~This is the way you left me

I'm not pretending

No hope, no love, no glory,

No happy ending~ Mika

!

She closed her eyes, savoring the feel of the wind brushing against her cheek and the sound of leaves rustling. It seemed like forever since she'd been in the woods alone.

She's always loved the forest, which was paradoxical considering all that she'd been through but . . . there was just something about it that seemed to call to her. Maybe it was the millions of colors or sounds the constantly filled the forest from the bright red, yellow, and blues of the flowers to the many different bird songs. Maybe because it was filled with so many forbidden things. Maybe it was the beautiful flowers or the sweet smelling fruit, the ones that only grew outside of the path you were supposed to stay on, that called to her, inviting her to stray from the path.

The last time she had strayed from the path her grandmother had died and she had gone insane.

Little Red Riding Hood turned her head slightly. If she strained her ears she could just make out the voices of two men over the sound of birds chirping.

When Sabrina, Daphne, Uncle Jake, and Briar Rose made it back to the camp, the others had demanded to know what happened. Charming called for a meeting and everyone filed into a cabin, not his cabin of course, he wouldn't want people to dirty his carpet. While a pale faced Uncle Jake told the story, Red had been looking at Sabrina. The blond haired girl had seemed . . . distant, her face completely blank of all emotion. It wasn't until Uncle Jake finished the tale that she realized why.

It was because the fairy wasn't coming back.

The silence that had filled the cabin only lasted a few seconds before turmoil hit. Everyone started asking questions at once, some screaming, some barely whispering. Only four people remained quiet, Red, Granny Relda, tears of grief rolling gently down her chubby cheeks, Briar Rose, guilt clear on her tear streaked face, and Sabrina. The girl just sat there, a blank look on her face as if oblivious to the turmoil around her . . . and inside her.

Red knew what Sabrina was going through. She knew the state the girl was in now, the state where you were blissfully separated from the world and what was going on around you. She also knew that state only lasted for a little while before reality slapped you in the face.

She had gone through it when her family had died.

Finally, Charming had hollered for attention and everyone stopped talking to look at the prince.

"We need to send people to look around the castle and see if any magical items have survived the fire." He had said, his face looking like it had been carved out of stone. Red had figured out that's how the prince handled emotion. He didn't meet if face on, but shoved it away and busied himself with other things.

Charming and Mr. Canis had volunteered to go and Red had decided to go along with them. She didn't like being around people who were grieving. It reminded her of her own pain.

Red frowned, searching the feelings that swirled inside of her. She was sad, of course. Even though the fairy had been annoying, smelly, and rude, he was . . . had been funny. Besides, she had been a psychopathic murderer, what right did she have to judge others? Puck had also had some nice moments. One time, while rolling his eyes and grumbling, he had given her a donut from his secret stash. Of course the donut had mold on it, but it was the thought that counted.

Red opened her eyes and sighed, staring down at her feet, watching as a worm made its way through the grass. Puck was also the only one who knew what it felt like not to have a family, except for Mr. Canis . . . but he was different. Puck knew what it felt like to live with a family that, no matter how desperately you wanted it to be, wasn't yours.

Tears filled her eyes as she remembered the first night she had spent in the Grimm house. She had stood outside Granny Relda's room, uncomfortable sleeping in the woman's room . . . and Relda snored like a trucker. She had stood in the hallway for what felt like hours, not knowing what to do. She defiantly didn't want to go to Mr. Canis, the man had still scared her, and she didn't think Sabrina liked her enough to be woken up at 2:00 in the morning. That left only one person.

Finally she had gathered enough courage to walk down the hall and knock on Puck's door. At first she thought he hadn't heard until a serious of incoherent complaints reached her through the wooden door. Before she could turn and run, the door swung open, revealing Puck, his blond hair tousled and his eyes glazed with sleep.

Red looked up at him, her eyes wide. "Sorry I ripped your wings out." She squeaked, fear making her say the first thing that came to mind.

Puck had just stared at her for a moment, blinking slowly. Then he had mumbled something about crazy psychopaths and 'don't pet the chimpanzees' as he stood aside to let her in.

He snored too.

A tear drop slid down Red's cheek and fell to the ground, almost hitting the worm. She was going to miss the fairy.

A trig snapped, sounding like a gunshot, and her head snapped up. She gasped in fear when she saw someone standing in front of her. The person was covered in a dark red cloak, the hood pulled up so its face was covered in shadow. The front part of the cloak was covered in dirt and grass stains, as if the person had been crawling around on the forest floor.

