Hazel paced inside the tower back and forth, growing worried as she felt time pass by slowly. She was not sure if Gothel was currently on her way back. And if so, Hazel feared that Lukas was going to be in terrible danger; Gothel was known to kill her servants if they disobeyed her. This only worried her further.
Tino realised just how worried Hazel was becoming by the rushed ramblings in Norwegian she made as she paced. It was to the point where she wasn't making any sense to him any more. He remembered that Lukas did the exact same thing when Emil was being born, afraid that both his wife and their child would die because of unforeseen complications.
Tino tried to calm Hazel down. "Now, now, Hazel. It has only been an hour.." he stated.
"Gothel can be on her way back any minute now! If she finds out Cherry's gone, she'll think it was Lukas' fault! You know what she'd do to him! How can I possibly calm down?!" Hazel remarked back, not bothering to hide her concern for her husband. As Tino had pointed out this morning, she still loved Lukas.
"Hazel, you know Lukas. He has handled worse situations before. In fact, that was how he first met you" Tino assured his cousin-in-law; he remembered hearing from Lukas about that sparring match from many years ago.
"Despite that he doesn't listen to me anymore, he's still my husband! I will not let Gothel kill Lukas!" Hazel pointed out. She then looked at the mural. "I'll just have to go in there myself" she decided. The back of her hand showed the Norse Rune symbols for 'Ice' and 'Time' as she quickly muttered an incarnation for a suspension spell, freezing Gothel and her horse in time.
"Good luck" Tino encouraged.
Hazel tentatively passed through the mural and into the castle gardens. Right in front of Cherry and Kiku. She looked down to notice she had passed through safely. "I actually made it! Thank the Gods!" she laughed in relief.
Kiku, who had never even seen a dragon-shifting sorcerer or sorceress before, drew his sword. "Stay back, Cherry!" he warned, jumping to conclusions.
Cherry stopped Kiku from attempting to attack Hazel. "Wait, please don't hurt her! She's my friend!" she told him.
Kiku blinked and glanced at Cherry. "You're friends with a dragon?" he wondered.
Cherry nodded. "She's the one who raised me" she stated. Only confusing Kiku further.
Hazel put her hands on her hips. "Clearly, he's never seen a dragon-shifting sorceress before..and the name's Hazel, buddy boy" she remarked. She then turned to Cherry. "Cherry, Gothel's on her way back. We need to get back to the tower now.. if she realises you're gone, she'll kill my husband" she explained.
Cherry hesitated. If she left now, there was a chance she wouldn't have another chance to be free again.
"Please... Cherry, you know I wouldn't ask you this unless I have to. I'd do the same for you." Hazel reasoned.
Cherry knew that Hazel was right. She sighed. "I'm sorry but I must get going" she apologised to Kiku.
"I understand. But wirr you come to the gara my brother is hosting tonight?" Kiku requested, handing a small scroll to Cherry.
Cherry smiled. "It's a promise..and I never break my promises" she told Kiku. She briefly pecked his cheek before being led away by Hazel.
Kiku placed two fingers on his cheek, processing what had just happened.
Hazel chuckled. "Sounds to me you've got a little date tonight" she teased.
Cherry shook her head in disbelief. She stopped at a gate door and painted a mural of the tower. She and Hazel went through, returning to Cherry's room in the tower.
Hazel unsuspended Gothel and helped Cherry hide the mural behind a large wardrobe.
Upon returning, Gothel paced a little around the room, looking for anything that seemed out of place. She hadn't remembered being in suspension but her return had felt longer than usual.
Lukas was stood by the tower window, staring Hazel down as if to try and figure out if she was hiding something from him. He was unaware that Hazel had potentially saved his life.
Hazel merely returned the stare, not even fazed by the cold analytical look in Lukas' eyes. This was not the first time she had been in a situation where she had to keep a secret from him. Especially if it was for his own good.
Tino almost snorted with laughter at the intense stare-off between husband and wife. It brought back many memories for him.
"Hmm. Everything seems almost normal here. Lukas, you're better at this than I am. Does it seem like your wife is hiding something?" Gothel asked.
Lukas shook his head; he knew Hazel was not one to crack under any sort of pressure. Usually, he had to wait for her to tell him in her own time. Who knew how long would that be? "Can't say. She's always had a talent of keeping things from me, whether its important or not" he answered curtly.
Underneath a steady and calm expression, Hazel was seething with muted rage. Was this seriously the thanks she got for putting up with Gothel for years?!
"Very well" Gothel decided, teleporting away.
Lukas' stare on his wife didn't lessen.
Hazel crossed her arms with a determined look in her eyes. "You can stare like that all you like, dear husband. You already know that doesn't work on me" she reprimanded.
Lukas then looked over at Tino. His cousin was more likely to spill the beans when he was under pressure. He knew something was amiss just by the amused look the rabbit wore. "Tino? Something you want to share with everyone?" he asked.
Tino shook his head. "Nope. Just remembering the good ol' days, really" he stated.
Lukas immediately knew that he wasn't going to get any answers from his cousin or, more importantly, his wife. So he jumped out the window, taking his dragon form in mid-air and flying away.
Hazel's face exploded in a huge grin and she hugged Cherry. "Thank you, Cherry. Now I don't have to worry about Lukas being harmed" she remarked.
Cherry decided to ask Hazel something; she'd often wondered if Hazel still loved Lukas. She must do, if she had to plead Cherry to come back. "Do you still love your husband?" she asked.
Hazel sighed as she knew she had to be honest with Cherry. She did teach her to always tell the truth, after all. "Of course I do. I've been married to him for 25 years...we even had a child together. When you've known and loved someone for even that long, it doesn't fade. Especially considering the way I fell in love with Lukas many years ago...he wasn't always so serious and closed off. Grief does awful things to good people" she replied with a wistful look in her eyes as she looked at her old wedding ring, thinking about how things once were between her and Lukas.
Late one evening in a castle with a blue-purple tinge, a woman with chocolate brown hair and violet eyes stood in the terrance. She was dressed in royal attire but had an iron armour corset and shoulder guards. She was the recently coronated Queen Marissa, the oldest daughter of King John and Queen Peach. She called over a man with pale hair that was almost white and dark purple eyes. He was dressed in a mixture of royal attire and armour.
"You called, my darling sunflower?" the man greeted as soon as Marissa had called him to the terrance.
"Ivan, my king, are our soldiers ready?" Marissa asked.
"Da, they are ready for your command, sunflower" Ivan, Marrisa's husband confirmed.
Marissa glared into a different direction. "I will never forgive Yao for what his father has done.." she stated.
Ivan placed a comforting hand on his wife's shoulder. He knew of how her younger sister was stolen from her kingdom 18 years ago. He was also there when Marissa had been by her parents' deathbed, promising to continue searching for her stolen sister. He'd also promised his in-laws that he would. "We'll find her, I'm sure of it. Family doesn't give up on family. I'd do the same for Katyusha or Natalya if they were ever taken" he assured Marissa.