Blinding light filled through the air. A glorious light no one has ever seen before.

Blu was no longer on the mucky, bloody ground. She felt as though she was- floating. She was surrounded by a total and infinite whiteness that extended as far as she could see. The brightness was so intense, she had to squint her eyelids to prevent herself from being harmed by excruciating light. Suddenly, a wave of comfort formed through her body and her muscles quickly relaxed. A sort of happiness boiled inside her although she did not now why.

Her lips formed a smile as she closed her eyes and enjoyed this pure bliss. Opening her eyes, she could see a tall man walking towards her in the far distance, the mist too think to be able to make out his features. His arms opened wide as a welcoming sign, and Blu had never felt such reassurace and joy as she had now. Where was she? It felt like she was in-

But slowly, the brightness started to dim, her feelings returning to her body, and the remembrance of the battle that had just occurred. The man in the distance had faded away and Blu slowly started to become aware of her surroundings.

She was lying in a bed. Around her were many people in white, scurrying around the room. Beside her were other people lying in beds. Some had bloody faces while others had broken bones. A piercing cry was heard from across the room as a guard clutched his arm in pain.

She was in the imfirmary.

A sudden realization hit her and she cranked her head up quickly. She looked around frantically and took loud sharp breaths. She felt a stabbing pain in her hip and moaned in agony. Was the battle over with? How was she still alive? Where was Jonathan?

"Jonathan," she moaned, barely able to speak. A large hand rested on her thigh and she looked down. It felt warm on her cold shin. She knew who the manly hand belonged to. It could be only one person.

Her eyes looked up to find Jonathan looking at her expectantly with a happy smile on his face. He sat on a small chair beside her bed. She gasped in relief and smiled as best she could although she was in deep pain.

"Your alive!" She gasped. Her gaze shifted to a cut on his left cheek. It looked deep but not deep enough that he needed stiches. Her lips curved into a frown as she touched his left cheek and grazed her fingers over the hard, dried blood.

Jonathan slightly whinced but then held her hand and pressed it close to his cheek as if it would somehow heal and wound. He closed his eyes and let out a long breath before opening them again.

"You're awake," he remarked. Blu looked down and sighed, resting her hand on his lap.

"I am," she croaked. A moment of silence passed between them as they listened to the wailing and groaning of the injured.

"Ow!" Blu sucked in a sharp breath as she brought her hand to her thigh. She could feel the cloth wrapped around it. Her fingers felt a liquid slowly seeping through the cloth.

Jonathan frowned at her pained look and slowly lifted the sheets from her thigh so he could see the wound. A look of regret and hurt crossed his face, his lips pressed into a line. He stared at the cloth that was once white but now red. His eyes were glassy as water started to fill them. His eyelids fell and single tear trickled down his cheek. He opened his eyes to find Blu looking at him with concern.

"I thought you were going to die." His voice cracked a few times before finished the sentence. He took a sharp deep breath in as another tear escaped his eye. He wiped his face with his wrist and hid his face in his hands. Seeing him like this, only added to Blu's pain.

"Hey," she soothed, taking his wet hand. "But I'm here now." She paused. "And that's all that matters." Jonathan looked up to face her and forced a smile. "On the other hand," she continued, "you almost got yourself killed."

"But here I am," he repeated. He gave her dainty hand a squeeze, not ever letting go of it.

"What happened... with the battle. Did we win?" Blu asked anxiously, afraid for what the answer might be. Jonathan stared deeply into her eyes before giving an answer. And slowly, he nodded his head. She sighed in relief.

"Our numbers were to large for the council's army. The number of the soldiers were lowering down quickly and they had no choice but to retreat. That Mike had finally learned his lesson." "You mess with  me and I'll take you down weather you expect it or not." He said but with a curse, and then took a deep breath and shook his head. "When he put that knife to your throat, that's when I lost it. I tried to kill him on the spot but only got to his leg. He ended up getting away while I was trying to help you. You fell to the ground, went unconscious." Blu opened her mouth to say something, but closed it when there was nothing to be said. Jonathan cleared his throat before continuing.

"I stayed with you whole the Council's soldiers retreated. I picked you up and managed to bring you back to the castle. I immediately brought you to the infirmary where the nurses and doctors took care of you. You didn't seem to have many wounds except for," he looked at the gash on her thigh, "that one. You hit your head pretty hard too. I stayed with you the whole night by your side, hoping you would wake up at any moment." He sighed and looked down again.

"But you never did, and I thought I had lost you forever."

Blu felt guilty. Guilty she had gone out to "save" Jonathan in a deadly battle. What was she thinking? Love is dangerous. It'll make you do stupid things. Things you in your right mind would never do. And it was love that made her insane.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Its over now and you're alive," he said.

"What about our soldiers?" Said she.

"A bunch were killed," he mumbled, "but the majority survived." Blu nodded, but suddenly that pain came again.

"It'll be a number of days before it heals," Jonathan said. Once Blu called down, he opened his mouth to speak again.

"Now it's been about a year since you first came here," he stated as he sat up in his chair.

"A year," Blu repeated, unable to believe it.

"Yes, and you know what that means." Blu stared at him.

"Servant's Day," she hesitated to say as if it were a bad word. Jonathan's face remained emotionless as he gave his slight nod.

"Next week," he said shortly. Blu gulped loudly. She didn't know what to say. Would he change the rules of Servant's Day? Or would he continue the horrible tradition?

