Ever After High: Secret Storybooks

Chapter Nineteen: Ashlynn Ella

~This is it, guys. Thank you. ~
*

"Guys! Briar's back!" Cedar shouted.

A sparkling light appeared, then took the form of four people. The light materialized into Briar, Faybelle, Hopper, and Prince Julian. Briar was laying on her back on the grass. Hopper was bent over Briar, eyes wide. Prince Julian's gaze was on Faybelle, who looked away from the situation completely.

Obviously, as Briar's best friend, I spared no time wiggling my way in between people so I was beside her.

She blinked multiple times before her eyes opened all the way. "Ash? Hopper?" The two of us backed away so she could sit up. "What happened? The last I remember there was the spinning wheel and..."

A wave of realization came over her features, one short of horrified or even surprised as anyone would've expected. She whipped around to see Prince Julian, exclaiming, "you... you woke me up, didn't you?"

I glanced at Hopper. His eyes were still wide, searching for some sort of answer. I knew what had happened in that moment.

(My training worked! I'm a miracle worker! OH MY GODMOTHER!!!)

Personal pride aside, I couldn't conjure up something to say to Briar regarding the truth, and it was obvious with just a glance to the Frog Prince that he had nothing to say on the matter either.

Julian blinked at Briar a few times. He blushed, then uncomfortably smiled. "Yeah, yeah... That was me." He ran a hand through his hair, glanced at Faybelle again, then let his eyes shift to anywhere other than Briar. He never once looked at Hopper or I.

Hopper looked to me again as a distraction.

I tensely shrugged. I imagine my face was an exact replica of that awkward, uncomfortable, not-really-a-smile emoji, minus the yellow skin.

Briar pushed herself up from the grass and dusted off her dress before running to her Prince. "It's been so long since I saw you!" She immediately immersed him in an exciting conversation, complete with wild hand gestures and voice pitch changes, though he did not seem fazed by my best friend's overwhelming emotion one bit.

Faybelle took that opportunity to shuffle away as Briar dragged the reluctant Julian into a hug. I felt a pull in my heartstrings as Briar gabbed away about how awesome it was to have him here. He stared at Faybelle over Briar's shoulder, every word out of Briar's mouth no doubt flying in one ear and out the other.

I sighed and propped myself up off the ground where I'd been kneeling. "What now?" I asked.

"I-it w-was me," Hopper stammered out, as if he were an actor frozen on the mirrorscreen in a Hexflix program and I had finally pressed the play/pause button, continuing the program.

I nodded and pressed my fingers to my forehead in distress. "Trust me, I know." I wished I had a rewind button to press and erase all the stupid Prince's lies. Unfortunately for the good of all humanity, fairies, myths, legends, werewolves and monsters and the like, there was no such button.

"I don't know if I should be really relieved, angry, or crushed," Hopper said in a small voice.

I patted him a couple of times on the back sympathetically, having no clear answer to his question. "I'm sorry," I managed to force out of me.

I watched, as any ultra awesome supportive best friend would do, as Briar interacted with the guy she's been betrothed to since birth. The more I saw, the more grateful I realized I am to have Hunter and not be in any such situation.