Unknown Person

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

He heard the sound of his own blood trickling from his head onto the ground below. However, he did not have the energy or the freedom to tend to his numerous injuries.

"Trying to flee the country, are we?" Master's cold, smooth voice filled his ears.

The words tried to enter his fuzzy mind, but for the life of him, he could not reason out where he was, or why was he hanging upside down at the present. Moreover, he also vaguely sensed that alcohol had clouded his mind, for the last thing he remembered was passing out drunk in the taverns on the Monriquan-Osterlundienne border.

"Nay....nay.....nay, Master," he stammered, struggling to keep his eyes open, "I.....was not running away. I swear, Master, I was not running away. I was...serving you like I always do."

He nervously eyed Master, the formidable man who had held the Order of the Serpents in his grip for the last ten years merely by his ruthlessness.

"You lie!" Master roared, flinging a whip hard against his back, "you pathetic little vermin, why have I not been receiving any letters from you regarding their whereabouts and their activities for the last one month?"

He flinched as excruciating pain shot through his body. "I...did send.....you...the letters, Master," he forced out the words, lying through his teeth, "perhaps...they might have been...lost in transit."

Master gazed at him in anger and disgust. At that moment, a chilling, feminine cackle filled the air, as a beautiful, petite figure clad in a black gown glided through the door, and walked over to Master to stand beside him.

"Lost in transit?" she spat, looking very ugly at that moment, "surely you can come up with a better lie, seeing the amount of years you have spent in your Master's service."

Master looked down at the newcomer, and his expression briefly softened. "'Tis a good thing you have come, my love," he kissed her forehead, giving her a side-hug with the arm that was not holding the bloodied whip, "you can help me deal with this traitor." He glared at him.

"Mistress, please...."he begged.

The woman crossed her arms. "All right, then," she stared straight at him, "if you have been doing your duty as diligently as you claim, then would you like to explain why were we not informed that you failed to kill Prince Richard?"

All colour drained from his face, as he tried to lie again. "Prince Richard is dead, Mistress. I slit...Warwick's...throat, and....I set fire to the locked...room...the Prince....was.....held captive in. I swear."

Master grew even more furious, and he began to whip him repeatedly, despite his pitiful cries and pleas. "Lies, lies, lies!" he shouted, "the boy is still alive, and what more, you even failed to kill the Lady Knight that night! If you have been watching the Lady Knight like you were supposed to, then you would have seen her visiting the boy in Limoges time and time again! Right under our noses! But where were you? You were trying to make a run for it!"

His back was throbbing, bleeding and aching to the point that he could no longer bear the pain. Despite his usual sense of dignity, he began to weep piteously, holding his hands to his pounding head.

The woman placed a hand on Master's arm. "Sweetheart, calm down," she murmured, "such anger is not good for you. Why waste your breath on that pathetic excuse of a man?" She glanced at the crying mess in disgust.

"I cannot believe it, my love," Master muttered, running a hand through his hair, "I cannot. At this rate, the Lady Knight will become the next Crown Princess before I can even kill the Crown Prince. By the Lord, if he manages to impregnate her before I murder him, then all this will be of no use -"

The woman smiled dangerously. "You do not know her like I do, beloved," she murmured soothingly, "she will never accept his suit. You have nothing to worry about. Most likely, he will end up asking for the Roche chit's hand in marriage, but before he can convince himself to do that, you could kill him."

"But what if he does not?" he yelled in frustration, "dearest, I want him dead. I want them all dead. I want King Frederick to be reduced to such a state he has no one to inherit after him. The Order of the Serpents was finished when Ferdinand died. Right now, my only aim is to kill off the Order, and kill off the royal family until King Frederick is left. Until he loses the support of everyone, and stands alone and miserable. He has to pay."

The woman rubbed his arm. "He will, sweetheart," she assured him, "he will. Calm down and think rationally. Please do not allow anger to get the better of you."

Master seemed to regain control, as he looked over at him coldly. "Leave me alone for a moment, my love. There is a job I need to finish," he commanded in an icy voice, "I will join you at home for supper."

The woman planted a small kiss on Master's lips, before she skipped out of the room, carefree, as if nothing was wrong. Master, in the meanwhile, took out a dagger from the pouch hanging by his waist, and brandished it in the dim light, before he advanced towards him, smiling maliciously like a predator about to have its prey.

"Master Diego, please...." He begged, although he knew it was of no use.

