He didn't need to relax. He had to watch out for himself and now for the prince too. Jim didn't understand though. The school encouraged the students to jump into their roles with gusto. That meant that the students who were villains were encouraged to start awful things with the heroes and their sidekicks. Just because nothing bad had happened to him so far didn't mean that nothing would happen. "Just watch out for yourself," he grumped. "That's all I'm asking."

[James Florian]

    The prince rolled his eyes at what Grove had to say in response to James' quest to prove his friend was not ugly, "Oh yeah, watch me." He said with a daring tone, as if to say yeah and how do you think you'll stop me? James could be really stubborn at times -quit unlike his parents- and when it came to helping Grove's self-image, his donkey like quality reared its head. Now it was the seventeen year old's turn to be hard as stone, this was not something he was going to back down from. Regardless of how many times the conversation would be changed or other things came up, it would now always be a life goal of his to make sure his friend knew and understood perfectly he was amazing and, yes he may have been found in the woods as a baby, but by no means was he being judged on that. Nor did people see his fire like hair and label him as something inhuman or not normal as he seemed to think. Unfortunately for Grove, there was nothing that is going to derail James from this goal. He had known the lumberjack all his life, and he was not going to spend the rest of it watching him moping around over something that wasn't even true to begin with. The only thing that could possibly stop that would be hell freezing over, and by god, the Prince would still put up a hell of a fight if that happened. 

    "No Grove, honestly I want you to. It's just that- I don't know if it would be, you know, practical." James said fumbling once or twice to find the right words. He wholeheartedly wanted to jump on the bandwagon and even help Grove build the cottage as well, but it was just that he also didn't want Grove to dedicate a whole section of his house to his room that would only serve to collect dust ten, twenty years down the road, when the both of them had to take on the responsibilities they were each expected to, regardless of whether it was deep in a mine or tucked away in a dark study. "It's just we aren't kids anymore. We no longer have the freedom of running around in forest all day long. Everyone now has expectations of us, and as we grow older they'll want more and more, until it'll be a miracle if we could arrange for the both of us to have a day off." He stated trying to make it clear that his motives for not wanting Grove to build him a room were because James just didn't want to or something like that. "I just don't want to see you waste all that time and effort for something that maybe not even be able to be used years from now. It's your house Grove. Build it for you."

    James laughed at the notion of Grumpy making sure everyone stayed out of the forest. Just one run in with him would make even the most sophomoric of villains run and hide under the covers out of fright. Especially when the dwarf got upset. It was never a pretty sight to see a constantly annoyed little man fly off of his hinges. Heck it made the prince want to hide under the bed. "Oh he do an excellent job, we both know that there are bears that are scared of him.  I know I would want to stay away from the forest if he was roaming about. If he found us in there he would probably flay us both alive." James said to the redhead beside him. The both of them knew that if that were to happen it would be like the time they were little kids and got lot while playing. They were older now, more responsible, and there were no longer any excuses. Uncle Grumpy wouldn't care who they were if he caught them sneaking around, which they weren't going to do anyway, in his mind you broke the rules, you get punished for doing so.

    Thank god then that Grove's father was a whole dimension away from them.  

    "Okay, Okay" James said in exasperation when Grove continued to tell him to stay out of trouble. Honestly it was sounding like Grove believed that James was just going to go up to some random villain or their sidekick(s) and punch them. As if. He was above fist fighting, though it would be a completely different story if the right person got the raven haired lad's blood boiling. "Yeah, I'll stay out of trouble and away from the villains." He responded to Grove's question of him watching out for himself, which he would be quite capable of doing. Oh the irony of the whole situation was what fate had planned for him a short while after he and Grove parted ways. Yeah James was definitely going to stay out of trouble. 

    The boy was silent for a minute before stating, "You know Grove, it's scary how similar you sound like my mother."

[Grove]

Grove raised an eyebrow at his friend as a silent challenge. "Oh, I'll watch," he agreed. "And when you get eaten by a troll I'll try not to say I told you so." He smirked, knowing that they both knew what a disaster that would be if James really went after a troll. Grove would probably have to tag along just in case the prince got himself into something he couldn't handle.

