Agathe

  On Saturday, after the big rehearsal, they celebrated the uping wedding with a sumptuous dinner. Cleo, Lea, Fritz, and his fiancée Pau had e, as well as Torsten, who mourhe suddeh of his mother. The young man had appeared all in bd spoke little. Agathe wished him her heartfelt dolences, of course, but afterward did not care about his loss, which she had ordered herself. Of course, the boy didn't know about that. And it would stay that way. She noticed, however, that Peter was giving her a few worried looks. Did he know that she had Torsten's mother murdered? Well, she trusted him to be too smart enough to remain silent in this case.

  The most delicious dishes were oable. Among them, of course, a sele of sausages, which Babette was very happy about.

  Fritz and Pau were engaged in a deep versation and ignored everything and everyone around them. They seemed happy. The Queen was not pleased. She did not like her son's choice. At all! But he was not stepping back from his decision. She had tried, but he had only gotten angry. Fritz would marry his Pau, with or without his mother's sent. Friedrich talked to Torsten and tried to cheer him up. Torsten smiled at him grumpily.

  The Baron and Baroness were absent as the Baroness was very exhausted and the Baron wao take care of his wife. Therefore, they sent their daughter aloo dinner. Babette sat o Peter and talked to Lea and Cleo. Agathe watched the three with satisfa. She liked the image of Babette as part of her family. She had always liked the girl. A polite girl who was determio be a good princess. Well, her taste in clothing was a bit strange, right now she was wearing a brown dress with turquoise embroidery and a bright e little hat on her eborately coiffed hair, but that didn't matter.

  Her eyes fell oer. He wore a beige suit with gold buttons, a matg golde, and a white shirt also with gold buttons. The queen was very pleased with the choice his servant had made. He looked good. Like a prince. He could be seen like that.

  But Peter pouted. Agathe didn't know what was going on in his head. She had never uood him. It was all the more important to her that he got a good p her chessboard and fulfilled the task assigo him, which would keep him from doing various nonsense.

  "Your Majesty?" Babette looked at her.

  "Yes? My dear?"

  "I would like to thank you again for yenerosity. You make it possible for me to have the most wonderful wedding, a magnifit house and now there is also this magnifit feast. It is an honor to bee part of your family." Babette's voice was loud, made to be heard.

  She will be an excellent princess. Maybe also a good role model for Julia? She was a boisterous child and still has trouble finding her way into her role. "I'm really looking forward to calling you my daughter." She gave Babette her frie smile. "Were you satisfied with the rehearsal for the wedding?"

  "Oh yes. It was exg and wonderful! I am sure that everything will go perfectly. I 't wait!"

  Peter gave his future wife an annoyed look but remained silent.

  "It will certainly be a nice wedding!", Pau agreed with Babette. Her bck curls looked as if they were in a storm around her head. "We have already started with the first pns for day. Of course, we are still at the very beginning."

  Babette smiled mildly at her. "Is that so?"

  "I will have my property expanded." Fritz kissed Pau's dark hand. "So that we have more space. We thought about getting married on my estate and not in the castle. A little celebration." He looked at her as if she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen and kissed her wild, dark curls. Agathe sighed. Why did it have to be a mortal?

  "What?" Friedrich looked at him indignantly. "A little celebration? You are a prince. Many will expe invitation to your wedding and of course, you will get married in the castle! Anything else would be a sdal!"

  But Agathe liked the idea. But the idea that her eldest married a mortal in the castle... No. "We discuss this ter. If you both want a small celebration, that will certainly be possible. Today we celebrate Babette aer! Your future!" She thought of her own stupidity when she chose a mortal. She only was happy for a few years... But mortals were a weakhat she realized after his death. She was firmly vinced of it! Her own mortal children were also a weakness. They could not strengthen her power, so it was important to her that Peter married a witch whht more witches and wizards into her family. Could she stop Fritz from this wedding? Her eldest had always been stubborn...

  Peter rolled his eyes. "Do you have anything else to announce, Peter?", she asked him. It was time for him to grow up.

  "No, mother. It's all fine. Wonderful! A dream I don't want to wake up from. My future will be dazzling!" He grimaced.

  "Our future!", corrected Babette.

  "Of course." Peter rolled his eyes again. "I wasn't talking about anything else."

  Babette nodded.

  "But I haven't ged my mind", he grumbled, earning an indignant look from Babette.

  "Peter!" The queen gave him a stern look. "It's your duty! We have crified this a long time ago. This topic is closed!"

  Babette snorted.

  "Oh, I'm so excited about your wedding dress!" Pau almost cpped her hands as she beamed at Babette. She ighe sudden tension. "I 't wait to y own dress!"

