Jade hugged herself, hiding in the library of Unikitty's palace. She ducked behind a shelf, holding her head in frustration.

"They're going to find me. The princess is going to have me locked up! Ugh, I'm in so much trouble."

Jade looked around, hoping to find an exit. She spotted windows near the ceiling.

"Do those open?"

She looked around, before looking up towards the windows again. She activated her power, ditching her human disguise.

Her ears changed shape, and bright glowing wings appeared behind her. They resembled green colored crystal, as she fluttered them.

"I'm not really used to flying anymore."

She flew off the ground, getting a feel of it before rising up higher. She pressed and pulled at one of the windows but they wouldn't budge.

"Aww, come on." She tried another but got the same result. "How am I going to get out of here?"

She lowered herself to the ground, "I might have to go back out."

"You're a fairy."

Jade jumped, turning towards the sudden voice.

Caylus stepped forward, examining her wings.

"Absolutely fascinating."

"Ah-" Jade stepped back, "Y-you what...are you-?"

"We split up to find you." Caylus said, "I guess I chose the right location to look."

Caylus walked closer to her. "You need to stop running. We just want to talk things out."

Jade's heart was racing, and it was an unfamiliar feeling. She'd never felt something like this.

"You're pretty nice, considering I just controlled your friend's mind."

"There's no reason for me to be mean to you." Caylus replied, "I was like you once. I promise nothing bad will happen to you."

Jade narrowed her eyes, "Who are you?"

"Caylus Clark. I work as a tutor under the Queen's instruction."

Jade perked up, "You're Caylus? Rex told me about you. He said that..."

Jade thought about the circumstances. She had a choice to surrender, or she had a choice to make Marie suffer.

"You brought Rex back." She looked up, "That means you can probably make him go away too, right?"

"I...Rex told you about that." Caylus nodded, "Yes, I did. A lot of energy was required, and he's still not stable."

Jade's eyes glowed as her anger fueled her power. "You...can help me."

"Huh?"

"You're going to help me get rid of Rex Dangervest!"

—————————————————————

The group met outside, looking defeated when they didn't find Jade in their assigned locations.

Unikitty sighed, "Did anyone find her?"

"No." Lucy looked around, "We're missing Caylus. Maybe he's having better luck."

Unikitty looked to Rex, "Hey, Rex. Do you happen to have any of your devices on you? That could help."

Rex searched through his pockets, shaking his head. "Nothing. Not even a cellphone."

"That's fine. I guess we're just going to have to wait it out."

Marie hugged Rex's arm, leaning against him. She smiled, feeling intense happiness. Rex looked down at her, smiling with her.

"I'm glad you guys are a couple now." Emmet spoke up, "You look happy. Especially you, Rex. It's good to see you this way. You're less grouchy."

"Have I ever been grouchy?"

"You seriously didn't notice?" Lucy laughed, "We're all happy for you."

Rex turned, "I know all this romance stuff is sappy, and doesn't suit my style, but for Marie...I can learn to show it. I believe in this true love stuff because of her."

"Is that really true, Honey?" Marie's eyes sparkled, "Do you believe in happily ever after?"

"Only if it's with you." Rex held her hands.

"Stop!" Unikitty shouted, "I'm gonna explode from the cuteness! Ah, I'm really sorry this date didn't work out guys. Maybe you should have a makeup date and make that one officially your first?"

"That's not a bad idea." Marie spoke, "For something quick there's always Watevra's palace."

"Come on. You can think of something cuter than that." Unikitty commented.

In that moment, Rex suddenly felt weird, consumed by a very familiar feeling.

He looked down, noticing his hand vanishing. He lifted it up, examining it.

"This again?"

Marie frowned, "I thought that had stopped."

Rex shivered, a mixture of tension and nothing spread through every muscle in his body.

" It actually feels like my whole body..."

Rex watched his whole arm vanish, and stay gone. Fear flashed in his eyes, "Man...this is bad."

"W-what?" Marie sounded, "Rex, what's going on?!"

The group heard a certain chuckle. They turned, eyeing Jade. Her wings shimmered as she flapped them. Her eyes glowed an eerie green light.

"I'm what's going on."

The group stood in shock.