Grove didn't really understand why Jim didn't think it was practical. His brow furrowed as he listened to James explain. It didn't make sense. They'd been friends for so long that they wouldn't not see each other because they had other responsibilities. "Jim, I don't have the same kind of expectations as you do. I'm my own man. That's what building the cottage means. And you're my best friend. I just thought..." Grove let that sentence die off because he had thought that James might have at least been excited. It was the start of his life as a man recognized by the dwarves. He could choose what he wanted to do with his life.

He shook his head at the image of bears being afraid of Grumpy. He had scared a bear or two away when Grove had been a very small child wandering in the forest. "I'm pretty sure he would only be able to send us to detention. The school frowns on violence."

Grove was relieved that James would try to stay out of trouble. And then he was affronted that James would compare him to his mother! "I am not," he groused. "Your mom is way worse."

[James Florian]

    "Oh and how do you know that I haven't done it a thousand times before?" James responded with a small laugh, of course he had never even seen an actual troll in his life. Just illustrations on tapestries in the castle or descriptions from the dull books, even with the troll, he was forced to read. The both of them knew that, but there was always a slimmer of a chance that there was some unknown branch of his family's history that involved monster trainers. Given the fact that James could recite everyone from both sides going back at least five generations, it was highly improbable, but not impossible. There was a scorch mark underneath his great great great uncle Ferdinand on his father's side.  That could have been Cousin Stephen, forsaken Lord turned animal hunter, bringing back exotic animal skins from far off lands. Or of course it could just been a scorch mark. James often zoned out during those tedious points in his lessons growing up. 

    However the conversation turned serious once again when the topic of the cottage came up again, and it seemed like Grove was forgetting his one huge responsibility as well. "The mine Grove, you forgot about the mine." the Prince quietly mumbled as he started to fiddle with his fingers, eyes downcast. Beyond being a lumberjack, his best friend was raised to be a miner which meant from sunup to sundown Grove was underneath the earth and James knew the dwarfs rarely took sick days. In truth he wanted Grove to do it, he really did. However James didn't want to be selfish at the same time. This was Grove's aspiration in life, just like one day becoming King was James'. He just couldn't trample on that since one day these friends' goals in life might unintentionally drive them apart. He didn't want to accidentally cause grief later on in life over forces that the two of them couldn't control. He just couldn't do that to Grove. 

    "I don't know if this'll mean much or not, but that Summer I could help you build the cottage." James offered though as a way to make up for turning down having a room built for him in the cottage. At least that way the seventeen year old could have a connection to the cottage without a permanent reminder of how they once were. That's what Grove wanted wasn't it? "That is, of course, if you want me too."  He hastily added, although he hoped Grove didn't, he would understand why his friend would have reservations. After all Royalty wasn't exactly known for being magicians with hammers and nails. However not all Princes had seven uncles who were all miners as well. 

    When Grove stated that all his father would be able to do is send the pair of them to detention, James looked at his friend as if he just sprouted another head and a short burst of nervous laughter escaped his lips. "Do you really think he's going to let that stop him? He would probably drag us by our earlobes to the detention room and then leave us in there with a pack of mangy dogs!" Okay maybe the Prince was stretching the truth, but for the most part Grumpy was the only dwarf who wasn't afraid to use old fashioned discipline instead of just reprimanding them. They needed a reminder of what happens when you cause trouble according to him and James was not going to give him a reason to. No way in hell. It wasn't so surprising that Grove was such a well behaved kid growing up. 

    "Well yeah, but it's just the way you said it." James explained blaming the tone entirely, but he knew that the nagging played a part as well. How many times did James say he would not going for trouble. It must have been a dozen at least. He suspected that Grove wouldn't be completely satisfied with the Prince's answer unless he signed a contract or something stating, I shall not seek out trouble. I will not cause trouble. I will be a model Prince. 

    Heck even then he probably still wouldn't trust the lad to not somehow end up in a villain's cross hairs. 
 

[Grove]

"If you had, I would have heard about it. If not from you, then from one of your parents." It would have been the talk of every single person in the kingdom as well as all the animals in the forest and they both knew it. The prince was well beloved. Everything he did was spread around the kingdom in no time.