Master's mind was made up.

In any case, he was the one who had been foolish enough to be caught before he left Monriquan soil.

Now he was going to pay for that foolishness with his life.

***

The Lady Knight

My fingers lingered on the ivory keys for a long while after the song ended, unable to believe that I had truly played the whole song. It had felt so good to play, to allow the song that had been eating away at my mind flow through, as if a great burden had rolled away from my heart.

I lifted my hands off the instrument, still in a daze as I continued to hold Nick's gaze uncertainly, unable to look away. It was almost as if thatsilence was holding me in its embrace once more, very much spellbound.

Despite that, I still noted the fact that the room sounded too quiet for my liking.

I began to panic. What if I had sung completely off tune? What if I had insulted Mama's lullaby until the piano piece could no longer be recognised by anyone?

Did I play Mama's lullaby that badly that not even Nick was saying anything?

With that thought, the spell of the lullaby and the spell that held our gazes were broken. "I am sorry," I blurted, unable to stomach the silence anymore, "but I truly do not know how to play the pianoforte. I only wanted to shove it in Lady Rosanna's face - "

Nick cut me off by taking both my hands in his and lifted them up to his lips. "Hush," he mumbled, "you were most wonderful. There were mistakes here and there, but they matter not. Lady Jeanne would have been so proud of you." He smiled a weak smile, his eyes slightly glassy from her memory.

I tried not to feel too happy at his praise. "Do you truly think so?" I was still anxious, "or are you saying that only so that I would not feel bad?"

He burst out laughing, sitting down beside me. "Julie, when have I ever given up the opportunity to mock you?" he smiled impishly, "but I had no opportunity this time."

I heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank you," I flexed my fingers, peeking around his frame, "where are the rest?"

I was astonished to find the whole room empty, completely void of all life except for the two of us. Even the Captains who had been on duty around the room were not there, and I had not even heard them leave.

I was on alert at once. Was Roche Manor under attack? Why had everyone evacuated? Something was definitely amiss. My hand instinctively flew to my sword -

He chuckled, breaking my train of thoughts. "And the Lady Knight has returned."

I did not find that amusing. "Where is everyone, Nick?" I stood up, starting to panic slightly.

He only smiled. "I suppose they gave us some time alone," he shrugged, "'tis my sister's way of telling me she is going to demand some answers later."

My shoulders sagged in relief at the fact that there was no impending attack, but when his words fully sank in, however, a scarlet blush made its way up to my cheeks with all speed.

What must all of them have thought of us? What had Charlie thought? By the Lord, if the whole group had cleared out, then it must have been extremely awkward.

But what else could I have done? The moment he had begun to sing, the moment those heartfelt words left his lips with the lullaby, I was utterly and completely lost. It was a wonder that my fingers had not stopped playing. I hope to the Lord that I did not look like some utter, lovesick teenage child –

Not that I considered myself to be one. But still.

"Lady Rosanna is going to have my hide," I muttered, sitting back down beside him, "in addition to the fact that I play the pianoforte after seventeen years to save my pride and she is not even here."

His forehead creased, but there was a knowing glint in his eyes. "Did you truly play merely to save your pride, Julie?"

How did he know?

I huffed, turning away. "Nay. I played so that I could put a stop to the filth about my mother spewing out from her even filthier mouth."

He nodded, satisfied, but he still eyed me curiously. "May I ask you something, if you do not mind?"

A ghost of a smile unfolded on my lips. "Go ahead."

"Why does Lady Roche despise you so?" he braced himself as if I may strike out at him any moment for asking such a thing.

I shrugged. The question no longer bothered me as it used to once upon a time.

"She has always hated me, and my mother. To summarise a long tale, she was jealous of my Mama when she lived, because Oncle Tom supposedly paid more attention to Mama than to her," I sighed, "moreover, I have been told that I resemble my mother to a significant extent. Mayhap, to Lady Rosanna, I serve as a living reminder of Oncle Tom's supposed neglect towards her in the past."

He nodded slowly, taking it all in. "Is that why she took you aside at the Ball a few days ago to scream all those cruel things at you? All because you reminded her of the Lady Jeanne in that forest green gown?"

The colour in my cheeks heightened, as I flushed in embarrassment. "Nay," I fidgeted, "she was merely afraid that I was ruining Tess' chances in this Potential Quest. You were refusing to release all of my waltz numbers during the Ball, after all. Any mother of a Potential would be concerned." I threw him an accusing glare.

