Princess Lumina of Yutis didn't go to the carriage driveway to say her goodbyes. It was too painful for her. She just holed up in her room along with her fears and watched them say their goodbyes hidden behind her room's curtains. The little dragon Skippy flew around, roaring and puffing smoke, and finally settled down on Dawn's shoulder, her clone-sister. A pang of pain in her heart made her look away. She opened a drawer and carefully lifted a fake bottom. Inside, the memento of her biggest shame. The bottom of a cracked eggshell, large enough to fit on her head as a helmet. A dragon's egg. A dragon she murdered.
Lumina lied. She remembered everything. Telling them she forgot was just a convenient and childish lie to help her safe face. She remebered her bouts of hubris during her tender youth. The rage and despair she felt while she stood at her mother's bedside, watching as the Queen whithered little by little while an inexorable death approached. The friend she drove away because of jealousy. The friend she murdered before they had the chance to even meet. She also recalled flashes of consciousness in Aidan's body, usually triggered by the same feelings of rage and despair that shaped her whole life so far. She clutched the eggshell against her chest as if it could ease her pain. She lost so much, destroyed so much. The reminder of what kind of person she could be in that happy-go-lucky girl that walked around with her face was unbearable.
She also looked at the letter on her desk. A letter Claire gave her, one she allegedly wrote herself during a time when she possessed Aidan's body. Of that she had no memory and Lumina was afraid of what the letter contained. Lumina knew she couldn't open that letter. Coward.
She allowed her trembling knees respite and crumbled on the ground, shedding tears of self-pity.
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Crown Prince Lucien of Yutis forced his feelings down his throat. He had to keep himself composed. He was almost shouting at her to not go. To stay. With him. For the rest of her life. The woman that stole his heart. In the rose-tinted lenses he used to look at her she was strong, spirited, focused, wilful, wise, independent, and she managed even while being all that to also be delicate, fragile, graceful, quick-witted, fun. A Queen he would love to have by his side for the rest of his days. He knew he would see her again. He wished he could see her every day. It was a challenge to just let her go home but it was necessary. She stayed away from home for too long and feared for the stability of her station. She had six siblings, three of them male and he knew that succession could be a dreary business.
To distract his fast-beating heart he looked at his new sister holding Claire's hand as the little draconic pest landed on her shoulder. He felt guilty for being away with his unit fighting someone else's war as a mercenary but it was necessary. Yutis was regarded as too peaceful and that was a way to forge connections and show their strength. He was not there for Lumina when she needed him and that was something it would be hard to fix. He would have to go away again soon. Away from home, away from Lumina, and even further away from Pearl. But he somehow knew everything would be fine.
His eyes met Dawn's and the girl smiled at him while briefly poking the tip of her tongue out at him. Yes, with a sister strong like her, the Realm would be fine.
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King Helios couldn't go and say his goodbyes. The Realm needed him and the amount of paper to read and sign off was endless. There were too many nobles, too many conflicting interests and everything rested on the King's shoulders. He thought for a moment he should have some concubines. If he had, they would lend their own ears to the interest groups and bring him the filtered requests. And with a harem, he would have some female company to play around. There were only three problems with that. His children would never forgive him for replacing Alina. Without a Queen, the concubines would keep testing their limits and disrupt the harmony and calmness of the castle. And third, it would beget corruption as a culture of buying and selling favors under the table would form.
But Helios felt lonely. Dawn and her outbursts of spontaneity only alleviated the problem enough to show him he felt like that. It was funny how they turned the whole castle upside down in this few months since their arrival. But while daughters could fill a father's heart with joy and his Princesses surely did, they could do nothing to fill the emptiness in a widower's heart. Or bed.
He stamped his signet on the hundredth document of the morning and sent a longing glance toward the inner castle.
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Princess Claire was all smiles. The nightmare ended and all was well in the kingdom. She held Dawn's hand for a bit longer than she needed, unwilling to let them go. She grew used to having them around but she knew she had to let her go. To make a point, Skippy even landed on Dawn's shoulder and huffed in annoyance at her presence. Claire understood that she was always the odd one out. A bastard child born of a tussle between the head governess and the King, elevated to the status of Princess because it was convenient to fill in the hole left by Lumina's disappearance. That was why she worked so hard in helping her father however she could. To prove her worth.
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She didn't feel like a Princess. Even Dawn, with only months of experience living as a woman, was a better Princess than Claire. And now it will be only Lumina and her. Without them, the castle would feel empty, unbearably empty. Claire almost wished Helios would send her off to be married into some house. Maybe she would find a new purpose or even new airs.
She was startled out of her musings by Dawn as the girl squeezed her hand and gave her a mischievous glance.
