Wonder Lost

Finding the Will

“What?” Leo said. He lifted her head from the floor. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“Leo, I’m fine, really,” she said. “I just went to spy... and I kind of talked to Liam.” Leo stared at her.

“What?”

“I did this,” she said, turning herself into air again, “and pretended I was dead. He doesn’t know I’m alive. He thinks that I cursed him.”

“Isa, do you realize how dangerous that was?”

“But he thinks I’m going to attack Ruby! He’ll focus on protecting her and we can get a break from his attacks!” Isabella exclaimed. He took a moment to process it.

“Amazing,” he said. “That’s great, Isa.”

“Leo, did you even see my note?” Isabella asked.

“Yes, but I didn’t know where you were. I thought that Liam forced you to write it or something. And when you put ‘I love you’ I really thought that something happened to you. It was like you were saying your last goodbye or something.” Isabella touched his cheek.

“So... you don’t want me to say I love you anymore. Is that right?” Isabella asked, tilting her head and smiling.

“No,” Leo said, smirking. “I just don’t want you to leave.” He quickly kissed her.

“Liam’s fortress wasn’t even the worst part,” she said. “I was hit on by a thirty-year-old.” She stood up, leaving Leo sitting, with a blank expression, on the floor.

“What?” Leo said for the third time that morning.

“After I turn invisible, it really drains me, like more than usual I mean. And so I kind of collapsed next to a plantation and this guy brought me into his house and gave me some water. Kept calling me beautiful and a fair maiden. I left after that.”

“Did you say he was thirty?” Leo said, still sitting. He turned to face her.

“Well I don’t know for sure but he looked like he was thirty or thirty-five,” Isabella said. She took his jacket off and hung it back on its hook. “Oh, and I’ll pay you back. I used six liotts for a taxi.”

“You don’t have to pay me back, Isa,” Leo said. “And where is Liam’s third palace?”

“In the mountains. It’s more of a castle, though. Is the power still out?”

“It came back at around midnight.” Leo stood up. “Isa, how did you turn yourself invisible?”

“I... I’m not sure exactly how I did it, but I just imagined myself as air and it worked. So I can go through walls, be invisible, and fly at the same time. But it’s really hard and drains me like crazy.” Leo walked up to her, and she saw how tall he really was. The top of her head reached just under the bridge of his nose.

“You don’t have to do it again, Isa,” he said. “And please don’t sneak out again.” Isabella frowned.

“I wouldn’t think of it as sneaking out... more like going on a short trip to spy, without anyone knowing.”

“Okay, but anyway, no more. Are we leaving today or tomorrow?” Leo asked, wrapping his arms around her waist.

“I think we should go tomorrow.” Leo nodded.

“We also have to practice ice skating,” Leo reminded. Isabella scowled.

“I’m terrible at ice skating, though!” she said. “And if he uses ice, then I can just fly. And wh—”

“Isa, I don’t mean to interrupt your rant, but what happens if you can’t fly? If you’re too exhausted or something? And anyway you can do it with me. I’ll be there the whole time, and I missed you.” She sighed.

“Fine,” she agreed. “But only if you’re with me.”

“Okay, I’m going to go pack. There are leftovers from breakfast in the fridge.”

“Wait, how long was I gone? I missed breakfast?” Isabella asked, wondering if her trip was really five hours long.

“I’m just kidding,” Leo said. “It’s only three thirty. You should go back to sleep.” Isabella frowned.

“But I don’t want to miss the whole day again,” Isabella complained.

“I’ll wake you,” he promised. “Or Gray will, if I forget.” Leo smiled, and she grinned back. He led her back to the bed and they fell asleep, thankfully without Lobelts.

In the morning, Isabella woke up by herself at 5:50. She saw that Leo was already awake, lying in bed.

“Good morning,” he whispered.

“It is, isn’t it?” She kissed his cheek and got out of bed, going into her bathroom and washing her face and brushing her teeth again. Leo did the same and they finished at the same time, walking down the stairs together. They took a seat at the dining room, one of the first ones to arrive. Only Tony, Gray, and Amanda were at the table. Simon came shortly after.

“Hey, Bella,” he greeted. “You’re up early. About eleven hours early, actually.”

“Well I beat you, Simon. I woke up at two,” she mumbled, loud enough only so he could hear it.

“Impressive,” Simon speculated as Roy and Via joined the table. Via whispered something to Tony, who nodded his head. She grabbed a plate and, without sitting down, put some eggs and toast on it.

