A Different World

CHAPTER 25: Moments

Location: Obscurity Forest, Night Kingdom

I was in the library the next morning when Lucius walked in "Good morning dear" I said closing the book I was reading. "Good morning, hey mom I've been thinking what would you like? I always make ties for Winston but I never know what to make you" he said pulling out his sketchbook. "Anything you make me I will like" I replied. "But I want to make you something special" he replied. "Then how about a ribbon for my hair?" I replied. "Yeah, I can make one match fathers dresses" he replied with a smile. "That's a great idea" I replied. "I'm gonna go start working on them," he said hurrying off.

"Princeton dear, why are you hiding?" I asked noticing his foot behind one of the curtains. "How did you know I was there?" he asked peeking out. "It's a secret so tell me why were you hiding?" I asked as he came to sit next to me. "Um, I was looking for you," he said looking towards the door. "Shouldn't you be in your lessons right now?" I asked. "The tutor didn't show?" he said biting his lip. "Princeton!" Winston said walking up to us. "Aah, hide!!" Princeton said curling up to a ball next to me hiding his face. "Princeton, I can still see you," Winston said. "Mom, tell him I'm not here" Princeton whispered. "He's not here," I said looking up at Winston. Naeva stops playing with him" he replied. "I'm not, I haven't seen Princeton at all" I replied chuckling.

"Fine, then I suppose I'd go eat all the desserts on my own" Winston said walking towards the door. "DESSERT! I want some" he said jumping up. "After your lessons" Winston replied. "Aw, why?" he said taking a step back. "Go on, I'll get dessert ready for when your done," Winston said patting his head. "Alright, bye mom" Princeton said giving me a quick hug. "So what's the dessert gonna be?" I asked. "...Not sure, but I'll figure it out" he replied. "I hope so because I want some now too" I replied. "What are you reading?" he asked. "Not sure... just picked it up but I'm not sure I'm completely understanding the topic" I replied handing him the book. "Naeva, are you serious?" he said gently hitting my head with the book. "What?!" I asked. "Okay how many hours of sleep did you get last night?" he asked taking a seat next to me.

"Three why?" I answered. "It's a cookbook, Naeva, the topic is cooking" he replied. "... Ooh, I thought it was like alchemy. Well, now it all makes sense" I replied. "Well maybe I can find a dessert for Princeton now" he responded. "Yeah probably" I replied yawning. "How about chocolate mousse?" he asked and continued talking about the recipe but I was falling asleep.

"Mom?" Frederick said poking my cheek. "What's the matter?" I asked rubbing my eyes. "Winston asked me to come to get you for lunch" he responded. "Lunch? Already?" I asked sitting upright and looking around. "You slept quite a while," he said smiling. "How were your lessons?" I asked.

"Ah, the tutor quit... after I corrected him on various equation again" he replied scratching his head. "He quit? How about training?" I asked. "So so I'm still working on stance" he replied. As we made our way down. "That's good" I replied. "Mom, look I was thinking like a navy blue but I wanted to match the green dress so it might not work, but I don't want to make it green it might be too much of the same color, what do you think?" Lucius said showing me some color swatches. "Black or white maybe?" I suggested. "Mm, I don't know?" he said looking at the color combination. "Try beige," Frederick said showing him. "Oh that looks better" Lucius replied. "Dessert! Dessert I'm gonna eat some yummy dessert!" Princeton sang skipping towards us.

"Let's go eat dessert! Mom" he said grabbing my hand. "Food first, then sweets" I replied. "A little piece before?" he asked. "Nope" I replied. "Princeton if you eat a little piece before food then I get the rest of your piece when I finish my food" Frederick responded. "No you can't" Princeton replied. "I want some of Princeton's share" Lucius replied. "Mom you can't let them," Princeton said looking up me. "Boys, stop teasing your brother," I said trying not to laugh. "I only said I would take it if he ate a piece before his food," Frederick said. "Then I won't I will eat a big piece after" he replied.