"Oh, next week?" She said, staring at him if mentally asking him what he had in mind. He nodded a final time without any further explanation.

"Now, I'm afraid to say that I have to go," he said, standing up as he adjusted his clothes. "I must get the other servants- see how they are doing."

"Of course," Blu said. He bent down and planted a kiss on her lips.

"Get some rest my beautiful queen, I'll be back tonight," he remarked. She chuckled.

"I'm not a queen yet," she reminded. Jonathan laughed.

"Sometimes it's hard for me to remember that we're not officially married yet." Blu smiled.

"Love you," she said.

"Love you more," he replied.

"Love you most," she challenged as she giggled. He turned around for a final time. His eyes were lost in her's, his heart beating for her.

"Love you more than anything," he finished. His back turned to get and he made his way out the door.

Blu smiled to herself as she stared into space, fantasizing about their wedding. Who would be there? What would it be like? What would her family think? Her family. She longed to see them. Would they accept that she was in love with the king?

She snapped out of her thoughts and tried to get some rest. But there was still that lingering, unsettling thought of Servant's Day remaining and her mind.

* * *

A week later...

Today's the day. The day that started it all. The day everyone in the village dreaded. It was time once again.

Now he had all the servants lines up in the grand hall for the big day. Blu was between Rachel and  another servant. She had finally gotten on good terms with Rachel after she saved her from being killed during the battle. Rachel did apologize for her increasing rudeness, but did have to admit that it was stupid of Blu to go running to the king during battle. Blu, however, accepted her mistake and had moved on.

Blu's wound had gotten much better after a couple of days. She was now able to walk but with a slight limp. Throughout the week, everyone had been fixing any damage that had been done to the castle or the castle grounds. She had been in the infirmary all week and was happy to finally get out of that place. Jonathan visited her at least twice every day. Those visits made her dat a hundred times better.

All on all, everyone finally seemed to be accepting each other. The guards had increased their loyalty to the king. The servants started to see what a good man the king actually was. And the villagers, according to Jonathan, were acting less nervous around him.

And there he was. Standing in front of a row of servants. The almighty king.

He wore a glorious white and gold suit with .a long silky cape attached to his back. His boots were black as usual. His hair was neatlu gelled up and wasn't messy as usual, his diamond-speckled crown resting on his head. That beautiful crown gleamed in the bright light which seeped through the windows. This was not the king she saw a year ago today. This was someone else. A good king.

He wore a large smile, showing off his white teeth. His light blue eyes looked across the line of people. Blu could tell he was confident and she could see hope in his eyes. He glanced at her as she was gawking at him. He let out a silent laugh and cleared his throat. The servants looked tired and over-worked. They all needed a break, including Blu.

"Good morning all of you," he started. He started pacing along the line of people.

"As you all know, today is a big day." Blu's heart thumped loudly in her chest. She wondered who would be the lucky to go home. But most of all, she wondered if Jonathan would maybe just change the rules of Servant's Day.  She had no idea. He would speak nothing of the matter to her.

"As the tradition goes, I must choose one servant to return to his or her family," he stated. He seemed to be completely calm. A worried look crossed Blu's face and nervousness tickled in the pit of her stomach.

Jonathan must have noticed this because he gave her a reassuring look as if to say trust me.

"What is he trying to say?" Rachel whispered to Blu. She didn't respond. Instead, a small smile grew on her face as if she knew where this was going.

"I have been," he sighed, "unspeakably awful to all of you. I have hurt you, put you through misery, and forced you to do countless things." The servants around Blu looked at each other and were hopeful now.

"You haven't seen your families in a very, very long time and you miss them. I get that." The servants exchanged confused glances.

"Now I know you're all probably confused why I'm saying all this," he said.

"Yeah," someone said under their breath.

"That's because I have come to a decision. A decision that I thought I would never make."

"All I ask of you is for your forgiveness," he pleaded. "Please, have mercy on me. I have learned that even the most miserable person on earth, can end up becoming the happiest man on the planet."

"Oh my gosh," Rachel whispered under her breath. She knew. They all knew. They just had to hear it to truly believe it.

Blu's smile grew wider and so did Jonathan's. He paused his footsteps and faced the servants.

"This Servants Day, I have chosen..." He squinted his eyes and scanned the line of people. A smirk formed on his lips. Blu could hear her own heart beating. The servants stood eagerly with hope.

"All of you to return to your families." His words hung in the air. The servants started at him in disbelief. Blu smiled from ear to ear. The servants beside her gasped. Rachel's mouth fell open. Some dropped to their knees and started crying with happiness. Others cheered. And Blu. She ran up to Jonathan and pressed her lips to his. She knew he would finally come to his senses. She listened to the cheers of happiness and sobs of joy as she kissed him.

She was filled with pure joy, tears forming in her own eyes. She pulled away from Jonathan and held his face in her hands.

"Thank you," she said as she pressed her forehead to his. Jonathan smiled and kissed her agian.

"Alright now there's no time to lose," he said focusing his attention back to the servants who were still in a state of shock. "Get ready to leave." He turned to a guard and said, "prepare the carriages." The guard nodded and strode off.

Everything was happening so quickly. Too quickly. Blu could barely process what was happening. All she knew was that the everlasting, wicked tradition had finally been broken.

___________________________________________________

YES FINALLY!

Sorry that this chapter was kind of short and not that great but I hope you all enjoyed.

Big things are coming... keep reading to see what happens next.