During the next five years of my life, I learned quite a lot about my surroundings even if the knowledge I obtained came from listening to the maids as they worked since I was never given any formal education like my brother. From the maid's idle chatter, I learned that the Felswore family held the noble rank of Count within the Urldrusk kingdom and were in charge of the Gauldrin county. Our territory was called a 'bread basket' of the Wortrest duchy which meant there was never a shortage of food and that my family was fairly well off. Though, I never saw much of that wealth. In my old patched-together dress and with my long light brown hair that looked unkempt no matter what I did, I stood out in the otherwise pristine mansion.

"Stop tracking dust!" a maid berated and shook the broom she held at me. My room was rarely cleaned, and my clothes barely got washed which meant I would track dirt around wherever I went.

"I'm sorry." The best way to avoid getting yelled at was to immediately apologize and run.

"I swear, they're like a rat more than a human," the maid said as she watched me leave.

"They might be," another maid scoffed as she continued dusting a windowsill. "I'm sure the Baron had a rat in his family lineage somewhere." The two maids laughed as I scurried away. Today felt like it would be a good day since I didn't get hit by the broom, this time. My mother had even shared some food with me this morning which meant I wasn't hungry, though I wish she would eat more since I don't remember the last time I saw her eat. I decided to try and cheer her up later by showing her some of my magic. My mother was a Magister who was blessed by Lord Sen and could control water and wind magic. While my water and wind magics were still lacking compared to hers, I was getting better with gravity magic. Mother said gravity magic was granted to all Magisters by Lord Zulm but was often neglected since it wasn't very potent compared to the elemental magics. However, mine was different. I liked seeing my mother's smile when I made my stuffed dog dance in the air by changing its gravity. She said I was special which also made me feel happy. When the sun went down, I laid out my dress on the floor so it wouldn't get wrinkled, put on my night dress, grabbed my doll, and went to my mother's room.

"Mom?" I knocked and opened the door but found the room was dark. My mother wasn't here...which meant there was only one other place she could be at this hour. It felt like my feet were trudging through the mud as I dragged myself to the Count's study.

"Do you even hear yourself!?" my mother yelled. The door to the Count's study was cracked open which allowed her voice to reach out into the hall. I stood next to the door and hugged my doll close to my chest. "She almost froze to death last winter!"

"Be lucky I even permitted them logs!" The Count was rubbing his temples in frustration. I guess they were going to have another screaming match. "Elizabeth, I have been very lenient regarding that child, as it is, but I will not spend any more than what is necessary for the survival of the bastard of a man who raped you!"

"But you don't know that!" my mother pleaded. There was a faint smell of alcohol wafting from the room. "Please, just take her to Lady Alm's temple so the priests can confirm-"

"Confirm what I already know!?" The Count's fist slammed on his desk. "The child looks nothing like me, Elizabeth! She's a spitting image of you with the only exception being her hair color which is the exact same as Braxton's!" Hugo Braxton; a name I became all too familiar with from the maid's berating. Baron Braxton was the man who assaulted my mother, and who was believed to be my real father. The Count gave a disparaged sigh as my mother didn't look like she would relent. "I will never understand why you are so adamant about protecting them. Have you forgotten that night at the ball!?"

"How could I forget?!" According to the maid's gossip, Braxton had drugged my mother during a ball that was being held by the Urldrusk royal family and he took her to a secluded room on the pretense of helping her get somewhere to rest after a sudden onset of fatigue.

"Well neither can I!" Now, the Count was crying too. "I can never forget the panic that gripped me when I couldn't find you after what felt like only a second of my attention being distracted! I can never forget the scene when I and Duke Ordrin entered that room only to find you bruised and in tears with a gag over your mouth while being plowed by Braxton! And, now!? Now you want me to care for the spawn that he left festering in your womb for nine months!?"

"But we were already trying for a second child for a month before the ball!" My mother continued to bargain for my future with a man who would never give me a thought. "There's a chance-"

"Be lucky I didn't have the child killed earlier." The Count's words held a coldness that sent a shiver down my spine. "If anything, I'm protecting that child from my future wrath because if I hear that the Hearth Mother's flock name the child as Braxton's bastard, I will behead them on the spot!"

"Charles!?"

"At least this way they are guaranteed to survive, Elizabeth. Be thankful I am willing to give that much." These words weren't anything new for me to hear as my mother often had screaming matches like this with the Count, but it still made my eyes tear up while listening.

"Lucina?" Adam appeared next to me in the hall followed by Karla who shot me a look of annoyance. My brother probably tried to see me before bed and Karla got in trouble since she didn't know where I was. Adam's gaze went to the cracked open door and the visage of our parents fighting. "Let's get you to bed," he said and extended his hand to me. His words offered no comfort, but they also didn't contain any venom. I still couldn't read his expression even after all these years.

