Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a prince. His name was Prince Romeo. He lived in a place called LuLu Land. All the young wealthy girls would always try to look pretty and hit on him. They would flirt and sit next to him. Sometimes they went too close to him, which gave Prince Romeo an uncomfortable feeling. However, Prince Romeo didn’t want to marry young wealthy girls. He didn’t feel right with them.

His parents, the King and the Queen. Still ruled over LuLu Land. The King and Queen wouldn’t give up their throne until he got married, some urgent problem happened, or they both died. Prince Romeo really wanted to become King. He’d been looking forward to it ever since he was a child. Him sitting in the throne room, on his throne. Him getting crowned. He just loved thinking about it; and the feeling, oh, it made him impatient, and too excited. Prince Romeo asked this question constantly. But, his parents always said, “Find a woman you like. If you can’t find one, we can have a ball.” 

Prince Romeo’s parents always offered to have a ball. They too were getting older as the years went by. They too, were eager for their son to become king. They had raised a bright, intelligent, handsome child. People could go on, and on, about his traits, and his looks. The King and Queen knew he would make a great king. But, Prince Romeo always rejected the offer. Prince Romeo knew that only wealthy girls and women would come. Prince Romeo didn’t want to marry wealthy people. Prince Romeo wanted the girl of his dreams to be lovable, gorgeous, smart, and that girl had to actually love him. Not just marry him to take over and rule.

So, Prince Romeo came up with an idea. Though, he didn’t think his parents would be pleased. But, Prince Romeo knew he had to try to get his dreams to come true. Prince Romeo went to his parents to ask. “I got an idea how I can find a girl for me, without having a ball.”

The King and Queen were eager to know the idea, so they immediately responded, “What is it?”

“I thought that maybe I could go out. Dressed up to look like a normal wealthy young man. Maybe walk around. Hang out with a girl. Find out if I like anyone or not.”

Of course, the King and Queen were not pleased. “No. You aren’t going out. What will you tell the girl when she asks about you? You can’t lie of course,” The Queen said.

“Well, I can try to keep my identity as hidden as possible. I could say I’m connected to the kingdom. Besides, I should also check out how people are doing, and what they need if I’m going to be a king soon.”

“He’s right,” The King said.

“Alright, you can go. But, come back before dinner,” The Queen said.

Prince Romeo rushed out of the room as soon as he was dismissed. He knew it wouldn’t be that hard to hide his identity. He and his friend had the same names. It was a coincidence. Besides, Romeo always had normal wealthy clothes, just in case. He changed into them, took his crown off, and tried to make himself look like a normal person. He also tried to make sure he didn’t look like the prince. Although he and his friend looked identical, it wouldn’t be much of a problem.

So, Prince Romeo headed out of the kingdom with an apple and some money. He walked right into the village, where all the stores were and people were shopping. He didn’t realize but it seemed that a girl, a wealthy one, had already caught him. 

“Hi!” She said to Prince Romeo.

“Good morning!” He replied back.

“My name’s Linda.”

“What a pretty name.”

“Thank you! Would you like to take a stroll with me?”

“I am so very sorry, but I’m busy right now.”

“That’s okay.”

And just like that, Linda walked away. She hadn’t even had one suspicion. Prince Romeo hadn’t even told her his name. Well, now that she was gone, he could go looking for the love of his life. Suddenly, he heard an angry voice.

“I want five Gold coins. Not bronze, you hear me?” A man said.

Prince Romeo looked toward the sound. There was a girl with dark brown hair like dark chocolate, and well she was wearing not nice clothes. A grayish-white shirt, and a maroon skirt. At her left side was a little girl, maybe about five years old. She was wearing the same clothes, with the same color hair. On her right was a little boy, about eight years old. He was wearing a gray shirt too big for him, and shorts that were also too big for him. He realized another thing, all of them were wearing slippers, no shoes. And the slippers were too small for them. All three of them were standing at a bread stall.

“I…I don’t have five gold coins. This is all I have,” The older girl wailed.

“Then you can’t have your bread!” The man yelled.

Could it be true? Could there actually be people who were so poor they didn’t have enough money to buy some bread? Prince Romeo thought to himself. Prince Romeo felt bad for them, he didn’t want them to be hungry, so he decided to help.

