King Lao eventually emerges from inside of the Infirmary room with a smile present on his face before he greets Rick once again.
"Kids, huh?" He says to no one in particular as he stands on the other end of the door.
"They are so adorable when they are small but when they grow up they become a whole different being." Rick chimes in, which earns a small smile from the former King.
Lao nods his head in agreement before he mentions something else, "Nevertheless, we still love them no matter what."
He watches as the former King returns back inside of the Infirmary before the sounds of footsteps catches his attention.
"Excuse me, Sir Rick," One of the numerous servants that reside in the castle slowly approaches the raven haired male.
Rick quirks an eyebrow up at the servant and politely inquires, "Yes, what is it?"
"A letter has arrived with your name on it." The servant discloses before they produce a white envelope with his name written on it.
The knight issues a "thank you" with a slight bow of his head after he accepts the mail and watches as the servant scurries along the way.
The bespectacled man studies the handwriting on the front of the envelope and registers it as none other than his close friend, Namikaze.
A smirk stretches across his face as he flips it around to the back, pokes his finger inside, drags it across and removes the paper from inside.
"Dear Rick,
By the time you get this message, I will have already crossed the border to Noursaia and be within two or three days from the castle. It seems as if one of my missions have required me to patrol and monitor the borders. I will be in attendance for the Dance of the Flower to fulfill my duty as a Knight of the Round. Don't tell the brat I asked about him but keep me updated on his progress.
Sincerely,
Namikaze
PS. How has our experiment between those two ever turned out? I look forward to the answer."
Rick chuckled at the slightly sloppy writing, which means he probably penned it in a hurry and sent it off by the nearest messenger.
He tucks the letter in to his backpocket with a smirk still present on his face when he thinks, 'My friend…you will be more than happy to hear just how those two have grown closer to each other.'
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An individual quietly ambles inside of the play area without so much as a peep of sound from the person.
"Just what are we going to do with these loves struck godchildren of others, Natalie?" The knight mutters more to himself than to the children.
"Well...we could let them grow up, follow their hearts, and marry us." A voice unexpectedly answers his question.
The response earns a smile from the blonde male.
His obsidian eyes identify the raven haired beauty draw closer to the young man and sits on the opposite side of him.
"I might have misheard but I think I just got proposed to by Princess Kiera earlier." The knight mentions as his eyes trek every movement of the woman.
His childhood friend laughs at the slight hesitation when he speaks since she knows that Kiera is like her mother…headstrong.
"So this is where the kids been after they saw their siblings..." Natalie comments.
Her green eyes stare at Princess Kiera's who was in a deep slumber while Prince Kieran lays flat on his back.
Minato nods his head before he says, "I told them that I was concerned about them and that I didn't have time to see Aiden, Aeolus and Irene."
She casts her sights toward Kieran when she adds, "I had to see Princess Mai off…" and holds off on the fact that the Avatar was there with her.
"So the princess finally left the palace," He states the obvious, which earns him a slight nod of her head.
The woman suddenly feels his head connects with her left shoulder as his head of hair softly grazes her ear and then the side of her neck.
The young man deeply inhales and exhales and for once in his life, his body feels at complete ease and relaxation around Natalie.
"I won't lose you to Jordan.. or Prince Kieran." He confidently mutters after he closes his eyes and continues to rest against her shoulder.
A rare genuine smile appears on her face at the statement when she agrees, "I know you won't."
Meanwhile….
Jordan bypasses the play area and gets a load of the blonde twit and the green eyed beauty warmly converse among each other.
His fist tightly clenches from ire while his consciousness orders him to keep calm and allow the plan to unfold.
'Enjoy the short time you have with her, blonde twit.' He inwardly thinks with a cocky smile on his face as he continues on with his plans.
On the other hand,
"Isn't that a sight to see, Lao!" Noi happily states as she gently cradles Aeolus within her grasp while she peers out the window.
Lao approaches the window, observes what his wife notices, and comments, "It's about time!"
'I can see a bright light around them.' She thinks with a smile until she notes a small spot of darkness that seems to grow.
'I wonder what that could be?' Noi wonders while she supports Aeolus' head with the crook of her elbow.
