How This Started: Chapter Three

''I need to become queen? ''Unicorn Princess thought. She wasn't sure how, though. Meanie Boy was dangerous. She couldn't beat him.

"You're the last royal unicorn," Handsome Prince said. "We're depending on you. If you don't become queen, Meanie Boy will rule forever."

"But he can't," Unicorn Princess said. "He doesn't deserve it. He killed my father." Handsome Prince really was handsome. His eyes were deep and rich, blue like the sea, showing only emotion.

"He's able to. He probably has the throne by now," Handsome Prince said. He felt Unicorn Princess's head with one hoof. His face grew concerned. "You're warm," he said.

"Am I sick?" Unicorn Princess asked. The last thing she needed was to be sick. I need to keep going, to get out of here, she thought. ''Wait. No. I need to become queen. The kingdom needs me.''

Handsome Prince left for a moment, then returned with his parents. Glint felt Unicorn Princess's forehead, frowning. "You poor dear," she said. "You're burning up! Pinky, would you please go to town with Handsome Prince and get the doctor? Unicorn Princess has a terrible fever."

''It's really that bad? ''Unicorn Princess thought. Worry encased her. She couldn't be sick. Meanie Boy could get her too easily. Or if she was really sick, she could die.

Glint seemed to sense her worry. "Shh, honey," she said. "You'll be just fine. It'll all be okay. Pinky and Handsome Prince will be back soon. They'll come with the doctor and he'll fix you right up."

Unicorn Princess heard the door close, and sadness washed over her. She wanted Handsome Prince to come back and be with her.

She must have fallen asleep. Glint shook her awake. "Wake up, darlin', they're back with the doctor." Three unicorns entered the room. One of them carried a small pack on his neck.

He was the doctor. He checked her and as he did, his expression grew more and more worried. Eventually he finished testing. He looked at his clipboard.

"Elemental fever," he said. "It's serious. You get it by being outside with a weakened system. I don't know what your little girl was doing outside while she was weak. I'll be coming back every day to check up on her."

And what he said next was what hurt most. "And keep your little boy away from her. It's pretty contagious. Don't want him getting sick too."

Unicorn Princess watched sadly as Handsome Prince left the room. She wanted him to come back. He would make her feel better, maybe even get better. With his beautiful, glittering black horn like an obsidian cone, he looked like he could create powerful magic. But his face was even more powerful- it could create the magic of love.

Unicorn Princess felt as if she weighed a thousand pounds with what the fever did. She worried it would last for a long time.

What if it killed her?