Red turned and prepared to run when the person said, "Wait!" The person's voice was feminine but unfamiliar.

Red hesitated before turning around slowly, making sure there was a lot of space between her and the woman. She knew from experience that it wasn't wise to talk to strangers but . . . there was something in the woman's voice, an urgency that suggested that what she was going to say was important.

"Your friends missed something." The woman said, her voice soft and gentle as she held out a hand.

Red stared at the small glass bottle resting on the woman's palm. She carefully reached out and took it, warmth spreading up her arm when her fingers brushed the woman's skin.

Red held the bottle in her hand, staring at the small amount of liquid that swirled around in bottom of the bottle. Her eyes widened and she gasped as the liquid changed colors.

"Wha . . ." She started, looking up, but the woman was gone. The woman had disappeared as quietly as a ghost.

Red stared at the spot the woman had once stood, griping the bottle tight in her hand, the only sound being the rustle of leaves and the flap of a giant bird's wings.

A startled shout broke through her thoughts and she turned around when another shout sounded through the air.

Mr. Canis and Charming must have found something.

Red gripped the bottle tight in her hand and ran to them, wondering what magical thing the bottle's liquid could do.

!

Why?

The soft thud of her feet hitting the forest floor and her heavy breathing filled Sabrina's ears as she raced through the trees. She didn't know where she was going; only that she had to get away. She had to get far away from it all .From the pain, the sorrow, the guilt . . . from everything.

She didn't understand why they called it heartbreak. To her it felt like everything was broken. She felt like someone was playing tug-o-war with her emotions.

Why?

Every breath she took filled her lungs with cold air, burning them, and branches whipped her face, cutting her skin, but she hardly noticed. She didn't stop, even when she tripped over a root. She just got back up and started to run again, trying to run away and leave all the confusion behind.

Why?

She knew she should feel happy but at the same time she knew she should feel sad. The only emotion that was clear was anger; anger at herself, anger at the Everafters, anger at everyone; anger at life for taking everything she loved away from her.

A cramp in her side forced her to slow to a walk but still she didn't stop moving.

Why?

And all the time that she had been wondering what she should be feeling, her heart had been breaking.

Not in two, but in a million pieces.

Why?

Why had she rejected him? Why had she called him names? Why had she screamed at him? Threatened him? Why hadn't she been nicer to him? Why hadn't she told him she liked him?

Why hadn't she saved him?

WHY?

Sabrina stopped walking and leaned her back against a tree trunk, slowly sliding down it until she was sitting on the hard ground. She knew her family was probably worried about her but she just couldn't stay in that camp, the camp that seemed strangely quiet now; the camp where everyone was just as confused as she was.

She couldn't stay in that camp and see the guilt on everyone's faces.

She could tell Granny Relda felt that it was her fault for not trying to stop them.

Uncle Jake felt guilty that he let them come along.

Briar Rose felt that it was her fault because she was the reason all of this had happened, that if it wasn't for her, none of it would have happened.

Sabrina wanted to scream at them. To yell at them that they weren't the ones who had been there. They weren't the ones who had stood just a few inches away from him. That they weren't the ones who should have done something.

Why?

It's strange, she thought, how someone can be standing beside you, breathing, laughing, alive and then be as cold as stone in a matter of seconds.

It was like that when Briar Rose had died. One second she was alive and then she was crumpled underneath a tree.

And now Briar was back. Sabrina knew she should be happy that the woman was back and yet . . . she just couldn't make herself feel happy. It was very . . . bittersweet. It was bittersweet that they saved someone they loved at the expense of another loved ones life. But she didn't blame Briar for any of it. Sabrina knew the blame rested solely on her.

Why?

Right now she'd do anything for another tear in time. A chance to go back and fix everything, a chance to stop the thing that had happened in that dark hallway. A chance to stop all the pain, sorrow, guilt and regret from happening.

Why?

Why hadn't she done something? Why hadn't she been faster? She prided herself on her ability to think quickly in tough situations but the moment she needed to do something, all she could do was stand there and gap. She should have done something! She should have jumped on the demon's back or something!

She felt anger build inside of her. Why did it have to happen like that? Why couldn't everything have worked out, just this once? WHY?

She snorted, resting her head back against the tree's hard bark. But what had she expected? A happy ending? If there was one thing that living in a town filled with fairy tale characters had taught her, it was that there is no such thing as a happy ending.

