a dream is a wish...

"Well, lots of reasons," Conan says. "I've been flirting with you for years now so it's not that crazy. And it's true. You're very pretty in firelight."

Conan looks back at the flames. Warm, comforting, barely contained. Just like him, he supposes. Or how he used to be.

"And you were always so comforting to me when I wasn't in control of myself," he says. "It's only fair I return the favor at least once."

　　"why thank you then, conan. you are quite a beauty by the firelight as well..."

　　sitting by the fire brought such a comforting feeling to ashton. he never figured out why though, not until the memories of eloi started to come to him. he'd lay down by the warmth of the hearth, the orange glow bathing his face and lulling him to sleep. it felt like home, in spite of how bleak his circumstances were.

　　and now he shared that cosy feeling with conan, who so lovingly comforted him. eased away his worries with that charm only he possessed. a hand moved to caress conan's cheek, ashton smiling as he gazed at him lovingly.

"It is Conan," he insists. That life is simpler. Sure he had his problems but he wasn't a monster. "Conan Laine. Baker, delivery boy, public nuisance to douchebags."

He looks up at the man. A man he knows but doesn't seem to know him. At least, doesn't want to know him how he should.

"And your Richard Hartwin. Nice farmer, good with animals, let's me flirt with him, a guy I definitely want to suck off."

He's being forward and crass because that's who Conan is. This is all he is.

　　"conan it is then." he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose at the mention of the young man's need to blow him. had it not been for richard's more....adventurous sex life, ulric would not have even considered it a possibility.

　　"however, from now on, i am ulric. are we clear?" he second-guessed his order, just a moment after stating it. was he getting too soft? "...i shall not blame you if you prefer richard. but be clear that i am a farmer no more. i am a huntsman."

maybe it's because of the memories clashing with one another, but cyrus wanted to take both his memories and skills from both places. the gentleness he had in pellar town often times deceived people from how vindictive he can easily get when he's wronged. or when he just feels like it. either way, cyrus knows that his short term goal? to get some dry clothes and to get more information. as well as to get his magic back, although he doubts that's going to be something as simple as waking up tomorrow. cyrus hummed. "it could be," cyrus admits when the other says dark magic. "but it would take either an enormous amount of power, or quite a few sacrifices." granted cyrus has seen enough of this world to know that wasn't exactly a crazy idea. being a skilled witch himself, if he had access to his magic than perhaps he could figure out how to reverse this spell. but until then? he's going to simply try to live.

cyrus hummed and nodded his head. "that's true. i may own a library and coffee shop, but i don't think i have that many spell books or books about what to do in this type of situation." cyrus admits with a quiet chuckle. "although, i don't think it's face. according to my books, fae magic tends to focus more on nature itself. whatever this is? i feel like it's more deeper and intricate than controlling a few elements."

　　"sacrifices...of course." magic was something ulric didn't fear, but rather respected. he was an ignorant in all those matters, not knowing anymore than what he learned from passing whispers at court. but he could tell that the boy was right, whatever magic caused them to go through what they were going had to be of immense power. he seemed unbothered, but a deep sense of dread was brewing within him. he had to find his king, as soon as possible.

　　cyrus continued talking, and ulric just listened carefully. he knew the fae were fond of nature, he had encountered them before in the woods. he just was not aware of how much power they could hold.

"ce serait avec plaisir." people that enjoyed learning new languages were right up his alley. right with those that had an intense feeling for adventure. lisandro found himself gravitating to ashton even more now because they shared things in common. even without knowing each other in their previous lives, it was clear that they could still be connected. they had things in common. the pirate wasn't always as forthcoming about his past, but honestly that's because he felt like it was boring. with the language piece, he didn't think that he had to hide that.

every kingdom had something that they were well known for. his own was a mix of royal families turning into bears and a long series of kidnappings. which wasn't something that he wanted to shout from the rooftops. so, focusing on the fact that ashton came from a place known for its jewels and diamonds seemed like a good plan. one of these days, he was going to have to go and do some shopping there.

