Helene Dubois's Story

Lee opened his eyes. "Alive again huh? And I'm back here of all places," he mumbled to himself groggily massaging his eyelids. The room smelled and looked the same as he had left it. Gingerbread's favorite apple perfume lingered in the air, it was not hard to replicate, and the room was as messy as always, books everywhere, a mixture of textbooks and spell books; it was a image of his mind... Gingerbread. Remembering her, he quickly fumbled in his pocket and groped for the picture and page he had torn from a book before the curse got him. Letting out a sigh of relief when he found they were there, Lee began to pick up his books and clean the room. Then it hit him, she was dead, the wound in his heart opened up again and he fell to his knees dropping the books. Memories rushed back to him, everything, and he closed his eyes for a moment to let all the pain seep in. Lee took a deep breath and staggered to his feet, no time to be mourning, he had a job to do... In rage he punched the wall and screamed, " TO HELL WITH THIS, WHY ME? WHY CAN'T I JUST BE WITH HER?" The wall did not reply nor budge, it was made to withstand the worst of magical explosions, not answer his questions; he slowly removed his bloody hands and let it hang limp at his side, drops of red decorated the floor at his feet soon joined by small splashes of salty clear water.

Gathering himself again, Lee bandaged up his hand and walked towards the closet. He picked out a black dress shirt, sweater and pants, blood red tie, and put them on, rolling up the sleeves. The people in the next room are becoming impatient, it was his time to make an appearance, ready or not. He tied up his sneakers and stepped through the door putting on his best mask of a smile.

"Welcome to the Cor Leonis Boarding School, My name is Lee and I will guide you around your new home the best I can." The door vanished behind him.

Skipping around the room Miri took the time to study each of the people. They all seemed about her age and she could tell they were all just as shaken up as she was. Miri knew that she looked like she couldn't care less about getting home but on the inside she was a mess. She knew she had to get home before the two weeks were up, she had to tell the queen that it was her who painted her roses red and not her father. Miri knew there was a chance that the queen wouldn't believe her but she had to try, she would do anything to save her father, even if it meant taking his place in the execution. Well Miri was lost in thought she started softly singing a song the Dormouse had taught her. Twinkle twinkle little bat, How I wonder where you're at. Up above the world you fly, Like a tea tray in the sky. Twinkle twinkle little bat, How I wonder where you're at.

"Hi Miri and Greg!! Of course you can call be Ara, I like it better than my full name anyways. I'm going to assume that this is some sort of school we are in? I'm going to guess that there has to be some sort of market or something nearby that has human clothes. Anyone care to lead the way? Miri? Want to lead us since you seem to have the most knowledge on this world?" Miri smiled at Ara and stopped skipping long enough to say, "I don't mind leading if no one else wants to. I'll just need to figure out where we're going so I know which road to take. Hm, maybe a map of some kind would work?" Deep in thought about where she could find a map, Miri reached up to take the hat her parents had given her for her birthday off her head. Reaching inside Miri pulled out a empty teapot and a tea cup out, smiling at Gregor as he said hello and answered with a cheerful 'yes' as she continued to tip the empty teapot over the cup as if to pour in tea. Though tea was clearly not coming out of the pot tea slowly rose inside the cup and Miri smiled happily down at it. Sitting down cross-legged sipping her tea Miri listened in on what everyone was saying.

“I hate to point this out but, how exactly are we going to get these 'clothes'? I mean, who knows just what this wierdo world uses as a form of currency. I dont know about you but I left all my gold in the homelands.” Miri was about to point out that he didn't need to be so cross when Gregor spoke up, "I don't know about you guys, but I don't think it is going to be long before someone comes and checks in on us. And they are going to have to be one hell of a guy to hold us all back. We should get going before they even get the chance. We can worry about how we are going to pay for the clothes later, I'm sure we will figure it out, for now I just really want to get out of here, so if nobody else wants to, I will be more than happy to lead the way." He did have a point, they were in what appeared to be a school, so there must be teachers! As if to prove this point right not even two minutes later a man came threw the door. "Welcome to the Cor Leonis Boarding School, My name is Lee and I will guide you around your new home the best I can." Miri almost spit out her tea at the phrase 'new home' as if they'd be here long. Frowning for the first time Miri looked up at the man as she continued drinking her tea, "New home....yes...And how long will we be staying exactly?"

