Rules, Rebellion, and Revolution - Part 4

Hey, y'all! I know this is long overdue, but I'm really excited to present to you the fourth installment of Rules, Rebellion, and Revolution! I hope y'all enjoy it! If you haven't read part three yet, click here.

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The Saturday after meeting up with Hunter Huntsman, the Ever Afters were keeping themselves busy until Hunter arrived to work on fliers with Raven.

 

 

Blondie was typing away on her laptop, intent on her job of sharing the horrible new rule with the rest of the student body. "Everyone is going to see this blog post and protest against the rule!" she thought. "If I can only think up the right words..."

 

 

Raven and Ashlynn were sitting around the dining room table, beginning to fight.

"Why can't I help you and Hunter brainstorm what will go on the fliers?" Ashlynn argued.

Raven sighed in exasperation. "I've already gone over this with you, Ashlynn! You're too nice! You wouldn't come up with any sayings that would stir the fires of revolution! Just look at your strike poster!"

 

Ashlynn tilted her head slightly, glancing at her pretty poster.

"Yes, it is nice, but are you proposing that Hunter will come up with something mean? He would never!" Ashlynn protested.

"We aren't trying to come up with mean things to say!" Raven explained. "We just need to say some things that are... Outside your wheelhouse!"

 

 

"Well, I..." Ashlynn began a retort, but was cut short by a slurred bang against the door.

"Hunter?" Ashlynn jumped up from her chair, her eyes aglow.

 

"Whoops!" Madi exclaimed as she walked through the door. "This is a little awkward to carry!" she said, gesturing to her bundle.

 

Ashlynn plopped back down into her seat, her shoulders slightly stooped.

 

"What is that, Madi?" Blondie asked, implying the brightly colored fluff roll that Madi was holding.

"Oh! I can't wait to show you!" Madi beamed. "It's a rug!"

 

"Where did you get it?" Ashlynn inquired. "And why would you buy a rug that doesn't coordinate with our color scheme?"

Raven smirked slightly. "What color scheme?"

Ashlynn shot Raven a dirty look-- or as dirty a look she could muster.

 

"I got it at the marketplace! And come on, who doesn't love purple?" Madi smiled. She then threw her purse into the air, where it did a little flip, then landed perfectly on top of Blondie's head.

"Careful, Blondie, the water in there is still boiling!" Madi giggled.

Blondie's eyes shot open. She kept her head very still.

"Why do you keep boiling water in your purse?" Blondie asked, but then quickly zipped her mouth shut as the teapot wobbled precariously.

"You don't?" Madi cocked her head.

 

"Hang on, Blondie, I'll get it off you!" Ashlynn said as she trotted over to her friend.

Madi flung the rug across the floor, revealing it's full purple glory. Ashlynn stopped mid-motion and stared at the neon rug.

 

"Madi, I'm sorry, but that rug has got to go somewhere else!" Ashlynn exclaimed. "Even if we don't have a color scheme--" she threw an evil eye in Raven's direction-- "this rug doesn't help anything!"

Blondie tried to recapture Ashlynn's attention without turning her head too much. "Ashlynn!" she quietly said.

 

"HOLD up!" Madi threw a hand in the air. "This rug isn't just any old rug! It's a very special rug!"

 

"Oh, really? What makes it so special?" Ashlynn placed her hands on her hips.

Madi's turquoise eyes sparkled and her lips curled into a wide grin. She leaned in towards Ashlynn and said, "It's a magic rug!"

"A magic rug?" Ashlynn said dubiously.

"A Wonderland magic rug!" Madi explained. "It can fly!"

 

"See, you just sit on it-- like this," Madi explained with a grunt as she arranged her long limbs. "Then you unlock it's magic potential by speaking a riddle to it!"

 

As Madi spoke in Riddlish with the rug, Ashlynn looked to Raven for help. "Raven! Please tell Madi that she needs to take her flying carpet somewhere else!"

Raven seemingly contemplated what Ashlynn said, but then replied, "I actually think it brings a nice touch to the living room. It adds a fun bit of color!"

Ashlynn's face turned slightly pink with frustration at this remark. "Yes! It completely enlivens the room-- along with the hideous yellow couch!" Ashlynn's said, her voice thick with sarcasm.

 

Madi jumped to her feet, picking up the bright purple rug. She shook a finger at it, demanding, "Work, magic rug! You were working perfectly at the marketplace!"

Blondie continued to hold her head completely still, not even wanting to speak for fear the pot would tumble down her face.