He merely grinned at me. "I am not sorry about that, so dare not ask me to apologise."

I rolled my eyes in exasperation, and stood up. "I am famished," I announced, "and there is a lot of food left on the refreshment tables. I had better eat before you finish it all."

With that, I turned to walk away, when he caught my hand again.

"You are still red in the face," he noted curiously, "there was more to the matter than merely ruining the Tess' chances, was there not?"

I gaped at him. How did he know these things? Or was I becoming too predictable?

"It is nothing," I muttered, trying to free my hand from his, but his grip was tight.

"Julie."

I sighed. "She thinks...um, well, she thinks..." I stammered for a moment, before I gave up, "Nick, let us simply forget about this and eat."

"You are making me more curious by the minute," he was mildly amused, but still expected an answer, "it cannot be that horrible, could it?"

"You have not a clue."

"So try me."

"You are nigh impossible," I huffed.

"Well?"

"If you must know, she wants me to stay far and away from you, because she thinks I am t-trying t-to, um well, um....t-to seduce you." I blurted out in a whisper, mortified.

I knew not what I had expected him to do when I said those words. Gasp? Flush bright red with embarrassment? Change the subject? Make a hasty excuse to leave the ballroom at once, as I felt like doing at the present?

I had most definitely not expected him to burst out into loud guffaws. It was almost insulting, as he doubled over, clearly humoured beyond limits.

"I am afraid I do not see what is so amusing!" I hissed.

It did not dampen his amusement in any way. "You should look at your face in the looking glass at the moment," he clutched his sides, "priceless!"

I crossed my arms, disgruntled. "I wanted to cover my ears and hide in under a rock when I first heard it," I shuddered, "I understand that she is worried for her daughter, but still!"

"Some mothers are more worried than others, I suppose," his laughter quietened down to a chuckle after a while.

I shook my head in disapproval. "It was exactly like her to think of such things and try and tarnish our good friendship. Truth be told, I know not what made her think you would consider me as anything more than your friend..." I rolled my eyes, but I felt a sharp pang in my chest even when I uttered the last phrase.

I quickly averted my gaze from him before my eyes could give me away. I never was good at lying, with words and without.

He stopped laughing upon hearing that, and tilted his head at me. Almost at once, his amusement vanished into thin air, leaving behind a strange tension.

"I do," he answered quietly.

I froze, feeling time come to a standstill. "I beg your pardon?"

He stood up to face me, and gently reached out to tip my head back by the chin, such that I was staring straight into his grey eyes. "Do you truly not know what made her think of such a thing?" he murmured, searching my eyes, "because I do."

My heart squeezed painfully.

I would not believe that if I were you, poppet, the devil's advocate warned, dare not delude yourself. He is infatuated with Tess, not you. You have to cease thinking about him. Cease caring for him. You have to move on, and forget him.

I would not deny that thought hurt every damn time it entered my mind. At that moment, however, a memory resurfaced.

"Why?" I blurted out in a whisper, "why do you care so much?"

"I know not why, but I do," he muttered, looking at everywhere but me, "I do care."

Surely that meant something? Before I could dwell on that, however, yet another incident shoved its way to the forefront of my brain.

"Of course it will not be easy," he agreed, "but you know I will always be here for you, yes? If you need to talk. Or need anything at all."

I was astonished. "Truly?"

At that moment, he looked at me with such warm tenderness that something in me seemed to melt. When he uttered his next word, it was laden with solemn conviction.

"Always."

I clasped my hands over my ears, shaking my head vehemently. Enough.

I simply could not handle this now. It was clear that I needed to solve my inner turmoil regarding how I felt about the man in front of me as soon as possible, but currently, I was in no state of mind to think objectively.

I was confused. I was a mess. I needed time.

I began to back away from him now, trembling.

He blinked at me, bewildered. "Julie?"

"I am sorry," I blurted out a whisper, "I - I cannot discuss this at the moment." With that, I turned around and bolted out of the room with all haste, away from the confusion, away from the uncertainty, away from the stress, away from him.

Away from myself.

***

"Jules!"

I turned around to see Tess hurrying towards me with a small box in her hands, and a scowl gracing her countenance.

I crossed my arms. "Yes?"

She held out the box sullenly. "This is a box of sugar-coated marzipan blocks for the Crown Prince from Mama and me. We are aware of how much the Crown Prince likes them," she muttered, averting her gaze, "and when Mama was not looking, I squeezed in some for you as well."