“What’s going on here?” Prince Romeo said.

“This filthy girl won’t give me five gold coins!” The man said.

Prince Romeo looked at the girl, she had a white face that shined like the stars, and blue eyes like the ocean. He was surprised that even though they were so poor, they were able to wash their faces. He looked down at the two young kids, they were looking at him with pleading eyes. Prince Romeo gave them a sympathetic look. The older girl had her head bowed low like she expected he was going to say that the man was right.

“I’ll pay for it,” Prince Romeo said to the man.

The man was surprised, so were the kids. Especially the older girl, she looked shocked. Of course, it wasn’t normal that a wealthy young boy would help a poor girl. Prince Romeo gave the man five gold coins, and the bread to the girl. He smiled back at her.

“Thank you so much. I…I don’t know how to thank you,” The older girl said.

“No problem,” He told her.

They all started to leave the shop. “Thank you, really. If you hadn’t helped us, we would've gone hungry again,” the older girl said.

“Really?” Prince Romeo said.

“Yes.”

“How come you're so poor, and you don’t have enough money?”

“People like you wouldn’t understand.”

Prince Romeo really felt sympathetic now. It was like someone had just stabbed his heart. He couldn’t believe how poor they could be. “How about you tell me?” He said.

“I have to work, on my own, leaving the two at home. Most days we don’t have food. All I get is one bronze coin a day. If I’m lucky, I get one gold coin.”

“The kids must be lonely at home. How come you do the work? What about your parents?” At that point, Prince Romeo knew he said something wrong. The older girl covered her face and started to cry. “I’m so sorry, I…I didn’t mean anything.” The kids looked at him worried, and they actually looked like they were afraid of him. So, Prince Romeo did the only thing that could come to mind. He brought her into his arms. “Shh, it’s okay. I’m really sorry.” Prince Romeo’s mother had done the same thing to him when he was a child. 

Prince Romeo realized something else, she didn’t look filthy at all. She smelled like flowers and looked like one too. The kids calmed down, and it seemed he wasn't’ a monster to them anymore. He hugged them too.

The older girl looked up at him, surprised she was in his arms. “Shh, it’s okay,” Prince Romeo said, wiping her tears.

She quickly went out of his arms, but she didn’t leave his side. She stayed close to him, head on his shoulder, which a matter of fact Prince Romeo actually liked. To him, it seemed like she trusted him. “My parents died from hunger. So, I have to go to work every day to get food for my siblings.”

“I’m sorry, I wish I could do something about it.”

“I guess.”

“What’s your name?”

“Luna.”

“Luna. I like that. You have a pretty name.”

“Thank you,” Luna said blushing.

“What’s your sibling's name?”

“That’s Charlotte, she’s five. That’s Charles,” Luna said, taking her head off his shoulder. 

“Charles, you have a very fancy name. How old are you?”

Charles looked at Luna if he could answer. She made some sort of sign that looked like a T. “I’m seven.”

“Really? When I first looked at you, I thought you were eight. You must help your sister a lot right?”

“Not really,” Charles said.

“How old are you?” Prince Romeo asked Luna.

“Me? I…I…” Luna stammered.

“Go on, it’s fine.”

“I’m seventeen, almost eighteen.”

“Huh? I thought you were fifteen. When’s your birthday?”

“Thursday.”

“How exciting, just two days away.”

“Yes.”

“What do you do for your birthday?”

“Nothing much. If we’re lucky, we can buy one cookie.”

“How terrible that you can’t do anything.”

Luna just nodded.

They finally reached Luna’s house. It looked more like a cave actually. But, it was all blocked out in an unknown place, which would keep them safe.

“You live in a cave?”

“I can’t do anything about it. It’s the safest and most affordable place I can get.”

“I see.” 

As the rest of them went in, Prince Romeo spotted a row of flowers. He picked one up and examined it. It was a maroon and white dahlia flower. It looked just like Luna and smelled like her. Prince Romeo thought she might use it as a perfume. He went inside and handed it to Luna.

“You look just like this flower,” Prince Romeo said.

“Oh, thank you,” Luna said blushing.

“Hey Charlotte, Charles? Want a piggyback ride?”

“Yes!” They screamed.

