Chapter Text
Far, far away, a long, long time ago, there was a powerful kingdom with two benevolent rulers. Happy as they were, they longed for a child, and so came about the adoption of their young daughter, Drift. She spent three blissful years with her loving fathers before a terrible fate befell her. A cruel witch stole the princess away to a tower deep in the woods, and locked her there.
The tower was tall, with a single room at the top where Drift was locked. She had only a single window and was not allowed to leave the room. After so many years of the tower, Drift came to forget her fathers far away in the kingdom, though she longed for a family.
Alone in her tower, she was unable to cut her hair, so by the time she had reached 18, her hair was long enough to reach the base of the tower.
Her only respite from the monotony of the tower were her scant collection of books. With nothing else to do for the long days alone in the tower, she learnt quickly to read, and had memorised every single one by the end of the first year.
As she grew, she found she often would sit by her lone window and read to the forest beyond her tower. It was easier when she was reading to pretend she had someone else she was reading to.
Far away in the castle, the two kings spent their every waking moment worrying for their lost daughter.
Shortly after she was taken, they began a bounty. The first person to bring their daughter back to them could ask of the kings whatever their heart desired.
It became a famously impossible task. For fifteen years, people came from all over the kingdom, the world, to find the princess and claim the reward. And for fifteen years, every single one failed.
———————————————————————
Shelby flicked the page of her book as the barkeeper slid a cup of tea across to her. She smiled gratefully as she took a sip. She scanned across the page, turning it again.
The doors swung open with a thud behind her. She turned slightly to see someone nailing a poster on top of a stack of others by the door. She set her book down slightly, turning back to the barkeeper.
“What’s the poster?” She asked curiously. The man glanced up from the glass he was cleaning to study it briefly.
“Don’t know about that one? Must be new around here. It’s the bounty for the princess, the kings will give whoever brings her back whatever their heart desires.” He said, turning back to his glass. She considered that. It seemed like a pretty easy thing, and for such a high reward.
What would she even ask for? All the books she could want? A library? A kingdoms worth of libraries?
The man sitting at the bar beside her barked a laugh.
“Fifteen years and still trying. It’s an impossible task, everyone knows it. And yet, they still put up new posters every year.” He scoffed, taking a swig of his own drink. Shelby hummed thoughtfully.
“They seem pretty invested.” She noted. A woman on the other side chuckled now.
“She was their pride and joy for three years, never apart from them. They barely leave the castle now, and hardly anyone’s seen them since she disappeared. They say it broke them.” She whispered conspiratorially.
“Loved her enough to promise anything in the world to get her back.” The barkeeper muttered, moving on to a new glass.
“Has no one tried?” Shelby wondered, glancing down at her tea thoughtfully.
“Of course people tried! Everyone tried, at the start.” The man crowed, “Kings promising anything to someone bringing back a three year old? We thought they were crazy. Still tried of course.” He huffed.
“Apparently someone was stupid enough to try and bring them some other kid they found.” The woman chuckled darkly, sharing a look with the others at the bar.
“Not seen much of them around recently.” She noted as she took a sip.
Shelby huffed, folding her bookmark back in as she closed the book. She drained her mug and slid it back across to the barkeeper.
“Maybe no one tried hard enough.” She laughed, slinging her bag over her shoulder. All the people around the bar laughed as well, knocking back more drinks.
“Good luck with that, girl.” The man chuckled, waving sarcastically as she walked out the door.
Shelby hummed to herself as she skipped down the path through the town. Now that she was actually paying attention, the posters were everywhere, stuck to pretty much any available surface.
She paused to study one of them more closely, examining the yellowed edges of the ones below the newer one. She doubted the girl had just wandered off - someone would have found her by now. It probably meant that someone had stolen her away.
This all sounded incredibly similar to another story she had read, although in that one there was a lot more Bigfoot.
If she was the sort of person to steal a king’s daughter (she had read enough books to feel knowledgeable on the subject), then she would probably have some kind of hideout in the woods. That felt like a good enough place to start, so she supposed it was time to go for a hike.
She readjusted her bag on her shoulder, moving down the path towards the forest.
She wondered what her odds were of actually finding this girl. If all the people in the bar were to be believed, it was impossible, a fools’ mission. Then again, Shelby’s favourite pastime was doing supposedly impossible things. It was even her middle name, Shelby Does-Impossible-Things-For-Fun Grace. No, that one was too far.
