Bluebirds Without Wings | Julie and the Phantoms

Dahlias in the Dining Room

Julie and Flynn sat in silence as everything stayed subdued in the castle. The people that were at the banquet were most likely also silent in the bomb shelter, and her dad and his knights were who knows where whispering about what. She wished she had Carlos with her, but something in her mind ticked her into the direction of the idea that she needed him more than he needed her. He was probably the one keeping people comfortable wherever he was, keeping them distracted. She will always think he should've been the first born.

A full hour went by and Julie fought hard to not imagine the worse. But she always got quick and impulsive thoughts of the second gunshot was for my dad, and it filled her to the brim with panic. Flynn usually talked a lot to keep them distracted but even she was a drained and worried. They both said nothing, just Flynn humming a tune when the silence weighed too much.

Before a second hour went by, Flynn got a call. She scattered to answer, "Hello?" She then passed it to Julie, looking uncertain. "It's your dad," she whispered.

Julie nodded and held the phone up to her ear. "Dad?"

"Everything is alright. They're evacuating the guests now but stay in your room for tonight. There are knights posted outside yours and Carlos' door as an extra precaution. Tell them if you need food or anything."

"What happened?" Julie asked him. There was forced silence, her dad cutting himself off.

"You will know soon enough. Just know nobody got hurt."

"You can't not tell me."

"I love you, Julie. See you tomorrow." She had been thinking for the last two hours her dad wasn't getting a tomorrow and now she would have to make it through the whole night with an uncertain dread.

"I love you." She sighed and hung up, starting to feel a bit furious. She stood up, opening the secret door for her and Flynn. "They're evacuating the guests. You can stay the night if you want."

"Yeah, I'll text my parents," Flynn told her. "You know I wouldn't leave you alone after this." Julie thanked her, feeling a little more at ease that Flynn would be there if she woke up with nightmares. She would've dragged Carlos in her room if she left, but he tended to just stare at her when she cried. She hoped he was as okay as he seemed.

The banquet from the night before was to mark half a year since her mom's death. Grief in her kingdom was drinking until you pass out from laughing or alcohol poisoning. Julie was not like the most of them and instead lingered in her room and cried it out, sometimes alone, sometimes with a therapist or Flynn.

Julie came down the castle steps and found that the main area and attached ballroom were still a mess from the night before. She walked through the halls until she reached the family dining room. It was separate from their large one when they'd have important people over for dinner. This one was designed by their mom for them so that they wouldn't get lost in the grand scheme of things and still be a family meal like any other. She built the square wooden table and all four chairs on her own. She had carved dahlias in every single chair and Julie remembered playing her toy piano as her mom worked on them. In the middle of the table was a handmade vase that her dad had gifted her mom when he was still a prince. It had music notes and their names painted on it and when Julie and Carlos were each born, their names were added.

Julie sat down at the empty table, waiting for her dad to go in for breakfast. He texted her to twenty minutes before their regular breakfast time so Carlos wouldn't hear what he had to tell her. He never hid things from Julie or her mom. He always told Julie that he wanted her to be prepared to be queen whenever the day came, even if it was unexpected. Julie knew that was only so because her granddad has passed away young, and a year into being married, her dad became king with almost no knowledge of political affairs.

He walked in, his blue eyes less spirited than usual. Any light that had poured into them during the grieving process had been dimmed out again. He sat across from Julie, not a good morning before saying, "The person who sent the first shot is in custody. The second gunshot was from us." Now that she had had time to process that what she went to the night before wasn't a movie scene, hearing this news made her nauseous and dizzy. She put a hand up to her temple and stared at him. "They're interrogating him. We think he's one of King Caleb's people."

King Caleb ruled the neighboring Kingdom of Malachite. Julie had been there a few times growing up on "see, we're all friends" business for the press. Her mom didn't like going there, but Julie never knew why. "Has he always been after us?"

"Since we declared neutral about eight years ago in their dispute with Marron Kingdom." He reached out and grabbed her free hand on the table, squeezing it gently. "We're going to make sure nothing happens to you guys. Bobby suggested something that I agreed to. It'll give me a greater peace of mind." Julie watched her dad look away, and that's how she knew she wouldn't like the idea. Her mom always told her he wasn't good at eye contact when delivering bad news.

"What is it?"

"Assigned knights." Julie retracted her hand.

"What?" She stared at him, mouth open. She had never had to go anywhere in the kingdom guarded, ever. She enjoyed her freedom and it allowed her to walk away from the castle life whenever she wanted.

"It will only be until everything is figured out," he pleaded his case.

Julie ran her hands through her hair. "That could take years."

"Please, Julie. I need to make sure you and Carlos are safe. We're giving you the best of the best. Bobby said he has perfect people in mind so it's not so weird." Julie took a deep breath, stopping herself from running off. Her dad had other things to worry about now, and she didn't want to be a problem for him. Teenage rebellion could come another time.

"What about you?" Julie asked. "Who is keeping you safe?"

"A couple of knights, also. Don't worry about me, okay? Important thing is making sure Carlos' knight doesn't quit in a week because he won't stop talking." Julie smiled despite her feelings.

Carlos and Julie stood in the throne room alone, dressed in fancy clothes, although she would be going straight to her room after this. She tugged at embroidered sunflowers on her skirt, accidentally undoing a string. Their dad was standing outside the shut twenty-foot door with Bobby, some other knights, and their new assigned knights. Flynn asked what made them different from bodyguards and all Julie could think to say is, "They are obligated to fight to the death for us."

Julie jumped a little in place when the door opened, her dad walking in with two knights behind him. One had combed dark hair, a face plastered with a nervous frown, and he straightened his back out mid-walk as if he forgot he were on duty.

The other one was a knight. A deep bruise on his face, disheveled hair, and a stoic look that made it seem as if he had walked right off a battlefield. But there's no way they had lived long enough to see a war, the last one being over fifty years ago. Julie raised an eyebrow. There's no way they were even half of fifty years old. Julie got a clearer view of them as they each stood in front of her and Carlos, her dad standing apprehensively in the middle with his arms crossed.

They each bent on one knee, her dad saying, "Princess Julie, this is Sir Luke Patterson. Prince Carlos, this is Sir Reginald Petters."

Julie scanned their faces one more time for even a stress line, before looking at her dad in disbelief, "They're boys."

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A/N: Here is two out of three of them!!! Alex will come in later I promise. I'll probably do the next chapter centered around Luke, depending what I'm feeling next time. Let me know how it's going so far, I know chapter one is a bit strange as I hop into this AU. I'm a big feelings person.