Chapter 2.05: Frigid Relationships

The rest of the dinner was awful. Her mother asked her brother’s fiance a ton of questions, which she meekly answered. Her name was Lili, and she spent most of her life on her family’s farm. Which wasn’t a stereotypical farm, as they lived on an island that was very small and close-knit. So instead of tall green grass, cows, and barns, the girl grew up with large bodies of water, fishing, and humid weather. She constantly complimented the estate, saying she had never been in a house so big before. Each question dug more into Lili’s past and peeled away the layers of her personality by force. It was pretty clear that the matriarch saw the blonde as more of a pet than an actual woman. She stuck out like a sore thumb when compared to everyone at the dinner table who ate awkwardly.

The environment was so tense that Leila immediately asked to train the next morning. Alek hesitated, but eventually broke and agreed to spar with her. It would get both of their minds clear from any prior anxieties. Here they were, dressed lightly in the estate's empty land. Leila wore her long hair in a braid to keep it from getting in her face. She had learned the hard way when Alek managed to knock her flat on her ass when it blinded her briefly. There were some stray pieces, but it would be fine in the long run. For now, she grinned at her older sibling and beckoned him forward. Her eagerness was amusing to the tall man who moved to stand right across from the teen. Alek was dressed in a short-sleeved shirt with gloves on to protect his bare hands and his hair was in a man bun.

The two were empty-handed currently but later on, they would use old bo staffs to fight. This was, per her request, the night before. For now, they sat against a nearby tree, as the two would fight with just their brute strength first. Hand-to-hand combat was something she needed to brush up on. The dark-haired heiress refused to be in another situation where, without a weapon, she was weak. Leila knew it was pointless to blame herself for the attack on the bridge. It was three against two, with her body already exhausted beyond repair. Once she had been knocked off her feet, her favor was gone. Still, the woman found herself awake late into the night, going over what happened with shame. She had gotten so cocky and careless. It felt humiliating, and she couldn't let it repeat itself.

Training until she was broken wasn’t the correct answer, but it was the only option at the moment. Leila wiped the sweat off her forehead and got into her proper fighting stance. Due to Cleo being a character designed to be elegant and seductive, she fought femininely. Leila realized her body instinctively chose to attack with sharp strikes and slaps instead of punches. Her arms would easily windmill, hitting multiple locations that could hurt like a bitch. Not only that, but her kicks tended to be quick instead of heavy. This left her having to get up close to make some actual damage. The heiress crouched down somewhat; her left hand out with the other lifted higher behind her head. Her body faced forward, with one leg pushed out and the other bent at her side.

"Ready when you are." The wind flowed across her body and chilled her skin as she spoke. Droplets of sweat slid down her chin slowly. "Go easy on me."

Alek smirked. The two were their most comfortable together like this. He cracked his knuckles. "Sure."

He came at her rather quickly, dust kicking up into the air as he aimed a fist at her arm. The teenager leaned to the side and aimed her right foot right up against his rib. Normally, she wouldn't attack such a sensitive area in training, but the pair discussed it beforehand. Alek wanted her to be more aggressive in emulating an actual battle. So she struck swiftly and hard, feeling him take a sharp intake. But before she could celebrate, she was met with his other fist slamming into her cheek. It left her mouth feeling sore and the flesh inside became tender. This was hard to deal with, but she kept going. Her upper body quickly leaned backward, narrowly missing an uppercut as she put her leg back down. And her left leg kicking outward directly under his thick jaw replaced it.

"FUCK!" Leila screamed in shock as the bruised man snatched her ankle. This knocked the girl off her feet and she suddenly hit the ground. "Jeez, Alek."

The man let go of her at the sight of her sharp intake of inhale. "Wait, are you alright? We can take a break." His face clouded with worry as he got down on one knee and offered a hand.

Against her better judgment, Leila accepted the hand and hopped back onto her feet. Her ankle wasn't broken by the looks of it. She bent down and pressed two fingers against one side. It hurt, but everything felt fine, just a little sore. The heiress did the same for the other feeling no pain at all. If she wanted, she could continue training. But she worried about irritating the soreness and injuring herself. After all, she would be bending her legs the entire time and it would sting. So for now, she would have to stop and move on to something different. They could do the bo staff, she supposed. Just not as enthusiastically as they usually do. That sounded uninteresting to the teenager, who sighed. She reached back for a braid and began to take it out, signaling her answer to the man. They would resume the next morning, at the crack of dawn.

