The first glimmers of the sun broke through the high mountains behind the kingdom of Alexandria and the people began to rise from their beds after a good night's sleep. The ruckus caused at the castle that night had been quickly resolved, and the citizens had been allowed to return to their sleep.
The castle itself, however, didn't hold the same. The entire night had been a wild frenzy, with King Zidane briefly going missing, a fire that needed to be put on, and several injured housekeepers who had been hurt fighting the blaze. In the end the flame was finally put out, and the remains of the Theater Ship were left to sit on the castle grounds until a team of engineers were sent to look at it. In the meantime, Baku, Blank, Marcus, Cinna, Ruby, Zenero, Benero and Denero had been forced to sleep in the stables next to the castle, for all the guest rooms in the castle were already filled. The eight had grudingly accepted the offer and had spent the night getting to know the Alexandrian horses.
As the sun peeked out to tell the morning had arrived, one soul within the castle walls continued an eternal pace, one that been kept in tune for hours. Never stopping, the being's long, thin legs met with the heavily ground softly, hardly causing any noise to the one she was sharing a bed with. Finally the sleeping one rose as well, and the creature who had been pacing quickly donned a light yellow robe provided by the closet. She stared at the rising figure. He rubbed his eyes and looked at her.
"Freya? Are you already awake?" He half-yawned the words.
Freya was silent for a second, then spoke. "Yes, I've been awake for several hours. I thought about waking you up too, Fratley, but I decided to let you sleep."
"How considerate." Fratley got up from the bed and slipped on a set of cloth clothes he had brought along. The thin, wiry knight of Burmecia walked up to his love, clasped his arms around her waist and began crooning in her ear. Normally Freya loved the motion, but instead she pushed him away.
"Not today, Fratley. I'm not in the mood."
"What's the matter? You've seemed...occupied since we got to Alexandria."
Freya frowned, disappointed at herself for appearing so obvious. She looked at the ground and shook her head. "I don't know...I suppose I just feel like I haven't been doing what I should have been doing."
A puzzled look spread on Fratley's face. "What do you mean? You haven't left the King's side since you returned to Burmecia."
"I know, and that's the problem. I haven't seen Zidane in three years, and...I'm feeling guilt for not keeping in touch with him. Aside from the fact that he and Garnet could have helped greatly with rebuilding, I just feel like I haven't fulfilled my obligation as a friend."
Fratley put his hand on Freya's shoulder. "Darling, the only obligation a friend must fulfill is to be true to his friend and to help in his time of need. You have done both, and now Zidane is on both his feet, thanking everyone who has done so along the way. Of course you have been a friend to him."
Freya could see the shimmering glow in Fratley's blue eyes and couldn't resist smiling. "God, you're perfect at knowing what to say."
Fratley grinned. "I know." The two embraced for several seconds, then departed to get dressed.
Roughly an hour later the two were prepared for the 8:00 breakfast arrangement the Queen had set up, and sat on their bed, waiting for one of the servants to come in and tell them it was ready. The two exchanged idle chit-chat for several minutes before a primly-dressed young man opened the door.
"Breakfast is served." He said softly. Freya and Fratley rose, arm-in-arm, and followed the boy to the dining area of the castle. They knew that what lay in store for them as they saw their friends again would be something they would never forget.