“Are you going to be okay?” Roy whispered to her. Via nodded. “If you need anything just call me. I’ll be there in no time.” Via left the dining room, slowly moving up the stairs.

“Is she okay?” Isabella asked. Roy nodded.

“She’s just four weeks pregnant,” he said.

“Oh, congratulations!” Isabella exclaimed.

“Thank you.” Caleb and Mike entered the room, Caleb taking a seat next to Isabella. Leo wrapped his arm around her waist again. Caleb didn’t seem to take the hint.

“Hi, Isabella,” he greeted cheerfully. “How was your night?”

“It was okay,” she said. “How was yours?” Isabella wasn’t awake enough to disappoint him.

“It was… good,” he said. Isabella began eating her toast. She chuckled at the thought of Leo being jealous of Caleb. Didn’t he understand that she wouldn’t want anyone else?

“What’s funny?” Caleb asked.

“Oh, nothing,” Isabella said, figuring out how to let him down easily. “Just something my boyfriend said to me.”

“Oh, you have a— oh, wow— okay,” Caleb said. His face had a puzzled expression. “And who is he? Your boyfriend?”

“Me,” Leo butted in.

“That guy?” Caleb muttered, silent to everyone else but her. “What does he have that I don’t?” Isabella held back a laugh.

Everyone ate their breakfast. Isabella was grateful that they had some peace and quiet. Liam wouldn’t be bothering them and she, hopefully, wouldn’t be flirted with anytime soon.

“Hey, guys?” Leo said. “Isabella has an announcement to make.”

“Um, yeah,” Isabella said. “I know where Liam’s third hideout is.”

Everyone started talking. They were shouting over each other, Tony and Gray mainly. Mike and Amanda were somewhat quiet—or, quieter than Gray and Tony.

“How do you know?” Gray asked.

“How did you find out?” Tony shouted.

“When did you find out?” Mike asked.

“It better not be a week ago, or else you have a lot of explaining to do,” Amanda said, in response to Mike’s question.

“Calm down!” Simon shouted. “Let her explain!” The four of them shut their mouths.

“Thanks, Simon,” Isabella began. “I had a dream last night about how to get there. It’s in the mountains, not too deep. And I woke up at two this morning and went to try to find it. And Liam, I think, will leave us alone because I threatened to curse his daughter.”

“You went to him?” Simon yelped. “You could have been killed, Bella!”

“He saw you?” Tony screeched.

“Hold on!” Isabella advised. “I can do this thing with my power where I turn myself invisible, or almost invisible. That’s what I did with Liam, so he believes that I’m dead.”

“Bella,” Simon said, clutching his temples, “are you stupid? You could have been killed. Or worse, he could have captured you and tortured you slowly.”

“Simon—” Isabella began, but he was already out the door. She got up from her chair, but Leo put his arm on hers.

“Isa, leave him,” he said. “Simon just needs some time.” Gray exhaled noisily.

“You two better go to the rink and practice.” Isabella nodded, bringing her plate into the kitchen. Leo followed her.

“I’ll help you, don’t worry,” he whispered, right behind her.

“You’d better, or else I’m going to fall millions of times.” Leo softly chuckled.

They left the kitchen, Leo leading the way. He led Isabella into his bedroom, where he grabbed two of his jackets, giving one to Isabella. She smiled as she put it on. He then led her into a large closet, where racks of ice skates were displayed.

“What’s your shoe size?” Leo asked her.

“Seven.” He grabbed her a pair of skates and she put them on. Isabella quickly got used to walking in them, and Leo opened a door in the closet, where a giant rink of ice expanded into view. A cold breeze enveloped her, and Isabella ignored the shivers running down her spine.

“Ready?” Leo asked. Isabella looked down at the ice in front of her. “It’s perfectly safe, Isa.” Leo stepped onto the ice gracefully, holding his hand out to her. Isabella took it and gingerly stepped onto the ice. Isabella saw her breath in front of her.

“Are you cold?” Leo asked. Isabella shook her head.

“Not really. How do I move without falling?” Isabella asked. Leo slowly skated in front of her, still holding her hand.

“Just walk. Try to keep your balance.” Isabella tightened her grip on his hand and stepped forward with one foot, and then another. Her legs were shaking, and she didn’t think it was because of the cold. “Isa, don’t be scared. You’ve faced greater enemies than a sheet of ice.”

