Maria and Jacob passed through the massive gate of the kingdom. They stayed side by side as they walked. The wind was blowing through each of their hair. Marias blew behind her back while Jacob's kept falling in front of his eyes.
Maria looked gracefully at Jacob, her green eyes beautifully contrasting with the surrounding meadow of flowers. She smiled blissfully then continued facing forward.
'I wonder where she's leading me.'
They were miles from the kingdom now, walking up a deep slope of grass.
"Are we almost there?"
"It should be just on top of this hill."
When Jacob reached the top of the hill, he was met with the most extravagant sight he's ever seen. The plains continued to move along the world, rivers running through vast expanses of grass, a mountain range hid itself along the horizon preparing for the sun to fall on it, the sky slowly turning a darker shade of purple every moment.
And on the very edge, looking out over the view, were three gravestones. All three of them were blank. The stone was rough around the edges as if an inexperienced person made them. They were weathered and cracked but still stood strong. Maria was still looking peacefully at the gorgeous view ahead of her.
Jacob caught himself looking at her a little longer than he expected and looked away, feeling heat run to his cheeks.
"What is this place?"
Maria was hesitant to answer at first but took a few steps towards the empty gravestones.
"These two are my parent's graves. And this last one is for me."
Jacob's heart dropped to his stomach, panic started rising in his mind and his thinking grew cloudy.
"What? What do you mean your grave?"
Maria was rubbing her own tombstone while looking at the view, light breezes blowing her hair back when they got the chance. Jacob could only see the back of her head.
"When I was younger, the environment that I was living in was unpredictable. I wasn't sure how long I would survive, especially enduring the wrath of my parents for so long. So, one night, I snuck out of the kingdom and tried to find a place I would like to be buried, in case I died. I just... I never got to choose anything my whole life. I was always a house servant, always a slave. I thought I would at least like the idea of choosing where I got to be laid to rest."
Jacob felt sadness and pity grip his heart.
"I just don't understand. Why make a grave for them, after everything they've put you through?"
Maria sighed and turned back to look at Jacob, tears filling the bottom of her eyes.
"T-they've never seen peace themselves. They never got a choice either. I know how horribly they treated me, but they were still my mom and dad. I won't ever be able to forget that, even if I can never forgive them for how they treated me."
Jacob felt utterly awful. Even if it wasn't his fault, it was his father who took away these choices from her family. Perhaps if there were someone else in charge, there would have been a different outcome. This seed of doubt, along with many others, have been building up to a point where he can't contain it anymore.
He needed to talk with his father, but with the kingdom's safety at risk from his uncle, he would have to bite his tongue and wait for now. The sun was now almost below the horizon, and the winds started to calm.
"There's another thing I don't understand. Why are there no names on the graves?"
"I never got to know my parents' names before they passed. To this day, I'm still unaware of what they are. As for me, I was never actually given a name from my parents. We were nobodies after all. All I ever was my entire life was a nobody."
"But... how did you come up with Maria?"
"That same night I was sneaking out; there was a man calling after his wife who left their house. He was pleading her to come back home. Her name was Maria. That name was called out so many times, so it was easy for me to remember. I think somewhere along the way I associated my name with 'returning home' in a way. So, even if I had nothing, even if I was nothing, I could remember my name and return to that feeling of being home. That feeling that I truly belong."
Jacob walked up to Maria. He looked at her teary filled eyes, pulled her in close, then wrapped his arms around her in a warm embrace. Maria immediately started sobbing into his shoulder, hugging him back. Jacob moved his hand behind her head to comfort her further.
The stars slowly appeared above their heads, the light of the full moon lit up the fields around them, the only sounds being made were Marias gentle sobs.
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry this happened to you."
As Jacob gently tightened his hold on her, her steel armor creaked slightly to the gesture. He looked up at the galaxies making their home in the sky with a resolved expression.
"I swear to you Maria, I will make a world where everyone feels welcome, where everybody can be somebody, where people have the freedom to choose what to do with their infinite potential and talents. I don't want anyone going hungry, I don't want anyone feeling unsafe, I will bring about a peace that triumphs any hatred that dares try to take root in this life. That will be my legacy."
The stars glistened, the grass bowed, the tress waved, the mountains smiled. The world itself glimmered with a certain feeling: hope.
Jacob and Maria stopped holding each other.
"Thank you. I really needed that."
"Me too. Now let's head back before my father starts to worry."
The pair slowly started their walk back to the kingdom, each with a newfound trust in one another.
And with that, the prince of the new world was born.