Rowan's eyes snapped open. She was resting on the ground, her head on her satchel like a pillow. Her shoulder ached, but it was more sore than actual pain. She sat up slowly, examining her knuckles. They were stiff, but at least there wasn't more bleeding. She brushed loose strands of tangled hair back from her eyes.

      Kaden was lying on his back, but his eyes were open as he watched the sky as it slowly filled with golden light, the blue growing lighter and lighter before his eyes. The blue was reflected in the darkness of his eyes, making them look brighter and clear, as if he hadn't a care in the world.

     "You hungry?" His voice startled her, but his hand pushed the bag towards her.

      "Yes," she said, pulling out an apple and sinking her teeth deeply into it. She could feel the sweetness and softness of the piece in her mouth, and swallowed hard. It was delicious and refreshing, filling her with the strength she'd been missing for a few days now.

      "Good, huh?" Kaden rolled onto his stomach to face her, resting his chin on his arms as they folded in front of him.

      Rowan's gaze slid past him to Aliyah, who was curled up in a black ball, her tail resting on her black nose as she twitched in her sleep. The wolf looked perfectly content to sleep longer, so Rowan raised a finger to her lips to indicate they should be quiet.

      "I think anything would taste amazing at this point," Rowan commented, taking another bite that sent flavor dancing across her taste buds, "But yes... they're delicious."

       Kaden nodded in agreement. "So this has been quite the adventure, huh?"

      "I love it," she said without a moment to think it over, "It's been better than anything I've ever done. With the curse of dark magic in me, my father wanted me to keep me away from anything that might infect me. I've never ridden a horse through a field, never walked through a market place, never slept under the stars, never met a werewolf, never gone swimming, and never done anything like this." She sighed, lowering the apple from her mouth, "I'm just glad I've done this before..."

      "Before you turn eighteen," Kaden finished when she seemed unable to. His eyebrows drew together with sympathy, and he gave her a small smile, "Hey. You'll have plenty of time for someone to wake you up. Surely, someone can do it."

      "No," she shook her head slowly, "It has to be true love. And I've never loved anyone, not outside of family," her voice had a thicker layer to it, pain lacing itself through her normally light tone. She bowed her head, rubbing the shiny skin of the half eaten apple with her white hands, "And no one loves me in that way either. It's impossible."

      Kaden wasn't sure how to respond, and she knew this. So she rubbed her forehead wearily, "But it's the past now. There's nothing I can do. So the only thing I can do... is accept it."

      "Morning guys," Aliyah yawned as she stood up on her paws, wicked claws sliding in and out to stretch. She twisted into an odd position, then transformed into her human form. She twirled her hair around her finger, letting the strands entangle her hand, "So are you going to tell her, or should I?"

       "Tell me what?" Rowan held her breath, trying not to look panicked. What could it be? Had they seen the book?

      Kaden gestured a hand to the background of their campground, "We're here. We're at the edge of the Tiberian border. Shouldn't be more than an hour or two on horseback until we reach the castle."

      The statement didn't bring her as much excitement as they had previously thought it would.

       Rowan drew her fingers through the dirt, not meeting their eyes, "You see... the thing is... I'm not so sure the King will help us..." she winced as she spoke, trying to figure out if they would be mad at traveling all this way for nothing.

       "So?" Kaden grinned at her, "Won't hurt to ask. But I can't get spotted. They don't like me here."

       Rowan gave him a crooked smile, "Thank you." She looked to Aliyah, "Both of you. I couldn't have done this without you. Convincing Kaizen might be hard, but we have to do it. To save our own skins and to stop a war."

       "I'm with you," Aliyah smiled brightly at her, "I couldn't go home now! Not when I'm at the climax of this awesome adventure!"

       Kaden smirked at Rowan, "'Course I'm in. What would you do without your knight in shining armor?"

       "Well, I would like him to show up," Rowan was careful not to apply any strain to her sore arm as she swung onto Sandy's back, "I would be happy to have one of those right now."

       He swung up behind her, "Aw, you couldn't give me that one heroic chime in?"

       "A real hero doesn't need impressive lines to improve his status," Rowan said coldly, but her eyes didn't shine with the same ice. In fact, they were warm.

