Chapter Three

I wanted to scream again, bump my head into the tree, and throttle that rude man. But instead I stood there, open-mouthed, looking at them.

The rude man spread his hands. "Well, do you want the horses to tell you yourself that we have to go?" The horses whinnied as if they were agreeing with him.

Cepheus smiled at me and without another word, took off his coat and put it on my shoulders. He helped me mount the horse, and then sat behind me. Mr. Rude mounted the other one. And we rode through the chilly night air.

I felt guilty, because Cepheus was riding wearing a tunic. He must have noticed that I kept glancing at him.

"Don't worry about me, Princess. I'll be fine," he said.

It was Mr. Rude's fault anyway. He was riding ahead of us, but he looked really handsome, with the wind blowing off his face. Well, except that he was ill-mannered. If he hadn't poured water on me, Cepheus wouldn't have done this.

We reached the end of the woods, and there were still trees everywhere, but they were smaller and more scattered. We rode in silence as I took in the fact that I really am here. But how did I get here?

Cepheus turned to look at me. "We're almost there, Princess."

"There? Where—" We were riding towards a magnificent structure that I've only seen in movies – a palace. A fairytale palace. "You've gotta be kidding me."

We entered gates, and in the light of the torches, busy soldiers in full armor made way, giving us curious looks. I kept my head down, even when I dismounted.

Annaliese. It's gonna be alright.

I stayed close to Cepheus while trying to match his pace, trying to make sense of what I was seeing, and when another set of doors opened, I had the urge to slap myself again.

The floor was made of marble, and the walls made of gold. My head was spinning from what I was seeing. They led me through the halls of the palace, and I kept my mouth shut. We finally stopped at a huge door, and Cepheus bowed. The other bowed also, though I can see him smirking at me. The men at the entrance opened the door, and the lights blinded me. There was a huge aperture at the ceiling, letting the moonlight in, lighting up the whole room and giving it an ethereal atmosphere. The floor was made up of precious stones, and the moonbeams caused it to glisten. There were twelve thrones, arranged in a semicircle, with the biggest three in the middle. Engraved in the floor was an emblem of a blue lion.

A man stood in the center of the large room. He turned around and smiled. I rubbed my eyes.

"Thank heavens you're safe, Annaliese. I was so worried about you. The whole palace was worried about you," he said in a familiar voice.

My eyes were filling with tears. The man had light sandy brown hair that fell in waves, eyes that seemed to have seen everything and a smile that warmed me down to my toes.

If this is a dream, then I must be talking to my father.

My father look-alike was dressed in royal clothing, with a golden crown at the top of his head. After wrapping me in a warm embrace, he sat down on one of the big thrones and motioned for me to sit beside him. I wondered what I must have looked like, gawking open-mouthed. I tried to curtsy, and then realized I was still in my nightgown! Luckily I was wearing Cepheus's coat. He was studying me with those brown eyes my father had, and I awkwardly sat next to him. He took my hands in his.

"Are you all right, my daughter?" he inquired.

I blushed, not knowing what to say. Even their voices were exactly alike. The concern in their voices was the same too. I only bowed my head and he patted my hand reassuringly.

"General!" he called. The door opened but I kept my head down. When I glanced up, electric blue eyes were glaring at me.

"General, accompany the princess to her quarters. I am sure she had an exciting day," the man beside me said. Exciting was an understatement.

"Yes, Your Majesty," the General said and bowed to him. He held out his hand to me with a neutral expression, devoid of his ridiculing earlier. "Princess."

No way.

I stood up and ignored his hand. His eyes seemed to even grow colder, as if they were two orbs of ice. I bowed to the king and left the room. Cepheus was outside, pacing. He smiled when he saw me. Then his eyes focused on something behind me.

"Cyrus, take care of her," Cepheus said. "I have to check something first."

I swallowed but resisted the urge to look at the man standing behind me. In my father's story, Cyrus is the general of Seriah, which was ruled by King Arioch. If he really is Cyrus, then that proves it. I really am here, in a world created by my father's pen.

