DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Tenth Kingdom, or its characters.

Chapter 3: These are Dark Days

A part of me always knew we would return to the Nine Kingdoms, I just never imagined it'd be this soon. As the final portal seemed to shatter around me and I was drawn into a large room of the royal castle I felt a wave of homesickness over take me. Not for New York or any place in particular, but for my dad.

We had lived together constantly for the last eighteen years… so being without him for the last five months was rough. Especially while being pregnant, he didn't even know!

This was something about to change very soon…

"Virginia! I'm so glad you made it!" My dad said rushing forward to greet us. He stopped short suddenly, his eyes resting on the lump in my belly. "Virginia your… Are you… is that?" He stammered pointing.

"Yes Dad… I'm pregnant!" I smiled happily, or tried to anyway.

"W… wo….wol… w….wol?" Dad couldn't seem to get the word out of his mouth.

"Yes Dad, Wolf is the father…" I said slowly.

By this time Wolf had come crashing through and grinned broadly and put his arm around Dad's shoulders. "So Grandpa… how does it feel? Aren't you happy for us?"

Dad winced under the close contact with the man who had impregnated his daughter. "Well… I'm sure happiness is in there somewhere…" he pulled away from Wolf and took my hands, "Virginia are you two…"

"Yes Dad, we got married when we got back…"

"Oh good—wait, you didn't wait for me to give you away!" He shouted.

"No Dad, we're just legally married, we haven't had a ceremony yet. We haven't decided where to have it…" Honestly I didn't know if I even wanted a ceremony anymore, I thought I might want a divorce after everything that had happened today.

"Well, I guess I'm happy for you then…" Dad stopped for a minute looking into his my eyes, then it dawned on him. "I'm gonna be a grandpa… I'm gonna be a grandpa!" He rushed away from me and ran down the corridors telling everyone he met the wonderful news that I was pregnant. Jordanna watched him go and giggled discreetly.

I sighed at his enthusiasm and wished this happy event wasn't quite so overshadowed by so many other problems.

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Before we knew it we found ourselves in a meeting of the Royal Council, debating on what should be done in response to Wendell's kidnapping.

No, literally, we spent the first three hours of the meeting with the Royal Council debating about what should be done, until Wolf piped up.

"Look guys, I'm really sorry to interrupt but I have an idea: maybe we should go and find him?" At this point my head had been lying on my arm on the table for about a half an hour, I was bored out of my mind. The relief I felt was immense, when the lords all looked at each other and said:

"What a splendid, idea… let us decide who will go after him after lunch, shall we?"

The meeting started up again after a forty-five minute break and lasted another three.

"So my lords," the speaker of the council began. "Let us now nominate who we think would be best to go and rescue our good King Wendell. Any one?"

I raised my hand.

"Yes, Lady Virginia, who would you like to nominate."

"Wolf, my dad, and myself."

"And me!" Jordana piped up.

"Yes, and Jordana." I added.

The lords all looked at each other and murmured to one another.

"Well, what say you my lords?" the speaker of the council asked.

After two minutes of talking amongst themselves someone stood up.

"The Royal Council thinks that Lady Virginia's nomination is a good idea, and several members have volunteered to finance their journey."

"Well…" the council speaker said, "There you have it! Lady Virginia, Lord Antony, Sir Wolf, and Lady Jordana will leave as soon as possible on a rescue mission for our missing King Wendell! I hereby dismiss this meeting of the Royal Council… just in time for tea!"

With that the gavel was struck, and the Lords filed out of the council room.

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We left the next day.

Dad had tried to convince the lords to keep our mission discreet, but I don't think it worked very well.

As we stepped out into the morning light a path opened for us through a large crowd of people all cheering us and waving the official flag of the Fourth Kingdom.

"Well, so much for being discreet…" Wolf whispered to us.

The crowd followed behind us all the way to the outskirts of the village and part-way through the forest, cheering the entire way. Finally they left us in peace and we had started on our second quest through the Nine Kingdoms.

A/N: Okay… I am really really really really really really times infinity sorry for the ridiculously long hiatus… what has it been? A year since I updated? Anyway, no worries I never abandon my stories so I may take a while to write stuff, but I will never quit completely.

Edit: So I've gone back and reread some of my chapters which were written in 2008… and oh my god did they need to be edited. So I've done a quick edit of all of them and re-uploaded everything so the story will make more sense, and flow slightly better.