Ocliv and Amy continued walking through the forest. It seemed like the creepy trees sometimes looked at them, and other times ignored them.

They soon emerged on the other side, where a large village was located. A giant castle stood in the center, with guard towers stationed around it. Tall stone walls loomed around the village, with an iron gate keeping unwanted visitors out. Surrounding the village, a meadow separated the houses from the walls. The grass in the meadow was about three feet tall. People bustled about inside the village, and dogs raced about, stealing food from carts and stalls. Carriages were pulled by horses and people dressed in fancy clothes sat in them.

Amy turned to Ocliv. "What is this place?"

"Valandian, the heart of the land of Castalia. This is where the king's palace resides, and where you came from. Tria, you need to accept you're a princess. Everyone will look up to you. Now, let's go down there."

Amy shook her head fiercely. "No! My name is not Tria Crystalwood! It is Amy!"

Ocliv shook his head. "Well, maybe King Shampan will be able to convince you."

Ocliv grabbed her hand and pulled her down the hill, towards the iron gates. Amy tried to pull away, but Ocliv apparently had more strength than his appearance showed. He walked right up to the gates and raised his hand. A blue emblem appeared on the gates and the back of his hand, and the gates opened. As he pulled me inside, Amy asked what that was, but he didn't respond.

As they walked, — or rather, Ocliv walked and Amy was pulled — people turned to look and whispered things to each other. Amy heard one lady saying to another, "It's Tria Crystalwood, the king's daughter!"

Her eyes widened as she heard this, and soon they reached the castle. Guards stood at the golden gates that led to the palace. They waved their staffs over the pair and asked for their names.

"Oculiv Mardia."

He then looked at Amy, waiting for her name. Amy opened her mouth, then sighed, and answered. "Tria. Tria Crystalwood."

The guards seemed stunned when they heard this, but they quickly recovered.

The one who spoke first stepped aside, letting us into the palace courtyard.

They walked through the courtyard which was full of life, towards the palace doors. As they opened, Amy's mouth dropped in shock.

+++++++++++++

Hey! So I'm sorry this is so short, I've been so busy...:-( Anyway, I'm Shadow, or Tigertail in the Warriors world. I've been on Wattpad since August 20th, 2014. I have like a gazillion stories in progress but my most famous is Tigertail's Destiny, a FanFiction. I'm an admin on WattyPotters and WattyWarriors so that's about it...Oh yeah, and thanks to helloilovecats for the opportunity to write in this book! :-)

~Shadow