Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, with an exception of any new ones that were not in the original 10th Kingdom. The original characters and places belong to Simon Moore.
Chapter 27
Wolf had been sitting by Virginia's side for almost two days now, since arriving back at Wendell's castle. According to the doctor, she should be waking soon, but still she slept. Tony had hardly left her side too. He was just as worried. He had been drifting off to sleep while sitting in the chair and refused to go to his own room. Wolf had barely slept at all. He was to worried about Virginia. There was something else on his mind that he hadn't told Tony or Wendell yet. He didn't understand it, and he definitely didn't want to tell Virginia, when she woke up. Wolf sighed and rubbed his eyes. Tony and Wendell walked in to see him trying to stifle a yawn. Wendell pulled Tony back out into the hallway.
"Antony, he needs sleep. It isn't healthy for him to be staying up like that." Wendell glanced inside the room, worried.
"I know Wendell, but we can't force him. He hasn't left the room since we got back. He refuses to get any sleep." Tony said and they were both quiet, thinking.
"Do you think he'll be terribly angry if we give him some sleeping potion?" Wendell asked hesitantly. But Tony shook his head.
"He won't fall for it. He'll be able to smell it and what if he's asleep when she wakes up?"
"Well we have to do something. He can't stay like that. He's hardly eaten anything." Wendell said and Tony scratched his neck.
"That is bad." He agreed. "Well, let's go and talk to him first, see if we can't talk him into getting a little bit of sleep or food."
They both walked in to find Wolf pacing nervously. When he saw them come in, he sat back down and tried to act like nothing was wrong. Tony and Wendell walked over to him.
"Wolf, we need to talk." Tony said, sitting in his chair and Wendell sat on the chair opposite of them. Wolf looked at them curiously.
"What is it Tone?"
"Wolf, you need to get some sleep. I never thought I'd have to say this last bit, but you need to eat some to. It's not healthy."
Wolf shook his head. "I can't. I broke my promise to her. I told her that I wouldn't let anything happen to her. Now I need to keep my other promise, to stay by her bedside and nurse her back to health." At the time the two of them hadn't meant literally but Wolf was going to keep the promise. Tony put his hand on Wolf's shoulder, a major jump for Tony, since he had never been to fond of him.
"You won't be breaking that promise by getting some sleep. I'm sure Wendell can get you a cot brought in here. That way you don't have to leave her side. I'll send you up some food to, you've hardly eaten in the last few days." Wolf still looked a little hesitant. "Wolf, you won't be any good to Virginia if you put yourself into a coma too. Now come on, I'll go get you the food." Without waiting for Wolf's comment, Tony left the room to prepare a plate of food. Wendell sat watching Wolf, who was still sitting there in a daze. Wendell got up and called for a servant, and told him to bring a cot with fresh sheets.
Tony got back with the food just as the servants bringing the cot got there. While they set up the cot next to Virginia's bed, Tony handed the plate of bacon, bread, lamb, and potatoes to Wolf. Wolf smiled weakly at Tony and muttered a small "Thanks." Wolf ate all the food quickly and laid down on the cot. Right before he fell asleep he looked back up and saw Tony settle into his chair just as Evelyn was coming into the room. She sat next to Wendell and the two of them smiled at each other. Wolf drifted off into a deep sleep, for the first time in days.
Wendell got called off to a meeting an hour later, leaving just Tony and Evelyn in the room. They both sat silently, not wanting to make to much noise so Wolf could go on sleeping. Evelyn had been spending a lot of time in Virginia's room also. She couldn't help but feel guilty. She had broken her promise to Tony and Wolf. She had promised them that she wouldn't let anything happen to Virginia. True, it wasn't her fault that she had gotten knocked out and taken to the dungeon. But apart of her knew that she could have fought harder or something. Virginia was pregnant and had been left all alone to face that evil teenager.