So, he started with Charlotte when she was the youngest. He ran around with her, she was screaming like she was having the best time she’d ever had in her life. Prince Romeo did the same with Charles, except he put him up in the air like he was flying.

“Charles, Charlotte dinner time!” Luna yells.

The kids rush to the bread. Those are some hungry kids, Prince Romeo thinks. He walks over to them. Luna gives each of them a piece, she offers Prince Romeo a piece.

“No thank you. Hold on,” Prince Romeo looked up at the sky, it would be dinner time for him too if he didn’t leave now. “I have to leave now. Or I’m going to be in big trouble. Bye! Nice meeting you Luna!” Prince Romeo turned and ran.

“Wait! I don’t even know your name!” Luna yells. But, it was too late. Prince Romeo was already too far away.

Prince Romeo ran as fast as he could through the crowd to the castle. He finally reached the gate and went inside. Then, he went upstairs to his room, put on his prince outfit, and went downstairs to the dining room for dinner. 

“Well, you were in such a hurry,” The Queen said.

“You must’ve had luck today,” The King said.

“I was having such a great time, I didn’t realize it was almost time for dinner,” Prince Romeo said.

“Well, do you like the girl?” The Queen asked.

“Yes, but I’m not so sure that I would marry her.”

“Oh, then you didn’t have much luck.”

“No, I did. It was really nice meeting her, I want to see her again tomorrow.”

“Sure, you can. She didn’t ask you your name?” 

“Nope.”

“That’s quite interesting.”

They spent the rest of the dinner talking about his daily schedules. After that, Prince Romeo got ready for bed and went to sleep dreaming about Luna.

The next day the prince didn’t even sleep in for a second. He jumped out of bed, got ready, and headed down for breakfast. After breakfast, Prince Romeo followed his daily schedule and classes. Prince Romeo then ate his lunch. Next, Prince Romeo changed his look into a wealthy boy and headed out to meet Luna.

Prince Romeo had brought money again, just in case Luna might need help again. He thought that Luna might be at the bread store, so he went there, and he was right. But the man who sold bread was screaming at her again, which he wasn’t expecting. 

“What’s going on here? You have no right to scream at this young lady,” Prince Romeo told the man.

“This girl won’t give me ten gold coins!” The man yelled.

“What?! That’s not fair. Yesterday, you said five, you can’t turn it into ten now. I know you want more money, but no one will want your bread if you turn the prices up.”

“Fine. Five gold coins!”

Prince Romeo handed over five gold coins to the man. The man handed Luna the bread, and the four of them left the store.

“Thanks for having my back again,” Luna says.

“No problem Luna,” Prince Romeo says.

They all walk in silence, when they get to the cave, Luna quickly cuts pieces of bread. Charlotte and Charles gobble it up. Next, Luna makes them sleep. Once she’s done, she sits next to Prince Romeo on the rock.

“What was that T sign you made to Charles yesterday?” Prince Romeo asked.

“Oh, we don’t trust people we don’t know. So, when I figured out you were trustworthy I gave him that sign which meant that we could trust you.”

“Really. That’s neat.”

“Anyway, you never told me your name.”

“You never asked.”

“Well, what’s your name?”

“Romeo.”

“Romeo? That sounds awfully familiar.”

“Yes, well, I am in some way connected to the Royal family.”

“Shouldn’t I call you sir or something?”

“Oh please, just call me Romeo.”

“Ok, Romeo.”

“So, tomorrow’s your big day.”

“Yes, it is. No cookies for me. I didn’t get enough gold coins for cookies.”

“How come? Don’t you still have tomorrow?”

“I have off tomorrow because it’s my birthday.”

“Oh. I wish I could do something about it.”

“Me too.”

“I guess I should head back now,” Prince Romeo says, looking up at the sky.

“Ok. Bye Romeo.”

Prince Romeo takes Luna’s hand and says, “Your hands are as soft as a blanket.”

“Oh thank you.”

Prince Romeo kisses her hand, and says “Bye Luna!” He turns and runs back to the castle, before he’ll be in a rush again, while Luna stares in the distance, shocked.

