We sat down for dinner in tall chairs with comfortable plushy cushions. I look left and right making sure I'm not being judged for what I eat. I look at Ashley telling her we should be okay. I still feel my heart starting to race even though I know we know they're serving vegetarian too.

A loud chime goes off and Princess Maddie's eyes flash and her smile grows. She leaps out of her chair excitedly yelling, "Omigosh Prince Jerome I got it I got it I got it I got it I got it!"

Tristana's resting her head on her hand and rolls her eyes sighing. She tells Ashley, "It's not Jerome. Besides he's a human anyway. I mean does she have to rub it in so much that she likes him?"

Zoe looks up, half smiling like she knows Tristana's secret. She then asks Tristana, "So anything new between you and Poppy?" She forks carrot out of her salad, the sunlight peeping through the window hitting Zoe's mint green silk glove and emerald green puffy shoulder sleeve.

Tristana sighs, staring down at her lap. "She's been kidnapped and I just can't find her!"

Violet moves her head forward, then swallows her salad remembering she's chewing. "Are you sure she's kidnapped?"

Tristana moves her head between her arms talking into her sleeves, "No."

I hear feet dragging on the carpet, Princess Maddie's dragging her feet slumping. "It's just them." Her tone a mix of dread and disappointment. Something feels off about them too.

Prime Minister Ava glares at her then swallows a piece of steak. "At least try acting happy. It wouldn't kill you to smile you know."

A yordle man wearing a gaudy baby blue cape and hat with a white feather tells her, "I also asked her to smile but she just wouldn't!"

Maddie falls onto her seat scowling crossing her arms. I feel so bad for her.

The man is with a yordle lady who doesn't look all that happy or comfortable either.

Ava adjusts her glasses, folding her fingers leaning forward. "So I got intel and the Piggy Empire is planning on taking even more of our land."

He wipes his mustache with a napkin, "Oh yes! I couldn't bear it if I lost all that money to those ruffians! "

His wife leans back crossing her arms. He looks over to her and goes on, "And the people doing worse, I suppose."

Maddie whispers to me, "I don't like him. He only married a poor girl because he can use his money to manipulate her and she's using him too. Like he seriously couldn't find another noble to marry? And he's so much older than her too." She makes a grossed out face.

Carlos devilishly smirks and then he uses his sandwich as a puppet. "I'm lost, do you know where I belong?"

Carlos tells him, "Yeah in my belly!"

He shakes his head left to right making weird nom nom nom nom noises. We all burst into laughter. He's so brave, eating like that, especially in front of other people. Especially at a royal dinner. Everyone except for Ava and the tacky pretentious noble are laughing while Shauna and Trang are trying so bad not to laugh.

I whisper to Ashley, "I can't believe we have to eat in front of all these people."

She whispers back, "Well they said they'll have salads."

The yordle guy wearing a gaudy blue cape and hat glare at us, making it way too obvious he's pretending we don't exist. The girl next to him looks bored. Their steaks smell peppery and their fries smell like sunflower oil.

Shauna gets up looking pretty fascinated with the bookcases. "If only we could read these."

Ashley takes a sip of punch and says, "I know right! Wonder what kind of cool spells or fashions they have?"

Jacob swallows his tea, "This is really bitter." He takes another sip, his mouth scrunching from the yuckiness. "I'm so mature you guys I just had this really bitter stuff!"

Winston chews and swallows a piece of bitter melon from his salad. "Me too."

Ashley then says, "Bitter melon's not too bad but I just wash it down with juice."

I get up and walk around. The couple keeps their feet under their own chairs, I don't think they really like each other. At least Mercy kicked McCree's chair leg a little.

After I sit down again Ava says, "With what we know about the pigs they're gonna attack again. I can just tell."

The nobleman in blue scratches his ear. "Well I heard if you pull a magic sword from its stone it'll let you open a gate to the land of gods. And you'll also need magic stones that those gods could activate for you. We're looking for those so we can get even richer."

Maddie fake gags.

Shauna's mouth thins and eyes widen looking at Ashley. This is a big reason why we hate eating in front of other people, and Shauna's one of our besties too.

"Can you use the right fork please?" She says to Ashley and my sister rolls her eyes resting her chin on her right hand grabbing the other fork.

Judith whispers, "I don't trust those guys." She points to the couple.

Ava then says, "Yes, we'll need all the help to reclaim our lost land."

The guy corrects his wife for using the wrong spoon and she just hums boredly, "Hmm."

Then Ava asks, "So you sure you can do it?"

He then stands up putting his hat on his chest, "Does the sun go around the world?"

Winston looks into his salad chewing a piece of lettuce, "Nope."

