I coughed and looked up. The castle was only around 45 feet away. The screaming, sound of metal clashing, and gunshots didn’t seem to get farther away. I ducked down, as a soldier was nearby, and winced at the sound of their gun firing. I took three fast breaths and continued forward. All I had to do was get to the castle, look around, map it out, and get back to the base alive. Then we’d have the advantage. I pressed myself against a crumbling brick wall and held my breath, as if my breathing would alert nearby soldiers of my presence. The soldier, wearing big bulky iron armor ran by holding a child closely. The child was sobbing. I tapped on my knee and watched the soldier run to the castle. That child must have been left behind when everyone had been rushed to the sanctuary. I held myself, pushing my uneasy feelings aside. I looked to the sky, which was a dull gray, and kept a note in my head that within an hour it would begin to get dark. I had to reach the castle and get back before that could happen. I started moving forward again and ignored the fact that i could be killed if I didn’t complete the mission. Without thinking, I moved faster. My eyes tear up and stung from the cold air, and I managed to trip over a rather large piece of rubble. I let out a scream as stone and broken brick dug into my flesh and pals in an attempt to catch myself. The pain was sharp and hurt more each breath I took. I kneeled and winced, looking around. Someone must have heard me and was coming to either kill or capture me. Depending on their rank, I had a slim chance of being able to take them out, but I highly doubted I could either way. I never got proper defence or offence training. I stood, hunched over, and limped over behind a stone wall. I poked my arms and legs, checking if I had broken or sprained anything. My left foot appeared to be broken, and the stress started settling in. I cursed under my breath. I hated this war. I hated my army. I heard someone nearby, walking on rubble. They stopped.
“Ladies, secure the nearby area. They can’t be far. Plus that idiot is bleeding and didn’t wrap their wounds. A strong female voice barked, not far away. I looked down in panic, noticing I was bleeding more than I thought. I could bleed out like this. My head started pounding. I could bleed out and die like this. I could die because I tripped. Footsteps approached, followed by metal clanking. I looked over the side of the wall, where a large shadow came closer. The shadow was, to say the least, very intimidating.
“Hold your places!” The woman yelled, her shadow telling me she was just behind the wall. “So if you want to run and be full of lead and steel, them come out now. Otherwise I’d suggest you stay down.” She said, directing this all towards me. I had to think fast. There was a big intimidating woman who wouldn’t hesitate to kill me and three to four other soldiers with her. I could be shot or sliced my a sword. I waited. I shifted how I sat, counted footsteps of the leader, and tried to listen to any others. There were four footsteps and then someone looming over me. Slowly, I looked up. The leader stood in front of me, wearing a large set of iron armor that was worn and mildly bloodstained. There was a crystal heart embedded in the chest. The other soldiers had hearts on theirs, but theirs were just branded into the metal. A thought struck me. This was their queen. She was tall and big, with a large sword in her hand and an aze of equal size on her back. She had curly dark brown hair in a buzz cut, and earrings all the way up her ear. Her skin was a neutral color, with light freckles and a cut on her cheek. She had cold brown eyes, and looked more disappointed than angry. In this cold evening, I was sweating. She lifted her sword and pointed it at me.
“You are disgusting.” She scowled at me and raised her voice. “You try to break into my safe haven for the people left behind. They are tired, afraid, and injured because of your people.” I was visibly shaking. I stuttered and stumbled over my words that didn’t exist and said nothing. I needed to act quickly.
“Tell me why you are trying to get into my castle. You are speaking before Queen Elizabeth Rosanna Hearts, so do not stutter.” the queen threatened. With a swift movement, I tried to get up and run to my right. Within a second the back of my head was hit hard by the blunt side of her sword and I feel over, unable to move.
“Ladies, please get him to the cells and get Tasha to check on him.” The queen ordered. The armored women nodded, and then I blacked out.