She giggled as she paused to reach down and scratch the head of a stray rabbit.
“Such a cute bunny.” She laughed, straightening again.
She skipped down the path, singing to herself. She kept stopping to pick flowers or say hello to various forest creatures.
She stopped for lunch at midday, eating some sandwiches she had bought and starting her new book.
She tried to keep reading as she walked, but somehow managed to walk headfirst into a pond. By some miracle, she managed to keep her book above water and undamaged.
She spluttered out of the water, shoving her mop of soaking red hair out of her face. She gasped a little for air as she tried to clean up her glasses.
As she was shoving her still damp glasses back on her face, she noticed a dark shape through the trees. She pulled her glasses back off to try and clean them up properly so she could see more than a blurry mess.
With her glasses clean-er now, she could see a tower of some kind in a clearing a few metres off the path.
“Definite spooky princess vibes.” She whispered to herself, shaking off what little water she could. This felt way too easy, right? Like, no way the princess a whole kingdom was looking for was a day’s hike from the town?
She jogged towards the tower, slowing as she reached its base. She craned her neck up, shading her eyes against the late afternoon light.
“Hello? Hello! Anyone home?” She called, rocking forward onto the balls of her feet. There was a beat of silence, and then a woman’s face peered out of a window.
Shelby almost fell backward in surprise.
“Oh! Hey! I didn’t think anyone was actually up here!” She laughed, waving manically. The woman waved hesitantly back, seemingly unsure of what to say.
“I’m Shelby! What’s your name?” She yelled.
The woman still didn’t say anything. Shelby hesitated.
“Uh, maybe this conversation would be easier if you came down here?” She suggested.
“Or like, I come up there? Is there a door or something?” She trailed off to a mumble, studying the base of the tower. She looked back up to the woman.
She watched, mouth agape as she let a curtain of hair cascade down the tower, just brushing the ground by Shelby’s feet. She reached out to brush a hand against the soft brown hair.
“What do I…?” She trailed off, looking back up at the woman half hanging out the window. The other woman mimed climbing. Shelby’s mouth formed an ‘o’.
“That is some seriously strong hair.” She muttered, grabbing a lock of it firmly.
She started to try and rappel up, she yelped as she was abruptly yanked upwards, falling through the window and landing on her face with a thump.
“Ough, you are very strong.” She mumbled, rolling over onto her back. The woman watched her warily.
Shelby sat up, holding out one hand.
“So, I’m Shelby! What’s your name?” She asked. The woman stared at her hand like it was an alien object.
“I’m Drift.” She mumbled. Shelby grinned, taking Drift’s hand,
“Nice to meet you.”
The woman nodded meekly, sinking into a crosslegged sit a metre or so away.
“So, what are you doing up here?” Shelby asked curiously, looking around the small room. Drift glanced around as well.
“I read a lot.” She whispered, fiddling with a strand of hair. Shelby beamed.
“Me too! I like adventures best, lots of action and excitement! Although, romance is always a good one too.” She said thoughtfully, turning to dig through her bag.
Drift watched quietly as she produced her book from her bag.
“I was reading this today, you before I almost fell in a pond. It’s kind of a miracle that it didn’t get completely wrecked, but, like, it’s fine! This one is a really good mystery.” She explained as she waved the book around. She paused to look at Drift.
“What kind of books do you like? I just realised I’ve been asking like, literally no questions.” She giggled. Drift shrugged.
“I guess I like mysteries.” She said. Shelby smiled and handed the book to her.
“You’ll love this I think.”
Drift flicked through a few pages, eyes scanning over the words quickly. Shelby watched intently as she flicked another page.
“Either you’re skimming, or you read at the speed of light.” She observed lightly, leaning back on her elbows. Drift looked up guiltily.
“Sorry. Is that bad?” She asked. Shelby barked a laugh.
“No! Why would it be?” She giggled incredulously. Drift shrugged.
Shelby sighed and dug out her other book, frowning at the damp pages.
“Damn, I think the ink might have run.” She grumbled, stuffing it back into her bag.
“How did you do that?” Drift asked sarcastically. Shelby grinned proudly.
“I fell in a pond while I was reading.” She explained. Drift snorted.
“That’s ridiculous.”
“A little.” Shelby shrugged.
“I have another book if you want.” Drift offered, motioning to a bookshelf crammed into the corner of the room. Shelby followed the motion, taking in the number of books stuffed onto the shelves.
