George held the door open for his younger sister as she entered his office. It wasn’t officially his office—he knew that—but as the heir and the one who had been managing the estate for months now, the distinction felt trivial.
Smiling warmly, he gestured for her to come in. It was a relief that she’d recovered so quickly, yet he couldn’t help but feel something was off. The way she walked, or maybe her gestures. Maybe she was still dealing with the trauma from the attack.
“Come in, sit next to me while I work. You might even learn some things. I have reports to go over and some issues to deal with, but interrupt me at any time.”
Devina just nodded and sat next to him, looking over the documents laid out on his table. His little sister had never cared much for governing, so it warmed him that she’d come just to spend time together.
He wondered how long it would take her to stop pretending to read the reports though. After ten more minutes of her flipping through documents, he finally spoke up. “You don’t have to pretend to understand all this,” he said, forcing a smile. “It’s complicated, even for me sometimes. Why don’t we talk about something you’re interested in instead? Any new dresses you’ve got your eye on?”
His sister glanced up at him, and if he didn’t know better, he would have sworn he saw a hint of amusement in her eyes. For some reason, this annoyed him. He understood she was just playing around, but grasping the significance of those documents had taken him years of hard work. It was a serious matter, not something to be trifled with. She wasn’t even reading the papers—just skimming them briefly before tossing them aside.
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He reminded himself that his sister was just playing around and tried to steady his frustration. He could use this moment as a teaching opportunity, perhaps helping her understand and appreciate the complexity of his work. “Listen, D,” he said, his tone softening, “if you’re interested, I can teach you a thing or two. We could pull out the old map and name all the cities together.”
Devina didn’t immediately respond, instead finishing up with another report. Finally, she looked up and asked, “So, this report—um, it says something about a rebellion? Is that a big deal? I’m kind of scared, big brother.”
Somehow she did not look particularly scared, but he pushed that unconscious thought to the back of his mind. His little sister needed his protection. “Don’t you worry about a thing, D. I will handle everything. Your big brother will deal with those arrogant commoners.”
But she didn’t stop there. “What’s this about a food shortage?” she asked, picking up another report. “And the coming winter—will it be really bad?” Her face remained innocently curious, but there was something in her eyes that gave him an uneasy feeling. He quickly brushed it aside.
“That’s not something you need to worry about,” he replied, trying to sound reassuring. “Why don’t you go play with Mira or do something else? I have a lot to take care of.”
Devina nodded and stood up, but not before giving him a lingering, thoughtful look. “Okay, I’ll see you later.” With one last, probing glance at the papers, she turned and left the room.
George sighed deeply once she was gone and turned back to his desk. The province wasn’t doing too badly, he reassured himself. Sure, there were challenges, but he was hopeful that the rebels would soon be forced to confront the harsh realities of winter. Once the cold made survival their only priority, he was confident they’d forget their petty grievances and fall in line. For now, he needed to address the pressing matters at hand and keep things running smoothly.