***
I woke up on my back, staring at a ceiling of marble The area was well lit and smelled of earth and lavender. I turned my head to my left and only felt a mild amount of pain. I groaned and reached up to hold my head. I saw something move beside me and turned to it. A middle aged woman stood over me, her dark hair hanging over her shoulders. She had brightly blue eyes and a strong jaw line. She smiled at me and pushed up her glasses.
“Good morning. I have healed your broken rib, broken foot, cuts, and mild internal bleeding.Your torso will have a scar but I was thinking you wouldn’t mind because you already have quite a few scars.” The woman told me, sitting down on a stool beside the bed and sighing. I nodded in an attempt to thank her. She bolted upright and clapped her hands together.
“Oh! Introductions, how rude of me to forget. I’m Tasha, the royal doctor and witch. Though I am not a witch doctor because that’s quite different.” she explained. I liked her voice, it was sweet and low. She reached over to a table close by and grabbed and glass of water and pill bottle.
“Could you drink this and take this pain killer please? And please tell me your name.” she asked. I sat up, noticing part of my torso was wrapped in bandages and my foot was also wrapped. I popped the pill and chugged the water, the pill leaving a bitter aftertaste. I handed her the glass and cleared my throat.
“My name is Julian.” I said slowly, as though I hadn’t spoken in a long time. How long had I been out? I started to panic. Tasha tapped her forehead, her purple nails sparkling.
“There is no need to panic, I can read minds and understand your worry. You’ve only been out for… two days perhaps?” she tried to reassure me. Two days. The commander probably thought I was dead, but I guess that was for the best. I sighed. A silver sparkled on the walls which grabbed Tasha’s attention. Tasha looked to the ceiling, where a large quartz crystal hung down. Tasha’s eyes seemed to glow, and her dark hair fell to the side, revealing a mark on her forehead. She pushed her hair behind her ear, a small gem on her earing glimmered. The mark on her forehead was an eye, which had no pupil, only an iris. The corners of the eye had small flowers surrounding it. I had questions, but I couldn’t quite ask because I had no idea what they wanted from me. The queen had called this a cell, but it really didn’t look like one. I’d been in cells before, and they were awful. Though where I was from people in cells were treated terribly and unfairly, but here I had been healed by a witch and wasn’t locked in a damp moldy cell. I felt a warm hand on my shoulder and looked to Tasha. She gave me an empathetic look and put her hands on her lap.
“I know all your questions, and I can answer them, but Elizabeth is coming down to get you. I’m sure she can help you.” Tasha said quietly. She was trying to make me feel better, but I wouldn’t say it was working. In honesty, it caused me to panic. Elizabeth almost killed me and hated me. I didn’t blame her though, when people are at war they are tense and anyone not on their side is an enemy. I snapped out of my thoughts as heavy footsteps came down the stairs. Tasha smiled and stood up to greet her queen. Tasha swept into a bow, her dark hair fell over her shoulders, her lavender skirt sweeping across the marble floor. Elizabeth stood at the bottom of the staircase and smiled, and gave a nod towards me. She seemed so calm for someone dealing with a war. Tasha stood up and crossed her arms behind her back.
“Good morning, your majesty. I was planning to pop in later to congratulate you on your victory, but seeing you now is perfect.” Tasha beamed. The queen thanked her, but I was still processing what had just been said and didn’t hear the rest of the conversation. She won the war. Either too many had been killed and my army surrendered, she killed the commander, or she simply talked them out of this war. All were very possible. The queen walked over to me, no longer wearing heavy armour and her brown eyes were kind. She wore loose jeans, a plain tank top, and a pastel pink cardigan. She looked soft, unlike how I first meet her.
“Julian, is it?” She asked me with a hint of worry. I nodded.
“Good. Now come with me, we need to talk and get you some comfortable clothes.” She said, offering me her hand. I hopped off the table and winced as I landed on my bad foot. SHe sighed and looked back to Tasha.
