Rich Boy: Growing Pains - 25. Chapter 25

"Slow down, Mark," Worthington said carefully as the man began to ramble on again. He'd just shown up and started going on about Worthington having come so quickly, but hadn't said what was wrong yet. Was he even a Disney employee? Sure, he had a uniform and a nametag, but a mage would find that easy to get, even one as weak as this man.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Mr. Sinclair." The man said as he blinked and took a deep breath. "I am just standing here rambling on and haven't even introduced myself. My name is Mark Castle, and I am a cast member here at Disney. I've been here since I was sixteen, which was eight years ago and have worked all over both parks and now I often do work as a guide for V.I.P.s like you. Clever of you to do that, too, although it wasn't necessary. I could have arranged for you to get into the park if you'd called. Didn't you get my phone number? I gave it to Doctor de Long when I asked him to contact you for me."

"I haven't heard from Barrett in a while." Worthington frowned. "We're here on vacation, not because of any message from you."

"Oh." The man paled slightly, and Worthington looked him over again. He was of average height, very slender, but well-tanned and had wavy brown hair that fell over his eyes just a bit. Mark Castle would never win any beauty prizes, but he was easy on the eyes if a bit effeminate in his mannerisms. "I am so sorry, so you don't know?"

"Not unless you tell me, but why don't you come in and we can talk," Worthington said as he stepped aside in the doorway and reset the wards so they wouldn't go off when the man entered.

"Your shirt is ripped," Mark said with a frown as he entered, and saw the main room of the suite where Kyle was just finishing picking up the fallen lamp. "What happened in here?"

"We were wrestling," Worthington said. "Kyle, this is Mark Castle, our ‘guide' for the night."

"He's a mage," Kyle said with a frown.

"Yes, and apparently he's been trying to get in touch with me about some problem," Worthington said with a smile and almost laughed at the frown on Kyle's face.

"Damn it; you're supposed to be on vacation!" Kyle exclaimed. "We went through all the trouble to give you some time off, and here you go, finding trouble to get into before we've even been here an hour!"

"I am so sorry," Mark said with a frown. "I didn't mean to ruin your vacation. When I saw your name on the list yesterday, I got so excited that I switched days off with Brenda, who really wanted to spend time at home with her family. Her grandparents are in town, and she wanted to spend time with them. My parents and I haven't spoken since I graduated high school and told them I didn't want to go college, so I hate the holidays anyway and though that…"

"Slow down, Mark," Worthington said with a frown. "Now, I guess we need to push our dinner reservation back before we start talking."

"Oh, I already took care of that," Mark said quickly as Worthington directed him to take a seat in the main room of the suite. "Napa Rose will hold your table for you until seven-thirty. It's a slow day, so there's no problem with that, and they'd have done it anyway because Jenna owes me a couple of favors and she's the hostess tonight."

"That's good," Worthington said as he sat down in another armchair and Kyle sat down on the couch with a frown on his face, but he was paying attention at least. "Now, why don't you tell us what the problem is that has you so concerned you tried to contact me?"

"I guess I should give you a little background," Mark said with a sigh and closed his eyes before taking a deep breath. When he opened them, he began talking in a much calmer tone. "My parents were so disappointed when I turned out to have such a weak mage gift. I grew up here in Anaheim and had two friends, brothers, who were also mages. My father gave up teaching me by the time I was fourteen when I couldn't even do most of the higher magic that he loved, but Jim and John helped me practice the low magic, so I got good at that, at least. I fell in love with the park when I was eight, and begged my parents for an AP – that's an annual pass. After a while, they just kept buying one for me because it was easier than trying to deal with me. By the time I was sixteen, I knew the park as well as most cast members and had no problem getting a job here."

"It sounds like you really like your job," Kyle said in a slow drawl, and Mark beamed at him.