“Really?” She whispered. Drift nodded, standing to get one. She left a pool of her pale chestnut hair trailing behind her as she studied the shelf. She expertly pried one of them free and passed it reverently to Shelby.
Shelby took it gingerly, examining the worn cover, the title almost rubbed away. She flicked through it, being gentle with the yellowed pages.
“It’s a romance.” Drift explained, fiddling with her hair again.
“Thanks.” Shelby replied softly.
Shelby glanced out the small window, and realised that it had gotten dark whilst they had been talking.
“Oh no, I didn’t realise it had gotten so late.” She muttered.
“I have to go, but you can keep the book.” Shelby said, standing to look out the window.
“I’ll help you down.” Drift offered. She fiddled with her hair as she sidled up.
“Could you come back tomorrow?” She asked timidly. Shelby smiled sideways.
“Of course!” She laughed. Drift grinned as well, lifting her hair over the edge of the window so that Shelby could rappel down.
———————————————————————
Shelby ended up finding a half destroyed cottage not far from the tower, and tried to fix it up enough to sleep in, all thoughts of finding the princess out of her mind.
She went back to the tower the next day, and the next, and the next after that, for two weeks.
Every morning, Shelby would climb up, and the two of them would spend the day reading and talking to one another.
One day, as Shelby was working her way through one of the books Drift had suggested, (It was about a witch that lived in a swamp, and at the moment she was trying to figure out how she had made a llama into a man. It was a wild ride.) she glanced up.
“So how long have you been up here?” She asked. Drift didn’t look up from her book.
“I don’t really know.” She replied. Shelby tipped her head.
“How could you not know? Why don’t you leave?”
“I can’t leave. The window is the only way down, and I can’t exactly climb my own hair.” She observed drily.
“So how did you get up here?” Shelby tried. Drift shrugged, finally putting her book down.
“I don’t know. I’ve been up here since I was a little kid.” She said. Shelby frowned. This poor woman, her entire life taking up only a few metres.
“Do you not have parents?” She asked. Drift shrugged again, a little sadly now.
“If I do, they mustn’t care too much to leave me up here, I guess.” She mumbled. Shelby shook her head firmly, sitting forward to grab Drift by the shoulders.
“I’m sure they care about you, there must be a reason you’re up here. Maybe they made a deal with dangerous people and had to hide you away to keep you safe.” She suggested with a small smile. Drift returned it uncertainly.
“Or they had to trade me away to save someone’s life.” She tried.
Shelby’s smile turned sarcastic.
“That’s not upbeat! You’re doing the opposite of what I meant!” She laughed, shoving Drift’s shoulders. Drift laughed as well.
“Well then maybe a witch stole me away to spite them.” She offered. Shelby’s brain flicked back to the bar a few weeks before, the whole reason she had ever been out here in the first place.
“Oh my gosh Drift I think you might be the princess that everyones been looking for and your parents are the kings and-“ Drift slapped a hand over her mouth, shutting her up.
“Shelby, take a breath, you have to talk slowly so that I can understand you.” She laughed. Shelby took a deep breath.
“In the kingdom, the kings had this daughter, but she disappeared fifteen years ago, and they offered a reward to anyone who brought her back.” She explained, still rushing slightly.
Drift laughed bitterly.
“And you think that I’m a princess that an entire kingdom was looking for?” She said incredulously. Shelby nodded eagerly. Drift rolled her eyes.
“I’m a girl who lives in a tower and likes books, how could I be a princess?”
“Why wouldn’t you be?” Shelby said playfully.
Her eyes lit up,
“And if you are the princess, the reward was literally ‘whatever your heart desires’, you could ask for a whole library of books!” She laughed, flopping onto Drift. Drift shoved her off with another laugh.
“The reward would be for you, silly. And that’s assuming that I am the supposed princess.”
“Again, what’s the harm in trying? Who knows, maybe you were stolen away fifteen years ago and hidden here.” Shelby argued.
“I literally can’t get out of this tower.” Drift reminded her. Shelby waved her off.
“I can figure something out.” She said. Drift snorted.
“Okay then, how would I get out?” She said sarcastically.
Shelby shifted back onto Drift, giggling as she huffed.
“I would get you a magic potion and you could float down.” She suggested.
“Wings.”
“A parachute.”
“A dragon.”
“Human fly costume.”
“Okay, you can stop now.” Drift laughed, pushing her face away with a hand. Shelby laughed,
“Don’t you like my ideas?”
