Luz's POV
A month has passed after my mission to get Lilith to retreat her and her army back to their kingdom. A couple of things happened during that time. Viney and Jerbo were able to confess their love towards the twins which they felt the same way. If only I had the guts to confess to Amity. Alador and Odalia were happy that the twins had someone to love.
Moving on to a trip that my family, Amity, and I went to. We visited the Cuticle Kingdom to meet with Boscha, Princess Willow, and the kings. There were more plants planted around the land than the last time I came there. I never thought a domain would be very colorful and smell good at the same time. It was an amazing experience as I got to spend time with my friends and family.
Throughout the visit, Boscha and Willow have been flirting with each other non-stop. I think this was a sign to confess my love for Amity. After our trip was over, Eda had to be sent off for a week to help out a kingdom who we are allied with. That's when Amity decided to sleep over at my house, so my mom and Vee wouldn't feel alone without Eda.
Once she returned, there was a huge festival set up. We always have them once a year. It's a tradition where the entire Blight family come out together and celebrate with their people for fun. I have always looked forward to them ever since I was young. There will be food, music, performances, and fireworks. I'm going to have a blast.
3:30 pm
"Are we all ready to head out? I need to check in with Alador before we can actually enjoy ourselves at the festival," Eda asked everyone.
"I think we are. Are we okay for everything, Luz and Vee?" My mother waited for my sister and I to respond which we both nodded.
"Great. Let's head out then."
One by one, we left our house and strolled towards the castle. Many people were setting up stands and hanging banners and other decorations on houses.
"It seems everyone is getting into the spirit for today's festival," Vee mentioned.
"Everyone has always been like that. You know we are known as the happiest kingdom," I responded.
"You're right about that sis. No wonder you've been smiling like a crazy lady whenever you are around Princess Amity." A smirk grew on Vee's face as I blushed lightly. I heard my moms snicker in front of me from what my twin sister said. My mom and Vee knew about my crush on her when Amity slept over.
They noticed right away from the way I act around the princess. Ever since then, they have been giving me advice on how to ask her out. On the other hand, Eda already knew that I like Amity more than friends. She's been hinting at Amity for me, but it's obvious that Am is oblivious.
"Do you guys want to head inside or would you rather out here?"
"We will stay here. I don't want these two to be such a ruckus in front of the king and queen," my mom placed a hand on top of my head and Vee's.
"I'll be quick then," Eda left while we stood outside.
"We don't cause any ruckus. We are adults mama," I tried convincing my mom.
"Even so, you'll run off to find Amity and Vee will be touching everything she sees."
"She does have a point sis," Vee smirked once again.
"I wouldn't run off to Amity. Her and I are just friends and will be that way forever."
"Sure Luz. Keep telling yourself that. If you don't end up telling the princess how you feel, who knows if someone will come by and sweep her feet off from the ground."
"Yeah, you're right. I'm just scared she'll reject me. I need to be super romantic and not mess anything up."
"Since today is the festival, you can confess to Amity when the fireworks appear. That's definitely romantic."
"How do you know that's romantic?" I eyed my sister suspiciously.
"Eda taught me a lot of stuff on how to swoon anybody. She even showed me how she managed to snatch mom," Vee giggled.
"What Edalyn did was not romantic but I still fell in love with her," mama smiled, thinking about the memories of her and Eda.
"Yeah, I agree with mom. Just be yourself as usual and maybe add some spice to things such as flirting. Though, you have been doing that. So keep it up and everything between you and Amity will go smoothly."
"I'll take your word for it," I held a determined grin.
"Make mama proud cariño."
"I will ma."
We all smiled at each other before Eda left the castle and came along with us to look at stands. I communicated with some people who I have met through my mothers and caught them up with what's going on in my life. Most of them were interested when I introduced the job I had of protecting Princess Amity. Two hours went by and finally the royalties came out of the castle.
Everybody was cheering and clapping as their excitement expanded to see the Blight family. My eyes were only focused on Amity as her hair is perfectly brushed with her tiara sitting on top of her head. She was wearing a light purple undershirt with puffed sleeves, a darker purple vest over the top, and black heels. I felt my face become warm while I continued staring at the princess I desire to be with. I felt someone nudge me on my side.