"I do." Mark agreed. "It's not just the park itself, but the people. Sure, there are always some people in a bad mood or a cranky kid who needs a nap more than being rushed onto another ride, but by and large people are so happy here all the time. It's so wonderful feeling their joy, and most of the cast members love working here, so even they are happy all the time. It was always the place I could go as a kid and just be happy, and now, well it's my job to be happy all the time, and what could be better than that. Don't get me wrong, I do other things than stuff here at the park, but I enjoy the time I spend here, both at work and as a guest. That's why I'm so worried right now."

"You are lucky," Worthington said with genuine feeling. "Most people view work as something they have to do to have a nice home or things they enjoy."

"I know how lucky I am, Mr. Sinclair," Mark said firmly. "I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination, but I have a nice apartment, enough money to do the things I want to do, and I absolutely love my work."

"There are more ways than just money to be rich, Mark," Worthington said. "I've learned that living out in Arizona."

"Okay, so what's the problem?" Kyle said with a bit of impatience in his tone.

"Last week, we had eight guests disappear while at the park," Mark said as he produced a DVD from his back pocket, got up, and went over to the television set hidden in a wooden cabinet. Worthington wasn't surprised when he expertly flipped the DVD into a machine and turned on the television with a remote. "This is the security footage that was spliced together by park security for the Anaheim Police. There were two families, one of five, the other of three that disappeared on the same day."

"What ride is that?" Worthington asked as the footage began to play of a group of people getting into a boat.

"It's a Small World," Kyle answered, and Worthington frowned at him, not understanding.

"This is the ‘It's a Small World' attraction." Mark said with emphasis on the word ‘attraction.' "We don't call them rides."

"Oh, sorry," Worthington said.

"It's okay, Mr. Sinclair, there are a lot of terms like that most people don't understand," Mark explained. "For instance, people that work at the park are not ‘employees,' their ‘Cast Members.' Everyone has a role to play from the guy sweeping the street to the upper management."

"Thanks for the Disney etiquette lesson," Worthington said without a trace of sarcasm in his voice. It was better to know things like that than to unwittingly offend people.

"That's part of my job." Mark smiled as he pushed a button on the remote. "As you can see, they boarded the attraction without a problem and made it through most of the attraction without any abnormalities. However, just after the three-quarters point, there was a malfunction that the mechanics were unable to explain, and they were stuck in the conveyance for approximately five minutes."

"You can't really see their boat at all," Kyle said with a frown as he got up to look closer at the now-paused image.

"No, all you can see is the tail end." Mark agreed. "You will also notice that the conveyance behind them cannot see them directly either, and you will have to take my word for it, but the conveyance in front of them is also out of the direct line of sight. It is one of the few blind spots in this attraction. Now watch as I continue."

"They're still in the boat," Kyle said as the image began to move again and switched to another camera view of them in their boat and now exiting the ride. Worthington noted that it was early evening, just after twilight.

"Yes, but watch as the image shifts to one of the security cameras just outside the attraction," Mark said as the video shifted to show the group of eight, two families, exiting the ride and heading out of the queue. Then they turned right and exited the screen image. "The area they are heading towards is a cast member area that they could not have entered, and as you can see, they just disappear without anyone noticing them leaving. That is the last image anyone can find of them, and the last time they were seen by anyone. We're lucky one of the cast members on that attraction remembered seeing them at all, so we could find this footage. So far the news of their disappearance has not made it into the media, but it'll be a big story around the holiday season, two families disappearing while on vacation. The hotel says they never returned to their rooms, and they were staying at two different hotels. They didn't know each other as far as the security and police can tell, and they never met before getting into that conveyance together."

"You do have a mystery on your hands," Worthington said. "Why did you try and contact me about it, though?"

"I could sense the faint residue of magic when I went on that attraction the next day," Mark said with a frown. "I'm a very weak mage, as I said, so I couldn't do more than tell that it was there and that it felt evil. It's gone now, at least as far as I could detect. I've heard stories about you, and they all say you're a good person for a guy that started as a Dark mage. If anyone's going to be able to help, it's going to be you. None of the local mages I've talked to are able or interested in doing anything about this. They all say it's not their problem. For my part, I think they're just all afraid about the stories of new Demon Wars starting up, and they don't want to get involved."