"And Princess," Cepheus said with a wink. "I'll see you tomorrow."

He waved goodbye, and I found myself alone with the rude but handsome General.

"This way, Princess," he said, the mocking tone still present. He started walking down the corridor, not even waiting for me to follow him. I ran to catch up to him, and I ignored the cold floor beneath my bare feet.

He slowed down a little and soon he was walking silently in front of me, cape flowing behind him, looking all serious and scary in his dark armor. I contemplated if I should ask him questions, but judging by the stiffness of his shoulders, I bit my tongue instead. He probably didn't even want to talk to me. I was startled when he suddenly stopped and faced me. His brows were scrunched together, but he was so breathtakingly gorgeous. This kind of perfection shouldn't exist. He's sort of a jerk though.

"Stay here, Your Highness," he said as he opened a golden door. "They still might be here."

It took a while for me to respond. "Who?"

Another glare."If you do not recognize them, do not open the door, understand? I and the other guards will be outside."

"But—"

He closed the door and left, not even bothering to answer my question.

"Wait!" I stomped my feet in disgust. I don't even know anyone in here, let alone recognize them! Come back here, you jerk!

I turned around, and I saw that "my" room was a large room, with a velvet bed and a frilly canopy, a large mirror, bookshelves, and other things that I imagined would be in a princess's room. It was more elegant than my room back home. I threw myself on the bed and closed my eyes, recalling my father's story and what I wrote.

Seriah was the kingdom of the East. The other three kingdoms were Ahavah, Eleos and Eirene, with their own rulers and own people. My father didn't write about the other three, and focused on Seriah.

Seriah was ruled by King Arioch and Queen Anastasia. They had one daughter named Annaliese. The kingdom was prosperous and the citizens were happy with their lives. But the Western Kingdom of Eirene was jealous of Seriah. Its ruler, King Altair, harbored a bitter grudge against Arioch. So, one day, in a blind rage, he sent assassins to kill Arioch, but the palace was under surveillance by the General and the soldiers, so their attempt failed. Unable to go back empty handed, they decided to kidnap the princess instead. Arioch then sends Cyrus and Cepheus to rescue the princess. Luckily, with her cleverness, she outsmarts her abductors and flees to the Enchanted Woods. And this is where I stopped. That's what I wrote in that book. But the story went on and...

They found me in the Woods.

I must have slept late, because when I woke up, the sun was already shining high in the sky. I expected Hilda to knock on the door and greet me or Carole to yell at me to wake up. But no Hilda or Carole came. No one entered at all. I was still wearing my nightgown. Plus, I stunk.

After showering, I opened the closets and found elegant and beautiful dresses inside. I picked a long blue satin one and wore blue shoes. I didn't know what I was going to do, but maybe I'll savor being royalty for once. I looked out the window and saw a garden of roses in the east of the palace. I don't remember writing that or in my imagination.

I saw Cepheus on my way to the garden, and he waved at me. I wanted to wave back, but I smiled instead. He's a fictional character, Annaliese. Fictional.

The roses were in full bloom, and there was a fountain in the center of the garden. It had an eerie feeling about it. I don't remember my father mentioning this fountain, but it looked familiar.

"It is too early for you to sneak around, isn't it?"

I turned and those cold blue eyes greeted me.

"Sneak around?" I tried to level my voice. "Why would I sneak around?"

"After your escapade yesterday, I just wanted to make sure. You had us all worried," he said, his tone still sarcastic. I wanted to answer, but I didn't know what really happened when they abducted the princess, because my father didn't go into details. After all, I was only a little girl back then. But in spite of myself, the thought of Cyrus being worried about me made me blush.

His lips twisted into a smile. "Of course, I don't want to go in the middle of the night rescuing a princess who trips and hits her head on a tree deliberately."

He just had to remind me that. I felt my face becoming hotter. I was about to retort when King Arioch approached us. He looked so much like my father that I almost called him Dad.