Why?

It surprised her how the sun kept shining and the birds kept singing, as if oblivious to the fact that someone had just died.

"Why?" The word escaped from her and hung heavily in the air, waiting for someone to answer it.

A sound reached Sabrina's ears and she looked towards it, listening as it got closer. She couldn't fight off the irrational thought that it might be him, that somehow he hadn't died. Instead, a bunch of fireflies flew out of the shadows to float in front of her, but she knew better than to think that they were fireflies. She knew that they were actually pixies, Puck's minions, and that they liked to sting people, but there was something wrong with them. They seemed . . . duller than usual. The light they emitted looked gray and dim as if they were sad.

Sabrina scowled at them; they had been following her around since she made it back to the camp, as if they knew she was responsible for their master's disappearance. Now they floated in front of her, twittering, almost like they were trying to talk to her.

Trying to ask her where their master was.

Suddenly Sabrina couldn't take it anymore. Anger boiled inside of her and all the tears she had been holding back burst out, flowing down her cheeks in an endless river.

"Leave me alone!" She screamed at them, tears streaming down her face. "He's gone! He's not coming back! He's never coming back! He's gone!"

She pulled her knees to her chest, sobs shaking her as the truth finally smacked her in the face. "He's gone." She whispered and buried her face between her knees. "And it's my fault. My fault."

She squeezed her eyes shut but the tears still managed to squeeze past her eyelids.

Puck was dead and it was her fault. All her fault.

A choked sob escaped her lips as guilt and sorrow tore her heart to shreds. "I'm so sorry." She whispered as if somehow, wherever he was, he might hear her. "I'm so sorry, Puck. I'm sorry."

Something soft brushed her hand, her arms and her cheek. She looked up, startled to find the pixies settling on her arms and head and for once, they didn't sting her. In fact, they felt kind of soothing.

The magical creatures started to emit a soft, beautiful sound. It sounded like they were humming a tune from a sad song, the melody quickly filling the air.

Sabrina closed her eyes, oddly comforted by the sound and the pixies presence, tears still streaming down her face.

"You really shouldn't cry, Grimm. It makes you look even uglier."

Sabrina tensed at the voice, not daring to open her eyes. It can't be. She thought, squeezing her eyes shut tighter. I just imagined it. He's gone . . .

Without meaning to, she opened her eyes and gasped.

There he was, against all reason, standing in front of her, leaning heavily against a tree. He looked as pale as a ghost and dark circles were under his eyes, standing out like bruises against his pale skin. His jacket was still covered in blood but he was there, his green eyes twinkling in amusement, grinning at her with that mischievous grin.

She stared at him, wondering if her mind was playing cruel tricks on her.

"Puck?" She asked softly as if afraid that if she spoke to loudly, he might disappear. "Who do you think it is? The Easter Bunny?" He said, smiling weakly at her.

Sabrina stared at him, hardly aware that she wasn't breathing, and then understanding hit her, replacing the happiness with cold suspicion.

"What are you?" Sabrina demanded, slowly standing up and glaring at him.

Puck frowned at her. "What?"

Sabrina glared at him, her body shaking in anger. "What type of monster are you?' She snarled. "You think I'm stupid enough to fall for your tricks?" And she almost had fallen for it. Sabrina mentally kicked herself. How could she have let hope get in the way of rational thinking? There was no way Puck could have survived. This . . . thing in front of her was just another monster looking for a snack.

Not-Puck blinked at her in astonishment. "Sabrina," It said. "It's really me."

Sabrina scowled at it. Whatever it was, it was really good. It had his voice right and everything. She bent down and picked up a stick, watching as Not-Puck's eyes widened. "If you think I'm going to fall for . . ."

Someone stepped out of the shadows and took Not-Puck's hand. "Sabrina, it's really him."

Sabrina stared in shock at Little Red Riding Hood. The little girl was blinking up at her nervously, as if she regretted saying anything.

"I . . . some lady gave me the potion bottle and it still had some of the potion in it." Little Red stammered, the words rushing out of her mouth. "And I gave it to Mr. Canis and Charming and they poured it on him. They're back at the camp telling everyone if you want to make sure. I came here because Puck wanted to see you." Little Red clamped her mouth shut, forcing herself to stop talking.

While the little girl had been talking, Puck had been staring at her, his green eyes pleading her to believe. "Please don't hit me with a stick again."

