On their way back to the castle through the nearly overgrown forest path, most of the young royals enjoyed their treat of baked apples and chatted about how busy the village was. It had been a few days since Oro Mortis and, from what Myra and Isabella knew about their kingdom, the village should have calmed down by now. With giggles at the edge of their voices, the children passed theories amongst each other.

"I bet they think it is our cousin's birthday today. That is what happened with me and my birthday." Suggested Myra as she remembered the time the kingdom celebrated her birthday an entire week after it happened because it wasn't announced properly when she was born.

"Maybe it is a big trade event or a band of travelers just arrived." Replied Phobos because he couldn't believe anyone had even remembered his birthday.

"It is none of these. I heard a rumor that the Guardians are going to visit Meridian soon." Cedric interjected and finished the rest of his apple. Surprised, Phobos turned to his friend and asked.

"Who are the guardians?"

"You don't know the Guardians?" Cedric was surprised, but the dumbfounded look on his friend's face confirmed this fact. "The guardians are designated protectors of the Veil and Kandakar from evil forces. How can you not know about them?"

At this, the young Prince only shrugged; he wasn't sure how to explain to his friends that he could not know about something that he had never heard of. Furthermore, he wasn't sure if he hadn't heard of the guardians before and simply forgotten or if he had truly never heard of them. Curiously, he asked. "How do they fight evil and where is Kandraka?"

"Kandraka is a palace of light between worlds and the guardians are a group of five powerful individuals, each with the ability to control a natural element. Their leader is normally the one to control energy." Explained Myra as she finished her apple; at this, Cedric pointed to the young Princess before returning his attention to his friend.

"Even Myra knows about the guardians. How could you not know about them? You should have known about them especially since the current Oracle originated from Meridian."

"Who is the Oracle?" asked the Prince, which earned him another dumbfounded look from Cedric. The Lord's son simply couldn't understand how he knew so much more about Kandraka than the Prince, who had experienced a higher level of education. Seeing that there was no way to continue this conversation, Cedric simply gave up and turned his attention to the path ahead of them. However, the group's moment of silence lasted only a minute before they heard calls and shouts in the distance; surprise, the group stopped in their tracks causing Isabella to almost run into her sister. Carefully, they listened as the calls came closer and more defined; slowly the color drained from the young royals as they realized it was their names being called.

Their absence had been noticed.

Frantically, the four of them raced down the path as fast as their feet would carry them. Noticing Isabella struggling to keep up with them, Phobos slowed down just enough to pick her up and carry her with them. So caught up were the children in rushing back to the castle that they ran right into the arms of a searching guard.

"I CAUGHT THEM!" shouted the guards as his grip on children tightened when they tried to struggle free from the guard's burly arms.

"LET US GO!" cried Myra before sinking her teeth into his arm as hard as she could. The guard let out a cry of pain and pushed the girl away just as the rest of the search party arrived, allowing another guard to grab the young Princess.

"Careful, she bites." Said the guard to his comrade holding the girl before returning his attention to the three royals in his arms; who were still struggling to get free. "You four have no idea the trouble you are in."

No matter how much they struggled, the children were unable to free themselves and were led back to the castle, where a furious Lord Xavier was waiting for them. He had been worried sick over his son since realizing that the children in the library were just illusions. Part of him was relieved to learn that his son was safe and unharmed, but he nearly choked on his own rage at how the children had disobeyed him. With his cheeks red with anger and his foot tapping in impatience he glared down at the four royals brought before him by the guards.

"Where were you four?" he asked with venom dripping from his voice.

"Nowhere important." Replied Myra in defiance, but Cedric wasn't able to lie to his father.

"We went to the nearby village." Answered Cedric while shamefully staring down at his feet; he knew his father had a beating waiting for him that evening and only hoped he would still be able to sit afterward.

"And how did you get off the castle grounds? Furthermore, which one of you had the idea to use astral projections to escape?" Asked Xavier as his cheeks turned an even darker shade of red; before Cedric had the chance to answer Phobos spoke-up to save his friend.