"if you have a map, then you can ultimately end up wherever you want to be." sometimes, it was easier traveling during the night time. that was something that was misunderstood by others. the north star could be a great guide. he could feel eloi's excitement through the hold, so he returned is own by squeezing his arm a little bit. "i'm not good enough for you?" he chuckled softly, clearly teasing the other. "what do you think motivates people?" food was one of the things he could think of, but he didn't know if that was the first stop they should make to find others.

　　his eyes rolled at lisandro's own playful quip, turning his head back to the older man holding him close. "my, i should have been clearer, shouldn't i? we need to find a local. one who could guide us to a boat, perhaps." all the could do in that moment though, was keep walking. maybe, if they walked far enough, they'd eventually stumble upon a dock, or a coastal village any sign of civilisation would be welcome in that moment.

cyrus' fingers toyed nervously with the black tourmaline crystal. he had pinned it to the left side of his waistcoat while he was at work. supposed to ward of negative energies, psionic attacks, and electromagnetic smog. the ultimate energy bodyguard he would tell people who were interested in the crystals and other wiccan items section of his shop. a whole lot of protecting it has apparently been doing for him.

now armed with both memories and in a unknown place, he was traveling with another guy. richard hartwin he thinks his name was. cyrus hated not knowing what was going on around him, and right now? it was unknown variable after unknown variable. "what do you think caused all of this?" cyrus asked with a soft sigh. his clothes were sticking to his body like a second layer of skin after pulling himself from the sea and onto the shore. and he was hoping that wherever the destination was? would have some dry clothes that were hopefully his size or a size or two smaller. "and how the heck do we get everything back to normal." although cyrus wasn't sure what normal he was referring to. life as cyrus, or life as circe?

　　"dark magic, i find no other explanation." the huntsman was no stranger to what the forces of evil were capable of, having served a tyrant witch for years before the king snow white reclaimed his rightful throne. he had to wonder if it was grimhilde's doing, cursing them to live another life, far from anything they knew, just to bring them back confused and broken.

suddenly, his tailor had become that much more interesting. lisandro didn't want to offend him by saying that ashton had never intrigued him, but knowing that the man spoke several languages now lead him to a couple of theories. one pointed to him coming from some sort of rich background. after all, who else could afford all of those tutors. that, or his land was just extremely diverse when it came to the things that he would hear around him growing up. soon enough, he expected to get his answers on which of his theories were true. he wouldn't rush anything.

"que bueno. j'ai hâte de te parler dans toutes ces langues." much like his favorite tailor, he had found himself capable of speaking multiple languages as his meories returned to him. something that he could thank both lives. in pellar's town, english and spanish were interchangeable. after finding out he was captain hook, his studies and private colleges had made way to several other languages in his upbringing.

when the arms were linked together, he had no other choice then to take his own out from his back. he placed his hand in front of his torso, straightened out his back and escorting eloi like a proper gentleman. then, his hook had fallen to the right side of his body, dangling about as they walked. "it has the best jewelry shop in all of the land, of course i've heard of it." he researched all of the nearby realms in search of neverland. "if you find us a map, i can take you there. i'm sure i'll find a good enough ship soon."

　　"oh la, ce serait charmant." perhaps it had been ashton whom lisandro first met, but in that moment, it was eloi taking the reins of the conversation. french just came so naturally to him, and being able to speak it so freely with someone else after so many years helped him reconnect to whom he once was, whom he was once again. ashton's memories remained, of course, but the longer he found himself stranded in that strange land, the less strange it felt to be there. as if ashton had found something there that he did not know was missing.

　　with the comforting hold of lisandro in his arm, eloi moved across the beach with a candid smile. eyes turning to the older man with excitement as he reminisced of the very jewellery shop he spoke about. one eloi would usually walk by when carrying out his errands, and only enter whenever his stepsiblings were set on buying something ostentatious to wear and they needed someone to carry their goods.