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"You know Cale will be here tonight," Alek said in a hesitant tone. It was like he expected the mention of their older brother to set her off.

Instead, the heiress continued to take out her braid with a tired look in her eyes. "I know. That's why I'm going to the Lantern Festival after lunch."

The Lantern Festival was an annual festival aimed at families and adolescents. Single adults were welcome to participate as there were plenty of events that were for them. Food vendors, farmers, children, and families gathered to sell items. With every item, you were given a card for a free lantern. The lanterns were later let go into the sky and the nearby lake as offerings to those who'd fallen in war. It wasn't a specific war, as the festival started after a cluster of village civil wars, great wars, and conflicts that nearly spiraled into war. It was used as a symbol to show unity and that the people of the country remembered its history. The good and the bad, as most main events taught what happened. You would have apple bobbing on one side of the festival and a memorial on the other.

Leila had planned to go before finding out Cale's arrival coincided with it. The festival was famed for having anti-war and antimonarchy events. The participants were a mix of commoners, educators, and former soldiers. Rarely you would see a young noble take brief interest. Now, this wasn't exactly illegal, but it was a risky business to invest in due to the nation's past. Anyone with a brain knew the country was ‌a puppet to the royals. It wasn't always, but due to its current state, this was the reality she lived in. Not that the former ruling power was much better, but they had their own mistakes and crimes. But these events often had great intel on what protests and boycotts were in development. Leila would go to the festival and find out as much as she could without directly participating.

"You think Mother will let you?"

She laughed and started on the other braid. "I already asked her, and she's fine with it. As long as I come home with a gift for everyone." The older man gave her a look of disbelief before rolling his eyes.

Leila couldn't blame him for being annoyed. Alek would have to deal with Cale's bitter assholish behavior all alone for the entire day. Since he had started to treat the younger girl with respect, Cale would berate him for it. He would make sure to call the dark-haired man all sorts of names for it. And she was sure he'd come after him physically when the time was right. Out of all the siblings, he could get away with such barbaric behavior. The brute was second closest to their father due to his career successes over the years. Plus, since he was getting married, their father would be obsessed with having a future grandchild. Meaning Cale could be the biggest asshole and get a slap on the wrist. Lili being pregnant still made her nauseous to think about. She couldn't have chosen a worse man for the job.

"I can bring you with me." Alek gave her a look, which made her glare back. "What? I could."

"Do you think it's smart to leave her alone with him, though? Even if she's pregnant, he'll hurt her if she angers him enough." His reasoning was sound and left her feeling hollow inside her chest.

She nodded her head. "You're right. Sorry, I haven't been thinking straight since she got here. It feels like she's terrified of me just breathing next to her." It stung to admit it out loud, but it was true.

"She is. But she'll grow to understand you."

Leila frowned at her brother's words as he turned and walked towards the house. The cool morning wind flew through her curls and chilled her skin as she looked deep inside. Down there she knew that Alek was right, but she honestly didn't want to deal with the steps that lead up to that. Having someone constantly afraid of her reactions left her feeling sick and unsure of herself. Her vision wavered as she was hit with another headache. She winced, moving to hold her head in her hands as she shuddered. The pain was horrible, but the self-doubt was stronger. The jade-eyed woman knew that at the end of this, blood would stain her body from head to toe. But sometimes she just wished things didn't have to be this way. Or that she would be spared the mental anguish her real-life self would have.

Sullenly, she rubbed at her forehead and inhaled. To stop the headaches, she needed to get stronger. Leila had to find some way to train her magic without hurting anyone. The possibility of having a repeat of Ezekiel made her anxious. The man would be up right now, hard at work to avoid her presence. But when they faced each other, she would see the lack of trust and care that swam in his eyes. Something she deserved but hated to go through. The dark-haired girl swallowed the lump in her throat, cracked her neck, and made her way home. There was no time to mope. She had a festival to go get ready for.