Sabrina blinked at him, lowering her arm and dropping the stick onto the ground. "Puck? It's really you?"

He grinned at her, nervousness that she might still smack him in his eyes. "Yep. In the flesh."

Sabrina stared at him for a moment, disbelief and happiness battling inside of her.

Happiness won.

She ran to him, throwing her arms around him, knocking him off balance. Puck started to fall backward but three pixies flew behind him and effortlessly held him up.

Sabrina pulled back slightly, stared into the emerald green eyes she never thought she'd see again and . . . punched his arm.

"Ow!" Puck cried, indignantly. "What was that for?"

"Don't you ever even think of doing that again!" Sabrina snapped. "Or I'll kill you myself!"

Puck grinned at her. "Don't worry; I'm not planning on it."

Sabrina grinned back at him and hugged him, leaning her head against his chest. Happiness filled her every time his heart beat and his lungs filled with air.

He was alive.

Red watched the two older kids hug, feeling like she was intruding. She turned to go but stopped when a sound reached her ears. She looked over to see the pixies, growing brighter by the second, start to bob around in the air, like they were dancing.

She smiled, watching as the pixies danced, happy that their master was back.

~Two weeks later~

Sabrina scowled, wiping the sweat off her forehead, and shifted on her feet again. She really wished Friar Tuck would hurry it up and just tell them to kiss already, she was burning up! It probably didn't help that she had on a pair of pants underneath her dress but who knew what would happen? It's not easy to fight a monster while wearing a dress. At least it wasn't raining.

Despite the humid weather, Briar Rose and Uncle Jake had decided to have the wedding outside because there really wasn't a cabin large enough to hold everyone.

Sabrina shifted again, standing between Daphne and her mother in the Maid-of-Honor place, her gaze drifting from the Friar to Briar Rose. The princess looked even more stunning than usual. The long, white wedding dress stood out against her smooth cocoa skin. Her long dark hair fell gracefully down her back, curling slightly and her bright green eyes shone with happiness.

In front of her, Uncle Jake looked just as handsome. His blonde hair had been combed and for once he wasn't wearing his long overcoat. The nice black tuxedo almost drew your eyes away from the tennis shoes he was wearing.

He had told Granny Relda that there was no way he was going to fight monsters in dress shoes, a tux was bad enough! When Granny had told him there wasn't going to be any monsters at his wedding, he had just laughed and said that in Ferryport Landing you never knew what was going to happen.

Sabrina's eyes drifted to her granny. The older woman was sitting in one of the few fold-out chairs they had found in the camp. Granny Relda was wearing a dress with a rose pattern and a hat that had a bunch of roses on one side. The old woman caught Sabrina looking at her and smiled, love clear in her green eyes.

Sabrina smiled back, her eyes drifting over the large crowd.

Everyone in the camp had shown up for the wedding. There was Robin Hood and his merry men, King Arthur standing with Merlin and Archimedes and . . .

Sabrina gasped when her eyes met the warm fiery eyes of the Phoenix. The woman smiled slightly and nodded her head at Sabrina. Sabrina quickly looked away; she still didn't know what to feel about the woman. It became obvious that the Phoenix was the one who had given Red the potion bottle, especially after the little girl had described the woman's 'warm hands', but Sabrina still didn't know if she trusted the woman yet.

Someone tugged on her sleeve, breaking through her thoughts. Sabrina looked down at Daphne, who was biting her palm. The little girl had decided to wear her hair down, just like her older sister, instead of in its usual ponytails. That, combined with the red dress, made Daphne look older than nine . . . that was until she grinned excitedly up at Sabrina. She pointed frantically to the crowd, oblivious to Henry's stern glares and the way he was mouthing, stand still!

Sabrina followed her sister's finger, her eyes scanning the faces in the crowd, and saw two large shapes sitting just inside the camp's gate, one black and one blue.

So, they did get the invitation. Sabrina thought, smiling at the dragons.

Daphne tugged on her sleeve again. Sabrina looked down irritably at her sister and saw the little girl pointing to her chest.

"Look at their chest." The little girl staged whispered, causing a few people in the crowd to chuckle. Daphne seemed oblivious to the laughter though, excitement brightening her eyes and causing her to bounce slightly up and down.

Sabrina looked back at the dragons and stared at their chests, a smile breaking on her face.

In the midst of the sea of blue scales, a black scale stood out on the Blue Dragon's chest and a blue scale stood out on the Black Dragon's chest. Sabrina's smile widened. Even though they were far away, she was sure their tails were wrapped together behind them.

