In an instant, everything seemed to shift. The relaxed atmosphere that had always been around me began to stir an undercurrent of being on guard. Lizzy was kept at a distance meantime and I was left to eat meals in my room. Mr. Reinhardt now comes over to me for continued lessons but focused on auras and what humans knew of them for now. In two days, I had not stepped a foot outside my room.

“Is this how it’s going to be from now on?” I asked offhandedly as Louise stands behind me, not moving an inch for the last hour.

“I can’t say, my prince.”

I continue to speak without lifting my eyes from the book on my desk in front of me, “I’ve already been contained in the palace. It’s big, yes, but I haven’t explored much of it at all. Now I’m left contained in my room.”

Louise couldn’t retort. Instead, he bowed at his waist and said, “I’m sorry, my prince.”

“No, I’m sorry to be troubling everyone.”

“Don’t say such things. If anyone was truly troubled-” He abruptly cut himself off. I looked back in curiosity and found his face to be contorted as if to repress something.

“Louise?”

“If anyone was truly troubled… No one would be trying to deal with it.”

“Ah,” I mouthed in realization. If it was anyone really afraid of what danger I could cause, I would be disposed of, whether it be killing or locked away.

“You are loved, my prince, you should understand this.”

I smiled fondly, “Of course I know.”

When I had told my father about my theory of already having my aura take form, he immediately took action and had me taken to a clearing bare of any sort of wildlife or people or even architects. It was just the ground and grass.

Father had two men perhaps, as they were covered head to tow, it was hard to distinguish any characteristics. 

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Father stayed close to me and kept his hand on my shoulder to show everything was fine and to keep calm. He knelt down in front of me to remain eye level and asked, “Your claim, why do you think so?”

Take action before asking questions worked well in situations such as these. You never know the possibilities anyway if the questions were asked first. “I collapsed right after reaching out to rub Daniel Garter’s head and…” Father as always kept patient, waiting for me to continue, “...I gained all his memories. Royal physician Tania’s aura form works when touching a person, so I thought it was my aura’s form that made that happen.”

It was silent for a moment, from father and Louise who had rushed me here. “Memories?” Father finally spoke.

I nodded. I clenched my fist from nerves and my nails dug hard enough to break the skin. Louise noticed and pried my fingers opens and wiped the blood with his handkerchief.

“Alright,” Father stood up straight again, “I want you to stay here until dusk. If nothing happens, I’ll have you brought back to the palace. The two ‘Shadows’ will keep guard. Louise, follow me.”

Nothing did happen and when I was brought back, it didn’t take long for me to feel and see changes.

No life goes without its problems, and the risk of taking lives was the worst I could possibly possess.

I cried myself to sleep that day, not because of my past life for the first time.

***...***

“Brother!” Four days since that day, I was finally able to see Lizzy again. She looked the same, but I was one to quickly catch if something was off.

“How is everything going Lizzy? Are doing well with Mr. Reinhardt?”

It was unlike her to not respond immediately, but this time she took her time to think over her words, “It’s fine. Just a little boring to me. Mr. Reinhardt scares me a little too." She pouts, "Like he’ll hit me if I do something wrong.”

“He’ll never hit you,” I reassured her, “He’s teaching you to be the best you can be. There’s nothing to complain about that.”

Lizzy scrunched up her nose in distaste but nodded her head, “Okay, if you say so.” She was truly my light in this life.

Before, in my past life, I always took my brother out to play and help him with anything. If he was scolded by any one of our parents, he would come running to me. When Daniel came into his life, he started to form a deeper bond with me through him. I learned so much about Daniel from their interactions, and I had begun to wonder about having a child of our own one day. A funny thought at the time, especially when I revealed my thoughts to Daniel and he said, “Kids? I thought Athen was already it.”

But now it was only sobering.

I hugged Lizzy tighter and she laughed about being squished.

It hadn’t even been an hour before she was made to leave.