We remained at the farm for several more days. There was a lot to be cleaned up and taken care of in the area, and the region's inhabitants were beginning to return home.

I was helping heal the remaining injured and ill in town when Cynthia came running in.

"Eloise! Eloise, where are you?"

I waved at her with my free hand from the bedside of a young man who had been severely wounded at the last battle. He had been partially healed by the other girls, but because of the wound's severity, he needed several days' worth of magic before he could fully heal. I focused on the skin beneath my other hand and felt the healing begin. It was nearly completely healed and it only took a moment before the skin was completely closed and all infection gone.

I smiled at him. "Thank you for your service to Rybeth," I told him softly.

"Thank you, Lady Taylor. You're a hero to us all."

I left his side and found Cynthia. Before I could say a word, however, another young soldier spoke up.

"Miss Taylor? Is that you?"

I looked over and saw Patrick Moore, my former student, lying on a bed. He looked much older than when I last saw him just over a year ago.

"Patrick Moore! It's wonderful to see you, although I wish it were under better circumstances. You were injured in battle?"

He winced. "Yes. I couldn't let those Lowendry soldiers get to our farm. I had to protect it."

I knelt beside his bed. "What happened?"

"I was at the front when I was shot. I was wounded in several places."

"May I?" I asked.

"Go ahead. I'm not healing very well for some reason. They can't figure it out."

I pulled back the blanket covering his chest and winced at the sight. He was bandaged across his abdomen, chest, and on his left shoulder. "Several places indeed." I unwrapped his shoulder and immediately felt sick.

"I know why you aren't healing. The bullets that hit you carried magic."

He frowned at me. "Bullets can carry magic?"

"Yes." I felt the energy radiating from his wound. "Did they remove the bullets?"

Juliet appeared by my side. "Yes, we removed all bullets. His wounds are fairly shallow, but they just won't respond to us."

"Are any other men like this?"

"Not many, but there's enough. We've lost several already."

I nodded. "Send for Captain Keller, please. He's the only other person I can think of who can help me with this kind of magic."

"Right away, Eloise." She rushed off.

I held my hand over the wound and pressed down. I closed my eyes and focused on the hum of energy beneath my hand. I pulled at it with my own magic. I pulled my hand away and opened my eyes to see a small pool of dark green magical energy glowing in my hand.

I heard Rita's voice. "How did you do that?"

I looked up. "I felt the energy and pulled it out from his wound. He should heal much better now."

She knelt down on the opposite side of the bed. "May I try? I felt that energy too, but I had no idea what to do about it."

"I'd be happy to let you try, but I don't know what to do with this." I held up the energy in my hand. "I should have waited. I don't know how to get rid of it. Captain Keller will know."

As if on cue, Juliet rushed over. "He just arrived. He had already been on his way."

"Oh, thank goodness."

It wasn't long before Oskar was standing beside me. "You need to burn it."

"How do we do that?" Rita asked.

He nodded at her in acknowledgment. "With your own magic."

I turned my focus to the magic in my hand. I summoned my own magic and suddenly the dark green magic burst into a small flame and sizzled away, leaving my hand empty and unscarred. I smiled. "That was easy enough."

Rita and I unwrapped his other wounds and Oskar left to begin working on other wounded soldiers. Juliet and Lola, who came over after finishing with another soldier, tried to remove the magic without results.

"Don't stress about it. Everyone's magic is different. You can work on healing the wounds after the magic has been removed. They will need extra attention to make sure no infection starts and worsens the wounds."

Rita successfully pulled the magic from one of Patrick's wounds and quickly made her way around the room. She was incredibly adept at healing magic. She was able to accomplish it twice as fast as the captain and just slightly faster than me.

Cynthia waited by the door patiently for me until I was finished. I finally made my way over and greeted her warmly. She looked like she was ready to burst. "Your mother is back at the farm!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"She is?" I felt tears suddenly appear in my eyes. I hadn't realized how badly I needed her. "Oh thank goodness. I need to go there now."

As I was about to leave, Oskar appeared at my side. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"My mother is back home! I'm heading back to the farm now. Why, am I needed here?"

He shook his head. "No, I just…"

"Come and meet her, Captain," Cynthia suggested. "She is the kindest woman I know."