"You are so in love with the way you stare at Princess Amity like a maniac. She will notice you are drooling over her," Vee sighed.
"Sorry about that. I-I can't help myself," I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling embarrassed.
"Anyways, she's coming towards you. I'm heading off to find something delicious to stuff in my mouth. Diviértete con tu princesa, hermana (have fun with your princess, sister)," Vee winked before leaving me standing alone. I knew my face was entirely red from getting caught staring at Amity and from what my sister told me.
I had no idea Amity was already near me when she tapped my shoulder. I slightly flinched and whipped my head in her direction. I suddenly felt myself become slightly nervous now that she was with me.
"Hey Luz."
"Oh hey Princess Amity! It's great to see you! I mean, I always see you, but I just want you to know that it really is great to see you hehe," I chuckled nervously.
"Uh, are you okay? You're acting a little weird today," Amity's eyes were filled with concern.
"Oh, me? Pft...why wouldn't I be okay? I'm just excited that the festival is happening. This is how I act sometimes."
I'm so stupid.
"I've never seen you this excited but okay. I told my dad that I'll be hanging out with you if that's okay," Amity slowly tucked a strand behind her ear.
"I would lov- I mean...like that. It'll be like the time when we went to Bonesborough."
"Haha yes! It felt as if it was yesterday."
"Time flies, doesn't it?"
"Yeah...it does."
"Well, let's not waste any time," I gently grabbed Amity's hand and led her around the area where the festival took place. Mostly everyone greeted Amity and offered her goods that they made. Some men would grab her hand and kiss the top of it. I was sort of annoyed by it, but I held a happy face. As for the princess, she was used to this and didn't bother her as much.
We continued moving on from market and market and eating homemade dishes that people were offering to others. Amity and I listened to music that a group of people were playing from their instruments. Then we watched a stand up comedy and caused the both of us to laugh most of the time. During that time, I couldn't help but admire Amity's laughter as it sounded angelic.
Slowly, the day went by and it started to get dark. The sun was beginning to set, and the moon was on its way to the sky. The last thing on our list was to watch the play that would end the festival with fireworks. There were haystacks laid out everywhere for everyone to sit down and watch the performance. It was packed once Amity and I had arrived. Amity preferred if we just sat all the way in the back of everybody which I agreed with her idea.
I went along with it because I made a promise to myself that I'd confess my love for Amity. I was scared shitless to tell her, but I'm not someone who will back down and give up. Throughout our time together, I enjoyed being next to her. Whenever Amity is with me, I feel giddy and excited. I realized that she's my happiness. Just like my family.
"The demon was then slayed by the knight who took down many enemies in the past. The princess knew that the knight who had saved her, would forever be her soul mate. The princess came up to the knight and pulled him in-" I zoned out and laid my eyes on Amity. I was grateful that she didn't notice me staring at her considering she is into the play. In my head, I told myself how lucky I was to get this close to the princess.
Amity was feisty the first we met, but I managed to get her out of her shell and become friends. I definitely needed to thank Eda for the opportunity to become a knight. Without it, I would feel alone and lost. I'm a flame that was starting to get smaller and disappear soon, but Amity was the flammable substance that kept my flame going.
I got out of my trance once Amity stood up from the log that we were sitting on and clapped. I did the same to blend in with the audience. The performers on the stage thanked everyone for watching their play and announced that the firework show would begin shortly. I exhaled deeply as my time to tell Amity how I felt was about to come.
"Is everything okay Luz?" Again, Amity looked worried and concerned. I wanted to slap myself for sighing a little loud for her to hear.
"Everything is-"
BOOM!
Fireworks were spurting out behind the stage, one by one. The light reflected when the fireworks exploded in the air, and the sound was loud enough for other kingdoms nearby to hear. I saw a red light go up with a high pitch sound far behind Amity. It didn't explode out any shape. The light only went straight up. I stared at it weirdly but immediately ignored it as my mission is to tell Amity my feelings for her.
"Um...Amity?" The girl I'm in love with turned her head to me. She gave me her full attention with her eyes staring into mine.
"Yes Luz?"
I gulped and felt my heart racing. My hands felt sweaty from underneath my armor. I was feeling flustered and anxious at the same time. This will be the time I finally get to tell my crush that I like her more than friends.
