Happily Ever After.....Maybe

Chapter Nineteen

Dusk had fallen by the time I finally left the Kingdom of Kalopsia that I'll someday call home. I rode Tobias back to Capricious. I'm sure Tallulah will want to know all about my evening.
Sure enough Tallulah questioned me as soon as I walked through the swinging wooden doors of the Pub. "Eek! You're back! Sit right here while I give these men their drinks and don't move. I want to hear all about it." She ordered pointing to a wooden bar stool as she zoom around table filling rum glasses and taking more orders. She made her way back to me and rested her head in her hands on the counter as she smiled across from me, "Now tell me everything and don't leave out a single detail!"
I told her how I excepted Dylan's proposal and how he wants to marry in three days. Then two days later have his coronation and become King. I told her about our romantic candle lit dinner we had and when we watched the sunset together.
"Wow. He sure doesn't waste any time does he." She chuckled as she filled a pitcher up with rum.
"He as to make sure the kingdom stays in his hands and doesn't fall to his uncle. So three days from now I'll be queen." I said quietly feeling a bit overwhelmed. "Tallulah? Did you know that the Great Wizard came from Nyctophilia like Hayden?"
"I believe I heard that somewhere, but we mustn't talk about that horrid place, it's not a place to go. It's dangerous."
"If nobody visits it and nobody can leave how does people outside of Nyctophilia know it's so dangerous and horrible? What if it really isn't that bad and is just like a normal town?"
"From the stories." Tallulah replied.
"Exactly what if they're just stories?" I pressed further.
"Amaya, you've met the Great Wizard and has seen what a horrible person he is, how do you think he learned how to be so horrible? Where you live is who you become."
I shook my head, "I don't believe you. Where you're from doesn't define you. Hayden came from that place, but he was a good person."
"Enough talk about Nyctophilia. Let's talk more about your wedding! You need a wedding gown! And what about planning it all?" Tallulah asked as she went back to the customers.
"Yes, tomorrow I'll go to Agog and see the seamstress who made my gown for the ball and see if she can make it. As for everything else Dylan has people who will do it. Would you be my maid of honor?"
"Aww yes I will!" She said happily as she came back to the counter.
I wished I felt the joy she felt. I just felt numb and empty. I gave a small smile, "I'll see if she can make your gown as well." I paused I wanted to talk more about Nyctophilia, but I could tell Tallulah didn't want to talk about it anymore. I had so many questions....
"You're going to be busy these next three days. You should call it a night." Tallulah patted my hand with a smile.
Thinking she was right I excused myself for the night and went to bed. I wish I could see Hayden one last time in the Enchanted Forest of Death. I wanted to tell him about marrying Dylan and becoming Queen, but he didn't want me to visit him. At least I was living my life like he told me to do.
Early the next morning I got up and changed into my red leather pants with the matching leather vest that went over my white cotten shirt. I grabbed Hayden's burlap sack and made sure I had enough shekels to pay Magdalena for her work. "Do you want to come with me, Tallulah?" I asked once I was downstairs in the empty Pub.
"No you go get your gown done. I'll stay here and open the Pub at noon. I'll go tomorrow to get my fitting done." Tallulah replied pouring herself a glass of rum and gulping it down. "Never too early for rum." She said with a smile.
I hugged my best friend her coarse black hair smelled good as we hugged, "I'm going to miss you, what are you going to do with the Pub when I'm gone?"
Tallulah hugged me back, "I'll miss you too, Amaya. I'll definitely come visit you at Kalopsia."
"I'll come and help you on the busy nights when you're busy." I offered.
"You'll do no such thing! You're my friend, but you'll also be a queen. You'll have way too many responsibilities running a Kingdom with Dylan, but I promise I'll visit you every week." She gave me a quick squeeze, "Now go get your wedding gown made! Time is a wasting."