Jessica had been thrown into the dungeon once they had arrived back. She had woken up on their journey back and had been furious. She never spoke a word, but she sat there glaring at everyone. Evelyn had seen her look at Virginia in a weird way. Her face had hate written all over but in her eyes there was the faintest signs of remorse. Evelyn had watched her as her eyes had gotten wide when the doctor mentioned the baby. Was it possible that Jessica had actually felt sorry for what she had done? She probably hadn't known about Virginia being pregnant and had just thought that she would only be killing her. But instead, she had come close to killing an innocent infant also. Even if she did feel regretful, that wouldn't change Evelyn's attitude toward her.
A few hours later, the maid stopped by to tell them that supper was being served in the dinning hall. Evelyn still couldn't get used to staying in a castle. She wasn't used to not making the meals, or doing all the chores around the house.
"I'll think I'll skip supper, thank you." Evelyn told the maid and the maid turned to Tony.
"Actually, bring Evelyn's food up here, and mine to please." Tony said and the maid nodded and hurried off. Evelyn looked at Tony.
"Thanks, but you didn't have to do that."
"Yes I did, we don't need anybody else skipping their meals." Tony smiled and looked at her thoughtfully. "You don't have to stay in here you know." Then realizing that that might sound rude, he quickly added, "I mean, it's okay that you do. Just, not necessary. I know it can be kind of boring just sitting here all day."
"I'm okay. I owe it to Virginia." She looked down at her feet. "Tony, I'm sorry that I wasn't able to keep her from getting hurt. I know you and Wolf were counting on me to keep her safe."
Tony looked at her surprised. He hadn't known she felt so guilty. His expression turned to kindness though. "It's okay Evelyn. No one blames you. We all know that you did everything you could. Virginia had to face Jessica alone. She'll be alright." Tony said, although not entirely believing that last part. He was starting to get really worried. The last time Virginia had been asleep this long was after Wendell's coronation and that had been because she had been so exhausted. This time she had been injured and was pregnant. Although, her body could just be needing the rest after their long journey again.
Evelyn left that night to go to her room at about ten. Tony fell asleep in his chair and Wolf went on sleeping. In the morning, Wendell came in to see how everyone was doing. They were all still sleeping and Virginia hadn't moved at all. Wendell looked at his sister worriedly. She should have been awake by now. He had another meeting in an hour with his council, so Wendell decided to sit in here until he had to go. He was just about to leave when he saw Virginia start to move around. She shifted slightly, moving from her back to her side. It was the first time she had moved at all, other than breathing.
"Antony! Antony, wake up!" Wendell shook Tony awake. "Antony, she moved!" Tony sat up quickly. He looked over and sure enough, Virginia had rolled over. Wendell ran over to Wolf's cot. "Wolf, get up! Wolf! Virginia moved!" Wolf opened his eyes and looked around. Then Wendell's words processed and he shot off the cot. They all sat eagerly on the edge of her bed. She would be waking up soon, hopefully. Wendell called for the doctor and came and sat back down. His council would just have to hold the meeting without him. It wasn't all that important anyway, just something about how much profit they had made from the crops this last year. The doctor arrived and Wendell explained what had happened. The doctor went over and checked Virginia's pulse and under her eyelids.
"She looks like she's doing better. Like I said before, it's up to Virginia when she's going to wake up. But that is a good sign. Hopefully she'll be awake soon then. I suggest that you get some soup made up because she hasn't eaten anything in a few days and she'll need her strength." They all nodded and the doctor stayed for a few more minutes before leaving.
They all sat there eagerly and hardly noticed it when Evelyn walked in. She saw them all sitting there watching her and then noticed that she was no longer on her back. She came over and stood behind Wendell. Wolf smelt her first and said a quick "hello." This made Tony and Wendell look over.
"Oh, Evelyn, good, you're here." Wendell said and continued before she could ask why. "Virginia moved a minute ago and the doctor said that she might be waking soon." Evelyn sat down next to him and they all sat there. She noticed Wolf looked a lot better. He looked rested and was no longer pale and weak looking. His leg was mending quite well too, so was Tony's arm. In fact, both acted like they had never been hurt in the first place.
