The 35 year old queen was on her balcony looking over her kingdom. What had it become? If the war with the Starling Empire wasn't settled quickly it would be the end of both, but no peace treaty had worked to date. Irina didn't even remember a time when there wasn't war. This hatred had gone on for generations, but she had decided it would end with her. She had decided this when her beloved son Prince Nicoli had been killed in battle, now all she had left was her daughter, Avery.

Someday Avery would take over as queen and Irina didn't want her daughter to have to suffer as much as she had. Her people were dieing from the war, not just in battle, but in other ways that the war had started. New illnesses, less food because she had to feed the army, and the water supply was just one trick from the enemy away from being completely gone. No, Avery would not inherit this.

"So what am I to do?" she muttered. Irina always tried to act strong, but sometimes she just didn't know.

"You know what we have to do," said a voice behind her. Irina turned to see her daughter in her night gown standing in the doorway. She had inherited most of Irina's looks, besides her eyes and hair colour. Her eyes changed colour like her dad's and her hair was a lighter blond.

"Never," Irina answered.

"Really I don't mind. It's what would be best for the people," she argued.

"You're a person too," Irina countered.

Avery walked up beside her mother looking up at the stars. "Sometimes I don't know. With all my princess duties, learning how to become queen, seeing you so sad, I don't know if a normal person could handle it," the 15 year old smiled.

"You're not normal, you're my daughter. That's why I'm not letting you make a foolish mistake."

"So now saving thousands of people is foolish?" Avery arched her eyebrows.

"It might not even work and then we'd be trapped. I won't let anything happen to you, not like Nicoli," Irina said, her voice cracking a bit as she said Nicoli. "He was so much like your father you know, brave, strong, a bit foolish at times, but I still love them both."

"But I'm not Nicoli! Or Dad! I'm you! I look like you and that's who I am on the inside!" Avery was getting tired of holding back what she wanted to say.

"No your not," Irina smiled, not taking her eyes off the stars. "You're brave like your father, stubborn like him too, but the answer is still no. Now get to bed it's late."

"But mom-"

"I said get to bed."

As Avery slumped inside Irina thought more, I am not going to let Avery inherit a world like this no matter what.

A/N: I hope you like it! This story is going to be writen be writen by me and Lieutenant Evergreen, so for chap 2 look for her story Battle of the Minds, Empire. Also she will be posting 4,6,8 and so on while I'll be posteing 3,5,7 etc.