17 The Fight And The Promise

It's almost been a week since Lia got permission from her brother, Lucas, to constantly visit his library. As she happily walked down the hallway with a cheesy smile on her face, she began to realize how much her life changed. Comparing to her past life, where her entire life revolved around work to distract the longings of her lonely heart. Nowadays, her schedule consists of laughter and knowledge, hanging out with her brother Lucas in the library, eating cake with her maids Rose and Jennett, and even enjoying the morning watching her brother and Prince Noah wielding their swords, which happen to be very different from her fencing that she was so accustomed to.

"Good morning! I brought some cookies!" Princess Lia said with a bright smile, holding a light brown basket in her right arm. Her golden-light hair was tied back into a high ponytail, with a few strands sticking out in the front of her face.

"Now this is why I get up every morning," Prince Noah said, sighing in happiness. Lia rolled her eyes, she noticed the habit of doing that whenever she was around Noah.

"Whatever," Ethan mumbled, not even looking her way as he resumed swinging his sword. Prince Noah, who walked towards her, made an effort for reaching for the basket but Lia managed to move the basket just in time.

"You said you'd help me but I don't see any results. No results mean no cookies." She whispered, her smile turning into an irritated look. To be honest, her brother's attitude was starting to piss her off as well as his occasional comments.

"Geez, all this time I thought you were just coming to see me," he shook his head, with a look of disappointment.

"Keep your voice down," Lia said, wanting to kick him in his knees.

"You know...you've been hanging out way too much with that angry-looking brother of yours. You are starting to sound just like him. But a deal is a deal. Now watch." Noah grabbed a cookie and walked away with Lia slowly following after him. She didn't know what the boy had on his mind but the look he gave her when he reached for the cookie was enough to tell her that he was up to no good.

"What do you wan-" Before her brother could finish his sentence, Noah shoved the cookie in his mouth. Lia's eyes widened in shock, it was the same thing she'd done to Lucas except Ethan looked pissed.

"A-Are you oka-"

"You rascal...how dare you!" Ethan was more than pissed, he was furious. His face wasn't overcome with that weird expression as their other brother had.

"Come on, I know you love sweet things, why don't you just r-" Ethan swung his sword but Noah dodged him with no effort.

"P-Please don't fight..." Lia didn't know what to do.

"Stay out of this. Why do you always show up? I thought if I'd ignore you then you'd go away but no you still come back with that stupid smile every day. You have no right to smile for what you di-"

"Y-You are so mean!" Lia snapped. Her blood has been boiling at a high temperature this entire week and it just seemed like it reached its peak. "I make an effort to be closer to you and you still act like a stupid brat!"

"A...A stupid brat? Who do you think you are?"

"No, who do you think you are?"

"Guys...please calm down!"

"Stay out of this!" The two siblings yelled together. They glanced at each other with looks that could kill. Noah was in the middle, trying to put some distance in between them. Maybe the promise of helping Lia get closer with Ethan seemed to be impossible, he was as stubborn as a mule.

"You know what? I am done." She said, reaching out and harshly pushing the basket on Noah.

"That's right. You better not come back!"

"I won't! In my days of watching you, I've never seen such pathetic swordsmanship, even a commoner child who has never seen a sword is better than you!" Lia made sure to turn around when saying that phrase, so her dear brother could see the smirk on her face. He yelled after her with his friend holding him back.

The princess was reading a book on etiquette that her big brother recommended for her after seeing her impolite behavior to those who are of lower status than her. She was so happy that it was finally paying off, well in the wrong ways but it didn't matter. Her mind was clouded with anger, it has been a while since she'd seen herself overreact and explode like that. She also knew it wasn't healthy to keep her emotions bottled up, but in a strange world with even stranger laws and social standings, she had no one she could depend on or rant to. She was left with no other choice than to keep her emotions buried deep inside, even if it meant that she'd suffer in the end. And here she thought things were progressing.

She wasn't planning on going back to that field in at least a couple of weeks, or maybe ever. After the treatment she's been receiving, she couldn't tell when his opinion of her was going to start changing.

In a way, she understood how he felt. Losing his mother after childbirth and gaining a sister that was almost half dead was probably the worst thing that could happen to a child. It was even a miracle that the boys even remembered the passing of their mother, but she guessed it wouldn't be something hard to forget, after all, the woman was loved by everyone.

But was it really necessary for her to go through so much pain, just to try to chase after something that might not even happen? That's what her life as Susan taught her, you can't always have everything. But in this case, was it even possible? Should she just run away like she planned to before? Would it make her life more easier? A fresh start as an orphan in a far away village? With her past knowledge and talents, she could totally find a job despite her young age. Maybe even claim to have a curse that makes her body age slowly?