“Very funny,” Isabella said. She took three more steps.

“Good,” Leo commented. “Okay, push with your legs more. And tilt your feet more.” She tilted her feet diagonally and pushed with one leg, propelling herself forward. She managed to get to the end of the rink.

“How are you so good at this?” Isabella asked, observing his agile movements.

“I’ve skated a couple of times when I was younger. Do you want to try by yourself?”

“Not really,” she admitted. “How do I go faster?”

“Push more,” Leo instructed. She tried to push harder, but it only resulted in her toppling over and bringing Leo down with her.

“Sorry!” Isabella said immediately. “I’m sorry! Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine, Isa. And it’s okay. Everyone falls. You should’ve seen me on my first day.”

“I’m sure it was better than me,” Isabella said, trying to stand up. She managed to stand after two attempts. “Why don’t you practice? I can stay here for a while.”

“Are you sure?” Leo asked. She nodded, gripping the short walls of the rink for balance. Leo skated off, incredibly fast. It looked like he was using no effort, but his moves were beautiful. He did a few toe loops and a double axel, landing perfectly, before skating back to Isabella, whose eyes were as wide as her open mouth. She closed her mouth and blinked a few times.

“That was… incredible,” Isabella said. “I’ve never seen anything like that!” Leo smiled.

“Thank you,” Leo said. “Now it’s your turn.” Isabella let go of the walls and pushed forward with her legs. After a couple of hours, Isabella was skating with ease.

“Good, Isa!” Leo said, following behind her. “Now time for jumps.” Isabella skated to a stop and looked at him.

“What?” Isabella said. “I can’t jump!” Leo let out a deep laugh. “What?”

“Isa,” he said, grinning, “you can fly. Use that to your advantage.”

“But what if I don’t land correctly?” Isabella asked.

“Then I’ll be here to help you up,” he promised. Isabella sighed. “First, you need to skate fast… Okay, then you’re just going to leap. Don’t do what I did. Take two strides and then leap with your left foot as an anchor.”

“So I’m landing on my right foot?” Isabella asked, still skating fast. Leo nodded. She did what he told her and almost landed. Her toe slipped and she fell. Leo stopped in front of her.

“Are you okay?” he asked. Isabella nodded, standing up again. “You have some ice in your hair.” Leo chuckled as he took it out.

“Thanks.” Isabella started skating again, preparing her leap. She took two strides, as Leo instructed, and jumped, splitting her legs apart and landing on her right foot. She slowed to a stop. She smiled, turning to look at Leo, who grinned back.

“Awesome,” he said, wrapping his arms around her. “Do you want to take a break?” Isabella realized that her legs were aching.

“Yeah.” They skated back to the closet, where they took off their skates and put their sneakers back on. Isabella looked at the clock: it was one fifteen. She hadn’t realized that she was freezing until Leo put his warm coat around her.

“Thank you,” Isabella said. Leo wrapped his arm around her. “We should go.” He nodded, taking her hand. They went upstairs, into their rooms, and both packed spare weapons into backpacks.

“Isa?” Leo said. She zipped her bag and faced him. “Simon says we should leave at five. He said the trip would be shorter than we expected.” She nodded.

“That was fun,” Isabella speculated. Leo smiled.

“I told you,” he said. She wrapped her arms around his neck and gently kissed him. She was glad that the aroma of cinnamon hadn’t left.

Someone cleared their throat. Isabella pulled away, opening her red eyes.

“We’re leaving now,” Simon said in an annoyed tone. Isabella sighed and grabbed her backpack, following Simon to yet another car.

“A convertible?” Leo asked.

“Tony said to drive this one,” Simon replied coldly. They sat down: Simon in the front, Isabella and Leo in the back. Simon started to drive in the city. Whenever Simon thought they were too close to each other, he let the roof down. Leo watched her hair fly back, the beautiful strands of golden brown shining in the sunlight, and his feelings for her increased.

“I thought you said I had to stay hidden, Simon,” Isabella pointed out. “Having the roof down doesn’t help anything.”

“Yeah, well, Bella, Liam already knows you’re here.” Isabella did a mental facepalm.

“Simon, Liam thinks that I am dead. Okay? So showing him that I’m in the car isn’t helping anybody but him.” Simon pressed a button.

“There,” he said. The roof was still open. “Tony said that that has an invisible shield, invisible from Liam and whoever his partner is.” They rode in silence until it was pitch black and Simon got onto a bridge.