"New home... Yes... And how long will we be staying exactly?" Lee answered the girl, "a while, but I'll answer any question you may have with the best of my abilities, " but before he could do anything else, the boy standing in front of him grabbed Lee's shoulder and poised to lash out. Lee blinked at the sudden violence and nearly acted on reflex but didn't, it was expected these newcomers reacted in the way they did but the atmosphere was a bit tense with the two boys ready to rips his throat out, he chuckled, nothing new. Lee has already been at the school before, in fact he attended for a year upon the suggestion I his mentor. Being confused and hurt at the time, he had reluctantly agreed, thinking it was part of training; everything fell into place now. Lee had forgotten master foresaw this event coming, it was written in the ancient records that time and time again the forces of good and evil will clash. What was different this time that this happened? Did master accept him as apprentice to use him? No, no time to think about this stuff, gotta get this over with so he can resume mourning. Before the boy named Gregor could strike, the Arabella girl stopped him and asked Lee to return the door.

"'fraid I can't do that, it isn't the door you need (cause it was the door to his room)," Lee peered around the muscular boy and the one that smelled like an animal, and pointed to the opposite side of the room where dual oak doors were not there before. By now, without anyone noticing, the room transformed into a comfortable lounge with a warm fireplace and tidy kitchen, everything decorated with the school colors of burgundy and gold. "That is the exit you seek, but be warned, that is not the way home you seek, there is none at the moment." Realizing that some will still attempt to rush out and cause unnecessary trouble, the doors locked at his thought. Noticing the tea laid out on the table, "Ah, perfect, tea," he winked at the awestruck girl holding the teacup, "Shall we discuss your peculiar situation over some tea?" Lee gently slid off Gregor's grip and pretended to stretch his shoulder, " Ouch, nice grip hahah, would anyone of you want some food?" He walked towards the fridge and took a quick peek at the photograph of him, Gingerbread, and Goldylocks for a boost of courage. He replaced it in his pocket and opened the fridge.

Helene sits on the bed as the others converse. She thinks about what the curse did to the place she once called home. A man walks in and introduces himself as their guide. "'fraid I can't do that, it isn't the door you need." He tells them. Then suddenly the room changes, and the bed Helene was sitting on becomes a couch. "That is the exit you seek, but be warned, that is not the way home you seek, there is none at the moment." Lee walks to the table. "Ah, perfect, tea." 'This is so weird.' She thinks as she slightly shakes her head.

Helene stood up and straitened her large, fluffy green dress. She was feeling very uncomfortable with this place, as most of the other people in the room probably were too, especially when Lee walked in and the door behind him vanishes. She looked around and observed the lounge like room. There was Ara, Miri, Gregor, Bigsby and Lee, whose names she over heard. Helene walked towards the group to introduce herself."Hi everyone. I-I'm Helene." She says in a loud, but soft voice. As she waits for a reply she continues to look around. She looks around the room seeing the gold and burgundy colors. 'How pretty.'

"I am Gregor Ampleton! Son of Hercules, and I will NOT, be held captive!" Miri had been startled when Greg and the boy who still hadn't told her his name had threatened the man. She wasn't a fan of violence but Widow had seemed to be bouncing with excitement at the impending fight. Pushing Widow's feelings down Miri had been about to stand up and say something when Ara had stepped in. "Greg, please don't hurt our guide! He is right now the only person who seems to have any idea where the hell we are and what the hell is going on." Miri sighed from where she sat across the room, "Ara's right, there's no need to get hasty. Plus, doors don't just disappear." Laughing a little Miri grinned trying to change the tense atmosphere of the room, she didn't like it when people were unhappy.

Before Miri knew what was happing, the small room containing them had been transformed into a lounge. "That is the exit you seek, but be warned, that is not the way home you seek, there is none at the moment." Turning Miri saw large oak doors, she had to admit that she was a bit impressed, all she could do was pull a teapot out of her hat. Thinking about what Lee had said Miri's heart sank, he'd said that there was no way home at the moment, that meant her father was going to have to spend more time in the queen's prisons then she thought. "Ah, perfect, tea," Miri was jerked out of her thoughts by Lee's statement, "Shall we discuss your peculiar situation over some tea?" Miri couldn't help but grin a little, tea was one of her favorite things after all. "Sounds wonderful! I'm always up for some tea!"

