"Jonnathon," Kallia called out, "Stop!" Her skirt swirled around her legs and her hair partially obscured her face as she stopped. Jonnathon's eyes returned to their normal grey, and Kallia relaxed a little bit; she even smiled slightly.

Then her arm was grabbed savagely, and she shouted shrilly in surprise.

"Got you," the furious guard snarled. "Next time you'll think twice about running off."

"Let her go," Jonnathon commanded, and the guard looked up to see the furious mage staring at him.

"Do as he says," Luccan added quietly when the guard shot confused and then panicked looks to Caeluum and Gollan. "He is my uncle."

--

The court had been disbanded, and the king removed to his quarters. Caeluum had raged the entire way, shouting obscenities and raving. Already whispers were going around, suggesting that the Prince Luccan was to reign as regent until his grandfather finally passed on.

Gollan had looked over at Jonnathon when he was released and shook his head.

"May I go?" he had asked, his body slumped in complete defeat. Jonnathon, after looking over at Kallia, merely nodded. The old mage disappeared in the hassle.

When Agatha entered the room, the Mage Prince and her sister were nowhere to be found. The nobles' council had come together, of its own accord, and was in discussion with Luccan. She went over to join them, not missing the look of relief on Luccan's face to see her.

"It is good to see you well," one of the elder members said in greeting, bowing. She smiled, nodding her head.

"Knowing that I am not going to loose a husband has helped my condition a great deal," she said. A light ripple of laughter came from the body in appreciation of her wit.

"Where is Kallia?" she asked Luccan.

"She escaped with the Mage Prince to the gardens," he said, smiling. "I think the questions became too much for both."

Agatha nodded, the last bit of anxiety leaving her body. Luccan took her hand and placed in the crook of his arm, needing to touch her and yet still having to conform to society's rules of behaviour. Agatha smiled up at him, lightly resting her other hand on his arm for a moment before turning her attention back to the council.

"We must schedule the coronation as soon as possible," a particularly distinguished man was saying, his brows creased over an aquiline nose. "The king clearly is not fit to rule."

"And has not been so for quite some time now," another, younger, member muttered. The previous speaker raised an eyebrow but politely stayed silent.

"The king's extended rule is no one's fault but his," Luccan said softly, "And Gollan's. But that is over; we must move forward."

The council members all nodded their heads, murmuring in agreement.

"Steward," called the first noble who had spoken to Agatha, "How long will it take to arrange a proper coronation?"

The head of staff came towards their group, bowing to the prince and princess. "A week, give or take a few days, my lord," he said gravely. "The staff like my lord prince. They will work extra hard for him."

Luccan smiled at the older man, glad for his unspoken support. "Then we will set it for next Sun's Day."

"Very good sire," the steward said, bowing. "I shall inform the others." He turned gracefully to leave and disappeared into the crowd, reappearing long enough to leave the great hall.

--

Kallia and Jonnathon wandered through the palace gardens, walking close together. Kallia had both her hands on Jonnathon's arm; one rested in the crook of his elbow and the other on his forearm.

They walked in silence, savouring each other's presence. It was only when they reached a secluded side room with a beautifully carved marble bench that they stopped. They sat down, facing one another in silence; their hands clasped together, their fingers entwined.

Then Jonnathon raised one hand, cupping it around the side of Kallia's face, striking the contours of her cheek.

"I was so worried about you," he breathed. Kallia laughed around the tears that had started to slip down her face, and she placed one of her own hands on top of his.

"You were worried about me?" she asked, smiling through her tears of joy, "I did not know whether the wounds were fatal!" Jonnathon just pulled her into a tight embrace, and whispered,

"Well, it's over now, and that's what matters. Come back with me, little Beauty; marry me, please?"

Kallia looked deep into his grey eyes and smiled.

"Of course," she breathed, smiling broadly. Jonnathon tightened his arms slightly, smiling broadly as well, and he lowered his forehead until it rested against hers.

"Open your mind," he whispered, and Kallia shut her eyes in concentration, trying to find that openness that had allowed the invisible servants to speak to her.

Suddenly she found it, and a wave of love and happiness engulfed her. Gasping softly in shock, she opened her eyes to look up at Jonnathon, who suddenly found himself in a similar wave of happiness and love.

Reluctantly, they broke apart, only to return to that closeness when Jonnathon leaned down again, this time in a kiss.

--

The threatening of rain clouds saw the return of the Mage Prince and Kallia to the palace. Luccan and Agatha were on the covered pavilion, resting and waiting for the couple. Kallia, upon seeing her sister and brother-in-law, pulled Jonnathon towards them, laughing when he tripped.

After the flurry of introductions, the four entered the palace and made their way slowly towards the private dining room. Jonnathon and Luccan were talking about the upcoming coronation and what to do with Caeluum when Agatha's squeal cut into their conversation.