They waited a few more minutes, but Virginia barely moved again. Each feeling disappointed, they backed away from the bed and took a seat in a chair. They were silent for a few minutes. Wolf decided to tell them about what he had found out. Now was as good a time as any, they were all there and Virginia wasn't awake to hear it. Wolf turned to them.
"There's something I should tell you guys about Jessica. I didn't realize it until they were putting her into the cart because I had been so preoccupied." Wolf scratched at his head and started pacing. Tony, Wendell and Evelyn looked at him in confusion. He didn't look as though he was going to continue so Tony asked him what it was.
"Well, Jessica, she's…her scent…"
"Spit it out Wolf!" Tony said impatiently. Wolf stopped pacing.
"She's the Evil Queens daughter." Evelyn gasped and Wendell's jaw dropped. Wolf saw Tony's expression and immediately added, "Not your daughter Tone. Some other scent I don't know." Everyone was silent as this revelation sunk in. Tony was relieved to find out that that evil brat wasn't his. But it also hurt him in a way. He knew Christine had been sleeping around with other guys before she had left. Had she become pregnant before or after she came through the mirror?
"Are you sure Wolf? I mean, are you positive it's her daughter?" Wendell asked. But he already knew the answer. It was very unlikely that Wolf could mess something up as far as smelling things. Wolf nodded anyway.
"But how? I mean, when would she have had time to have a daughter? She didn't have one when she became my nursemaid, at least she didn't bring a child with her." Wendell went on talking. He was very confused, as were the others. Then, a thought occurred to him, a rather disturbing one. "Then that would make Jessica my step-sister as well." Wendell said, disgusted and not even hiding it. Virginia was his step-sister but he considered her his sister. Jessica…he didn't want any relation to her. Not after she tried killing everyone and taking over his Kingdom. "No, I won't acknowledge her as my step-sister. I wonder though, if she knows that she is related to Virginia? Those two will be half sisters."
"I don't know if she knows or not, but I'm not going to tell Virginia. She'll just try and help her out, feel sorry for her. No siree! The less Virginia sees Jessica the better." Wolf stated firmly. For once, Tony agreed with him. He nodded his head in agreement. Evelyn didn't feel as sure.
"That's kind of wrong, don't you think? Keeping that from Virginia. She has a right to know, after all, it is her half sister and her mother we're talking about." Evelyn looked around to see if anyone agreed but they all looked as if they had already made up their minds. Which, they probably already had.
"No, Virginia does not need to know. You know how soft hearted she is. A girl like Jessica can not be changed. In fact, I'm willing to bet that Jessica knew all about her relation to Virginia. She had all those mirrors, how could she not find out? And she still tried to kill her!" Tony said and Evelyn had to agree with him. "So promise you won't say anything to her." They all looked at her and she nodded.
"I promise." Evelyn meant it too. But if Virginia ever flat out asked her something that the answer was that she was related to her, then Evelyn would not lie. But she wouldn't mention anything until Virginia was on to them. Evelyn decided to tell them what she had noticed the other day. The looks Jessica had been giving everyone and Virginia.
"Did any of you happen to notice the looks Jessica had been giving everyone? Including the one that she gave Virginia?" Evelyn asked.
"What, you mean the 'You will pay for this, I want you dead' looks?" Tony said sarcastically, although it was true. That was what he had interpreted the looks to mean. Wendell and Wolf nodded too. But they hadn't seen what Evelyn had.
"When she looked at Virginia, her face was covered with hate, but in her eyes, I could barely see the hint of remorse. I didn't see it until she heard the doctor talk about the baby. It was almost as if she felt sorry for almost killing a baby, but not Virginia." Evelyn stated her thoughts. Tony, however, snorted.
"Well, that's showing a little bit of humanity."
"I still don't trust her." Wolf said.