His wife then brings up, "My brother saw these big white metal spiders and other weird creatures that looked like them. They're coming from a weird portal far south of here."

Her husband lets out a ha. "Come on you guys you don't really believe her do you?"

Winston sits up straighter looking rather serious, "I most certainly do."

He whispers to Mercy, "It sounds like Vishkar is here."

I look out the big window and this sunset brings a pale pink and lavender sky. The way a sky usually looks after a hot summer day. The violet moon's light starts pouring through the other window, casting shadows from the tree outside. Birds fly by and sing.

Mercy tells Shauna, "For a castle made by such tiny people it's still pretty comfortable for humans too."

Maddie tugs on my shirt. "I can't believe I have to do my sister's chores, again. And we're adventuring tomorrow, I just wish I had good pockets."

Judith's eyes light up raising her hand. "I know how to sew them!" She flutters next to Maddie and Maddie thanks her.

Shauna asks, "I'm from another world so we can't read any of your books so will you read to us? Please?"

Ashley puts her finger on her chin raising her other hand. She blinks fast a couple of times, "Oh I know you can tell us about the cool yordle with the bat wings and black and purple."

Maddie tells us, "Of course! I see your friend really thinks our goth goddess is cool. Whenever I have nightmares of Void creatures, the dying life tree and Kha'Zix she always makes me feel safe. I keep having those nightmares and I know they're really visions but nobody listens to me!" Wow she sounds frustrated.

Ava chews her steak glaring at Maddie. "Oh please. Void creatures are just myth. You know that, don't you?"

Maddie crosses her arms glaring at the floor, away from Ava very on purpose.

I whisper to her, "I believe you. They're probably behind why we're here."

Maddie shows us to the guest bedrooms and me and Jacob share a room. Mercy's still obviously mad at McCree, she's crossing her arms with her chin up. What gives McCree the right to be that mean to her?

The beds are so soft and silky, and Jacob ask me if I'm okay.

I sigh then say, "I hope mom's doing okay. She was still pretty sad last time I saw her. I hope Ashley's going to be okay. Mom says she makes enough from the salon but I don't know."

Jacob looks out the window and I look with him. We're watching maids arranging flowers in the courtyard. White, red, and orange roses along with morning glories. The courtyard has nice cobblestone walkways with pretty trees and tall, thick aloe. Yordle knights standing guard in case anything happens.

I'm in a bright green grassy field with lots of fresh air. It's dad! We run to the beach, but Reaper floats down from the hills in an evil spooky red and gray cloud. "I'll be taking him now, if you don't mind."

He grabs dad and he reaches out to me. "Dad no! Give him back you big mean jerk!"

Reaper cackles as he takes him away. Smoke rolls down the hills, the fire burning everything in its path. An orange glow surrounds me, the fire lining the hill like a crown.

I feel like I just crashed startling me awake. Jacob rolls over and is snoring away, wisps of his dirty blonde hair rest over his face. I'm just glad it was just a dream.

McCree knocks. "You up? I figure we can go for a walk before sunrise."

Mom says that's when all the crazies are out and how it's so dangerous but I think we'll be okay with McCree.

I get my Sk8 His, black skinny jeans, use dry shampoo to hold my hair, and a black crewneck with Neck Deep's band name written on it and a Thrasher zip up hoodie since it's 62 outside. Jacob wakes up and wears a baseball hat and light blue button up over a white crewneck and a medium coat and cargo pants over them.

We walk through the courtyard and who's hiding behind that bush? My pulse starts racing, but they run across the walkway hiding behind a sign. Their legs creating a yellowish orange blur. Umm, I can still see you? I look at them for 2 seconds but they just disappear. Whew it was just a ghost. Fear and curiosity turn to relief.

McCree looks down to me, "You look like you've seen a ghost!"

Jacob looks at the violet moon. "Isn't this place so cool! We don't even have to hide our magic here."

He runs over to a flower arrangement then over a small bridge over a small fake river and we follow him.

Jacob asks, "I can't believe how sweet kind and cool Maddie is. Hey can I tell you a secret?" I lean in closer. "I can't really read minds." Pretending to be surprised I go, "No! Really? Well your secret's safe with me fam."

Jacob playfully smiles, "But I can make it even cooler!" His hand glows a pale blue and I put my hands on my hips scrunching my mouth pointing at him, "Don't even think about it."

McCree tells him, "Yeah seriously put the magic down."

Jacob sounding disappointed, "Aww but I wanted to make a snowman."

