When Ingried was very young, she met a boy she liked. She was just eight years old when she first met him. Florian von Grünwies. He was visiting the castle with his parents and his older sister Ae and Ingried got along well with him. Florian was three years older than her and his magic had shown itself a few days ago. Maniputive magic. He sat in the castle garden a small figures of damp earth fight with swords made of small branches. Ingried was fasated and watched the sword fight with wide eyes. Her younger brother Paul pyed with a ball nearby and was offended because Ingried didn't want to py with him.

  When she was eighteen, she and Florian were a steady couple. Her mother watched their young love benevolently and often invited Florian and his family for coffee. She also ihe von Schmalbergs to the coffee parties and introduced the now thirteen-year-old Paul to the fourteen-year-old daughter of the family. Adelheit retty girl whose magical talent had been shown on her birthday. She was a healer. Paul got along well with her and the two quickly became friends.

  Ingried and Florian annouheir e at one of these tea parties. The queen was gd about it. "How wonderful Ingried! gratutions! When do you want to get married?"

  Florian shook his head in amusement. "We want to take our time. In a few years, when we feel old enough for that. After all, Ingried is only een."

  Little Peter, proud four years old, excitedly knocked over his fruit tea. "Does that mean Florian will live with us?"

  "No, of course not." Her father smiled as he walked up and dowo the coffee table so that Julia, who was only a few months old, slept.

  "That means that Ingried will move out in a few years!", Paul announot very helpfully.

  Peter turned pale.

  "What? You're moving out?" Tears rolled from his eyes and he looked helplessly at the queen. "Is she allowed to do that?"

  The von Grünwieses ughed with amusement, while Agathe expio her you son that it was quite normal that his siblings would move out at some point and that this would take a few more years, as Ingried and Florian wao wait with the wedding.

  Ingried was happy. She had been nervous as she wasn't sure how her mother would react... She had never objected to Ingried's retionship with Florian, but a wedding was aopic. But everything was good. Everything erfect...

  Until Florian became seriously ill nine years ter and died within a few weeks. The now 28-year-old Ingried was devastated and cried for days. They had wao get married in the summer. Her mother tried to fort her, but nothing seemed to help...

  One evening, Paul, now 23 years old, came to her room bitterly.

  "Mama wants me to marry Adelheit," he said, sitting dowo Ingried, who had her head buried in her pillow.

  "Adelheit?" Ingried looked at her brother with reddened eyes. A few tears shimmered under her eyes. "Do you want to marry her?"

  Paul shook his head. "No, she's like a sister to me. Besides..."

  "Besides?"

  "I was in Castle Town a few weeks ago..."

  Now Ingried sat up. "You've goo Castle Turly for a few weeks now."

  "Well..." Paul turned red. "I met a girl there. Valentina. Her father is a baker... He has his own bakery... And I really like her. Mom doesn't know about it yet. But I 't marry Adelheit!"

  Ingried smiled. She smiled for the first time in days. "And you would like to marry this girl?"

  "Not immediately..." Paul nervously brushed a few stubborn strands of hair from his face. "But eventually?"

  "I'm happy for you!"

  "Pillow fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight!" The door was thrown open and nine-year-old Julia stormed into the room and threw herself with a pillow on her older sister. Peter also stood in the doorway holding a pillow and ughed loudly. Julia had knocked down Ingried. Ier's hair were a few feathers that obviously came from a feather pillow and he was still wearing his pajamas, even though it was already noon. His medium-length hair had been braided with ribbons into two short braids from which a few strands of hair had e loose.

  "Fancy braids." Paul grinned.

  "Julia pyed hairdresser." Peter stuck out his tongue.

  "And you fought diligently with pillows?" Paul shook his head, ughing. "And why are you still wearing your pajamas?"

  "I like my pajamas!" Peter threw his pillow at him. "And I wear what I want!"

  In the meantime, Ingried sat up again and grabbed a pillow. She threw another pillow to Peter since Paul now had his. He looked at Peter reproachfully. But then Ingried's pillow hit him on the head.

  Shortly after that, a grandiose pillow fight broke out among the siblings.

  In the end, all four y exhausted in Ingried's bed. Peter's braids had e loose and the ribbons y on the floor.

  "I won!" announced Julia.

  "Not at all!", Peter protested, panting. "I've hit you many times with the pillow! Nobody won the fight!"

  "Then my name is nobody. I, nobody, solemnly annouhat I have won! What is my price?" Julia pressed her pillow tightly to her.

  Ingried and Paul gave each other a mischievous look and began to tickle Julia. Julia squealed and tried unsuccessfully to fend them off.

  "That seems to be your price," ughed Peter, who had escaped from the bed before he could get tickled too. But Paul didn't let him get away with it. He jumped up from the sofa and tried to tickle Peter, who now ran away ughing.

  "Are you still sad?" asked Julia when Iopped tig her. "I don't want you to be sad. Aer doesn't want that either!"

  Ingried gave her little sister a tight hug. "Now I feel better."

  "That's good!" Julia buried her fa Ingried's long hair.

  sasi