"Here, there's plenty of steak so make sure to eat your fill!" Elizabeth moved two cuts of steak onto Lucina's plate.

"…Mother?"

"And salad! I made sure they put in plenty of fresh fruits that are good for you!" The other half of Lucina's plate was filled with salad that threatened to spill off onto the table.

"Mother?"

"I had Chris go downtown to Franklin's Confectionery, so these deserts were all baked this morning! You should start with the macarons since they're small and easy to eat!" A second plate was put in front of Lucina filled with macarons of various colors. "Oh! We also have some nice cheeses that-"

"Mother, I can't eat all this!" Lucina put her hands up and tried to stop her mother from putting down a third plate that was filled with various kinds of cheeses and crackers. After her tearful reunion with Olivia and her friends, Olivia led Lucina to her family and made her go with them no matter how much Lucina begged to stay. It was a late dinner, but Elizabeth forced the family to have it as soon as they returned to their mansion in the capital and she learned that Lucina hadn't eaten anything since yesterday.

"Just eat what you can!" Elizabeth's blonde hair had grown down to her ankles and Lucina saw a noticeable amount of grey hairs on her mother's head. "Even if you don't finish your plate, at least try a sampling of each?" The past two years filled with worry weren't kind to her yet her eyes still twinkled with joy as she looked at Lucina sitting next to her in the mansion's dining room.

"…Okay." Their reunion didn't start out the best as Lucina watched her mother's heart break when they first met; she didn't wear much makeup so her scars were fully visible. Lucina was sure she would frighten her parents but those thoughts were instantly banished when her mother scooped her up into her arms and hugged her just like she used to. "I'll finish what I can so make sure you eat plenty too." She wanted her mother to keep smiling.

"…Thank you," Elizabeth's voice was tired and her body looked like it would fall over at any second. Lucina figured her mother had skipped multiple meals over the years because of her anxiety.

"Even if you are a Countess now," Charles spoke up when Elizabeth finally started eating, "know that you have a home in Gauldrin. Our doors are always open whether it's for a short visit or an extended stay." The years also seemed to have affected him harshly with new wrinkles clearly evident on his forehead.

"Thank you, Count." Lucina still didn't call him Father; she was far too tired to change the habit.

"…" Charles didn't push since Lucina was safe home once again and the family silently ate their meals while enjoying the company of each other.

"So…" Until Adam brought up the question their parents were dreading to ask, "When do you plan on heading to Solfin?"

"Adam!?" Elizabeth instantly became defensive at the thought.

"It's fine, Mother," Lucina placated her mother who was clenching her fork so tightly that her knuckles were turning white. "I know Adam doesn't mean any harm by it, it's something that I need to figure out eventually." While the capital was still going to host festivities for the rest of the week, Lucina was now in charge of an entire county; even if it was on the smaller side. "I can't spend too much time here since I now have official duties to do."

"But that doesn't mean you have to leave right away!" Elizabeth grabbed Lucina's left hand and Lucina could feel her mother trembling through their touch. She desperately looked at her daughter with pleading eyes and asked, "At least a month? You've been gone for so long surely you can stay with us for a month! July's the height of the social season so no one would fault you for staying with us in the capital!"

"I wouldn't want to burden yo-"

"You aren't a burden," Charles declared in a firm yet affectionate voice as he stared at Lucina.

Lucina looked from Charles to Elizabeth before giving a sigh and agreeing, "If you'll have me, I'll stay for a month."

"Of course!" Elizabeth looked ecstatic and her shoulders slumped down as the tension left them.

"Father?" Adam spoke up once more to push things in motion to help his sister, "Since she'll be here for a month, you should get her acquainted with the Silk Sparrows."

"Ah! You make a fair point," Charles agreed and turned to Lucina with a gentle smile. "Since you'll be managing your own domain it would be wise to get to know the ins and outs of contacting the Sparrows; and how the intelligence world works. Adam was taught as part of his heir training but we'll have to do a crash course for you since we might only have a month."

"Aren't the Sparrows loyal to Duke Mordrist?" Lucina asked while doing her best to eat with only one hand since her mother refused to let go of her left hand.

"They are, and it would be good to eventually form your own intelligence guild based in Solfin, but until then you can use the Sparrows." Charles ate another piece of steak and drank some wine before continuing, "Holst and Sevette are allies, but that doesn't mean we should overly rely on their services. I use the Silk Sparrows since my father built a rapport with them when he was Count and I merely kept up tradition. Your situation, however, warrants something different." Charles scratched his chin and pondered his thoughts.

"Because I'm directly under the Emperor?"

"Yes," Charles nodded his head in agreement and set down his wine glass. "Solfin was always a sensitive topic between Duke Ordrin and Emperor Marcus, and your acquisition of it will undoubtedly draw more eyes from both the Duke's and Emperor's sides. The imperial family knows who the Silk Sparrows belong to so associating with them too much will bring you the Emperor's ire. Using them right now would probably be fine since you're still here in the capital but once you reach Solfin you shouldn't hire them unless absolutely necessary."