"I see that you're already talking to each other," the king said with a broad smile.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I was just watching over Her Highness," he said after a bow, his voice deepening and his tone polite. "She had some accidents earlier," he added as his eyes turned to look at me. There was no mistaking the glint in those ice orbs.

Because I am a klutz, you mean.

"I'm glad I chose you to save her," said the king.

"I am honored to serve the kingdom." Strangely, he sounded like a knight. He looked the part too, but he wasn't being a knight last night. "She had me worried. I thought we would lose her," he continued.

I blushed again. Shut up already!

Well, two can play at this game.

I slowly faced him. "I'm sorry, General, if I caused you uneasiness last night," I said, smiling sweetly at him. That surprised him, his eyes widening. Good.

"You had no idea how scared I was," I continued, and then moved closer to him. He was a whole lot taller than me, so I stood on my toes, until my face was inches from his. "Thank you for saving me," I whispered, looking directly into his eyes. His face began to redden.

The king cleared his throat. "Well, I'll leave you two alone."

When the king was out of sight, I laughed at him so hard that I couldn't breathe.

"What was that for?" he shouted, obviously flustered.

I stuck my tongue at him then ran to the courtyard.

That afternoon, I toured the capital city of Seriah with Cepheus, also named Seriah. He wasn't exactly showing me around, just trying to let me be familiarized to the place since, according to him, I don't go out much. He showed me the marketplace, and the people were very busy buying and trading. There was also the Pegasus Square, with a fountain displaying two pegasi with their wings spread.

He also showed me where the common people lived. I was elated to see that there were no slums, and their houses were decent. The children were playing, with their mothers telling them to take a bath. It looked like this was a common routine for them. My mind was bursting with questions, but I had to pretend that I lived here. Fortunately, Cepheus did all the talking. He talked about the markets, the guards, what the Council is supposed to be doing, the commoners. The guy could talk about anything under the sun.

According to Cepheus, we had to be back to the palace by noon. As we strolled in the Square, those who weren't busy were staring at me. I moved closer to Cepheus.

"Relax, Princess. They just want to see you," Cepheus whispered.

"But aren't they too intense?"

He stared at my hand clutching his arm and laughed. "Well, I guess they are surprised. You are the princess after all."

"Oh."

We stopped as three tough-looking men approached us. I clutched Cepheus's arm tighter.

The men stopped in front of us. They were dressed in vests and loose pants, and there were blue markings at their arms. They bowed and laid a basket at my feet. Cepheus did some strange gesture at them, and they bowed again. Then they left.

"What was that?"

"They just wanted to give you their fruits," he chuckled, his green eyes dancing in the sunlight. "Calm down. Nobody's going to hurt you."

I stared at the men who were walking back to the stalls in the corner. I glanced at the other men, and they also had blue markings on their arms. The women had blue markings on their hands. I looked closer and saw that it wasn't just markings. They resembled the image of a lion.

"Cepheus, why do they have marks on their arms?" I said as we resumed walking.

He looked at me like I just asked if I was a girl. "Oh, right. Markings on your body signify your bloodline. It could be anywhere on your body."

"What does that mean?"

He was clearly puzzled, but he answered. "Each nation has its own markings. We Serians have our nation's emblem."

"The lion?"

"That's right. Surely your governess taught you this?"

My face was probably blank. "I, uh . . ." I looked away from him, and Cepheus burst out laughing again.

"Forgive me, Princess. I forgot what you did to your previous governesses."

"What I did?"

"You drove them all away, Your Highness."

I just smiled. I had no idea what he was talking about. I wondered what that stuck-up man was doing.

We were about to leave when I saw a group of children fighting. They also had lions on their necks, but unlike the others, they were green.

"Hey," I said, trying to break them up, "stop fighting."

But they didn't hear me. I approached them, and told them as gently as I could that they should stop fighting because someone would get hurt. One child looked defiantly at me. He gave me a once over, and then grabbed mud and threw it in my face and my dress.

Cepheus ran to my aid. "Time to go home," he told them. They ran when they saw him. "Well, it looks like our trip is done for the day."

