After what it seemed like an eternity underwater, strong arms finally got me out of the water. As soon as I was removed from the icy ocean, I coughed vigorously as I tried to get as much air as I could. My back ached, my breathing struggled. 
“Robert!” Father called out, helping me regain consciousness. “My dear boy, are you all right?” 
I nodded as I continued to cough. 
“There’s nothing to fear, son. I’m here.” Father then carried me and rushed over to my mother and sister. 
“Oh, Robert!” Mother cried as we approached them. Father crouched out to them as we sat on the corner. “My son,” Mother continued, pulling me into her arms. Her tears fell on my face as she cradled my little body. 
“No matter what happens, we stick together. Do you understand?” Father talked to us. Determination was evident in his voice, driven to make sure we survive this chaos. “I’ll make sure that all of us will return home safely.” 
Mother gave him a kiss and we shared a tight hug. 
At that brief moment of solace, everything seemed peaceful, secured. People still ran amok, streaming for their lives. But everything was muffled out as my family surrounded me. 
♔♔♔ 
My eyes slowly opened as I awakened. I sat up and sunk my head in my hands, trying to process the dream I just had. For the past months, I’ve had the strangest dreams. Most dreams can easily be called unreal. However, some of them didn’t feel like they were just dreams. 
They felt real. 
Could they be some kind of memories? Or have I gone mad? 
♔♔♔ 
Days passed since the night I had that strange dream. I planned to ignore it but I couldn’t anymore. I had to ask somebody about it. 
After I changed into my riding clothes, I headed to the kitchen in search of Nana. She can definitely explain the meaning of my dreams. She’s quite known to give somewhat accurate interpretations of dreams. 
“Good afternoon, everybody!” I greeted the servants upon entering. 
Everyone smiled and greeted me as I walked past them. Everybody with the exception of Nana Rose, Elizabeth’s former nanny. She’s always been the cranky woman of the kitchen. Nana Olsa would someone make a joke that Nana Rose was born that way. 
I looked around the kitchen but Nana was nowhere to be seen. I checked where she usually cooked but everything was clean. It’s as if she hasn’t cooked today yet. 
I approached one of the cooks, “Have you seen Nana Olsa?” 
“Your Highness,” the cook bowed, “I heard she’s tending to Her Majesty’s garden today.” 
“Thank you,” I nodded and rushed to Mother’s garden. 
♔♔♔ 
Approaching Mother’s garden, the fragrance of flowers can be smelled from afar. The breeze carried their scent, from the roses to the jasmines, towards my direction. It was incredibly enticing. As I entered, Nana was by the roses with a pair of cutters in hand. Seeing she hasn’t noticed me yet, I sneaked up to her and hugged her from behind.
“Oh!” she exclaimed as she grabbed onto my arm. “Oh, my dear boy!” 
I giggled mischievously as she turned. “Good afternoon, Nana.” 
“Good afternoon, dear one,” she smiled. She exhaled in relief, her hand on her chest. “You’ve been having too much fun scaring me.” 
“It’s not that, Nana,” I said, putting my hands behind me. “Well, I could be having too much fun,” I smirked, “But you’re just too easy to scare.” 
“I know I am but you have to refrain from doing that. I might die of a heart attack,” she said. 
I chuckled, nodding. 
“What brings you here?” she asked, turning back to the roses. 
“I looked for you in the kitchen but you weren’t there. The cook told me you were taking care of Mother’s garden today,” I explained as I moved closer, standing beside her. 
She nodded, carefully examining the flowers. “It’s been a while since I last tended to them,” she replied. “I was supposed to do this every day. However, I wasn’t able to do that because somebody took my cutters and didn’t return it to its proper place. I had to ask someone to fetch me a new one.” 
“Were you able to find the culprit?” I asked. 
She stopped cutting and turned around. “I haven’t solved that matter yet. However, I found my cutters in one of my aprons. I found it this morning,” she giggled. I shook my head with a smile and she continued, “I’ve grown old, Robert. My mind wasn’t as sharp as it was before.” 
“You still know everything about me, Nana. Your mind isn’t that dull,” I replied. 
“Everything about your family is an exception, of course. Those were instilled in my brain during my prime. I would never forget them,” she smiled. She continued what she was doing and asked, “Why were you looking for me, dear one?” 
“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something,” I walked and stood at her right side. “I’ve been having dreams that felt like they were true. Like they were some kind of memories that I know nothing about,” I explained. “You used to give dream interpretations. I was hoping maybe you could give me some answers.” 
“What were your dreams about, exactly?” she asked, still cutting a few dead roses. 
“Some were memories of a happy family. But the recent ones were about me and the family. We were in a sinking ship,” I replied. 
Nana stopped. Her grip on her cutters tightened. She was still for a brief moment, staring at the shrub of roses. She didn’t say anything for a while. 
“Nana?” I called. “Have I said something wrong?” 
She blinked quickly as she got out of her trance. Slowly, she turned to me, “Robbert, perhaps it’s better if you don’t pay attention to those kinds of dreams. They could be just playing tricks on you. It can make you think that there’s something hidden when in reality, there’s nothing.”