| ➳𝒮𝑒𝓇𝑒𝓃𝒹𝒾𝓅𝒾𝓉𝓎 𝒮𝓊𝒾𝓉𝑜𝓇➳ |

❤︎ Chapter Nineteen

"Ahhh, I've got nothing after all this time! Absolutely nothing!"

I'd done everything I could possibly think of to save the heart of the tree...for hours. I read the book Prince Haga had given me until it felt like my eyeballs would pop out of their sockets.

I was only given such basic information about the heart, like its history, how it came about, what it did for the Fairy Kingdom... but nothing useful like what might make it sick and how to cure it.

I was so frustrated. Beyond frustrated. Exasperated. Angry. Frightened and sad. The emotions swarmed within me, creating one giant mess of a confused storm. My mouth upturned in a frown as I slid my fingers into my dark brown hair and yanked.

I was sure I looked like a lunatic by now. I'd been in here for hours, and judging by the 2 meals that were brought to me, I'd say I had spent the entire day in here — 12 hours at the very least. Other than to use the bathroom, I never left this spot.

Prince Haga, Crystal, Cassius, and Azura all came in frequently to convince me to take a break, and as tired and disoriented as I was, I was too stubborn to give up. I wanted to help because I was told I was capable. Sure, there was the pressure of being the only known being in the land with a heart pure enough to save the entirety of the fairy race, but I couldn't let that weigh me down!

I'd never been given the chance before to make a difference like this. To feel this special..this vital to someone. Of course, I was the heir to a throne and an entire kingdom, but I'd never been allowed to meet and be among my people and fully understand their dependence on me.

Here, it felt so much more real.

I wasn't quite sure yet if that was a good thing or a bad thing...

Ohhhh, Father would know what to do...

I want to slap myself the second the thought crosses my mind. The whole point of leaving the castle to meet my suitors was to gain freedom after breaking away from my father's control. It was temporary, so for now I refused to base my decision-making on what my father used to teach me. While I was out here, it had to be Noel and her thought process only!

This sparks me with confidence, but only briefly. I still had no idea what to do. I wanted to leave and crawl into bed to rest my heavy body, but it felt like the answer to this difficult problem was right on the tip of my tongue....

"Oh..I feel like it's right in front of me..." I stare at the heart and it interwoven roots for the millionth time, taking into account it color, size, and shape. I had learned a few things about plants from the castle gardeners and my father himself on occasion, but nothing that I think might help...

Although, there was one time that...I...

"Princess Noel! You mustn't touch those!"

I gasped when the castle gardener grabbed my wrist with a gloved hand, preventing me from caressing the soft looking petals of the flowers before me. Confused, I turn to look at him questioningly.

"Whatever is the matter with them? They're so cute, I only wanted to pick one..."

"Those flowers may look cute," the gardener pointed at them with a displeased frown, releasing my hand out of the grip of his other, "but they're actually sinister weeds that poison the life of other plants around them and feed on their life and nutrients while they slowly die. They're evil little parasites."

My hand dropped back down to my side as I looked at the tiny pink flowers clustered around the rosebush. The gardener quickly uprooted the pesky plants as I sat and watched. It was incredible — I'd walked over here thinking they looked like a beautiful decoration amongst the other flowers, so petite with a soft, yet vibrant glow to them. To think I'd almost picked one after being fooled by its beauty....

I nearly fall over, gasping as I jerk back awake.

I'm still seated in an uncomfortable cross legged position in the cozy little room where the heart of the fairy tree was kept. The heart remained before me, unchanged, although I felt this mysterious sense that its powers had reached me in a way that it could communicate with me.

Upon realizing that I had just had a dream, a crazy, wonderful epiphany of a dream, I wobble to my feet and reach out to touch the wooden heart, caressing it's surface gently.

"Are you trying to tell me something?"

My heart pounds in my chest, this fluttering sensation spreading throughout my entire body. It was that feeling right before you solved a mystery, when you knew for sure you were on to something.

I look at every angle I can possibly get at around the heart, and I don't stop looking. From every crevice, nook and cranny, I regard every branch or blade of grass with equal scrutiny.

It isn't until I trip over a root and fall in front of it that I come face to face with the culprit — those same little pink flowers from my dream had hidden themselves sneakily in the cracked middle of a slowly rotting tree root.

"Aha!" I reach out, prepared to yank up the flowers when I remember they weren't safe to touch. Without another resource to grab them, I simply shout for the guards and Prince Haga at the top of my lungs.

Everyone had been waiting outside for my call, flooding in seconds after I cried out. It's all a blur then, as I direct the guards (who wore gloves and had swords) over to the parasitic flowers.

They're removed immediately, and shortly after, everyone is instructed to leave the room while Prince Haga administers a recovery potion to the heart.

"We were so worried about you in there. You must be so exhausted!" Crystal wraps her arms around me and hugs me tightly. I don't quite have the strength to hold her back, slipping out of her grasp and collapsing on the floor in a seated position.

"Are you alright?" Azura and Cassius come to bend down next to me and I simply wave them off. I might possibly need help later getting to bed. Nevertheless, I wanted to stay to hear any news about the heart.

My friends sat on the floor to wait with me, struggling to keep me awake, asking how in the world I managed to figure out what was wrong with the giant plant, but I didn't want to answer until the Prince came out.

It felt like we waited in silence for ages until Prince Haga stepped out of the room, shutting the door behind him quietly. The guards all stood at attention in his presence, but I could tell they were nervous to hear the verdict as well. This was their lifeline, for goodness sake.

The silence was deafening.

Prince Haga takes a deep breath and releases a sigh, eyes falling on me as he walks toward me in long strides. In no time we're a breath away from the other. I watch the prince quietly as he gets down on one knee and draws me tightly into his arms, much to the annoyance of my knights.

"Princess Noel. It's only been a few minutes, and already the heart has regained 30% of its lost energy. It's all thanks to you. You've saved our kingdom, you precious angel!"

"Oh, thank goodness..." I let out a sigh of relief, all of my frustration and anger melting away into joy. As the guards breathe a sigh of relief and my companions start to cheer, I finally fall asleep in the comfort of the fairy prince's arms.