An image kept coming back to my mind.
My parents hugging in bed, Lucius raising his sword, the pain and sadness of my agonizing cry trying to change the past.
In front of me, so close to me, the culprit was smiling with what seemed like accomplishment.
Disgust, helplessness and anger mixed in a great feeling that came from under my skin.
The magic began to build up. I could feel how it wanted to emerge and attack my opponent.
'Stay calm, girl, I can feel your anger from here.' He said and made me even more sick.
'You wanted to meet, here I am, say what you have to say.' I tried to keep my eyes fixed on him so as not to show myself as less than him.
Actually, I wasn't, I was his equal, maybe even more than him and that comforted me.
'I think you should change your tone towards your future father-in-law.'
The magic was about to get out of control, to let go completely.
Until a voice appeared in my head.
It was different from the one I had heard before. It was a man's, that was for sure.
He only said two words, which were enough to reassure me in some inexplicable way: 'Hold on.'
King Lucius noticed the immediate change and tried to throw me off balance once again.
'Now you really look like a candidate for my son, the first time it was almost humiliating to choose you from all the others, that precarious dress, that barbaric hairstyle, that wild attitude.'
The same two words kept coming back to me, 'Hold on, Hold on,'Â in an unstoppable echo that spread through my senses.
'I have two conditions to accept your son's proposal.' I crossed my hands in front of my dress, stretched my back and neck as much as I could and waited for his ironic response to come.
'You are not in a position to ask me for anything, let's be honest, if you are here today it is because you have no other way to save your people of filthy rats. You are desperate.'
I felt the anger of everyone who was with me, including Rythel, who although he came from the Kingdom of Eurus, the kingdom of air, felt part of Crescendo.
'It seems to me, Sir, that you are not in a position to deny me anything either. Regardless of the reasons for this meeting, you want my heir, it is common knowledge, and for your bad luck, you can only have him through me. Therefore I know that you will not object to anything I ask of you, and I will keep my covenant and have the baby you so desire.'
King Lucius seemed surprised, even excited by my answer, as if he could not believe I had spoken to him in such a way. Did he think that because I was a girl I could not impose myself on a man?
Rythel was so concerned that he stepped forward.
'King Lucius she did not...'
I turned around and looked at him in a way that only left him to step back. If he wanted me to behave like a real princess, then he had to let me be one.
I focused again on Lucius, who was quick to say.
'I'm listening, honey.'
I ignored how he referred to me and stated my conditions.
'First of all, you must promise to restore magic, not only in my Kingdom, but in all of them.'
The men on horseback began to murmur among themselves, some mocking, others with some concern.
'That will not be possible,' the King began to justify himself.
'It will be. You see, you created the curse in order to defeat my father, and....,' it was hard to say, 'you did it. There is no reason for it to continue. It has only brought misery upon the world.'
Still not convinced, the King let me speak.
'And consider how good the man who restored magic by saving so many lives of magical creatures and men and women all over the Earth would look.'
Lucius' eyes shone with my proposal. If there was one thing Lucius loved, it was to be beloved, to be praised. To achieve that, and then to have real power with my heir, was all he could wish for.
'I accept.'
He said in the face of the murmurs that had now become obvious complaints.
'Quiet!' he shouted in a tone that froze the blood of all present. 'What else? You said two conditions, what more could you want?'
I knew I might be going too far, but I couldn't miss that opportunity. I wanted to make it worth my while to give my life, my blood, my family to those disgusting individuals.
'For years, your kingdom has taken prisoners for the simple fact of being part of your enemy's Kingdom, for no reason other than your eternal hatred. I want you to free all the prisoners you have unjustly locked up.'
This time, the men on horseback got off their horses and advanced towards me. Lucius raised his hand and they stopped at once.
'Why would you think I would release the rats who tried to enter my territory?'
I had gone too far.
But I couldn't stop thinking about all the innocent people who had been taken prisoner. Russell's father, Albert's hunter friend Joe, Galaga, and so many others. They did not deserve to be locked up in a dungeon, being victims of the terrors of Bieno.
'Unless...' he said, holding his chin.
I feared the worst, although I didn't know exactly what could be worse.
'Unless, of course, they are officially part of the Kingdom of Bieno.'
My hands shook at his words. Was he saying what he thought he was saying?
'You suggest...?' I couldn't say it out loud.
'That we unite the Kingdoms under the name of Bieno and that my son, Prince Jonah, be the sole sovereign of a unified Kingdom.'
I had to give up my Kingdom to save all its citizens.
'Your Majesty... please think about what you are doing.' Rythel begged me, this time without approaching.
