Dreams of Stars (A Once Upon a Time/Jiminy Cricket fanfic)

Dreams of Stars Part 25

Nova nodded, looking at her expectantly. "Yes?"

"Are you still a nun?" Kaelin blurted out, "No, that sounds wrong. Maybe I should say, were you ever a nun? You're really a fairy, right? You never really took a nun's vows. Those memories were just part of the curse. So are you a nun? Do you want to be one?"

"Oh, that's a hard question," Nova replied breathlessly, searching Kaelin's face with wide, brown eyes, "I guess I'm not, really...What do you mean by asking?"

"I was wondering if you might want to get back together with Grumpy," Kaelin mumbled, shrugging, "Maybe you could make him Dreamy again."

Nova flinched and looked away sadly. "Kaelin, it doesn't matter. Grumpy and I can never be together. He told me himself. Dwarves can't love. Fairies and dwarves can't be together—I told you that back in the Enchanted Forest, remember?"

"Yes, but that's just it," Kaelin replied excitedly, overcoming her nervousness without even noticing, "We aren't in the Enchanted Forest anymore. You're not really a fairy, and he's not really a dwarf. Maybe here you have a chance to be together!"

Nova had looked hopeful for a moment, but then she lowered her head again, biting her lip. "Even so, the Blue Fairy would never let me," she sighed.

"Maybe you don't have to let her control you anymore either," Kaelin suggested, "I think you should at least talk to Grumpy. Remember what he did for you when he was just Leroy? I think he still loves you."

Nova gave her a little half-smile. "Thanks, Kaelin," she said, "Still, I'm not so sure...Anyway," she brightened up and changed the subject before Kaelin had a chance to argue again, "How are things going with you and Jiminy? I want to hear all about it."

"There's not that much to tell, really," Kaelin replied, grinning shyly in spite of herself, "I'm living here now, you know, so I get to see him all the time. That's nice. It's really different too, with him not being a cricket anymore. And yet we have all those sad and happy memories together."

"Have you kissed yet?" Nova asked, getting straight to what was probably her real question.

Kaelin's face flushed red. "W-well, once," she stammered, "When we thought we were about to leave Storybrooke, that is." She wondered if it was even okay to talk about it. "It was...it was nice."

"Is 'nice' all you can say about it?" Nova giggled, "You're so modest, Kaelin!"

"Hey, what do you expect? I grew up in a nunnery!" Kaelin returned, "Or at least, I thought I did. I guess I actually grew up in an orphanage." She frowned, considering this.

"It's okay. Your shyness is cute," Nova teased.

Kaelin thought about teasing Nova back, saying that Nova was cute herself, but the fact that she thought about it made her unable to say it. The words stuck in her throat, and she said nothing. There was a short, awkward pause. "Wanna cook something together?" she said hurriedly, trying to fill the silence.

"Sure!" Nova replied. The girls went to the kitchen and spent the rest of the evening cooking some of their favorite dishes together and eating them. Kaelin hoped it would be all right for them to use ingredients from Jiminy's cupboard. Maybe if she saved the leftovers for him, it would be fine.

~~~

Jiminy returned that evening after Nova was gone, later than Kaelin had expected. Yet rather than being tired, he seemed in particularly high spirits. Kaelin re-warmed the plate of lemon-cream chicken she and Nova had saved for him and sat down with him while he ate.