I accepted the box, fighting a smile.

Ever since the accident, Tess had been as kind to me as she could bear to be. An odd cup of tea at times, relenting in her hatred towards me, keeping a distance from me instead of finding a cause to pick a fight with me as she used to once upon a time. It pained her to do so, I knew, and she still grew furious with me whenever she saw me so much as talking to Nick.

However, something had changed in her that night I nearly drowned. Mayhap the horrifying thought of losing me forever, and having none to bully in this lifetime had caused it.

Regardless, Lady Rosanna had certainly resented it.

"Thank you, Tess. I shall meet you again in Bordeux," I grinned at her, and I turned to leave, when she caught my arm, with a highly uncomfortable look on her face.

"Yes?" I nodded, curious.

"I cannot believe myself," she muttered to herself, before she pulled me towards her in a rough hug.

For a moment, I could only blink in astonishment at being held by the very woman who swore she would hate me forever, who became as uncomfortable as I did at being hugged by anyone.

Eventually, I found myself patting her shoulder awkwardly, unsure of what else to do. It was not every day that this cousin of mine showed any signs of familial affection.

"Keep yourself alive, and off the ice," she mumbled, and pulled back almost at once, scowling at me as if it was my fault that she possessed a heart after all.

"I will," I promised her, fighting a smile.

"We will meet in Bordeux when the Crown Prince announces me as his bride." She smiled triumphantly, and glided towards her parents, Ned and Evoric, who were crowded around Nick.

I rolled my eyes in exasperation at her back. Chuckling under my breath, I turned on my heel and strode towards Aurora to busy myself with preparing her for the journey ahead.

"I suppose I will see you in Bordeux in a few weeks' time, poppet," I heard Kat sigh behind me as I hung my sacks on Aurora's saddle.

I paused, and turned around to find her and Lisa observing me sadly, their lips turned down in identical frowns.

"You would think I would have become accustomed to saying goodbyes by now, but I am not," Lisa mumbled, "I will certainly miss you, Jules."

I turned to face the both of them, one stoically in control and the other already in tears. Without another word, they walked straight towards me and wrapped their arms around me in a tight hug, causing me to sway a little.

"You cannot simply disappear for seven years, all right?" Kat whispered, "I will hunt you down wherever you are if you do that again."

"I will not," I shook my head, feeling my throat clog up, "after this Potential Quest, I may come and stay with you both for a while longer. Perhaps a three or four-month visit? Certainly not one week, and most definitely not at Roche Manor." I wrinkled my nose.

They pulled back to look at me, incredulous. "What about the Crown Prince?"

"What about him?" I snapped without thinking, still stressed over earlier.

Lisa flinched, while Kat studied me. "Is everything all right, poppet?"

"Confusion, as always. Do not worry about me. I will be fine," I shot them a reassuring smile, "farewell, friends. Do tell Ned and Evoric I said goodbye."

They nodded, not entirely convinced, but knowing I would not say more. Stepping back, they waved to me before they strode towards the huge group that surrounded Nick to say goodbye. I returned to tightening the straps on Aurora, and ensuring everything was in place.

"Ma'am, are we ready to leave?" Captain Dupont shouted from across the stables over the noise.

"In five!" I shot back, "is everyone else ready? Where is Captain Everard?"

"Closeted somewhere with Lady Clarisse," he grinned a nothingy smile, "otherwise, the rest of us Captains are ready. Are we not, men?"

"Aye!"

Sighing, I looked to the skies for guidance, and shook my head in amusement, as I prepared to mount Aurora.

Once more, I was interrupted. "Jules?" a soft voice called me.

I turned around to find a veiled woman standing behind me. "Aye, Charlie?"

She beamed at me, and stepped forward to hug me for a brief moment. "I would have arrived earlier this week," she complained, "but the seas were cruelly rough, and I was delayed. If not, I could have spent more time with you all." She sounded wistful.

I chuckled. "In the first place, you were stupid enough to travel when you are so close to your due date," I pulled back to flick her forehead, "what if something happened to your baby? You should have more care, Char."

She placed a hand on her belly lovingly. "Nothing will happen," she smiled, "you would consent to be godmother when he or she is born, yes?"

My eyes widened in astonishment. "Truly?"

"Truly," she confirmed, chuckling at my expression, "by the Lord, Jules, you seem as if I just nominated you into the Crown Council."