"Yes, Oskar. You need to meet my mother."

He shifted his weight. "Will she…" He trailed off.

"Will she what?"

He pressed his lips together. "Will she like me?" he asked quickly.

I laughed. "Without a doubt." I offered my hand. "Come with me, please."

He grasped my hand and followed me out the door.

Walter was just outside, about to come in. "Cynthia! Mother and Father have returned. Our brothers aren't far behind. Mother is very concerned about your well-being, and if you're queen yet." He laughed.

"It looks like I won't be joining you," Cynthia said with a smile. "I need to see my own family. I will see you soon!"

She rushed off with Walter and left Oskar and I alone.

He looked at me nervously. "Can we not tell her about…"

"You don't want to tell her about us yet?" I asked. "Why?"

"I don't want to overwhelm her. She doesn't know me. I would like to make sure she approves of me first."

I nodded. "If that's what you want. If she asks, I will not lie to her though."

"Of course. I wouldn't ask that of you."

We walked back to the farm from town in comfortable silence. Our hands remained intertwined until we reached the end of the lane.

"You look just like her," he said as we approached the house, where we found her waiting outside the door.

"Mother!" I cried, running to her side and wrapping my arms around her. "I was so scared when they told me the battle was nearing Ravendale."

She rubbed my back. "Thankfully we were evacuated in time. A very nice family let me stay with them."

"I'm so glad you're alright."

She held me back at arms length. "I'm glad you are! I can't believe you were here during the fight! Why on earth were you in a dangerous war zone, anyway?"

The captain came up and said, "Your daughter is a hero to Rybeth, Mrs. Taylor."

She looked over at him. "Is that so, Mr…?"

"Mother, this is Captain Keller. Captain Keller, my mother Mrs. Anna Taylor."

He nodded solemnly. "And yes, absolutely. She saved my life and all of Rybeth."

I waved a hand at him. "Oh, he's exaggerating. He was the one who did the most work."

She shook her head. "I'm not sure I want details. Come, Eloise, let's have a cup of tea. Captain, would you care to join us?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "Yes, thank you."

Once we were settled with our tea in the parlor, Mother asked, "How is Cynthia?"

I grinned. "She's doing very well."

She raised an eyebrow as she sipped her tea. "What are you not telling me?"

"She's going to be our future queen."

She gasped and nearly dropped her teacup. "Is that so? Oh, how lovely for her! But how do you feel about it?"

I felt Oskar's gaze on me, and I just laughed. "Oh, it's fine. I never loved the prince. They love each other and she will make an incredible queen."

"She most definitely will," she agreed. "So what does this mean for you, then? You were supposed to have almost another full year."

I sighed. "I don't really know. Nobody has said anything about it yet."

"Well, no matter what happens, I'm proud of everything you've accomplished."

"Thank you, Mother. I definitely didn't expect to be where I am a year and a half ago."

She smiled. "I didn't either!" She turned to the captain. "Forgive me, we've completely ignored you. Tell me a little about yourself, Captain."

He cleared his throat. "There really isn't much to tell, ma'am. I'm a captain with the Royal Guard."

"He's being modest," I said. "He is a Royal Scholar and was one of the instructors at the Celestial Palace. Now he's a war hero."

"Your accent," she commented, "is it Havarian?"

"Yes, I'm originally from Havaria."

"His grandmother was Anya Keller," I told her.

She lit up. "Oh, of course! Eloise mentioned your name before. Did she tell you my mother was a close friend of your grandmother's?"

"She briefly mentioned they were friends."

"I'm actually named after your grandmother in a way."

He cracked a smile. "She was a wonderful woman. Who was your mother?"

"Lenora Hummel."

His eyes went wide. "Your mother was a Hummel?"

She nodded. "Yes. You know the family?"

"They're still very close to my family in Havaria."

She sighed wistfully. "I wish I knew more about my mother's family. She never spoke much about them, except for her good friend Anya. They wrote each other until their deaths. I believe they passed away within days of each other."

Later on, Oskar left to go help with the continued clean up around the town and my mother and I worked around the farm to finish the few jobs the soldiers hadn't done for us.