there  was  at  least  one  consistancy  between  the  memories  of  his  life  in  the  black  forest  and  his  life  in  pellar's  town.  for  whatever  reason  large,  open  bodies  of  water  like  the  sea  filled  him  with  a  sense  of  dread  he  couldn't  quite  explain  or  understand;  it  was  one  of  his  more  irrational  fears,  considering  he  hardly  experienced  more  than  a  large  lake  back  home  in  the  forest.  still,  the  vastness  of  an  unknown  he  couldn't  control  terrified  him.  yet  this  was  oddly  peaceful. walking  down  the  an  unfamiliar  beach,  his  head  still  swimming  with  flashes  and  pieces  of  lives  that  no  longer  made  sense  to  him--  one  fantasical  and  full  of  magic  and  danger  and  the  other  so  damning  with  it's  mediocrity  and  boredom  but  also  a  cruel  taste  of  comfort  to  the  point  he  didn't  know,  yet,  which  world  he  wanted  to  live  in--  bowen  was  at  peace.  he  wasn't  panicking. up  ahead  on  the  beach  he  noticed  the  silhouette  of  someone  else  staring  out  into  the  rolling  lull  of  the  waves  and  approached.  as  he  got  closer,  excitement  began  to  build  up  in  him  as  he  realized  he  recognized  the  blonde.  it  was  ashton,  the  sweet  and  handsome  clerk  that  worked  in  the  boutique  back  home;  well,  back  in  pellar's  town. “you  know,  it's  kind  of  unfair.”  he  spoke  softly  as  he  stepped  closer,  his  movements  slow  and  purposeful  in  an  attempt  to  not  startle  the  other  with  his  approach  but  also  to  show  that  he  was  harmless  just  in  case  ashton  didn't  recognize  him.  “even,  well,  wherever  this  is  you're  kind  of  breathtakingly  beautiful.”  it  was  a  flirt,  in  part,  but  his  words  weren't  muddled  down  with  the  dirtied  intentions  of  being  charming  because  he  wanted  something  from  the  other;  because  he  wanted  a  compliment  back.  he  just  wanted  to  make  him  smile.

letting  another  breath  of  silence  pass  between  them,  staying  next  to  him  without  crowding  him,  bowen  crossed  his  arms  over  his  chest  and  looked  out  at  the  waves  as  they  crashed  against  the  beach  a  bit  further  down.  “you  know,  in  the  grand  scheme  of  things,  its  kind  of  silly.  being  afraid  of  the  ocean.”  he  explained,  his  voice  still  soft,  as  he  tried  to  distract  ashton  from  whatever  was  on  his  mind  by  talking  about  himself.  “granted,  before  i  woke  up  here  i  thought  the  worst  thing  that  might  happen  in  my  day  would be  conan  littering  on  one  of  the  nature  trails  again  or  realizing  i  filed  everything  wrong  at  town  hall  and  having  to  spend  the  entire  day  redoing  it,  i  never  imagined  magic  would  be  real  and  we'd  all  be--  well,  different.  that  makes  something  like  being  afraid  of  the  ocean  feel  silly.” “almost  as  silly  as  how  afraid  i  was  to  talk  to  you  the  first  day  i  saw  you  in  the  boutique.  you  were  so  handsome,  pretty  really,  and  i  thought  i  was  going  to  have  a  heart  attack  because  you  were  the  only  one  around  which  meant  i  had  to  talk  to  you.  do  you  know  how  embarrassing  it  was,  giving  you  those  jeans  i  had  covered  in  butterflies  and  flowers,  and  asking  you  to  hem  them  for  me?  actually,”  he  laughed  softly  as  he  remembered  the  moment  like  it  was  yesterday,  “i'm  pretty  sure  i  was  so  nervous  i  practically  yelled  can  you  hem  these  bowen  for  me,  i'm  pants.” “no,  now  that  i  think  about  it,  you  probably  don't  remember  that.  whenever  i  come  in  you've  always  been  really  nice  to  me,  so  you  can't  remember  how  silly  i  was.  i  am.” “--and  i  know  it's  selfish  of  me  but,  uh,  i  don't  know  what's  really  happening  or  how  long  we're  going  to  be  here…  but  i'm  glad  you  are  here.  it  makes  me  feel  a  bit  safer.  like  this  might  not  be  a  nightmare  after  all  because,  if  it  was,  you  wouldn't  be  here…”

