Quest | A Fantasy TMF AU ~ Paused

Chapter 1

Gabriela's POV

"DROP AND GIVE ME 20!"

I immediately jumped to the ground simultaneously with all the other Knights in Training. I counted in my head, keeping a straight face. One... two... I continued counting while looking at the other trainees out of the corner of my eye. Most of them hated push-ups, and could barely do twenty. Almost all of them were red in the face and having difficulty breathing. My eyes narrowed as I spied the buffest guy here: Lincoln. He was doing the push-ups with ease. The court ladies squealed as he winked at them. I rolled my eyes. He was such a show-off. He's almost as bad as the pRiNcE. He caught me glaring at him and a silent agreement passed between us through our eyes. All the other trainees had finished twenty push-ups a long time ago. My arms moved mechanically, pushing me up and then swiftly bringing me so close to the ground that my chest brushed the wet grass, getting water droplets on my tight shirt. A small crowd was gathering around us. As I predicted, they started cheering for Lincoln. One familiar voice rang out in the crowd, though, loud and clear, "GO, GABI!"

Shit.

Everything went silent. Lincoln stumbled and flopped on the ground, making me the winner. I stopped doing push-ups and stood up. I sighed and met everyone's surprised faces. They started making way for someone pushing through the crowd. I looked down guiltily as my mom came to the front of the crowd. Everyone immediately bowed down to her majesty, Queen Hailey. I could practically see the steam coming off the top of her head.

"Gabriela."

>><<

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!?" my dad, King Jake, shouted. His voice echoed around the empty throne room. He was standing up in the middle of the room, and any average citizen would have passed out on the spot. I scratched the back of my head and stayed silent, trying and failing to put on a sheepish face.

"She wasn't. I think she might have a brain condition," my brother spoke up from where he lazily draped over Dad's throne. "What was it called?" he pretended to think for a moment before snapping his fingers in mock realization, "Oh! I remember now! It's called The Act-Before-Think condition. You know, most people that have it are also diagnosed with the I'm-An-Idiot disease," he sighed. "Those people usually die in the stupidest ways ever."

Mom, Dad and I all rolled our eyes. "Alex, do everyone a favor and shut the hell up," I despised my older brother, the future king. He was an annoying, self-centered, jerk that took every chance he could get to make fun of me.

"Language, Gabi," Mom said tiredly. What was up with her? She always was tired nowadays. Did she and Dad stay up late together? I cast the thought from my mind before the mental images came.

"We're not here to give a lecture on Gabi's language; I personally find it just fine. We're here to discuss her neglecting her studies and joining the trainees again." Me and Dad's relationship is kinda rocky. For example, sometimes he would be perfectly fine with me skipping classes, and sometimes it would make him blow up. I mean, come on man, pick a side!

Mom rubbed her temples, "I can't deal with this right now. I'm going to go to bed." Seriously, was she sick or something? It was 9 AM, I don't know how she could already be tired when it was so early.

Something between understanding and worry passed over Dad's eyes. I raised an eyebrow as he put a gentle arm around her and touched his forehead to hers, whispering something inaudible to her. She closed her eyes and nodded. My curiosity grew when he looked back at me and let me off the hook, "We'll talk about your behavior later. For now, me and your mother are going to go and have some alone time."

He and Mom left Alex and I very lost and confused. We knew they were hiding us from something, and I couldn't decide on whether or not I wanted to know what it was.

>><<

12 AM. I couldn't sleep. My thoughts were keeping me awake.

What's up with Mom? Why is she leaving me in the dark?

Why did Logan have to cheer for me? He's my best friend, and he knew that I wanted my identity kept a secret for the time being.

Alex is such a jerk.

I threw my covers off and activated a Lite-Nite, a small warm orb that emitted a soft light. They were usually used for small children, but they came in handy when one wanted to sneak around at night. The Lite-Nite gave my room a soft glow as I stripped my bed-clothes and pulled on a pair of black leggings and a tight black shirt. I quietly opened my door and sneaked into the hallway, having no destination in mind. Maybe I'd go to the kitchen and steal some sweets. I directed myself towards the dining hall, keeping my footfalls as quiet as possible. A grin slowly spread across my face, the thrill getting to me. I was reaching for the door handle when I heard someone inside. The smile disappeared from my face instantly as the door opened and revealed my father, looking just as surprised to see me as I was to see him.

"Hey! What are you doing?" he whispered. I went along with him and whispered as well.

"What am I doing? What are you doing?" I redirected the question to him. (Hehe, see what I did there?)

He looked at the cup of water in his hand that I hadn't noticed before. "I'm... getting some water for your mother. She's, uh, not feeling well."

"Well, that's been obvious for a while now," I stated sarcastically. "And anyway, couldn't you have gotten a servant to get her water?" I swear, Dad always felt like he had to do everything himself.

He rubbed the back of his neck and looked up at the ceiling, "Yeah, I guess. Now will you move? I'm going back to Hailey now," he pushed past me and started down the hall. He called over his shoulder, "And go back to bed! It's midnight, and you know bad things happen around this time."

Shivers went up my spine. For some reason, I knew something was off. I had the sudden urge to check on Mom. I ran up the staircase, and the feeling that I was too late grew and grew. I spotted Dad walking to the room he shared with Mom, and I shouted, "Dad! Something's wrong, I can feel it. Check on Mom, and make sure she's okay!" A shadow passed over his face as he sensed the urgency in my voice. He dropped the cup and broke into a run. I ran in a different direction, up, up, up, to the tallest tower in the castle. I slammed the door open and slid out the window, climbing out into the cool night air. I was hundreds of feet above the ground, the wind whistling past me, threatening to push me to my death. I stood on the edge of the roof, looking out over the castle grounds, my short peach hair whipping all around me. I scanned the open night sky, looking for anything out of the ordinary. My eyes widened as I spotted a small, dark cloud moving fast across the sky. There were two figures on the cloud; one of them was screaming for help and the other was trying to shut her up. I could barely make out my mother as one of them. The only defining characteristic of the other one was a flash of silver. I stared at them helplessly for what seemed like an eternity.

I barely remember anything else that happened that night. I didn't remember climbing back in the castle, nor did I remember Logan, my best friend, helping me into my night-clothes and settling into bed. The only thing I remembered was the kingdom realizing that their queen was no longer with them, and the overwhelming grief of it all. But as I drifted off to sleep, one thought, no, one knowledge reigned in my mind.

I was going to find my mom, whether I wanted to or not.

A/N: Can you guess who kidnapped Queen Hailey? 👀