My Starlight

It wasn't exactly the best moment for Priscilla, so to say. Her healing had been flawless as always, and after getting the Guiding Ring that Matthew had found among the Black Fang Bernese quarter, she was starting to get the hang of using Fire books. However, outside battle, her heart was somewhere else...

She could not get her brother's words out of her mind. Raymond had changed so much! His eyes never were as cold as now, he spoke in a sharp and almost cruel way, and he made what he could to avoid her. The childhood marriage promise that he gave her more than 10 years ago, it was fresh in her memories; well, Priscilla did know that Raymond wouldn't really be able to uphold it even if they were still Cornwells, but it still hurt to have him ask her to go back to Etruria and forget about him.

You’re not listening, Priscilla. You were sent to Etruria for adoption-- You are no longer of House Cornwell. And...I am no longer your brother.

"No, that can't be... it shouldn't be," she whispered as she took her Fire spellbook and went outside, seeking for a quiet place to read it and practice. Fire spells, burning flames that reduced things and living beings to ashes... like it almost happened in the last skirmish.

".. Princess..."

At some point, Sain entered a small building in the Black Fang quarters. He defeated the very powerful enemies there, yes, but one of them was a Sage with an Elfire tome, who managed to inflict him severe burns. Priscilla's Mend staff had healed a good part of them, but he still needed time to rest... and as they spoke, some truths were faced, and it hurt.

...Yes. I am a Lycian knight. And my loyalty as a knight must be unwavering... But, Princess....

Priscilla had never seen Sain unhappy, tense, or even worse -- about to cry. At her request, he managed to hold back his tears, and she did likewise to honor him. But what would they say now, knowing that soon they would likely not see each other, ever?

The masked creep was out of sight, out of mind at last. Anne leaned against a dusty wall, catching her breath and hoping it would stay that way. The rest of this case had gone surprisingly well; all three groups had good ideas for who might have stolen the parchments and their father had a clear idea of where said parchments might be hidden.

Leave it to a masked creep to show up and ruin everything, Anne thought with a frown. But at least he was gone now and they could get back to their task at hand.

At the exact moment she was able to focus again, though, she realized something wasn't right. Weren't there four of them just a moment ago?

"Suzie? Is it just me or do our brothers seem to be missing?" she asked.

It all started with a text message that said, "I have a surprise for you, Taka >3" Taka had expected some sort of wrapped present, or money (he was always up for that), or maybe she got another kitten or something.

He did not expect his wife to be standing in the doorway in absolutely nothing. He nearly burnt dinner, first of all. Second of all, he nearly dropped a small bottle of oil onto open flame. And third of all, he wished he wasn't wearing a stupid frilly pink apron.

The apron was the worst part, he thought.

( It got a little long, so it's under a cut. )

Schuldig is sitting in a rather comfortable chair in an otherwise blank room, just seeming staring off into space. His eyes are rather unfocused, and the cigarette in between his fingers? Completely untouched. There's a nice pile of smoldering ash on the thankfully uncarpeted floor, right underneath the cigarette.

He picks up a stray thought, one that interests him, and he smirks, finally bringing the half-finished cigarette to his lips to take a drag.

Three months ago, Lord Hausen had passed away. He didn't die alone as he feared, but in the arms of his granddaughter and with several of his retainers around him. Kent himself was still saddened when he thought of it, and he knew that everyone in Castle Caelin felt likewise; however, there was the small consolation of Hausen's death being a peaceful one, in which the old man simply closed his eyes after a last talk with Lyndis and fell asleep to never wake up, his hand holding an old necklace that belonged to the original Lyndis, the wife he loved so dearly and who left his side so long ago.

"Seven days...".

Ever since then, everyone in the Castle were working hard to handle what would come. Lord Hector of Ostia had agreed to take Caelin into the Ostian territories, and both he and his soon-to-be wife Florina (sweet, shy Florina... who would say she'd be soon the Duchess of Ostia?) promised to take good care of every single citizen.

Why so? Because Lyndis, the rightborn heiress, had decided to actually return to the plains of her youth, those where she was born and raised. And Kent had decided to follow her, both out of his duty to protect the woman who once was his lady in liege, and out of the love he had ultimately come to feel for her.

So, the preparations were almst done. In exactly seven days, the Marquesses of Ostia would come to take possession of Caelin. And both he and Lyn would be free to leave for Sacae...

"In seven days, our lives will change forever." Kent sighed softly and stared at the darkened sky, thinking of what might come or not.

It was funny how sometimes one could be completely exhausted, but still unable to sleep. Ephraim had retired to his room at Rausten Court hours ago, but he still paced the floor, back and forth, unable to stop replaying the destruction of Renais's stone in his head over and over again.

Why did I even go after him? What did I hope to accomplish? If what L'Arachel told Eirika and I is true...