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Princess Pearl of House Juvela, heir apparent of Gohar, land of gemstones. Pearl seldom thought of herself by her full title but now it felt too pompous. Preposterous even. She wasn't Queen material, she didn't feel like that. Her folly with the otherworlders would remain as a stain in her soul forever, even if Aidan bleached it with his rituals. Thousands were dead because she felt rebellious enough to perform the summoning ritual without her father's consent. Thousands. She wasn't a Queen, she was a Tyrant and a mass-murderer. If it weren't for her new friends, she'd be dead by now. Or worse, enslaved. At least Gurf would still be alive. The sacrifice of the gentle giant was another burden she'd carry. She renewed her vows to care for his niece.
Pearl knew she had to go home. Even if it was only to hear from King Jett that she was disinherited. Slavers prowled in her home country and there she was out of home living a fairy tale. She felt reassured in her escort. With not one but two god-slayers coming with her, what kind of obstacle couldn't be removed? They can't change the past, she mused. Pearl decided to accept her fate with her chin up and the tip of her nose pointing at the sky. Whichever fate it was.
It seemed she would owe Aidan another favor. He said true friends didn't tally favors but she couldn't help it. It was ingrained in her upbringing.
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Lady Cythrel the elf stared at the sky, impatient. Humans were too prolific, even in their goodbyes. Everyone here would see each other again, why were them on the verge of tears? It was not like they would go away for a century on a training journey like some warriors in her tribe did. It was the only occasion elves did a really long sending off for the traveler. Otherwise, why make a fuss over a short jaunt. And why weren't they not flying? The distance was not that further away from Aidan's home even though the direction was completely different.
The truth was that she didn't get a moonlit picnic among the clouds as Sora did. And even if they took her there, it wouldn't be like Sora had. Cythrel was a bit tired of being treated like a child. She was a grown woman even though her body were the size of a teenager human. Even then, the age difference between Aidan's real age and her apparent one was only three or four years. She suspected there was another reason he wasn't seeking her and the doubt gnawed at the elf's heart.
She moved her arms underneath her cloak and the painful truth of having no hands stung her. What if he was with her only for pity? Because he felt guilty for her actions, her loss. It wasn't a loss. Aidan meant the world to her. He rescued her from slavery, gave her a place to be when her village was all but destroyed. Gave her a purpose, even won her heart. No, her hands were a gift for him. A gift of life. She saved him because she loved him.
She just wanted to be loved back. In a physical sense if possible.
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Sora smiled as she overlooked everyone saying their goodbyes. She felt warm inside, in a way she didn't feel in a long time. Everything was finally back in place. Surely she would have to share Aidan with Cythrel but she had Dawn too. She briefly closed her eyes and remembered the moment Aidan grabbed her tail. She thought she would melt in that ballroom when her dream finally came true. Sometimes she grew tired of playing the big sister to these rampaging teenagers. Getting spoiled by Aidan like Cythrel was would feel nice.
But she needed to move on in more than one way. Cythrel was a good addition to their family. The elf was quick-witted, spirited and outspoken. A good counterpart to her demure and quiet demeanor. And it was time to leave Yutis behind. Forge new memories and blaze a new trail. Have adventures, see places. Sora was looking forward to ditching all these Royals behind and travel abroad only the four of them. Five with Skippy. She studied the dragon's annoyed mood and it seemed to her that even the dragon wanted to move on.
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Dawn, no, 'Dawn, Third Princess of Yutis' as her official title said, squeezed Claire's hand. She felt really good to be a princess, to be that woman's sister. She tried not to laugh as she remembered how Claire would not let her even wipe herself after using the chamber pot. It was still Lumina's body back then but now in hindsight, it felt so silly. Aidan was behind the carriage, safely stowing the enchanted crate containing the crystal case with Cythrel's hands. The world could split in half but that crystal case would be safe. With the success of her golem experiment, they only needed someone with the expertise to work the mithril and the orichalcum in the shape they needed.
She tapped the adamantite-steel rapier hanging on her waist. She knew exactly who to commission that job. All they had to do was to go to Gohar. Escorting Pearl was also a good goal and doing both 'quests' at the same time made them feel good.
Skippy landed on her shoulder and huffed at Lucien. The bully prince probably did something to the dragon and now he was staring at her. Feeling mischievous, Dawn showed the tip of her tongue at her brother. It was still a weird feeling.
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Skippy was mighty irritated. His builder pigeon company project failed completely. The lazy birds didn't lay a single brick, much less mix the mortar or even pick up tools. No matter what he did, the homing pigeons refused to work making homes and the little dragon had no idea what happened. He had even devoured a few of the ones that dared defy his orders and it ashamed him even more. No boss should be eating his workers no matter how lazy they were. Skippy was sure Aidan would reproach him for being such a draconic employer and also that Aidan could make the pigeons build a house if he wanted.
He landed on Dawn's shoulder and huffed his worries, lifting a small plume of smoke from his snout. He didn't even notice that Claire was startled or that Lucien thought the dragon was angry at him. All he wanted to do was get some cuddling and try to summon the courage to ask them how he should proceed. Maybe he should declare bankruptcy and close the company. These pigeons were not cut out for the life of a construction worker.
Skippy's career as a contractor ended even before it started.