The walk through Castle Edrys’ halls was slow and demeaning. Everywhere he looked, Warren was met with angry glares and whispered remarks about “filthy Fay” or “war-hungry scoundrels”.

Scoundrels? Really?

“Where exactly are we going?” he grumbled after several minutes, rolling his eyes.

One of the lance knights scoffed. “The throne room, idiot, so the king an’ queen can decide what to do with ya.”

Warren planted his feet, refusing to take another step. “I have something for them,” he said. “A note, from Lady Rosa.”

The sword-wielding knight laughed loudly, slapping Warren’s back so he’d keep walking. “Sure you do.” He snarled. “Now keep moving.”

Warren complied, furiously wishing he still had his sword because those three Edrian knights seemed like they’d make for excellent pincushions.

Damn, okay. Calm the hell down.

Warren closed his eyes for a moment and pushed his anger to the back of his mind.

Quit thinking about stabbing the Edrian knights. You’ve got priorities, y’know.

“Rei,” he whispered.

The sword knight shot him a look. “What was that, Fay?”

“Nothing,” he grumbled.

At last, after three flights of spiral stairs and at least half a dozen corridors, they reached two large glass doors. Warren could sort of make out four figures inside the room. One was a knight, but the glass was opaque and made everything on the other side of it look a bit fuzzy. The knight from inside met them at the doors and opened them, leading Warren and the three knights with him further into the large room. It reminded Warren of Faylinn, with its carpeted floors and glittering throne. Of course, in Edrys everything was decorated in purple and silver instead of red and gold.

The sword knight gave Warren a shove and he fell to his knees.

“Your Majesties, Your Highness,” Warren heard him say. “We discovered a Fay Knight by the castle gates.” He sneered. “Perhaps he thought he could sneak in and attack the royal family.”

Warren looked up. The king, a burly man dressed in long purple robes, glared down at him.

“Rise,” he commanded. He tugged at his dark brown hair and began pacing. Beside him stood a tall woman wearing a purple evening gown. Her platinum blonde hair and icy blue eyes gave her an almost ethereal appearance. Warren gulped nervously with the realization that she was several inches taller than him.

“There was someone else here, wasn’t there?” he blurted.

The queen raised an eyebrow.

“A princess,” Warren said more certainly. “Edrys has a princess, right?”

The sword-wielding knight approached Warren and pointed his weapon at Warren’s throat.

“Of course it does! And you should know; you were planning to assassinate her!”

“Enough!” The king bellowed, taking a seat on his throne. He looked the knight right in the eye. “You. What reason have you to believe he’s out to kill us?”

“He’s a cursed Fay, Your Majesty! I should think that that would be reason enough.”

“I am not inclined to agree. Guards, untie these ropes.”

The knights’ jaws dropped. “Pardon?” exclaimed one of the lance-wielders.

“Untie him,” the queen said, her voice both beautiful and intimidating.

Reluctantly, the knights obeyed. Warren breathed a sigh of relief, rubbing his irritated wrists.

“Thank you, Your Majesties,” he said. A little voice at the back of his mind (probably Rei’s) told him to “remember his manners”, so he bowed.

“We did not make our decision out of kindness,” the king told him. “We wish to know the truth of this matter.”

Warren nodded eagerly. “Of course. I-I actually have a letter from Lady Rosa in-“

A sweet-sounding voice from behind the throne cut him off.

“Lady Rosa?!”

A young woman, likely around Warren’s age and about half a head shorter than him, regarded him curiously. She had flowing platinum blonde hair, dark gray eyes, and wore a lavender knee-length dress with a puffy skirt. Warren realized he was staring and quickly bowed again.

“Your Highness, I presume.”

Look at me, talking all fancy.

“Welcome to Edrys,” she said with a flawless curtsy. “I want to apologize for your less than…hospitable treatment.”

Warren stifled a laugh. “Don’t worry about it.”

The princess approached him, her eyes wide and hopeful. “You said you had a letter from Lady Rosa?”

“Y-Yeah, in my pack. But your knights over there-“ he tilted his head to the side, indicating the three who had captured him, “took it, so I don’t have it anymore.”

One of the lancers cleared his throat. “Uh, we have his things here, Your Highness,” dropping Warren’s rucksack, cloak and sheathed sword on the ground. Warren rushed to pick them up, “accidentally” jamming his sword’s pommel against the sword-wielding knight’s leg. Warren took a quick second to fasten his cloak and sword belt before rummaging through his bag and retrieving the letter. The king accepted it and quickly read it over, his daughter peering over his shoulder to see it too.

Once he had finished reading, the king looked up, his stormy gray eyes meeting Warren’s.

“Sir Warren.”

I’ve never been so happy to hear those words.

“My apologies,” the king continued. “And my condolences.”

The queen gave Warren a sorrowful look, then motioned for the soldiers to leave. “Return to your posts,” she ordered. They each shot Warren a dirty look as they left, and Warren was just the littlest bit tempted to give them one in return.