"I'll remember your advice, Count." Lucina was grateful for her father's help since she didn't know much about the intelligence world. She was hoping to rely on Jeremy to get her started overseeing Solfin since he had experience helping run a city, but as far as she knew none of the Hellhounds had skills in the intelligence field; she would need to check later. Her thoughts continued to churn in her head as she started idly picking at a slice of tomato with her fork.

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"…It looks like someone needs to go to bed," Elizabeth sweetly teased when Lucina started having trouble keeping her eyes open after eating her fill of dinner. "You'll be sleeping with Mom today, right~?"

"I don't think tha-!?!" Lucina was about to protest but Elizabeth scooped her up in her arms and started walking out of the dining room much to Charles' and Adam's amusement. "I-I really don-!" When Lucina hugged her mother for support to not fall she truly felt how abnormally thin her mother had become. "…I need a bath first."

"Then we can take one together; it's been years since we last did that," Elizabeth hummed and gently started stroking Lucina's back. "We should also get rid of that horrible dress. Let's go shopping tomorrow; we can even invite Her Highness if she's free."

"…That sounds nice." Lucina was losing herself in the warmth of her mother's arms and didn't make it through the bath before falling asleep.

***

Is it already morning? I remember Mother helping me get ready for a bath but everything after is a blur, and now I'm alone in bed as the sun's coming in through the windows. We slept in my bedroom in the mansion and it doesn't look like a day has passed since I left. Our mansion in Gorinville was considered a 'rustic' mansion since most of the floors were hardwood instead of stone tile and the wallpaper in my room was a simple solid light beige without any patterns. With how cozy the room was, I'm surprised I was able to sleep with how bad my sleeping habits have become. Mother must have already gotten up since she's not here, though I wish she would have gotten some more sleep because I feel like she's going to get sick without proper care. The last thing I remember is her crying after helping me take the dress off.

"Speaking of…" I hopped out of bed, took off and tossed my mother's old nightgown that was too big for me onto the bed, and went over to the tall wardrobe that was across the room. All my old dresses were neatly hung and didn't have a speck of dust on them, but they were all too small for me to wear. I found the red dress I wore yesterday tossed on the floor of the wardrobe haphazardly; I guess Mother hasn't thrown it out yet. But it might be the only thing that will fit me other than my uniform so I decided to take it and flatten it out on the bed. As I finished, a knock came from the door.

"Are you awake?" It was Adam.

"Come in." I'm surprised he came since I didn't think we discussed anything about us having plans for today other than Mother and I going shopping later. Adam opened the door and entered my room with what I assumed were some of his old clothes folded over one of his arms.

"I brou-!?" His voice caught in his throat as he turned away from the door and looked at me standing in my underwear next to the bed; my scars fully visible. It seemed like he was getting better at showing emotions since both shock and discomfort were clearly evident on his normally neutral face. I'd rather us keep our normal relationship like in the old days, though, so teasing him after all this time would be a good way to go about it.

"Stop looking at your sister's body with dirty thoughts," I said and covered my chest with my arms. It took him a moment to refocus, but he quickly controlled himself.

"That would imply you have anything worth looking at." …I take it back, his dry snark is annoying. "I'm not into ironing boards."

"Well, I'm sorry I'm not Cassandra." I was closer to Cassandra in height now than I was before I left, but it seems like all her growth has gone from her height to her chest which was starting to develop faster than either Olivia's or mine.

"Be lucky you're not or else my old clothes probably wouldn't work for you," he said and made a gesture with the arm that held his old clothes. "Don't tell me you're planning on wearing that dress or your wizard's robe." The dress, now that I'm looking at it with a discerning eye, was terrible and not something I would willingly wear ever again. As for my robe… I think I smell it coming from my bag in the corner. There never really was an option.

"I'm not, but why are you here and not one of the maids?"

"The servants are all busy this morning since we received a surprise guest that we can't ignore, so they're rushing around getting things in order." As if to illustrate his point I heard hurried footsteps pass my room as a few maids ran past. "Father's at the palace right now, so Mother's currently entertaining them in the drawing room."

"Who's here?" I asked as I walked over to him to take the clothes.

"Her Highness, Olivia."

"What!?!" I rushed over and yanked the clothes out of his arms. "Why didn't you start with that!?" What do you mean Olivia's here and I wasn't immediately told about it!?!

"Because you started talking about your tower shield." If I wasn't in a rush I'd hit him! I yanked the socks onto my feet, pulled up the pants that needed a belt to fit around my waist without falling down, and threw on the baggy shirt that I hastily buttoned up before running out of the room and heading downstairs.

***

"Ah, Lucina, you're awake!" Elizabeth happily called out when Lucina appeared in the doorway to the drawing room.