"Aren't you afraid of demons?" Kyle asked him.

"If I ever run across one, I'm so damn weak I'll be as good as dead anyway, so why worry about it?" Mark shrugged as he took the DVD out of the machine. "What do you think Mr. Sinclair? About this problem I mean."

"I'm not sure, Mark," Worthington said carefully. Part of him didn't want to get involved at all, but he also felt an obligation to at least look into the problem. A solution would be to hand it off to the government mages, make it Gerald Norman's problem, but that idea left a bitter taste in his mouth. "I'll tell you what, how about we look at this…uh, attraction tonight, after the activities we have planned?"

"We might want to do it before," Mark suggested. "The park closes at ten tonight, which is pretty much right after the fireworks show. There should be time after dinner if we hurry."

"Well then, we'll just go get changed and head down to dinner," Worthington said with a gentle smile. "Will, that do?"

"Oh yes, sir, it'll do fine." Mark beamed, and Worthington sighed before nodding to Kyle, who got up at the same time as him, and they went into their two bedrooms to change. Ten minutes later they were following Mark downstairs, who was now in full tour guide mode, telling them all about the hotel as they took the elevator down to the main floor and followed him past the lobby, a small gift shop, and through a breezeway.

"That pool looks nice," Kyle said with a nod towards a large swimming pool that was giving off a slight amount of steam in the cool night air.

"It is heated if you like to go swimming," Mark said helpfully as he led them around the corner and pulled open a fancy door. The restaurant was nice, with the typical lodge-type dark wood and a pretty hostess greeted them. Mark left them in her care, and they followed her into the restaurant where she seated them at a nice table for two just in front of a large set of windows.

The food was quite good, although Kyle did complain that it was a bit fancy for his taste. He wasn't used to fancy restaurants like this, and actually had a few problems with the chop sticks for the sushi course. Worthington was quite pleased with the food, and the service, and left a hefty tip as he signed the bill over to their room.

All things considered, the three hundred dollar price tag for the meal wasn't too bad since, as Mark had said, it was the fanciest restaurant in the resort.

Mark was still in full tour guide mode as he met them at the restaurant entrance and began to take them through the hotel and through a series of hallways that let out into the Downtown Disney area. Their guide was full of details of the history of the area, and the stores they passed as they walked. There was a small crowd at the security checkpoint, but Mark led them through the exit area, and they were waved through.

Kyle seemed to be paying attention to Mark's explanations about the tiles set in the courtyard with people's name on them, but Worthington was lost in thought about how typical it was for him to go on vacation and find some type of magical problem. It seemed he couldn't do anything in life without attracting trouble. Was it a curse, or a blessing in a way? Or was it the magic simply directing his life so that those that were capable found themselves in these situations. He was worried about Kyle a bit and was debating calling in the government solely because he didn't want to risk Kyle getting involved in something just yet. His mage training was only a couple of months along, and while he could defend himself in a pinch, he was nowhere near being ready to take on any serious threat.

Mark said the park was relatively empty today, and Worthington decided that he would hate to be here on a busy day. Hordes of people were heading this way or that, stopping for pictures or at one of the many vendor carts selling everything from disposable cameras to food and little light sticks or necklaces that glowed in the dark. They had to stop and get their pictures taken for their Annual Passes. The agent he'd spoken to last weekend had said that for as many days as they were going to be back at the park, it was just as cheap to get the AP, and he'd gone for the premium just so they would be able to use it without any restrictions if Kyle ever wanted to come back.

With their pictures taken and new passes in hand, they left the façade and strolled down Main Street while Mark pointed out the various shops and talked about their history. Worthington found himself musing how insane he'd go if he'd had to live in the little apartment that had apparently been Walt Disney's, but then the man had probably loved this park because it was his creation. Kyle kept on asking questions as they walked through the square at the end of Main Street, up the ramparts of the ‘castle' and into Fantasyland.