Try to behave yourself, at least a little.

“I would like to apologize as well,” the queen said.

The princess clasped her hands together. “You were Prince Rei’s friend?” she asked Warren.

Suddenly, a wave of emotions washed over him. “Y-Yeah,” he replied, his voice quivering. “Rei’s why I’m here.”

The king nodded. “The letter detailed your mission. It is a seemingly impossible task, but Lady Rosa has always been something of a miracle worker.”

Warren could only manage a nod.

The princess tapped a finger against her chin. “Her letter said you would need her to complete the…” She paused, as if carefully considering her words. “process.” She gave her father a pleading look. “Does this mean she will be allowed to visit?”

“Actually, I’m supposed to go back to her and-“

The king held up a hand. “She will be brought here.” He gestured toward the remaining knight. “Have a message sent to Lady Rosa, requesting her presence at the castle, and ensure a carriage is prepared for her.”

Warren nervously stepped closer to the throne. “And Duncan too?”

The princess’ face lit up. “Yes! He and I would play together as children. Oh Father, please can he come too?”

The king’s expression softened, and the ends of his bushy mustache turned upwards. “Of course, Devri.”

The knight bowed before turning to leave, the large glass doors shutting softly behind him.

“Now that we have this matter settled,” the king said, “we must decide what is to be done with you, Sir Warren.”

Warren gulped, tugging at his sword belt.

The king let out a hearty laugh and the princess playfully poked him.

“Father! You’re scaring him, you know.”

“Oh, my apologies.”

The queen cleared her throat. “If you two are quite through…” she said, regarding her husband and daughter. She turned to look at Warren. “You are more than welcome to remain here in Edrys until your mission is completed.”

Warren clumsily bowed. “Oh! Um, thank you, Your Majesty.”

The princess giggled. “We’re happy to have you.” Her expression darkened for a moment. “Although, I do not think the same can be said for the rest of Edrys.”

The king waved a hand dismissively. “It is of no consequence. He is our guest now.” He motioned for the princess to come closer. “My dear Devri, would you please escort him to one of our guest rooms?”

Princess Devri clapped her hands together enthusiastically. “Absolutely. Follow me, please.”

She curtsied to her parents before turning on her heel and heading towards the doors.

“Er,” Warren bowed awkwardly and hurried to catch up to Princess Devri, “thanks again, Your Majesties for y’know, not having me executed or anything.”

Warren heard Princess Devri stifle a laugh.

“Let’s go, Sir Warren,” she said with a grin.

As the two exited the throne room Warren couldn’t help breathing a sigh of relief. Princess Devri was still trying not to laugh.

“Did you really believe my parents would execute you?”

“Well, it’s Edrys we’re talking about,” he replied, quickly clapping a hand over his mouth. “Sorry.”

Princess Devri shook her head. “You needn’t apologize. If I were to visit Faylinn as an Edrian knight I’m sure I would feel the same.”

They were silent for a moment as they descended two flights of steps and started down a long corridor.

“Did you…” Warren started. “Did you know Rei?”

Princess Devri stopped suddenly. “I-I did, actually.” She twirled a lock of hair around her finger. “When we were children our parents would often have us keep each other company during meetings. But that was well over a decade ago.” She continued walking, albeit at a much slower pace than before. Again, she was silent as they walked through several more corridors, fixing her eyes on the ground.

“I found out shortly after it happened,” she said, surprising Warren as he realized what she was referring to. “What a horrible fate.”

A tear streamed down her face.

“Princess…”

She wiped her eyes on her palms and took a few deep breaths, opening a door in a hall full of ones identical to it.

“I-I’m okay.”

As they stepped into the room Warren couldn’t help blurting out, “You’re not.”

The princess eyed him with confusion. “Pardon?”

“You’re not okay.” He took a seat on the bed and motioned for Princess Devri to sit as well. She reluctantly agreed, refusing to look him in the eye.

“You can’t know that, Sir Warren.”

Warren shrugged. “Maybe not, but I’ve got a pretty good idea. We’re kind of in the same boat with this whole ‘Rei’ thing.”

To his surprise, the princess began to giggle, which turned into loud laughter as tears streamed from her eyes.

“You’re right.” She laughed. “Oh, you’re so right. I’m not okay.” She sighed, wiping her eyes and smiling. “Ah, it feels good to say it.”

Warren sat in silence, unsure of how to respond.

“My mother likes to compare me to a balloon,” Princess Devri said, a note of whimsy in her voice. “I can hold only so much before I burst.” She stood, dusting off her dress and heading for the door. “Perhaps you are a balloon too, Sir Warren.”

The door shut, and Warren immediately flopped backwards and covered his face with his hands, as if that would prevent any tears from escaping.

“I’m not okay,” he whispered, uncovering his face. He sat back up and glanced out the window at the sweeping, snowy landscape of the kingdom that had taken the life of his best friend. The princess’ words echoed in his mind.

Perhaps you are a balloon too.

And then the tears began to fall.