"You shouldn't. She's not going anywhere either, staying in that cell. I don't think we can send her to Snow White Memorial Prison just yet. We just stocked them up on prisoners to last awhile." Wendell pointed out.
The four of them spent the rest of the day in there, waiting to see if she would wake up. Wendell canceled any meetings he had that day and ordered the chefs to prepare their meals and send them up to Virginia's room. To keep themselves busy, they talked about various things. Occasionally, Virginia would shift a little, and by the time night came, she had already rolled over to her other side.
Wolf longed to lay down beside Virginia, but the doctor specifically said that he can only sit on the edge of the bed and he would have to sleep else where. So Wolf laid down on his cot, but not completely tired yet. Tony was soon snoring in his chair, and at about ten o'clock, Wendell and Evelyn left to go and get some sleep. Wolf stayed up a bit longer, watching his mate. Eventually, he drifted off into a light sleep.
Virginia woke up slowly. She couldn't quite get her eye lids to open yet, so she laid there. Wherever she was at, it was quiet. No, there was the sound of someone snoring. Snoring? Where was she? She tried to remember what had happened. She recalled running to the castle with Evelyn, meeting Jessica, Evelyn got took away, and Jessica told her plan. Oh no! The soldiers! Wendell! Then Virginia remembered the rest of it. Jessica had told her that her father and Wolf hadn't made it. She had lost control and charged at Jessica…then she had gotten stabbed. The baby! Was the baby alright? Virginia moved her hand to her stomach, with her eyes still shut. Her stomach was still somewhat big, so the baby had to still be in there. But where was she? Virginia attempted to open her eyes again. They fluttered partially open for a second and then closed again. Trying to fight the sleepiness coming over her, she tried again. This time, she was able to keep them open, but they were out of focus.
Finally, she could see a small candle burning in the corner. She looked around a little and noticed that she was in her room at Wendell's castle. How had she gotten here? She noticed that there were a lot more chairs in here than normal, and they were all grouped around the bed. That's when she noticed that one of the chairs still had a person in it, and he was the one making all the noise with the snoring. Then she realized who it was.
She tried calling out Dad! But found she wasn't strong enough to talk just yet. But she felt so relieved that he was okay. She didn't know if she had actually believed Jessica or not when she had said that they had both failed. Wolf! Where was he? Was he okay? Starting to panic, Virginia tried sitting up. But the effort was to much for her. The small amount of energy that she had already used, just by opening her eyes and looking around, had already tired her out. She could feel the blackness coming over her again. She was just able to turn around before her head hit the pillow. As she fought to stay awake, she could make out the shape of someone sleeping nearby. Her heart started beating harder and she fought the darkness even harder now. Trying as hard as she could, she was barely able to mutter out a whisper, "Wolf."
But the whisper was enough. Wolf had been sleeping very lightly and had already begun to wake up when he had heard shifting on a bed. When he heard someone whisper his name, his eyes popped open. There wasn't that much light in the room, but his eyes could easily see that Virginia was facing him with her eyes open. He flung up out of the cot, and forgetting the doctor's orders (or just ignoring them) he quickly went over so that he was laying down, facing her. He smiled, relieved that she was finally awake. He could tell she was very weak though. He gently caressed her face with his hand and muttered small things, such as 'I love you and I missed you.' Then he remembered Tony.
"Tony! Tony get up!" Tony jumped up and saw that Wolf was next to Virginia. He rushed over just in time to see Virginia give a small smile and then her eyes closed. Wolf started panicking again. "Virginia? Virginia, don't go back to sleep. Virginia! Tony? Why did she go back to sleep?"
Tony stopped him just as he was about to shake her. "Wolf! She probably used up a lot of energy just now, and passed back out. She might wake up again in the morning. I'm going to go see if I can get that doctor back up here again." Tony rushed out into the hallway and Wolf was left watching over Virginia. He sat up and gently put her head into his lap. He took his hand through her hair, stroking her.