“Tasha, will you be free in about an hour? Julian's foot needs to be almost pain free if he wants to keep up with me.” she stated. Tasha looked off and nodded, then went back to sorting pills and stocking up three first aid kits. Elizabeth pat me on the back and smiled.
“Now let's get going.” she advised. She started walking, at a rather fast pace, and I struggled to keep up. I hoped she wasn’t going to kill me, or turn me over to my army, which would be worse.
     ***
We were in Elizabeth’s room, a large open space with a beautiful window view. The walls were a deep red that faded into a light pink. The furniture was elegant and vintage looking. I stopped a few steps into the room and held still, feeling very out of place. Elizabeth moved past me, turned, and let out a light laugh. I was scared I had done something wrong and looked down at my feet.
“I’m sorry.: I said pathetically. My voice was quiet and kind of high pitched from not talking in a while. Elizabeth chuckled and walked over to a light colored vanity. She motioned for me to come over as well. I walked over, tripping over my own foot once, and stood next to the tall woman. She smiled at me, showing her dimples.
“Julian, you did nothing wrong, there is no need for apologies.” she reassured me. “Now, do you like flowers?” she added, digging through a drawer in the vanity. My mother was a florist, so flowers had fond memories.
“Yeah, I do. Why do you ask?” I answered with caution. I didn’t know why I was so scared. She reached out of the drawer with a flower crown, made from assorted purple and blue flowers. She placed it on my head and smiled in content.
“Please take a seat.” she requested. “And do you mind if I brush out your hair? It’s kind of sad in the that ponytail with dirt and soot in it.” She asked, following behind me to a small area with a bookshelf and chairs. I sat on a small love seat and crossed my legs. She was being very kind, as if we were old friends, and it was a little uncomfortable. She probably just wanted my trust, so I went along.
“Sure. I kind of want to cut it anyways.” I finally answered, looking to her. She gasped and held the brush to her chest, as if somehow I’d offended her.
“You’re hair is so nice! It’s a lovely color and medium length looks good on you.” she replied, getting to work on my hair. She undid the string holding it back and started brushing. I needed to talk to her, but I didn’t really know how to bring anything up.
“You’re hair is wavy too? I can’t believe you’d want to cut it…” She said quietly and trailed off. I cleared my throat.
“Um, Elizabeth-” I said before she interrupted.
“Listen, Elizabeth is kinda a mouthful. Just call me Lizzy, alright?” she somewhat pleaded.
“Well Lizzy,” I started again. “When you came to get me from… where ever I was you said you wanted to talk to me about something. What was it that you wanted to ask me about?” I asked hesitantly. She walked around from the back of the couch and sat down, putting the brush and string down on the coffee table in front of us.
“I want to know more about you, and I have an offer for you.” she announced with a smile. Part of me was growing to like this person who could have and almost killed me, while the other half was still very scared of her. I raised my eyebrows in surprise of what she actually wanted to talk about. She lightly gasped and leaned towards me, cupping my face in her soft hand.
“You have beautiful green eyes.” SHe sighed in envy. I’d had enough of her attitude towards me, and without thinking I slapped away her hand. Her eyes narrowed and I immediately jumped up and backwards in fear. I stuttered out an apology and stepped back again. Lizzy, instead of being enraged like I thought she would be, she looked almost impressed. She pointed to the chair across from her which I walked to in shame from my outburst. Lizzy crossed her legs and pulled at a loose string on her cardigan.
“What is your full name and your parents names?” She asked me, leaning forward. My memory was a little fuzzy, so I wasn’t sure what everyone’s names were. I think I knew mine.
“My full name is Julian Virgil Udall, at least I’m pretty sure.” I said, looking up to the chandelier hanging in the middle of the room.
“My mothers name is Lulita and my farther's name was Nate.” I added, surprised I remembered all of that.
“Are your parents still alive?” Lizzy asked, throwing all subtly out the window. It didn’t matter to me though, I don’t grieve people’s deaths.