　　it took a moment for the compliment to land, so sudden and unexpected given the circumstances - and yet it accomplished its purpose. breathtakingly beautiful, he said. such a flattering remark, and yet the words were not what made ashton's lips curve into a smile. it was the way those words were said. it had been such an earnest tone, adorably awkward yet ever so genuine coming from the adorably awkward guy that stood right next to him.

　　there was no immediate response, only serene silence as ashton stared in awe at his newfound company. blue eyes shimmered along with the moving waves, plump lips parted as he tried to gather the words for a proper reply, scouring through the deepest parts of his brain for the name of the precious man that had just come to him at his bleakest hour. but no response was needed yet, for the guy continued talking, and ashton allowed him to continue. his voice had become the perfect remedy for his anguish. no longer did he need to focus on the dreaded thoughts that infested his mind ever since he landed on that desolated island - even weeks before that. for just one moment, he just listened to the adorable boy speak.

　　no fear is silly, ashton would have protested, immediately finding himself in need of comforting his new friend right back. but he continued speaking instead, and ashton remained silent as the conversation pivoted back to him - or rather them. him and bowen, yes, bowen!

　　bowen continued, just a few more lines before he stopped. and ashton allowed a couple of minutes to go on in silence. still staring, still smiling. it was his turn.

　　"... that pair of pants has been one of the most lovely pieces i have had the chance to work on." he could vividly remember hemming them, a difficult task when his eyes continued to stray from the needle and instead focused on the love and creativity imprinted on each flower and butterfly. "and you have been one of my most lovely clients. very patient, polite, it is always a welcome breath of fresh air whenever you come through the door." it was far from the first conversation they had, if anything it was just the lengthiest. but as short-lived as they were, ashton treasured the few good moments he had shared with bowen.

He clears his throat. "You know this is the first time I'm seeing you by firelight. You're still pretty. Maybe the prettiest you've ever been."

He nudges Ashton's shoulder, trying to draw his attention. He even raises a hand to tuck a strand of hair behind his ear.

　　there was a part within eloi that hesitated. he longed to find his prince, a prince whose face he could barely remember - ashton, however, was easily smitten by his dear friend, ever so smooth and charming in his own special way.

"Great, awesome. Kingdom? Like England or..."

Or his homeland, where he grew up with his grandfather, caring for a farm instead of a bakery.

"Oh... fuck!"

He looks around, taking in the town around them. He doesn't recognize any of the architecture, not that he'd seen much from his home kingdom besides the modest village.

　　"no, not like...england." the name rolled out awkwardly from his lips. all he knew was the kingdom of kehl, the only place he had known in his life. ulric, at least, for richard remembered to travel all across the us - a land that felt so alien now that he was back in the realm where he, ulric, belonged.

　　don had taken himself out of the conversation, circling a spot on the grass where he could lay down while his owner figured out where to move next. ulric's eyes fixated on the boy before him.

when he thought about his life as hook, he didn't remember ashton there. whoever the other may have been in the previous world. he could remember annoying people that could fly and fairies that sometimes got in the way of what he wanted. that just meant that he was going to have to get to know him all over again. not the tailor that he had grown familiar with in pellar's town, but whoever they were before the curse. so he was going to make sure that he took his time to make sure get to know him.

the spanish did surprise him. if lisandro could recall, he never heard it roll off of ashton's tongue that easily. maybe that was a look into his past life.