As they walked, Worthington found his mood lightening. It was all but impossible for him to remain cold and distant when there was so much happiness pressing around him. Kids were running to and fro, pulling parents along with them to one ride or another, and even older kids walked around with smiles on their faces, wearing everything from the stereotypical mouse ears to huge goofy hats. When they first approached the Small World ride, Worthington couldn't help but be impressed by how pretty it looked with all the twinkling lights on it.

"I'll ride with you on this one if you don't mind," Mark suggested as they bypassed the rather short line and approached the loading area. Worthington just nodded as Mark spoke briefly with one of the ride operators and they were put into a boat together. Mark sat in front of them, with Kyle and Worthington sharing a seat behind him. As soon as they entered the actual building of the ride, Worthington regretted it instantly.

If there had ever been a more annoying song invented, Worthington didn't want to hear it in his lifetime. The little doll children that were singing and dancing were kind of cute, if decidedly old technology, but the song was quite annoying. Almost as annoying was Mark's bobbing his head to the music and happily telling them that they could go on the ride again after Thanksgiving and there would be a slightly modified song that included Jingle Bells.

Throughout the entire ride, he kept his mage senses seeking out any trace of residual magic but found nothing. The two ‘cast members' having sex in one of the side passages didn't bother him too much, but he looked over at Kyle and saw he was blushing. That was when he noticed that he'd slipped into a very light rapport with Kyle as the ride had progressed, and almost blushed in response to Kyle's suggestion that the ride could be quite romantic if Worthington didn't hate the song so much.

"I'm sorry Mark, there wasn't anything I could detect," Worthington said after they disembarked the ride. Mark frowned but nodded and led them back through the park towards the area where they were to observe the Phantasmic show.

"This was the larger apartment built for Walt Disney so he could entertain his grandchildren more often." Mark said as they climbed the steps to the ‘Galleria' that was located above the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Worthington knew he was in trouble the moment Kyle laid eyes on the large glass display right inside the entrance. They were still in light rapport, and he could feel Kyle's massive interest. Mark sensed it too and began a long explanation of the pieces that were being hand sculpted to create a representation of the park's Main Street. Worthington shuddered at what it must cost for such a silly thing, but Kyle's indignant response to that thought made him sigh, and smile ever so slightly.

It's a good thing I'm rich, or I'd be a pauper by the time you got done here. Worthington said mentally to Kyle who just shrugged.

You're the one who said I shouldn't hesitate to spend your money until I was able to support myself. Kyle retorted.

Whatever happened to your wanting to support yourself? Worthington asked.

I thought we were going, to be honest with each other more. Kyle's mind voice was filled with laughter and teasing. You want to fuck me, I know it, and the idea doesn't particularly revolt me, and I've heard some guys make a pretty good living with sugar daddies.

You're older than I am. Worthington retorted as Mark led them out onto a balcony where there was a table of desserts set up, along with a coffee service and a table for two set with chairs facing the little lake in front of them. They sat down and ordered some cheesecake while Mark kept rambling on about the scenery below them.

Yeah, well, you think I'm a stud. Kyle retorted. I can see it in your eyes when I'm walking. You like the way I walk, don't you?

Yes. Worthington admitted.

When I was twelve, I'd spend hours in my room at home, practicing it. Kyle admitted with the faintest hint of embarrassment in his mind. There was this kid at school, Jimmy. He was on my little league team, and I knew I was attracted to him, but I knew it was wrong. You grow up in that town knowing it ain't right to be a queer, so I practiced walking to make sure I didn't swish or anything like that, but I wanted to look good, for the girls you know. I figured if I did everything right, the girls would look at me and that would be that.

It didn't work, though, did it? Worthington asked.