The next day. Prince Romeo has the same routine. When he finally heads out to meet Luna again. In one hand he holds a basket with a cake, a knife, some bowls, and a fork. On his way, he stops at a clothing store. There were gowns that were so beautiful. And wealthy boy suits that were so handsome. Luckily, he had brought money. Prince Romeo bought a gown that was the color of Luna’s eyes for Luna, a suit for Charles, and a violet gown for Charlotte. He also buys a hairbrush for the girls and a comb for Charles.

When Prince Romeo reaches the cave, there’s no one there. So he enters inside. But he doesn’t see anyone there either. He starts walking down deeper into the cave. He starts to hear giggles. When he finally reaches, he sees what he never would've expected.

“Wow!” Prince Romeo says in awe. It was a huge meadow that had a stream. There were trees with lush green leaves and grass. The sun is bright and warm. Prince Romeo smiled looking up at the sky.

“Romeo?” Luna asks.

Prince Romeo jumped. He forgot that they were there. “Happy eighteenth birthday!”

“Thank you. What do you have?”

Prince Romeo starts spreading a picnic blanket. Then, he puts down the utensils, bowls, and cake. Luna's mouth was wide open and her eyes were big like eggs, she wasn’t expecting a cake. “Thank you so much, Romeo!” She says, hugging Prince Romeo.

“You're very welcome.”

Luna cuts the cake while they all sing happy birthday. After they finish eating, Luna puts the utensils, bowls, basket, and cake away. Then, she comes back and sits next to Prince Romeo. “What’s in the bag? A gift for me?”

“Actually, a gift for all of you.” Prince Romeo slowly pulls out all the clothes. All of them are struck by awe. Even when he shows the hairbrushes and comb. “Go quickly wear them, I want to see how you look,” he says to Luna and Charlotte. Luna and Charlotte hurry away with their hairbrush and new clothes. On the other hand, Prince Romeo helped Charles get dressed, and fixed his hair. He looked so different, you couldn’t even tell he was actually poor.

“Romeo?” Charles asked.

“Yes,” Prince Romeo said.

“Can you be my big brother and my protector? Because I think you’ll make a great one.”

Prince Romeo laughed, “Maybe.” Prince Romeo whipped his head around and saw Charlotte running toward him. He stood up and ran toward her. He scooped her up and spun her around. Prince Romeo put her down.

“Sister wants to put braids on me, but I want my hair down. Can you brush it?” Charlotte asked. It was a custom that everyone followed that you would call the older siblings Sister, or Brother, and anyone near their age the same thing. It was shown as a sign of respect.

“Ok, I’ll do my best.” So he brushed her hair so that it lay down her back. Once he was done, Charlotte was so happy, Prince Romeo was surprised he’d done a great job.

“Thank you so much!”

“You're very welcome.”

“You’re the best big brother I’ve ever had!”

“Aww. That’s so sweet of you.” In response, Charlotte kissed his cheek, as if he was her normal brother. Of course that shocked Prince Romeo, but he smiled.

“Attack!” Charles called. He had caught Prince Romeo off guard. He lunged right at Prince Romeo, and Prince Romeo was on his back. Of course, Charles was just playing. He wasn’t actually going to attack him. But, he and Charlotte started to tickle him. It was obvious, Prince Romeo didn’t know what they were about to do because he just lay there. When they did, he laughed so hard, he could barely talk.

“Ha, ha, ha, sto…ha, ha, stop it, ha, ha, it tickles, ha ha ha,” Prince Romeo continued to laugh. At last, the two stopped, they thought it was enough. But, they started to shower him with grass. The two ripped the grass and sprinkled it onto Prince Romeo like they were sprinkling cake.

“Charles! Charlotte! What do you think you’re doing!” Luna yells. Charles, and Charlotte, stopped immediately, and put their heads down in shame. 

“We were just playing,” Charlotte said.

“Playing isn’t an excuse. You shouldn’t do that. You're hurting the ground, and killing the grass. You’re also getting Romeo dirty. Say sorry.”

“I am so very sorry Romeo sir,” Charles, and Charlotte said. This was the practice of apologizing to one another. You would start with I am so very sorry, say the person’s name, and then whether they were female or male, no matter the age, you would say ma'am, or sir.

But, Prince Romeo wasn’t paying attention, he was staring at Luna. The ocean blue dress had suited her well. She had brushed her hair down straight and styled it a bit. But then he started getting a feeling that everyone was watching.