"hablas español en el otro mundo?" hook was going to get to the bottom of that. he didn't need too much time to let his curiosity get ahead of him either. "please do. consider me your security guard." not that he was looking to fight with anyone. lisandro didn't want to cross any new boundaries that might have been formed, so he stayed on his side of the shore and tucked his hands behind his back. maybe he didn't want to spook eloi too much with his hook. "what were you looking to get up to? explore the world or go out into the water?"

　　"lo suficiente." he responded once again, barely missing a beat. "some spanish, italian, but my french is better than either." which was more than ashton could ever have claimed. new visions ran through his mind, his father bringing home books with words he couldn't understand, the man making sure he could read through them with ease, and speak the tongues while at it.

being in a new land wasn't that bad for someone that always dreamed about adventure. whether he was james looking for a way out of his home or lisandro going out to get more fish for the town, he was comfortable with the open waters. so, he hoped that would remain true and he could find himself there again. doing so would also mean taking some actions that people wouldn't be comfortable with. yet, he viewed it as necessary. for example, if he wanted to get around tirulia without a hiccup, he would have to steal one of the ships around. on one hand, that was theft. on the other, who knows what belonged to which person anymore. they had spent time locked away in their new lives. everything was free reign now, was it not? it wasn't like he was going for eric's castle itself. all he simply wanted was a method of transportation. in looking for a solid vessel, lisandro realized that he was much more picky than he had thought. he still didn't find one suitable enough for the captain hook of all people, so he kept on walking. then, he ended up coming across a familiar blond. at least one he recognized from pellar's town. "ashton?" his favorite tailor. "i don't know how safe it is for you to be walking out here alone. come join me?"

　　could eloi find his way back to strasbourg through sea? he tried to remember the maps his father owned, the trading routes he had shown him whenever eloi would sneak into his studio as he traced them. some memories were so vivid, as if he had never been ashton in the first place, but some others were just blurry visions of a distant past. much as he tried to keep his spirits up, eloi knew he needed to act quickly, he did not know how long he could survive stranded where he was.

　　then a voice called to him, a voice he recognised. not eloi though, but rather ashton. the blond turning his head, standing up as he approached the man before him.

He spots someone that looks familiar and he nearly cries from relief. He stumbles over.

"Mr. Hartwin," he calls, tripping to the ground near the man. "I... thank god... I thought I was alone. Well, I could still be alone. This could be some elaborate dream or nightmare."

He jumps as a dog next to Richard starts to growl at him. That's... Don? why is he growling? He usually likes Conan. Right?

　　the boy was visibly desperate, far from the awkwardly flirtatious youth he was used to see every time a delivery had to be made.

　　"hey, boy, stay put." ulric ordered don, the words escaping his lips as if he was used to it already. which was odd for richard even, as he had never seen the pet get that aggressive with the boy before.

Conan drops another stick into the small fire he'd gotten going. He and his new companion had made their makeshift site just in time before the sunset. Now the darkness is creeping in on the edges of the firelight. Conan's sense are on high alert, after who knows how long without them. He hears everything, smells everything. It's so much. Almost like when he'd first turned.

He tries to filter it all out like he had in the old days, finding one thing to focus on. The heartbeat of his companion. Steady though not as calm as it could be.

"Okay, the rabbit should be done soon," he says, turning the meat over the fire. "No spices, but it's better than starving. Are you warm enough? I can make the fire bigger."

He looks at the blonde man, using him still to focus his senses. Ashton. They knew each other back in town. But now there's more to remember. He tries to think about where.

　　finding a familiar face amongst the darkness of the jungle was a blessing in ashton's eyes. however, as comfortable as conan made him feel, the stress of their current situation remained pulsating within the young blond's head. ashton, eloi, who came first? who was he really? only conan's voice was able to pull him away from his thoughts again, his vacant stare then turning to look at the other.

　　"excuse me?" it took a couple of seconds for aston to process what he had been asked, lips parted before he could offer a coherent response. "ah, yes, i'm fine, i'm warm enough." his eyes looked back down at the fire, at the same spot he had been staring at for the past few minutes. "i am sure the rabbit will suffice for tonight. we need to find a way out in the morning."