Grieving is Hard
Even with Dagmar's return, Zog had a few strings of bad luck follow him. Queen Oona had kicked him out of the master bedroom. Not in a figurative sense; Oona kicked him in the butt and tossed his clothes onto him while he lay on the hallway floor. "Oona, baby, come on now! Where am I supposed to sleep?" He asked, sitting on his knees.
"Why don't you go lay with that corpse of a wife? If not that, go sleep with the pigs!" Oona spat, slamming the door.
Zog picked up his clothes and went to Tavish's room. The prince opened the door and looked at his father in shock. "Uh, hey, son! Um, you don't mind If your father crashes on your couch for the night, do you?"
Tavish stared at him. "Did Oona kick you out of the bedroom?"
"What? No! I just wanted to spend time with you, son! You used to sleep in the bed with me and Dagmar when—"
"Father…"
Zog sighed. "Yeah…yeah, she did…"
"You don't snore too loudly, do you?" Tavish looked worried.
"Eh, not too bad."
Tavish opened the door, and Zog walked in. Tavish usually didn't sleep at night. But even if he wanted to sleep that night, he wouldn't have slept a wink. Zog had a terrible snore that Tavish swore would've risen the dead. Tavish promised himself this was the last night he would ever let his father sleep in his room.
The following morning wasn't better for the king. Zog, Odval, and Oona had a private conversation. Bean and Tavish thought it would be about their marriage and where it would go. But, to their surprise, Oona was more concerned about the alliance with Dankmire as they eavesdropped on the three.
"You know how my country is! They're not going to approve of two queens! Especially my grandfather!" said Oona, glaring at the king.
"She does have a point, sire," said Odval. "I'm sure they've already heard about Queen Dagmar's return. They're not too supportive of—what do you call it? A polycule relationship? Especially with it's politics."
"And I don't support it either!" Onna shouted.
"Look, the royal dinner at dankmire is in two months. If we all attend, we can talk something over!" said Zog desperately.
"What's there to talk about? Have you forgotten that long, drawn-out war we had over that damn canal? Dagmar coming back into the picture will not help us, Zog!"
"Aww, Oona, I don't know what to do. Do you expect me to ditch the women I love?"
"YES! If you don't want another war on your hands!"
"You know I can't do that! I just got her back! The whole point of going through those years, men, and time was to bring Dagmar back!"
"It's me and the alliance, or WAR! You decide!" Oona slammed her fist on the table, kicked her chair back, and stormed out of the room.
"Oona, come oooon!" Zog called out to her.
Bean and Tavish watched Oona storm off. Tavish rubs his head stressfully. "My goodness…I am like father…" He sighed. "This is what I'm going to go through, Annabel, if I don't do something."
"Aww, poor you," said Bean sarcastically as she patted his back.
"I would love it if you said more words of comfort; that isn't you being sarcastic, sister." Tavish glanced at her sister, annoyed.
"But that would mean I had to mean it, and I don't." The princess smugly pats his cheek. "Oh, poor cheating big brother…It's going to be ok."
Tavish looked dead inside. "Ok…you can stop now…"
Later, Bean, Tavish, Dagmar, Zog, Luci, Miri, and Bunty were in the dressing room. Dagmar took down her cone-styled hair and sported the long hair that reached her lower back. Miri was tending to Dagmar's nails on her toes. However, she did not look too happy. Zog explained that she married Oona to end the war and have another aire for the throne of Dreamland.
"You have an heir to the throne. Have you forgotten we have a son?" said Dagmar, side-glaring Zog.
"To be fair, Mother, I wasn't showing any interest in being king after you passed," said Tavish. "I showed interest in…other things I don't want to remember."
"Now we have two heirs to the throne! So it all worked out in the end!" said Zog.
"And you allowed that disgusting amphibian to raise my precious children?" Dagmar frowned at Zog.
"Well, it wasn't Oona: It was mainly Bunty, or Tavish, and a few bar buddies. They taught me the fine art of stabbing," Bean remembered one of her bar buddies stabbing another friend for a demonstration.
"Let's just say I've had my ways of learning a thing or two," said Tavish, averting his eyes.
"Trust me, dear, I've kept them on the straight and narrow. Uh, when I had time," Zog smiled nervously.
"Dad tried for years to find a way to bring you back," said Bean.
"Many died to bring you back, baby," Zog cupped her hands.
"Yeah, like Elfo," said Bean, holding herself and looking away.
Miri stopped filing Dagmar's toenails when she heard his name.
"Aww, poor sweet little Elfo. I'm gonna miss him and his funny-looking head," Zog frowned.