What did I have to lose and what did I gain? Of course I knew that if I accepted I would be giving up the welfare of my people, but on the other hand I could not stop thinking of all those families who had been broken in half, of all the people banished from their lives because of an enmity they had not chosen.
And then I knew what I had to do.
The answer came to me in a second. The answer to all my problems.
But first, I had to do the unthinkable.
'I accept.'
Now the murmurs were from those who were with me. I knew they must be disappointed, but they would understand, in the end everyone would understand.
'Great, we'll expect you tomorrow.'
'Pardon me? Tomorrow?' I asked, almost shouting. 'No, it's too soon.'
Lucius came one step closer to me, so close that I could feel his breath on my face.
'I've already agreed to so much for you, the least you can do is behave like a good little princess and keep your mouth shut.'
He walked away as coolly as he came. The men hesitated to attack us, but the authority of their King was such that they did nothing but to follow him.
We walked slowly back to Crescendo, in silence most of the way.
'Rythel, let's separate the group, in case they follow us.'
'Whatever Your Majesty says.' Rythel did not look me in the eye.
Once inside the Kingdom, I turned to him.
'Gather the Comrades, I want to tell you some things before we leave, I'll come at once.'
'Where do you have to go now, if I may ask?' He spoke to me coldly, harshly. He thought I had betrayed him, when in truth he had no idea what I would communicate to him later.
'I must speak to my friends, I want to say goodbye to them.'
His expression softened with an ounce of grief drawn in his eyes.
'We will wait for you.'
I headed for the yellow house not knowing exactly what I would say to them. I could not tell them my plan, as they would try to stop me. But I wanted to say goodbye, after all that had happened, I had to tell them how grateful I was for all they had done for me.
I knocked on the door as a courtesy. I knew it was open, but I no longer felt comfortable just walking in.
'Who is it?' Cara asked confusedly as she opened the door.
When she saw me, her face changed completely. She rushed to hug me, just as she had hugged Russell the first time I saw her. Then she backed away.
'I'm so sorry, Your Majesty, I shouldn't have done that, it's just nice to see you looking fine.'
I smiled tenderly.
'You mustn't apologize, it's an honor that you embraced me.' It meant that she cared about me.
She opened the door widely and revealed a table full of people. All the Laoch siblings were eating, and next to them, a very distressed Tryx, stood up the moment I made my presence known. The others imitated her, except for one person.
Russell dropped his fork and simply sat still.
I walked quickly to Tryx and, regardless of the protocol or the actual rules, I held her in my arms.
'I'm so sorry about Galaga, it's all my fault, but I'll fix it.' Tryx accepted my hug and then stepped aside a little.
'It's not your fault, Your Majesty, Galaga knew the risks and was willing to take them in order to protect you.'
I now stood in front of everyone. Aly and Annie, the twins, looked at me in wonder. It was the first time I looked like a real princess.
'I came to say goodbye.'
Questions began to emerge. I quieted them all down with the next thing I said.
'I have accepted Prince Jonah's proposal of marriage. In return for our union, magic will be restored to all Kingdoms, and all prisoners will be released.'
The looks on everyone's face were enough to understand that they did not agree at all.
'It's crazy,' Fred said.
'You've gone mad,' Rich went a little further.
'You don't have to do that.' Tryx looked worse than she sounded.
I raised my head, after holding it down for a few seconds, and spoke again.
'It is my duty to save this Kingdom, and all Kingdoms if possible...'
'Why does he want you to marry him?' Aly asked. 'After you escaped, he probably doesn't want to see you again, I don't understand.'
'Because of the prophecy.'
Though I thought everyone knew what it was talking about, no one seemed to prove it. Didn't everyone know about the prophecy? Here too, things were hidden...
'The prophecy speaks of the heir of the first son of the Kingdom of Bieno and the first daughter of the Kingdom of Crescendo. That heir will hold the power of the Fifth sign. He will unite that which brotherly enmity has separated.'
'You have to have a child with him?' Russell's voice pierced me like one of the arrows he used to hunt.
'Yes, that's what they expect of me. I'm leaving tomorrow and I hope you all know you're the best thing that ever happened to me. I will never forget your kindness. You felt like the family I could never have. Thank you.'
I left before I could listen to them.
I opened the door of the yellow house and ran through the streets without looking back.
There was only one thing left to do.
When I arrived at the Comrades' house, I approached the round table, where everyone was waiting for me.
'I need you to listen to me,' I said, catching my breath after the run. 'Tomorrow, when I get to Bieno, and King Lucius restores the magic and releases the prisoners, I need...'
The answer had become clear.
Lucius would have nothing he wanted. And we would get magic back and our men and women back.
The answer was simpler than it seemed.
Even if it cost me everything.
'I need you to let me die.'