You are your father's son

"And just like that I never stepped another foot into the night ever again," Loque Bella said.

"Oh my Loque Bella I am so sorry," Prince Callum said.

"I don't even like to look into the night through the window. My family knows it too. We close the curtains and lock the doors just when the sun is going down and then we all stay in until the sun comes back up again."

"Wow, what happened that night really changed your life."

"It did. Now just that the mere sight of the sun setting in the sky brings a coldness to my skin," she said.

"Have you ever tried to face your fear?"

"Go out into the night? No. The thought of it shrinks me back to that little girl and I get scared all over again. I know I should do something about it, I'm a big girl for goodness sake, I can't be afraid of the dark. I wake up every morning feeling brave to take on anything but when the sun begins to go down, I become that little girl and all the bravery I had leaves me and I am right back where I started," she said. "It's stupid isn't it?"

"No it's not. What happened to you that night was very traumatic, and you are dealing with it the best way you can, there's nothing stupid about that."

"But I should be doing something to get over my fear and I'm not. I don't want to be afraid of the night for the rest of my life."

"You won't. A time will come when you will be brave enough to face your fear and overcome it. We must never push ourselves beyond what we can do, that's how we end up making the problem worse instead of making it better. We must accept that we are only human and that we're not perfect and that sometimes we have the strength to do things and sometimes we don't. We must not be too hard on ourselves; we owe it to ourselves to take life one day at a time because in the end, that's all we truly have. You're doing what you can to get by and that is all that matters. But always remember that you are a lot stronger than you think you are and one day this fear will be overcome and you will once again enjoy the wonder that is the night."

"You love the night?"

"I do," he responded.

"I used to love it too."

"What did you love the most about it?"

"The moon," Loque Bella answered and faintly smiled to herself, remembering the sight of the last moon she saw. "The full moon. Round and shining bright, goodness, I absolutely loved the sight of it. I would sit by the window for hours just staring at it. It's light captivated me so much I felt like it was speaking to me."

"When was the last time you saw the moon?"

"When I was seven. That's when the attack happened and little did I know that that was the last full moon I would see for twelve whole years."

"Wow," Prince Callum said.

"I miss it and I want to see it. I would even go as far as going to stand by the window but the courage to slide the curtains open and gaze upon the night is one I just cannot harness. I thought I was going to die that night. I never knew the fear of death until that night and every night after that has rebirthed that fear. How is someone to move on like that? When their fear gets reborn every single night? I know I have what it takes. I know I have that strength within me to overcome this but I get so scared."

"And it's o.k. to be scared, we all get scared sometimes. You want to know what scares me?"

"Oh please nothing scares you," she said.

"Oh on the contrary. I do have fears of my own."

"Really?"

"Oh yes," he responded.

"What is your fear?"

"Failing at being king."

"Ooh that's a big one," Loque Bella said.

"It's pretty big. Especially with the huge shoes my father left me to fill."

"He was a great man and he was an even greater king."

"He was and I fear that I will never amount to what he was," Prince Callum said.

"You are your father's son, if he did it then so will you."

"How do I follow a king like that?"

"Simple . . . You be less like him and more like you," she said.

"What if who I am is not good enough?"

"Impossible. We are just enough for what we have been called to do. You were born a prince which means you were called to be king and have everything it takes to not just be that king but to be a good one. I've seen all the things that you do in the kingdom; visiting the orphanages and making sure the orphans always have food and a warm place to sleep, taking trips to the hospitals and reading stories to the children, running the Hampshen Guard to ensure your people are well protected and giving aid to all those in need. It takes a good heart to do things like that and you have that good heart. If that is not a quality of a great king in the making then I don't know what is." They shared a warm smile. "I think you are going to be the greatest king Hampshen has ever seen."

"That is one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me . . . Thank you."

"You're welcome," she said and they sat on watching the stream as inside they both could not imagine themselves being anywhere else. Strangers in the physical but with their souls feeling like they had known each other their whole lives.

The memory faded and Loque Bella was back in her room with her sisters.

“Oh gosh look at me, I’ve got goose bumps all over me. I have been completely smitten over him since the day we met and now I am going to spend my life with him, as queen of Hampshen. Oh dear goodness is this what it feels like to finally have your dreams come true? Because it feels absolutely amazing; I feel like screaming to the skies," Loque Bella said and Ida screamed, then Kima, then Miro and then Loque Bella and when they were done they laughed and hugged each other as father in his room heard them and just shook his head smiling.

A moment later a concerned look came over his face as he then stood up, walked to the window and looked out at the half moon. He looked to be going back and forth over something in his mind. He was clearly happy that one of his daughters was going to become queen but then there was something holding him back from being completely happy; something that he was concerned if came out would drastically change his life and that of his daughters.