Don't Mess With Time

Chapter Twenty-Three

He set a hand on Serenity's shoulder consolingly.

She made a frown, looking confused.

He glanced at Dede and then back at her for a second to try and communicate his thoughts.

She didn't look any less confused and he decided to talk to her after lunch.

Across the clearing, Hester watched Amber and Theresa with narrowed eyes and a distasteful expression on her face.

She didn't like that princess.

Not one bit.

She didn't like her cocky attitude or her self assured smiles... but the thing she liked least about the younger girl was the way she and Amber talked.

How Amber wouldn't take her eyes off of the swordswoman and they had suddenly gotten closer a few days ago.

For some inexplicable reason, Hester felt protective of Amber and Hilda.

She didn't like it.

She'd only felt protective over two other people in her life, those two being Dot and Anadil.

Anadil raised an eyebrow and continued to watch Hester.

"Who are you glaring at?" she asked bluntly.

Hester jumped and then shot a look at Anadil.

"Theresa. I don't like that girl."

Anadil was silent do a moment, remembering what Amber had confided in her about the warrior princess.

"She's alright."

Hester whipped her head around and glared at Anadil.

The albino tried not to get lost in those amazingly beautiful dark, flinty black eyes that made Anadil's heart flutter like some stupid Ever and she hated those eyes (she's lying, she loves them).

"She's annoying and a good influence on Amber, which is bad!"

Anadil laughed quietly.

Hester raised an eyebrow and Anadil tried to look anywhere but at Hester and her attractiveness...

Anadil may or may not be having lots of trouble dealing with her crush on Hester.

Across the clearing, someone else was having the same problem.

Beatrix glanced at Reena as she set her head on Beatrix's shoulder.

"I hope someone asks me to the Snow Ball this year...," she said with a pointed look at Beatrix and a raised eyebrow.

Beatrix did not get the memo and started to think about someone taking Reena to the Snow Ball.

It made her heart ache.

Then she imagined going with Reena.

As friends, of course.

Of course.

It's not like she liked Reena.

"Uh, yeah. I don't know," Beatrix said with a small sad expression.

Reena tried not to sigh in exasperation.

"Yeah, boys are over rated. We learned that last year," she said.

Beatrix stared at Reena for a moment and felt her face start heating up.

"Yeah... we should just forget them," Beatrix said, wondering if she'd said the wrong thing and upset Reena.

The girl grinned and moved closer to Beatrix.