HEART OF GOLD | CORIOLANUS SNOW

𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙀𝙍 8

Val nodded earnestly.

"And what about her friends?" Criseida rotated him around so that both Athena and Olympia fell into his line of sight. "They've spent a lot of time getting ready. Do you want to be the one to mess up all their hard work?"

Drooping his head, Val shook it from side to side.

"So why did you run when I told you specifically not to?"

"Sorry," he squeaked at the carpet.

"Well, it's not me you have to say sorry to." Criseida rose and tugged his hand gently, turning him back to Lilith. He had barely lifted his head but she could already spy his eyes—all welled up—and it broke her heart.

"It's all right, Criseida," said Lilith quickly. "There's no harm done."

"Not yet, there isn't." Criseida flashed a resigned sort of smirk before peering back down at her son. "Go on," she encouraged, "or Mae, Dex, and Jane will have a fetching time with your ice cream."

Distressed, Val burst out, "I'm sorry, Lili!" Several tears were sprayed in the process.

"Oh, don't cry," soothed Lilith, gingerly dabbing her brother's face with a handkerchief offered by Dex the Avox as she felt her own eyes stinging. "It's all right. We forgive you."

She was by no means the trio's leader nor spokesperson, but she could imagine how excruciating it would be for Val to have to repeat his apology, in front of such an audience no less. Criseida had been training him, of course, familiarizing him with the idea of empathy and admitting his mistakes, but he had taken slowly to her teachings. So slowly, in fact, she had to resort to rescinding edibles to incentivize him. Lilith knew he had to learn, but she felt terrible for him every time. He was just a boy after all, and boys held their onto their prides the way girls held onto their dolls—tightly, and close to their chests.

"Can I hug you now?" asked Val meekly.

"Can you?" interjected Criseida, before Lilith could give in to those sparkling brown eyes—her dress be damned!—not to mention those lips that now pointed downwards at the corners so pitifully.

Lilith could never say no to her little brother. No wonder they never got her to babysit.

"Why don't you give me a kiss?" suggested Lilith. "You can be like Daddy. He always kisses us goodbye."

This cheered Val up a bit. Careful not to crease her dress—or what would all this have been for?—Lilith bent down and offered her cheek. Instead of planting a light peck, in the courteous manner their father might, he landed a firm smooch that made a dramatic smacking sound. Lilith giggled, both at the gesture and the scandalized expression on Olympia's face. Surely all that waterproof makeup she had been bragging about weren't shams?

"You smell sweet," said Val, "like honey."

Lilith smiled. "It's honeysuckle, not honey."

"What's honey sickle?"

"Honeysuckle, Val," corrected Lilith. "It's a flower. I'll show you sometime. Now, go kiss Thena and Ollie goodbye!"

"Walk," ordered Criseida.

Ruefully, Val embarked on deliberate strides towards Athena first. For obvious reasons, he liked her better than Olympia, though both of them were prone to spoiling him as much as Lilith was.

Granting her the same enthusiastic kiss, he said, "You look like a princess."

That was an understatement. She looked like a queen.