"There's something I need to tell you, and to me, it's the right time to say it," I kept a serious face and quickly grabbed both of Amity's hands into mine. She glanced at our hands before viewing my face and waited for me to continue. The feeling of butterflies were fluttering inside of my stomach from the way Amity looked as the fireworks were flashing different colors against her face.
"I always have an amazing time when I'm with you. Everything that we do together are memories that I enjoy replaying in my head. You're a cool, sweet, beautiful, and classy girl. I'm so lucky to know a lot more about you than most people. You're really wonderful to be with Amity. A-And for that...I-I just want to say that I really li-"
That's when I heard screaming and yelling from behind. Both Amity and I turned around to see an army that belonged to Belos on stage, destroying it. Everyone was running as knights arrived on scene and fought off the enemies.
"Where is Edalyn Clawthrone?!" I heard a familiar voice come out from behind the stage. The voice belonged to Hunter as he revealed himself. This time, his face wasn't covered by a mask. His blonde hair, red eyes, and a scar on the left side of his jawline was all shown. In his hand was a bow and a single arrow on the other. Hunter had a scabbard with his sword and another for the bow and arrows.
"How in the world did they get here?" I clenched my teeth in anger.
"They must've broken through the front gates. That's the closest entrance there is here. The knights that were guarding the gates might be knocked out," Amity explained.
"Everyone needs to evacuate the kingdom."
"That is what we are doing," Alador along with Odalia and the twins came by.
"We sent out knights to protect our people and guide them out of here. Not only are Belo's army here but we heard news that they're scattered around the entire kingdom," Odalia clarified.
"You guys need to leave here as well. Who knows what they'll do to all of you if they find you," I suggested.
"Odalia and I are staying here. As for our children, they'll be away from our kingdom."
"Why can't we stay here? We need to protect our people," Amity wondered.
"I'm on Mitten's side," Edric and Emira declared.
"It's safer if you three are together and away from danger. I don't want any of you to fight off our enemies alone. Who knows what will happen to you?"
"I agree with your father. As a knight, it's my duty to protect Amity and our people. It'll be better for me to know you guys are safe," I sided with Alador.
"Your majesty. We are ready to ride away and head to the Cuticle Kingdom," two knights stepped off the carriage that belongs to the Blight family.
"Right. Edric, Emira, and Amity, head in please. Everything will be fine here."
"I'm sorry to say this, Alador, but you and Odalia should go with them as well," out of nowhere, Eda approached us.
"Eda! You're okay! Where's mom and Vee?" I asked while getting worried.
"They have left the kingdom. I made sure of it, so they're safe."
"I'm glad to hear that."
"Now I'll be even more glad if all of you evacuate your kingdom," Eda added.
"You know Odalia and I can't do that, Edalyn. We need to make sure men, women, and children are gone while our knights fight. I need to fight as well."
"You don't need to, old man. Our men will have everything under control. We will get rid of every single one of our enemies. Nobody will die today. Therefore, get out of here. Watch over your kids and wife. Family is more important. That's what you told me the first time we met," Eda grinned.
"Eda is right. Her and I will be able to scare them off. She is the general and I am the protector of Princess Amity Blight," I stated.
"Okay...Just, don't die out there you two. Do your best out there and be careful."
"We will."
Alador nodded before saying, "Let's go in the carriage everyone."
The twins were the first to go in the carriage, then it was Odalia. Amity went in and Alador was the last one to enter.
"Take care and we'll let you know the details," Eda said.
"Thank you Edalyn. Hopefully this will all end quickly," Alador hoped.
"Same here."
The knights were about to ride away until Amity yelled out, "Wait!"
Her head popped out of the opening that was covered by a small curtain. I jogged up to her to see what she needed.
"What is it, princess?"
She quickly placed her hands on the side of my face and rested her forehead against mine. I placed my hand on top of Amity's while staring into her eyes.
"Don't die, you hear me? I need you with me. I don't want to lose you because you're important to me. I like you a lot, Noceda. More than friends," Amity smiled with tears glossing her eyes. I could've sworn my heart stopped for a second. This was the moment I've been waiting for. My dream came true.