“I love your ideas, but they’re ridiculous. I don’t even know what a human fly costume is.” Drift laughed.
“How dare you! My ideas are amazing.” Shelby argued with a giggle.
“But wouldn’t a rope make more sense?” Drift said gently. Shelby gasped, falling backwards dramatically.
“That actually is incredibly smart. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it. Amazing.” She said, gesturing at Drift from the floor.
“I’ll go buy a rope tomorrow, in town.” Shelby said finally, as she stopped laughing. Drift sighed, pulling Shelby back towards her.
“I wish you didn’t have to leave.”
“Well, I can’t stay here forever, otherwise there would be two girls in the tower, and that’s not a very good trope.” Shelby laughed. Drift laughed too,
“Well it’s a better trope than ‘Shelby leaving me alone in the tower’.” She argued. Shelby made a sad noise.
“Well, when I get back, then you can escape and we can go to town together.”
“I guess so.”
“And then to the castle.”
“Oh my gosh! Shelby!” Drift exclaimed, pushing her away once again.
“But what if you are?”
“What if I’m not?”
“Then no harm no foul, and you’ll still be free!” Shelby said, yanking Drifts wrist. Drift sighed.
“Well if you’re not going to be here tomorrow, can you at least stay tonight?” She asked quietly.
“Okay.” Shelby hummed, picking her book back up.
———————————————————————
She waved goodbye the next morning, starting the hike back down the path towards the town.
She tried to stay focused this time, rather than get distracted. She still stopped to pick a couple flowers, tucking them into her bag.
She managed to make it to the town gates in a couple of hours, getting to the edge not long before dinner time.
She studied the sky, frowning as she realised she wouldn’t be able to make it back to Drift before it got too late.
She walked over to the bar to see if there were any rooms available that night, pushing the door in gently.
The barkeeper looked up as she stepped in, offering a crooked grin.
“The princess girl returns.” He laughed,
“How did you go? Find your princess?” She shrugged with a small smile.
“I’m just looking for a room for the night.” She said. The man nodded, putting down the glass he was cleaning to find a key.
She dropped a couple coins onto the counter as she scooped it up, retreating upstairs with a small smile.
The next morning, she dragged herself out of bed as early as she could bear and left the key on the counter as she slipped out into the dawn.
She ducked into a store and pressed a few coins into the hand of the owner in return for a rope hopefully long enough to reach the bottom of the tower, and a few snacks she wanted to share with Drift. She tucked it all into her bag beside the flowers, and turned down the path towards the forest once more.
Shelby skipped down the path, not bothering to stop for lunch. She ended up making it back in the late afternoon, swiping sweat off the back of her neck.
She looked up waving at Drift, who was waiting in the window. The other woman’s face lit up when she spotted Shelby.
She let down the cascade of hair, pulling Shelby up easily. She landed lightly, careful to not squash the food she had bought. Drift surged forward to envelop her in a hug, crushing the air out of her. Shelby hugged her back just as enthusiastically, giggling.
“I got it! And some other stuff as well, I thought we should have a party, to say goodbye.” She said, pulling out the rope, a small cake, and chocolates, though they were a bit worse for wear after the heat of the day.
Drift studied all of it intently, smiling softly.
“Thank you so much, Shelby.” She whispered. Shelby beamed proudly.
She broke the cake up and handed a few of the chocolates over to Drift, sitting down beside her as they ate. They leant into one another’s shoulder, Drift’s head resting on hers.
They ended up falling asleep like that, half on top of one another and leant up against the wall beneath the window.
Shelby woke up to bird song, freezing when she realised where she was. She fought to keep perfectly still, and not wake up Drift, her heart pounding with the closeness.
The other woman woke up anyway not long after, the two leaning away from one another and stretching out the sleep from their limbs.
“Ready to go?” Shelby yawned as she stood up. Drift jumped up as well, her eyes bright.
“Yes!”
Shelby tied the rope securely around the foot of the bed, her and Drift having to work together to drag it over to the window.
She stepped back, looking to Drift.
“Well, let’s go.” She said with a grin, gesturing to the window. Drift’s enthusiasm faded slightly as she studied the rope leading out of the window. Shelby put a hand on her shoulder gently.
“It’s okay. I’ll be right behind you, yeah?” She reassured her. Drift looked up at her with wide eyes, blinking caramel eyes at her worriedly.