       "Stop bickering, you two," Aliyah leapt onto Dust's back, a smile lighting her features, "Let's go find this King dude!"

Two hours later...

       Kaden had used the last of his money to get a bandana to tie around his head, a pair of sunglasses, and a hood for Rowan. They left the horses at the stables, promising a payment for them later, then headed through the inner city towards the castle.

       Rowan was in awe. She had never seen such a huge town so packed with people. A million scents, sights, and sounds surrounded her, and no amount of spinning around could let her take everything in.

       They paused at the castle gates, and Aliyah stepped forwards to the guard, "Excuse me, sir, we need to see the king."

       "Not today," the guard replied, "His Majesty is preparing for the war."

      "When is that again?"

       The guard frowned, "Four days. You're not from around here, are you?"

      Rowan took a deep breath, stepping forward. "I request to enter immediately," she said in her best commanding voice. Kaden gave her a small shake of her head, but she ignored him, lowering her hood around her shoulders, "I am Princess Rowan of Irisanna, and I've come on behalf of my people to stop this war."

        The guard blinked, but he seemed to recognize her. He opened his mouth as if to question, then thought better of it. His eyes narrowed as he gestured to Kaden, who had the bandana tied around his face to hide his identity. "Who's this?"

       Rowan lifted her chin, "That is my body guard, and this woman is a friend. You can give me an escort, but I need to see the king instantly. Please."

      The guard gave a small nod, turning to the door to push the massive wooden door open for them, "Of course."

      Not long later, the three runaways were walking through the polished marble halls of the castle. Though it looked like a show of wealth from the marble columns to the satin curtains of fine quality, Rowan noticed dust lining the window sills and a lack of soldiers on the interior of the building. The king was obviously not employing an excess of maids and soldiers.

       "Wait here," the guard ordered, then wrapped his knuckles on a large door, "Your Highness! There is someone here to see you."

       "I said no one is to come in today." Rowan barely recognized Kaizen's voice through both the door and its weariness.

       "It's rather urgent, sir."

       There was a long sigh, "Let them in."

        The guard pulled open the massive doors by intricately carved knobs, and Rowan wasted no time. She strode across the floor, followed closely by Aliyah and Kaden, and she slammed her hands onto the desk in front of Kaizen, "I am Princess Rowan of Irisanna, and I'm here to plead a compromise for my people."

Kaizen stared at her, his eyes widening. "Rowan," he said, sounding almost breathless, "I... what? H-how did- "

       "That's not important. You need to call off the war preparations." She spoke in a demanding tone, but there was a hint of desperation lacing it, "Please, your Highness."

       "Rowan, I—" he began, but she cut him off.

      "I know Tiberia is having a bit of a financial crisis and you need the territory," she continued, "So turn me in. The reward of the person finding me is 3 million credits. That could hold up your kingdom well for a year or two, enough time to get out of this depression. But please, Lord Kaizen, my father has a lot of things on his mind, my death is approaching, and I don't want anyone to die in a war that can be prevented!"

       Kaizen got to his feet slowly, not taking his eyes off of her, "I... I don't know what to say at the moment."

Rowan closed her eyes tightly, praying silently he would take heed of her words. She needed her kingdom to be safe. That was her top priority as princess. Her eyes flew open as she felt a hand on her shoulder.

       "I'm glad you're okay." The words startled her as soon as they registered in her weary, desperate mind, and she stared up at him. There was a tiny smile dancing across his lips, "I admit, when you disappeared, I had thoughts that your stepmother had killed you in her rage."

      She remained silent, staring into his eyes with a sense of desperation, pleading silently that he would have mercy and call off the war preparations.

       "Hey... say something, will you?" His smile weakened at the persisting silence, "You're making me feel awkward."

      "I-I'm sorry," she gave a stiff bow, "I just... I haven't..."

     "She's been through a lot," Aliyah leapt to her defense, "We walked here, from the castle of Irisanna, and we've been walking since the dance."

       "Why would you leave a place to see me when I was already there?" Kaizen blinked, obviously confused. His eyes flicked only briefly to Aliyah as she spoke, but went straight back to Rowan.

