Winter passed, Caelia could finally leave behind the medicines and the bed. Her parents decided to keep her away from her princess responsibilities for a while to let her rest, but deep down they only feared that something similar would happen to her little girl again. But Caelia had matured after her adventure, she would no longer be a little princess looking to entertain herself every day, in her mind a goal was born, if she was a valuable treasure of the kingdom, she herself would learn to take care of it.

Since he had more free time than ever before, he began to study and to worry about the matters of the kingdom; this surprised her father, even more so when she asked him for permission, under Sir Lyner's tutelage, to study fighting, self-defense and the use of weapons. The king found it inappropriate, but the conviction in his daughter's voice did not allow him to refuse.

Caelia thus strengthened her mind and body, she studied battles and strategy, she put dedication into understanding politics and economics. If one day I was going to be queen, I'd be the strongest queen there could be.

This goal gave peace to her spirit and motivation to her life, more than once she found herself dreaming awake of the moment when another attempt at kidnapping her would be a perfect excuse to demonstrate what she learned, she wished to make her enemies regret even trying. However, all this made her mood cold, she was always serious and stuck into her own thoughts.

It also happened that at nights she struggled to fall asleep; maybe it was due to her seeing herself alone in her bedroom, or perhaps it was the cold that sometimes sneaked through the slits, or the darkness, but every night she returned to the cave, going over the feelings she felt there and the words she heard there. She wanted to turn back time and say and do more than she had said and done.

More than once she would throw herself to the floor of her room as if to imitate the hard floor of the cave, waking up there. She would wake up with hope in her heart of being back at that place, at that time, but then her mind reminded her where he was and that frustrated her every time.

The only trip the King allowed Caelia to make at that time, not without first making sure half the army protected her, was to Naver. It was an abandoned village now, the bodies had been buried, but no one would live there anymore. However, as she walked the streets, the princess was sure that she could hear the cries of pain from the people when they were killed by the Portosians. Great was your noble sacrifice Naver!, she said to herself.

She ordered to take what was left in the houses and give it to the poor in the nearby villages, but she asked not to tear down the houses, and to keep them as a symbol of their deed of opposing the enemy.

On the way back, she inevitably had to stop at Iomhar's field, it had been just under two years since when she first passed there the first time, but how much she had changed since then!!

She got out of her carriage and walked among the flowers, which remained miraculously well maintained. As it was Spring they were flourishing, their sweet aroma brought good memories to her and transported her to better times.

When she got to the backend side of the farm, she saw Iomhar's hut, similarly abandoned. Against her Guard, and to their surprise, she asked them to let her in by herself. The commander obeyed, but stayed outside the door, while the other men surrounded the place; she entered and closed the door behind her, she sat on a chair to observe, with some nostalgia, that place. She was sure that it remained the same as the last time its owner was there, a nail on the wall needed the cape it always held, and the toolbox lacked a knife and a sickle; she could almost see the moment when Iomhar, motivated by the mere courage of defending the weakest, had rushed out of there.

As she finished exploring the first room, she saw that there was a second, which ought to be the bedroom. She thought it should be Iomhar's most personal place, where for sure no one ever got in, and then she thought that maybe when she entered it she would feel the same as when Iomhar entered her bedroom in the castle, so she decided to do the same. She would have most shocking surprise of her life, which would change her forever.

When she drew the curtain that separated the rooms, she saw something that caused her to fall to her knees. There were two beds there, most exactly a bed and a crib. What was that!?, she wondered. Had Iomhar lost his family and his life!

He began to cry heartbrokenly, which made her Guard's commander to enter sword in hand. When he saw her on the floor crying, he asked her:

- What's wrong Milady?

She couldn't answer, she just pointed to the little crib. The commander, believing to know what was bothering the princess, apologized and left quickly. He came back a while later and found her still in that room, sitting on the bed, looking at her inside.

- Milady, you mustn't worry.

- What do you mean?

- I had to bring in the farmworkers from the neighboring farms. I'm told these people didn't die in the Naver massacre.