"I don't have to mine," he explained. "My family doesn't expect me to choose it just because they did. I could go into forestry or make furniture. Whatever." There was no set future for Grove, because he was a man now. He could make that choice and his family would support him because that's what being a man was. He had his own life in front of him.

Grove couldn't help but smile. "As much as I'd like that, no one should ever let you anywhere near a hammer or nails." James was not the best with anything that require physical labor. Sometimes Grove wondered how he didn't cut off any of his appendages with his own sword.

He was amused at James' idea of Grumpy. "You're exaggerating," he pointed out. Of course, when Jim got going he got so wrapped up in the moment he tended to just keep going and exaggerating. "He wouldn't sic dogs on us."

Grove frowned. "I'm just trying to look out for you." 

[James Florian]

    James shrugged at the mention that Grove would've known if he was a troll trainer, "You would be surprised how many secrets one castle could hide." It was true, there was a lot of secrets floating around his home and the Prince only knew a fraction of them. Granted most of them petty such as a scullery maid sneaking off with the kitchen boy or hidden passageways behind a certain painting, but there was some large ones as well. Such as located in one of the smaller libraries there was a particular collection of essays that actually revealed questionable actions committed by the boy's predecessors. Who knew what else the boy had yet to stumble across. 

     For a moment James was extremely confused when Grove said that he didn't have to work in the mines when he got back, "but I thought..." He started to say, but the prince cut himself off when Grove's other words sunk in.  When that happened the statement turned into a slow nod of understanding. He had forgotten that not everyone's future was as clear cut and well defined as his had been. After all for as long as he could remember people told him he would King, so the notion of choosing of what he got to be hadn't ever really been entertained. It made him wonder what direction in life James would have gone if he hadn't been born into the Royal family. Even he didn't have the faintest notion himself. "I guess I just forgot. However whatever you decide to do, I know you'll be amazing at it. I mean just look at the detail you put into your carvings, I haven't seen anything like it before Grove." James said as he remembered practically staring in awe of what his best friend could do with his two hands. James secretly wished he had a fraction of the skills Grove did when it came to his hobby. 

    Speaking of which maybe it wasn't a good idea to trust the Prince to build a house that would have to last a lifetime, "Yeah, maybe I should trust you with all the carpentry work. I'd probably end up nailing my hand to the roof or something as hazardous as that." He said with a small laugh. The statement was probably more that true, or maybe it wasn't James didn't know. Nobody ever trusted him to not hurt himself

    James rolled his eyes when Grove said he was over exaggerating once again, "Oh yeah? Just wait until the day one of us screws up."  No doubt the Prince's Uncle would not be happy if word of either of them was stirring up trouble or got a bad grade. For both of their sake's James sincerely hoped they would be able to outrun whatever beast that would be sent after them.  

    "Of course I know that Grove, you constantly remind me." James gently reminded his friend with a small smile on his face. It was actually nice knowing that Grove was keeping an eye on him because he genuinely cared, not because his mother was paying someone like the stoics back home. 

[Grove]

Grove raised an eyebrow at the prince. Clearly, he had no idea. Grove had been there and as someone who wasn't the prince, he heard secrets spread like wildfire right in front of him. "You'd be surprised, Jim." They obviously weren't going to tell the prince all their secrets. The maids knew everything. Always.

Grove shrugged sheepishly. He loved carving and whittling and woodworking much better than mining, honestly, but he didn't know if he could make it his life's work. He wasn't really sure. It was just a hobby that he enjoyed. "Thanks," he answered sheepishly. "I like carving."

Grove nodded. It would be so much better if Grove handled all the building with his fathers. "Yeah," he agreed. "But you could help me decorate," he offered. If James wanted to help, then he would find a way to have him help.

Grove only shrugged. "He's one of my dads. He won't hurt me. You maybe," he said with a smirk, "but not me." He grinned, knowing that wasn't true either. Grumpy wouldn't physically hurt either of them, just scare them a bit.

"Well, it's only me here looking out for you. If I didn't remind you, you'd probably forget." He crossed his arms over his chest defensively.