“Pardon me, did I miss something?” Prince Romeo said.

“I am so very sorry Romeo sir,” Charles, and Charlotte said again.

“Sorry for what?” He asked, confused.

“For sprinkling grass on you, which has made you dirty,” They said.

“Oh, no problem. Don’t worry about that.”

The two kids put their heads back up. “Do you think we are naughty?” Charles asked.

“Kind of. But, don’t worry about it, okay?”

“Ok.”

“Anyway,” Prince Romeo said, standing up. He walks over to Luna. “You look gorgeous.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“You’re very welcome. May I have this dance.”

“Yes. But, I don’t know how.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll help you on the way. You’ll get it.”

He put one hand on her waist and the other in her hand. Luna put her other hand on the skirt part of her gown. They moved back and forth, and slowly Luna understood how to do it. Even the little ones started to copy them. At some point, Prince Romeo twirled her around. She had gotten so dizzy, she almost fell. After that, she put both hands on his shoulders, and he put both hands on her waist. The two danced around like a happy couple. At another point in time, he spun her around so fast, she felt like she was flying, and they both fell to the ground.

“That was really nice,” Luna said.

“Indeed it was,” Prince Romeo replied. After all that, Prince Romeo knew that this was the love of his life. She was just who he wanted to be with. At the same time, Luna was also falling in love with him. She had never imagined that a young man who was wealthy would come to her and spend time with her. But little did she know that there was something up with him. She felt like he was some special person, not just to her, the whole community. Luna felt like she'd heard and seen him somewhere, but she couldn’t recall it. 

“Your eyes are like emeralds,” Luna says.

“Thank you very much.”

“You’re so very welcome.”

“What is this gold necklace?”

“It’s like a locket. It has a picture of my parents inside. See?” Prince Romeo saw it alright. He saw that Luna had inherited the tone, and looks of her face from her mother, and her hair and eyes from her father. There was something about the father though, it seemed like he’d seen that face around before.

A while later, Prince Romeo had to go home, so he said goodbye to them and headed for the castle. When Prince Romeo was changed into his normal clothes, there was a knock on his door. “Come in,” he said. It was his best friend Romeo. The two of them looked alike. Green eyes. Same skin town. Same height, same build. The only difference was their hair. Prince Romeo had dark brown hair like dark chocolate, and Romeo had orange hair like it was on fire.

“Good evening Romeo,” Prince Romeo said.

“Good evening,” Romeo replied.

“You seem curious.”

“Well, you’ve been leaving the castle instead of hanging out with me. What have you been doing out of the castle anyway?”

“Searching for the love of my life, and I found her.”

“Really? So you finally got an interest in wealthy girls?”

“Nope. Not wealthy.”

“What do you mean?”

“As sad as it sounds, there are actually poor people in this town.”

“What? So, you’re telling me the love of your life is poor.”

“Yes, but she doesn’t look like it.”

“What’s her name?”

“Luna.”

“Luna? You really had luck huh. Wait, that sounds familiar.”

“What do you mean?”

“Remember the guy, with dark brown hair, and ocean blue eyes. He barely had or ate food, and everyone would look at him with disgust. Then there was this rumor that his brother killed him, and that he was gone. Also, his wife and kids disappeared?”

“I remember. Wasn’t it because he thought that his brother's daughter would become Queen because of her prettiness?”

“Yes, and the daughter’s name was Luna.”

“Yes, you’re right. But, she told me they died of hunger.”

“Either she lied to you, or she was told wrong.”

“Someone definitely told her something else, she wouldn't lie to me.”

“So, tell me about her.”

“Okay, but don’t tell anyone.”

“Okay.” So he told Romeo everything about Luna, how he had met her, and how he'd left her today. “Wow. You’ve got a girl.”

“Yes.” Shortly after Romeo left, his dad came in.

“Son?”

“Yes, father.”

“We need to talk.”

“About what?”

“It seems you’ve found your dream girl now. You’ve been out for three days now, coming back all happy. You even took a cake today, which was interesting.”

“Yes, I did find her.”

“Why don’t you tell me about her?”

