Chapter Text
General
The night sky is filled with lights, lights that dot all the kingdom of Angielle and even stretch out into the forests, fields and along the rivers. Lanterns in shapes of crowns, flowers, pastries, stars and more that have been expertly crafted hang from wherever they can.
The streets are filled with townsfolk, some drunk, some dressed elegantly. The tumble of people enjoying themselves fills the air with their laughter and voices. Music plays from various places, and the people almost never find themselves in the quiet.
Near the palace in the royal garden sit the Princess and her faithful knight.
Fritz is relaxed, leaning back against the bench and watching Lucette from the side as she admires the lights. “Pretty, huh?”
She turns to him, her facial expression unreadable. “And all without magic.”
Fritz doesn’t answer. Two knights on patrol pass them by and bow to the Princess and salute to Sir Fritzgerald. Lucette simply nods to them. Once they pass, Fritz reaches out a hand and carefully and slowly intertwines their fingers.
“No need to be so careful, I’m not made of porcelain.” Lucette gives him a small smile and presses a kiss to his cheek.
Fritz smiles nervously. “You are the princess, after all.”
They both grow quiet for a while, taking in the lights. All this beauty, and no magic at all. All these people happy despite… It has only been two months since both the Tenebrarum and the Lucis were shattered.
Delora and Parfait are still buried side by side in the Graveyard of the Honored, and Lucette’s mind wanders back to this morning when she watched the gardeners carefully take care of them to make sure they don’t break anything.
Mythros’ dust had been taken away by one of the witches that worked with him, presumably to be buried in his own way. Now that they’ve lost all power, there was no reason to stop them.
Lucette
Fritz turns to me as if to say something. Only when I draw my attention away from the decorations do I notice his worried expression.
“Fritz?”
“I… I’m not sure why this is…”
He turns away from me, hiding his face. Before I can say anything else, his appearance flashes dark, and then I hear a voice that sends icicles down my spine.
“...Princess.”
The face that turns back to me is familiar, and I feel fear well up inside my stomach. I move back, and staring back at me is Varg. He grins, but something pained is in his eyes. As I’m at a loss for words, he continues.
“I apologize. Is it Queen, already?”
“How in the world are you here?!” My voice is high, and I’m well considering calling the guards. But Varg is calm as can be.
“Me? Oh. Well, Fritz let his guard down.”
“But-”
“Irrelevant. I suppose I could have picked a better moment, but I don’t exactly know what’s going on from inside of Fritz, you know. I will leave as soon as you command me to, but you had to know I exist.”
“That you... exist?”
“Why else would I be here?” His grin falters. “I did not intend to lie to you.”
“Fritz said you- you erased yourself!” I lower my voice, but only to listen to the footsteps of the knights.
Varg’s face remains cold. “...I did. I can assure you, my guess is as good as yours. So,” he grins again, “is it queen or princess, Your Highness?”
Lucette hesitates, still in a search for words, before collecting herself. “Princess.”
“I see. Well, Princess, I can tell when I’m uninvited.”
“Wait. How did you come back to life? Did it just… happen one day?”
“From what I know, yes. I was certain even if that was possible, you’d have used your magic to break the curse?”
“No, because there is no magic in Angielle, or anywhere else.”
I’ve never seen Varg shocked, but now his face expression comes close. His mask can only conceal so much. “...I see.”
I think for a moment, then look at him sternly. “Bring back Fritz, now.”
He grins again without it reaching his eyes. “As you command, my dear. But I would wonder, if Fritz would do the same for you as I do...”
I glare at him and he stares back, unaffected, before darkness swallows him. The transition takes longer this time, but surely enough, Fritz is sitting there again.
“Fritz! I was worried about you!”
Fritz sits there surprised as I hug him, and he gently puts his arm around me too. “I’m… I’m sorry, Princess, I had no idea he could…”
I pull back, clearing my throat, now serious. “This is bad. This means magic is rising, from wherever that might be.”
“...You’re right. Should we not… put those worries to later, at least? Perhaps tomorrow?”
I look back at his hopeful glance with cold determination. “No. This might mean that witches and fairies have regained their powers.”
“But…”
General
Lucette stands up and hurries to the palace. Fritz stands up, grasping the small case in his bag to check if it’s still there. He told her to meet here so they could be together and he could surprise her… He sighs. She probably forgot in the commotion. Fritz hurries after her.