"Good morning, sleepy head," Olivia chuckled after setting down the cup of tea she was drinking from her place on one of the sofas. Lucina scurried into the room and took a seat next to Olivia.

"Why didn't you wake me up earlier!?" Lucina complained to her mother.

"But you were sleeping so soundly," Elizabeth explained with a worried expression. "I wanted to make sure you got enough sleep so I decided to let you be while Her Highness and I began choosing~!"

"Choosing?" Lucina asked before finally realizing that the drawing room was filled with dresses and that there were more people there than just them.

"To make things more convenient for you," Olivia began and started patting Lucina's head, "I reserved Madam Herriot for today so we could buy you some new clothes from the comfort of home."

"Greetings, Countess Sanguine." Herriot was an elderly woman whose grey hair was neatly tied up in a reserved bun yet her clothes were brilliant and exuded the latest trends in the capital. "I am honored to be chosen to create the first real dresses of our empire's hero." It was clearly evident that she too didn't like the crimson dress Marcus had given to Lucina and was determined to prove her boutique's worth.

"…I see." While Lucina would have enjoyed to stay sitting next to Olivia and keep receiving head pats, Olivia had taken the liberty to set this all up so it would be rude not to indulge. Lucina reluctantly got up from the sofa and started looking at the dresses for any designs that remotely caught her interest; which wasn't many since she never really cared much for fashion. "Are these the only colors?"

"No, we can make any of the designs here in any color you'd like; though it will take extra time to make them." Herriot was both professional and kind while interacting with Lucina which helped put Lucina at ease. "Though if I could make a suggestion?" She waited and continued when Lucina nodded to her, "The official colors of Solfin are pure white and a scarlet red so having at least one formal dress made in those colors would help show your new title while at any official events."

"Hmm." Lucina looked at a few of the more fancy dresses meant for official gatherings and thought about the colors. "I'd like black instead of white."

"Black?"

"White and red are the Baron's colors, so I'd like to use black and red instead." It held the striking scarlet red to show her title while differentiating with black to stand out and not blend in with the Baron's family.

"Of course!" Herriot quickly agreed and motioned for one of her aides to jot down the color preference in their notes. "Darker colors look very good on you and we actually just got in some…"

***

"I forgot how much work went into buying clothes," Lucina idly complained as she and Olivia entered Lucina's room. After ordering a bunch of dresses, and letting Elizabeth have her fill of playing dress-up with her daughter, Olivia wanted to spend some time with Lucina since she had nothing scheduled for the day.

"Welcome back to normal life," Olivia joked as she kicked her high heels off and plopped down on Lucina's bed. The sun had been shining in through the window during the morning which heated up the sheets with a pleasant warmth.

"Are you sure it's okay to spend the day here?" Lucina wasn't complaining, she just knew how busy Olivia always used to be with her classes and preparations to be queen; now empress.

"It's fine," Olivia replied and gave a casually dismissive wave of her hand in the air. "The week of celebration extends to my tutors so my schedule is finally free for me to do what I want." She rolled over onto the bed and smiled up at Lucina who had walked over. "And I'd like to spend today with you if I'm not intruding too much."

"You're not!" Lucina hastily assured Olivia and climbed onto the bed to lay next to her.

"I'm glad to hear that." Olivia's back was to the windows which allowed the daylight to gently silhouette her form as the light did its best to wash over her. Lucina felt a feeling she hadn't felt in years; the familiar ache in her heart. Even when interacting with the fake Olivia, her heart never ached like it was doing now. What was this feeling? "You know, this reminds me of lazing around on futons in my past life."

"Futons?" Lucina nestled closer to Olivia who draped one of her arms over her small friend and started stroking Lucina's hair.

"It's a quilted mattress you roll out on the floor to sleep on," Olivia explained while twirling one of Lucina's hair 'spikes' around her finger. "Before moving in with my friend after my mom's death, I lived in a more traditional style house and mostly grew up sleeping on futons. There was this tradition we would do where, on a really nice day like this, we would lay out the futons on the back deck to soak in the sun and fresh air. Technically, I wasn't supposed to sleep on them while they were outside, but that never stopped me and I only got an earful about it a few times."

"Mmm." Lucina felt her mind start to slip as she relaxed under Olivia's gentle gaze. "But, don't you want to go out and enjoy the festival?"

"Do you?" Olivia chuckled when she saw the tired confusion on Lucina's face, so she clarified, "I want to spend today doing things you like. You never liked crowded places and always seemed happiest when it was only our friend group hanging out or just you and me. If that's changed, let me know, and we can head into the city and enjoy ourselves at the festival. Otherwise… Hm?" Olivia stopped talking when she heard soft snoring and looked down to see Lucina cuddled up next to her fast asleep. "I guess I asked something silly," Olivia quietly laughed and continued to play with Lucina's hair until she also drifted off to sleep as a gentle summer breeze danced in from the open windows and washed over them.