It did, as long as I didn't think about things too much, so I just didn't think. Kyle shrugged mentally while nibbling on some cheesecake. Worthington sipped his coffee and sat back with a sigh. It was good coffee. Being this way just wasn't an option. I kept telling myself the reason I didn't want to go further than kissing and a bit of groping was because it was wrong. The bible says we're supposed to wait for marriage, and I decided I'd do that. Sure, it got me a reputation as a goody-two-shoes, but that was better than the alternative. All the girls seemed to love it, too. I never had a problem getting a date. Still, don't.

What about now? Worthington asked and was almost embarrassed by the swirl of emotions that went through Kyle.

I don't know. Kyle admitted. Out here, where we're not at home, I feel like it's okay to kind of explore this side, but I'll be honest. I don't want to go that far yet, and when we get back home, I probably won't want to even think about it there.

Is that how you are going to want to live your life? Worthington asked him.

No! That answer was most emphatic, and Kyle physically shuddered a bit as the lights around the park dimmed and the announcer declared the show was about to begin.

The show that was going on out on the other side of the small, man-made lake was only part of what interested Worthington. The sheer swelling of power that lifted from what Mark described as a ‘rather small' gathering was immense and filled with happiness. If Worthington had been prepared, he could have tapped into that sense of wonder and happiness, of pure joy and stored the power, but as it was, he let it wash over him in a welcome haze of pure happiness. He could feel Kyle tensing, and then relaxing as he followed Worthington's lead while sprays of water, laser holograms, and pyrotechnics told the story of Mickey Mouse's imagination.

Worthington had never seen a Disney cartoon or movie growing up and had no frame of reference for the images that were being presented. At first, he felt left out of something that the crowd was obviously sharing, but the answers to his questions started floating up through his rapport with Kyle. The Texan's family had shunned Disney for most of his life, but he'd secretly been enraptured with all the various movies, seeing them at the homes of friends every opportunity he got. Through Kyle, he learned of who the animated cricket was, and the story of Pinocchio, and many of the other images. When the floats appeared, he learned the story of Snow White and her prince, Ariel, and her hero, and was shocked at the thoughts of Kyle regarding the Beauty and the Beast float where a woman in a golden dress danced with a large, ugly beast.

No, I don't think you're that ugly. Kyle laughed in response to Worthington's shock. At least physically. You have to know I've heard most of your life story from others that know you, and it reminded me a lot of the Beast, especially how he came to love Belle, and to be a good man. I think you're a good man, and that's part of why…why I'm not trying to keep hiding that part of myself from you, or a few others that I know I can trust.

I see. Worthington said softly. As the show progressed, with the evil witches of the different fairy tales working together to control Mickey's imagination, he had to wonder how much the authors of this story knew about magic. At its core, it was a story about the differences between the two paths of magic, although Dark magic was portrayed solely as evil. They got the part about control being right, though. When it was over, he found himself clapping along with everyone else, although Kyle was whistling quite enthusiastically.

"I take it you enjoyed the show?" Mark asked, stepping away from the wall where he'd been standing with a couple of other cast members.

"It was wonderful," Kyle exclaimed aloud. "I liked how they had the steamboat coming out at the end with all the characters on it! That was fantastic! Oh, and that Peter Pan fight on the pirate ship was just awesome too!"

"I played one of the pirates for a few months and had a lot of fun," Mark admitted with a slight blush. "I twisted my ankle on one of the stunts though, and that was that. If you would like, I can arrange a tour of the Columbia, the pirate ship, for you during one of your days here."

"That would be great." Kyle beamed as he smiled at Worthington. He really was happy at the idea, and Worthington nodded his agreement, not caring if it cost extra money.

"If you would still like to see tonight's fireworks, we should start heading over there," Mark said. "We have a cast member saving a spot for you, and the crowds are relatively light, but the good spots are always hard to get, and if we take too long I can't guarantee we won't miss the beginning of the show."

"Lead the way, bud!" Kyle said enthusiastically. They followed him back to Main Street and claimed their spots, standing in the middle of the ‘road' at what Mark insisted was the perfect spot. When this show started, Worthington had to admit that Mark really did know the perfect location because it was quite fantastic, even if he had to get much of the context from Kyle's mind once again.