"I like you too, Amity. A lot more than you think. But I promise I'll come to you safe and sound," I kissed away Amity's tears before backing away, letting go of her hand. The carriage began riding away while Eda and I stayed behind.
"Eda...Amity likes me," I was stunned.
"I heard it alright. Now that's another reason why you need to fight your hardest and live kid," Eda placed a hand on my shoulder.
"You're right."
"Let's go kid. We have enemies to destroy."
"Hold on. They're after you, so why don't you run away?"
"Because it's my job as a general to protect this kingdom. And if they want me, they need to start a head to head fight with the best, which is me," Eda pulled out her sword and sprinted towards some enemies that were burning down the stage.
"What's the plan?" I followed next to Eda with my sword in my right hand.
"We need to get rid of every foe that's here. We'll start off with these idiots. Hunter is the main opponent so we have to defeat him in order to make his men feel weak now that their co-leader is down."
"What about Lilith? Is she here along with Belos and Kikimora?"
"I doubt Belos and Kikmora are here. They prefer to sit back and watch the show instead of being involved unless it's a huge war going on. As for Lilith, she's definitely here as the reason why these fools are here is to kidnap me and take me to Belo's palace. I don't know why my sister can't give up and leave me the hell alone, but it seems Lilith wants to make me feel irritated by what she's doing."
"Don't worry Eda. We'll make sure that she and her army mess with the wrong people."
"You know it kid. Let's do this!"
"Got it!" Eda and I ran full speed towards our enemies with our swords drawn.
"There she is! Get her!" Hunter exclaimed as a couple of his men went straight for us. I went in front of Eda and clashed my sword against two guards. Three more went around me and began attacking Eda. I used my strength to shove my enemies back and swung my sword to protect myself from getting sliced. I was able to block their swords and pierce through their bodies with my weapon. A few more tried to go against me but failed.
I faced my body to Eda to see her finishing off the rest of our foes. Belo's army put up a fight, but they are not as nearly strong as my mother and I. There weren't any attackers who were focused on me. They were busy burning down and destroying the kingdom. Some left the area as knights were chasing after them.
"Idiots. Running away like fools. Looks like I got to take care of matters myself." The blazing fire rose higher and slowly burned the stage behind Hunter. The front of him was dark but from behind the blonde boy was glowing with the light of the flames that are destroying what our people have built and took care of. I taken my stance until I felt Eda's hand placed on my shoulder. I stared at her as she glared at Hunter.
"Leave this to me kid."
"What?! No I won't. We have an advantage to capture him," I reasoned with Eda.
"But I'm way stronger than him. He won't beat me. Now, you need to take care of this kingdom. Make sure that the citizens are safe and away from danger."
"Luz won't need to do that," a dark shadow came out behind a tree. That shadow was revealed to be Lilith. Along with her appeared about twenty of her men who surrounded Eda and I.
"What the hell is this Lilith!? You come to my friend's kingdom and destroy it just so you could take me?! How pathetic are you to do such a thing?" Eda scowled at her sister.
"I'm doing what Belos wants. It's also something I want as well. I gave you many chances to be a part of Belo's army but you denied."
"Duh! That's because I swore to protect this place as a general knight. If you really want me to join your stupid group, you'll have to take me down."
"No one is taking you down. There's gotta be something else other than taking Eda along with you. You can't just take her away," I tried convincing my aunt from kidnapping Eda.
"Edalyn is the only reason why we're here. Step down Luz and let us peacefully take my sister where she truly belongs. You won't get hurt if you're not in our way."
"Oh I will be in your way. I'm not giving up so easily."
"Luz. Lilith is serious. You need to leave and let me handle this. I don't want you to be involved and get yourself killed."
"You should know by now that I'm stubborn as hell. Which means I'm not going anywhere until we get rid of everyone, one by one."
"If you're not willing to give yourself up, then we'll take both of you by force. Hunter and I will be included in taking you both with us to Belo's kingdom. Men! Let us go forth and take my sister and niece with us. After we capture them, we'll retreat back and claim this as a victory!" The horde of men made the circle smaller while they proceeded towards us.
Eda and I had our backs leaned against each other with our swords in front of us to prepare ourselves for an attack.
TWANG!
