“Of course! Well then, we’ll waste no time diving into our duties after this, father! There’s still so much more that we have to do!”
“Huh? I said I was takin’ the day off...” Watt paused. “All righty, guess we’d better hit the road...”
Keeping up with the queen, full of life and energy as she was, was a strenuous task for an old man with some years under his belt. Watt couldn’t shake the feeling that her energy was just on a different level altogether. But his hands were as good as tied—he couldn’t say no. As both a father and as a knight, that was the painful reality Watt now faced.
He somehow summoned the pep to rise to his feet, and Anna immediately slid her arm into his.
“I’ll be counting on you from here on out! As my father...and my top knight!”
“Guess I did sign myself up for that, huh? I’ll give it my best shot, yeah?”
As he held up the weight of Anna’s arm, the thought struck Watt like a Trailmarcher: Being a father really was tough.
From that day forth, Anna actively set up chances to hold discussions with the nobles. Even the ones who’d looked down on her as unremarkable and reserved—just as they had when she was still a princess—found out firsthand that she was no easy target after witnessing her strong resolve.
And so, before she even knew it, Anna found herself the subject of the whispered rumors of those around her. The rumors’ claim?
“The sleeping queen has awakened.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Hee hee hee hee!
The boisterous laughs echoed out unnoticed.
“Uh-oh! Looks like father’s toast!”
“Uh-oh! Even father let his guard down in the end!”
“That’s why he can’t be king!”
“That’s why he lost to the likes of sister!”
The boy and the girl twirled and twirled, dancing in tandem before an invisible audience.
“Did you hear? Sister’s the new queen!”
“Did you hear? She’s really pepped up!”
“That’s no good.”
“That’s no fun.”
“Sister’s ruling the kingdom? That won’t go well.”
“Sister’s ruling the kingdom? I say we mess it up!”
With only the two of them there, the twins locked arms and pressed their hands together, drawing their strikingly similar faces inches apart.
“We could do a whole lot better than that.”
“We could have a lot more fun than that.”
“Should we go for it?”
“Why shouldn’t we?”
“It’ll be a party.”
“We’ll have to make it fun.”
With their well-shaped faces brimming with malice, the twins sneered as if they were having the time of their lives.
“That’s right—let’s use father’s power too!”
“Then let’s grab that toy too!”
“It’s bound to be a blast!”
“Everybody! Let’s all dance!”
“Aha ha! Ha ha ha!” the twins cackled in unison.
Their voices vanished, as if being sucked into the depths of the darkness around them, leaving only silence in their wake.
It was only for the briefest of spans that the Kingdom of Ogdenn knew peace. The stormy days ahead would soon saddle the inexperienced queen with even greater trials...