Shelby smiled warmly,
“I’ve got you. Promise.” Drift nodded, taking a deep breath. She swung her legs around the window, twisting the rope securely around her hands. She slid slowly out of view, Shelby having to lean out to continue watching. She hit the ground lightly, letting go of the rope and looking down at her bare feet in the grass.
She laughed, looking up at Shelby giddily. Shelby laughed as well, swinging down the rope as well, grabbing Drift as she hit the ground. They grabbed each other by the shoulders, swinging and bouncing around as they laughed.
“You’re free!” Shelby gasped. Drift’s smile almost split her face.
“I’m free.” She whispered.
They ran down the path into the town together, Drift stopping to look at everything they passed with an awed look on her face.
Shelby giggled as she watched Drift kneeling to examine a daisy with wide eyes. Drift looked back at her with a shy smile.
“It’s so small.” She whispered. Shelby nodded, reaching down to pluck it carefully and tucked it behind Drift’s ear.
They kept walking, having to pull Drift’s hair up and drape it over her arms as they crossed some muddier areas.
“We probably need to cut it.” Shelby observed as she helped the other woman over a particularly big puddle.
“I’ve never had to cut my hair before.” Drift said, stumbling slightly. Shelby caught her gently, righting her again.
“I probably could have guessed that.” She laughed as she tucked a strand behind Drift’s ear.
Drift gave her a wry smile.
“Yeah. Such a surprise.” She shook her head loosely, hair flicking as she did.
“How far is it to castle?” She asked. Shelby grinned,
“Only a day or so. We’re really doing this?”
“I just assumed I didn’t get a choice.”
“You don’t.” Shelby sang, leaning into her shoulder. Drift laughed.
“We should probably deal with my hair before then.” She said. Shelby hummed thoughtfully.
“I think we can get a knife or some scissors in town.” She said,
“Unless I have something in my bag…” She trailed off, digging around.
“Nope. No sharp things whatsoever.” She declared. Drift huffed.
“I think that’s a good thing.” She decided. Shelby gasped.
“Do you not trust me with scissors now?”
“I don’t, actually.”
She bought another room at the bar that night, grinning at the man’s face as Drift trailed after her with her waterfall of hair. They managed to borrow a knife from one of the men at the bar.
“How long do you want it?” Shelby said, settling beside her on the bed in their room.
“I don’t know,” Drift said, running a hand through a lock by her ear, “Maybe just above the shoulders?” Shelby hummed, straightening the hair over her back.
“Ready?”
“I think so.”
Shelby slid the knife underneath the hair over Drift’s shoulder, pushing it up and starting to saw at it. By the time she was finished, there was a mound of silky brown hair by her legs, and Drifts hair sat jaggedly around her chin. Shelby smiled, playing with the ends.
“It’s so short.” Drift noted, reaching up to bounce it. Shelby laughed.
“Your hair wouldn’t have been this long since you were a kid.” She guessed, sitting back. Drift hummed, twisting to sit properly beside her.
“I guess tomorrow we can find out.” She said uncertainly.
Shelby took her hand, squeezing it reassuringly.
“We’ve got this. I’ll be right there, and even if it’s not them, I’m not gonna leave you.” She whispered. Drift smiled gratefully. She rested her head on Shelby’s shoulder, squeezing her hand back. Shelby’s heart skipped a beat.
“You’re the best first friend I could have asked for.” Drift whispered.
———————————————————————
Shelby took Drift’s hand again as they looked up at the castle gates before them.
“You ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
Shelby strode up to the gatehouse, rapping on the door. A blond man peered around the door.
“What?” He barked. Shelby straightened her shoulders.
“I think I found the missing princess.” She said, trying to sound confident. The man blinked, and retreated into the building for a long moment. Drift shuffled up to her shoulder, the two of them listening as there was a clanking and rustling inside.
The blond man reappeared again, this time with his armour slightly askew and a spear. He glanced at Drift by her side, and then jerked his chin towards the gate.
“Let’s go.” He said, marching forward. They trailed after him, following him through an elaborate garden and up to an intricate set of doors.
He knocked on the doors, having a rushed whispered conversation with someone else behind the door before standing back to wait.
Shelby squeezed Drift’s hand.
The doors swung inwards with a creak, and the blond man waved them in. He turned and walked away, and another man - a beard and brown hair pulled back into a pony tail this time - lead them through a long set of twisting corridors.
They finally reached another set of large, intricate doors, which the man pushed open for them. He waved them through the gap, standing by the entrance.
Two women stomped up, spears by their sides.