An arrow was shot out by Lilith's comrade that stood next to her and hit Eda below the knee. It managed to puncture through her muscle which made Eda bend down on her good leg. She only had a chest plate on as the rest of her armor was at home. Eda clenched her teeth, wincing in pain with the arrow sticking out. I squat down to put her arm around my shoulders and pick her up in a standing position. I stayed alert and pointed my sword to back the enemies away.
"Hah! You think an arrow can bring me down so easily? I still have a lot of fight left in me," Eda held a cocky smile. She placed her sword down to use as a cane to keep her standing without my support. I noticed there was a haystack that was next to Eda. It looked like she was thinking of something since she was eyeing on it.
"Too bad it'll be over for-"
"Miss Lilith! The knights are coming this way quickly! There are approximately fifty of them!" One of the guards ran in our direction with a feared expression. I heard horses trotting from afar with men shouting in the woods.
"Steve! Shoot arrows from that direction while we take my sister and Luz," Lilith ordered.
"Yes ma'am."
"As for you two, your days are outnumbered."
"Not a chance," I tossed my sword at the guards while they tried to dodge my attacks. I had a plan to keep them distracted until the knights would arrive in time to get our enemies to flee.
"Like I said before, I'm not willing to give up. Eda is important to me because she's my family, and family is important to me."
"She's right about that Lily. You were important to me until you decided to betray this kingdom and side with Belos. You're nothing but a traitor, and I don't tolerate traitors! HAAAA!" Eda grabbed the haystack and tossed it towards the bunch of Belo's scums. I quickly used the sword to prick a couple of them as Eda did with the rest.
The knights were barely appearing out of the woods. Our foes swiftly ran away, leaving Lilith and Hunter. From my aunt's eyes, she seemed upset and bothered. Hunter looked disappointed and guilty before running off with his men. Eda points the sharp end of her sword at Lilith with a dagger expression.
"You've underestimated me. I'm displeased with the way you are. What happened to the Lilith I knew years ago? The one who was kind and determined to achieve goals and dreams. What happened Lily?!" Tears fell down from Eda's face with her teeth clenched tightly. Lilith froze in place as she watched her sister sob.
"I-I feel as if I don't matter. Everyone looked up to you but not me. I've done so much to be the best knight I could until you took my spot. Everyone noticed and loved you while I was being pushed all the way to the back where nobody could no longer see me. It was always you and it'll be like that. That's why Belos gave me a chance to be somebody. Someone that's worthy to be noticed and admired." Eda slowly lowered her sword away from Lilith.
"I'm sorry sis. I didn't know you felt this way."
"It's okay. I'm sorry as well. I must go," Lilith started walking away before Eda stopped her.
"Wait! Reconsider being a part of Belo's kingdom and instead stay here with me."
"I wish I could, but I'll most likely be hanged if King Alador has his hands on me. Farewell Edalyn and Luz." Eda and I stood still while watching Lilith disappear into the woods. We heard a couple of horses running to us.
"General Edalyn! Thank goodness you're okay. It seems you're injured. Please, allow Barcus and Jerbo to carry you up to my horse so I can take you to a nurse as soon as possible," Viney came along with Jerbo and Barcus.
"Thank you Viney. I'm glad you guys made it here. I thought Luz and I would be goners."
"We're happy to know that you're both safe. Too bad some part of the kingdom is destroyed. Looks like we'll need to repair the damage. What matters is that we managed to get everyone out safely. Luckily, there were no casualties from our side. We won this battle."
"Yeah, we did," Eda smiled while wiping her tears away.
"I've brought you King so you can scout the area to see if there are any troops lurking around. Maybe you can help put out the fire," Viney handed me the strap that was attached to King's neck.
"Thanks. Make sure that my mother is patched up," I hopped on King. Before Viney could answer, I slammed the rein down on King which made him run off to the direction I wanted to go to.
While riding King, my mind was running wild. I knew Eda and I wouldn't die nor be captured. Though it was crazy Lilith and Eda had a moment together. I've never seen Eda cry like that before. Seeing that made me realize that Eda wanted her sister back. Lilith was the closest family Eda had before she met my mom and Vee. It must've been lonely. Never would I want to feel the way Eda had felt before. I hope they make up.