"It was my doing!" Phobos could hardly control his outburst and knew the more he spoke, the more he would be digging his own grave. After taking a deep breath, he continued. "I didn't know it could astral project that was an accident. However, I thought it would be an excellent way to test my ability as well as fulfill mine, and the wishes of my cousins, to explore the kingdom. It wasn't Cedric, Isabella, or Myra's fault; the blame is all mine and I am sorry for any heartache this might have caused. I gave Cedric no choice but to accompany me in this endeavor." With every word, the young Prince uttered the deeper the shade of red became on the Lord's face. Once the Prince had come to the end of his story, the Lord grabbed hold of the young Prince's shoulder and dragged him away to Queen Weria's private study, where the Queen, King Zaden, and Queen Sears waited for news on the missing children.

Without knocking, the Lord entered the study with the Prince nearly dragging on the floor behind him.

"The flown birds have returned to the nest." Announced the Lord as he presented the Prince like a trophy to the Queen and King; Queen Weria appeared relieved, but King Zadan was red in the face and, if nature allowed it, fume would have risen off the King's head. Seeing an opportunity for the Prince to be taught a lesson by his father, the Lord continued. "Apparently, the Prince found it hilarious to take the princesses and my son on a stroll to the local village."

"You have done well Lord Zadan. Please excuse yourself so we can hear the full story from the Prince himself." Ordered Zadan in a calm voice that was only a preamble to the storm brewing on the horizon; with a low bow, the Lord excused himself from the room with a satisfied smirk on his face, leaving the Prince alone with the adults.

"Who gave you permission to leave the castle ground?" asked Zadan, never allowing the Prince to tell his side of the story.

"It was a spur of the moment decision-"was all the Prince was able to utter before Zadan snapped.

"You call that an excuse?" if looks could kill, Phobos was sure he would have been struck dead then and there. "I recall that no one gave you or the other's permission to leave. Do you have any idea the panic your actions have caused?"

At the King's tone, Phobos shrank back a bit. He hadn't thought their little adventure would cause this much trouble; after all, they were gone for less than an hour. With his voice shaking from fear and shame, he answered even when he knew no answer was needed. "N-no sure, I do not know the amount of trouble my actions have caused."

"Why am I not surprised?" replied Zadan with his arms waving dangerously near the Prince's face as though he was holding himself back from striking the boy. "First you allow the garden pathway to be defaced to play a game, then you endanger the Lord's son trying to impress him with your levitation tricks, and now you kidnap both our allies' only children and our Lord's son! Is there anything other than mischief buzzing around that skull of yours?"

"I didn't mean any harm. I just wanted to see the village. It looked so peaceful from a distance." The Prince tried to explain, but it only served to infuriate the King even more.

"I bet you'd think a battle looks like a party from a distance as well, wouldn't you?" Zadan snapped as he struggled more and more not to strangle the Prince. That was when Queen Seras chimed in, trying to calm the tempers of the King as it was taking a negative effect on Weria, who was beginning to hyperventilate.

"King Zadan, the past two offenses have been resolved. This is just another example of children making childish mistakes. He became curious and no one was injured; besides, Weria and I used to sneak out of the castle all the time when we were young." Immediately, Zadan forgot about Phobos and turned his anger to Seras, who wasn't intimidated by his rage at all and kept her arms crossed in stoic defiance.

"Do not try to excuse his actions. He is royalty and should know better than to partake in suck childish actions. How is he supposed to set an example for the kingdom if he acts like a peasant?"

"How is any peasant supposed to relate to him if he didn't partake in such actions? I wouldn't respect a role model if I can't relate to them. Besides, I doubt he would have been foolish enough to reveal his identity on his first visit; isn't that so?" she asked the Prince who vigorously nodded his head.

"The common folk doesn't have to relate to him to see him as a role model. He is a prince and the peasants have no choice but to look up to him." Zadan tried to reason, but Seras only shook her head.

"You know as well as I, that is never going to occur."