 

When the magic rug still wouldn't work, Madi threw it down on the ground and said, "Maybe it's one of those magic rugs that only works once you speak the riddle, and you dance on it!" She began a native Wonderland dance on the carpet. After about five minutes, she finished the crazy dance with a dance move that left her standing on her head, but the carpet still wouldn't work.

Ashlynn threw up her hands in frustration. "Madi! It's not going to work!" Ashlynn said, her voice mounting in anger. "It's broken or something!"

Raven looked at her frazzled friend and said, "Ashlynn, I think you need to calm down. It's just a rug!" Raven gave Ashlynn a knowing glance. "Did you get any sleep last night?"

"Well..." Ashlynn hung her head, her anger starting to diminish. "I guess I missed just a few hours of sleep last night... The latest installment in the Fairyworld Series is absolutely riveting!"

"I think you need to go rest for a bit," Raven suggested.

"Fine," Ashlynn conceded. "But promise me that when Hunter gets here, you will let me know."

"I promise."

Madi twitched. "Could you guys maybe help me get back up?"

Blondie piggybacked on Madi's request for help with one of her own. "And maybe you could take the boiling water off of my head?"

 

The hours dragged on, but Hunter still didn't arrive. Madi, Blondie, and Ashlynn had fallen asleep in the living room, while Raven sat, still waiting for Hunter.

 

Raven's forehead was wrinkled in worry. Hunter always follows through on the commitments he makes... What happened? She didn't know what to think.

 

She looked over at Ashlynn's still form. She slept on the floor out here just so she wouldn't miss a moment with him... Only for him not to show up!

 

 

Raven placed her hand on the paper that she and Hunter were supposed to have been working on. Somehow, she knew deep down that something was wrong.

Very wrong.

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Sooo... Whatcha think? I'm hoping that you are getting into this as much as I am! What do you think might have happened to Hunter?

 

XOXO Ginger Spice



Rules, Rebellion, and Revolution - Part 3

Hey, y'all! I have the third part of Rules, Rebellion, and Revolution ready for you now! If you need to read part two, click here.

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The following evening, the four girls slipped out of their dorm room and into the silver moonlight of the night. Ashlynn, Madi, and Blondie followed Raven into the woods, all wondering why they were going there.

 

 

Raven finally stopped in the middle of the forest. "Alright, so this is the spot that we're supposed to meet at."

Madi glanced around. "Meet who?"

 

"Him," Raven pointed to a figure leaning on a tree in the distance.

"Who is he?" Blondie asked.

"That's Hunter Huntsman," Raven explained. "He lives out here in the forest. No one sees him much, except for at school. But he helped me out when I had to revolutionize the school last time, so I've turned to him for help again this time."

 

 

All of the girls followed Raven over to Hunter, except for Ashlynn. She was stuck in place, staring ahead of her, seemingly into space.

Blondie was the first to notice. "Um, Ashlynn? Aren't you coming?"

 

"Uhhh...." Ashlynn stuttered. Her lower lip slightly quivered, and her heart began to palpitate loudly.

Can they hear that? she wondered. But she quickly stopped wondering as she continued to stare at the thing that had her attention enraptured.

 

Hunter Huntsman.

Ashlynn felt like she was drowning in the warmth of his soft brown eyes. And the way the moonlight played in his silky hair?

She gulped.

He was, simply put, the most handsome young man that she had ever seen. She had met many princes before, but none of them could be compared to Hunter. She adored the adventurous spirit of his that she could sense even from afar. Probably the woodsy clothes, Ashlynn thought.

But no, it was more than that. His entire demeanor spoke of adventure and intrigue. And suddenly, she knew that she wanted to go on adventures with him.

 

Ashlynn managed to waddle over to her group of friends and glanced at Hunter some more.

"Ashlynn?" Blondie said. "Are you alright? You look kind of flushed!"

"Nothing," Ashlynn mumbled. She hid behind Blondie.

 

"Everyone, meet Hunter Huntsman!" Raven announced. "He's going to help us fight this ridiculous 'no magic' rule."

 

"Hat-tastic to meet you, Hunter!" Madi grinned. "I'm Madeline Hatter, but you can call me Madi!"

Hunter smiled. "Hi, Madi! Nice to meet you."

Blondie shyly waved, saying, "Hello. I'm Blondie Lockes."

"Hey, Blondie," Hunter replied.

 

Raven, noticing Ashlynn's unusual behavior, decided to join her.

"Aren't you going to introduce yourself?" Raven whispered.

Ashlynn couldn't speak.

 

"So! How come you live alllllll the way out here?" Madi inquired.