"Sounds like to me he deserves a marvelous funeral," said Dagmar.
"That's a great Idea!" said Zog, smiling at Dagmar. "I'll get someone to fish him out of the corpse pit!"
"UGGGH!" Miri tossed the filler away and stormed out of the room.
"Jeez, what's her problem?" The king turned to everyone, confused. "It's just toenails."
"Uh, I'll go check on her," said Bean, getting up from her seat and hurrying after Miri. When the princess caught up to her, Miri called out to her, but she ignored him. "Hey, mop girl—I mean, uhh, crap, I'm sorry I can't remember your name but wait up!" She reached her hand out, but Miri slapped it away. "What the heck?!" She rubbed her hand.
"Don't come check on me like you're my friend!" said Miri.
"What the—we are friends!"
"Yeah, a friend who can't even get my name right."
"I know your name!"
Miri crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at the princess. Bean's eyes averted from Miri's, and they darted around as she tried to remember her name. "Uh, It's-it's…Stacey, right?"
"Just stay the hell away from me!" Miri shouted.
"What the hell is your problem?" said Bean, stunned.
"My problem is you! At one point, I thought you were better than your dad. But no, you don't give a damn about your friends! You can't even make the right choice!"
Bean's jaw dropped slightly. "Wait…you…is this about Elfo?"
"Oh, wow, you're not too self-centered in the head as I thought," Miri glared.
"Miri, she's my mom! What the hell did you expect me to do?!"
"You mean the mom you barely knew or even remembered? Elfo was there for you more than she was! And you left him dead on the floor!"
"You don't think choosing my mom over Elfo isn't eating me up inside? " Bean clenched her fist and began breathing in and out quickly as her rage started to build.
"Oh please, who the hell cares about you? What's eating us up inside is some dumb woman is alive, and Elfo is in the corpse pit!" Miri yelled.
"THAT DUMB WOMAN IS MY MOM!" Bean screamed, glaring into Miri's eyes. "Like you would know what it's like to have a mom! Your family left you in the enchanted forest when you were a baby! YOU DON'T HAVE FAMILY!"
Miri leaped to her feet and tackled Bean to the stone floor. The tattered-haired girl swings at her, and Miri's punches hit Bean in the face and head. The princess pushed her off and pinned her down to the stone floor. Bean raises her fist, but Koga grabs her arm, stopping her.
"Alright, that's enough," said the wanderer, pulling her off Miri and standing before them. "The two of you, calm down!" He held onto Bean, stopping her from going after Miri.
"GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!" Bean shouts. "DON'T COME BACK!"
"FINE! I HATE THIS DAMN CASTLE AND YOUR WHOLE ROYAL FAMILY!" Miri whaled. She turned around and ran off.
"What the hell was that about?" Koga turned to Bean. "You're fighting with Miri?"
"She's the one who started it!" Bean yanked her arm from Koga's grasp. "You know what, to hell with her or anyone who has a problem with me! I don't give a damn anymore!" Bean turned from Koga and walked off.
Koga shook his head and brushed his hands through his thick black hair. "Jeez, what even were the last few days?" He walked off, sighing.
Bean stormed down the halls with her eyes on the floor. She was so mad at Miri's words. How could she have the nerve to say those things to her? Bean thought. If it weren't for her family hiring her, she would've been eaten by some monster or on the streets dying like everyone else in the kingdom. How could she—
"Beanie?"
Bean looked up. It was her mother. "Oh, mom. Hey…"
"Is everything ok?" Dagmar asked, raising her hand and rubbing her cheek. "I heard you yelling."
"Oh, it was nothing. I just fired mop girl," said Bean, grasping her mother's hand.
"Oh, well, that's unfortunate," Dagmar smiled. "Your father's men have retrieved Elfo from the corpse pit. We'll have the funeral held tomorrow once they get his body ready."
"T-That's good…" Bean forced a smile.
"Dear?"
Tears rolled down Bean's cheeks. "I-I'm fine," her voice cracked. Dagmar pulled her in and held her close. The queen said nothing; she had her daughter close and rubbed her back. "I'm sorry…" The princess said through her sobs.
"There's nothing for you to be sorry about, dear," said Dagmar. "Listen," She broke the hug and looked into her daughter's eyes. "Once these depressing events are over, let's get your brother and father together and go for a family outing. How does that sound?"
Bean wipes her eyes and nods. "Yeah, I would love that!"
"Good. Now, come, dear. We need to pick you out of a beautiful dress for the funeral. You don't wanna go wearing…that," Dagmar waved her hand at Bean's current attire.
"What's wrong with what I have on?"
