"Doth I know thee?" Frog inquired, tipping his head to one side curiously. The soldiers exchanged glances and shrugs. There was an uncomfortable silence as I struggled for words, then one of the soldiers said, "It seems she knows you, Sir Frog. A wandering minstrel, perhaps?" There were scattered chuckles at this, and I swallowed and cleared my throat vigorously. "Quiet!" commanded Frog. "Let the maid say her piece."
"I-I'm Melanie," I finally managed to spit out. Frog looked confused. "You know, the girl that Lucca-""Ah, yes!" Frogs eyes widened in recognition, and his mouth broadened into a smile. "Lucca's lov-" I shook my head and went into a fake coughing fit. "Er, friend." finished Frog, more tactfully. Turning to his friends, he announced, "This maiden is a friend of my companions Sir Crono and Lady Lucca, who restored Queen Leene to her throne six years past. She is, as thou hast said, a wandering minstrel, and quite harmless." Turning back to me, he asked "Art thou in need of assistance?" Not knowing what to say, I simply nodded. "We shall escort thee to Guardia Castle, then."
So it was that I found myself surrounded by an armed escort on the way to Guardia castle. It turned out that I had landed only about half a mile north of the castle itself, so it made sense to the soldiers that I had gotten lost in the dark and wandered off course a bit. What didn't make sense to them was that I was traveling with no provisions. "We shall see to that once she reaches the castle safely, shall we not?" Frog silenced them.
Out of curiosity I opened my belt pouch to confirm that I did indeed, have nothing, only to find it stuffed full of tiny bottles. I took one out, squinted at it in the moonlight, and then, at the height of my inspiration, decided to taste it. Frog croaked warningly and made an attempt to snatch the bottle out of my hand, but by that time the contents were gone. They tasted familiar; sugary, almost like drinking some kind of syrup. Suddenly the memory came back and I almost laughed. These were hypers! Hoo boy, FF7 potions in the Chrono Trigger universe! Could this get any weirder? Laughing, I gave Frog the bottle and told him, "Don't worry, it's just a kind of medicine I take. Keeps me happy. In fact," I continued, feeling better by the minute as the hyper worked it's magic, "You may want your apothecary to take a look at this thing. Maybe they can replicate it" Frog grunted in reply, seeming to think I was being flippant. However, he did keep the bottle.
We reached the castle within an hour. The gates were flung wide open for "Sir Frog," his soldiers, and their charge. I gazed wonderingly at the old stone walls, the rich carpets and banners, and Queen Leene resplendent in a nightgown…Queen Leene?!"Your Highness, thou shouldest not be up at this hour! Pray, art thou in peril?" Frog seemed truly alarmed. His hand went to the hilt of the Masamune. "Oh no, Frog, I'm fine. And so is Henry." She patted her stomach, which I now noticed was quite round. No wonder Frog was worried about her! It looked as though another heir to the throne of Guardia was on his way. "I just woke up in fact. I heard the most beautiful music, coming from the woods north of here. Perhaps you found its' source while out patrolling?" Her eyes turned to me questioningly. It was at that moment I realized that I was the only one besides Frog who wasn't kneeling! Feeling incredibly stupid, I went down on one knee like the soldiers all around me, blushing.
"Indeed we did, Your Highness." Frog indicated that I should rise, although I had been down for approximately two seconds. "May I present to thee Melanie, a friend of my good companions Sir Crono and Lady Lucca."
Instantly Queen Leenes' face was wreathed in smiles. "Oh yes! The ones who helped you rescue me so long ago!" She rushed forward and took my hands in hers. "Tell me, do you bring news of them? Why haven't they visited in so long? They do know that they are welcome to stay at the castle whenever they like, don't they?"I was completely flabbergasted, but luckily Frog came to my rescue. "I am sure that they art well, my Queen," he reassured her "I receive…messages from Lady Lucca quite often. But, as they live in Porre it is rather difficult for them to travel here." I marveled at Frog's skill. Not one word he had spoken was a lie, and yet it deceived the Queen quite 's face fell. "Oh yes, I forgot…but never mind that. All of you!" she addressed the soldiers and any servants within hearing range. "This girl is our guest. She is to be treated as such. She is to be given free reign of the castle, and such supplies as she may need. Understood?" There was a general murmur of assent. "Very good. Now dear," she said, turning to me, "The guest quarters are upstairs in the east wing, just below my chambers." There were no guest quarters in 600 AD, I thought, raising my eyebrows."Well, we can't have you sleeping in the knights quarters, can we?" she laughed, misinterpreting my expression. I smiled, and finally finding my voice, said "I can't thank you enough, Queen Lee- er, Your Highness. Isn't there some way I can repay you?""Well, there is one thing…" she paused with one fist under her chin, looking exactly like Marle for a moment. "Would you play that song for me once again before you leave? It was quite lovely." I blushed and nodded. "Then let's be off to bed, shall we?"
I helped her up the stairs- not that she needed it. In fact, I was the one that could have used some help! My calves were burning by the time we reached the top of the east wing. She dismissed me with a cheerful "Goodnight!" and I opened the door to the chamber expecting to find the usual pile of crates and chests pushed aside to make room for a cot or something. Instead, the room contained a bed- a real bed!- a four-poster no less! along with a wardrobe, vanity, and a full-length mirror. I sighed happily, then removed my outer clothing and stowed it in the wardrobe to find that it was filled with nightgowns. Picking out a nice silky one, I slipped it on, set the Heartsong on the vanity, and collapsed into bed. Something wasn't quite right though…
It wasn't the sheets, they were smooth and silky against my skin. It wasn't the pillow, that was firm enough. It wasn't the temperature, it was a mild spring night. My mind was drawing a blank. Wait, that was it! My mind was drawing a blank! It should have been full of my companions by now: My adoptive "little sister," Kitten, and Yuffie from FF7 should have been verbally (or rather mentally) sparring whilst I eye-rolled and tried to block out their banter. Crono and Marle might pop in with the latest news from the rebels in Porre. But most importantly, where was Lucca? Falling asleep was next to impossible without her comforting embrace, and she should have been easier to contact than ever since I was now in the same world as her. Lucca? I tried experimentally. No response. Lucca?? Luuu-cca? My soft inquires received no answer. I tried harder, mentally shouting, but got the same result. Finally, tired and restless at the same time, I asked, Lucca, where are you? I love you, I need you, I miss you…I continued my monologue as I watched the moon rise higher over the forest, but I never saw it set.