  "How about we find aopiow?" Cleo took a big sip of wine. "I 't hear the word wedding anymore!"

  Babette made a face as if Cleo had kicked her. Pau didn't look happy either. Peter, oher hand, grinned.

  "Me her," Lea agreed, ign the looks of Babette and Pau. "There is so much else we could talk about. Babette? Do you like reading? I read a wonderful year."

  "I don't like reading, no."

  "And what do you think of sword fighting? Babette? Were you good at it?", Cleo wao know. "Pau? What do you like to do? What is your opinion on swords?"

  Babette stared indignantly at Cleo, but Pau leased with the question. "I love painting. Swords are not for me."

  Agathe sighed. This dinner promised to be exhausting. And she got the uneasy feeling that her eldest daughters would never marry, but she was already looking for someone suitable for them. As witches they had time. More time thaer. She would think about this possible dilemma ter. After all, Cleo and Lea already fulfilled their task of supp their mother as strong witches. They were already strengthening her power. They were not a blemish that o be repaired. But one day they would strehe royal family with more witches and wizards... Whether now, in ten years, or a hundred, Agathe didn't care, as long as they fulfilled this task. Fritz failed in this task with his horrible choice. Pau would weaken the royal family with mortal children! Especially if they were daughters. Sons could be married to witches to undo the misfortune.

  Julia

  "One more time!" Mrs. Mühe looked at her sternly. She had summoned Julia to ara hour in feng in the evening and since she had no time during the week, Sunday had to serve. "Stand straight. trate!... No! That's ly! So you have no hold!"

  Julia groaned. Mrs. Mühe had been pining about her for half an hour. "I did my best."

  "I don't see any of that. Princess? The tour is aremely important tradition of the Academy. You must not do badly there. A princess should shine!"

  Shine? Out of sweat?

  "The Queen has asked that I personally take care of your performance! I will not disappoint Her Majesty. She wants you to take feng lessons in the sed and third year, but with such a performance you are out of the question! You will also get tuition in sword fighting."

  "What?" Julia looked at her teacher in shock. "I pn not to choose the subjects! It's not for me!"

  "It is the Queen's wish. Magic alone is not enough for a princess. At least you don't have a weak talent, otherwise, you would be a disappoi as a princess with your achievements!"

  The students who were only weakly gifted received magic lessons only in the first year of school, as they were not eligible for lessons in the sed and third years. More than in the first year, they could not learn and achieve. Julia would have been happy with that! She didn't want magiyway! "I'm certainly not a disappoi!", protested Julia. What is she thinking? Is she out of her mind?

  "Yes? Then prove it!" Mrs. Mühe gred at her invitingly. "Show me what you're made of!"

  What Julia was made of were clearly two left feet and a ck of enthusiasm for the task assigo her. Julia could climb, she even loved it, but feng? No.

  After css, she wahrough the gardens for a while. It had already gotten dark.

  Why did her mother insist she was good at feng? Or how to handle a sword? her ied her. She didn't want to be a soldier, so for what? Did her mother wao be a soldier like Cleo? Or did she just not like that Julia wasn't as brilliant as her older siblings? That was silly!

  Annoyed, she climbed up one of the trees that stood in the gardens. She hadn't climbed a tree in a long time... Nowhere did she feel as fortable as between the branches of a tree. She leaned against the warm trunk and watched the stars shine in the sky.

  How was Marie?

  To lose a sister, to lose her forever had to be terrible.

  "Juli?" Marko was standing uhe tree. "What are you doing up there?" Finn stood o him and looked at her with wide eyes.

  "How did you get up there?", he asked in amazement.

  "I Climbed, of course. What are you doing here?" Julia climbed dowree a Marko help her, who stretched out his arms to catch her and put her on her feet.

  "Sophie sends us. Dinner is ready", he said. "There are potatoes with cottage cheese and sad!"

  "That sounds good." Julia smiled.

  "I would also like to climb trees." Finn looked longingly up the tree. "It looks so easy when you're sitting up there. The world certainly looks beautiful from there. Is that what freedom feels like?"

  She pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Maybe I show you."

  Finn shook his head. "No. That's not possible."

  "Who knows!" Marko put his arms around him. "Maybe you !"

  "I would also like to be able to fly, like Leo. This is even more hopeless!" Finn smiled sadly and leaned against Marko. "But he's not allowed to fly... That must be bad for him!"

  "I would also like to fly." Marko buried his fa Finn's hair. At the sight, Julia suddenly missed Leopold very much. "Let's go back!", she said. "And I would also like to be able to fly."