The weeks passed and neither Elena nor Mateo heard anything from Elena's grandparents. The princess knew that they were sharing heavy discussions: Luisa and Francisco would lock themselves in the Grand Council hall every day and not come out for hours. Elena knew better than to ask her grandparents about their progress but she could not help becoming more and more anxious as the days went by. What made things worse was not being able to see Mateo: the princess missed him more than anything. Isabel had been visiting the royal wizard on her sister's behalf, delivering news and handwritten notes to both parties. But while Elena appreciated the effort, it was far from being the same as actually seeing the boy she loved. The princess hoped and hoped that Francisco and Luisa would soon make their decision.
She eventually got her wish. As Elena was eating her breakfast one morning, she and Esteban received a message from their grandparents that they were to meet them in the Grand Council hall once they were finished eating. The chancellor gave Armando a curt nod as Elena and Isabel looked at each other.
"Do you think abuela and abuelo have made their decision?" Isabel whispered.
"I hope so. All this tension is driving me up the wall," Elena replied.
"Can I come with you to hear the verdict?"
"Absolutely not. You are not part of the Grand Council," Esteban objected.
"She's coming," Elena said sternly. There was such a note of finality injected into her tone that her cousin did not pursue the subject.
Once breakfast was over, they each made their way to the Grand Council hall, where they found Naomi waiting outside the doors. Elena was very much glad to see her.
"Hey," Naomi said. "I got a message saying that we're having a very important Grand Council meeting."
"Abuela and abuelo have summoned us. They might have reached a decision about the law," Elena explained.
Her friend's eyes widened. "Oh, I hope they've decided to change it!"
"I hope so, too…"
Naomi nodded and looked over the princess's shoulder. Elena turned around and gasped at the sight of Mateo approaching them. She grinned and tears of happiness filled her eyes as she ran towards him. Mateo grinned as well and caught her as she launched herself into his arms, hugging her tightly. The princess buried her face in his neck, gripping the back of his robe.
"Oh, Mateo!" Elena cried. "I've missed you so much!"
"I've missed you, too," Mateo replied, his voice trembling with emotion as he stroked her hair and kissed her temple.
Elena pulled back and gave the young wizard a kiss. He responded happily, cupping her cheeks with his hands. They only broke apart when they heard Esteban clear his throat.
"Will you two please restrain yourselves? We are here on official business," the chancellor said irritably.
"Oh, lighten up, Esteban. They haven't seen each other in weeks," Isabel snapped.
"Need I remind you that until our grandparents say otherwise, that law is still in place? Not to mention it is disgraceful for a crown princess to behave this way."
"Well, I'm sorry that Elena has emotions like a normal human being."
Esteban opened his mouth to retort but he was interrupted by Francisco, who had stuck his head into the hallway.
"We can hear you arguing from inside," he said. "Come in so we can deal with the matter at hand."
"You heard him. Let's go," Naomi said, pushing Esteban inside. Isabel followed and Elena took Mateo's hand.
"Ready?" she whispered.
The royal wizard nodded. The princess led him inside the hall and found her grandparents sitting in the middle of the table with Naomi and Esteban on either side of them. Isabel was standing next to Naomi and gave her older sister an encouraging smile, which Elena tried her best to return. She and Mateo stood in front of the table, anxiously gazing at Francisco and Luisa.
Francisco stood on his feet. "The Grand Council meeting can now begin," he said. "Luisa and I would like to thank everyone for being able to come here on such short notice."
They all nodded. Francisco continued.
"Now, as you all know, it has been recently discovered that the crown princess of Avalor, Elena Castillo Flores, began a secret romantic relationship with the royal wizard, Mateo de Alva. Both parties were fully aware that this is a criminal offense, for there is a law stating that it is forbidden for a member of the royal family to form a romantic connection with a royal wizard for the sake of the throne's security. It is a law that has been present for many years and proved to be, some would say, mostly effective.
"Chancellor Esteban wishes to arrest Princess Elena and Mateo and all other partisans." Francisco threw a glare at his grandson. "But Naomi Turner, along with Princess Elena, believes that this law should be eliminated. However, an action cannot take place if it does not have the majority vote of the Grand Council, which is why we have brought you here today. Luisa and I have made a decision and require a vote." Francisco looked at his wife. "Luisa, will you do the honours?"