“Her name’s Luna. I met her at the bread stand. She wanted bread, but she didn’t have any gold, so I helped her. I have been doing that for the past two days. We talked a little, and I got to know her siblings. The thing is she’s poor, and she has no parents. The next day I helped her with the bread again. We talked, and I told her my name. She immediately recognized the name, but I guess she couldn’t remember who had the name. Then today was her birthday, so I told the maid to make a cake. On my way to her house, I bought her and her siblings some wealthy clothes. We all had fun together, and we danced, and then I came home.”

“There are actually people who are poor?”

“Yes, it’s sad.”

“I’d like to get to see this girl.”

“But, she doesn’t even know I’m the prince.”

“Yes, well are you going to propose?”

“Yes, but not until three days later. I’ll have to prepare things first.”

“Your mother isn’t going to be happy that she’s a poor girl.”

“Just don’t tell her, I want to surprise her.”

“Ok.”

The next day, it was Friday. After Prince Romeo was finished with his schedule, he went out to meet Luna again. He spotted her at the bread stand, and the man was yelling at her again.

“Why are you yelling at this young lady?” Prince Romeo asked.

“She won’t give me gold!” The man replied. It was the same story he had every day, but it was true.

“Luna?” Prince Romeo asked.

“Yes,” Luna replied.

“Could you get three loaves of bread today?”

“Why?”

“I’ll tell you later.”

“How much are three loaves of bread?” Luna asked the man.

“Fifteen gold coins.”

Prince Romeo gave him fifteen gold coins, and they took the three loaves of bread. “Why’d you tell me to take three loaves of bread?” Luna asked as they left.

“Because I won’t be here for the next two days.”

“How come?”

“I’ll be busy. But, I want you to wear the dress that I got you, on Monday. All three of you.”

“Ok.” Luna had an idea that she knew what was coming. She knew that on Monday, he would propose to her. As much as she wanted to do, she couldn’t because her siblings would be left alone. So she’d have to say no. But, she didn’t know the ideas Prince Romeo had, she still didn’t realize he was a prince. When they got to the cave, Charles, and Charlotte ate their bread, then they played with Prince Romeo. At last, it was time to go home, Prince Romeo said his goodbyes, and left home.

The next day, Prince Romeo didn’t go to see Luna. But, when it was lunchtime, he was surprised to see who was there. It was Linda and her father. But then, there was something unusual about him, he had the same type of looks as Charles.

“Good evening,” Prince Romeo said.

“Good evening, it's an honor to be with you,” Linda’s father said.

“Linda is here to have a talk with you, after lunch you two can go in the garden,” The King said.

“Yes father,” Prince Romeo said. So after lunch, they went into the garden to talk about whatever Linda wanted to.

“You seem distressed,” Prince Romeo said.

“I’m not.”

“What did you want to talk about?”

“My father wants you and me to get married, so he could take over.”

“What?!”

“Yes. But I don’t want to, I’m sorry if that made you feel bad.”

“It’s fine if you don’t want to, but I think I know who might want you.”

“Who?” Romeo asks, appearing out of nowhere.

“You!” Prince Romeo says.

“Well, it’s nice to see you again Linda,” Romeo says.

“Wait, you two already know each other?” Prince Romeo asks.

“Yes. When you were out, I went to meet her.”

“Can I see the locket?” Prince Romeo asks Linda. Linda hands it over, it had her father, also her mother, but it looked like the same woman in Luna’s locket. It also looked like there was something wrong. The man looked more like Charles, and their hair was so alike. But the man in Luna’s locket had a golden tint to it, just like Linda had.

“Was it your father who killed his brother?” Prince Romeo asks, handing the locket back to Linda.

“Yes.”

“Do you know someone named Luna?”

“Yes, she was my cousin.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“I need to know more about this from your father. Is there anything else you need to tell me?” Prince Romeo said.

“There is something suspicious between my father and my family, he won’t tell me anything.”

After that, Prince Romeo and the rest of them went to the throne room. The King and Queen were already in their thrones. Linda’s father was sitting in a chair. Linda sat next to him. Prince Romeo sat on his ‘prince' throne, and Romeo stood next to him.

“William, I want to ask you some questions,” Prince Romeo said to Linda’s dad.

“Go on, your highness,” William said. Saying ‘your highness’ or ‘your majesty’ wasn’t an obligation, but most people said it anyway.

