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“I’m honestly worried for the memory of anyone who forgets you.”

Pru flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Oh, he didn’t forget me, he just wanted to pretend that he doesn’t still dream about me every night.”

After only a short time, Frederick appeared with a flourish on the couch in the library - well, he would have appeared with a flourish if Pru hadn’t already been sprawled upon it waiting for his arrival. It turned into a battle of flailing limbs, as each person attempted to both figure out what was happening and assert dominance at the same time. When they finally untangled, they stared at each other with narrowed eyes.

Frederick broke the silence first. “Pru - still looking as fit as ever.”

Sneering like she’d won, Pru answered. “Fred, I see you’re still a poncy git.”

Pearl decided to jump in before it came to blows. “So, Frederick, I…”

But before she could speak any further, Frederick immediately interrupted her with a Cheshire cat smile on his face. “So, he actually hired you, did he? I can’t believe that prat didn’t tell me.”

Pru hurled a pillow at his face and said, “Shut up, wanker. Let her tell you what’s going on. She’s going to have a full on panic attack if we don’t get this figured out soon.”

At this, Frederick looked confused as though he had completely forgotten what Pru had called about. “Get what figured out?”

Putting her face in her hand with a sigh, Pearl just gestured towards Corvus’ sleeping body.

Frederick immediately jumped to his feet and rushed to his friend. “Good God, woman. I know he hurt you, but isn’t murder a bit much?”

Horrified, Pearl rushed over to Corvus as well. “No, no! Of course not! He touched a book with a Sleeping Beauty curse. He’s asleep and he needs a kiss to wake him.”

Shaking his head at the sleeping form of his friend, Frederick spoke softly. “That’s sad and desperate, mate.” Looking up at Pearl he asked, “Did he touch it on purpose?”

“No, my familiar tripped him, and he touched it by accident. I’m sure of it.”

“So, why haven’t you kissed him yet?”

This was shaping up to be one of her least favorite days. And she’d had about enough of this nonsense. “Because I don’t want to kiss him, Frederick. Because I don’t have to kiss him. Because I don’t know if he would want me to kiss him. Because the last time I kissed this man it was the absolute worst day of my life. Why on earth do you think we called you here? So you could make that brilliant suggestion like we haven’t already thought of it? Why haven’t you kissed him yet?”

If she’d been trying to get a rise out of Frederick, it was deeply unsuccessful. He simply shrugged his shoulders, said, “All you had to do was ask,” and kissed Corvus firmly on the mouth.

Corvus’ eyes opened instantly, and he pushed Frederick away with force. If there had been any doubt in anyone’s mind that Corvus had planned this, it was squashed by the sheer and utter confusion painted all over his face as he wiped his mouth and looked at the motley collection of people who were gathered in his library.

“I would be ever so grateful if someone would explain to me what is going on.”

Frederick leapt in first, as helpful as ever. “I was saving your life, mate.”

Pru, who had zero interest in explaining anything to Corvus, instead used her energy to chastise Frederick. “You didn’t save anything. He’d have been just fine without you kissing him. And you could have at least tried kissing him on the cheek before you went straight to the mouth.”

“But that’s what they do in all the stories.”

“Oh, you mean the ones that most people frown upon in our modern era for kissing people when they’re in a coma?”

“So I should have just left him there?”

Proud of her restraint in not pointing out the fact that Pru had made very similar arguments only moments before, Pearl left the two to argue amongst themselves, and went to check on Corvus who still seemed disoriented. Sitting next to him, she whispered softly, “Hi.”

Corvus’ eyebrows drew together in a bemused expression as if he didn’t know whether he should laugh or cry. “Hi.”

“So. My fox may have tripped you, and you may have put your hand on a book that caused you to fall into a slumber that could only be broken by true love’s kiss.”

Apparently her answer tipped him over the edge towards laughter as he let out a small chuckle and fully laid back down on the floor as though he could no longer support sitting upright. “And here I thought Mercutio and I were friends. So you got Fred to wake me up?”

“Well, it was him or your mother, so I’m sure you can see why I made the decision I did.”

Corvus let out a heavy breath. “Sorry those were your only two options.”