"I thought you didn't like the captain much," she commented as we cleaned up the small vegetable garden. "I believe the word you used was… oh, that's right. 'Abrasive.'"

I hid my face and busied myself in the dirt. "You were right. Apparently the Kellers take some getting used to. I judged him too soon, I suppose. He was an excellent instructor."

"I think he likes you," she commented casually.

I tried not to react too much. "Why do you say that?"

"The way he looked at you. He seems fond of you."

"I was an excellent student," I offered. "That's probably why."

"Hmm." She continued working beside me, seemingly unaffected by our conversation.

"Speaking of," she said brightly, looking up.

I looked up to see Oskar approaching. "Lady Taylor, Mrs. Taylor. I was asked to tell you that Lady Warner and His Highness Prince Daniel are on their way."

I stood up. "Thank you, Captain. Mother, I'm going to change and wash up."

"I'll be in shortly," she said.

I was about to go back outside when my mother finally came in, looking frazzled. "If they arrive before I'm ready, please keep them occupied outside until I come out." She beamed. "I can't believe the prince is coming here to our farm!"

I laughed. "He's been here before today, Mother."

She paled. "He has?!"

"I'll tell you more later. Go get ready."

I stepped outside to find Oskar pacing. I walked over and placed a hand on his arm. "Oskar?"

He ran a hand over his hair. "It's nothing." He smiled at me reassuringly. "I'm just nervous being around your mother."

"You are?" I laughed softly. "Why?"

"Because I'm in love with you, Eloise, and she's your mother?"

I was about to ask more when a messenger came riding in. "Captain Keller, an urgent letter for you." He reached down with a letter in hand.

Oskar frowned and took the message from his outstretched hand. "Thank you."

The man nodded and rode off once again.

"Urgent? What is it?" I asked.

He shook his head. "I don't know. I'm sure it's nothing." He pocketed the letter, but I wasn't convinced. "I'm going to head back to town. I'll come back later." He squeezed my hand briefly and began walking back to town.

I went back inside and found my mother dressed and fussing with her hair in the parlor. "Do I look nice enough to receive the prince?"

I smiled. "You look lovely, Mother."

She looked relieved. "Did the captain leave?" she asked.

"He got an urgent letter and went to town."

"Urgent? What was it about?"

"I don't know. He didn't open it."

She sat down and smiled broadly. "Do you love him?"

My eyes went wide. "Why do you ask?"

"Eloise." She raised an eyebrow knowingly.

I sat down in another chair. "Yes. I'm sorry I didn't tell you…"

"Don't be. The captain explained he didn't want you to say anything immediately."

I gasped. "He did? He talked to you?"

"He loves you very much, my dear."

I nodded.

"He asked for my blessing."

I gaped at her. "He what?"

"He wants to marry you." She tilted her head in confusion. "I thought you loved him back. Don't you want to marry him?"

I began to tear up. "Of course I do! I just didn't expect a proposal so soon."

She smiled in relief. "Oh, good. I was afraid I gave my blessing when you didn't actually want to marry the man!"

"You did?"

"Of course I did. He seems like a good man."

My heart soared with joy. "He is."

Later, Daniel and Cynthia arrived and stayed for dinner. Thankfully, mother calmed down enough to enjoy their company. We sat outside after we ate and watched the sunset.

"Cynthia, could you help me in the kitchen?" I asked.

"I can help you, dear," Mother said.

"Oh, no, Mother. Please enjoy the evening. We won't be long."

Once in the kitchen, I took a deep breath. "Cynthia, the captain asked my mother for her blessing!"

She squealed in excitement. "Really? Oh, how wonderful!"

I pressed my lips together and nodded. "I know! It's almost overwhelming. This week has been unbelievable."

She laughed. "I know what you mean!"

Just then, we heard hoofbeats outside. We went back out and saw Oskar dismounting from a large horse. I smiled and went to greet him, but I realized he looked upset.

"Oskar, what's wrong?" Daniel asked. He stood up and walked over to see his friend.

He made eye contact with me and said softly, "My father died."

I meant to update sooner than today, but my laptop is junk and wouldn't properly connect to my wifi. Ugh! Whatever. Anyway, keep watch out for the next chapter coming soon!