"When a male dragon loves a female dragon he gives her one of his scales and then she gives him one of her scales. They place each others scales close to their hearts to symbolize that they will always be there for each other."

Sabrina's eyes wandered over to Puck. The fairy boy was shifting restlessly from one foot to the other, tugging at his suit. He was standing between Henry, who had made it his sworn duty to make sure the boy didn't mess the wedding up, and Mr. Canis. It had taken five of Robin Hood's men, including Little John, to put a tux on the fairy and five seconds after he had it on, he had gotten it dirty.

Puck caught her looking at him and stuck his tongue out at her. Sabrina scowled at him and rolled her eyes but she couldn't fight off the burst of happiness that shot through her. For the first few days, she had been worried it was all just a dream, that she would wake up and Puck would be dead. That thought had disappeared immediately when the annoying fairy filled her bed with pinecones.

Puck was alive. He was still paler than usual and weaker, even after two weeks he couldn't stand up for long without swaying. She watched as the fairy swayed on his feet, almost falling over, until Henry grabbed him by the elbow. Henry kept a hold on Puck's elbow, holding him steady, and looked over at his daughter. Henry rolled his eyes and jerked his head towards Friar Tuck, mouthing, "He talks too much."

Sabrina smiled, feeling the disapproval, and amusement, rolling off of her mother as Veronica glared at Henry.

"Jacob Grimm, do you take Briar Rose to be you lawful, wedded wife?" Friar Tuck asked. Finally, he was getting to the point!

Jake stared at Briar, butterflies tumbling around in his stomach. "I do."

"And do you, Briar Rose, take Jacob Grimm as your lawful, wedded husband?"

Briar Rose stared at him, tears of joy welling in her eyes. "I do."

Friar Tuck smiled. "I now pronounce you husband and wife!"

Before Friar Tuck said anything else, Jake leaned forward and kissed Briar, wrapping his arms around her as the crowd cheered.

Friar Tuck laughed. "Well, okay. You may kiss the bride again, if you want."

Sabrina looked at Briar Rose and Uncle Jake locked in a kiss as if they were the only ones in the world and then her eyes slid over to Puck. She saw him staring back at her and she blushed, quickly looking down at Daphne.

The little girl grinned up at Sabrina and waggled her eyebrows knowingly, pointing over to Puck. "So, when are you guys getting married?"

Sabrina rolled her eyes but for once, she didn't deny it.

!

Sabrina decided that she would never again believe the myth that men can not cook. The little sandwiches the Merry Men had made were delicious . . . though she didn't know what was in them.

Sabrina took another bite of a sandwich, watching as Everafters walked around and mingled, plates and cups of fruit punch in their hands.

So far, no monsters had decided to attack.

"And what is a beautiful young lady like yourself doing all alone?"

Sabrina spun around to find herself staring into the kind blue eyes of Merlin.

Sabrina smiled, there was something about the old wizard that made her relax. "Keeping watch for any monsters."

"Ah," Merlin said, his eyes twinkling. "But I don't think any monster would be dumb enough to attack a camp when two highly trained dragons are visiting."

Sabrina looked over at the Blue and Black Dragon, smiling as she watched Daphne try to throw cream puffs into the giant creatures' mouths.

Uncle Jake and a few others were leaving in a few weeks to go on a mission to free the dragons from the Scarlet Hand. They planned to leave right after Jake and Briar's honeymoon, which they were going to spend in a cabin. Charming had been nice enough to give them the second best cabin, the best being his own and there was no way he was going to give that up.

"How come we weren't invited to their wedding?" Sabrina asked.

"Dragon ceremonies are very private, even only a select few of their own kind are allowed to attend them. No humans or other creatures are allowed to watch the sacred ceremony." Merlin said. His blue eyes lit up excitedly at the prospect of sharing information with someone else. "Though I've heard . . ."

The brown owl on his shoulder yawned irritably. "Oh, please, shut up." Archimedes looked at Sabrina and rolled his large, golden eyes. "Get him talking about any magical creature and he'll never shut up. He just talks, and talks and talks. It's quite annoying."

Merlin poked him. "Be quiet, you old coot!"

Sabrina stared at the old magician as he and the owl engaged in a poking contest. If he knew a lot about magical creatures than maybe . . .

"What do you know about phoenixes?" She asked before she could stop herself.