Hunter smiled to himself as he started to explain, "I live out here because I like being by myself. Not that I'm a recluse, but I enjoy my time alone. And also, what better place to live than in the woods?" He lovingly looked upon the beauty of the forest. "I mean, who wouldn't want to live amongst all of the wildlife, the clean air, the..." Suddenly, he stopped.

 

He had found Ashlynn.

Ashlynn had finally managed to turn around and face Hunter. As her gorgeous green eyes locked into his brown ones, something happened to Hunter that he could not explain.

His pulse was suddenly erratic; his mind was racing, with a heart to match. He felt his palms beginning to sweat.

What is going on with me? he wondered. She's just a girl, just like any other...

Oh, but was he wrong! And he knew it as soon as thought it. This was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen- her sparkling green eyes and her long red hair (which was only highlighted by the light of the moon) were two lovely assets of hers, along with her pretty face. Somehow, he just knew that her external beauty was only matched by her internal beauty. He didn't know the slightest thing about her, but he suddenly wanted to know everything about her. To start with, her name.

 

Raven, Blondie, and Madi stayed back and watched as Hunter and Ashlynn took slow steps towards each other, seemingly hypnotized by the sight of each other.

 

Their hands clutched together, a shot of electricity racing through them both as they shook hands for the first time.

"Hunter," he introduced himself.

"Ashlynn," she shyly smiled.

Hunter returned her smile, and with that, their little spark burst into a flame.

 

When she couldn't take it anymore, Madi bounced between the two and declared, "HEY!! You GUYS!!! We're still here, you know!"

 

"Uh, right..." Hunter shook his head in an attempt to clear his muggy mind. Ashlynn quickly returned to her spot, while Hunter cleared his throat."So, where were we?"

 

"We were just introducing each other," Raven said. "But we should get on with the whole 'helping us out' part of the plan," she said, one eyebrow arched.

"Right! Well, one of the most effective ways to fight a new rule or law, is to bring attention to the issue to the public," Hunter explained. "Grown ups usually give us more positive attention when we follow the rules of appeal. We won't resort to more destructive or 'violent' measures unless following the rules doesn't work. But in the meantime, any suggestions for how to bring attention to the cause?"

 

Blondie glanced at her friends, then slowly raised her hand.

"Yes, Blondie?" Hunter responded.

 

"Well, I have a really popular blog that all of the students of this school read. I could post something about this horrible new rule there, and people will see it!" Blondie smiled.

Hunter didn't respond.

 

Blondie looked at Raven and whispered, "Why isn't he talking?"

 

Raven smiled wryly. "I think that he's a bit... Preoccupied at the moment."

Ashlynn and Hunter had resumed their dopey gawking.

 

Raven waved her hand in front of Hunter's face and managed to awake him from his trance.

 

"Hunter, can you FOCUS!?!" Raven demanded.

He frowned slightly, saying, "Alright, alright! Sorry. I couldn't help it." He turned his head away, his face flushed slightly.

 

Ashlynn quietly giggled to herself.

 

"Alright. So, what did you say, Blondie?" Hunter started again.

 

Blondie sighed, then repeated herself.

Hunter smiled at her idea. "That would be great! You work on that. We can also make fliers for the school itself, to show the Headmaster that we are fighting this openly in his face."

 

"Great idea! We'll get to work on it," Raven decided. "Thanks a lot, Hunter!"

"Um, maybe I could come over sometime and help you with those fliers?" Hunter hesitantly asked.

When she saw the way that Ashlynn beamed at his suggestion, Raven gave in. "Alright. Come over this Saturday, and we'll make fliers."

"Great!" Hunter almost shouted. "Uh... I mean... OK. Cool. See you all then." His eyes darted over to Ashlynn's. She blushed.

 

"Bye, Hunter!" The girls waved and headed back to their dorm.

 

The girls were walking along the halls of their dorm, when Madi stopped.

 

"WAIT!!!" she shouted.

"Shhh!!" Raven and Blondie shushed.

"You need to stay quiet, Mads!" Raven explained. "Other students are asleep!"

"But what is it?" Blondie asked.

 

Madi cocked her head to the side and asked, "Where is Ashlynn?"

 

Out in the distance, Ashlynn and Hunter danced under the stars together, with only the music of the wind and the murmurings of the nightingales to dance to. As they swayed to nature's song, they discovered just how much the had in common-- such as their love for the woods and the animals in it. Something wonderful and powerful resonated deep within their hearts that night.

This was the start of something beautiful.

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I hope y'all enjoyed this latest installment! I had a lot of fun writing this part-- thanks Ashlynn and Hunter! Do you like romantic stories? Or are they too sappy for your taste? Let me know what you think below!

 

 

XOXO Ginger Spice