About halfway through the fireworks display, he felt Kyle's hand reach out for his, and take it gently. A thrill ran through him at the touch, a double thrill as he felt something similar going through Kyle, and they threaded their fingers together. Deep in Worthington's mind, there was a voice screaming about how dangerous this was, or was that in Kyle's mind? It didn't matter though, because he could feel his own determination to ignore it mirrored by Kyle. He would hold no expectation, because tonight they would each go back to their own beds, no matter what, and there was no expectation for when they went back to Phoenix. Instead, they would just enjoy each moment as it happened, and let it go when it was over.

"They do this every night?" Kyle asked in wonder as the show ended and the hordes of people around them began to disperse, most heading to the park's exit. As the lights had come back up, Worthington and Kyle had dropped their hands and stepped apart slightly, and they both ignored the smile on Mark's face as he looked at where they had been holding hands.

"Almost every night, unless the weather is bad or the attendance is really, really light," Mark said happily. "Tomorrow night there won't be a show, but there will be one on Christmas, and on New Year's of course. That holiday is always crowded here."

"Really?" Worthington said with surprise.

"Yes, Thanksgiving is one of the slowest holidays," Mark explained. "Even Christmas has more people coming, especially younger couples without children."

"How interesting," Worthington said. "What now?"

"If you're not ready to go back to your room, most of the Main Street shops stay open, usually for an hour or so past park closing," Mark said. "I was planning to meet you in the morning around nine, to take you through the park."

"Are you sure you don't mind missing the holiday?" Worthington asked.

"I told you, my family and I don't get along at the moment, so it's fine," Mark said.

"Okay, let's see some of these shops," Worthington said. An hour later he was very glad the park offered free delivery to their room because he'd seriously overspent. Most of the guys in MR would be receiving gifts, in addition to his family. There were so many funny shirts and other little gifts that he found himself thinking of different people each time.

Kyle fell in love with about fifteen different baseball caps, all with some kind of Disney logo on them. He didn't hesitate to put them in Worthington's shopping bag or look the least bit abashed about it at all. When they left the store, he was even bending the bill of one of the caps, a red one, giving it the ‘right shape' as he said when Worthington asked.

Mark left them at the main entrance, and they had no problem making their way back to their hotel. Worthington was carrying one bag himself, and when they got to the room, he pulled out one of the ten Disney movies he'd bought. Sure, he wouldn't have time to watch them all, but by the time he got the wrapper off the case, Kyle had found the bags of microwave popcorn and had a bowl of the freshly popped popcorn sitting on the coffee table along with some bottled water.

"What are you doing?" Worthington asked as he sat down with the remote and cued up "Beauty and the Beast." He wanted to see for himself why he reminded Kyle of the Beast.

"It's a family tradition," Kyle said with a smile, and not the least bit of sadness in his voice or mind as he dumped the rest of the bag of M&M's into the bowl of popcorn. Worthington frowned as the movie started, and they shuffled on the couch until they were sitting shoulder-to-shoulder, with their legs touching as they rested on the coffee table. Kyle had the bowl of popcorn on his lap and held it out to Worthington.

"Not bad," Worthington admitted as the flavors of salt, butter, popcorn, and half-melted chocolate filled his mouth. He settled in on the comfortable couch, leaning against Kyle as the movie started.

Halfway through the movie, he realized that he was enjoying it as much as Kyle did, and he began to understand the allure of the fairy tale. The old crone's spell that had changed the handsome prince into the Beast, and the castle's staff into decorations and chipped china was something he would definitely classify as Dark magic, but it wasn't evil. How much had the makers of these stories known about magic?

In fact, the spell she cast had such good results, that it was impossible to classify it as evil, even if it was dark. He began to wonder how people who watched and loved these movies would react to the reality of magic. Maybe, just maybe, things would not be as dire as he'd always imagined if such a revelation were to be packaged in the right way. Certainly, the crowds watching the Phantasmic show had been cheering Mickey's magic, and he'd felt how so many of them had been willing to believe, at least as long as they watched, that magic was possible and a good thing.