Archimedes immediately stopped poking the old man's head with his beak and considered her through golden eyes. "Oh, now you've done it." He grumbled.

Merlin ignored him and looked at Sabrina, not a hint of surprise in his eyes. "Not much is known about Phoenixes. They're kind of like magical hermits, keeping to themselves. Why?"

"Well, I was just wondering . . . how did the phoenix feather kill the Demon Queen?" Sabrina asked. The question had been bugging her since the incident. It amazed her how a tiny feather could kill something so . . . big and powerful.

"Ah, yes." Merlin said, his brow furrowing in thought. "I can not promise you a true answer, only one that's based on rumors and guesses. It is said that Phoenixes are creatures of good magic." Merlin's blue eyes grew distant, as if he were staring at a place only he could see. "It is said that their magic cancels out bad magic. There are rumors that kings used to dip Phoenix feathers into their drinks to rid them of poison, which made the poison testers quite happy."

"But . . . the Phoenix feather destroyed the Demon Queen." Sabrina said, blinking in confusion at the warlock. "If the Phoenix feather takes away the bad, then how come it destroyed the demon instead of just turning her into something . . . good?"

"My guess is that there wasn't a single speck of goodness inside the demon. So, when the feather's magic canceled out the bad, it destroyed the monster." Merlin said.

Sabrina sighed, she was no closer to understanding the Phoenix than before. All the wizard had given her were rumors and guesses.

"Are you giving away my secrets, Warlock?"

Sabrina looked over at the sound to see the Phoenix standing a few feet away, a small smile on her face. She was still wearing her cloak, though it was a lot cleaner. The air around the woman oozed confidence but her fiery eyes were filled with what looked like nervousness when she looked at Sabrina.

"Of course not!' Merlin said, winking conspiratorially at Sabrina. "I was just discussing the musings of an old man."

"Whatever." The Phoenix said, rolling her eyes in mock anger. "You were always a blabber mouth."

"Told you." Archimedes muttered, earning another poke from Merlin.

"Wait, does that mean Phoenixes are . . . perfect?" Sabrina asked, frowning.

The Phoenix laughed, a noise that sounded oddly bitter, and all the happiness drained from her eyes. "Oh, no." She said. 'Phoenixes are far from perfect. We have our own set of rules we must obey." Her eyes filled with pain and she looked away from them. "And our own punishments for breaking those rules." She whispered.

"What happens if a phoenix breaks those rules?" Daphne asked. Sabrina jumped and glared at the little girl. Daphne had snuck up on her without her hearing. "Do they . . . die?" Daphne said, her eyes wide with horror.

The Phoenix just shook her head, her fiery eyes filled with an old pain.

"No." Merlin said, answering for the Phoenix, his voice dead serious. "They become a completely different creature. A creature ruled by darkness instead of light. I hear people call them Shadows. Not many people who have encountered them lived to tell the tale."

A shiver ran down Sabrina's spin. "Is there one here in Ferryport Landing."

"For our sake, I hope not." Merlin muttered.

"HEY! MERLIN!" One of King Arthur's knights yelled. "Come over here and be a judge! Sir Christian thinks he can eat more pickles than Sir Kay!"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Oh, dear, this should be interesting." He nodded goodbye to Daphne and Sabrina and walked away as Archimedes muttered, "I hate pickles."

A long uncomfortable silence settled in the air and Sabrina shifted on her feet, not knowing if she should strike up a conversation with the Phoenix, or if she even wanted to talk to her.

"I see he has gotten better." The Phoenix said suddenly, staring straight ahead.

Sabrina followed the woman's eyes and saw Puck standing beside a table, stealthily shoving food into his pocket.

"Yeah." Sabrina said shortly. She looked at the woman through the corners of her eyes. She had liked the Phoenix the first time they had met her but now . . . now she knew there was much more to the woman than the goofy side she had shown them back at the Devil's Drop. There was just so many secrets surrounding the Phoenix, her past was a mystery to everyone, and Sabrina didn't know if she could trust someone she knew so little about.

The Phoenix looked at her as if she had heard the girl's thoughts. "Sabrina," The woman said, staring into the girl's eyes. "I know what I did didn't seem right to you . . . but I did what I knew I had to." The Phoenix said, her fiery red eyes pleading the girl to understand. "I know you might not ever see that but . . . I hope one day you'll find it in your heart to forgive me."

"You shouldn't be asking me for forgiveness." Sabrina said, looking over at Puck.