We had lunch and the dessert Princeton anticipated, "You guys wanna take a stroll in today?" I asked. "Yeah" Frederick replied while Lucius and Princeton nodded with their mouths still full from their third piece. "Remember to take guards with you" Winston responded standing from the table. "You're not coming?" Princeton asked with his mouth full. "Your dad is scared of the forest" I replied wiping his face with a napkin. "Oh, okay" he replied. "I'm not scared, I'm busy," Winston responded and Frederick and Lucius chuckled. He went up to his office as always and we headed out. On the way out I passed by Ingrid "Where you guys headed?" she asked turning towards us.

"Taking  a stroll care to join us?" I asked. "A stroll? To where shouldn't you have guards?" she asked looking around. "Just around the forest, and your the Commander, come on" I responded, while Princeton tried to run off but I was holding his hand, Lucius held my over hand but was looking at the roses in the entry. "Good point," she said joining our group, Frederick and she started talking about strategies while we continued walking. Lucius spoke to Princeton about Tiria and how city life was since Princeton never really left the castle, Princeton always got really overly interested in what his older brothers told him about Tiria and the cities in the Night Kingdom.

The breeze in the air was calm, we approached the river and the three of them ran to play in it. "Ma'am, you've been quite the whole way here is something the matter?" Ingrid asked leaning over a tree. "You're free to call me Naeva," I replied leaning on the other side. "...Um, kind of confused here. So like Naeva, not ma'am or majesty?" she asked looking over towards me. "Yes, as in my actual name" I replied taking a seat on the grass. "Alright, then is something wrong... Naeva" she asked. "No, just enjoying some peace" I replied taking a deep breath. "We appreciate it, each and every one of us. To others, the Shadow Squadron is just your dream and ambition, but to us in the team is our dream come true as well. We finally found a place to belong to, and a way to give our families the care they deserve with a dignified job" she said.

"Ingrid, I'm sorry. You and the team speak so highly of me all the time, but what I show you and what I am is not the same. I'm a facade, I lost all my past friends because of this, and though I've made many new ones I don't think I'm being fully honest to any of you or myself" I replied. "I don't think I fully understand but no matter who you are I'll stand for your Kingdom... or should it be more appropriately be called Queendom?" she responded chuckling, I laughed, looking over towards the tree grove to see a faint figure. I stood up immediately without taking my eyes of it, suddenly every noise stopped and quickly got replaced an eerie silence I recognized the face. "Naeva!? Ma'am" I heard Ingrid's voice nearing. "Milan..." I responded as the figure faded with a smirk.

"Who?" she asked as I walked to the boys, "We're going back to the castle, quickly" I replied as the looked at me confused. "Frederick grab Lucius, Ingrid hold Princeton," I said and the quick but confused did as I said. I used a teleportation spell to get us to the castle main entrance. "What happen?" Ingrid asked setting Princeton down, who ran towards me. "Ingrid, maximize security in all parameters of the forest and the castle right away" I commanded checking all three boys to make sure they were safe. "You're back?" Winston said walking down the stairs. "I saw Milan in the forest, he's back," I said. "Naeva calm down, you're scaring the kids, Frederick takes your brothers to the Library," he said holding on to my arms trying to calm me down. Frederick left with the boys, Ingrid and Winston stayed with me.

"You said you saw Milan?" he asked. "Yeah, he was in the forest" I replied. "Is he someone to be worried about?" Ingrid asked. "He is, he's high-level magic user and targeting Naeva if he really is in the forest we should immediately put up defenses, restrict outsider entry" Winston replied. "Got it" she replied leaving. The boys were assigned two guards each including Lucius and though he returned to Tiria the guards followed with a letter detailing the situation to Nellie.

For a full year, the forest stayed guarded with no problems, It's was going to be two years and there was very little sign of Milan, there had been a bit of commotion here and there but nothing major.