“My mother is still alive, but she’s sick. The gas from a recent attack got in her lungs.” I said, clawing at my skin. I went on. “My father died in that same attack. He was at the store next to where the bomb dropped.” LIzzy showed almost no emotion. She knew it was terrible, but didn't want to pity me. SHe sighed and ran her hand through her hair.
“How’d you even end up in the war? Are you even old enough to be in the war?” she inquired. I hated thinking about the war, but I couldn’t avoid it. I sighed.
“I was drafted in. I tried to stay longer to look after my mother but they took me away.” I answered in a monotone voice. I wasn’t sure why I was trying to seem emotionless. Lizzy gave me a quick nod, understanding I disliked the topic.
“Do you have friends at home? They could come here if they are unsafe.” she offered. I was confused.
“You barely know me, how could you trust my friends?” I asked. She definitely wasn’t stupid, so I was unsure why she’d ask that.
“You aren’t a bad person, I can tell. Plus Tasha told me you could be trusted.” Lizzy admitted. “Tell me about your friends then.” I debated whether or not I should tell her, but I wouldn’t get anywhere if I didn’t.
“Devora is blind, but very smart. She’s really quick too. We met when she came to my mom’s store when I was 14 because she wanted to get flowers for someone. We just kinda became friends after that.” I babbled. “Nico and I met at school, and he’s messed with because he’s in a wheelchair and can’t really fight back. He’s very kind at likes tinkering and inventing things.” I finished, smiling at fond memories. Lizzy sat up straight.
“How about you, your friends, and your mom live here!” Lizzy offered. “It’s much safer and we have lots of jobs for anyone of any ability to do.” I was still in shock. It would work. If the queen marched over, got them, and came back who would try to stop her? Devora, Nico, and my mother would love to leave that place. It’d be great for my mother because the air would be cleaner, so she could heal. My mother couldn’t live by herself until she got better though, so I’d have to be with her. I looked up and saw Lizzy had gotten up and was standing at a dresser that had a lamp and countless other clothes and chargers. I couldn’t believe a queen was unorganized and loud. I stood up and fiddled with the edge of my shirts sleeve.
“I’d like to live here and I think my friends and mom would like to be here as well.” I confirmed. Lizzy pulled out a large beige t-shirt and a dark blue jacket. She turned and threw them to me, and I scrambled to not let them hit the floor.
“Here, put these on. It wouldn’t be good to go out in bandages or to put on that bloody shirt you have.” She chirped, moving past me to a large clean desk. She picked up a cell phone and slid it in her pocket, then picked up a with with a cord and dialed a four digit number. I slid off my bloody shirt and put on the clean shirt and jacket. Both were large on my small frame, but they were soft and warm. I listened to Lizzy’s conversation on the phone.
“Yes, we’ll leave in an hour or so. Yes I do know it’s late notice and I’m sorry about that. Just because the driver isn’t here doesn’t mean anything. I won a war, I think I can drive to Mary’s house.” she paused for a minute. “Alright. We’ll depart in a while. Bye.” Lizzy hung up and turned to me, holding her head.
“Your mother is sick, correct?” She asked me, walking and flopping down onto her large bed. I nodded.
“I have a relative who is also sick, but not contagious sick, she just had a jealous sorcerer cast a spell on her that drained her and she never quite got back on her feet.” she explained. “She can’t heal herself surprisingly, but your mother can live there with her until she is well.”
“She can’t live alone! At least, not without me. She needs me!” I bluttered out. Lizzy dragged herself into a sitting position and stretched her arms.
“Alright. I’m sure Mary would love having you there any way. She loves when people visit.” she replied calmly. She kept saying mary, but I still didn’t know who that was. I knew they were a relative of Lizzy’s, but not what they were like. I leaned back against the wall and slumped over.
“Are we going to her house later?” I asked. Lizzy raised an eyebrow.