Looking between his wife and Seras, Zadan quickly realized he wasn't going to win this battle and decided to leave before his rage got the better of him and he accidentally declared war on his closed ally. As he left the study, as he pushed past the Prince and shoved the young boy hard enough that Phobos lost his footing and fell backward; before he hit the ground, the side of his head collided with the edge of a low reading table, inflicting a wound which bleed severely but wasn't life-threatening. When the door loudly shut behind the King, Seras turned her attention to Weria, in the hopes that her friend would act the way a mother should and treat her child's injuries before tearing into her husband; however, this hope was quickly squashed when the pale-faced Queen simply sat on the sofa with a look of disinterest on her face. Biting back a string of curses, Seras rushed to the injured Prince and helped the boy to his feet before wiping the blood from his face.

"Everything is going to be alright little one." She said in a vain attempt to comfort the child before her, who was desperately trying to keep from crying. "It is just a small cut; I am sure it doesn't even need stitches. Just some ice and a bandage-"

"I am sorry for causing you and the kingdom such concerns. I will never disobey again. Please forgive my poor actions." Muttered the Prince before rushing out of the room to keep the queens from seeing him cry; he wasn't shedding tears from the pain or from the verbal tongue lashing he received from his father, but from seeing how his mother sat with inadvertence while he was injured. From the way another queen came to his aid, he could surmise that his mother's actions weren't normal, so he reasoned that he had displeased his mother to the point she no longer cared for him.

His head hurt and his father's words rang in his ears over and over like the song of an annoying bird. He just wanted to hide in his room, hurt, and hope that the world would be right by the next day. Considering the throbbing in his head, he was sure he couldn't continue with his studies for the rest of the day. Once he reached his room, he locked the door and was about to throw himself onto his bed when he caught his reflection in a mirror. Blood was running down his face and had dropped over his eyes to mix with the tears on his cheek, giving him the appearance of crying blood. Knowing he would get into further trouble if he soiled the sheets with his blood, he filled the washbowl on his dresser with clean water and washed his face the best he could. After the water in the bowl turned pink with is blood, he looked at his reflection; the cold water had helped slow the bleeding and he got a clear view of the cut. As the Queen had said, it was small and would heal without leaving a mark or needing stitches. Instead of going to the infirmary, Phobos pressed the damp washcloth to the cut before falling onto his bed, simply wishing for the day to pass quickly.

Back in the study, Seras turned to her friend with a fury that would put Zadan's to shame.

"What piss poor excuse of a mother are you?" she hissed between clenched teeth. Weria simply looked at her friend and asked.

"What do you mean?" earlier that day, Weria had taken some medication to combat her internal pain, but that was little of an excuse to Seras. She too had been in pain several times and had taken medication hat fogged her mind; however, even in her most clouded moments, she managed to aid and talk with her children. To Seras, Weria had no excuses for her actions.

"What do I mean? Your husband just injured your son. Your child was bleeding on the ground and you did nothing!"

"Phobos disobeyed the rules we set out for him. Furthermore, I am sure Zadan didn't mean to hurt Phobos." Replied Weria with a slur, on the verge of falling over; luckily, Seras was there to grab her shoulders and shake her.

"Accident or not, your son was injured. Furthermore, you and I used to sneak out all the time when we were children and we were never punished the way your son is. This is his first offense; at the most, he should have gotten a stern talking and nothing more."

"Weren't you as worried as I when you learned your daughters were missing? I am surprised how lenient you are with Prince Phobos's actions." At her friend's words, Seras felt a sting in her chest that would overwhelm her and strangle her friend, if there hadn't come a knock on the study door.

"Come in." was Seras response as she let go of her friend, but still shot the Queen a venomous glare. Slowly and carefully, the study door opened and Myra, along with Isabella, peeked their head in with worried expressions on their young faces. In a cold and steady voice, the Ero Queen addressed her daughters. "Myra, Isabella, good you two are here. We have to discuss your actions."

"Are we in trouble?" asked Myra in a hushed voice; she had barely ever seen her mother this angry and we, naturally, very intimidated.

"Perhaps." Was Seras response, her cold tone never faltering.

"Is Phobos in trouble?" asked Isabella with a quivering voice that indicated she was near tears.

"He did take full responsibility, why do you ask?" From the way her daughters were asking, she knew there was more to the story than what the Lord had told them. In addition, Seras simply couldn't believe their exertion was completely the Prince's idea. "Do you have something to confess?"