“Name and reason.” The taller one with ginger hair barked.
“I’m Shelby, and this is Drift, who I think is the missing princess?” Shelby said a little uncertainly. The two women shared a look.
“Follow me.” The other woman said, spinning on her heel.
She lead them up to the end of the room, where two men were perched on thrones, clasping their hands between them. The man with dull cyan hair and tired blue eyes skimmed over them, locking on the woman beside them instead.
“Apo. Who’s this?” He said wearily. The other man beside him with dark hair and half lidded eyes had found Drift and hadn’t looked away since they entered the room.
“Scott.” He whispered. Scott kept his eyes on Apo.
“Scott.” The other man hissed again.
“Sir, this is Shelby, and she’s here to-“
“Collect the reward for the princess.” Abolish cut her off, sitting up. Scott’s eyes trailed over to the two of them, and he froze when he saw Drift. He sat forward slowly.
“Drift?” He breathed. Drift shuffled uncomfortably, standing halfway behind Shelby. Shelby interlaced their fingers,
“Um, yep. This is Drift.” She said, pulling her forward gently. The two of them didn’t even seem to hear her, both still watching Drift.
“Hi.” She mumbled. They were both still watching her like she might disappear if they looked away.
“Sir?” Apo said slowly.
The blue haired man stood slowly, stepping off the dais and walking closer.
“Sir-“ Apo tried again, stepping forward, but he dodged around her easily, stopping just in front of Drift. His mouth opened soundlessly, his hand coming up as if to cup her cheek, but stopping just short. His mouth clicked shut. He swallowed roughly, pulling his hand back and flexing it slightly.
“Is it really you?” He whispered weakly.
Drift also seemed lost for words, watching him with her doe eyes wide.
Abruptly she surged forward, burying her face in the man’s shoulder, wrapping her arms around his middle. He hugged her back immediately, pressing his face into her hair.
“Oh, doll. We thought we lost you.” He mumbled. She sobbed brokenly.
“I’m back.” She said with a tear streaked smile, pulling back. The man smiled as well, both hands cupping her face properly now.
“You are. You’ve grown so beautifully, darling.” He said.
“Scott,” The dark haired man said, appearing by their side. Shelby jumped, unsettled by how silently he had moved. Scott looked over at him, still beaming.
“Our daughter is back, Abolish.” He said giddily. The man tipped his head.
“And we also offered a reward to whoever brought her back?” He prompted, glancing sideways at Shelby. Scott’s eyes tracked the motion.
“The brilliant saviour who brought our daughter home, we owe you our very kingdom! Whatever you want, I’ll find.” He said easily, keeping his hold on Drift.
“I don’t want anything. I’m just here to help her get home.” Shelby shrugged. Abolish turned a newly appraising look on her.
“Surely you want some reward for doing the impossible?” He said slowly. She shook her head.
“Seeing Drift happy is the greatest reward I could get.” She said simply. He hummed, a small smile tugging at his lips as he looked over to Scott. Drift was watching the whole interaction, eyes bouncing back and forth.
“I have an idea.” She said. Both of the men looked to her expectantly. Drift pulled herself free of Scott, stepping closer to Shelby. She smiled softly, cupping both sides of her face.
Shelby swallowed roughly, her heart stuttering in her throat.
“You don’t-“
“I want to.” Drift replied quietly.
Drift tasted like sunlight.
———————————————————————
Shelby smiled, Drift holding her hand in a vice grip. The two of them were standing on the balcony behind Scott and Abolish. The kings were making some kind of speech, both smiling as they spoke.
“It’s a lot of people.” Drift whispered, leaning over. Shelby giggled under her breath.
“They are announcing that the princess who was missing for fifteen years came back.” She whispered back.
“I didn’t know there were this many people in the world.” Drift hissed.
“How big did you think the world was?”
“I don’t know? Like fifty people?”
“You’re so ridiculous.” Shelby breathed, pressing a light kiss to Drift’s cheek.
Below them, the crowd whooped and cheered. Shelby realised that Scott and Abolish had stepped back so that she and Drift were now in full view. Drift squeaked and shrank back, but Shelby pulled her back out.
“You can’t hide behind me, I need to hide behind you.” She hissed.
“I call dibs.” Drift muttered, smiling awkwardly.
Scott and Abolish shared a small grin, stepping back in front of them, Abolish folding his arm behind his back to shoo them away surreptitiously. Drift giggled, dragging both of them into the open doorway.