"...Okay." I took his hand and he started leading me down the hall back to my room.

"Lord Adam!" Karla got upset seeing us holding hands.

"I know, Karla," he answered in an uninterested tone but refused to let go of my hand.

"Then, you shou-"

"Do I need to repeat myself?" Adam stopped walking and looked back at Karla. He turned his head so I couldn't see his expression, but Karla's face became frightened so I could only imagine what the look my brother gave her was.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"...No, Lord Adam," Karla's voice was sheepish as she gave a deep bow.

"Then, leave us."

"Yes, Lord Adam." Karla disappeared into the darkness of the mansion and Adam continued leading me back to my room. Sunlight reflecting off Sailest, a massive purple orb in the sky, and its rings that we weren't a part of dimly lit the corridor just enough so that there wasn't a need for a candle. When we got to my room, Adam remained in the doorway as I shuffled into bed. Since I couldn't fit in it anymore, the crib was taken away and I was given an old servant's bed. The bed was still the only piece of furniture in the room.

"Good night." Adam always saw me off to bed ever since I turned three.

"Good night." I watched him leave and softly close the door. My brother was strange since he never spited me for the Count's words, but he never showed me any deep love for a sister. He would keep his distance while offering a hand when needed. I didn't mind. If he showed me love then he would start getting hated and ignored by the servants, too...just like Mom. I'm just happy that he doesn't spit on me.

***

The halls were dark as Adam made his way back to his room. While sleep should have been on his mind, the only thing he could think about was how small his sister's hands were. Even if she was a girl, she was smaller than others her age like the ones he had seen while out with his friends at gatherings. He gave a long sigh as he hated how things were. His mother didn't smile anymore like in his memories. When that incident happened at the ball, Elizabeth locked herself in her room and refused to see anyone. Only when it was confirmed she was pregnant did she emerge with a smile on her face; though the smile held cracks. She told Adam he would be an older brother and what that meant, but how was he supposed to act now? He didn't hate Lucina, she wasn't the one who had broken his mother's smile and was just another victim of Baron Braxton's actions. But, his father's hatred for his sister was clear which caused the servants to turn their backs on Elizabeth for daring to love Lucina. She had lost all her power in the mansion and his father wouldn't address this as he justified it as 'tough love' to get Elizabeth to give up on Lucina.

"...I should speak with mother." Things were only getting worse so something had to change. Elizabeth hadn't left the mansion in over a year because of her growing depression, so Adam decided to suggest that his mother should take Lucina and visit Duchess Ordrin for a week or two. The two had been childhood friends and Adam remembered the Duchess' letters had been the only things that made his mother genuinely smile, anymore. It was too late in the day now, and his mother was probably drowning herself in alcohol assuming she and his father were done yelling at each other. He would speak with her the following morning, but before he went to bed he started writing a letter to Duchess Ordrin to be sent as soon as he woke up which would put his plan into motion.

***

I woke up to the sound of the maids making noise outside my room. They always did that to ruin my sleep whenever Adam got upset with them over me. I tried to think positively about it, though, since this presented me with an opportunity. Breakfast was served to the family at eight o'clock and the maids only did this after they woke up and got ready at six. If I was fast enough, I could sneak some of the raw food from the kitchen before it was prepared and taken out. I waited for the noisy maids to leave before I got dressed and left my room. The kitchen was on the first floor while my room was on the second which meant I would need to go down the entry hall's stairs. The entry hall was the largest room in the mansion and there were plenty of servants starting their routines in the hall, but if I was fast and quiet enough they wouldn't pay me much mind. "...Huh?" I should have gone slower. The rug that was usually on the stairs was being cleaned which meant the bare stained wood of the stairs was the only thing my worn socks had to try and grip. Tripping over myself, I fell down the last ten steps. My right shoulder slammed into a step causing me to spin and roll down the stairs before slamming into the hardwood floor at the bottom. "AGH!" I cried out as pain shot through my entire body and my vision distorted. My lungs desperately tried to breathe and calm my racing heart as I was left in a daze. Moans of agony escaped my mouth, but when my vision returned to normal my heart rate spiked, again.

"Clumsy bastard." The servants were all looking at me with disdain. None of them moved to help and they seemed content with standing around while I writhed on the floor. I bit my lip as I didn't want to cry because that would only egg them on to keep berating me.

"What's going on?" Adam appeared at the top of the stairs to investigate the noise. When our eyes met, it was the first time I saw my brother panic. He bolted back to the second floor and down a hallway. I don't know what he was doing, but seeing him run away while I was lying on the floor in pain hurt my heart. I tried to raise myself off the floor but my arms wouldn't move how I wanted them to. My body wouldn't listen to me. Some of the maids chuckled at my attempts.