The Phoenix smiled slightly. "I already asked him. He said he forgave me . . . and that I have to pay him ten thousand dollars."

Sabrina couldn't help but smile, that sounded like Puck.

Daphne smiled up at the woman. "Don't worry," She said, giving the magical creature a hug. "I forgive you."

The Phoenix smiled down at the little girl and then looked back up at Sabrina, her eyes staring at the girl questioningly.

Sabrina stared at the woman, not knowing what she should say or if she even could forgive her. Should she tell her that she still had nightmares? Nightmares filled with Puck lying dead on the floor in a pool of his own blood? Could she really forgive someone who knew that was going to happen and yet did nothing to stop it?

But Puck was alive, and so was Briar.

Things happen for a reason.

If that hadn't have happened to Puck, would Briar still be dead? Would Uncle Jake really have left? Would that have caused them to lose the war?

Had the Phoenix known all along that Puck wasn't going to die?

A small smile formed on the Phoenix's face. "The future is a very complex thing." She said softly.

"And so is the past." Sabrina said. "Would you be willing to share yours with us?"

The Phoenix blinked, a troubled look in her eyes. "Maybe one day you'll learn it, whether you want to or not." She said, so softly that Sabrina couldn't be sure if she had heard correctly.

Sabrina stared at the woman and then did something she normally didn't do; she took a leap of faith.

She held her hand out to the woman and smiled, "I forgive you."

A relieved smile broke across the Phoenix's face. "Thank you." She said, her smile turning into that familiar, goofy grin as a Merry Man walked by. "Now, if you'll excuse me. I think it's about time I mingle." She said, watching as the man walked by. "I do love men in tights." She said, winking at Sabrina before running after the man.

Sabrina watched the woman leave, giving up on fighting the smile the broke across her face. She didn't know if she trusted the woman completely but she couldn't help but like the Phoenix's goofy attitude.

She looked away from the Phoenix to see Henry and Veronica walking over to them, holding hands. Veronica let go of her husband's hand and hugged her older daughter.

"Looks like everything worked out." Veronica said, beaming.

"I guess so." Sabrina said, watching as Puck made his way over to them, his cheeks filled with so many cream puffs that it made him look like a chipmunk.

"I'm so proud of you two!" Veronica said, hugging Daphne next.

"But, please, don't ever go running after demons and dragons again." Henry said, grinning at them.

"Hey, marshmallow!" Puck said, swallowing his mouthful of cream puffs with a loud GULP. "Gerald thinks you're cute!"

He pointed over to a small boy standing a few tables away. The boy looked around Daphne's age, with curly brown hair, dimples when he smiled, and gray eyes. The boy smiled hesitantly at Daphne.

"He looks cute." Veronica said and Daphne giggled.

"And normal looking." Henry muttered, relieved.

The boy did look normal . . . until he stepped out from behind the table. Sabrina gasped. The boy's legs were bent strange and covered in hair, and instead of feet, he had hooves.

Gerald was part freaking-goat.

Gerald smiled shyly and waved at Daphne. Daphne giggled again and waved back at him.

"Oh, Daphne, please no." Henry moaned. "There's only so much a father can take. I mean, the fairy's bad enough."

Veronica elbowed him in the side, looking at him sternly.

"Uh, I mean, Puck's," Henry stammered, looking from Sabrina to Puck. Sabrina had to fight to hold back a smile and Puck just stared at Henry while shoving a sandwich into his mouth. "Puck's . . . well, he's . . . uh . . . oh look, they're cutting the cake." Henry said, relief covering his face as he pointed to the large wedding cake.

Sabrina watched as Uncle Jake and Briar cut the cake and smiled at the love that was clear on their faces. Her eyes slid over to Puck. For once, everything seemed to have worked out.

The newlyweds each held a piece cake and smiled playfully at each other before smashing the cake into each other's faces.

Puck green eyes glinted mischievously. "Now that looks like fun!" He said, reaching over and picking up a plate from a nearby table, grinning at Sabrina.

"Puck!" Sabrina said warningly, just before the fairy boy smashed the plate in her face.

Sabrina growled as little bits of food fell from her face, glaring murder at the hysterically laughing fairy. "You're so dead!" She shouted, picking up a plate and throwing it at him.

Puck ducked and the plate flew over his head . . . and right into the back of Snow White's head.