It was about ten minutes before Tony reappeared with the doctor. The doctor was wearing a robe and looked very grumpy. He saw Wolf on the bed with her.
"Get off of there!" He snapped. Wolf gently made his way to the edge of the bed. The doctor checked Virginia, all the while murmuring something. When he was done, he turned to Tony and Wolf, who were watching eagerly.
"It seems that she was trying to wake up, but she was still to weak. My guess is that she'll be up for good by tomorrow-tomorrow morning. Leave her be though. She has to gather enough strength for herself. She must have been more worn out then any of us could have guessed. Now, I'm going back to sleep, but if she wakes up again tonight, don't smother her. Give her some water and get some soup or something prepared." The doctor turned and left the room.
Tony glared at him as he shut the door. "You know, I'm really starting to not trust that guy. First he says that she should be awake anytime and that she was perfectly fine. Now he says that she was worse than he had expected and just goes back off to bed. Hmph!" Tony grumbled. "You know? We should have taken her back to New York to get treated. They have medicine and stuff there that they could have given her while she was out. They could have put her on that IV thing and she could have been getting that food and water even before she woke up. Here, they don't have any technology to help her. They just stick her in a bed and say she'll wake up eventually."
"Really? They could do all that in New York? Cripes. Maybe we should have taken her there. If she would have been a lot better quicker." Wolf said thoughtfully. It would be to late now, but Tony should have mentioned that earlier.
"Yeah, and they could have at least guaranteed that she would be alright and proven it too." Tony said, wondering what was causing him to talk so highly of New York. He walked over and plopped down onto his chair, planning on staying awake for as long as he could. But his as long as he could, ended up being about five minutes.
Wolf, however, stayed up the rest of the night. He sat on the edge of the bed, every now and then, brushing stray pieces of hair out of Virginia's face.
When morning came, Wolf still hadn't fallen asleep. Evelyn came in, not to long after the sun rose. She saw Wolf and immediately knew something must have happened. Wolf told her about the night before where Virginia had woken up for a minute only to pass back out. Evelyn sat down on a chair near Tony, who was still snoring away.
"Wendell told me last night that he had to leave the castle early this morning. Apparently, there was some annual ceremony he had to attend in Kissing Town. He should be back later this evening."
Wolf nodded. "You two are getting along pretty well then huh?" He smiled when he saw Evelyn blush. Wolf knew it was none of his business, but he asked anyway. "Have you two done more than just hold hands?" Evelyn blushed even more.
"Last night he kissed me when he walked me to my room. I really like him a lot. He's very polite and handsome. I can tell that he really likes me but he acts like a gentlemen and doesn't go to fast, even though I can tell it's difficult for him." Evelyn smiled. The first night back at the castle, he had taken her on a tour of the castle and they had eaten together. They hadn't really had much time together since then, but last night, when he had kissed her…She didn't think she had ever felt like that before when they had kissed. It could only be explained as magnificent and they both hadn't wanted to stop. Wendell was a gentlemen and had been raised very strictly, and she admired that. But it still was very difficult for the both of them to stay apart. Evelyn looked up to see Wolf smiling knowingly at her.
"You should have gone with him to Kissing Town." He grinned and Evelyn blushed again. She had never been to Kissing Town before, but she knew all about it and what happened to those who spent time there. Those who weren't with loved ones, found love there. She knew that it was probably a good thing that she hadn't gone. Wendell had told her that he wanted to wait until after he was married before he ever went farther then just kissing, which she understood and agreed with. But if they were both in the most romantic place in all the Nine Kingdoms, who could say that they would be able to control themselves. On the other hand, she wouldn't be to disappointed if they did loose control. Her face was burning red with the thought. She really needed to control herself.
