Dedicated to blazing_rose679 for making me this awesome cover! Thanks a lot!

I was about to enter the house, the door handle already in my hand, when I heard my aunts' voices.

"I think we should tell her." I could make out Aunt Iris' voice.

"And what good would that do?" Aunt Kara asked.

"Maybe we should wait for a while and then tell her," Aunt Melody suggested.

I wasn't sure if they were talking about me. Aunt Kara once told me that it is rude to listen in to someone's conversations. So far I had always listened to her and done what she said, but something was telling me not to interrupt them.

"She's too young to know it!"

"For goodness sake, Kara, she is turning eighteen next month."

"That doesn't mean that she is ready to know the truth, Melody."

I furrowed my eyebrows into a frown. They were clearly talking about me, but what truth were they hiding from me? Did it have something to do with why we lived in the forest?

Lost in my thoughts I missed the next part of their conversation. I shook my head, trying to get rid of my thoughts and focus back on what they were saying.

"... the letter? The king said..."

"The king has no idea what he's doing," the voice of Aunt Kara interrupted Aunt Melody's. "Who was the one that raised her? Who left everything behind to go live in the forest? That was us, not the king."

"She does have a point, Mel. Maybe we should just wait for another week, and then decide what to do. When did the king say that he wants to see her?"

The king wants to see me? I thought to myself confused.

"In three weeks," Aunt Melody answered.

"Three weeks, that's only two weeks away from her birthday. What about the cur..."

"Shh, did you hear that?" Aunt Iris interrupted Aunt Kara.

"Hear what? I didn't hear anything."

I looked up to Ray, who had let out a craw. He sat on a tree next to the house and looked at me with a crocked head before letting out another craw.

"There it was again!"

"That was Ray! Quick, be quiet, she's coming back!"

Instantly their conversation died down. I waited for a moment before entering the house.

"I am back!" I called out, letting them know that I was home.

I walked around the corner where I found my aunts sitting at the table, eating lunch.

"Oh, there you are!" Aunt Kara greeted me. "How was your walk?"

"It was wonderful," I told her while taking off my shawl. "Has Taspy arrived yet?" I asked no one in particular and sat down on the only chair left.

"No," Aunt Kara answered after a moment of silence. "Not yet."

I couldn't help but notice how Aunt Melody and Aunt Iris exchanged a look before continuing to eat.

"Did you have one of these dreams again?" Aunt Iris asked me after a while.

When I first started to have these dreams about a month ago, I told my aunts about it. I told them about the room and the bed and how real everything felt. They seemed worried, although I couldn't tell why. They told me that it was probably just my imagination playing a trick on me.

But when I started to dream the same dream every night, they didn't know what to say anymore. So I stopped asking them about it, I didn't want them to worry about me.

"Yes, I have," I told them honestly, not wanting to lie to them.

"Do you still have them every night?" Aunt Melody asked.

"Yes," I answered her before taking a bite of bread.

"Are they still all the same?" Aunt Kara asked.

I almost nodded, but then remembered my last two dreams. "No, last night and the night before that there was also a man in it."

"Did- did he say anything?" Aunt Iris asked. Her voice sounded almost threatened.

I looked around and noticed that all of my aunts were wearing the same worried expression. I slowly nodded and their faces turned pale.

"What did he say?"

I thought about it for a moment, trying to remember his words. "He said something along the lines of 'you shall have a happy life, but it won't last long'. And he called me Briar Rose," I added after a moment.

"What a wild imagination you have," Aunt Kara said after a moment of silence. "I will have to stop telling you these stories," she finished with a smile. But it wasn't a real smile. I could tell that something was bothering them.

"So, I was thinking," I said, changing the subject. "You know, since my birthday is coming up soon and all that. I was thinking that maybe we could go visit one of the nearby villages."

What followed was another long moment of silence, you could almost hear a pin drop. All of my aunts were staring at me with wide eyes and open mouths. I couldn't blame them for their reaction, not once in the past years did I ever mention leaving the forest. I knew that it wasn't a good idea to ask for something like that in the first place.

I should have never mentioned it and just kept quiet. But sooner or later this topic would have come up, what difference did it make if I asked today or next year? Why not just put it out there and see what they thought about it?

"Where does this come from, Adelaide?" Aunt Kara finally asked me, breaking the silence.

"I...I don't know," I admitted. "It's just... I am turning eighteen next month and all I have ever seen are those trees. I thought that maybe it would be a good idea to leave the forest once in a while."

"But, Del, I thought you loved the forest," Aunt Iris said.

"I do! I am not asking you to move to the village, all I am asking for is to visit one."

"And what would you do there?" Aunt Melody said.

"I don't know, go to the market, talk to other people. You always told me about the Kingdom of Gilion, how beautiful it looks, how friendly the people are. I just want to see it with my own eyes."

"The Kingdom of Gilion isn't that special, it's just like every other kingdom," Aunt Kara said.

"It doesn't matter if it is special or not, I don't know what the other kingdoms looks like. Please," I begged them. "It would only be a onetime thing."

"How about this," Aunt Iris suggested. "We will think about it, sleep over it a few times. And then when some time has passed, let's say two weeks, we will let you know what we decided. Does anybody disagree?"

The three of us shook our heads. If I had continued pushing the subject they would have probably said no, at least they agreed to think about it.

"Alright, let's continue with our meal, then."

I did as she said and started eating again, my mind still thinking about the possibility of leaving the forest.

It was later that day, Aunt Iris and I had one of our sword fighting lessons again where we dressed up in these uncomfortable trousers. I never quite understood why we had to wear them. Aunt Iris kept telling me that they were easier to move in, which was true, but still, I felt more comfortable wearing my light brown dress instead of these.

"That's good, now remember, don't just parry and riposte. You have to cover and close in. Got it?"

I nodded, telling her that I understood, and then waited for her to attack. After several blows she stopped me again.

"Alright, that was good, but don't wait around for me to attack you. If you want to defeat your opponent, you have to be aggressive, audacious. You have to take the initiative, got it?" I shortly nodded my head, my heavy breathing preventing me from giving a proper answer. "Alright, let's try again."

This time I didn't wait around for her to attack me, but attacked her instead. She parried my blow and we continued fighting with each other, neither of us wanting to lose. After what seemed like an eternity, Aunt Iris finally ended our practice.

"I think that's enough for one day, how about we continue with this tomorrow?"

"I would be more than happy to call it a day," I answered her while wiping off some sweat from my forehead.

I handed her the wooden sword and returned back inside almost running into Aunt Melody in the process.

"Already finished with your training?" she asked me.

"Yes, where are you off to?"

"Oh, I just want to get some work done in the garden," she explained. "Do you want to help me?"

"Of course, I will just get changed and then I will help you."

"Alright, you know where to find me."

I quickly rushed into the house and to my room. I couldn't wait to finally get out of these cloths.

Hey guys! So sorry for the long wait. The past month has been really stressful because of school and other stuff. But now that almost all test are over, I will return to update more frequently soon. Hope you liked the chapter and don't forget to comment and vote! Thank you!

~Tessa