Staring to hum the Dormouse's song again Miri watched as a girl with a extremely fluffy dress stand up and begin to speak, "Hi everyone. I-I'm Helene." Giggling Miri stood up and skipped over to the girl. She couldn't help but hug her, her quietness was just so cute! "What a beautiful name! And your dress is quite lovely as well! My names Miri, and we are going to be friends wither you like it or not!"

Melody awoke in a groggy state. Her vision was a bit blurry as her eyes adjusted. Sitting up quickly she took in everybody. There were people freaking out, some trying to make light of the situation, but no one had noticed her. She leaned against the wall and closed her eyes taking slow deep breaths. New Home? Was she really hearing those words? She couldn't remember what happened or how she got there. What had she gotten herself into this time? Obviously something she couldn't handle. A few tears slipped down her cheek, as she thought of the last thing she told her mother. She had wished she were away from her. Running her fingers through her hair she tried wiping some of the tears away.

"Where am I?" She'd ask in a quiet tone, as another door was opened near her. Would anyone notice a black haired girl? Maybe, because she smelled like the beach, sea salt dried in her hair, She looked (and smelled) as if she spent her whole life at the beach.

Quite a few things happened at once. First, the girl who had addressed herself as Arabella placed a soft hand on his shoulder and pleaded that he release the man, providing good reason, he was their only means of getting out of this room as of now, and there was no point in rushing off headfirst into a land he had no idea about. The touch of Arabella reminded him of his mother, and in that moment he loosened his grip as the man shrugged free, cracking a wise ass joke. Then, the room changed, not only did everything go from a cramped bedroom to a spacious living room, but a set of double doors appeared on the other side of the room. "If that doesn't lead home, where does it lead?"

He spun around as two other girls addressed the group, one introduced herself as Helene, and the other simply inquired as to where they were. Ignoring both of them, he made his way to a spacious armchair and threw himself into it, causing its legs to screech violently. He rubbed at his temples, wishing this god damned headache would just go away. As if things weren't bad enough.

"You say we're in a school, but that doesn't make any sense. Why, of all things would we be kidnapped from home just to be put in a school?" There were far too many questions that needed answers, and this Lee fellow seemed to be the only way they were going to get them, so for now, taking a deep breath, Gregor decided it was alright to play by the rules.

Ara sighed in relief as Greg released Lee and sat himself into an armchair as the room expanded. She looked around at the others unsure what to do. She looked back at Lee as he spoke and pointed towards a set of doors on the opposite wall. "I'm sorry but did you say we were in a school? A human school? This doesn't make any sense! Why did they send us here?" She yelled as she collapsed onto a couch and finally allowed a few tears to slip out.

She wanted to go home and save her family and hug her mom and dad. She wanted to be some place she felt safe. She groaned as she wiped her tears and flattened out her bright yellow sundress. She turned to the one girl who asked where she was. "According to Lee we are in a school in the human world. I don't know why or who put us here but that's what I have right now." She said as she grew increasingly angrier as she paced the room. She sighed as she reached the door on the opposite wall and turned towards the others. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you but I'm going to go find a way out of this damn mess. If anyone cares to join me then come on." She said as she opened the door and waited.

Everyone seemed too distracted for food, so Lee grabbed a giant plate of assorted croissant sandwiches, and mixed box of sushi from the fridge. He bent over to retrieve a tray of warm chocolate chip cookies from the oven; at least food isnt a problem, there was an unlimited supply ready at hand. Carrying, food over to the newcomers Lee had to focus just to not make his hands shake: he has never addressed so many people at once and it was terrifying, more so than the situation at hand. Taking a deep breath, he walked over to the group and laid the food on the table, seeing no one making a move, he grabbed a piece of salmon sushi and plopped it in his mouth, trying to ignore the girl attempting to leave the room. The door was not physically locked but there was a magic barrier in place.