Wolf was still watching her, amused. He could tell that both Evelyn and Wendell wanted each other, but were raised too proper to do anything before marriage. It would be very interesting to see how long they would last before giving up on trying to wait. Loving someone can be the most wonderful thing in the world, but it can also be dangerous to want someone as much as you want that person you love. After all, his parents had always stressed how important it was to wait until you're married, if you could. After all, his father had been a wolf, and his parents hadn't waited. But they still stressed it on him and his brothers. He really had tried to too, but he sort of lost it that day in the woods (not that he regretted it! No Sirree, not one bit), seeing Virginia standing there looking so succulent, and once he knew that she loved him back…well, he couldn't take it any longer. He had been looking at Virginia and then he realized that he was sweating. Cripes, was it hot in here! Deciding to stretch his legs a little and cool off, he walked over to the large window and pulled it open. A breeze came in and Wolf felt better. Once again, it was dangerous to want someone so much. When he felt completely cooled off, he closed the window to where it was only open a tiny bit and then he went back and sat down.
Tony was still snoring when the maid brought up Wolf's breakfast. The maid knew to bring all of Wolf's meals up to the room, and knew what he wanted, usually meat and lots of it, with very little vegetables with preferably warm milk. The others weren't quite as predictable, so she never knew if they were eating in the room or in the dinning hall or what they were eating. So Wolf woke up Tony and Tony and Evelyn told the maid what they wanted for breakfast. Wolf ate quickly, never leaving Virginia's bedside. Once they were done eating, Evelyn started telling them all about the gifts that Virginia had been receiving from people around the Kingdoms. They had just started showing up, since the Kingdoms were so vast, word took a while to travel.
"She's gotten tons of flowers, cards, cakes and breads, and all kinds of other gifts. Wendell didn't want to bring it all up into her room, since there was so much of it, so it's all down in the main hall. There's even some gifts from other Kings and Queens that are still grateful for her saving them and hope she gets better. Even Queen Cinderella sent something!" Evelyn said excitedly. Wolf's mouth dropped open. Huff Puff! His Virginia was famous! Even one of the Five Women Who Changed History sent something for her!
Just then, Virginia started to wake up. She shifted around and slowly opened her eyes. She looked around the room, and seemed to remember where she was. Then she looked up at Wolf, who was now sitting right next to her on the bed and smiled. Tony and Evelyn came over to her also. Virginia had regained a lot of her strength and was able to sit up without passing out. With Wolf's help, she was able to sit up completely and look around at everyone.
"Virginia, honey, how are you doing?" Tony asked as he sat down on the edge of the bed and took her hand in his.
"Fine, I think. But what happened? I thought you were…she said…" Virginia couldn't bring herself to say dead. She was so relieved that they weren't. So relieved that tears started to form in her eyes. Wolf gently wiped them away.
"Thought we were what?" He asked and Virginia muttered softly, "Jessica said that you were both dead." Wolf wrapped his arms around her to comfort her. Wolf wondered what else Jessica had told her. Virginia looked around again.
"Where's Wendell." She started to panic again. She remembered all the soldiers that were planning on attacking Wendell. Wolf calmed her again.
"Wendell's okay. He's been visiting you a lot. Hardly any of us have left this room. Right now, he's away from the castle, but he'll be back later."
"What about all those soldiers? And Jessica?"
"Jessica is in the dungeon. What's left of the soldiers are at Snow White Memorial Prison, along with the three bounty hunters." Virginia looked relieved but still confused. How could they have beaten all those soldiers? She looked over to Evelyn, glad to see she was okay too. She sat at the edge of the bed opposite Tony.
"Hi Evelyn."
"I'm glad you're alright now. You've had everybody really worried. Wolf and Tony have hardly left the room. In fact, Wolf hasn't left your side at all since we've been back. Wendell will be really relieved that you're okay too." Then she smiled. "You should see all the flowers and gifts for you down in the main hall. People from all over the Kingdoms have sent you get well gifts, including Kings and Queens from other Kingdoms." Virginia stared at her in shock.
"Really? Why? What did I do?"
"Well, you're a national hero, and the most of the Kings and Queens are still grateful to you for saving them and their Kingdom before."