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Eva finds herself in the middle of their ballroom among a crowd of people, who faces seem to be unrecognizable.
Her crimson eyes behold a familiar face at the end of the crowd and narrows her sights in on a woman with black hair and green eyes.
"Natalie," She yells out the woman's name as she attempts to pass through the crowd of faceless bodies but could never reach the end.
"Move out of my way!" The young woman angrily demands and as if on cue the crowd evenly split down the middle.
The raven haired with crimson tips dashes down the open aisle until she reaches the end of the audience.
Her sights discern Minato's body against the floor on the other end.
"What's going on?" The queen questions.
However this time no one answers or responses to her instead she watches the blonde frantically flaps about like a fish out of water.
The raven haired woman faces away from Eva and ascends the grand staircase all while she drags the tip of a sword against the curtain.
"Natalie, wait a minute!" Eva shouts but the woman advances forward until she happens to rotate her head until she gawks at a golden mask that blinds her.
"Eva…" She overhears someone repeatedly calls out to her before she feels a slight jerk of her arm, which surfaces her from her dream.
Aikka's face clearly shows his concern for the woman before he inquisitively inquires, "Hey...are you alright?"
Eva momentarily hesitates to provide an answer to his question when she decides to keep the little dream to herself.
"I think I need some fresh air." She claims after she lifts her upper torso from against the comfortable bed.
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Natalie glances up at the sky once the daylight starts to naturally shift to early nighttime, which signals that it was time to head on inside to get dinner.
Her green eyes peek down at the weight on her shoulder and merely pinch his nostrils together in order to wake the blonde up.
Minato drowsily rubs the sleep out of his eyes and questions the woman on his right, "Why did you do that Nat?"
"It's time to take the kids inside for dinner." The raven haired woman informs him as she points toward the sky to show him the afternoon skies.
A "you are right" expression materializes on his face as he works to wake Princess Kiera while she focuses on Prince Kieran.
The children easily rouse from their nap, albeit a bit cranky and grumpy until the young woman mentions food. That seemed to kick start the twins in to high gear.
The prince and princess prompt a race between each other to see which one of them could reach the dining hall before the other.
"…and they're off!" The young man airs as the older pair watch the twins take off in to a mad sprint towards the dining hall.
"So how did you sleep, sleepyhead?" The solider pops the question.
They leisurely follow in the twins footsteps, which earns a retort from the blonde, "You actually make a pretty comfortable pillow, Nat."
"I know this may sound a bit childish but can I…" The knight abruptly speaks up while he nervously scratches the back of his neck with a blush on his face.
Minato meekily follows up with, "Can I hold your hand?"
A red tint slowly dusts her cheeks at the request or better yet how he went about the request in a child-like manner.
She did not provide a verbal response but instead a physical response as she extends her arm out towards him.
"Let's go!" Natalie urges once she feels his left hand weaves itself against her right hand, which causes her face to turn really red.
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As night time descends on the kingdom of Noursaia, there was a little weariness from its Queen.
However, she refuses to allow that to disturb the peaceful setting.
Even still, her dream only encourages her to heighten her ever observant nature while she mulls over every details of her vision.
Yet the sight of her lively children fast asleep due to the help from the two people she trusted them with the most, Minato and Natalie, slightly eased her qualms.
'I really have to thank those two for dealing with this crazy family.' She sets as an inward reminder when she thinks, 'They have grown so close to the twins. I know they will with the triplets.'
Eventually her rounds with her husband brings her face to face with her mother-in-law Queen Noi, "Queen Noi,"
"I know this will be asking a lot from you but can you help me coordinate this year Dance of the Flowers?"
"I have the triplets and the first months with them will be hectic and…" Eva starts to ramble until Noi holds up one of her hands.
A gentle smile stretches across her face before she agrees with the idea, "It would be my honor to help you Queen Eva."
"That means so much to me…thank you." She happily takes in the older woman with a similar smile that radiates happiness.
"Now son," Tthe former queen addresses her son, who pushes his wife in the wheelchair and instructs him, "Make sure she doesn't worry about a thing."
Aikka firmly declares "I will mom" before his mother wishes the pair a goodnight and makes her way back to her room.
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Author's Note:
12.14.16 Major editing revision