The commander had believed that the princess was sad because she thought that the baby and the family of that hut had perished at the hands of the Portosians. He continued then.

- I know it's not entirely encouraging, but the mother and baby died more than eight years ago from illness. And the father has not been seen in months, apparently he left the place.

In Caelia's mind, a storm broke out. Iomhar's story had become tragic, eight years of solitude, eight years looking for motivation, and when he found it he gave his life without reaching it.

It was in then when she remembered something, her mind brought back Iomhar's words when she had asked her about her family and friends and he replied that they suffered the same fate, she had believed that he meant the fate of farmworkers, but only now she realized that he meant that they died farmworkers.

After she left the place, and for the months to come, Caelia's life would lose much of her meaning. She would continuously wonder if her life and a stupid smile would be worth enough that someone had sacrificed everything he had for them.

-o-

The months passed and again it almost the end of November and with it the birthday of the princess. It would be a great feast, different from others, for it would be the first time the nobles would see her after her adventure.

She wasn't expecting that event, she didn't have the slightest desire to celebrate, why dressing up, why celebrate, how to rejoice? She was also sure that it would be a long parade of suitors, followed by a line of friends wanting to know about her adventure just for curiosity. Where were they all when she needed them most?

The day came, the arrangements were pompous and the banquet abundant. Dozens of guests filled the room; the time for Caelia seemed to pass very slowly, for the party used to last, as you may remember, all day.

As she was expecting, her female friends asked her the most banal details of her adventure. Was it true that she had slept in a cave? was it true that they found her with her clothes all ripped?, did she really spent time and slept close to a peasant?

She got tired of that, so she decided to move away from them, only to fall in a worse place; because it came the endless line of suitors, some very fine gentlemen who rarely saw sunlight or moved a finger to do something, others who could not speak of anything else but their riches, and others who could not even articulate a good conversation. One after the other tried to win her favor by flaunting their deeds and accomplishments, which, of course, paled before her own story.

She listened to them with respect, but as she heard them, her mind was flying. She was precisely away in her thoughts when a handsome and polite gentleman approached her and said:

- I guess none of our stories compares to sowing injuries and climbing cliffs, princess.

Such a comment took her out of her thoughts.

- Heckie?

This was an old childhood friend of Caelia, nobleman of Britain. Whose attitude turned out to be refreshing. She continued.

- You did your homework. But tell me, have I been that obvious?

- Only for the sharp eyes. Only for those who care about what the other person feels, not only for his own accomplishments.

- So, you're not going to share your adventures with me?

- There's a future adventure I want to begin.

- Which one?

- The one about getting to know you better, as well as your story.

- That's the sincerest thing I've heard tonight. But I'm afraid I'm not ready yet.

- It's a virtue to know when to wait. So, I'll wait.

- I appreciate your patience.

Dinner came, like the rest of the activities it was quiet and brief. However, there was no shortage of those who insisted on asking her for details of her adventure. The questions reminded her of Iomhar and made his heart saddened. Somewhat affected, she apologized for a moment and retreated to a small hall nearby.

Caelia looked out the window, the gardens and the sky, wishing she could fly or at least run away. One hand on her shoulder pulled her out of her thoughts. It was no other than her grandmother.

- The guests are waiting for you.

- I don't know if this party was a good idea.

- It's your birthday!

- It's just another day.

- Come on, it's almost over, it will end soon.

Caelia couldn't say no to her grandmother, she fixed herself and went back to the hall, trying to survive the rest of the night. Dinner ended and the conversations continued with some soft music in the background. When it was time to open her gifts, she sat at the table that was full of her presents; the guests, for their part, made a circle in front of it, each announcing their gift and wanting it to be better than that of others.

The first gift was from her grandmother, it was a new sewing set! Caelia thanked her with a big hug. Others passed and it was the turn of sir Lyner's, who gave her an engraved dagger, very fine but ready for battle; not many understood the meaning of this; she, of course, did know it and thanked him by lowering her head.