"Oh, my sweet little child. I'm glad I'm back…"
The next day was Elfo's funeral. Close friends of Elfo and a few people from the kingdom had attended, including Tess, her boyfriend Bob, Sagatha, and her fairy friends. The only ones who didn't attend were Koga and Miri. Bean had asked Koga earlier in the morning If he was attending the funeral. The princess ran into Koga before he left the castle. "Hey, Koga, where are you going?" She asked. Bean was sporting an all-black dress but still had her brown boots. "Are you not going to the funeral?"
"Nah, I don't do funerals," said Koga. "I'll be out in about."
"Oh, alright. Well, I guess I'll see you later," said Bean, turning to Koga and walking off.
Koga left the castle and traveled out of the kingdom. The wanderer walked up the dirt path and saw someone sitting by his usual spot, uphill under a large tree. It was Miri. She had her knees to her chest and her face buried in between her thighs. Miri lifted her head when she heard Koga heading her way.
"It's a nice spot, isn't it?" Koga laid his sword down and leaned his back against the tree. "You got a nice view of the castle and the ocean, and the sunset is just right."
"I used to come here a lot to escape all the chaos in Dreamland," said Miri. "But, after I got two jobs, I never got a chance to come out here again."
"You have two jobs?"
"I work as a waiter at a diner in town. It's my part-time job. Well, might be full-time now."
"I'll talk to Bean about it," Koga said, holding his hands behind his head and staring at the sky. "Unless you want the job back."
"I don't know," Miri shrugged. "I don't think they'll rehire someone who punched the princess in the face."
Koga chuckled. "You should've seen my reaction when you tackled Bean to the ground. I was dumbfounded."
Miri cracked a smile. "You know, I thought I'd never see you again after what happened."
"Well…after what happened with Elfo, the whole idea of running away went under."
"And you still came back?" Miri turned to him. "You could've just left."
"Even if I wanted to, I couldn't leave Bean behind like that."
Miri scoffed. "Yes, you could. She doesn't deserve to be cared for like that." The funeral was held on the hilltop, far from Koga and Miri. Oscar had finished speaking, and Bean was next to take the stand. The scraggly-haired girl glared as she saw tears form when discussing Elfo. "Look at her…if she was this sad, she could've brought Elfo back."
"You should cut her some slack," said Koga.
"How can you defend her?!" Miri shouts. "You're not even the least bit upset?"
"Who said I wasn't?"
"She chose some stupid woman she hasn't seen since she was five! Elfo was our friend! And you keep defending her!"
Koga let out a small sigh. "I'm not going to hold something like that against her. I wouldn't know what to do if I were in her shoes. She's hurting too, Miri."
"To hell how she feels!" Miri yelled, her voice cracking. "I'm hurting! Elfo's gone, and some dumb woman is alive in her place! And you don't even care the slightest!"
Koga kept his eyes on the funeral. It was Sagatha's turn to speak. The pixie spoke about how Elfo always stopped by to tend her garden when she wasn't there. "I remember when I was a kid, I had these three pet wolf cubs. I loved the hell out of those mutts. I named them Leon, Cloud, and Tidus. They grew to be pretty big-ass wolves too. It was two years later when I took them out hunting. We ran into his big bear that jumped on me. They fought to protect me. The bear killed Cloud and Leon, and Tidus was the only one left standing. I ended up killing the bear by hitting its head with a huge rock. Tidus died of blood loss. It was the saddest I've ever felt in my whole life. I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep, although I don't think I ever cried. I was sad, but I was numb, too." Miri watched Koga closely. It was the first time he ever opened up about anything like this. "I kept Tidus's pelt and tied it around my old sword. Unfortunately, I lost it a few months ago. All I have now are memories of when they were around. I'm glad I still have that…even if they are long gone."
Miri took her eyes from Koga and stared at the flowers before her. "I'm sorry…" She whispered.
"You don't need to apologize. Losing someone you care about is hard…very hard," said Koga somberly. "It's hard for everyone close to them. Everyone hurts."
Miri wipes her eyes. "Well…I'm glad you came back, at least." She looked over at Koga, smiling.
"I'm glad I did, too," Koga returned the smile. Miri scooted over to Koga, and the wanderer placed his arm around her.
They continued watching the funeral. Oona had just arrived on horseback. The two could tell she was unhappy even from where they were. Dagmar confronted her. The two queens exchanged words and began fighting.
"Damn," said Koga. "Now I wish I went…"
"I swear this kingdom is such a shit show," Miri shook her head.
"Yeah, but it's never boring." Koga shrugged.
"Eh…fair enough."