“Tell me about the event that you killed your brother.” William was startled when he was asked the question, even the King and Queen were quite concerned.

“I…I. Well, that day I set off to kill my brother, because I thought his daughter would be the prettiest, and become Queen one day, and I didn’t want that, so I killed him. And he was going to die from hunger anyway.” 

“I want you to tell me about your family.”

“What part, your majesty?”

“Your wives, and children.”

It looked as if William didn’t want to say anything. It was like today all his secrets were being uncovered. “My wife is her mother, who is now dead from hunger and misery. My children aren't Linda. I’m so very sorry Linda.”

Linda was staring at William with her mouth wide open. She couldn’t believe that this man wasn’t actually her dad. That only meant one thing. He had lied to her his whole life.

“Who is my father then?” Linda asked.

“Your father is Andrew. I killed your father,” William said looking down.

“Who are your real children?” Prince Romeo asked.

“Luna, Charlotte, and Charles,” William said.

“Who is Linda’s mother?”

“Athena.”

“Who is Luna’s, Charles, and Charlotte’s mother?”

“Athena.”

Prince Romeo was really confused now. It didn’t make sense. How could Linda, and Luna have different fathers, but the same mother? But then it came to him. Athena must’ve divorced one of them, then married the other.

“How old is Linda?”

“Twenty.”

“How old is Luna?”

“I don’t know.”

“She’s eighteen. Charles is seven, and Charlotte is five.” Everyone was surprised he knew all their ages, but no one asked how.

“Tell me about how it happened that Linda and Luna had the same mother and different fathers.”

“Andrew married Athena. They gave birth to Linda. Two years later Athena divorced him because he couldn’t give them enough food. Linda then went to a foster home. Then Athena married me. We gave birth to Luna. We lived like that for fifteen years. By then, Charles was born and he was by that time five. We had also given birth to Charlotte, who by that time was two. We would visit Linda often, just the two of us. Then one day, we went to visit Linda. That day when I saw Linda, she looked so beautiful, I just knew she would be chosen as Queen. So I planned to kill Andrew. He was all weak from hunger so I thought why not get rid of him. That day when Athena heard. She divorced me and left to live in a cave. She thought it was safe and isolated, so she lived there. But we planned something. I said that I would take care of Linda. She had two lockets. One for Luna and the other for Linda, but she has switched both of them, so they wouldn’t know who was their real father. I had rarely seen my real kids anyway. I was always busy with work. So, the lockets were given. A month later I heard Athena died of misery and hunger. Linda and I went to the funeral. What caught my eye was Luna crying with her siblings. She was all on her own now. But I also realized that Luna was starting to get prettier, and for some reason I wanted Linda to be Queen. So, I tried to make Linda be prettier.”

“You didn’t help Athena or Luna at all?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Linda, did you know anything about this?”

“I can’t believe Luna and I are half-siblings. I was told we were cousins but now I realize the only way we’re related is by our mother. I didn’t know about this story. I can’t believe my father was killed.”

“Linda, how come you didn’t help Luna?”

“I didn’t know much about her. I didn’t have my own money. I wasn’t let out of the house much, but I should’ve at least visited her.”

“William, are you trying to take over the throne?”

“Not anymore.”

“How come?”

“I feel ashamed.”

“What should I do with you?”

“Please, I beg you for your mercy. Let me go, I’ve made many mistakes.”

“Don’t worry you’re released. You and Linda are dismissed.”

On Sunday, Prince Romeo had some work to do. Today he didn’t follow his schedule because he had to prepare for tomorrow, the day he would propose to Luna. So he started with making sure the carriage was ready. It was, but they dusted the carriage a bit. The horses were healthy and fit. The guards were also ready, and the Queen was bursting with excitement. She couldn’t wait to meet his true love. But a little while before lunch, the King brought him aside.

“Is that the real story of Luna?” The King asked.

“Yes. It’s indeed very sad. Not even Luna knows about it.”

“Are you going to tell her?”

“Yes.”

“You’re growing up so fast. Keep it up.”