"You're a fairy!" Unikitty shouted.

"That's impossible." Lucy stated, "All fairies were banned from Syspocalypstar."

"You couldn't stop us all." Jade turned. Caylus stood behind her. She frowned, but quickly regained her cruel mindset.

"Um, I got your hot- GUY! Uh, no...your friend, wizard, whatever he is." Jade sighed before continuing, "To make Rex cease to exist."

"What?" Marie shivered, "N-No! Jade, please tell him to stop."

"No!" Jade snapped, "If I can't have Rex, no one can!"

Marie cried, "This isn't the way, Jade. Please, you can still find love. There's a guy out there waiting for you. I know it."

"There is no one like Rex. He is my longest love interest, and I won't lose him to a stupid princess like you."

Unikitty was furious, "Jade-"

She lifted a paw to scratch her, but Emmet pulled her back.

"Unikitty, violence won't help."

"It will, if it'll stop her!"

"The magic is already set." Jade chuckled, "You can't stop it! He's done for, and I will have my victory!"

Rex looked down, watching his leg disappear. He didn't want to vanish. He just started living again.

He just started his second chance, but he couldn't see a way out of his situation, and there was no guarantee Caylus would have enough power to bring him back.

"Marie...I..." he paused, "I'm sorry. I want you to take care of Rexcelsior, and the raptors for me. It's all yours. I know how much you love them."

"Rex, don't talk like that." Marie cried, "Please, I can't lose you. I love you!"

Rex lifted her chin with his available hand. He showed a hurt, yet comforting smile. Everything about him in that moment was good genuine and bittersweet.

"You've shown me true love. Love I once doubted existed. Thanks for being cool, and...I love you too. Even if I'm nonexistent, I always will."

He bent down, kissing her lips as a final goodbye. Marie kissed back, as tears streamed down her cheeks.

Rex pulled away, and gently pushing the princess's bangs aside. The pink in her hair glowed with the moonlight.

Suddenly, Rex felt the feeling in his limbs return. He immediately looked down, seeing that he was reappearing again.

He stood shocked, moving his fingers in front of his face. True love's kiss had saved him again. It was that powerful.

He needed to stay. That kiss was a sign to the universe. A sign that he had a right to live.

"I'm...not disappearing anymore."

"Tough Guy?" Marie wiped her tear stained cheeks.

"Huh?!" Jade sounded, "That's not possible! Caylus is still under my control! Caylus, why is this happening?!"

Caylus processed her question, "Rex has a reason to exist. So the universe itself must be keeping him here."

"That's so stupid!" Jade groaned.

"A...reason to exist?" Rex questioned, "Is that actually possible? What could be a reason so powerful the universe is allowing me to live?"

"You must be Marie's soulmate." Emmet spoke, "The one that's meant to be her life partner. That's a pretty good reason to stay."

"He exists because of me?" Marie blushed.

"Well, you exist. In order for Rex to be your soulmate, he has to exist too."

"That's so romantic!" Unikitty cheered, "You're manipulating time and space with your love!"

"There's no magic at work at all." Lucy smiled, "It's just love. Rex, I think it's safe to say you found the one."

Rex held Marie's hands, feeling her warmth.

"I have, and it feels awesome. It's enough to make a cool guy like me super mushy and romantic."

Marie touched Rex's cheek, and watched as he lovingly leaned into her touch. He wasn't scared of that affection anymore.

Marie giggled with joy, "I can't believe it. We're together. I get to hug you, and kiss you and...everything else couples do. It's like a dream come true!"

Jade shook, "No! This wasn't supposed to happen! I can't fail, I can't!"

Marie turned, "Jade-"

"Don't talk to me!" She cried, "I just wanted to be powerful. I wanted to date a cute guy. Why did you have to ruin everything?!"

She turned, and with a negative state of mind, she ultimately decided to give up. She canceled her power on Caylus, as she changed back into her human disguise.

Caylus blinked, rubbing his temple.

"Ow, Rex was right about the headache." He spoke.

"I actually can't believe she got you, Cay." Unikitty stated.

"She's honestly pretty strong and clever. You'd be surprised."

Jade sighed, "Alright, I surrender. Lock me up, do whatever. It's pointless. I just have to accept I lost."

