The old man told Phoebe stories about her parents; she had no idea how powerful her parents were.
“I used to think my parents were feeble and that’s why they died.”
“Feeble?” the old man laughed. “Your parents could be other things, but not a weakling,” he continued. “They were loved, and respected, and no one could be like them.”
“Wow!”
“I warned the King about killing your kinds, but all fell to dead ears. I wish he had listened, all this wouldn’t have happened.”
“Was there a particular reason why he hated my kind so much?”
“He was hurt by one of your kind. Since then, he thought your kind were dangerous beasts that needed to be destroyed for humanity to be saved: how wrong he was.”
Phoebe understood the picture now.
“We have arrived, ” the old man said as he and Phoebe entered the palace gate.
Kim and the other guards rushed to greet him. “Long time no see, Priest.”
The priest nodded while his eyes hovered searching for his son.
Kim noticed and said, “Lucas is changing into his outfit, he will be out soon.” His eyes wandered to the lady beside the priest. “Did you bring a bride for Lucas?”
Phoebe was shocked to know that this old man was a priest and also the father of Lucas.
“She is fit for my son, isn’t she?” the old man looked at Phoebe with keen interest.
“I am not interested in your son, old man.”
The old man and Kim laughed. Just then, Lucas came out tightening his belt without looking in his father’s direction.
“Luke, your father is here,” Kim screamed.
Lucas looked ahead and saw his father smiling wryly at him. He ran to meet him. “Father, why didn’t you tell me that you are coming over?”
He turned and saw Phoebe smiling at him. “Hi…” she waved at him.
He hugged her and examined her body, “are you okay?”
She nodded. “Your father took good care of me.”
“We were so worried about you.”
“We?” she asked.
“The prince,” Lucas answered. “Kim, can you let the prince know that my father is here?”
“Should I tell him about the princess?”
Phoebe looked at Kim in a confused manner. What princess is he talking about? She asked herself.
Lucas smiled. “Just tell him my father is here.”
Kim nodded and left to meet the prince inside his quarter.
Prince Edward was pacing around his room thinking of the whereabouts of Phoebe. His mother has assured him a search will be done after the meeting today for her, but he was too hesitant to wait.
A knock interrupted his thought as he rushed to open the door. He was disappointed when he saw it was just Kim and no one else. He returned to his pacing position while Kim shared his reason for coming.
“Lucas told me to announce to you that his father is here to see you.”
“The priest?”
Kim nodded.
“I don’t want to see anyone.”
“He said it’s important that you show up.”
Prince Edward sighed. Despite his negligence, he followed after Kim as he led him to meet Lucas’ father.
He was surprised to see a girl with them. He couldn’t see her face, but he knew that he hadn’t seen her before. He ignored her and bowed his head before the Priest. “What brought you here?”
“I came to drop off something you might be interested in.”
“Nothing can be of interest to me right now,” he said, uninterested.
The priest and Lucas smiled at his countenance.
“Are you sure nothing would be of interest to you?” the priest asked again.
Prince Edward nodded with his arms folded across his chest.
“Not even me?”
That voice. He turned and saw that the girl he noticed was the girl he had been worried about. “Phoebe? Is that you?”
“I am hurt that you said I am not of interest to you, I mean you…” he pulled her close and kissed her.
Her eyes opened wide as she felt his arms wrapped around her waist.
After regaining her senses, she pushed him slightly and said, “Are you out of your mind?”
“We kissed a lot in your world, why…” Before he could finish the sentence, she covered his mouth and kicked his foot; Prince Edward leaped in pain.
“Who dare you?” the queen appeared. “How dare you hurt my sonthe prince of this land?”
“Um…” Phoebe shuddered in fear as the queen stood in front of her.
“Mom, it’s nothing,” the prince smiled at his mom which melted her anger in a jiffy. “She’s the one I was looking for.”
“The…” she looked at the girl then at her son.
He nodded. “She’s the last survivor with the guardian’s blood.”
The queen felt bad for how she shouted at her; she held her hands and apologized, “I had no idea you were the one we’ve been waiting for. I am sorry for how I treated you.”
Phoebe didn’t know how to respond to the change in attitude of the queen. “Um…It’s nothing, I guess…” she stammered.
“I guess I will take my leave now,” the priest was about to leave, but the Queen stopped him.
“Why don’t you join us for the meeting?”
The priest looked at his son and then at the queen. “I already said I won’t have anything to do with this…”
“Please!” the queen begged.
The priest had no choice, but to agree. “I would only stay for a short while.”
“It would mean a lot to me,” the queen smiled at him. She turned to Phoebe and held her hands again, “what’s your name?”
“My name is Phoebe… your majesty.”
“What a nice name!”
“Thank you,” she bowed her head.
“Have you had anything to eat?”
Phoebe remembered the potion she drank and the thought made her almost throw up. “No, just some portion…”
The old man smiled as he remembered her expression when she took the potion. “She looked like a dragon breathing out smoke from her nostrils,” the priest teased.
Everyone laughed as they could imagine what she looked like at that point.
“Let’s go in and get some food before we get ready for the meeting,” they all nodded and followed the queen into the inner chambers for refreshments.