The girl with the teacup had pulled another teapot out of her strange hat and laid it on the table; Lee reached for it and poured himself a cup. After stirring some honey and lemon in the cup he took a sip and began, "As you all know, this isn't home anymore, but a very elite school in the human world. A "curse" of sorts has been cast on all of us and evil runs rampant in our world; however, to my knowledge this isnt a curse at all, but a safety mechanism set by our ancestors." He pulls out a scroll containing very old inscriptions not written in the common tongue. It had a drawing of a book, one side with heaven's light and fine calligraphy, while the other had black flames burning the edges and very messy handwriting. "To keep it simple, our world has an eternal conflict between good and evil, it is as natural as the plants and animals, but for some reason this time the balance was tipped and evil has the upper hand. I do not know how things are back at home, I've only arrived here at the same time as you guys." Lee paused, deciding whether or not to reveal his master's involvement in this. "As for the reason why we are at this school, I do not know. During my time here as a student I could feel something strange about it but did not have time to dig deeper, but it is no coincidence we are here." Lee stopped talking and took another sip of tea, allowing what he said to sink in around the room. "I will continue to answer your questions in a bit, but for now please enjoy the food and calm yourselves down, we will be here for a while so make yourselves at home while I go retrieve your supplies." He walks over to a closet door that was also not there before and began dragging out boxes.

Miri let go of the poor girl she was hugging to death and frowned at Ara. Slowly walking over she placed one of her hands softly on her shoulder and quietly said, "Ara, I know you want to go home, trust me I do to, but right now we need to stay and see what Lee has to say. We can't just waltz out there and start mingling with humans, we'd scare them to death!" Gently pulling Ara over to one of the couches Miri hugged her and sat her down next to herself. "Hey, I know what'll cheer you up! How about a riddle? If you can get the answer right without cheating I'll give you a piece of candy." Miri couldn't help but smile, she loved riddles, her and her father would spend hours sitting under a tree solving riddles. Thinking of her father brought her spirits down a little but not enough to wipe the grin off her face. The Cheshire Cat had once told her that her grin was almost better then his own, it had brought Miri so much joy that she smiled all most every second. Some might call it creepy but Miri didn't care what others thought, she was just happy to be herself.

Miri was pulled away from her thoughts when Lee started talking. "As you all know, this isn't home anymore, but a very elite school in the human world. A "curse" of sorts has been cast on all of us and evil runs rampant in our world; however, to my knowledge this isn't a curse at all, but a safety mechanism set by our ancestors." How could this be a safety mechanism? Miri thought, We were taken from our families and our land. It must be a curse. "To keep it simple, our world has an eternal conflict between good and evil, it is as natural as the plants and animals, but for some reason this time the balance was tipped and evil has the upper hand. I do not know how things are back at home, I've only arrived here at the same time as you guys." Miri was caught on that last part, it seemed weird that he got here at the same time as them yet he knew so much about what was going on.

"As for the reason why we are at this school, I do not know. During my time here as a student I could feel something strange about it but did not have time to dig deeper, but it is no coincidence we are here." This whole thing had somehow turned into a giant riddle, and Miri felt compelled to figure it out. She would get home in time to save her father, she had to.

Helene was shocked when this girl she had just meet hugged her. It feels like she's squeezing my guts out! She looked down at Miri and pet her head. When she finally let go of her, Helene gasped for air then had to sit down. She watched as Ara was going to make her way to the door. "I don't know how things are back home..." Helene's eyes widened when she heard this. Does home still exist? Did that weird fog effect them? Will I ever see Luc again?! A million questions ran through Helene's mind and she was out of it and in her own world. All she could think about was home.

As if Lee was reading her mind he says, "I will continue to answer your questions in a bit, but for now please enjoy the food and calm yourselves down, we will be here for a while so make yourselves at home while I go retrieve your supplies." Helene snaps out of it and looks at the assortment of food before her. She delicately takes an eclair and eats it. "Wow, this is delicious!" She thinks out loud. "Lee," She covers her mouth to finish her eclair before continuing. "do you know if home still exists? Maybe it was frozen in time, or..." Helene hesitates. "...it just disappeared?" She looks at the other people, to see how they might have reacted to her question. I-if it disappeared, then there would be no way back, so that isn't what's going on there. Helene's eyes began to tear up as she thought of this. She looked down, slightly shook her head and wiped her eyes.

Bigby was almost sick yet again as the room morphed and changed into a much more spacious comfortable looking area, a whole new series of smells assaulting him just as he'd been getting used to how the room had smelt before. Taking a moment to regain his footing as he slightly stumbled in place Bigby was about to lose it, he was beginning to feel like an animal trapped in this changing room. The well dressed sharp looking man named Lee had claimed there was no way home at this time, something Bigby refused to believe-if there was a way home his nose would find it.