I said goodbye to Tallulah and once again walked to the stables to borrow Tobias. I patted his long silky coat as the stable boy handed me the reins. This would possibly be the last time I would ever ride him, "I'll miss you boy." I whisper in his ear which made him neigh. I pulled myself up in the leather saddle and made a quick click with my tongue and we trotted out of Capacious. I followed the dirt trail and the signs along the way till I saw the outline of Agog's giant walls that surrounded the city. I felt a pain in my chest as I remembered Hayden's last day was in this city helping me get the stupid necklace. It still hurt that my birth mother turned out to be the Queen of Agog and that she didn't care for me at all. She never wanted me because of my curse, I could never tell Dylan I was cursed or he might not want me as his queen either. Surely Dylan would never need to know though because Futurilla said she heard wedding bells in my future and said I would break my curse of unhappiness. I just had to make it to my wedding day easier said than done.
"Woah, boy" I said as we made it to the narrow street where Magdalena's cute little dress shop was. The glass window had mannequins dressed in lovely gowns and a wooden sign that said Magdalena's Dress Shop swung below the entrance to her shop. I tied Tobias to the wooden railing and gave him a finally pat before entering Magdalena's dress shop.
The little bell jingled above the door as I entered.
Magalena stepped out of the swinging wooden doors that led to her work space as she heard the door jingle, "Ahh you returned! How as the ball, did you dance with any princes?" She asked in her thick French accent. She wore another crazy dress made with what looked like she took every single scrap piece of material and sewed it into a dress. In her messy blond bun was a pair of scissors.
I smiled she had a way of making you feel welcome and right at home in her tiny shop, "It was amazing, you're work was excellent by the way. Your gown made me feel like a princess."
"Naa, it was nothing. Everyone should feel like a princess." She smiled, "What brings you to my shop today?"
"I'm getting married, and would love your finest gown. I'm marrying a prince, you may know him he's Prince Dylan from Kalopsia."
"Ohh-la-la! A wedding! Nothing says romance like two souls in love! Mmm haven't heard of him, but the again I don't get out much." She chuckled, "But it does remind me a Prince did come in today and said that his love of his life was going to ask me to make a gown for their wedding and that he wanted to pay for it. Let me check my book." She pulled a heavy leather cover book opened it on her counter. She licked her fingers to turn the pages till she got to the right page. You said Kingdom of Kalopsia?"
"Yes." I said looking around the little shop.
         I looked around at the cute little shop. Off to the left was a room filled with dresses from any kind of material or color you could imagine. There were frills, silk, puffy dresses with puffy sleeves, long dresses, and short dresses, dresses with way too much sparkle, or dresses with way too many bows. Dresses that were pink, purple, green, red, blue, to even black, or grey. On the right side of the room was two doors that swung back and forth one was her work space and the other was a dressing room.
"Then your gown and any other gowns you wish to have all been paid for! You have a really special man." She winked, "Now come, come we have a lot to do in just three days to be ready."
I started walking towards the gowns that were already made.
"Oh no, no, no!" Magdalena explained grabbing my arm she guided me back to her work place, "I never have wedding gowns made, especially once's fit for a Queen! No your gown must be entirely designed new!" She sat me down on a little red stool in her workspace while she sat down at a wooden desk and chair that was right across from the long table below her window that held her old fashion sewing machine. Buttons,  bows, pins, and a long measuring tape laid on the long table. To the left of the sewing machine was shelves full of every kind of material and boxes laid under the selves with even more materiel.
Magdalena pulled out a piece of parch paper, a glass bottle of ink, and a quill pen. She started sketching the outline of a person's body, "Now tell me how did you and the Prince meet?"
I rubbed my stomach feeling nauseous all of a sudden, "He um... he rescued my horse that got loose."
"Aww a real knight then." She winked, "What it love at first sight?"
"For him yes, not me, It.... it took me some time to warm up to him."
"And now you'll marry and live happily ever after." She sighed dreamily.
"That's the plan." I said with a smile.
"How this? You like?" She asked in her French accent.
"Wow you're really fast at drawing." I stared at fancy elegant wedding gown she had drawn. "It looks amazing!"
