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Sera sat on the only sofa in the small living quarters and relished in the warmth the crackling fire before her gave out. She sipped lightly on some tea and gazed into space, reminiscing about past times.
Life was so much simpler before that incident, and now it was all complicated. She yearned for life to be what it previously was, but she knew it was impossible; things were too different now.
They were all frightened of her - she especially recalled the looks on her family's subject's faces. Nobody hated her, how could they? They just didn't want to go near her. Rumours could be damning and damn her they did.
Loneliness encased her in its own bubble, and nobody was brave enough to release her from it. They left her to suffocate and wallow in her own lack of self-worth.
As she sat and continued to wallow there came a knock at the door. Her maid went to open it and then her brother waltzed into the room. His smile was gentle and Sera didn't hesitate to rise to her feet and give him a small curtsy. "Royal brother, why have you come to visit?"
It was always pleasant to see one of her siblings, but beneath their kind faces she knew what they truly felt: scared, nervous and a slow-burning hatred for what she had done.
Even if they never revealed their inner thoughts, she knew what they really wanted to convey to her and it made the hole in her chest grow wider.
"Stop with the formalities, you're my little sister after all." He patted her head and motioned for her to return to her seat, which she did.
She nervously hid behind her sleeve and waited for her brother to speak; she could already feel the rukh creeping closer to her, getting ready to protect their master. With a tiny shake of her head, the rukh retreated a little. She diverted her attention back to her brother, who was accepting a drink from the maid who then went back to doing her other duties.
"I'm here to ask you some questions," Kouen said, settling back on the sofa. "You and I are long overdue for a talk, not about what happened... Since then we haven't spoken and I've missed our talks."
Amongst her siblings, Sera had always been closest to Kouen. He was who she looked up to, who she aspired to be like, and she wanted to do everything he did. Now, he couldn't be anymore distant.
She could feel pinpricks behind her nose and her eyes started watering. How she missed them times. Gosh, she was thinking about the past too much today...
"I've missed it too," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"So, I want to ask you, what was that about the other day?" Kouen inquired, curiosity painting his features. "You were so unlike yourself and you were different."
"I want to know that too." A loud voice sounded out in the room as a petite male strolled into the room.
Kouha jumped into an armchair and chuckled at the startled expression on his sister's face, ignoring the annoyed look his brother was throwing his way.
"Kouha, you can't just barge into someone's home like that!" Kouen reprimanded him. "We were having an important discussion here and you've rudely interrupted us."
"Chill brother, I'm just worried about dear sister here." He reached out to pat Sera's hand, but she flinched and pulled it away - their skin had almost made contact.
"Don't touch me." Sera said in a panicked voice, it cracked a little and the tears flowed freely. The rukh edged closer and almost surrounded the poor girl.
"Now, look what you've done." Hakuryuu entered next and went to his sister's side, he tried to comfort her. It worked somewhat and her sobs quietened.
"Sorry," Kouha apologised and crossed his arms, pouting.
"Hakuryuu, why are you also here?"
"It's not just him. We're here too." Kougyoku skipped into the room, Koumei and Hakuei following closely behind her.
Kouen could only roll his eyes and then he turned back to Sera. "Now tell me, what happened exactly?"
"I-I..." She panicked further and this time the rukh enclosed around her. The other her was close to appearing...
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