One flushed woman came to us, bowed and then handed me a clean cloth. She also had a green lion etched in her hand.

"Uh, thanks," I muttered as I took it from her. She bowed again and hurried after the children.

"Why did she have another color and another symbol?"

"Oh, that. She and the children are from Eleos."

"What?" I glanced at him. He didn't seem to have any marks. "What about you?"

"It's on my back." He smiled mischievously. "Would you like to see it?"

"Oh, goodness, no!"I realized that I was probably blushing again.

"Are you sure? I can show you later."

My head was going to blow. "No!"

Cepheus threw back his head and laughed. "Relax. I'm only teasing, Princess."

"Cepheus!"

He leaned towards my muddy face. "It's only my back. Why? What were you thinking?"

"I—I wasn't thinking about anything!"

He burst out laughing again. I put my hands to my hips. "Sheesh. Does your job involve embarrassing girls?"

"No, but it is my job to teach you about the kingdom. But doing that all day would be very dull, wouldn't it?"

"Huh? What is your job?"

Cepheus straightened. "Aside from being the Prime Minister of the Kingdom, I am also the adviser to the Royal Family. And I advise you, Princess, to wipe your face now."

Using the cloth the woman gave me, I wiped the mud off my face. "Are you usually this laid-back? I thought Prime Ministers were very busy men." He didn't even look a Prime Minister, dressed so casually with just a white tunic and pants. He had a piercing on his right ear though.

"I am a busy man, but how could I resist a beautiful princess?"

I felt my cheeks burn from his relentless teasing. "Stop it already."

Cepheus grinned. "You have only met me for a couple of days. Soon enough, you're going to like me. Come on."

A couple of days?

I was confused, but I couldn't help but laugh at his shamelessness. He started to walk away. I gathered the hem of my dress and plunged my hand into the mud. "Wait."

Cepheus turned around. "What—"

"Now, now, Prime Minister. You can't let your princess to be the only one dirty here, can you?"

I went straight in front of him and then wiped my hand on his tunic.

"There?" I mustered an innocent smile. "Now we're even."

"Why you—"

I ran as fast as I could away from Cepheus. He caught up quickly and threw some more mud at me. Some people were staring, but I didn't care. Cepheus and I laughed and played like children.

We were still laughing when we got to the palace. I was still wearing the mud-caked dress, his clothes also muddy, and the servants shot us double takes. When Cyrus saw us, he raised his brows at Cepheus.

"Long story," said Cepheus.

"Can't even keep herself clean for a few hours," Cyrus muttered as he shrugged and walked past us.

"What's his problem? Is he really like that?" I asked Cepheus as we walked through the halls.

"Yes, and no," he answered. "Cyrus has, well, issues."

"With me?"

"No, not you, Your Highness," he quickly answered. "He's been through a lot." He sighed. "When he can't face it, he ignores it."

"Oh."

He must have noticed my reaction for he chuckled nervously. "Don't worry, Your Highness. He's very strong."

People always say that, but no, they seem strong enough, but deep inside, they're about to give in. Just like me.

I didn't say a word after our conversation. As I went to bed, I couldn't help thinking about the world that I left behind.

What is Carole doing right now? And Hilda? Are they thinking about me? Do they even know that I'm gone? What did they do? Are they searching for me?

Dad, why did you bring me here?

Maybe my being here is the solution he was talking about. When I'm here, my Uncle Robert would surely get the company. So will my Aunt Cornelia. Carole won't have to move. Everybody's happy. I was also starting to like it here. I'm a princess now. Seriah seemed like a surreal world, and I can choose to stay.

When he can't face it, he ignores it.

But is it that easy to leave it all behind? Is it that simple to abandon all my responsibilities?

No, it's not. I can't just leave it like that. Besides, I don't belong here. This is a fictional world. Fictional. I have to go back. But how? How am I going home?

The next morning, I was less enthusiastic. I had to get out of here. I paced around the room, racking my brain for clues in my father's story. I ran the facts over and over in my mind but nothing seemed to make sense.