Jewelry, art, dresses, perfumes; one by one she received them, she politely thanked each of the guests.

Finally, only one gift remained on the table. A box that almost went unnoticed given its somewhat rudimentary wrapping and small size. No one claimed to have brought it, no one knew where it came from; and the living room was filled with murmuring. How could anyone have insulted the princess by leaving before the party was over!, they said.

Needless to say, the King's expression changed, for he shared the feeling of the rest. But Caelia, whom protocol, or rather the lack of it, mattered very little, she proceeded to open it. After all, that alone separated her from the end of the party and from being able to retire to rest.

So she put it in front of her, untied the ribbon, removed the lid, removed the wrapper, exposing the contents. A silence filled the place, time stopped for a moment. The package contained a stone, a black, flat stone, no larger than a small plate.

The princess' eyes were fixed on the stone, she was astonished, muted. The murmur grew among the guests, some took their hand to the mouth in surprise, others looked all round like looking for someone to blame. And the King, very angry, rose from his seat and shouted:

- Who dared to make such a joke, whoever it was is going to pay for it!

The murmur became bustle, it was a combination of anxiety and fear from the King's words. During those moments, which became eternal, the princess remained motionless, she saw that package in disbelief. It would be the Queen, her mother, who would take her out of her status when she approached her to ask her how she was.

- Daughter, what's going on?

Caelia, still staring at the stone, did not answer her, but made a gesture that the Queen interpreted for the room.

- Silence, please be quiet!

The King and the rest of the people in the room went silent, all eyes turned again to the princess.

She, filling everyone's hearts with anxiety, took still another moment, she stood up, sighed deeply, pulled the little stone out of its box, lifted it up to the level of her chest, flipped it and saw on it some lines written in gold. As she read them, her eyes filled with tears and her face of the purest smile anyone had ever seen on her.

Over her shoulder her mother read too, but she did not understand what it was about. It had written:

"Just as a cold rock can transmit life to a dying man, a simple smile can save your soul. Happy Birthday Princess! "

Caelia returned the gift to the box, whispering in her maiden's ear, ordering her to take care of it with her life. Then she walked to the center of the hall, in front of the incredulous sight of all the people, including those of the King and Queen, who exchanged glances without understanding what was going on.

The princess was now at the center of the hall, with all the guests forming a circle around her. She kept smiling without being able to stop, she pulled out a small handkerchief and wiped the tears from her face with tears. He looked at everyone, turning around to finally find what she was looking for, then she said:

- My dear guests, I've been a bad hostess, I know. But before today something in my soul was broken and the contents of that box have healed it. So, if you let me, even though it's too late, I want to make things right.

Everyone was still stunned, but somewhat calmer. She continued.

- Heckie.

With his eyes wide open by surprise, he stepped forward and answered.

- Yes princess.

- Now I'm ready, are you?

- I'm afraid I don't know what you mean.

She smiled even more, she stood in front of him. She raised her hand, turned her face to the bottom of the room and shouted.

- Maestro!

- Yes, Your Majesty. - The conductor of the orchestra replied.

Caelia, bringing down her hand, while making gentle pirouettes with it, said:

- Your most joyful music!

The chords made the hall explode the hall, Caelia and Heckie began dancing and after them all the guests. To party not only took flight, but it extended until the early morning, the princess asked her guests to stay so that it that party would continue for two more days. She made sure she gave each of the time they deserved, hearing their stories and thanking their gifts with smiles. It seemed that the kingdom had finally recovered its princess and it was all happiness.

-o-

Needless to say, the princess became very happy, she lived many adventures as she became an energetic and determined woman. She eventually became a much-loved queen, strong but benevolent. She married and had happy, strong children like her.

She was always close to her people and she used to tour the counties with her family per the was tradition. Every time she passed through the fields, she saw the farmworkers and wondered what would have become of he who saved her life twice. She didn't know if in the distance he was watching her, but he smiled at all times, because if he did, she wanted him to know that it all worth it.

The end