Everyone knew that women were not allowed on the Council, and everyone also knew how much I longed to be on it. Politics intrigued me. Mayhap that would be my next mission. Once upon a time, even women were not allowed in the Army.

Look where I was now.

"It sounds as impossible, Char," I laughed softly, placing a hand on her shoulder, "but truly, I would be honoured to be his or her godmother. I will be the best, like always." I winked, much to her amusement.

She rolled her eyes, opening her mouth to retort, when she seemed to remember something. "Oh, before I forget," she dug into her pockets, "I have a present for you. My husband Giovanni wanted to claim credit for it too, but I made it myself, so that you know."

A wooden bangle sat on her arm. Well-polished and smooth, an intricate, complicated pattern of swords, arrows, maces and other weapons were carved on to it, with much detail and perfection.

If Giovanni had thought he could claim responsibility for this, he was gravely mistaken. I knew them both well enough to know that only Charlie would have the patience and perseverance to design this.

"Thank you very much, Charlie," I was surprised, "'tis beautiful. I knew you had an eye for detail, but this...is remarkable. You have outdone yourself this time." I took it in my hands, and gently fingered the pattern, awed.

"There was little else I could do during confinement. Indeed, I was bored out of my mind," she huffed, as a dark look crossed her face, "I was almost jumping the day Giovanni relented to allow me to come to Monrique at long last."

"And here I am, thinking you made this for me because you love me," I rolled my eyes, as I put it on my wrist.

"And that too," she laughed.

"Julie?" I heard Nick call me at that moment, "'tis time to leave. We need to reach an inn soon before the blizzard hits."

He carefully avoided my gaze, as he muttered some last-minute nonsense to the calm and collected Tess, and a devastated Lady Rosanna who was all but weeping at his departure.

I glanced away from him, chagrined. Only Oncle Tom seemed as uncomfortable as I was in their midst, clearly wishing he had accompanied Evoric and Ned back to the Manor when the duo had done so earlier after bidding their goodbyes.

"Even Captain Everard has returned from his rendezvous, Ma'am," Captain Dupont added, smirking at the red-faced Captain Everard, who was seated on his stallion beside Nick's own.

"Keep quiet!" he punched Captain Dupont's shoulder, marking the beginning of a hand-to-hand steed fight.

Rolling her eyes, Charlie glanced at me once more, and the smile faded from her lips this time. "I need to tell you one more thing before you leave, Jules."

"Yes?"

Wrapping her cloak tightly to herself, she reached into her pockets for something. In the dim light, it looked like a piece of parchment, but her fists closed over it before I could see what it was.

She hesitated for a moment, before she plunged on. "I do not know what is happening between you and Nick. He will not say a word, and I do not think I can persuade you to open your mouth either," she sighed heavily, smiling, "I have known you both in your childhood days well enough to realise what a pair of stubborn donkeys you are."

My forehead creased, but I said nothing.

She continued on anyway. "However, if you both have truly buried your hatchet, then I need you to help me with something. For Nick. Will you?"

There was no question about it. "Of course."

She held out the piece of parchment she was holding, that was folded into tiny squares, towards me and stood in front of me such that no one else around us could see what it was.

"Recognise this?" a wry smile spread across her face.

Frowning, I accepted it, and opened it up. I froze in horror when I set my eyes on the small bits and pieces of yellowing parchment that had been stuck with dried wax onto the parchment I was holding, to form a charcoal sketch of a lagoon.

"How.." I was at a loss of words, "how...how did you find this? How did you even know of this?"

It was a sketch that Nick had drawn a long time ago, one that he had destroyed soon after James' death, and Richard's disappearance.

I was curled up on the windowsill that lined the Castle corridors, watching the grey skies, the gloomy droop of the wings of the birds that flew past, the utter hopelessness that enveloped the whole Castle.

At last, the whole world seemed to have plunged into the mood that I have been drowning in for the last seven years.

At that moment, I heard hurried footsteps approaching where I was seated. Startled, I turned around in time to notice Nick brush past me, holding a bundle of parchments in his arms, his eyes tired and unfocused.

For once, he did not even notice me, let alone stop by to fight with me.

However, as he was about to turn the corner, one of the parchments slipped out of his arms without his notice. Without thinking, I jumped down from the windowsill and sprinted towards the parchment, bending down to pick it up.

What I saw on it stunned me into silence.

