A month has passed since Chelia learned about the Queen's death. A war between the two kingdoms had broken out. Though she didn't like it, she was now Queen. And as you'd expect, Chelia was doing horribly. Chelia knew nothing about warfare, and her kingdom was loosing the war. However when it came to helping her subjects, Chelia was better than her Mother. But something kept bothering her. She was so mean to Wendy. She told her she never wanted to see her again. However Chelia didn't regret her words. Wendy had lied to her about her Mother's death. She couldn't trust her.
Even after a month, there was no word from Wendy. No one had even seen her recently. It was like she just disappeared. Chelia was conflicted. She was worried for Wendy, but she hated her at the same time.
Chelia was sitting in the throne room when Romeo walked inside. He got on his knees and bowed.
Romeo: "Your Highness, we have received word from the enemy kingdom"
Chelia: "What is it?"
Romeo: "The king would like to meet with you. He says he has a solution to end the war"
Chelia: "I'm not going, I'm not that stupid"
Romeo: "You misunderstand, he is coming here, to your castle"
Chelia: "What?!"
Romeo: "He will be here tomorrow. Shall we let him in?"
Chelia: "No! Don't let him in! Kill him the first chance you get!!"
Romeo: "With all do respect, killing the king would be unwise"
Chelia: "I don't care, he had my Mother killed in his throne room. He deserves to die too"
Romeo: "Killing him would result in a war that won't end. The prince of the other kingdom will take the throne and continue the battle"
Chelia curled up in the throne so her legs were against her chest.
Chelia: "I-I can't keep doing this... H-How did Mother ever manage to be Queen...?"
Romeo: "Her Highness had many years to prepare, however you haven't. So you are at a disadvantage. However unlike your Mother, you have the respect of every citizen in the kingdom. Even the slaves are in favor of you, ever since you made it law to treat them well and make sure they have every necessity needed"
Chelia: "But I'm no good at this whole war thing. If I surrender, I'll be executed. And if we keep fighting, more people will die. I know the right choice is to surrender... but..."
Tears dripped down Chelia's eyes.
Chelia: "I-I don't wanna die...."
Romeo: "As long as I live, I will never let anyone hurt you"
Chelia: "Thanks Romeo... and you don't have to call me "Your Highness". I'm just thankful I still have you"
Romeo: "I'm still surprised you let me stay after you became Queen"
Chelia: "With Wendy gone, I needed someone to help me through this. And you've done just that. Thank you"
Romeo: "It's been my pleasure. Oh one more thing"
Chelia: "Yeah?"
Romeo: "The king said he would be coming alone. He said he just came to talk"
Chelia: "Fine, I'll humor him. But make sure guards are near him 24/7 and are around me 24/7 when he is here"
Romeo: "Consider it done"
Chelia: "Also... have you... you know..."
Romeo: "There has been no sign of Wendy anywhere in the kingdom"
Chelia: "When we catch her, she's going in the dungeon..."
Romeo: "Chelia, please tell me you're not serious"
Chelia: "She lied to me"
Romeo: "Because she didn't want you to be sad"
Chelia: "But now I'm even more sad. If she'd just told me earlier, we could've gotten through this together"
Romeo: "What you said really hurt her"
Chelia: "But I meant every word..."
Chelia stood up.
Chelia: "Romeo, can you please tell the servants to get my bath ready?"
Romeo: "Right away"
Romeo left the room, leaving Chelia in complete silence.
Chelia: "I had every right to yell at Wendy and send her away. So why.... why am I feeling this way...!"
30 minutes later
Chelia: "Ah~...."
Chelia relaxed in her bathhouse, which was now the Queen's bathhouse. It was twice as big and the water was always the right temperature.
Chelia: "This water is so nice"
She looked up at the ceiling and rested her head on the head rest at the edge of the bath.
Chelia: "Why... why is all of this happening..."
Chelia's eyes got red and she started crying.
Chelia: "Everything was perfect a month ago, I had a happy life to look forward to. Now it's either fight or be executed. I... I can't do this... I can't do this alone..."
She looked at her reflection in the water. She saw how horrible she looked. She'd barely taken care of herself. She's barley eaten and hasn't bathed much. Her hair was a mess. Suddenly, she saw Wendy's face form in the reflection. Chelia quickly turned around, but nothing was there.
Chelia: "I can't keep blaming Wendy forever. It's mostly my fault... I'm the one who yelled at her. I went too far"
Chelia got up and dried off. Later that night, she got dressed in her commoner clothes and snuck out of the castle.
Chelia: "No matter what, I'm going to find her. I have to make up with her"
For most of the night, Chelia wondered through the town, trying to find any trace of Wendy. She'd gone to the place where she first found Wendy. Once she was there, the memories flowed back into her mind. Wendy being beat up by the guards, Chelia jumping in to protect her, taking Wendy in. God... how did it all go wrong.