Just then, someone knocked at the door, making me jump. I immediately thought it was Hilda, but Hilda was in another world. "Enter," I said.

A shy girl entered. She was holding my nightgown when I came here.

"My mistress wanted me to give this to you. She said you might want it," she spoke in a very soft voice.

"Thank you," I said and took the nightgown. "What's your name?"

"Cara, Your Highness," she replied demurely and then turned to leave. I watched her open the door but then she made a strangled sound.

"Your Highness?"

"Yes, Cara?"

"I think this is yours. It fell out of your clothing when I picked it up." She handed me a folded piece of paper and left.

I stared at the paper. My eyes grew wide. It's my father's letter. How did it get here? I was sure I left it in my room. I unfolded the paper and started to read when I heard another knock on the door.

"Your Highness, His Majesty wants you to come in the court," a male voice said.

I held the paper in my hands then followed him.

"Your Majesty, this is preposterous! Altair is breaching the line!" an old man said who was sitting on one of the twelve thrones. The others nodded in agreement. Cyrus was standing at the King's right side and Cepheus was on the left. The thrones on the King's right and left were empty.

"What do you suggest I do then, Jabal?" said King Arioch.

"Make Altair pay on daring to insult Seriah!" another old man said.

"But war is what I am avoiding, Edward," replied the king calmly. The men started to talk at the same time. The king saw me standing at the doorway, and beckoned me to sit. I pointed to the throne on his right, and he nodded.

I walked behind the thrones and sat down beside the King. The old men arguing looked at me for few seconds, and then continued on what they were discussing among themselves.

"What's happening?" I whispered to the king. He was startled, but then whispered in reply.

"You'll see."

"So, what shall I do now?" he asked them.

Cepheus raised his hand. "Your Majesty, if I may."

King Arioch nodded in assent.

"We know that King Altair's accusation has no proof. But we cannot insult him or defy him and risk war. Our people are in no condition to fight and win."

"What are you proposing we do, Cepheus?"

"The diplomatic approach?" Jabal snorted.

"Yes. Reason with King Altair and tell him that he has no proof that we have stolen it. Why would we need another ancient treasure, seeing as we have our own?" He pointed to the lion beneath him. "If he persists, then we'll propose an agreement."

"And?"

"That agreement will depend on how King Altair's reaction would be, Your Majesty."

King Arioch stroked his jaw. "I do not see what you are planning, Cepheus, but I trust you. We'll talk to Altair. Council adjourned."

The old men stood up and hurriedly went out.

"What happened?" I asked again.

Cyrus answered without looking at me. "King Altair of Eirene has accused KingArioch of stealing Eirene's ancient treasure. He claims His Majesty sent a Serian and stole it."

"Which is?"

"The scarlet scepter."

I looked at the King, and he smiled. He's just like my father. Smiling despite trouble.

"But you didn't really steal it, did you?"

Cyrus ignored what I said and continued. "Now King Altair demands the scepter back, but we do not have it. Therefore, the Council is thinking of what to do. Cepheus says we need to talk to King Altair first."

King Arioch stood up. "I must prepare now to meet Altair. Cepheus, we must make arrangements." Cepheus smiled at me and then followed the king.

"You're strange, you know that?" Cyrus said, finally glaring at me.

"What happens if we don't give the scepter? We don't have it, right?"

"Then we go to war," he said harshly. "And die."

How could he say that so easily? "Die? You say that as if you're very sure!"

His expression hardened. "Your Highness, the Eirene soldiers outnumber us twenty to one. You saw the people. They were happy with their lives. The possibility of war has never occurred to them, for the last one was a century ago. Do you think we can face the Eirenes just like that?"

He bowed and disappeared, leaving me speechless.

I stayed in my room the rest of the afternoon. Cyrus and Cepheus were helping the king, and I didn't want to go out anyway. I read my father's letter over and over again. But I couldn't think of anything, so I slept. When I woke up, it was already evening.