It was a charcoal sketch of a lagoon at night. The undulating relief of the gentle hills, the fullness of the white moon, the huge clouds with which it played hide and seek, and the rhythmic waves of the calm waters that lapped against the sheltered bay were sketched out in such detail that it almost came to life before my eyes. It was only a charcoal sketch, but I could imagine the lagoon as if I stood looking at it at this very moment.

In that one instant, I fell in love with the sketch. It was so utterly beautiful, so utterly real. In addition, I also realised that whoever drew this must have loved the lagoon as well, enough to capture all the details to near perfection.

Had Nick drawn it?

Impossible.

However, it still belonged to him. Much as I wanted to keep the beautiful drawing and frame it in my chambers, I knew I had to return it to him. It was the correct thing to do. With that resolve, I ran after him.

"Nick! Nick, hold!" I yelled.

He stopped in his tracks. "Do go away, Julie," he turned around to sigh at me, "I am not in the mood."

I held out the sketch. "I merely wanted to return this," I mumbled awkwardly, unable to look into his red-rimmed eyes for fear of feeling sympathetic for him.

His eyes fell on the sketch, and at once, he grew rigid. "Where did you find this?"

I was beginning to grow frightened by the raw anger radiating off him. It was so unlike the times he used to fight with me before the loss of his brothers, that I found myself stammering instead of yelling straight back at him.

"You dropped it when you were walking," I muttered to the floor.

He narrowed his eyes at me, contemplating whether I was lying or not. When he seemed to be satisfied, he took the parchment from my hands.

"Thank you," he mumbled, and strode off again in the opposite direction.

I blinked, astonished. No taunts? No accusations? No fights?

Pure curiosity drove me to follow him, to see what he was going to do with all those parchments.

He was headed straight for the nearest window. When he reached it, he stared at his sketch of the lagoon for a long while. The light from the Sun, which was hiding behind the grey clouds, not daring to face the royal family in their grief, shone on Nick's face in that one moment, and I was astonished to find fat tears pouring down his cheeks in an endless course.

He was utterly and completely vulnerable.

In that moment, despite my hatred for him, despite all the grief that he had caused me over the years, I looked upon him as a boy, as young as I was, who had lost both his brothers in a span of two days.

The pain had been unbearable enough when I had lost merely one member of my family. I could not imagine the agony he would be going through at the moment.

In the meanwhile, wild with grief, he was tearing up that particular sketch of the lagoon into pieces and flung them out of the window with a vengeance, sobbing quietly as they floated down to the ground below, carried by the wind.

Before I knew what I was doing, I had crept away from where I was watching him, and rushed down the stairs towards the spot where the torn pieces lay scattered about in a mess. Looking around to ensure that none else was present, I bent down to pick up each and every one of those pieces, despite the strong wind, despite the absurdness of it all.

I knew not why I was doing this in the first place.

Her smile was lifeless. "You thought no one was watching that day, but I saw you," she answered quietly, "I saw you pick up the pieces Nick had torn. I saw you beg your brother for a new piece of parchment and some liquid wax so that you could put the pieces back together. I saw you hiding away in that little alcove for the next few days, trying to stick the pieces onto the new parchment like solving a jigsaw puzzle. And when I thought you were going to return it to my brother, you kept it in your treasure trunk."

I averted her puzzled eyes. "I could not give it back to him," I gazed hard at Aurora, "I knew he would simply tear it up again, and yell at me for interfering. But I could not bear to throw it away, not after I worked so hard on putting it back together again." I shot her a faint smile, and looked down at the decade-old parchment in my hands.

Indeed, I was rather surprised to find that I was still as deeply in love with it as I had been ten years ago. By the Lord, I would do anything to be able to know where this place was, anything to visit it at night, exactly as the sketch depicted.

"This lagoon is very special to our family. I will let him to explain to you why," she admitted, smiling, "it is located in the woods of Derelia in Anchorvale. It is called the Silver Lagoon."

"Anchorvale?" my ears picked up the fact, "that is where we are going next."

She nodded, pleased. "I know. And I hope you also remember that it is Nick's birthday on 9 December next week?"

"Of course."

I had not forgotten. It was the day before Victoria's baby shower, and it was a day I used to be tortured the most every year in the past.

Her lips began to pull up in a secret smile, and simply like that, I knew what she was going to ask of me.

I took one look at her excited, shining grey eyes and smiled straight back at her.