Chelia: "There has to be something"
Chelia then felt a slight breeze. It felt somewhat familiar. She looked up and saw someone leaping from rooftop to rooftop, with wind boosting them into the air after each leap. Before she could get away, Chelia quickly ran after her. After a few minutes of running, Chelia found herself and a small, rundown house, if you could even call it that. There was no windows or doors, the walls looked like they would cave in at any second.
Chelia: "Don't tell me..."
Chelia stepped inside and started looking around. There was barely anything in the house. However something caught her eye. In a small room, there was a wooden cross on the wall. On the floor right beneath it, were a few dead flowers. On the cross, was the name "Carla". Chelia had no idea who that was, but she guessed it was someone Wendy knew.
???: "What are you doing here?"
Chelia quickly turned around and saw Wendy standing a few feet behind her. Wendy looked even worse than Chelia did. Wendy's clothes were dusty and torn. Her body and hair were dirty. She also had multiple bruises on her arms, face, and legs. Wendy's face barley showed any emotion.
Chelia: "Wendy... what happened?"
Wendy: "Why do you care... I thought you never wanted to see me again..."
Wendy walked upstairs and Chelia followed.
Chelia: "Wendy, wait"
Wendy didn't respond and kept walking. Soon they were in Wendy's room. Or, just a small room with a hammock and a small table. Wendy sat down on her hammock and looked at Chelia.
Wendy: "What do you want?"
Chelia: "I... I came here to apologize"
Wendy: "For what...? You were right..."
Chelia: "No I wasn't. It was cruel of me to say those things"
Wendy laid down on the hammock and turned to look out the window.
Wendy: "Please... just leave..."
Chelia: "Wendy, I need to ask you something"
Wendy: "What?"
Chelia: "Who is Carla?"
Wendy quickly turned to her with a really sad expression.
Wendy: "Why do you want to know about her?"
Chelia: "Was she a friend?"
Wendy looked away.
Wendy: "Kind of... There's a lot you don't know about me"
Chelia: "What do you mean?"
Wendy: "Me and Carla were former slaves"
Chelia: "What?!"
Wendy: "We were slaves to a different kingdom. We were treated horribly, but we had each other to keep us happy. One day, we managed to escape our owner and ran away to here. But..."
Wendy hesitated.
Wendy: "We didn't have enough food. And... she died..."
Chelia: "I'm so sorry"
Wendy: "Okay, I answered your question, now leave"
Chelia: "I... have one more thing"
Wendy: "What?"
Chelia: "Come back to the castle with me"
Wendy answered almost instantly.
Wendy: "No"
Chelia's heart sped up. Wendy didn't want to go back with her.
Chelia: "Why?"
Wendy: "Because I don't belong there. I can't be trusted"
Chelia: "That's not true"
Wendy turned away from her.
Wendy: "Just leave..."
Chelia: "Wendy, please"
Wendy: "I said no"
Chelia: "Just come back to the castle with me or—"
Wendy finally snapped.
Wendy: "Or what?! What will you do?! Are you going to have me arrested and put in your dungeon?! Or are you going to have me executed?! You can't even take anything from me, I don't have anything anymore!! You said you never wanted to see me again, I took the hint. NOW GET OUT AND LEAVE ME ALONE!!"
Wendy shot a ball of wind at Chelia and sent her out of the room through the doorway. The door then closed right in front of Chelia. Chelia got up and was about to knock on the door, but stopped herself. Wendy obviously didn't want her here, so she left and went back to the castle.
The next morning, a guard came in to wake her up.
Female Guard: "My Queen, the king is on his way. He will be here soon"
Chelia: "Crap... okay, let's get this over with"
After Chelia got dressed in the Queen's outfit and got her hair dealt with, she went into the throne room and awaited for the king's arrival.
The doors swung open and about 10 guards flooded in and stood in front of Chelia. Then, a tall man walked into the throne room. He had snow white hair, but black as night eyes. He looked at Chelia with a kind smile.
???: "Queen Chelia, I am King Lyon. Though you may not remember, this is not our first time meeting"
Chelia: "What do you mean?"
Lyon: "Did your mother tell you nothing? Regardless of if I left right after you were born, she should have told you"
Chelia's blood went cold and her face went pale. She'd realized who he was, and she couldn't tell if she was happy, or terrified.
Chelia: "F-Father?"
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Yeah, so Lyon and Sherry are Chelia's parents. Don't judge me, it makes more sense if you think about the story itself. I bet that was a shock to a few of you. I left some foreshadowing earlier in the story. Anyways, I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I'll try to have the next one out by Sunday, maybe earlier. I'll see you all then, bye!!