An excerpt from Out of the Woods:
[The calm before the climax. Adam has been gifted an amulet which allows him to stay transformed into a human.]
Adam and Gretel swept past Giovanni [Puss In Boots]. The catās nose touched his boots as he graciously said, āIn bocca al lupo.ā
Adam slowed to a halt before donning a grim smile.Ā āYeah, all right.ā
āWhat did he say?ā Gretel whispered.
āGo into the mouth of the wolf.ā
āItās just an expression, Signore,ā said the cat hastily.Ā āIt meansĀ āgood luckā.ā
āStill.ā To the surprise of everyone, Adam crouched down and removed his heavy royal cloak, wrapping it around the shoulders of the cat, until the fabric covered the entire creature from the neck down.Ā
Giovanni blinked before asking,Ā āWhy have you given me this?ā
āWell, just because Iām no longer your prince, that doesnāt mean that I wonāt enforce the basic laws of decency,ā Adam said, his smile growing.Ā āNow, I donāt commend your actions, but nobody should be at the ire end of a fairy. I happen to be at the ire end of several, one of whom has the biggest heart out of anyone Iāve ever met. I certainly donāt deserve that blessing and it should go to someone who does. Despite what Hansel wanted me to believe, Iām ninety-nine percent sure that Mrs. Rabbit is, in fact, a rabbit. So, that leaves you.ā
The former prince reached up and unclasped the rope, letting the amulet fall into his already-transforming hands. He only had a few seconds to tie the rope around the catās neck. The gasping pub-dwellers raced forward, crowding the scene. Robin and Gretel pushed through, their jaws dropping as they took in the sight. Beast was licking his paw in an effort to avoid smirking at the bewildered boy who was lost in a sea of robes. The child looked at his hands, then felt his face, then faced his gaping sister. āRobin?ā
The siblings tightly embraced as the rest of the pub looked on. Gretel affectionately scratched Beastās head, causing the former prince to snuggle against her. Giovanni and Robin eventually fell to their knees, holding one another, clearly having assumed that the day would never come.
Robin eventually turned to the wolf with tears in her eyes.Ā āI will never be able to repay you for this.ā
āYes, you will,ā Beast quietly said.Ā āI have a favor to ask. I need you to break into the castleāa task of which you are very well-adeptāand take as much food from the kitchens as possible. Distribute it to the masses. I trust Odette with all of my life but Iām not willing to put your lives on the line. Make sure that everyone is fed until such time that a ruler can divide funds. If the food runs out, peddle whatever you can find, as long as it didnāt belong to my father or sister. Even then, Malum probably wouldnāt care. Just make sure the items of Adam Adelaide II remain in taāwellāhe would understand. Do whatever you have to do, sweetie.ā
The girl slowly rose to her feet, the wind blowing her tears right out of her eyes.Ā āAdam, youāre not our prince anymore.ā
Gretel uncomfortably squirmed.
āYes, Iām well aware,ā said the wolf with a sigh.Ā āI know that you donāt have to follow my orders anymore. Did you ever do that, anyway? All Iām asking isāā
āNo, I meanāā Robin bit her lip before saying,Ā āYou donāt have to do this.ā
āOf course I do,ā he firmly said.Ā āI might not be your ruler but you will always be my peasants. I should have taken better care of you all before. Iām sorry that I did such a terrible job. The other Adam would have known what to do. Come to think of it, Grand-PĆØre Adam would have, as well.ā He sighed before addressing the pub at large:Ā āIām sorry you got the runt of the wolf pack. You all deserve so much more.ā
He turned to Gretel and asked,Ā āYouāre not going to stay behind, are you?ā
She shook her head and he crouched down, allowing her to climb onto his back. The two set off, though Beast only took several steps out into the snow before he heard someone softly say,Ā āYou werenāt that bad.ā
The duo looked over their shoulders. Robin looked minuscule as she stood among the older peasants. She hugged herself close, staring at the wolf as though she was seeing him for the first time. Taking a deep breath, she called,Ā āYou werenāt that bad of a prince.ā
Beast gave her a small smile.Ā āYou werenāt that bad of a thief.ā
Me, several minutes ago, upon realizing that āgood luckā in Italian also translates to āgo into the wolfās mouthā: :D
Shoutout to the small fraction of you who have followed every word of this and the large portion of you who are completely lost.