As the movie ended, he realized there were tears in his eyes, and Kyle was sniffling next to him. Their hands were entwined again, and they were leaning comfortably against each other. It was erotic but in a subdued way. There was more emotion there than anything else, and the mere idea of sexual thoughts at the moment seemed somehow out of place, unwanted. Instead, he leaned over and kissed Kyle gently on the cheek.

"Thank you," Worthington said. "I'm so glad that we came here, and it's all because of you."

"Thanks for bringing me," Kyle said with a gentle smile, and then he yawned. "I guess its bed time."

"It is." Worthington agreed with a look at the clock. It was just after one in the morning. They got up together, and hugged, with Kyle giving him a kiss on the cheek before they went into their separate bedrooms. It was the most fitting end to the evening that Worthington could imagine as he crawled into the comfortable, large bed.

He should have remembered the side effects of sleeping while still in light rapport with someone. Kyle had no way of knowing what would happen, but Worthington did, so he only blamed himself for having to share the nightmares that Kyle went through that night. At least they gave him a better understanding of Kyle as he saw Kyle's friends, and family members rejecting him for being queer.

His best friend kicking him to the ground while shouting "Fag!" and "Queer bastard!" hurt more emotionally than it did physically. What was worse was knowing he, Kyle, could fight back but didn't. Why not? The answer was twofold. First, this was his best friend and no matter what, he didn't want to hurt his best friend. The other part was because something inside him told him that he deserved what he was getting. That's what everyone said when a queer got beat up or killed. They were just getting what they deserved.

Through it all, Worthington was sucked into the dreams, the nightmares, along with Kyle, but they quickly turned into something else, and Worthington knew Kyle had a very active imagination. The focus of his affection was obvious as they sat watching some weird version of Beauty and the Beast, only to be sucked into the television. Kyle was Belle, and Worthington played the part of the Beast. That dream ended as they kissed at the end, with Worthington changed back into his handsome human form, and the servants and others dancing with joy at the happy couple in a hall that more closely resembled Clairville Keep than the movie's castle.

The dreams changed as Worthington's imagination leaped to the forefront, and they were back on the balcony watching Phantasmic as it sprayed plumes of water and holograms into the air, and their minds were filled with the happiness of a massive crowd watching the show. Together they sat, their chairs next to each other, joined hands resting in Worthington's lap. They were older, in their late twenties, and somehow he knew they had lived an entire decade together, happy.

The first demon leaped out of the central water spray, landing amid the crowded walkway where people were sitting. Several were crushed under his foot claws, and he grabbed two more, both of them young children and roared as more demons leaped out from other locations in the show. The crowd switched from happiness to pure terror, and there was a massive stampede as people tried to run away only to hit against a massive spell barrier that had risen up suddenly.

People died as they were trampled by those around them or demons. Worthington and Kyle jumped to their feet, swung over the balcony as one, and landed in a crouch at the foot of the building. Power blazed around them as they attacked the shield barrier, freeing the trapped people. Somehow a hole was made for them as they approached the nearest of the demons, and blazed with combined power as they attacked.

The dream switched in mid-strike to another fight, and they were once again in the mountains of Northern Arizona, hunting down Zaroc's lair. This time they were both there though, and in addition to Brandon, there was another Channel, whose face Worthington could not see. They fought against controlled government mages, soldiers, and demons side by side, and when they faced Zaroc, the Demon Prince didn't stand a chance against their combined might. The kiss they shared over his dead corpse was passionate, and filled with joy and happiness.

Worthington smiled and snuggled deeper into the bed as he fell into a dreamless sleep. It was almost funny how he could dream of demons and consider them happy dreams, while Kyle's dreams had only humans and were nightmares. The rapport between them faded as they slipped deeper into sleep, and by the time dawn came around, they were each in their own minds, dreaming their own dreams.