A sharp cracking sound startled Cielo. “What was that?” Lynnette smiled. “They're fireworks, Your Highness. See?” They both looked up just in time to see another brilliant flash illuminate the night sky. The glow lit up the faces of the crowd below.
The city was celebrating not only the birth, but the return of their prince.
Cielo and Lynnette were standing on a balcony overlooking the city. Cielo stared at the throng of people, from wide-eyed children to beaming elderly couples. He felt his cheeks grow hot, and he lowered his eyes in shame.
“Your Highness? Is something wrong?”
“I almost didn't come back.”
His reply confused Lynnette. “What do you mean?”
“Well...Acacia and I were talking...we were telling each other about our homes. The more I talked about Wingdom, the more I realized how out of place I felt there. Acacia's village seemed like a great place. And I thought...if I went there, I wouldn't be treated like a prince. I would just be...me. But then I thought of you, and my mother, and everyone else in Wingdom. I'm their prince. They depend on me. I couldn't just leave them. But I came so close to abandoning them...”
Lynnette gave him an encouraging smile. “But you didn't. That's the important part.”
Her words made him feel better. “There's something else, too,” Cielo added. “I think once I tell the citizens about the things Acacia described to me, like the beauty of forests and rivers, maybe they'll agree with me. Maybe...living down there wouldn't be so bad.”
“I think so, too. Living up here for so long has made them forget what it's like. I've never even left Wingdom; I would love to see a real forest,” Lynnette agreed with a sigh of longing.
The two of them gazed into the sky, dreaming of sparkling oceans and lush forests. Their eyes brightened with hope, reflecting the glowing rainbow of colors in the sky. The fireworks continued to burst and blossom above their heads, like iridescent gems in the night.
Text copyright © 2011, not to be copied in part or in whole.
Wow! Great ending!! I like how the prince felt guilty but but then Lynnette reasured him that even though he was close to abandoning him that the important part was that he hadn't. And I thought it was so funny the "beaming elderly couples!" I had a HUGE grin when I read that part!
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