Princess Mary's breath became shallow as she rummaged through the King's papers on his desk. She wasn't supposed to trespass in her father's room, but she wanted infringing information she could use against her father, the King. She had lived as a Princess for too long and wanted to become Queen.

"Nothing but letters from peasants and judges," said Princess Mary as she fumed while spreading the papers over the table.

Footsteps and voices from the hallway echoed through the inch-high space under the door. She froze in terror as her mind panicked about what to do. She opted to hide. She ran towards the giant bed in the room and slid underneath it. She silenced her breathing and remained motionless.

The King and Queen entered the large room and shut the heavy oak door. Princess Mary cocked her head to the side to hear better.

“My love, it would be best if you got ready for the reception of your new daughter,” said Queen Lorien.

King Dorian touched his long beard and said, "I was just thinking about the human."

“The Regent said she had guards looking for her. I don’t understand why she would have run away,” said Queen Lorien.

“Seems like Caroline and Carter got along well,” said King Dorian, not listening to his wife.

“Yes, they got along well, husband," said the Queen, "Why, what are you thinking?”

“This kingdom is known for having a male King. When I step down, the notoriety of this kingdom will disappear. Dale will just be another north-eastern kingdom. Nothing to set us apart,” said King Dorian.

“You think so highly of yourself,” said Queen Lorien with a playful smile.

The King just smiled and waved off the sarcastic remark. “If we had a human married to our sweet Caroline, that would keep the name Dale in everyone's mind.”

"You want Carter and Caroline to get married? You just met her,” said the Queen as she sat on the bed contemplating that idea.

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Still hiding under the bed, Princess Mary almost let out a little whimper when the Queen sat down, but she held it in.

“She seemed nice and polite,” said King Dorien as his face was sad. “Humans are a little bit finicky about marriages with the same sex, so it might be a long shot,” added the King.

{Encyclopedia of Thresh: Thresh is made up of mostly women since the Great War thousands of years ago. They make up 99.9% of the world's population. The term marriage in Thresh is not the same as it is on Earth. A normal marriage is rare and made up of two women. Most men aren't allowed to get married unless they are Kings. A formal Marriage can only be done by a king. There is no divorce.}

“Your intuition has always been right, dear. What about our precious Mary?” asked Queen Lorien.

“I love Mary with all my heart, but she has a temper. She might be the first daughter, but she’s not the best choice to run the kingdom,” said the King.

“That’s not very nice, my King,” said Queen Lorien as she let a little frown slip.

Princess Mary’s hands balled into little fists as she bit her lip. She always knew her parents didn’t like her.

“It’s just a thought,” said King Dorian as he rubbed his temples.

“The Elf council would never allow it; all humans are to be brought to the Elves,” said Queen Lorien.

“I have some favors with the Elf council that I could pull,” said King Dorian with a smile.

Queen Lorien smiled and said, “A human in charge of Dale; that would be something grand. Everyone from around Thresh would come to visit!”

“Grand? More grand than this old Cambian male?” said the King.

“Never, my King,” said Queen Dorian as she stood up and kissed the King.

The door opened and closed as the two left the room. Princess Mary was left lying under the bed. She muttered a curse word under her breath.

Mary pulled herself up from under the bed and let out a small scream. She grabbed the papers off the desk and threw them on the ground.