Patty Liu - Silent Reflections

King Wendell heard a commotion somewhere in his castle. It must be Antony and the princess returning from their journey. He put on his best smile and prepared himself for a royal greeting. But when the doors opened, instead he saw Virginia and Wolf carrying a baby on his shoulders. His smile froze in place and he looked at Virginia, then at Wolf.

"You're not Antony or the princess," he said, not realizing he had said it out loud.

"Of course not, Prince, it's Virginia and Wolf. We've brought our baby cub with us for a visit," Wolf said and put little Peter down on the ground. The baby immediately started crawling towards the nearest rug and began playing with the hanging tassels.

"Now, I have been king for over a year now. You may stop calling me Prince," Wendell retorted as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Huff puff, I can't help it, Prince. We called you that for quite a while back when you were a dog. I can't shake it now." Wolf grinned. "Come, meet your godson Peter."

"My godson? You made me godfather?"

"Of course, King Wendell. Who else would make a better godfather?" Virginia chimed in and picked up the baby Peter. He immediately started wailing when his mother pulled him away from his tangling of the rug tassels. She handed the crying baby to Wendell and he held it out at arms length and smiled.

"I'm a godfather!" he exclaimed.

Wolf put his arm around Virginia and squeezed her shoulder. They stood side by side and looked at the beaming king.

"Where's my dad, King Wendell? I want him to meet his grandson," Virginia asked when Peter finally quieted down and was staring up at the shiny crown that Wendell had on his head.

"Oh, Antony. He should be back any minute now. He's escorting my betrothed to the Fourth Kingdom right now," Wendell said as he struggled to keep little Peter's hands from grabbing at his gold crown.

"Huff, Puff! You're getting married?!" Wolf exclaimed. "Congratulations, Prince. Who's the lucky lady?" He pulled Peter off the king and set him back onto the floor again.

"Princess Wendy from the Second Kingdom. She has been a childhood friend of mine and we have kept in touch for quite many years now and she agreed to marry me when I put the question to her."

"Wow, I wished it had been as easy as that with Virginia and me," Wolf muttered.

"Congratulations, King Wendell." Virginia ignored Wolf and smiled. She went and gave the king a big hug.

"Thank you, thank you. Now I can't wait for them to get back here. I don't understand what is taking them so long, actually. They should've been back yesterday night but something must be keeping them. Not to worry, I'm sure. Antony will have a splitting toothache when he sees little Peter here. And of course you too, Virginia. Come, let's have a feast and celebrate."

"Ahh, yes, a feast. I am starving!" Wolf panted, his tongue hanging to the side.

"Wolf, you just ate a huge meal fit for an army at the Pizza Shack," Virginia said in shock. She could never get over how huge Wolf's appetite was.

"Lamp chop, that was no meal. You know how Manhattan food doesn't fill me up entirely. Plus, traveling through that mirror made me hungry all over again. I'm a growing Wolf, you know," he said and quickly followed the king in quick long strides.

Virginia laughed and picked up Peter from the carpet again and followed them into the dining area.