Previously on LW:
Hailey, Chase, Autumn, and Bree head back to Sol, leaving behind Aiden, Aric, Zarasa, and their new fairy friends. However, when they reach the castle, the king's welcome is not what Hailey expected. He sends her to clean the kitchens as a punishment for leaving without permission, and Hailey has to leave before hearing what he says to her friends.

Chapter 33

As I expected, I found Chase at the training fields. I did not expect, however, to find him red-faced and doing a handstand against the wall of the shed in which they kept training dummies. 

"Um, what are you doing?" I tilted my head to the side.

"Well-" he flapped one of his wings to keep his balance- "The king and my commander decided that I would not be demoted or suspended since a soldier of the Aeolian army is not supposed to go against the orders of royalty -that's you- and that I did bring you back alive and well. However, I still disobeyed orders, and it was a really stupid thing to do in general, so I have to stay like this until I either pass out or Bree comes and finds some other painful thing for me to do."

"Wow." I could only say. My punishment was child's play in comparison, though I supposed my grandpa wasn't done with me.

"Yep. Have you heard about Autumn? The king sent her home and wrote a message to her parents."

I grimaced. "I hope she doesn't get in too much trouble. I'm sorry I got you guys into this mess."

"'s all right. We knew what we were getting into. Aiden got the right idea by deciding to come back later, though." One of his foot slipped against the wall, and he straightened up with a grunt.

"I'll talk to Bree. It's not fair you get punished for following me."

"Please don't. You'll just make it worse."

I frowned. "I'll talk to the king, then."

"Nope."

"Am I supposed to just watch you do this stupid handstand, then?"

"I'll have you know this 'stupid handstand' is pretty damn painful."

"Sorry."

"Parker!" A sharp voice cut us off. "Since you seem so comfortable here, having a chat with your girlfriend, maybe I should go ask Bree if she can supply tea and cookies?"

"Lance..." Chase muttered.

The blond boy bowed to me. "Princess. We're glad to have you back safe and sound."

I threw him a dark look and didn't answer.

"Don't you have something else to do?" Chase asked. "Also remember I'm still a superior officer, so I'd shut it if I were you."

"Well, actually... I've been promoted to leader of the Junior Troop Elite Archers, and since you're second in command..." He smiled. "Looks like we're tied. But don't worry, I'm sure you'll get a promotion soon." He studied Chase's position. "Or not. Well, nice seeing you, as always, but I've got to go."

"Wait. I've got to talk to you."

"We just did, and I'm pretty sure we filled our quota for the year."

"Lance. Really."

Lance sighed. "Is it really that important that we have to do it in person? You could just write it down and spare both of us lots of pain."

"Shut it for a bit and listen, will you?"

"Fine, I'm listening. But be quick, I've got a date in half an hour."

"I can't believe Charles is still with you after all this time," Chase muttered. "I thought he had better taste."

"Oh, don't be jealous. Aiden's very cute, too."

Chase rolled his eyes. "I'm sure Charles would love to hear you say that. But more seriously, I need to talk to you about our parents."

"Which ones? The ones who gossip about us behind our backs, or my mother and your father?"

"Yeah, them. In the forest –" Chase's arms faltered, and he let himself drop back down. He caught his breath and stretched his arms for a second, looking around while he did so – for Bree, I supposed. He placed his hands back on the ground and lifted himself back up in his previous position.

"Okay, this is ridiculous." Lance waved his hand. "Just get down from here and come set the targets for me. It still counts as a really annoying thing to be doing, so Bree will be fine with it, and I'll get to talk to you without having to twist my neck."

Chase dropped back down again and straightened up his shirt.

"I guess I'll go find Autumn then." I gave Chase a kiss on the cheek. He brought me back for a real one, and when I pulled away again I was smiling. Before I left, though, I gave Lance a warning glare. He just replied with an annoying grin and a little wave.

    I left the training fields intending to find Autumn. As I walked by the castle, my path crossed with the royal advisor's. Edwin bowed and smiled.

    "Princess, I must admit your diplomatic missions are rather unorthodox, but you must allow me to congratulate you on your success."

    "Sorry, what?" I replied with all the bearing and eloquence innate to royalty.

    "Why, with the fairies of course. Thanks to your little escapade, relationships between our people are better than they have ever been. Some of their representatives are talking with ours at the outpost as we speak."

    "Really. Well, that's good. Er, maybe you could inform my grandfather of my role in this tremendous success?"

    Edwin chuckled. "He already knows, but I won't fail to remind him, just in case. He did want to speak to you when you had finished your chores."

    "Now? I was going to go check on Autumn."

    "Yes, I think now would be wiser. And don't worry about Autumn, she will be fine."

    "How do you know?"

    "Hailey, her older brother ran away to join the army, and the twins ditch school at least once a week. She left home to create peace with people we've been at odds with for years. If anything, her mother should be proud. She's been in politics for a while, and even she hasn't achieved that."

    "Well, I guess that's reassuring. Can I ask how you know so much?"

    "Easy. Her mother and I are cousins. I'm at all the family reunions. Now if you'll excuse me." Edwin bowed again and started walking off.

    "Wait," I called back. "You're related? How do I never know of these things?"

    He didn't turn back, but I heard him laugh. "If you don't ask, you won't know."

    "Fine," I yelled after him. "If you're ever my advisor, I'll ask questions until your ears fall off."

    He laughed frankly. "Looking forwards to it, Princess."

With that, he turned a corner and disappeared from my sight, leaving me no choice but to go face my grandfather.

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Hi everyone! Sorry, this update is a bit late. There's a puppy at the end of this as an apology. (Warning: it's adorable. You can thank @ThePapilioUlysses for that.)

The cover with this chapter is by @syedtalha99 ! Thank you for the art and all your comments!

See you all next update,

MLB998