[James Florian]

    James snorted when Grove said he would be surprised by went on in the castle. He knew what happened within the four stone walls, he lived there his entire life for Christ's sake. He believed he knew everything that happened in his home, but in reality he didn't. James only knew a fraction of the hidden things in the castle, however he didn't know that for obvious reasons. "Grove, I stopped being surprised when I stumbled across a fifth passageway behind some painting." 

    The Prince nodded when his friend said that he would be able to help decorate. In the back of his mind he already knew he was going to have to keep this plan a secret from his mother. If she caught word of it, oh boy, she would turn Grove's man cave into a flowery cesspool of all things cute and adorable. Not the type of furnishing a grown man who grew up as a miner and lumberjack would sincerely enjoy. James joked about it by saying, "Now any damsels in distress would be so thrilled to see their knights in shining armor deciding on whether Sky Blue or Robin's Egg would match the table."

    For a moment James believed Grove when he said Grumpy wouldn't be afraid to hurt the prince if he misbehaved, but he realized his friend was joking rather quickly. "Haha very funny Grove, we both know that we'd both be fair game if something bad happened and are named were attached to it." Regardless though, James knew that if either of them got into trouble the other would take the fall for them. At least that's what James would do for Grove. 

    "Yeah, I probably would Grove." James said with a small laugh. "However you're never going to give me that chance."

[Grove]

Grove lifted an eyebrow at his friend. The next time he spent any time at the palace he'd listen around for some good gossip that would be unlikely for James to hear and he'd pass it on to his friend. "Yeah, we'll see about that," he said like it was some kind of promise.

Grove huffed a laugh. "At least they'll know you have good taste. If you can find any women in the middle of a dense forest that is," he added. There weren't many people in the forest to begin with. Finding women of any kind, especially damsels in distress, would be a Herculean task. "And Robin's Egg blue is better than Sky blue. It's prettier. Plus, I plan on making all the furniture, so whatever color goes best with wood."

Grove continued to smirk because he could see that just for a moment James actually believed him. He was really quite pleased about that. He shrugged though. "He wouldn't hurt us, though. Scare us definitely. Give us the speech about how disappointed he is in us, but he'd never hurt us."

Grove nodded, frowning. When looking out for Jim was his responsibility he was going to make sure that Jim didn't forget. "Damn straight."

[James Florian]

    James rolled his eyes and said in response to his statement, not bothering to hide the sarcastic tone, "Yeah, you can surprise me right after I introduce you to that troll." He honestly didn't believe that there would be anything that would shock worthy in his own home that he didn't know about after seventeen years, however he forgot that not every whisper was passed in between corridors or in the facade of an empty library. There were plenty of secrets in his home and a good portion of them would certainly put James off of his guard, However palace staff and false walls kept their unknown treasures close to them. Unfortunately they weren't going to give in and reveal their secrets so easily to a crown, but to a lumberjack who could blend in with the groundskeepers or the stable boys, if he wasn't so terrified of their charges, maybe Grove could uncover hushed whispers that James would never overhear. Or maybe not. It all depended on how careless the staff were and how lucky Grove was. After all no one told James about the ancient saferooms and passages, he ran across those rooms himself by accident.

    "Grove must I remind you that the only reason I exist is because my mother stumbled across your fathers' cottage?" James countered when Grove stated that his joke would never happen. Which was true, if Snow hadn't found the cottage then she would have been wandering the woods where she would have been at the mercy of the elements and who knows what. She could have been killed and no true love's first kiss would be able to revive her. Then James wouldn't have been born, the evil queen would still be in charge of his home, and who knew what state of darkness it would have been in if that were to happen? Regardless it would not be pretty and peaceful, not with an old hag like that wielding all the power. James shook his head and responded to Grove's next statement. "Wood is like the color white. It goes with anything."

    James knew Grove was right, Grumpy wouldn't physically harm them, after all it was his son and 'nephew.' The dwarf wasn't afraid to chase former queens/old hags off of cliff, but he wouldn't hurt his family. He would die to protect those he held closest to his heart. Out of all the dwarfs James believed it was Grumpy that had one of the biggest hearts, he just had a lot of trouble showing it an positive way. "Yeah you're right, but still I suggest we avoid trying to find out what would happen if we stirred up trouble." It was a good idea, if they stayed away from causing trouble, then they wouldn't learn how Grumpy would react. It was as simple as that. Not to mention Grove had been trying to shove this message into James' brain for the last few minutes as well. 