“Simon, I’m going to go to sleep. If you get to Fenraltz, please park next to Jerry’s and wake me up. Then stay in the car while Leo and I go find—”

“Wait, I’m not allowed to go inside but he is?” Simon asked, turning around to look at her.

“Simon, eyes on the road!” Isabella exclaimed. He turned his head back. “And dad specifically requested that you stay in the car. He said that… there were bandits that… recently moved into Fenraltz and he wants you to…—”

“To watch the car for us,” Leo added.

“Yeah,” Isabella said. “We’ll be quick. We just have to get something from Father’s office.” Simon grumbled something to himself.

“Fine, Bella,” he said. Isabella curled up next to Leo and closed her eyes, trying to find comfort in the stiff nylon seats. She managed to drift off into a Lobelt a few minutes later.

Isabella dreamt about the Cosmos. She saw Frederick excusing himself from the other Cosmos and went into a dark hallway. He entered a small room, dimly lit like the rest of the place, where the walls were a navy blue and the floor was carpeted. In the center of the room was a blue crib where Rose was sleeping peacefully, dried tears glistening on her face as she sucked on a blue pacifier.

“You know,” Frederick whispered, completely aware that she was asleep, “I don’t even know why I’m keeping you. Your sister is already dead. My mission is complete.” Isabella clenched her fists. “But maybe it’s to torture that Simon. Or Leonardo. Maybe even one of the used-to-be triplets.” She tried to attack him, but her body stayed rooted in its spot in the sky.

“But I may have to move you, little Rose. For my fellow Cosmos might find you here and cast me away, like they did to Francine. Oh, yes, you don’t know who that is... she is my twin sister, who was cast away hundreds of years ago. I often wonder where she is. But the Cosmos won’t let me find her. They think I’ll adopt her ways of evil, but little do they know that I always had it in me. I’ll get my revenge someday. I’ll find her and join forces…

“And because I’m the leader of the Cosmos, they are forbidden from attacking me until they have proof that I’m committing treason. Luckily, they suspect nothing. So far. Let’s move you.” He grabbed her by her arms and carried her out of the room. Isabella saw fresh tears on her cheeks, but Rose didn’t seem to be making any noise.

Frederick moved her into another room, smaller and more claustrophobic than the first. He practically dropped her into another blue crib and more tears came.

“I can see that the silencing pacifier I built works,” Frederick said. The dream faded away.

“Ow, Isa,” Leo was saying. “Careful, please.” She realized that she was clenching her fists around Leo’s hand and her anger to Frederick momentarily turned to guilt.

“Sorry!” Isabella exclaimed. “Sorry, Leo.” She kissed his hand.

“It’s fine, Isa,” he said. “Don’t worry about it.” She saw Simon smiling through the mirror, holding back a laugh. Isabella slapped him on the arm and he burst into a fit of hearty laughs.

“It’s not funny, Simon!” Isabella exclaimed. “Me hurting my boyfriend isn’t a good thing. I don’t know why you don’t like him. He saved me from death thousands of times.”

“I think thousands of times is more of an overstatement,” Simon said, still grinning. “I’d say more like three times.” Isabella groaned, rolling her eyes. Leo lowered his voice.

“Isa, what was your dream about? What did you see?” Leo asked.

“I saw Frederick talking to Rose about how none of the other Cosmos know what he’s doing. I think he’s the only person who kidnapped Rose. He moved her into another room. He also said that he had a twin sister named Francine and she was cast away hundreds of years ago. He wants to find her and join forces. I think we’re going to have to fight them. Or expose them.” Leo nodded, his mind far away.

“Where are we?” Isabella asked.

“In Grenove,” Simon replied. “We should be home in two hours maybe.”

“What time is it?” Isabella asked, noticing the pale blue of the cloudless sky.

“Nine forty-five.”

“Leo,” Isabella whispered, loud enough only so that he could hear, “we’re only going to have fifteen minutes.”

“That’s okay,” he breathed, knowing her hearing was spectacular. “We’ll find it.”

“Is there anything to eat?” Isabella asked, trying to cover up their moment of secrecy.

“I can get some food from Brute,” Simon suggested. Isabella wrinkled her nose in disgust.

“Ew, Simon, you know that food is awful.” He chuckled. They rode in silence until they stopped at Brute, the Duestrian version of a McDonald’s. Isabella put her head in her hands.