"Lucina!?" my mother's cry came from the top of the stairs. I looked up to see that Adam hadn't abandoned me; he had gone to get Mom. I felt a little better knowing that. My mother rushed down the stairs and cupped me into her arms. "Where does it hurt!? Are you alright!?"

"...I'm fine," I lied through the pain since I didn't want to cause my mother any more tears. But, that quickly failed as I guess I was a bad liar. She gently examined me as she fought back tears. It made me sad that I kept making her cry. "Mo-"

"And all of you just watched!?" Her words coursed with anger as my mother shot glares at the servants who were going about their business as if nothing happened, but no one said a word. After what felt like an eternity of silence, a butler walked over to my mother.

"Was there something you needed, Lady Elizabeth?" the butler nonchalantly asked after looking at his pocket watch for a few seconds.

"...Yes," my mother spoke through clenched teeth. "A carriage."

"A carriage?" The butler was assuming she would ask for a doctor to examine me and was surprised by her request. I, also, didn't understand why she was asking for a carriage. The other servants started whispering among themselves and Adam stood at the top of the stairs with his usual unreadable expression.

"Yes, I will be visiting Duchess Ordrin for a few days, so prepare a carriage to depart immediately."

"I will need to ask the Lord for-" the butler tried to brush my mother off.

"Do it," but my brother's voice came from the top of the stairs and wouldn't let him. "I will inform my father. Get the carriage." He gave a slight nod to my mother.

"Thank you," she softly breathed those words of gratitude. She turned back to the butler with a venomous glare. "Well?"

"I-...I will prepare immediately." The butler quickly ran out the front door to fetch a carriage for the journey.

"Lady Elizabeth," Chris appeared and gave a slight bow. Looks like she decided to stop just watching the show. "If you are going on a journey, then let us pack-"

"No need, Chris." My mother quickly stood up and headed for the door leaving a bewildered Chris behind. "Alice always has some of my spare clothes on hand. Luggage will only delay our trip." I guess the Duchess' name is Alice.

"Th-Then at least give me time to get read-"

"I will travel alone." This was the first time I had heard such authority in my mother's voice as she barked her intention. I couldn't see Chris from where I was, but I heard her footsteps stop following us. "I wish to leave without delay and to be alone with my daughter. The trek between here and Wortrest is always clear of brigands, anyway. Adam," she turned back and looked at my brother, "I'll be taking Lucina to Wortrest for two weeks. Please, keep up the good work like always."

"Have a safe journey, Mother," Adam said and gave a respectful bow from the stairs. I thought he wouldn't like being left behind, but he seemed oddly okay with it. My mother carried me outside and into the sun which was still rising over the tree line. There was a cold spring breeze that sent a shiver down my spine.

"I'm sorry, Lucina," my mother apologized as she wrapped her shawl around me. Her eyes lacked focus as she looked down at me trembling in her arms. "I know it hurts, but we'll arrive in Wortrest by sundown and we can have the priest there look at you. He's a trustworthy man." She adjusted how she held me to try and make me more comfortable.

"Okay." This situation was strange and I didn't know how to respond. I just didn't want to cause any more trouble.

"...Doesn't it hurt?" my mother asked as a carriage was brought to the front and my mother carried me inside.

"I'm okay." Why did she keep asking when the truth would only hurt her?

"Lucina..." Her voice was hollow, and the carriage started to shake as the journey to Wortrest began. "Please cry." I was confused by her words and looked up at her for clarification. "You...hardly cry, anymore, even when I know you're hurt."

"...I'm fine." Please stop.

"Unfortunately, like me, you're a terrible liar, Lucina." Her hand gently brushed against my face as she started to tenderly stroke my cheek. "I'm sorry you had to learn how to stop crying when you're still so young. I'm sorry that I'm such a terrible mother that I can't even do anything to stop it all from falling apart."

"I-...I'm f-" It was getting harder to keep myself in check. Please stop!

"I'm sorry all I have to give you are my empty words." My mother's tears hit my face which flowed down and mixed with my own. "So, please, at least let me offer you a safe shoulder to cry into. It's all I can do for my beautiful daughter. Please, Lucina?"

"...!" My heart finally broke. Through the pain I was still suffering from, I reached up and wrapped my arms around my mother's neck and cried into her chest. The wails that I had buried deep inside burst forth. My mother gave me a melancholic smile as she returned my hug and silently held me close. I don't remember anything about the rest of the trip to Wortrest because all that mattered was the warmth I felt at that moment while being held in my mother's embrace.