She was so deep in her thoughts, that she didn't even know where she was going until she arrived at the destination. It appeared that her body took her to her brother's library on instinct. She looked at the doorknob, her mind going blank for a couple of seconds. At least she still had him. He was the only hope she's been holding on to. She blinked her eyes rapidly, to stop her eyes from tearing up.

"Good morning brother," She said cheerfully, immediately spotting her brother sitting at the table. Countless books were spread up and stacked upwards, messier than his usual clean studying.

"You are here early," He said without looking up. His head was buried deep into his books. Lia smiled at the scenery in front of her, it was a familiar sight she buried deep into her mind.

"I guess, I couldn't wait to see you!" She said, that caught her brother's attention and he finally looked up.

"But you've seen me yesterday..."

"Wow brother, you look terrible! Did you get any sleep?" Lia asked, shocked at her brother's terrible state. Prince Lucas was even more shocked at his sister's blunt tongue.

"I did...a little bit." He said, his cheeks turning pink with embarrassment.

"Why is that, brother?" She took a seat on the hard wooden chairs, right opposite of her brother.

"W-Well...I woke up in the middle of the night from this random dream that I had...and now all I can think of is why is the sky blue?" Lia had to hold in her laughter for this one.

"Then why don't you ask your tutor later?"

"I don't want to rely too much on that old geezer..." He said with an irritated look. Of course, Lucas loved discovering things on his own.

"Such a foul tongue, now look who needs to learn etiquette!" She said finally letting out her laughter.

Why is the sky blue? Something to do with wavelengths of light... She thought, but she couldn't possibly tell her brother that, after all, he was known to be the brightest of all the noble's children, even some of the nobles themselves!

"Don't you have anything better to do...like playing with dolls?" Lia cringed.

"I don't play with dolls..."

"Right, of course, you are so mature for your age...I wonder why?" Lia felt a shiver of nervousness down her spine.

"You know brother...I don't have any magic, but maybe I'm just naturally smart and intelligent," She said, hoping he would get fooled by her lie.

"I suppose that could be it...I should research it too."

"I'd rather you not, thanks." She mumbled under her breath.

* * *

"That's right. You better not come back!" He yelled after her, his fists clenched in anger.

"I won't! In my days of watching you, I've never seen such pathetic swordsmanship, even a commoner child who has never seen a sword is better than you!" She yelled back at him, turning around with a taunting expression that seemed to snap all of Prince Ethan's senses.

"Damn you! Come back here!" He yelled after her, ready to pick a fight until Prince Noah intervened, holding him back by his arm.

"Let go!" He pulled away, watching the small figure of his sister disappear out of view.

"Why don't you at least try to get along?" Prince Noah broke the silence after giving his friend a few minutes to calm down.

"I told you this before she ki-"

"I know. But it wasn't her fault, was it? You had the luxury to grow up with your mother, even if she did pass away later. She had no one growing up, and now that she is finally away, her only family is avoiding her. How do you think that makes her feel?" He asked, looking at the back of his friend's head. He dropped down to sit on the grass, his head still facing the way his sister left.

He could almost see her smiling expression in his mind which didn't calm him down. In a way, what Noah said was true, he did know it deep down inside, but the feeling of frustration and the wound of the loss of his mother was yet to fully heal. His thoughts wondered aimlessly to the last few memories of his mother.

* * *

"Now, now, boys. Where are your manners? No running!" A beautiful woman said, as she graciously walked after her two young children. Her flowy long gown brushed the floor ever so lightly, with the soft sound of her heels hitting the marble floor.

"Boys, settle down. Playtime is over, it's dinner time." The Emperor, who was known to be cold and cruel, held a happy expression on his face upon seeing his two children running around the dining room, with his wife following shortly after him.

"Are you sure you should be moving?" He asked with concern, noticing his wife breathing deeply.

"The doctor said it's fine, the boys were simply too fast at walking. Don't worry about me, Klaus," She said, kissing her husband on the cheek.

"Should I carry you to the table?"

"Don't be silly, it's right there!" She laughed lightly. It was like music to his ears, a melody that would never be forgotten.

"Mommy, mommy, Lucas said that you've already picked the name for our sister! But you said that you will let us choose!"

"Which one of us is right, mother?"

"Calm down children, is that true dear? Have you already decided?"

"Her name is Emilia Alexandra Diana Louis Hamilton, our future baby princess! I've seen it...she is going to be an amazing younger sister and daughter, loved by all."

"I told you!"

"Bleh" Ethan stuck out his tongue, turning his head away from Lucas.

"She will be playing a lot with you two boys, you better be on your best behavior. Take care of her, look after her. Can you promise me, you two?"

"Yes, mother!"

"I promise!"