An Unforgettable Summer

Chapter 12: Homecoming

The magical kingdom of CiAr, a place full of magnificent creatures, where magic lives in every home. Although the royal family has been away for the past two weeks, nothing bad has happened in the kingdom and everything seems to be calm.
A portal opens in the CiAr castle terrace and the royal family appears, entering the castle, before the portal closes.
“CiAr. We're home." Askaru says.
"Finally. Enough of raw food and disgusting things.” Lili clearly prefers life in CiAr.
“So what about you? Did you have fun?” Tayarinne asks the youngest daughters with a sweet smile.
"Yes." They respond.
“It was awesome.” Says Maine.
“We have to repeat this next year.” Taya II suggests.
“Glad you like it, girls.” Then she looks at her king. “Do you think all is well in the kingdom?”
“I always kept a spell active that would send me an alert to the crystal, in case I needed to come back for some reason. I assume everything is okay.”
"Mom, dad. Can I go to my room?” Lili asks.
“Okay, sweetie.” Askaru responds.
"Thanks." Lili enters the castle, going up to her bedroom.
"And we're going to clean us up, okay?" Says Tayarine.
"What? Now?" Maine and Tayarinne don't seem to like this idea.
"Yes, now. I think we all need to clean up and relax after a long trip like the one we had. In addition, we have better hygiene conditions here.”
“Your mother's right.” Askaru agrees. “I'm just going to fly over the kingdom to make sure everything's in order. Then I'll come back to you.”
"Ok, honey. See you soon.” Tayarinne kisses Askaru's cheek and watches him take flight. Then she looks back at her daughters. “Now let’s go to the bathroom.”
"Yes, mom." Maine and Taya II respond and start walking with their mother, although they are not very happy with the idea of taking a shower now.
Askaru flies over the kingdom, observing each house and each inhabitant through his crystal's magic. “It looks like nothing special happened. But it's a good thing I was alert.” He continues flying over the kingdom, taking in how things are going.
In the castle, Lili enters her bedroom and quickly takes a sheet of paper and colored pencils, starting to draw something. After some time, she finishes drawing and looks at the paper. Lili drew the map with the path to the Tree of Life. She memorized the map and drew it perfectly, remembering each of the places one must go through to reach that kingdom. The white flyoness smiles and puts the map in a box she has hidden under her bed. Her parents know that she's very protective of her personal space, so they are unlikely to find that map.
After they've showered, Maine and Taya II go outside to play tag. Tayarinne is in the castle tower looking down, watching her daughters with a smile. Askaru returns from his patrol and lands near his queen.
“Did you find anything, honey?” She asks.
"Nothing special. Apparently, CiAr has kept itself safe. The kingdom's magic remains stable and there are no new visitors registered.”
“Glad everything is fine. It was a long trip, but well worth it.”
"I agree. Not only for our girls, but also for us. We learned so many things.”
“You know? I think our daughter Lili has a crush on Kion.”
"Well. She never got to meet him, so... It's okay.” Askaru is quite protective. He cannot imagine his daughter Lili in a romantic relationship right now.
“Lili is growing, Askaru. You know that someday she will meet someone.”
“Yes, but it's still too early for that. Can we talk about something else?” The king doesn't really like to talk about it. For him, Lilikiki is still too young to have a boyfriend.
"Sure, honey." Tayarinne looks back at Maine and Taya II who continue to play in the terrace.
Lilikiki comes out of the castle and goes to her younger sisters, joining their game. Now the three sisters are playing tag, happy and amused.
“We are really lucky.” Says the lioness.
"Yes. Our daughters are wonderful and I know that someday they will rule CiAr as well or better than us.”
“You're right, but... I was also talking about us.” Tayarinne nuzzles Askaru.
“Oh. Y-Yes. I'm the happiest flyon in the world, Taya.” He nuzzles back, both of them purring.
“I love you so much, Askaru.”
“I love you so much too, Taya.”
The couple stand in the castle tower, their heads touching lovingly, as they watch their daughters play tag on the terrace.

The End... Or Not ;)