“I heard you on the phone that we were going to leave in an hour or something.” I admitted. Lizzy got up, walked over to me, and slung her arm over my shoulder.
“Yes, we will, but first we are buying you clothes. You will be living there and when I go to grab your friends and mother I am not bringing your clothes along.” LIzzy told me, sounding rather stern.
      ***
We got back to the castle around half an hour later, with two bags of clothes for me and one for my mother. Lizzy had also got Mary a beautiful necklace and a very fluffy pair of slippers. We dropped our stuff in what seemed to be something like a  lobby, but with buzzers and screens hooked up to three large computers. A large man with many earrings, a spiraling tattoo, and dreadlocks in a bun came into the room, and picked up Lizzy in a hug. Lizzy was a tall woman, and this man was bigger. I felt like an ant to them. A person managing the computers looked over, wary of the large man.
“Davon, please put these bags in the car along with some towels and bath stuff like soap.” Lizzy said, waving her hand at the bags. Davon picked up the big bags with ease and nodded.
“Anything else, your majesty?” he asked in a booming voice that shook me. Lizzy thought for a second and looked at me.
“Nah, we’re all set. Thank you.” She replied. Davon shrugged and walked through a pair of dark wood doors. Lizzy smiled and clapped her hands together, grabbing my attention.
“Are we leaving soon?” I asked, dragging my foot across the rug. It wasn’t that I disliked Lizzy or the castle, it was just that I missed my mother and felt awkward here. Lizzy turned towards me, nodded and started walking. I followed after her quickly, down a staircase and out into a large white garage. It was brightly and had a few cars parked, along with a sort of tank that looked very out of place. She walked up to a rather bulky car and clicked a lock she had with her. She opened the door, showing the car had thick windows and a thick hull. I palmed my forehead. She was still a queen so her car had to be bulletproof. Lizzy screamed and leapt back, swiftly pulling out a knife and pointing it towards whatever or whoever was in the car waiting. A very slim person jumped out of the car and leaned back with a smile. They had fangs, a cat tail, and cat ears. Lizzy smiled, snorted, and started laughing. I was in shock and was half in a protective stance and half crumpled into myself. I looked at the person who had lept out of the car and saw their gold eyes look over me. They had short curly purple hair and a loose striped crop top, with a pair of black high waisted shorts and striped thigh high socks. I stepped back a bit from their gaze.
“Hello Julian. Nice to officially meet you.” They purred, their tail curled around their leg. Officially meet? I was very confused and looked to Lizzy for an answer. She looked mildly annoyed, possibly a sign that this person did this a lot.
“CC…” Lizzy sighed “We’re just leaving, so I don’t have time to talk.” CC spun and dramatically leaned on Lizzy, clutching their chest.
“Lizzy, darling, you can’t leave me.” CC said in a way that sounded fake. CC laughed and backed off. “I know princess, I overheard. I’ll go tell Colby you’re leaving so he doesn’t have a panic attack that you're gone.” CC put her hands in her pockets and smiled. Lizzy let out a quick sigh and pushed CC towards an exit.
“Please do. I’ll be back soon.” Lizzy yelled at CC, who was leaving through a door. The door closed and Lizzy slid into the car, closing the door. I walked to the other side and got in, pulling the heavy door closed. So much had happened in only a day. I’d met a witch, befriended a queen, and found a place for everyone I loved to live. I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming or not. Maybe Lizzy had killed me and I was living through what could have happened.
“So, I have to live with two older women, one of which I don’t know, ar from you and the city.” I thought out loud. Lizzy started the car.
“Regretting your choices?” Lizzy asked, pulling the car out of the garage. I leaned back.
“Not at all, actually.” I replied. The sun flooded into the car and we started the drive to my future home.