    The Prince looked at his friend in disbelief. did Grove really just swear? Granted James may not have the cleanest of mouths or some people don't consider damn to be a curse word, but it was rare to hear such language from a quiet man. "Are my ears deceiving me? Or did you really just swear?" James said as he -as a joke- reached up to his own ears and made sure that they were there. Cursing was not something Grove did often, he just didn't have the mouth of a sailor.

[Grove]

Grove just shook his head. He wasn't going to be able to convince him without hard proof of it existing. That was fine with him though because he could gather evidence the next time he was at the castle. He'd befriended a couple of the maids, mostly because he kept having to ask where the kitchens were when he was looking for a midnight snack. "Sure, Jim. Sure."

Grove just gave Jim a look, because if that was the best counter argument he could think of, then that was weak. "So that makes a total of one woman in these woods," he told James, looking very unimpressed. "The population in the woods are literally only men and forest creatures."

Grove looked appalled that James compared wood to the color white. "No, Jim. Just no." He didn't understand how James could think that. "Wood comes in all different colors. Cherry wood is a reddish brown. Basswood is a creamy yellow color. Walnut is a dark brown. They're not all the same color, James. If that's what you think, I might ask your mother to help decorate instead. They're more of a set of neutral colors. Not white." He shook his head. Paint would have to be carefully picked out to offset the color of the wood.

Grove lifted an eyebrow at his friend. "Gonna tattle on me?"

[James Florian]

    James shook his head slightly in response to Grove's insistence that perhaps he didn't know everything that went on in his own home. He didn't believe Grove, and he probably never will unless the lumberjack brought the Prince some juicy gossip straight from the horse's mouth. Maybe even then Jim wouldn't believe him and he had no doubt that Grove was going to be the same way. The two of them could be stubborn jack----- at times. No wonder that they were thick as thieves as well.

    At least now the conversation had turned to something else which James was grateful for, all that talk of secrets in his home had put him on edge. What if he really didn't know everything that went on in his own home? What if there was huge secrets hidden under his nose? (Which of course there was. A building as ancient as that had plenty of stories to tell.) However there was one person he knew had no secrets in her own home because the Prince was known to be a miniature version of her, even though he was now taller than her. For some strange reason he didn't understand, James felt if he had to refute Grove's comment about her being just one woman who was lost in the woods. She wasn't just that, she was the queen. Before her own child(ren) had been born she was the last person who legally inherit her father's throne since his step-grandmother bumped off everyone else. Not to mention that she was James' mother. Regardless of who you were, you never let anyone talk smack about your mom. You could hate the woman's guts, but the moment someone stated they hated her as well you went all legionnaire on their asses. James raised an eyebrow and said "You realize that 'one woman' is the Queen neverless?" Now James didn't mean to be spiteful or anything like that, but then again it was his mom. He just wasn't comfortable with the fact Grove had accidentally grouped her into the same category as the baker's wife or the shoemaker's daughter. She had been given the divine right after all.

    However at the same time he understood what Grove was trying to get across. So after taking a moment to unwind himself, he said, "Okay so the woods is a Men only zone. Just don't tell that to the Rocks Ledge Wraith." He said with a small grin, he was a referencing an old ghost story that used to terrify the Prince when he was little. He couldn’t remember if Grove was creeped out by it, but he certainly remembered times when he would either be at the Dwarf''s cottage or in his own bed and he would stay awake for hours hiding underneath the bed sheets convinced that the rustling of a tree branch or the footfalls of someone moving about was the ghost coming to get him. The tale revolved around the defeat of the ex-queen where a hated woman was chased to the cliffs edge and sent over the side because of her ability to cast spells on her enemies. After everyone was convinced that she was dead, they went home and ignored the body at the bottom of the bluff. However the villagers didn’t realize that by leaving her down there, she never received the proper burial that every human, rich or poor, royal or peasant, good or bad was promised. So the woman’s ghost was denied access to judgement and was condemned to wander the forest where she had died searching for someone to bury her mangled and decomposed body. That’s not where the story ends though, because it had to somehow convince little children to stay away from the dark forest. So it was said that whenever her spirit ran across a child all alone in the forest, she would promise to help them find the way home. Instead though she would lead them to where her body was and kill the children, convinced that if she found the right child, a descendent of those that killed her oh so long ago, her dusty bones would be permitted to rise from the cobble and seek revenge against her killers. It was enough to make even grown men think twice about going out into the darkness.