"Wow." Virginia said. She was silent for a minute, while it all sunk in. "But what happened back there at the castle? The last thing I remembered was tackling Jessica. She told me her plan to take over the Fourth Kingdom, she was going to send all those soldiers to kill Wendell at his castle. Then she told me that the bounty hunters had called her on her mirror just before we got there to say that they had killed you guys. I lost it and tackled her. She stabbed my leg and I tackled her again. But that's all that I can remember." Virginia carefully ran her hand over where she had been stabbed and found that it was all stitched up and healing. How long had she been out? Then she remembered the baby. "My God! The baby, is he alright?" Panic was written all over her face again and Wolf gently calmed her.
"Shhh, the cub is just fine. The doctor was able to save both of you." Virginia let out a sigh of relief. Wolf was also relieved to see that Virginia did care about the cub. Now he knew that she meant what she had said before about wanting the cub and loving and caring for it. Virginia still wanted to know what happened though.
"How long was I out? What happened?" She asked. Tony and Wolf then told her everything about their fight with the bounty hunters. Wolf told her about his running to the castle to save her (leaving out the dream. He hadn't told anyone about that dream he had had). Then they explained what Wendell had told them about his dream and the Trolls helping fight all the soldiers. The only thing they didn't tell Virginia was that Jessica was her half sister. By the time they were done, Virginia was loosing her strength again.
Evelyn went out into the hallway and called for a servant or the maid. The maid was nearest and came into the room.
"Can you please bring up some soup?"
"Certainly Miss. Anything else?"
"Yes, when the King arrives back, can you please tell him his sister is awake?" The maid hurried off down to the kitchen to prepare the soup. Evelyn came back and sat down again. They talked some until the soup showed up. Wolf helped Virginia eat it all and then told her she should lay back down and get some sleep so she regains all of her strength. Virginia agreed, because now she was drained of pretty much all energy again. As she laid down, she heard her father say that him and Evelyn were going to go and eat their lunch and give Virginia some peace and quiet so she could sleep.
"Wolf, are you going to come? Or should I have the maid bring your lunch up here again?" Tony asked as he was at the door. Virginia looked at Wolf.
"I'll think I'll eat up here. I don't want to leave Virginia yet." He said and Tony nodded. Virginia smiled and took Wolf's hand.
"Wolf, you go down and eat. I'm fine now, just tired. I'm very grateful that you've stuck by me this whole time, so I think you deserve a break." Wolf was about to protest but he seemed to change his mind. Staying cooped up in a room for days had been hard on him. He did need to get some exercise. Maybe he would take a walk outside after he ate. Nodding, he got up and kissed Virginia on the forehead and then followed Tony and Evelyn out into the hall. Virginia smiled again and then drifted off into sleep.
Wolf, Tony, and Evelyn were all in a much better mood and the worry lines that had been etched on their faces were now gone. They talked about various things while they ate and when Wolf was done, he got up and headed outside of the castle. The fresh air felt so good. He walked through the garden and decided he would run through the woods. It felt really good to stretch his legs and he was excited to be outside. He was really relieved that Virginia was alright and told himself that he wouldn't spend to much time out here so he could hurry back in to be with her.
Tony and Evelyn walked around the castle after they were done. They had all spent so much time in Virginia's room that they hadn't gotten much exercise. Tony led Evelyn to the library. Evelyn had told him that she loved reading and had been reading ever since she could remember.
"I've never seen so many books before. It's amazing. I could be in here for days straight reading." Evelyn said as she made her way over to one bookcase to see what kind of books were there. The Library was extremely large, two stories with nothing but shelves on all the walls, ladders to reach the top books, tables, couches, and chairs were in the center of the room and around the fireplace at the far end from the entrance. Tony had also spent a lot of time in here after Virginia and Wolf had left for New York. He had had to do research on different minerals in the Nine Kingdoms so he could try and start the bouncy castles. Tony had never been much of a reader, but he found this room very peaceful. He would come up here and grab some books and just sit by the fireplace reading and researching. It seems Evelyn would also be spending a lot of time in here not as well.
