And so a time passed, with Zora and Aidan living peacefully. Well, as peacefully as rulers of a Medieval kingdom could.
"Oh my God, Aidan! Why can you not simply tell me who you are talking to?" the queen was heard shouting. She stormed into the study and tried to calm herself by checking the mail.
Her husband entered after her, slowly and slightly guilty. He was pondering about it for a moment before leaning in towards her. "Please, put your mind at rest. There is nothing for you to worry about," he said softly.
She swatted him away, taking the first letter from a pile. He moved away and sighed.
"Aidan," she said after a while.
"Yes," he turned quickly.
"There is another letter from the Golden Apple Kingdom."
The king puffed, shaking his resentment away. "Toss it in the fire with the rest. Not a single word of that mad king Valiant is worth hearing."
"This one is not from him. It is from the fairies," Zora explained.
Aidan looked at it surprised. They arranged a visit that same day.
"Welcome, welcome, our dear guests," Flora said in her sweet voice. She sat on the flower throne, which blended in with her rose petal dress. Her guards were arranged behind her, each in a lovely outfit of her own. Zora gawked at all the loveliness of this place. Flora had asked the fireflies to fly around, making the garden seem even more magical.
"It is an honor to be here," Aidan bowed politely.
"Oh, charming as always," the fairy queen smiled. "And how is your friend?"
Zora's eyes widened.
Aidan glanced at her before continuing. "Viniria is doing well. She sends her regards."
Queen Flora noticed his subtle twitch and turned to the queen, which was speared him with her gaze. "Very well," she concluded, and became quiet.
"Now, how may we help? The letter said it was urgent," Aidan continued.
"Were there any issues with the Golden Kingdom?" Zora asked.
Flora tilted her head. "No, none whatsoever. The concern is of a different nature," she said, slightly hesitant. "Have you spoken with king Valiant yet? Please, do."
Aidan let out a displeased sound, mumbling that it was a good thing he brought his sword. Still, what needed to be done was done. The two royals went over. The king and queen of the pink castle, inviting them in. King Valiant was turned to the side, with his chin on one hand, mumbling something agitated. The queen looked stiff, glancing at him from time to time.
"Our dear guests. Welcome! It is so nice to see you again, dear Aidan. You left so suddenly the last time," she grinned, keeping up the charade.
"Apologies, dear Linda. The situation in my kingdom was rather grim. I needed to return straight away," he coldly replied.
"And this must be your darling wife. We have heard so much about you. And where is the little one? You should have brought him over. I have two boys of my own, you know. Perhaps they could bond? Go hunting, maybe."
Zora blinked, taken aback. "I'm afraid that is not possible," she stated.
"And why not?" queen Linda replied right away.
"Well, for once. He is only three. Barely able to walk, let alone ride."
"Oh. Well, you can never be too young," Linda said. Valiant started to grumble and grab his head, as if in pain.
"Valiant! Behave yourself in front of guests!" she said upset.
"Those damn things! Sitting on my land! Touching my sand!" he yelled, rubbing his face like a mad man.
The two looked away awkwardly. The queen seemed distressed, calling for the servants. "Please come with me. I have something to show you."
As they left with Linda, they could hear the king's shouting as he was restrained. "I want them dead! I want them all gone!"
Queen Linda took them to the beach, right under the pink castle.
"This is our favorite shore, you see. Here is where our twins place their ship after their long journeys," she said with a sigh. "I miss them, so. However, you can never detain a call to adventure."
Aidan hummed, not even sure if the twins were real or not. Right then, a couple of little turtles emerged from the sand. Tiny and freshly hatched, they wobbled their way to the ocean.
"How adorable," Zora said with a gasp. Linda was not as impressed.
"They appeared last summer. Gigantic turtles came to the shore and buried their eggs. We wanted to dig them out right away, but the fairies protested. They told us that these were some sort of magical turtles, connected to celestial movements of the stars. I do not remember how, did not pay attention. Still, they told us we cannot remove them."
Zora looked at the long beach and said: "Why can you not just built a little fence?"
"I'm sorry," the queen said loudly.
"The shore is spacious enough. You could make a deck on the other side and keep this area off-limits," Zora said.
The queen stared at her. In her mind, it was as if she asked her to move a mountain.
"Never mind then," Zora added quietly.
"We will look into it. Thank you, Linda," Aidan said, placing his hand on Zora's shoulder.
Returning to the Golden Apple tree, Aidan and Zora discussed the issue further with the fairies.
"It is obvious that they need a clean sandy beach where they can lay their young. The celestial turtles were asleep for so long, their numbers have dwindled. They will need to repopulate soon," Flora explained.
"I see. Is there any place you know where they could go?" Zora said.
Flora hummed. "I am not as familiar with the salt water domain. You will have to ask the mermaids about that."
"Mermaids?" Aidan uttered.
"Yes. They must be awake by now. All the other creatures are," she explained calmly.
King Aidan gulped.
"Alright, let us go then," Zora said.
Before leaving, Aidan asked. "May I ask. These royals you shelter are completely mad. Why do you stand them?"
The fairies hummed. "They are not royals. Just some stove-aways who came here a long time ago. We did not pay attention to them, and they were wise enough not to bother us."
With that, they left. Once at the edge of the magic barrier, Zora took the wire. "Take us to the mermaids," she said, closing her eyes. The portal opened, showing a rocky shore. Unlike the fairies, the mermaids were not the beautiful creatures depicted in stories. They had sharp teeth, fish-like skin and seemingly had a taste for meat.