"With pleasure," Luisa said, standing up as her husband sat back down. She surveyed the room for a moment before beginning.
"For the last several weeks," she said, "Francisco and I have been discussing the situation. We have looked at it from every angle and considered every possibility. There was one thing, however, that we were already certain of: no one is getting arrested. We do not believe that this was an act of criminal intent."
Elena let out a sigh of relief as Esteban crossed his arms. This was, at least, one less thing to worry about.
"It was not an easy journey, for both sides presented valid arguments. But Francisco and I believe that we have found a middle ground and now have a proposition to make," Luisa continued.
"And what would that be?" Elena asked nervously.
"We have decided that it might be a good idea to replace the current law with a new one. This new law we have drafted states that members of the royal family and royal wizards may marry but if there is any suspicious behaviour or activity coming from the royal wizard, the Grand Council reserves the right to terminate the relationship or the marriage in order to protect the throne. Does that sound reasonable?"
Elena could not believe what she was hearing: it was more than she had ever hoped for, and the squeeze Mateo gave her hand told her he felt the same way.
"That… That's more than reasonable. That's perfect!" Elena exclaimed.
"All right, let's vote on it," Francisco said, standing on his feet again. "Those on the Grand Council who wish to keep the law as it is, please raise your hand."
Esteban immediately raised his hand. Elena watched her grandparents anxiously – neither imitated her cousin.
"And those who are in favour of replacing the law with this new one?" Luisa asked.
Naomi shot her hand in the air and so did Elena. Luisa then raised her own hand and Francisco did the same seconds later. The princess gazed around the room, tears filling her eyes as she smiled. Naomi and Isabel caught her eye and grinned broadly – they had won.
"The majority has spoken," Francisco said with a smile. "The current law is now abolished and the new one will take immediate effect."
Overwhelmed by her emotions, Elena fell to her knees and covered her face with her hands, tears of joy and relief pouring down her cheeks. She felt Mateo kneel next to her and she could hear him trying to hold back his own tears, his whole body trembling as he tightly embraced her. The princess buried her face in his neck, gripping the front of his robe. Tender fingers took her chin and raised her head, and Elena found herself looking into Mateo's eyes. The royal wizard smiled lovingly and gave her a kiss, which Elena happily returned. It was soon interrupted by Francisco's voice.
"Elena? You need to sign the proclamation and the bill to make it official," he said, pushing two scrolls and a pen towards her with a smile. "Your abuela and I drew these up last night."
Elena nodded. Mateo stood up and helped the princess onto her feet. She smiled at him and led him to the table, where she picked up the pen and added her signature to the bottom of each scroll. Elena read the words written on the rolls of parchment over and over again, gliding her fingers over them. It was finally happening: she and Mateo were free to be together at last. No more secrets and no more hiding – just pure happiness.
"I hate to burst everybody's bubble," Esteban suddenly said, sounding surly, "but what about Elena's engagement to Prince Alonso?"
"We will speak to King Juan Ramón on the matter. He seems to be a reasonable man; I'm sure he will understand," Luisa replied.
The chancellor said nothing more and crossed his arms once again. Elena sighed at her cousin's actions and shook her head, glancing over her shoulder as Mateo hugged her from behind.
"He'll get over it," he said evenly. "Eventually, anyway. Come on, we should go celebrate. Picnic on the beach just like on our first date?"
"That would be great," Elena said, glancing at her grandparents questioningly.
"Go on, mija. Enjoy yourself," Luisa said with a smile. "But make sure you come back on time for your meeting with Doña Paloma this afternoon."
"I will, abuela. I promise," Elena replied before running around the table and giving her grandparents a hug. "Thank you…" she whispered.
"You're very welcome, Elena. Now go have fun on your date," Francisco said cheerfully.
Elena nodded and made her way back around the table, stopping to give Naomi and Isabel a hug and to offer her hand to Esteban. Her cousin looked at it for a moment and, after seeing the encouraging smile on the princess's face, grasped her hand and shook it. Elena grinned and went to rejoin Mateo, who grabbed her hand and led her out of the Grand Council hall. She eagerly followed him, looking forward to the future they could now have.