I called a servant outside. "Where is the king?"

"He still has not returned, Your Highness."

This is bad. If I die here, would I die for real? Or would I wake up in my world?

No, I can't die. I have to go back to my world. I can't leave my world behind. I have businesses to run and a life to manage. I can't die.

I don't want to die.

There has to be a way. A dangerous idea slowly formed in my mind. However, I was not sure if the king would allow it.

"Would you accompany me to the library?"

The servant was a little surprised, but she nodded. I didn't want to look stupid, so I let her lead the way.

The library was huge, more like two libraries combined. The bookshelves were ten stories high, and beside them were old fashioned ladders. I half-expected to see scrolls, but all I saw were hard-bound books.

"Thank you. You may leave," I told the servant.

It would take me years to even finish one bookshelf, but at least I should start somewhere. I grabbed a few books from the bottom shelves and the dust made me sneeze. Thank goodness that the words were in English, because I cannot read Serian, if that language exists.

I realized after several pages that the books were actually royal diaries, with detailed accounts of what happened in the last century. How could this kingdom exist for that long when my father only wrote this book seven years ago?

I scanned the books, but after a few hours, my head began to hurt. Information overload.

Come on, Annaliese. You can do this.

I grabbed another book from the bookshelf. It was dusty with dog-eared pages, but when I flipped it open, the words were very clear.

I began to read aloud. "When the Four Founders had finally agreed, they went to their separate ways, taking their treasures with them." I checked the cover and the first few pages, but nothing was written on them. It was just like my father's book. I scanned the next pages, and some parts were missing.

"The Scepter that symbolized the wolf's might and strength had gone to the East." They were talking about a Scepter. I felt sleepy, but I continued reading. "The King of the East wanted to explore other places and using the Scepter to obey his wishes, traveled from time to time. . ."

I closed the book. Being alone in the library is creepy, so I decided that I'd read the book in my room.

I remembered the way back, but I couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching me. I locked the door, sat down on my bed and continued reading.

I had no idea how long I was up when a knock on the door finally disturbed me.

"Who's there?"

"Princess, it is I, Hashin," a hoarse voice replied.

As if I knew who he was. "What do you want?"

"The king wants to see you, Your Highness."

"He's back?" I didn't want to get up because I was too comfortable in my position. "Oh, I'll be right there."

I continued reading where I left off, but when someone knocked again, I had to stand up. "What's your problem?"

"I did not mean to disturb you, Your Highness, but it is urgent," the same voice said again. I went to the door and opened it slightly just to let me peek, and a man wearing brown robes was standing outside, but I couldn't see his face. I was about to open it fully when I saw something on his arm. It was an image of some sort of a red wolf, and when he noticed me looking at it, he immediately covered it with his sleeve.

"Your Highness."

"Sorry to keep you waiting," I said. He looked friendly, but the wolf stirred something in me. I wanted to close and lock the door for no reason at all.

"Is something wrong?"

"No," I answered, trying to sound casual. "Where is the king? I'll just have to finish something and then I'll follow."

"He is at the Council Room, but he has instructed me to escort you," he said with a smile. "Those assassins might still be here."

"Right." I stepped out, and the warning bells inside my head rang like crazy. "Is it already dawn?"

"No, Your Highness." He was walking very fast, and his footsteps were soundless too. He reminded me of a ninja, and that's when I saw the sword sticking out of his robe. I was about to run, but it was too late.

"Where are you going, Princess?"

"I, uh, forgot something."

"You can go back later. We have to hurry."

"No, I have to get it now." I could only hope I could buy enough time before he catches on.

The friendly grin disappeared from his face. "I told you that you can do that later. Fine, since you're very annoying, there would be no later." He took off his robes and pointed that sword at my face. "And there's nothing that I hate more than whining princesses."

"Uh, careful with that sword, Hashin," I said as I raised my hands in surrender. "On second thought, I'm not going to run, see?"

"You should have shut up and followed me. At least your death would have been quicker and less painful."