"Phobos isn't at fault!" Myra blurted out before she could stop herself and fully think her words through. With Seras's suspicions confirmed, she simply raised an eyebrow at her daughters and expected them to continue' when they remained silent, she urged them. "It is important to elaborate on your accounts if you wish to help your cousin."

"It was my idea to go." Myra continued after taking a deep breath to steady her nerves. "We were so bored in the library and then Cedric suggested that we could go to the village, but he dropped that subject because he knew we wouldn't be able to get off the castle grounds. We were going to forget about it, but then Phobos discovered his ability to make astral projections and everything got so fast from there." Her eyes then fell to the ground; she didn't want to accidentally reveal the hole in the garden wall, in case they could sneak out in the future. "We helped each other over the wall and went to the village in disguise. I am sorry. I am the oldest one in the group and should have known better."

"You are not to blame." Weria's voice chimed in from the sofa. Surprised the two princesses looked up at their host. "Phobos is the Prince of this kingdom and knows the rules of this house. He should know better than to act upon such reckless impulses."

"But it was mine and Cedric's idea. If it weren't for me, Phobos would have never gone out of the library. Even if he refused to help us escape, I would have annoyed him until he gave in." She then pulled out the cloth containing the remaining baked apples. "Plus, we didn't go just to disobey. I remembered how my mother told stories of this place and I remembered how she enjoyed the baked apples from the old man. The old man isn't alive anymore, but his son had picked up the hobby."

Carefully, as though the apples were made of fragile glass, Myra placed the baked goods on the table in front of the sofa where the Queen was sitting. "We are sorry, but I hope this makes up a little for our actions. Our identity wasn't discovered and Phobos paid for them."

Looking between her friend, her daughters, and the apples Seras sighed and waved off her daughter. "You two are excused for now. Go to your rooms and I'll come back to you for your punishments. I have to discuss something with our host." With bowed heads, the princesses excused themselves to their rooms; once they were alone again, Seras turned to her friend. Weria stared down at the apples with tears brimming at the corners of her eyes. Earlier, she had convinced herself that her son deserved a proper punishment and, when her son got injured, she had inwardly told herself that he had deserved it. Now that she knew it wasn't fully his fault, Weria felt rotten over the way she treated her only child.

"No need to feel bad now." Said Seras with her arms crossed. "What is done is done. Now, your son is injured and probably crying in his room, thinking that you no longer want him."

"Am I really that bad of a mother?" asked Weria with a quivering voice, the fog of the medication beginning to lift from her mind.

"Yes." Was Seras blunt response; she didn't move from her spot or uncross her arms when Wera broke down sobbing. In the past, the Ero Queen would drop any argument once Weria began to cry, but now that they were both queens and mothers, her resolve had strengthened and she wasn't going to find excuses for her friend anymore.

"Seras, what do I do? How did it all come to this?" asked the Meridian Queen between body-shaking sobs. The clearer her mind became the more she hated how she let her husband treat her son. Part of her knew what she had to do, but another part was uncertain and was silently begging Seras to aid her. However, when none came, Weria felt more lost than ever before.

"You tell me. How did you allow all this to happen? You are the Queen of this kingdom, Phobos is your only child, and your husband isn't even from Meridian. Considering all the evidence, why have you let it come to this? I know you never truly loved Zadan enough to allow him to treat you and your family like this." Seras said in a stone-cold voice that further confirmed that Weria was going to receive no help from her; she had to figure this out on her own.

"Zadan is a good husband and a great King. He is just worried about the future and you were worried about your children as well. They could have gotten hurt or kidnapped."

"Are those excuses you are telling me or excuses you are telling yourself?" Seras cut in before Weria could come up with more excuses. From the way Weria was grasping at straws, Seras could sense there were many things her dear friend wasn't telling her; this breakdown was just the first step to uncover all of Weria's secrets that were troubling her. In a way, Seras hoped that once all the secrets were out in the open, that all of Weria's troubles would be resolved.

"I…I don't know." Was all Weria could say.