Snow gasped in disgust as she wiped the food off her head and shoulders. She glared at Charming, who was laughing his head off. "Oh, you think that's funny, William?" She said, her voice dangerously low but her eyes twinkling playfully as she picked up a handful of food. "Well, let's see how funny you think it is now!" She said, laughing as she threw the food at him, covering his expensive suit in chicken.

Soon food was flying everywhere, as everyone joined in the giant food fight. People were screaming and laughing as bits of cake, sandwiches and even pickles, flew through the air. Even the dragons joined in, but after pelting somebody with cake and sending him flying across the camp ground, they decided to just watch.

Pixies flew around, gracefully dodging the edible projectiles and flying high out of range, their loud twitters sounding like laughter.

Sabrina grabbed a handful of cake and ducked to avoid being hit by what looked like a chicken leg, her blue eyes scanning the area until they spotted blond hair in the sea of flailing limbs and chicken. Sabrina grinned and ran over to it, dodging a screaming dwarf, who someone had mistaken for food, as he went soaring through the air.

Sabrina ran over to Puck just as he turned around, a piece of cake in his hands.

"Aha,' He said, grinning at her, talking in a fake Japanese accent. "I see you have come prepared, young grasshopper, but now, you must face your vanilla-frosting doom!"

"Bring it on, stink-bottom." Sabrina said, grinning back at him.

Icing and cake crumbs flew everywhere as they both smashed the cake in each others face.

Sabrina gasped and wiped the cake from her eyes and glared at Puck. She took one look at his frosting covered face and her glare turned into laughter. He looked ridiculous and she knew she probably looked the same.

"You got a little something on your face, barf-brain." She said, chuckling as she reached out to wipe his face. As she was wiping off the icing, a sudden fear griped her making her freeze, her hand resting an inch from his cheek. She stared at him, memorizing every inch and plane of his face. Memorizing the way his green eyes sparkled mischievously and how the sun turned his blonde hair into gold. She wanted to remember everything just in case . . .

Puck reached up and grabbed her hand. "I'm not going anywhere, Grimm." He winked at her. "I'll be here to prank you for as long as you live."

"Lucky me." Sabrina grumbled, rolling her eyes.

Puck laughed and then, without warning, leaned forward and kissed her.

Sabrina's eyes widened in surprise, her first thought was to punch the boy in the gut again, but then she relaxed, closing her eyes and leaning into the kiss. Little bolts of electricity shot through her when their lips met, and a warm feeling spread throughout her body, leaving her feeling breathless and lightheaded.

Puck was alive.

It was then, covered in cake icing and kissing a fairy, that she knew, without a doubt, that happy endings could happen.

~Fin~

Elizabeth Grimm - You nailed it! =D

Well, there you have it. The end of my story and I hoped you liked it!

I might do a sequel . . . or it might not be a sequel. I haven't decided yet. I guess it depends on if you guys want the same amount of 'romance' and action this story had or if you want more 'romance' and action. =) If I do write another story, it might be a while before I post it because, 1. I need to finish my other story (I haven't updated that since 2009! 0.0) 2. I'm planning on writing most, if not all of it, before I post anything so I can make sure it's good and I won't have the problem of not updating for months. But I can tell you that it has something to do with Jacob Grimm ( have you ever wondered what he was doing while Wilhelm, or whatever his name is, was setting up the barrier?) and it's going to be PuckxSabrina or maybe SabrinaxOC, dun, dun dun!

Anyway, thanks

Tofu-rox, Bribri, Ayns and Sky, Zombie Attacks, Schadenfreude62, Julie Margaret, Twilarose,HoLlIwOoDbOuNd13, DarrenShanIsMine, Rae Hartland, Marry me Puck, Simply Pirate, Aria Elizabeth Skittles, Trickster Queen464, alexatheknight, ladedalada, FaminaSG, Curlscat, Lara D, Cartwright123, My-Room-Is-My-Retreat, 1151133354445, iizninja!, Horsegirl99, DragonFly7312, mrf18, cece, RockSuperstar, plaincrazysuckup, KENDRA1212, Louise101, Kawthar, gem, Na'viWolf, Isabel in lala land, Lumiere Nordiques, Elizabeth Grimm, pwnd2398, Dreamgreen16, Violet Black, ILoveGeorgeCooper, VolleyballGoddess, Everaftergirl05, ching chong, nnnnnn, mandolindoodler, Random,

for reviewing. And thanks to everyone who even read this story. YOU GUYS ROCK! =D