      "Because a hunter was sent by my stepmother to kill me," Rowan's eyes flashed at the memory, "And she bribed some friends of hers- guards at the castle gates- to kill me if I was caught returning to the castle."

       Kaizen's hands curled into fists, but he didn't appear shocked, "I knew she had something to do with this!"

       "She wants me dead, and I can't go back. So, I didn't know where else to turn..." Rowan dropped her gaze to the floor, "I knew it was a long shot, but I..."

       Kaizen rested a hand on her shoulder, a smile spreading across his face, "I'll help."

      "What?" Her head shot up, "Are you serious?"

       Kaizen's smile persisted, "Of course. I let you get chased off to begin with. I owe it to you at least. The money would be well used, but are you certain... you want us to claim responsibility to your return to Irisanna? It would hurt your money supply, and... I know how hard it will be for a country to struggle under that."

       Rowan remembered why she had enjoyed talking with this man so much.

      She gave him a warm smile, tilting her head to the side, "Thank you, but three million isn't a lot of money. We get millions in a year, and we have a new deal with the steel industry. The money will barely be missed. And your people need it more. I know how you feel. But please... call off the war."

       "If you're certain, I will halt war preparations and return myself to Irisanna," Kaizen vowed, "And we'll deal with your stepmother. How many witnesses do we have proving she sent the hunter after you?"

      "The hunter himself," Rowan flicked a hand to indicate Kaden, "And he tried to kill both me and Aliyah."

       "So it's only the word of his against the Queen's. I believe you, but to convince a court, we're going to need more than that," he sighed, then looked back to Rowan, "You don't know how glad I am to see you again. I thought it was just because of the dress you wore that night and how stunning you looked then, but I... I couldn't get you from my mind. But seeing you now... even though you're covered in dirt and grass stains in torn and ruined clothing... you still entrance me."

       Rowan felt her face heat up beneath his gaze, and was suddenly self conscious of how she looked in her filthy outfit and frizzy, tangled hair. Behind her, Kaden crossed his arms stiffly, and Aliyah was grinning.

        "I-I'm sorry," he looked away, rubbing the back of his neck, "I just..."

      "No..." she avoided his eyes, her hands wringing together nervously in front of her, "It's... kinda sweet."

       He gave her a quirky smile, his cheeks slightly flushed too, "Well, you probably want to get going quickly, then. You've got a castle to save and all that. But... would you mind letting me see the full face of your hunter?" He gestured to Kaden, "He looks familiar to me."

       "He wished to keep his identity private," Rowan said tersely, setting her jaw.

       The corner of Kaizen's mouth quirked upwards, "Does he, now. Bad experiences with Tiberia?"

      "Yes," Rowan said.

       "Was he exiled?"

       "I'm... not sure." Rowan admitted, her fingers still fumbling together in front of her as Kaizen examined Kaden carefully.

        "It is you!" Kaizen pulled back, looking to Rowan, "Is this man named Kade?"

       Kaden let out an annoyed sigh, puling off his glasses and bandana, "What's the point of a disguise if you can see through it?"

         "You were banished," Kaizen said stiffly, crossing his arms. His eyes had lost their warmth and compassion, now shining with ice and dark with irritation, "You can't be here."

       "Make you feel guilty?" Kaden growled, and Rowan saw his hands curled into fists at his sides, his knuckles whitening, "I was helping her. You should be grateful I didn't kill her when I could."

       "Wait," Rowan stepped between them quickly, "Easy. You two know each other?"

      "Of course," Kaizen's voice was tense as his eyes remained locked on Kaden, "We used to be really close pals, didn't we? Or have you not told them that, Kade?"

        "I started a new life, Kai," Kaden gritted his teeth, eyes flashing with a burning hatred. His shoulders were locked into place, and his hand slid to the sword at his side, "No one knew."

       "What?" Rowan demanded, looking back and forth between the both of them, "What do we not know?"

      Kaizen's gaze softened as he looked to Rowan, "You don't know who he is."

       Both she and Aliyah shook their heads.

       Kaizen sighed, blowing hair from his eyes, "Kaden... is my brother."