Unikitty thought for a moment.

"You did a bunch of bad stuff. We should discuss everything with Watevra, but for now, the candy themed dungeon you go! It's downstairs. Can anyone take her?"

"I'll take her." Caylus offered, "I can skip out on the ball for a while. You guys head back inside. Finish the night off strong."

"Right." Unikitty bounced, "Thanks!"

——————————————————————

Jade stepped into the glittering cell. The walls and floor looked like sweet sugary candy, and it even had a pleasant aroma.

She sighed, sitting on the soft bed. Caylus closed the cell door, frowning.

"Sorry. Unikitty's orders. I can't disobey a princess."

Jade blinked, "Why do you feel sorry for me? Don't you know what I've done?"

"I forgive you." Caylus replied, "For everything. You just haven't seen what the world can offer you yet."

Caylus reached into his back pocket, taking out a small notebook and pen. "Hey, can you actually show your wings again? I want to take notes on them?"

Jade raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Of course. I've never done research on fairies before. It'll be an interesting addition to my supernatural research."

Jade fixed her posture, revealing her wings.

"Like this?"

"Yes, that's perfect!" Caylus wrote down the details he noticed, "Are all fairy wings like this?"

"No, I'm just a gem fairy." Jade responded, "There's a bunch of different styles depending on your power type. The flower fairies have wings that look like petals, and the insect fairies have butterfly wings. I could go on forever, there's so many."

Caylus smiled, "You're...beautiful. You know?"

Jade blushed, "W-what? You...think I'm pretty?"

"I would expect nothing less from a fairy." Caylus chuckled, "But I'm sure not all fairies are pretty."

"Oh no." Jade laughed, "Some can be really scary looking."

Jade twirled her hair with her finger, "I can tell you all I know. If you'd like."

Caylus smiled, "That would be great."

——————————————————————

The group entered the ballroom again. It was filled with people chatting, and having a good time. Luckily, no one seemed to notice the previous commotion caused by Jade.

"Well..." Unikitty spoke up, "This was some night."

"But we all ended up being okay!" Emmet cheered, "How are you feeling, Rex?"

"Besides the fading headache, and not remembering most of the day, I'm actually doing pretty good." Rex answered.

"Do you really not remember anything?" Unikitty tilted her head, "What did the spell feel like?"

"Weird." Rex started, "It's almost like I was sleepwalking. I could feel my body moving, but I don't think I was fully conscious. My mind was just foggy."

"Yeah, foggy with Jade's power." Unikitty sighed, "I have to decide what to do with her."

"There's time. We should probably get this ball over and done with." Rex turned, "This night wasn't a total waste in the end. I still got Marie."

Marie smiled, hugging him tightly.

"I love you, Honey."

"You two should kiss!" Unikitty yelled.

Rex lifted Marie's chin.

"I'd love to, but I think Marie deserves a dance. Princesses love that stuff, right?"

"I got you covered. Richard!" Unikitty called, "Set up the fancy dance music on the DJ table!"

Unikitty's voice faded as she bounced away.

The music in the ballroom changed. A slow, romantic tune played, and surrounding lights dimmed. Rex took hold of Marie's hand, showing a joyful grin.

"Princess, may I have the honor of dancing with you?"

Marie giggled happily, "Yes. You may."

The two held hands as they walked to the dance floor. Rex gently pulled Marie closer. His touch was gentle and light.

Rex's strong hands were soft and careful around Marie, it was a different touch made entirely for her.

"You know how to dance?" Marie asked.

"Honestly." Rex started, "It wouldn't have hurt to practice a bit."

She smiled, "Just follow my lead first. You'll get the hang of it."

Rex followed Marie's lead, but also looked to others for confirmation he was doing it right.

He was Marie's prince now, and he wanted to be perfect for her, and himself.

"Rex, I'm so in love with you." Marie said.

Rex smiled, "I love you too, my princess."

Marie tiptoed, kissing his lips. It was magical, because true love conquered all that night.

Just like every other fairy tale, Rex and Marie lived happily ever after.

At least, at that moment it appeared that way. They still had a long life to get through, and a lot more adventures to go on.