The Empress and Crown Princess glared at each other for a moment, sizing up one another. Aurora was short but very lovely with her dark hair and mesmerizing eyes.

In contrast, Calla was exceptionally tall and as beautiful as a star. Aurora believed that if she stared too long at the elf's radiance, she might actually go blind.

Calla's golden skin was offset by her eyes which were the color of purple delphiniums. Her lips were drawn tight in defiance, but still, the lovely, red curve of them was plain to see. Aurora tried hard not to be jealous of the elf's stunning beauty. It seemed like Calla was harboring a different kind of jealousy.

The Empress shook off her thoughts and curtsied to the monarchs. "Your Majesties," she spoke humbly. "Forgive this intrusion…"

"Ha! Intrusion?!" Calla broke in haughtily. "Try invasion!"

"My companion and I," Aurora snapped as she motioned to Gandr, "hardly constitute an invasion!"

The two ladies stopped their bickering under Lanassa's icy glare. King Zoltan tried to hide his shock at the ladies' outbursts behind a mask of indifference. However, he was only partially successful.

The Queen spoke crisply through her pinched lips. "Princess Calla, you will apologize to the Empress and me. You do not interrupt two rulers when they are speaking. Ever."

Calla looked visibly shaken by the reproach. Usually she was a slave to protocol, but her impulse to protect her husband had overtaken her reason. The stunning elf curtsied and responded quietly, "Forgive me."

Queen Lanassa turned her scorn on Aurora. "And did you not learn last time that you should not lie to us? You humans have a strong odor. I know that someone else has come with you."

Aurora pondered for a moment whether to argue that the Queen must smell a servant, but she realized that this would not help her case. She sighed. Seeing the woman's resignation, Zan emerged from the city streets. Somehow he had managed to make it through the palace gates in order to observe the scene.

The Guardian slipped his way through the ring of guards and joined the Empress at her side. He knelt on one knee out of respect, but said nothing. Lanassa was confused for a moment as she lost her train of thought. Somehow Zan's appearance threw off the composed queen. She flushed pink, which gave her a youthful appearance.

Lanassa smoothed her gown and blinked her green eyes to try to clear her mind. "We will discuss this once you are properly attired for negotiations. I will not speak about matters of state when you are dressed as a servant. It is a breach of protocol."

Aurora wondered exactly what protocol she had breached, but knew better than to ask. It would sound childish and petty, and just now she did not want to make any extra trouble for herself or the two with her. "Very well, Your Majesty, but I have brought nothing suitable with me."

The Queen did not answer. It seemed she was in a daze. King Zoltan took over after giving his wife a curious glance. "We will provide accommodations for you while we work this out." He motioned for the soldiers to escort the trio back into the gates toward the palace.

"Are we prisoners, King Zoltan?" The Empress inquired with the appropriate amount of disdain.

"Not yet." Zoltan waved, ending the conversation. The group was whisked away with Ithel left behind, looking helpless.

As the trio went back toward the flickering white castle, Gandr leaned toward Zan. "Does 'not yet' mean 'yes' in royal-speak?" the halfling whispered to the Guardian. Zan nodded and Gandr's heart sank. "Yeah, that's what I thought too."

----------

Ithel looked like a wounded unicorn. His parents strode back to the castle along with the rest of the guards, leaving the prince and his wife behind in the city street.

The handsome elf shook his head sadly at his bride and hurried inside the gate without a word. Calla gasped and chased after him, catching him in the nearest courtyard.

"Speak to me!" she ordered.

She went to grab his arm, but he caught her hand in midair. Ithel realized the crown princess was trembling. He loosened his grip and sighed. "You must have spied on me to find out this plot. And then you betrayed me. Why?" He asked again, this time demanding an answer.

Calla had never seen her husband so agitated. He was usually so charming and gracious. Anger was not among his moods. Her own temper flared. "It was for your own good," she repeated. "You are blind where that woman is concerned. I only wanted to protect you." Her face softened as she stroked the he-elf's chin. If she could distract him, then their fight would be over.

Ithel did not take her bait as he moved away from her grasp. "You did not want to protect me. You just wanted to protect yourself and get in my parents' good graces. Calla, I care for you very much, but sometimes I think you care far more what my mother thinks than what I do."

"Do not be silly…" Calla began to argue.

"I am not," he cut her off firmly. "I will be waiting in the throne room to defend Aurora, though I think she can do well on her own. We can discuss this later." The prince kissed her hand dutifully and left.

Calla's ears burned red. "That vixen has bewitched my husband again. This will not be tolerated!" She marched off in the other direction, ready to confront the temptress.

————-

Aurora soaked in the magical bathtub with the never-ending stream of warm water. "This may be the last time I get to bathe for a while. May as well make it worth my time."

With the help of some elven attendants, the Empress was clothed in royal splendor. The lovely silver gown seemed spun from pure moonbeams. A servant came in and bowed.

"The Crown Princess is here to see you, Your Majesty," he announced.

Aurora rolled her eyes heavenward. "What now?" she mumbled. "Send her in."

The Crown Princess entered with all the stately grace of an angel. For a moment, the Empress thought they might actually have a civil conversation. She was wrong.

"Release my husband from whatever enchantment you have cast on him!" Calla demanded.

The dark-haired woman's mouth dropped open. "Excuse me...what?" The words that Calla had spoken were incomprehensible.

"Whatever spell you put on Ithel, remove it before you hurt him," the beautiful elf was only more strikingly beautiful in her anger.

"Humans are not supposed to use magic," Aurora reminded her.

"All the more reprehensible that you did." The princess looked down on her foe both physically and morally.

