Ever After High AU: Book 2 - Hearts and Thrones

Chapter 2 - Divides and Food Fights

Ashlynn POV

Ashlynn stood frozen in shock as looked at Raven's porridge covered face. She slowly turned her head to the, now dead silent, Castleteria to see quite a scene in front of her.

The room was clearly divided, with the Royal born students on the left side and the Rebels students on the right side. Both sides had a handful of students clutching various foods in their hands - fruits, bowls of cereal or porridge, toast, some eggs and whatever-after else they could grab.

Undecided students - students whose parents either did not participate in the war, were not living in Ever After during or plain old do not know where they stand - are either huddled up against the farthest walls of the room or crouching under tables to avoid getting caught in the cross-fire.

"This is, weirdly, a pretty good visual for how the actual war went," Ashlynn thought.

Apple stepped forward and clears her throat, looking out at the room with a similar look a mother would wear of she caught her children misbehaving. "What happened?" she spoke clearly.

The Rebel students begin to explain, but the Royals - mainly Duchess Swan - begin talking over them, making it impossible to hear what the others were saying. Ashlynn sighs and rolls her eyes. Sometimes her classmates acted more like needy chipmunks than teenagers and future rulers and heroes.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spies Dexter Charming begin to quietly walk over to them. "Perfect," Ashlynn thinks, "Someone who won't exaggerates facts." Dexter was leveled-headed and honest. At the very least, they could get what he saw.

 Apple gave Dexter a strained smile as she saw him approaching, but did not acknowledged her, which seemed to catch Apple off guard. Ashlynn had to resist the urge to roll her eyes again. "Serves her right." After Apple's behavior at the Legacy Viewing Day Party, Dexter had made stayed by Raven's side to make sure she was okay. Raven was already prone to panic attacks and Dexter always seemed to be able to help her calm down from one. 

Sure enough, that is were he was right now - by Raven's side, offering her a handkerchief to help wipe away the cold porridge from her face. Ashlynn could see Raven's blush through the mess on her face as she smiled at Dexter, taking the hanky. Ashlynn felt bad about ruining the moment, but she could already see Duchess taking aim with more bananas and toast.

"Dexter, what happened? How did this start?" Ashlynn asked her old friend (and boyfriend's roommate).

Dexter turned to her, his lips pinched together in a way that made Ashlynn guess who threw food first, "Duchess had started making... hurtful comments about the Rebels. She was saying things like 'I bet they are glad that the Storybook of Legends was swapped' and 'how much do you want to bet that they know where the real one is'. Stuff like that." He continued, "Cerise told Duchess to stop, but she kept going, getting more and more hurtful until it escalated into a small food fight."

Ashlynn sighed, that was pretty much what she expected, and she was not at all surprised that it was Duchess was started it. Briar and Raven didn't look surprise either. 

Apple, however, shot a disapproving look at the Rebels. "Why didn't you guys go get a teacher if Duchess was bothering you guys so much?"

Ashlynn whipped her head towards Apple so fast she heard the wind around her crack. "The absolute fairy-freaking nerve!"

"Are you seriously asking the bullying victims why they defended themselves after they repeatedly asked said bully to stop!?" Ashlynn did not even try to hold back her frustration with Apple at this point.

Apple turned to face her, looking like Ashlynn just slapped her in the face. "I'm - I'm just saying that the Rebel's could have resolved this without resorting to violence straight away. Just because Duchess was saying stuff to them does not give them the right to throw food at her or the other Royals."

"Um, actually," Cedar Wood, the wooden daughter of the previous Pinocchio, Pine Wood, spoke up, "It was Duchess who threw food at us first." The girl was picking ripped up pieces of toast out of her hair as she said this.

"That's not true!" Duchess wailed from her spot, aiming her bananas at Cedar now.

"It actually is," piped a voice from under one of the tabled.

Ashlynn leaned down and spotted C.A. Cupid - an undecided student who recently just moved to Ever After. The pink-haired girl already had a few eggs stuck in her feathered wings and was clearly not wanting to get anymore. She looked a bit sheepishly at Ashlynn before continuing, "Duchess was the one who threw food first - right after Cerise told her that, for a "Royal" she sure was not behaving very princess-like."

Duchess fixed Cupid with a fierce glare at those last words, "You shut up, Freaky-Pinkie!" she snapped, "You just got here! You don't know what the Rebels have done to our land!"

 "Your land?" Sparrow Hood yowls from the Rebels' side, "News flash, your Royal Featheryness, you and your kingdoms do not own the land we live and work on," he sneers at Duchess, "Maybe you need to retake Geografairy again."

Duchess rears her hand back to fling her bananas at him but before she could, Poppy O'Hair, one of Rapunzel's twin daughters, grabs Duchess's throwing arm.

"Duchess, for Fairy Godmother's sake, will you chill out for two seconds!" Poppy snapped, struggling to keep Duchess's arm where it was.

Duchess threw Poppy a disgusted look, "Stay out of this, Spare!" Duchess snapped, wrenching her arm out of Poppy's grip and flinging it towards the Rebels side, where Sparrow and Ramona were able to dodge it thanks to Poppy's diversion.

Apple quickly stepped in-between the two sides, "Duchess, Poppy has a point, calm down before this escalates even further."

"Like it hasn't already," Ramona growled from where she was trying to comb bits of cereal and toast out of her hair.

Apple ignored her, "Duchess, I understand you are frustrated and scared, believe me, we all are. But taking it out on the Rebels is not gonna -"

"Oh, please," Duchess snapped, cutting Apple off, "The Rebels are sure as hex not frustrated and scared. They are probably celebrating because if the Storybook of Legends is gone then that means they finally win! No more destinies, stories or Happily Ever Afters! They win!"

"What makes you think we are celebrating!"

Ashlynn looked over her shoulder to see Raven, face mostly clean of porridge, staring daggers at Duchess, who went pale with fear. You could hear the shush silence blanket the room. While Raven's hands were not glowing, Ashlynn could see the flicker of magic within her purple eyes.

Dexter was still standing beside her, a concerned look on his face as he stared at Raven, clearly remembering the last time she got this riled up.

After the Viewing Day After Party where Apple got mad at Raven for not wanting to be like her abusive mother and the Headmasters announced that the Book was a fake, Raven went nearly catatonic. Ashlynn saw her speak briefly with Headmaster Giles Grimm before she began to stumble around, not really enjoying herself, but also not wanting to go back alone. Dexter approached her and offered to walk her back to the school and she agreed. The other Rebels slowly followed suit after.

Unlike last time though, where it seemed to break Raven, this time, it seemed to wake her up.

Raven looked at Duchess, eyes flashing with magic, "Why in Ever After, would we be celebrating the disappearance of an invaluable artifact of our world! Especially when we know the blame will be put on us! We did not steal the Book, Duchess, and we want it found as soon as possible."

Duchess stared at Raven, her expression morphing from fear to scrutiny. But before either girl could say anything else, the bell rang signalling the start of classes.

Ashlynn sighed, mentally preparing for a day of classes where she has nothing in her stomach, before she felt a gentle nudge on her arm. She looked to see the handsome face of her boyfriend, Hunter Huntsman. His shirt and face has fairyberry jam on it, but that was besides the point. In his hand he held out a granola bar to her.

"Wanna walk to class with me?" He asked, his hazel-amber eyes twinkling.

Ashlynn smiled and took the bar, falling just a little bit more in love with him, "Yes, yes I would."