She and Kallia were holding each other in a tight embrace, laughing and crying.

"A wedding, Luccan! They're getting married!" Agatha said, laughing.

Luccan only nodded, trying not to laugh. "Congratulations, to you both," he said smiling, clasping his uncle on the shoulder. Kallia beamed, and Jonnathon returned Luccan's smile.

The two sisters were then off, chattering about dresses, flowers, food, and all the other necessary things for a proper wedding. Jonnathon watched them go off, his face loosing a little colour.

"Are… weddings still as bad as they used to be?" he asked Luccan hesitantly. The prince shrugged.

"Royal ones are," he said honestly. "They still last a full week. But you should be good, if you catch them early in the planning stage and suggest a small wedding." Jonnathon nodded and sighed. Luccan laughed.

"I'm sure you'll be fine."

--

The coronation of King Luccan and his wife, the Queen Agatha, was an event that, generations later, people were still talking about.

Yet it was the marriage which occurred several months later that remained on the tongues of gossips. Jonnathon had managed to put in his request for a small- a very small- wedding, and Kallia had conceded the point. After all, neither had a large family they were required to invite for Kallia's father had never reconciled with his working class family after he became a merchant and Jonnathon had never bothered himself with his relatives, nor they with him. Thus the wedding was small and relatively unspoken of. The two then disappeared from court life, reappearing only when Jonnathon's magical expertise was required or when the queen requested her sister's presence.

The two had returned to the duchy of Eunomia, and, with the able help of the two stewards, managed it in the name of the king. Kallia handled the day to day affairs, leaving Jonnathon to complete the command that Magic had laid upon him just before he woke from his fever. Mages of all levels visited, imparting their own knowledge in return for the Mage Prince's new discoveries.

While the normality of their lives was a welcome relief for the pair, it made for poor stories. The prince always went off to have grand adventures with his lady; he did not resort to a quiet, scholarly life. The lady always became a great queen, as wise and kind as she was beautiful; she did not play second fiddle to her sister.

Thus, as the years separated the tellers of the story from the Mage Prince and his Beauty, their tale changed, and it ends something like this…

The Mage Prince, after being restored by his love's own love for him, pleaded with the Mistress Magic, swearing to make her name great if only she would allow him to live.

Grudgingly, she acquiesced and returned him to our world, healed. The Mage Prince did not waste a minute, but ordered that the fastest steed which Eunomia possessed be brought to him. After a hasty meal, he embarked to the capitol city, supplementing his mount's strength with his magic.

Furious at his brother's actions and full of fear for his Beauty, he stormed through the castle halls, seeking out the king and the prince.

Only to find that he was too late.

The prince and his bride had been convicted of high treason, and not even the child in her belly could save Agatha. They had been executed, their heads sliced off by a golden sword, as was customary for those of the royal family.

Yet the sentence had not yet been pronounced for Kallia, for the king still wished to know what had become of his brother. Thus, as he was ordering her for the last time to tell him the whereabouts of the Mage Prince- and she refused once again, before he even finished his order- the Mage Prince threw the doors open and came to the rescue of his love.

Magic thundered around him, reflecting the blood lust of the great Lady. Mistress Magic had been misused by the king and his high mage, and she would have her compensation. The Mage Prince was merely the collector.

No one ever saw the king and the high mage after that day. Faced with no king and no heir, the nobles overturned the law barring the magically talented from the throne. In a month long celebration, the people celebrated and toasted to the marriage of the Mage Prince and his Beauty and to their coronation as king and queen.

Kallia proved to be a queen both kind and wise, tempering the severity of her husband. The Mage Prince was a cautious, yet fair, king, having learned that everything must be weighed carefully. In return for Magic's boon, he expanded the university and acquired new rare books for study, and he used his own magics for the betterment of the nation and its people.

Mistress Magic smile upon the land, and when the Magic Prince and his Beauty heard the enticing call of silent death, they went together. Their descendants, who still rule today, reign with both kindness and severity, with wisdom and temperance.

And while this story is not entirely true- for the descendants of Jonnathon and Kallia did eventually marry into the royal line of inheritance- it has warmed and bolstered the hearts of many a wearied soul. Many more young men and women flocked to the university and pleased the temperamental Mistress Magic, and many a young man has taken comfort in the fact that if a beast can gain a wife, then so can he.

After all, what are fireside stories for but to warm and bolster the heart?

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A/N: First off, I am so sorry that this story took so long to finish, especially the last part. I really need to stick to shorter stories. As in 3 chapters, max.

That being said, thanks so much to everyone who kept up with this story, with updates coming at the same rate as ice ages. I couldn't have finished this story without all the reviews and the PM's and reviews asking when the next chapter would be up. Thank you.