    It wasn’t true of course, the only children that had run around in the woods on their own had been James and Grove, and their bodies weren’t lying motionless near the bones of a witch. (Not to mention the two of them could technically be the ones the wraith was after if it was real.) However James was never able to truly convince himself when he was younger that it wasn’t the swish of a black cloak he had seen hidden behind the oak trees or the only eyes following him where that of the forest animals, sent by his mother to keep an eye on the young lad. He had always told himself this, but he still couldn't shake the chill away whenever he was alone among the trees. 

    However all spookiness was shoved aside though when Grove became adamant that the color white and wood were not one and the same. James groaned and looked up at the sky, as if he was asking the clouds why Grove had to get so worked up over something so trivial. Wood was Wood and regardless if it was dark or light it went with everything. "You don't want to do that Grove, last time I asked her for help with my room she tried to convince me frilly lace curtains were the best option." James said when his friend suggested that maybe his mother would be a better decorator than he was. When he was twelve he decided he was sick of the childlike atmosphere that hadn't changed since he was old enough to wave goodbye to the cradle. For the most part he fixed it up himself, he took down the childish decorations, rearranged the furniture to his liking, and even had help painting the light green walls with a maroon colored paint. He hadn't told anyone else in his family of this project, some of the palace staff had lent a hand when something was too heavy for the prince or it was too large of a task for him to handle himself. Honestly he had done a pretty good job too. The room had gone from that of a child to one that suited the teenager James was becoming. No more toychests filled with god knows what in the corners. Instead an old desk that once belonged to some duke took it's place. A stuffed chair and piles upon piles of history books sat in front of the fire as well as lined the walls. Tapestries depicting scenes of fairy tales were taken down as well and old paintings of long forgotten heroes took their place. By the end of his project he only needed help with one thing. A collection of swords that he had found intriguing. He wanted to place them on his wall, but he didn't have the eye to see if it hung correctly or not. So he pulled his mother aside when he saw her pass through the corridor outside his room. It was the worst decision he had ever made. After the swords went up, his mother tried to convince him that everything he had changed had been a mistake and he should undue all of his hardwork. She came pretty close to doing it herself too, if his father hadn't gone searching for where his wife and son were when it was time to eat dinner. Luckily he had managed to convince Snow that the room's current trappings were more suited to a future king of James' age than what Snow had originally picked when he was too little to chose for himself. It was just the start of the many times she and the heir would butt heads over different opinions.

    Realizing that he was wandering extremely far off topic the raven haired lad said to get himself back on track with a small eyeroll, "Fine we'll make sure we get color approval from the decorating guru before picking up a single brush." He still believed that white was nature's version of the color white though.

    James laughed and said "Oh do you expect anything less from me? I'm going to tell everyone, your fathers, my mother, the palace guards, the woodland creatures, and I'll even shout it from the dormitory rooftops. Everybody is going to know you have a dirty... filthy... mouth." James jabbed Grove in the ribs with one of his fingers on each of his final words for emphasis. Of course he didn't mean a single word of it, James tended to have a filthier mouth whenever he stressed out so it would be hypocritical of him to squeal on Grove when the lumberjack could easily bring up plenty of situations where he had said worse.

    His eyes flickered to a bulge in the lumberjack's pocket and it took James a moment to realize it was what Grove was currently whittling and his pocketknife. With curious expression on his face he asked, "So what are you making this time?"

[Grove]

Grove tensed suddenly, his eyes widening slightly at having offended James because he had inadvertently offended his mother. Who was the queen of his country. Who was the only mother figure he had ever had. Grove looked startlingly like a deer caught by someone walking through the woods. Grove swallowed hard and nodded. "Yeah, sorry. I didn't mean anything."