"Except that I did not do anything of the sort. If you must know, Brinn asked Ithel for a favor to let us enter the land of magic. She sent him a message ball just the other day. His Highness was helping his sister just as much as me. Princess Brinn promised him that she would come and visit if he would assist us." Aurora explained herself.

"That is a likely story. Using my husband's sister to get yourself back in your former fiancé's life. Do you have any shame?" Calla was unwilling to give up, but Aurora was done.

"I do not know what you think occurred between Ithel and me, but we were never engaged. We knew each other only for a few days, and we never kissed." The Empress looked the woman squarely in the eyes to see if she understood.

"I do not believe you. Anyone who sees Ithel automatically wants to be at his side. You have come back to claim what is mine!" The drama from the princess rivaled the most theatrical actress.

Aurora threw up her hands in resignation. She pointed to the ring on her finger. "I am married. You are insane. And this conversation is over."

The Empress marched out of the room where Gandr and Zan were waiting with elven soldiers. Gandr looked cleaner, but Zan was still wearing the inscrutable hood of his Guardian's cloak.

"Take me to the King and Queen," Aurora asked the elf in charge.

Calla came barreling out of the bedchamber. "I am not through with you," she said with fervor.

The Empress rounded on the woman and pulled her body to its fullest height. "Yes, you are. If I so much as hear a word out of your gorgeous little mouth between here and the throne room, the first thing I mention to Zoltan and Lanassa will be your blatant breach of protocol just now. Do you understand?"

Calla blanched and nodded meekly. Suddenly at the mention of her in-laws, all of the fight left the lady. The group continued through the halls in relative silence. The only comments were from Gandr, who was in awe of the architecture. Zan's head never swiveled to survey anything the halfling mentioned. In fact, he had not said a word since just after leaving the Storehouse.

As they approached the throne room, Alvar met them at the large double doors. "I knew that the errand Ithel sent me on sounded suspicious from the start! It is a pleasure to see you, Your Majesty." Lord Alvar kissed Aurora's hand as he bowed. "I will take it from here," he told the soldiers. They saluted and remained outside.

On Alvar's arm, Aurora entered the throne room followed by Zan, Gandr and lastly Calla. "I see you have met our Crown Princess," Alvar whispered as they made the long walk to the King and Queen.

"I wish I could say it was a pleasure," Aurora responded between the teeth of her plastered smile.

"She means well," Alvar promised. "You just have to get through all the…layers…to get to the kind soul underneath."

The conversation was cut short as they stopped and bowed. Calla passed the rest of them and took a seat on a throne next to Prince Ithel. In all, five thrones were on the platform with Brinn's being empty. Alvar excused himself and stood along the wall. He had not technically been invited to this meeting.

"Welcome, Empress Aurora of the Valiant Empire." King Zoltan began the proceedings.

"Thank you, King Zoltan and Queen Lanassa. I hope this meeting, though unexpected, may yet be productive."

"First, where is our daughter? Why did she not come with you?" King Zoltan asked.

The first question was impossible to answer honestly because she had no idea what happened after the siege, so Aurora tackled the second one. "Princess Brinn used herself as a bargaining chip for Prince Ithel to help us. She has promised to visit if we are returned safely home after our mission. You can confirm with the prince that this is true." Aurora shot a glance at Alvar. His eyes danced with the prospect of seeing his future bride. The Empress would tell him everything later.

The four elves on the platform slipped into the ancient tongue to discuss the matter. Gandr, who looked stupefied for some unknown reason, watched silently, making Zan sigh in frustration. The Guardian covertly stepped forward and began to whisper in the Empress's ear.

"Ithel says that although what you said is true, he would have happily helped you anyway." the hooded figure translated. "Now Calla is angry claiming that you have bewitched him in some way. The Queen just dismissed the princess's accusation and now they are trying to decide what to do with us..."

"How do you know the ancient tongue?" Aurora asked. She had noticed that the Guardian had also understood the dragons back on the sky bridge without a translation. This man was very curious.

"Did you learn it from the Fates?"

"Not exactly," the Guardian answered. He stopped as the royals on the podium were all staring at him. Zan slunk back to his position behind the Empress.

"And who dares speak in my throne room without permission?" King Zoltan queried through tightened lips.

Aurora dipped her head. "I apologize. My advisor was translating your discussion so that I might have an appropriate response when the time comes."

Rather than be angry at Aurora's eavesdropping, Zoltan was impressed with her resourcefulness. Had the gnome been translating, the king would have stopped it immediately, but the other creature was mysterious, especially with his black cloak. "What human is this that he knows the ancient tongue?"

"He is a Guardian to the Fates," The Empress announced proudly, hoping this meant something to the elves.

Zoltan furrowed his brow. "Guardian or not, it is rude for you to keep your face hidden in my throne room. Remove your hood, Guardian!" the King ordered.

"I cannot," the silver-eyed man responded reluctantly.

The king's face darkened, but the queen looked pale as the moon. "Please remove your hood, good sir," Lanassa requested, her voice barely audible.

'Good sir?' Aurora was confused by the queen's words. A guard holding a spear walked over and reached for the black hood. The Empress knew what was about to happen and tried to intervene. She was too late. A bolt that looked like lightning shot up the guard's arm as he pulled away. No one could remove the Guardian's hood without permission.

The silver-eyed man sighed and held up his hand before the guard could try again. "There is no need for violence," he uttered. The Guardian let his hood fall to his shoulders, revealing his long, dark hair and thin, handsome face.

There was a moment of silence. Then the Queen, white as a sheet, spoke only one trembling word.

"Zan?"