"Then we'll get started!" She marched to her shelves of clothing and pulled out white lace, white material that match, and a tiny box of pearls. She walked to her sewing machine and took a seat, "Come." She said motioning to her side.
Picking up the stool with the red cushion I walked to her and sat down on the stool." I grimaced grabbing my stomach but Magdalena didn't notice.
"Thank goodness I kept your dress size from last time so I don't need to measure you." She looked around her table, "Now where on earth did I put those darn scissors of mine!"
I smiled and reached up I pulled them from her messy bun and handed them to her.
"Oh my!" She chuckled, "I'll loose my head if it wasn't attached to me!" She started cutting the amount of material she'd need.
The nauseous feeling didn't go away, I tried focusing on Magdalena's work and ignore it. No matter how hard I tried though I couldn't. Finally I stood up excusing myself I ran out of the shop. I threw up outside on the side of the street, I coughed and wiped my mouth tears stinging my eyes. What was wrong with me? I was tired of feeling so sick. Magdalena came to her door, "Oh dear are you okay?"
"Yes, I think.... idk." I crossed my arms over my upset stomach.
"How about you walk the streets and get some fresh air? I won't need you till it's ready to try on. You leave your horse here and come back later, yeah?"
I smiled at her kindness, "Thank you, I'll be back soon." Slowly I made my way down the streets of Agog. I wasn't really sure were to go since I didn't have Tobias to take me anywhere far. I stopped in the middle of a wooden bridge and looked out at the two mountains that split right down the middle. Nyctophilia's dark town seemed to be calling my name as I looked at it. I remembered this was the same bridge that Hayden stopped and told me that he was from Nyctophilia. I closed my eyes and felt myself being pulled back to that every moment. Hayden stood so close to me I could feel his body heat raveling off him. I still remembered what he folded me. It was like he was actually there with me. "The place I grew up in is right between those mountains a small evil town called Nyctophilia bad things happened there. I don't want you to ever go there you here me? I'm lucky to have gotten out of there when I did, once you're there it's almost impossible to leave." He said pointing towards the mountains.
Opening my eyes I looked around me expecting to see Hayden right there beside me, but slowly I remembered it was just a memory. I leaned on the bridge and sighed, Hayden hadn't wanted me to ever go to Nyctophilia. Tallulah avoided even talking about it, like it was the plague and Dylan. Well he just said it was dark and dangerous, that no one goes there and no one leaves. He also was the one who told me the Great Wizard grew up there. Which was surprising I thought the Great Wizard was immortal. It's hard imagining him ever being a little boy growing up and in Nyctophilia of all places. I wondered if it was more than a coincidence  that the Great Wizard grew up in the same place Hayden did even if the Great Wizard would have lived there way before Hayden. "So many questions." I murmured.
I looked up at the sun to see where it was. Would I have enough time to check out Nyctophilia before coming back to Agog for Tobias and to try on my gown? Even if I didn't have enough time in the day it was a risk I was willing to take. Nyctophilia held so many questions and the only way I was going to get any answers was to go there myself.
Once I was outside of Agog I took off running down the path. Thankfully I had wore my red theater pants and my white cotten shirt with the matching red leather vest which was easier to run in than running in a dress. When I became tired of running I walked then picked up my pace by running again.
By time I got to the grimy dirt path that split from the path that went into the Enchanted Forest of Past and Future the sun high in the sky. Sweat dripped from my face and I leaned over panting trying to catch my breath. It had taken me longer than I thought to get here which meant I didn't have long time to check out Nyctophilia.  The rotten sign still laid in the ground with the  scratchy letters and an arrow pointing down the path that said:
                                          
Nyctophilia Lays Ahead Enter at Your Own Risk

My gaze turned to the dark outskirts of Nyctophilia. This was it, I was finally going to know where Hayden grew up at, and hopefully get the answers I want. I took a step forward on the grimy path my boots sunk in the squishy gooey mud. "Yuck!" I said shaking my boot free, giving one more glance around to make sure nobody was around that was going to stop me from entering Nyctophilia I started running down the muddy path. My boots got stuck in the mud as I ran and I tried not to stumble.
