"The King of Durova?" I repeated, eyes wide. "I thought only the princes and other royal families come to the parade! The King and Queen have never come down to Midelus for something as small as this!"

Rosa squared her shoulders and held her head high. "This is the advantage you get for having me for a best friend, Filly," she said, sniffing. "I have information you don't."

"But-- but--"

I looked to the parade again and saw a bunch of horses in the shape of a triangle (like the bowling alley pins) coming down the road, surrounded completely by knights and soldiers. It couldn't be, could it?

"The guy at the very front of the V is the Crown Prince, Alexander Forbias," narrated Rosa.

"What's a V?"

"A letter. Anyways, he's the safest target. But also the hardest." She grimaced. "Of course it wouldn't be easy."

Wasn't a letter rectangular? I dismissed it for now, opting instead to raise my eyebrows. "Wow, he doesn't look anything like the pictures." He looked way better in real life. Silver hair glinting in the sun? Blue eyes coolly surveying the crowds with a polite smile on his face? He was the safest target?

"I don't understand you, as always," I murmured back to her.

She rattled off a bunch of other names, but honestly I was way too distracted by the thought of seeing the King of Durova that I couldn't really focus. 

"Oh, that's the Prime Minister. Father of the dying guy I told you about," pointed Rosa.

"He looks nice enough," I commented, shifting Ruth's weight to my other leg. "Ruth, you see that guy? He's smiling at us." Ruth waved at him, and I waved with her. He did seem to send a smile our way, though his ever-present smile didn't really seem to change no matter where he was looking. "Very political," I observed with an approving nod. "But where's the king?"

"He's after this group of nobles. Oh look, there's fake dad."

"Hi fake--"

Becca clamped a hurried hand on Roly's lips. "Shhh, Roly! Not so loudly!"

Roly pulled Becca's hand away with a face. "Hi, fake dad," she whispered instead. Becca nodded in satisfaction, and we turned back to the parade.

The triangular group of nobles and the royal family passed amidst great roaring cheers. People began to walk away, now that they'd seen the bulk of the parade anyway.

"Looks like the parade is ending," I nudged Rosa.

She snorted. "I told you, Filian. I'm the heroine. I know what I'm talking about."

But even as time passed by and the lasts of the horses clip-clopped past us, no signs of another entourage emerged.

"Are you sure?"

"Very."

"Really, really sure?"

"Yes!"

"Certainly, very, 100% no-mistakes-ever sure? 'Cause we're looking down an empty street right now and I don't--"

Ruth shook me. "What is that?" she squealed.

I faced the street again, searching for new horses or soldiers or whatever. Nope, nothing. "What is what?"

She pointed upwards. "That!"

 People around us heard her and looked up. Cries and shouts of surprise filled the streets, and when I shaded my eyes against the sun and craned my head upwards, I gaped. "Whufa?!" 

Rosa crossed her arm near me as she looked up as well. "What did I tell you?" she said smugly.

I shook my head. "How did you even..."

"I told you, I know things."

I could only shake my head again in wonder as we watched the descent of a shimmery carriage surrounded by floating knights on white steeds. Their silver armor glinted in the sun, but the light that surrounded the carriage outshined them by far. 

"Is that really the king?" Rebecca breathed.

Rosa nodded. "In the flesh."

People regathered, but nobody truly spoke-- the view was much too great for words. Rendered speechless, only a collective gasp and a few murmurs could be heard in the large marketplace as trumpets began their fanfare yet again.

The carriage opened, and a footman rushed to the front to offer a hand. With much deliberation, the head of the King of Durova appeared, and in ripples, everyone began to kneel and bow their heads at the presence of the king.

"All hail King Sylvester!" someone cried, and we all took up the cheer. "All hail King Sylvester!"

"Long live King Sylvester!" 

"Long live Durova!"

"All hail Durova!"

We kept up the cheer until our voices were hoarse, and when he disappeared from view down the street, we went back in reverent silence.

"I can't believe I've seen the King," Ryan finally said, breaking the silence.

I opened my mouth a few times, searching for something to say. I ended up with a lame, "Yeah," but nobody called me out for it. I mean, it's not every day you see the bearded regal face of the King, the supreme ruler of the entire country, no?

After another long pause, Rosa groaned and slapped our arms.