     ***
Mary had a large victorian style home in a light turquoise color, surrounded by trees and a calm river. Mary was also quite small and skinny, with pale skin and long wavy white hair that was currently held in a bun. She had vibrant blue eyes and because of her lack of body fat you could see her veins and bones. She wore a long pale blue skirt and a white t-shirt under a jade green sweater. Her smile was brightly and had wrinkles around it. When Lizzy and I had first stepped out of the car she ran over to the car and almost knocked Lizzy over in a hug, which I did giggle at. The Mary hugged me and held my hands, saying she heard all about me and couldn’t wait to have me here. I wondered when Lizzy had called her. Lizzy and I grabbed the bags from the car and followed Mary into a an open room with a fireplace, a couch, and two chairs. The tv was on and showing an old soap opera. Mary walked over to the windows and opened them, and turned back to us, as we still had bags in our hands.
“Oh my! I completely forgot you had those.” Mary exclaimed, stepping over a dog that was sleeping on the floor. “You can put your bags down here for now.” She added, picking up an unused dog bed and plopping it down in a corner. I put my bags down, and Lizzy fished through hers. She took out slippers and the box with the necklace.
“Mary, I got you some stuff when we went shopping.” Lizzy said, handing Mary the slippers. Mary almost squealed in delight and sat down, changing out her old slippers for the new ones. Lizzy handed Mary the box and sat on the floor, leaving me standing near the bags. Mary opened the box, gasped, and closed it shut.
“Elizabeth! These necklaces were so much money and and must be more now!” Mary scolded. “You can’t go wasting your money on me!” Lizzy tilted her head and smiled.
“Aw, I wasn’t wasting it. It wasn’t even that much. I thought you’d like it. I could just take it back if you don’t want it.” Lizzy joked, reaching for the box. Mary held the box to her chest and laughed.
“If you think you’re getting this back then you must have lost your mind.” Mary quipped. Lizzy laughed and stood up. She looked over to me and suddenly I remembered where I was.
“Mary, thank you so much for letting my mother and I stay here.” I said, standing up straight and scratching my head, finding I was still wearing the flower crown and must look very feminine and sweet. Mary smiled and looked to Lizzy and back to me.
“It’s really no problem. I understand what happened to you and how you must feel with so much going on.” Mary replied. “I was in the same situation. I was drafted into a war and couldn’t go home because of fear. Though I had no living family to worry about and my friends were safe.” I nodded. Lizzy took out her phone to check the time and slid it back into her pocket. She walked over to me and gave me a warm hug and held me for awhile. I didn’t know how to react, but I hugged back.
“Julian, I have to leave so I can get your loved ones here by tonight.” she whispered, then released me. “In your bag is a new phone I got for you. Mary has my number so you can call or text whenever.” she said. Lizzy stepped back and walked a few step to Mary. Lizzy crouched down to be at the same height as Mary, who was sitting. Lizzy kissed Mary’s forehead and hugged her tight, then pulled back.
“I have to leave but I’ll be back later tonight with another guest for you.” Lizzy told her, standing up again.
“Alright. Please be safe and know you can sleep here tonight if you’d like.” Mary offered. Mary reminded me of my grandmother, always offering food and asking you to come visit again. I wondered how old Mary was and if she was old enough to be my grandmother. Lizzy walked towards the door and Mary and I followed her out. Lizzy opened the door to the car and stood there.
“Hey Julian! You can keep that flower crown! I think it really suits you!” She yelled, getting into the car quick and turning it on. Mary turned to me and smiled.
“It does really suit you.” She said kindly. “Now let's get you to your room and unpack, alright?” She advised, walking back into the house. I watched Lizzy leave the driveway and drive off, waving to her as she crossed a small wooden bridge. I sighed and turned around, walking into the house I now lived in. I closed the heavy wood door and heard it click. Mary leaned over a staircase and called for me to follow her with the bags. As I unpacked my bags and set up the room, I thought of everything that had happened. A war came and went, I met so many people, and I’d be seeing my family and friends after being gone for several months. I was so lucky to see them again and to have a safe house. I was so lucky.