Between the room reeking of tears, magic, and tea along with Lee's vague answers Bigby had decided he'd finally had enough of this nonsense and apparently Arabella had been thinking the same thing as she opened the door to leave, only to be asked to stop by Miri. He wasnt sure if Arabella would listen to her and as if to show that he fully supported her decision to leave Bigby took the first step forward through the door, only to run smack dab into Lee's magical barrier like some poor fool running into a sliding glass door. And for Bigby that was the final straw.

“You son of a bitch!” He roared as he spun around to face Lee who was now pulling boxes out of yet another new door, Bigby looked like he was ready to atack again. Bigby and his father had dealt with sorcery before, and his father had taught him that in his experience the best way to deal with mages was pure unrelenting force. “You think you can keep me here like some kind of animal?!” The irony hit Bigby as he spoke the sentence. “Offer me a way out only to slap me in the face with a hidden door? Well your not the only one with a trick up their sleeve!” As he finished his heated rant Bigby closed his eyes for a moment, focusing his attention on the task at hand. His heightened sense of smell wasn’t the only gift he'd received from his father.

A change occurred almost instantly in Bigby, by the time his eyes reopened he looked like a different person-if you could even call him a person any longer. His muscles had swelled quite a bit making him appear much larger and his eyes had become a golden yellow color, and most noticeable of all was the thick white coat of fur that covered his face and arms. Scowling at Lee showed off a a menacing set of sharp teeth. Turning around much quicker then before Bigby threw himself at the unseen wall with all his strength, literally colliding with the the thing in a hail of magical white sparks. Not letting up his attack Bigby took both hands and began to tear at the wall as if he were trying to rip a plastic bag in half, white and blue sparks shooting around him the whole time. The pained expression on his face made it look as if he was either struggling extremely hard or was in a good deal of pain, perhaps even both.

Finally Bigby felt the wall fall, torn asunder by his bare hands. He had to admit, tearing through had been much harder then he'd thought it would be, apparently Lee knew what he was doing. Finally finding himself outside he turned fully expecting most eyes to be on him, a slight grin on his face as he saluted the group of misfits. “See ya on the other side!” He shouted with a hint of mischief in his voice as his face returned to normal. And with that he was off, running as fast as his feet would carry him, not giving Lee a chance to do God knows what to him. He was determined to figure things out himself and maybe when he had he'd return to the group.

Maybe.

Lee chuckled on the inside when the animal smelling boy ran face first into the barrier, he didn't even bother to turn around to watch the commotion and instead pulled out the third and final box. The animal boy dished out some profanity and began to transform into a wolf, this made Lee raise an eyebrow in concern: had the boy been normal looking like everyone else there would be no problem, he'd just be thrown into a asylum or jail; however his transformation is problematic and will cause quite a stir in the human community and lead to unwanted attention from the authorities. Sighing, Lee just stood and watch the wolf attempt to break the below average strength barrier, surprisingly he did, shifted back and made a run for it. "Why me," Lee mumbled as he walked to the center table carrying 3 medium sized boxes that were not so medium sized in storage capacity. He dropped them with a loud thud to turn all the attention back to him. Slightly annoyed, "Anyone who wishes to follow him are welcome to, in fact I encourage it, but keep in mind that going out to the human world and causing a ruckus will lead to nothing but unnecessary trouble for your friends who want to live peacefully.You might be wondering why I'm not chasing after him knowing the consequences," The hallway was endless anyways. "Truthfully, I don't give a rumplestiltskin's ass about what happens, I have no desire to return home either," There was nothing for him to return to, Lee thought.