“What do you guys want?” Simon asked, grinning. She groaned.

“Some fries,” Isabella mumbled.

“Leo?” Simon asked. She ignored the hint of annoyance in his tone.

“Same.” Simon drove up to the drive-in window.

“Hi, I’ll have three large fries and a hamburger please,” Simon said. He paid with liotts and grabbed a large brown bag full of food.

“Simon, it smells horrible,” Isabella complained, grabbing her fries.

“Bella, you have to enjoy it,” he said, taking a huge bite out of his burger. They ate their food quickly, and Isabella rested her head against Leo’s chest, enjoying the warm breeze. In this part of Duestro, winters were never harsh and came extremely late.

“Okay, you can separate now,” Simon commented. Isabella wrapped her arms around Leo’s neck.

“Leave us alone, Simon,” Isabella muttered. “You never did this to Meg.” Simon chortled.

“That’s because Meg and Will were older than me.”

“I’m older than you,” Leo pointed out. “I was born on July 9th, in 1841.” Simon sighed, but Isabella thought it was more of a growl. She gave Leo a high five.

“Bella isn’t older than me, though,” Simon realized, grinning again.

“We’re 26 minutes apart!” Isabella exclaimed. “And we went over this already. Father is letting me date.”

“Okay, okay, fine! But my car, my rules and rule one is no kissing.”

“This is Tony’s car,” Leo mumbled, lifting Isabella’s head to reach her lips. Simon groaned in disgust. He brought his focus back to the road where small houses flew by. Leo pulled away.

“Simon let me drive. You deserve a break,” he offered.

“Oh so you just expect me to pull over in the middle of a street?” he said, but despite that he pulled over. Leo switched seats with Simon and Isabella opened her door, but Simon grabbed her arm. “Oh, no you don’t!” Her shoulders sunk.

“Why not?” Isabella asked.

“You’re sitting with me. Leo only offered to drive, not for both of you to move. Sit back down.” Isabella reluctantly sat in her seat. Leo began to drive and Simon rested his head on the seat.

“Can you put the roof back?” Simon asked. “It’s freezing.” Isabella burst into a fit of laughter.

“Are you serious?” she asked. “We had to sleep in the nighttime with the roof down and you wouldn’t put the roof up. Plus I’m enjoying the wind.”

“Wake me up when we get there,” Simon grumbled. He closed his eyes. Isabella listened to his breathing until it got light and steady.

“Slow down,” she whispered. Isabella climbed into the passenger seat, taking his hand.

“What time is it?” Isabella asked.

“Ten ten,” Leo replied.

“I’m going to sleep again.”

“Do you want me to put the roof up?” Leo asked. Isabella shook her head.

“That’s okay, but I’m good.”

“Sweet dreams,” Leo said. As soon as she closed her eyes, she fell into a deep sleep.

When she woke up, she recognized the familiar scent of pinewood and petrichor.

“Time,” Isabella mumbled. “What time’s it?”

“Eleven forty five,” he said. Isabella nodded, her eyes drooping. She bolted her eyes open.

“What?” Isabella exclaimed.

“Don’t worry, Isa. We’ll be there in five minutes.”

“Bella, what did I say?” Simon asked. “Leo, switch with me again.”

“Simon, we’re going to be late,” Isabella said.

“I don’t care! Switch with me, Leo.”

“Simon if we’re late then we’re going to lose a very important document that we need.”

“It’ll be quick. And since I’m your legal guardian you have to do as I say. So both of you switch with me. Now.” Both of them groaned, but Leo reluctantly pulled over. They sat down in their old seats and Simon began to drive again.

“Simon, drive faster,” Isabella ordered. “We’re going to be late.”

“Okay,” Simon groaned. He sped up and the needle went up to 60. He made a sharp turn onto another dirt pavement.

“Okay, I thought I said faster, not more dangerous,” Isabella said. He made another, more careful turn.

“Holy sh—” Leo cleared his throat loud enough to block out what Simon was going to say.

“Excuse you, there are sensitive, innocent ears here,” he said, gesturing to Isabella.

“Do you—?” Simon said. “What—? Why is—? What even—?” Isabella followed his gaze.

In the distance, a large parade of people filled the streets. They were all dress in blue colors and weren’t even moving: just standing in one spot. Suddenly, in the center of the crowd, on a raised platform Frederick appeared. He met her eyes.