Suddenly a man on his horse ran up beside the muddy path. Before I knew what he was doing he left the reins in the saddle and while the horse was still running he jumped from the saddle. He fell right into me knocking me from the path we tumbled off into the coarse wild grass.
Stunned I laid on my back, I could hardly breath feeling like the wind was knocked completely out of me. I turned to glare at the idiot that laid beside me, what kind of guy jumps from his horse anyways to knock a lady down! I thought angrily, my eyes widened as I recognized his short blond hair and tall figure. "Dylan! What are you doing here!" I exclaimed shocked to see him.
He laid there in the grass next to me, his arm on his stomach as he gasped for breath from the hard fall. He groaned sitting up, "More importantly what are you doing about to go into Nyctophilia? Do you have a death wish right before our wedding?" 
I felt disappointed that he had stopped me from going into Nyctophilia , "How did you find me?" I asked looking at him cautiously, "Of course not, but you obviously do have a death wish! Why would you jump from your horse?"
"I went to check on you in Agog at the lovely little dress shop, but when the lady there said you went on a walk to clear your head and I couldn't find you anywhere in Agog. I remembered you were really curious about Nyctophilia and assumed you came here; which I was right. Who?   Cosmo?" Dylan asked pointing to where his horse stood peacefully grazing his black leather reins brushing the tall grass. "Oh Cosmo he's a strong horse and is trained to come to me when I call, I knew he wouldn't go far when I jumped, besides I was saving my love of my life from entering that dreadful place." he said nodding off to the city of Nyctophilia which wasn't far from us. "Why were you going there anyways?"
I sighed hugging my knees close to my chest as we sat there in the grass, "Because! I want answers and Nyctophilia holds so many of them!"
Dylan rubbed his head and sighed, "Going to Nyctophilia is not the answer to your questions. It's dangerous and I insist you never go there."
"Ha! So you're just going to lock me away in your fancy castle once we're married to keep me from coming here?" I laughed sarcastically.
"Yeah I just might." Dylan said raising his voice which echoed since we were so close to the mountains.
I turned away from him and stared off into the distance. I watched how the tall grass swayed when the wind pushed it and how the mountains looked with all their beautiful colors of brown, green, and gray all mixed together.
"Amaya," Dylan said quietly placing his hand on my arm, "I will gladly answer any questions you may have about Nyctophilia. Just please, please promise me you'll never go there? I want to see you at our wedding in two days; not at your funeral."
I knew Dylan cared for me was why he was so concerned. I felt guilty for almost risking my life just days before our wedding when I should be more focused on our wedding and our future together. "Okay, I promise." I gave him a small smile.
Dylan looked around then frown, "Where on earth is your horse?"
"Oh I walked, and ran some."
His eyes widened, "All the way from Agog." He chuckled, "Here let me take you back. I can't have you passing out from exhaustion." He took my hands and helped me stand up. While he whistled for Cosmo I glanced back at Nyctophilia one last time. Was it really all that bad? Now I'll never know. I thought as I climbed up behind Dylan and wrapped my arms around his waist.
Dylan clicked his tongue and Cosmo slowly trotted off down the dirt path towards
Agog.
Once we arrived at Magdalena's dress shop Dylan helped me down off the saddle.
I looked up at him, "Will I see you tomorrow?"
He shook his head, "No, I have business to attend to before our wedding, but I'll see you in two days." He smiled at me and leaning down he planted a kiss on my forehead, "My beautiful bride."
Smiling I stepped onto the cobblestone street so he could leave. I watched Cosmo and him trot off down the street. I couldn't believe my good fortune. A prince was finally interested in me, growing up that was all I had ever wanted. For so long I've been unhappy and things were always going wrong. Maybe Futurerilla was right that by getting married I may finally break my curse and finally feel what happiness is like.