Feeling the mood sink throughout the room, regretting his icy words, Lee promptly opened the boxes, "Everyone please line up to receive the goodies that will help in this new world," grabbing a container from the first box he explains, "This is an iPhone 5c, one of many devices humans use to communicate. It also has many other add on functions as well, such as picture and video recording and portable tools and games; however the feature that makes this piece of plastic special is that it will serve as your magic medium in this world. For magic users who consume energy to cast spells, it is a good idea to use this because unlike our world, this world drains your memories of Fairytale land instead of energy. It is still possible to cast without a medium, and the penalty is small depending on the amount of energy required, but it is still recommended. Don't worry if your spell is not on here, there is an app for that in the spellbook app store; although there is every spell created ever listed, you must have prior knowledge of that spell to be able to cast it. Non magic users and anyone else really.... don't worry if you're in a pinch. I've installed a "PANIC!" app that will transport you back to this very room, but it will kill the phone's battery, so use it wisely." Lee shifted over to the last two boxes and took out the second package," These will be your school uniforms, school supplies, and backpack. You must wear these at all times while on campus and outside of your dorm rooms, any type of close toed shoes are fine, just make sure you wear white socks." He displayed the contents of the bag onto the table. The male uniform set included a white dress shirt, black dress pants, burgundy sweater, dark gold tie, and a jacket displaying the school colors and patch featuring the school emblem:a crowned lion; the female set had a burgundy and gold plaid skirt instead of dress pants. Moving on to the last box "This package contains enough magical thread for 5 full sets of clothing, underwear,socks and shoes included, just touch it and visualize what you want mentally, then chant "Sew for me what I desire so." Please refer to the human fashion magazines over by the reading chairs for a better idea of what is expected in this world."

Exhausted from social interaction, Lee was ready to resign to his room and he finalized, "That is all for now, remember to exchange phone numbers labeled on the container. If anyone has questions about the goodies, I'll be in my room organizing, but don't forget to knock first." The door to his room appeared and he stepped through, closing the door behind him to only poke his head out moments later, " Oh and uh, when the class idiot comes back through that door over there," pointing to the newly materialized single oak door with a lion doorknob," someone please explain to him what he missed." Lee smiled and retreated back into the room; he had enough fun playing with the wolf boy and had ended the "endless hallway" giving him an exit, which of course led right back to the starting line.

Gregor Ampleton

Marched up to the table, spinning a chair around and slumping into it backwards as he helped himself to two of the sandwiches displayed before him. As he tore hungrily into the first, he watched as Lee explained what was going on and that the two sides, both good and evil, had somehow been the cause of everyone of the kids ending up here. It was all so strange, but Gregor simply rolled his eyes and polished off his first sandwich. Digging into the second, he eyed Lee curiously as he showed them their school uniforms and their 'phones'. He didn't quite understand how he was going to put that to any use, but it seemed like a neat little device to have.

He poured himself a cup of plain tea, gulping it down greedily and taking another large hunk of his sandwich. When Lee had left, he finished his meal and then approached his belongings. He took the phone in his hand and eyed it curiously. "Someone is going to have to show me how to use this. There is no way in hell I am going to figure it out." He tossed it onto the sofa and picked up the school uniform. "I suppose this isn't too bad." He held the jacket up to his chest, and he could just hear his mother saying how handsome he would look in it, and he grinned. Placing it back on the sofa, he threw himself down in his armchair.

"So now what?" More waiting did not sound fun at all, but he dreaded the thought of going to this school even more. It made him long for Phil's training, he would much rather be listening to the stubborn old goat then be here. He cracked his knuckles and looked around the room, what an odd bunch, and yet, they were all here for a purpose, and each one of them was going to help each other get back home, of that he was sure.

Ara smiled softly as Miri hugged her and offered her some tea and candy. She turned to Bigby as he became angry and transformed and proceeded to run out of the room in a huff and a puff. ((heeheehee i'm hilarious...sorry back to the post!)) Ara sighed as she grabbed four cookies and listened to Lee explain the rules and the items they would be receiving. She looked at the others around the room as Lee pulled out the weird looking plastic things that were supposed to help them communicate in this world. She stood up and grabbed another cookie as Lee pulled out their supplies and the school uniform. She looked at it in dismay and curiosity as Lee finally finished and then left the room. She turned back to the others and saw the same confused look she had on her own face. She shrugged and picked up one of the phones and looked at it as she started pushing buttons on the device. She looked up as Greg said he would need help working it and she laughed.

"Greg I think most of us are going to need help with this contraption. I figured out how to turn it on, but that's it."She smiled as she sat down next to him on the couch and helped him turn the thing on. She stood up after a moment and grabbed her uniform staring at it for a moment. "Well, it's not as bad as I expected it to be. I mean, I can make it work. Anyone want to help me make some outfits?"she asked hoping to lighten the mood and create a better environment while they were here. She figured if she was going to be stuck here for however long then she might as well make the most of it.