"Ow!"

"That was long enough to think about meeting royalty, you guys. Now let's look for mother and get out of here before I run into-- gyak!"

I frowned. "Gyak?" But when I looked at where she should've been, she wasn't there. My frown deepened. "Rosa?"

"Behind you!" she said in a loud whisper. I spun around and saw her on the ground, clutching the edges of my skirt and fumbling her bag for a handkerchief.

"What are you doing down there? And run into whom?"

"Glitcherman," she hissed, tying her handkerchief back onto her face.

"Oh, you don't want to run into Glitcherman?" ("Who's Glitcherman?" asked Roly. "Sounds like a monster," Poly said. She lunged at Roly and Ruth, who happened to be holding Roly's hand, with a roar. Roly and Poly collapsed into giggles, but Ruth's eyes widened. She grabbed Rebecca's hand for extra support.)

"No," she said hoarsely. "He's here."

"What? Here?" I looked up and scanned the area. "Don't see him. Isn't he super tall?"

"Look closer. He's next to the food stalls."

I squinted. "Aren't all of these food stalls?" But then I recognized a glint of silvery knight armor in the waaay distance. "Oh, is that Glitcherman?" I squinted a little harder. "Yeah, that looks like blonde hair to me. Wow, Rosa, you have amazing sight."

She didn't hear me. She was way too busy muttering to herself. "...should've known this would happen, nothing happens out of coincidence here. All my hard work will dissipate if I meet him now, and I don't have the energy to run away I'm too hungry. The universe wants me to fail, but see if I let it succeed. I'm the heroine now, you can't do anything about--"

"I found mommy," announced Ruth in her squeaky voice.

I laughed when I saw her. Mother Lily had dozed off on the barrel we'd put her on with her shawl covering her face, uncaring and totally unrepentant despite being smack dab in the middle of a busy road.

"Mother Lily!" I said, raising my voice, and the little ones took up the call. "Mother! Mother!" they cried, bouncing up and down.

Rosa shushed us sharply. "Don't make such a ruckus, he's going to come over!"

I yanked my skirt from her hands. "Oh, come on Rosa. He's so far away! He can't see you."

"Oh yes he can," she shot back, putting her hands on her hips. She glared at me, her yellow eyes flashing. "I'll have you know that he has the greatest vision in the entire knight brigade, enough to spot an enemy from a moving mass a thousand meters away."

I raised my eyebrows. "Okay, wow. And double wow for you for knowing a strangely specific fact about someone you hate."

She wrinkled her nose and sighed. "Sometimes I hate that I have such a good memory. But that's not the point! He can't follow me."

"Relax, Ro. He won't." I rolled my eyes, letting Poly pull me towards Mother Lily. I threw my head around and called back to her. "Besides, as pretty as you are, you're not exactly that welcoming a person, Rosa."

Roly pulled at Rosa, and she moved forward, still in a crouched position. "Haven't you been listening?" she demanded. "I told you, he chases anything that wears a skirt. Besides, this just can't be coincidental... huh." She stopped.

I looked back at her. "What?"

"Maybe I should wear pants from now on. Hm, I could probably borrow Ryan's pants... what?" Rosa frowned at me.

I gulped, my gaze moving past Rosa and staring wide-eyed at the figure I saw behind her. "Um, Rosa?" I said weakly.

She began twisting around, but I made a warning sound. Her eyes were widened now, too, and she furiously whispered, "Filly?"

"Don't look back," I said. Poly pulled at me with a whine, but I barely heard her.

Rosa swallowed, paling. "What is it?"

"Fancy meeting you here," said a light, lilting voice. Rosa instantly stiffened, understanding dawning on her face, quickly followed by absolute despair. "I believe you must be Rosa Chesterfield?"

The girl in question, with her light brown hair and golden, flashing eyes, sent me a pleading look, though I couldn't do anything but shrug in helplessness. She slowly turned around, her gaze turning upwards to see striking green hair and black eyes, one of the prettiest faces I'd seen in my entire life.

Rosa backed away slightly, her hands gripping her skirt so tightly that her knuckles turned white. She forced herself to smile.

"What's taking you so long," I heard Becca complain from a distance.

Rosa swallowed again, her voice tight. "Didn't expect to see you here, Mr. Elias."