He relaxed though when James realized that he only meant that only men ventured into the forest for the most part. The tension bled out of his shoulders and he smiled at Jim. The Rocks Ledge Wraith was a story that had scared both the boys when they had been younger, though Grove had always told Jim that he would protect him from the ugly old ghost though, even though he was scared of it too. He knew now that it was just a legend to keep the boys away from the dangerous ledge. "I wouldn't tell her. Then she'd be after me."

Grove kind of liked the idea of lace curtains. They were pretty and if he wanted functional curtains he could still have the lace ones too. They would look pretty with the lace over them. "Lace curtains would be nice," he said decisively. "They're decorative but also let sunlight in and I like sunlight coming in through the window. They're not really the best for privacy, but there's not many people in the forest anyway." He shrugged, not understanding the seriousness of the situation. Grove kind of liked Snow's fashion sense. A bit of femininity wouldn't be out of place.

Grove nodded again. At least Snow would know that wood was a neutral color and not white. Plus she would probably suggest the best colors for the color of the wood that he used. "Good. Then you can help paint."

Grove pushed away James' fingers from his ribs with an annoyed huff. "Cut it out. You're not even going to tell anyone."

Grove was lost for a moment before realizing that Jim meant the little peice of wood he'd been whittling. He pulled it out and turned it in his hands for a moment. He shrugged. "I don't know yet."

[James Florian]

    James realized that maybe he had accidentally accused Grove of disrespect. He hastily said to fix his mistake with eyes that were slightly less dilated than Grove's, "No, no, I'm sorry. I have no idea what I was thinking." God damn his stupid mouth. Luckily though James found away to lighten the conversation up a bit when the Rocks Ledge Wraith came up again. "Watch out Grove, she could be anywhere. Just watching and waiting for the perfect time to strike!" James said as he sneakily poked Grove in the side hoping to make him jump. Ah the joys of being grown up, you could make fun of the stuff you were terrified of when you were little. 

    James could not believe what Grove was saying. He actually wanted the frilly lace curtains to decorate his house. Which was being built in celebration of him becoming a man. That meant the days of those things were being left behind when he moved from the dwarfs' cottage and into his own. Yet Grove wanted to drag those things along with him just the same, was his friend mentally sound? "You want to have lace curtains..." James said in a disbelieving tone of voice. "Did you just seriously consider lace curtains, Grove? May I remind you that the whole point of the cottage is recognition of the fact that you're now a man and as your best friend, I strongly urge you to chose a different fabric. Preferably not frilly or something my mother would insist on choosing. " James suggested, but two of them knew that if Grove tried to put up anything that James viewed to be ill fit for Grove's bachelor pad, it was going to come down and disappear forever. It would be a war James would fight to the last breath. As long as the prince's heart was beating, he would never allow frills to take control of Grove's cottage. Never in a thousand years.

    When it was agreed upon that his mother would be consulted on all color decisions James just had to throw in for clarification so when they did work on the project they wouldn't waste time later arguing over this, "Fine, but for the record we bring the color options to her. She doesn't go to the cottage, I've redid my room with her once before and it was a disaster." Of course she would get to visit the cottage, however that would only be after it was done. Otherwise the man cave would become James' worst nightmare, fluff and frills everywhere. He already had to grown up in a room like that, he didn't want his friend to suffer as well. 

    The prince just shrugged when Grove pushed his hand away, "Yeah you're right. Lord knows I've said worse." He said with the small shake of the head before the conversation shifted once more. This time the focus was Grove's whittling. When Grove said he didn't know what he was making yet, James asked, "Can I see?" and sticking true to his stubbornness, he didn't wait for an answer before pulling Grove's hand closer to him so he could get a better look. It didn't have a definite shape yet or any real clues as to what it'll become, but James could already see the many possibilities forming in his head. After all just how many creations had Grove come up with over the years? A whole lot it seemed to be. Not only was the dwarfs' cottage littered with Grove's various creations, but so was the castle. Mostly they could be found in James' room and the library where Snow liked to display the ones Grove gave her. So since Grove was so experienced with carving, one thing was clear to the raven haired lad. "Well regardless it's bound to be amazing, after all you're making it."