We go back and shower. McCree's soap smells like sandalwood and pine, a man's smell. He washes his slender and chiseled arms, pecks, and everything else. His dexterous hands wash his full lips. The water is comfortably hot, and even if it wasn't our great friend Carlos would help with that anyway. The shower is elegant in a renaissance kind of way.

McCree sighs looking at Winston. The look he gives him with his cornflower blue eyes worried he'll do something dumb and ruin his relationship with Mercy forever. "You know how me and Mercy are arguing?"

Winston says, "Did something happen between you two again?"

McCree's shoulders slump and he sighs. "Yeah. I mean is this all really because I yelled that awful thing?"

Winston puts his hand on McCree's shoulder. "I think it's something deeper. I mean you immediately yelled yes when she asked you think just because you're a man taller and a year older that you get to make all the decisions. Like if you didn't really feel that way why else would you unthinkingly yell yes?"

Even though the shower's running I can tell McCree's shedding tears. He covers his hands in his face then says, "I just don't know what to do anymore!"

Winston then tells him, "She thinks you like other girls but don't worry I know you aren't. Blaming and arguing isn't going to get your relationship anywhere and I see you're trying to make it up to her but she's just way too hurt. I mean you're an amazing catch! Your cornflower blue eyes have that handsome gleam to them, and you working out quite a bit shows."

McCree puts Winston's hand between his own. "Thanks Winston, you're the best but I'm not so sure about my relationship with Mercy. I mean I want it to work but I just don't know what I did wrong."

Trang looks over to me, "Too bad about McCree and Mercy. I hope they'll be okay. Maddie is so nice like how can her sisters treat her that way?"

Carlos says, "Meh, they didn't seem that bad. They just have different responsibilities."

Winston uses argan oil and seaweed shampoo to wash his body. It smells really good so McCree ask if he can borrow it.

After breakfast and getting ready me Judith and Abby walk outside with the princesses.

Violet sighs, "I haven't done that many choirs in so long. I'm so drained from this morning."

Maddie then agrees, "I feel you there. I just wanna go back and dream and hopefully not those stupid nightmares with those nasty Void creatures destroying everything."

Violet's eyes widen and eyebrows go up, "Wow Maddie you're so lazy." She says sort of giggling.

Maddie scowls crossing her arms, "Just don't even start." She looks up pointing at the dam. "Look it's starting to crack!"

Violet looks at the dam and runs to a few guards, "I need you guys to evacuate people, like right away!"

"Right away princess."

I use my speed spell to get us closer and McCree Mercy and Winston try in vain to keep it from spilling.

There's a guy with a purple Mohawk and long black coat and sunglasses. He floats pointing his shaking arms pointing to the damn. His teeth grit and the stones smooth out and saves the dam.

"I thought you guys needed me help. I take it you're here to learn the same thing?"

He floats down. "It'll be quite the adventure mates. The sword'll choose me I just know it. Talon will bloody pay for what they've done."

Winston smiles proudly, "I know they will too. Say, how'd you even get here?"

"Well mate, Vishkar built a portal because they want to stop anyone from stopping Talon."

Mercy says, "Huh, well that makes sense."

Teemo and Tristana walk forward with a couple of pig people who dwarf us nevermind them. Tristana says, "We found these guys up to no good." She pokes its back with her gun pushing him forward.

A bystander yells to the pigs, "You're going to jail!" And everyone cheers for Tristana. She looks down closing her eyes blushing and smiling. "Oh I don't deserve your praise." But I can tell she knows she does.

Violet says rubbing her hands, "We know exactly what to do with you guys."

Tristana looks up to McCree, "Makes sense it'd be them."

Winston adjusts his glasses. "I think some of us should stay back, you know just in case they attack. Our next destination is the fairy kingdom is who wants to come with me?"

Judith's hand shoots up, "Me! Pick me! Me me me me me me me!" She zips around our heads.

Maddie runs towards us with her mouth wide open. "I wanna join too!" She says hopping up and down.

Violet tells her, "Sorry little sis but you can't. The prime minister wants you with us."

Her weight shifts to her other foot as she crosses her arms scowling. "Fine be that way."

Violet tells her, "Don't look at me that way I'm still your big sister you know. Let's go come on."

Tristana smiles and whispers, "She'll follow us."

Winston says, "Okay we know Maddie isn't coming so who else is coming?"

Shauna's eyes shine and she smiles. "So we're going to see real fairies? Count me in!"

Carlos doesn't look like he wants to. "Oh please fairies are for girls."

Abby teases, "You're afraid of fairies, aren't you?"

Carlos looks away rubbing his nose. "No. I just want to stay back because I'm lazy, you know how much I like just."

Abby then says, "Oh please what are you going to do there's no service here."

"I still have songs and videos on my phone just in case."