Julia

  Julia sat at her desk and wrote a letter to Peter. She asked him how he was doing and told him about her disturbing vision. Last but not least, she wrote about the test development. Her magic. Then she wrote a letter to her mother. After all, she couldn't keep it a secret from her that more magic had shown. If she didn't find out from Julia, it was from one of her teachers or even from the principal.

  The news about her magic had made the rounds betweeudents faster than she would have liked. During the break, she even heard the older students talking about it. Some even approached her about it, especially the teachers who gratuted her. Julia was unfortable. Why did she of all people have to get more magic?

  She put the finished letters aside to give them to Marko or Leopold in the m so that they could take them to the post office.

  There was a knock at the door. "May I e in?" she heard Leopold ask.

  "Yes, e in," she replied, unsciously straightening her hair.

  Leopold no longer wore his uniform, but his own clothes. He looked good. He had also cut his hair. They were now quite a bit shorter.

  "I was w if you wao go for a walk with me?" he asked.

  "Isn't it already too cold for that? And too dark?" The sun had set some time ago and only nterns lit up the gardens of the Academy.

  "Then you don't want to?" He looked disappointed.

  "Yes. But I o dress a little warmer."

  The elf blushed. "Oh... I'll wait at your door..." Then he left her room. Julia smiled and put on a warm wool sweater, thick tights, and a long skirt made of warm fabric. Leopold waited outside her door with her warm coat. He already had his coat on.

  "Thank you very much." She took her coat and put it on. Thewo made their way outside. Finn and Marko's voices could be heard from the boys' room. Finn ughed at something Marko had said.

  Oside, they were alone. No one else was in the gardens.

  "There's something I want to talk to you about", Leopold spoke softly as if fearing that someone was eavesdropping on them.

  "Something?"

  "Yes. Princess? You are very different from what I expected... I thought you would be a terrible person... But you're not."

  "A terrible person?" Julia was worried. What was he getting at? That he thought she was horrible was uandable... Who wouldn't think that when your freedom was taken away? Not that Julia had do herself. But she hadn't preve either. Could she have preve? No.

  "Yes. That's what I thought. But you are different. Friendly and... Pretty. And there's something I o talk to you about. And I don't know if you'll like it..." He pulled at his curly hair nervously.

  "Is it something bad?" Now she was nervous herself. At first, she thought... But it wasn't, was it? Her feelings for him were surely one-sided? It couldn't be any other way. But what was he going to tell her?

  The dim light of the nterns made the gardens look ented. She couldn't see much, so it was no wonder she overlooked the branch lying in the shade oh. Her feet, oher hand, found the brand she stumbled.

  And she stumbled right into Leopold's arms because he caught her.

  Again.

  "Do you often trip over your feet? Do I have to carry you so you don't hurt yourself?" The elf ughed. Julia looked up. They were now standing close together. Much closer than she expected and Leopold's arms were warm...

  In the ented light of the nterns, she kissed him. Later, she couldn't expin why she had dohis, but at that moment everything seemed fine and just right.

  "Oops," she said when the moment was over and smiled at the perplexed elf surprised by herself.

  Leopold was still holding her, which he did not seem to be aware of. "Oh," he said, kissing her. Julia ed her arms around him. The world stood still.

  Finn

  "I'm bored." Marko y on his bed and threw up his pillow to catch it.

  "So bad?" Finn, lying under his duvet, had buried his nose deep in the adventure novel Julia had brought. "Then read something."

  "I don't feel like reading."

  "Then do something else?"

  Marko got up and came over to Finn with his pillow. "And what?" he asked, sitting dowo the reading wolf.

  "You'll e up with something."

  Marko sighed. "I would like to py cards, but Leopold is outside with the princess... And you don't like card games..."

  "You could ask Sophie."

  Marko groaned. "No."

  They heard the apartment door being opened. Shortly afterward, Leopold came to their shared room.

  "And?", asked Finn and sat down. "How was it?"

  "She kissed me." Leopold seemed a bit fused. His hair was disheveled and his coat had slipped. "And then I kissed her... And... What do I do now?"

  "Keep kissing her?", Marko suggested not very helpful.

  Leopold blinked. "What? ... But..."

  Finn ughingly threw his pillow at Marko. "That wasly brilliant advice."

  "I think the advice is phenomenal!", Marko tradicted with a grin and threw the pillow back to Finn, who caught it.

  Leopold sat down with the two on Finn's bed with a sigh. "She's the princess..."

  "We've already e that far," Marko interrupted him. "So. Did she kiss you? Then it's all great. Enjoy it. As long as it sts."

  "As long as it sts?" Finn frowned. "That doesn't sound very optimistic..."

  "She's going to marry someoatus at some point, right?" Marked his shoulders. "But who knows when. She has a long life ahead of her. Leo has a long life ahead of him..." Marko gave him a pyful push. "So enjoy it. Maybe she never marries and you have her feelings all for yourself! Who knows."

  "For me?" Leopold shook his head. "That sounds like she’s a possession."

  "Well... We are her property, but that's not what I meant. If she feels the same way about you, all is well. And now py a round of cards with me. I'm bored!"

  "You are incible!" Leopold got up and got his card games. "What do you want to py?"

  "Everything!"

  "Everything? Do you even pn to sleep?", protested Finn.

  "Sleeping is overrated, Mr. Bookworm. You don't sleep either, do you?"

  "I'm in a jungle right now, looking for an ented treasure! I 't sleep there, I?" But trary to his words, Finn had to yawn. "And I'm not tired either!"

  "We see that." Leopold yawned as well. "So the's go to the endless night."

  Ied by Finn and Leopold, Marko yawned as well. "We're not tired," he said, yawning again. "We turn the night into day! Are you hungry too?"

  Marko and Leopold pyed cards until they couldn’t keep their eyes open, and they had to realize that they urgently needed sleep. By this time, Finn had long been asleep with the book in his arms.