Evelyn picked out a couple of books to take with her to read in Virginia's room and they made their way back to the other side of the castle where her room was. When they got there, they found Virginia still sleeping and Wolf was no where to be seen. Evelyn settled in to a chair and opened up one of the books. Tony glanced at the title. A History of the Fourth Kingdom. Tony shook his head. Where he came from, hardly anyone her age would be caught dead reading a history book. Tony sat in his chair near Virginia's bed and waited.
Wolf got back about a half an hour later. He looked winded as if he had been doing a lot of running. Just as he was sitting down, Virginia woke up. They had the maid bring her up another bowl of soup, even though she wasn't all that hungry.
"Virginia, you need to regain all of your strength, so you need to get lots of rest and eat a lot of food. You need to keep the baby healthy too." Tony said in his 'that's final' voice.
It was early evening when Wendell arrived back at the castle. The guard at the door told him that the Lady Virginia had woken up earlier this morning. So, before anything else, Wendell headed up there. He found Virginia sitting up in bed talking to Evelyn, while Wolf and Tony sat in the chairs near the bed. Feeling really relieved he made his way over to the bed. Virginia looked up at him and smiled.
"Hello Wendell."
"Virginia, how are you feeling?"
"Better, still a little weak, but I'm getting my strength back."
"That's good. We've all been very worried." Wendell sat down next to Tony.
"So Wendell, what kind of ceremony did you have to go to?" Virginia asked.
"Oh, it was the annual Glass Coffin Memorial ceremony. Once a year they have a festival type thing in Kissing Town in remembrance of the day my grandmother was woken up by the Prince, my grandfather. I had to be there to make a speech and then I stayed just long enough to visit with a few people." He said and Virginia nodded. "Oh, and by the way, I spoke to Lord Rupert the other day and he was very excited about planning your wedding. He just wants to know when you want to have it. I told him that it would have to wait until you're awake and feeling completely better and then you and Wolf can decide when you want to have the wedding. That is if you still plan to…" Virginia and Wolf both nodded. "Good. He also suggested that we throw a ball once you're well enough. It would be in honor of you four, as you all saved the Fourth Kingdom." Wendell smiled as they all looked surprised, especially Evelyn.
"But, I didn't do anything. It should be for you four. You're the original Four Who Saved the Nine Kingdoms." Evelyn said.
"Yes, but this time, you were one of the heroes. You did help." Wendell said.
"I didn't really do anything."
"Oh yes you did. Now stop trying to be modest. I'll tell Rupert to go ahead and start preparing it. We'll have it this weekend. He can send out the invitations." Wendell stood up. "Now, Virginia, you should get some more rest. We'll leave you alone." Evelyn stood up and he put his arm around her and together they left. Virginia stared after them in surprise. Tony and Wolf grinned. Virginia turned to them.
"How did that happen and when?"
"On the way back from that castle, Wendell finally told her how he felt and the two have been almost inseparable since." Wolf told her.
"You left that small detail out when you told me the rest of it."
"Oops, must have slipped my mind. Now Wendell's right, you need to get some more rest." Wolf had Virginia lay down and covered her up. Tony stood and stretched.
"I think I'm going to sleep in my own room tonight. Now that I know you're alright, I'm going to sleep good on my nice fluffy mattress. You know it'll be the first time I've slept in an actual soft bed in about two weeks now?"
"Night Dad." Virginia smiled.
"Goodnight Sweetie." Tony left and closed the door. Wolf quickly changed and got into bed beside her. Virginia kissed his nose as he lay there with his eyes closed. He was going to sleep good tonight too. No cots or chairs for him, now that Virginia was awake he didn't care what that doctor said. Virginia stroked his tail and he moaned happily. She was asleep pretty quick though. Wolf put his arm around her protectively and fell asleep too.