The next day, he woke up with a start. He was going to propose to Luna. Though Prince Romeo was very nervous, he was ready. Prince Romeo did the things on his schedule. After lunch, he got the carriage, the horses, and the guards ready. The King and Queen hopped into the carriage. Then, they all marched to the cave, which was Luna’s house. It was the tradition in royal families. That was when the Prince or the King was going to propose to a lady. He must have a carriage, two horses, two guards in the front, and two guards in the back. And that he himself must be in the front. Also that all of them must march all the way to the house.

When Prince Romeo reached there, Charles immediately heard the noise. He ran out with joy in his new suit to see Romeo, and screamed Romeo! But when he saw a boy in a prince's outfit he was confused. Following him was Charlotte, but even she was confused. The smile on Prince Romeo’s face reminded him of Romeo, he even looked like him. But, he had a prince outfit which she couldn’t work out the meaning of.

“Good afternoon, Charles and Charlotte,” Prince Romeo said.

“Good afternoon, Prince Romeo,” The two said. 

It was so quiet that Luna had to go outside to see what happened when she saw her Romeo in a prince's outfit.

“Good afternoon, Luna,” Prince Romeo said.

“Good afternoon, Ro…Prince Romeo,” Luna struggled to say.

“I’m sure you’re confused. But I am the boy who has been spending time with you for the last four days.”

“You're the prince?” Luna said.

“Yes.”

“But, you never told me.”

“We would’ve never gotten to know each other then.”

“You’re right.”

“Luna,” Prince Romeo says, coming a little closer. “Every day that I’ve shared with you has been very valuable to me. It is one of the best memories I’ve ever had. From the day I helped you with bread to the day we danced in harmony. Luna, you have been the most precious to me my whole life. You have taught me many things.” Prince Romeo got down on one knee and said, “My beautiful Luna, will you marry me?”

Luna was stunned, she had known it was coming, but she hadn’t expected it to be the prince. Although she loved him with all her heart, she loved her siblings more. Luna knew that there was no way Prince Romeo would allow the children to live in the palace. If she said yes, her siblings would be all alone. They wouldn’t be able to care for themselves. Even though Luna wanted to, she would have to say no, “I…I…I…” Luna stammered.

Prince Romeo’s face dropped, “You don’t want to?”

“I do! I want to. It’s just that I…I can’t.”

“How come?”

“My siblings will be left all alone.”

Prince Romeo smiled a big smile, he loved the fact that she loved her siblings so much. “There is no need to worry. If you say yes, your siblings will come with us. They’ll live with us until they are eligible for marriage.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Alright then, yes I will marry you.”

Prince Romeo slipped the ring onto her finger. Then, catching Luna by surprise, spun her around then said, “My beautiful Luna.”

“Do you want to bring anything with you?” Prince Romeo asked.

“Oh yes, just wait a minute.” Luna ran into the cave, and she came back with a bag. Prince Romeo held her hand and brought her and her siblings to the carriage. They all hopped in, while Prince Romeo held the door. When they were in the carriage, he shut the door,  then went back to his place, and they all marched back to the palace. 

On their way, William saw them. He knew that Prince Romeo had gone to propose, almost everyone knew the tradition. But William couldn’t understand why they had gone that far. It suddenly came to him. Luna. He felt instantly angry, but then quickly a rush of happiness. His real daughter was going to be Queen! Just as he always hoped. William couldn’t understand how they met, but he was happy. So happy he didn’t realize he was crying.

“Uncle? Are you okay?” Linda asked.

“Oh, I’m good,” he replied.

Days later, after they had gotten everything ready it was planned that they would be married on Friday, and be crowned on Saturday. Prince Romeo had even told Luna about her family and what he’d found out. She met Linda and William. Linda and Luna hugged like they’d known each other forever and switched lockets. When she met William, they hugged like they hadn’t seen each other in years.

On Friday, Luna and Prince Romeo were married. On Saturday, Prince Romeo turned into King Romeo. He was so happy sitting on his throne. His mother was crying as Romeo and his father put the crown of Kings on his head as Prince Romeo turned into King Romeo. King Romeo smiled as brightly as he could. 

Next to him, his wife would now be crowned Queen was also smiling, Charlotte and Luna’s personal maid crowned her with the tiara of Queens on her head. 

That night King Romeo and Queen Luna danced together. The former King and Queen danced. Romeo and Linda danced, and Charles and Charlotte danced. They all lived happily ever after.