8 years later.
Thethia: Heather Palace, Garden
• Elianna •
"Princess!" Lylia called.
"Lylia, I'm here!" Elianna stood up and waved excitedly at her.
The moment Lylia saw her, she placed her arms on her hips to express her disapproval. Stomping forward and trudging through the bushes, she reprimanded, "Your Highness, you should not be hiding when you're supposed to be attending your lessons!"
"It's so boring!" Elianna whined. "They are teaching me materials that were meant for three-year-olds! I already learned so much more from Ja—"
Lylia covered her mouth quickly, silencing her as she looked around anxiously. "Princess! How many times must I remind you that no one can know about that!" Lylia scolded, slowly removing the hand on her mouth.
"I'm sorry," Elianna muttered. "I only mentioned it because I know no one would be here."
Lylia had always been careful even when they were alone because she feared that they may be watched or listened to by guards from the Royal Palace. She always reminded her to not mention Jason's name out loud because it may reveal the Queen's, her mother's request for him to mentor her in secret and that would place all of them in danger. Without Jason and the Queen, there wouldn't be anyone to protect both of them.
All the lessons received now were arranged by the King. They were just a group of disinterested, mediocre tutors who would incessantly reprimand her for poor attitude and punish her unreasonably just to kill time and fulfil their required shift to the solitude palace. Elianna hated those lessons but she had to attend them simply to put up a facade and in order to not raise suspicions.
This was her hiding spot. Whenever Elianna decided to run away from lessons, she would be here and it took Lylia a great deal of effort to find her here. Elianna was confident that no one else would bother coming here because of the confusing and almost endless maze through deserted routes with overgrown dead plants. Only Lylia would bother to find her way to her and that was also because Lylia cared for her more than anyone else who would visit Heather Palace would.
"Princess Elianna," Lylia sighed, pulling the child close into her embrace.
Elianna was slightly taken aback whenever Lylia called her name. She was a careful person, and unless she was exceptionally sure that no one's around, she would never address her by her name. Visits to Heather Palace always addressed her as 'Princess', though they knew that she was not officially titled. They simply called her for the sake of formality and convenience since she doesn't have a name for them to address.
Elianna knew why she didn't have a name, she heard it from Lylia. Therefore, deep down, she was grateful that Mother gave her a name that only the people who cared for her knew about. When they call her Elianna, she felt loved.
"Alright, since it has come to that, let us stay here and the palace tutors will leave when the time's over," Lylia said as she settled down on the patch of grass beside Elianna.
"I'm glad that we are on the same side now," the child chuckled.
"Always," Lylia laughed.
※
Later in the evening, Jason arrived in the library for their lessons. He placed a stack of books in front of her and settled down in the chair in opposite her. Those grey eyes stayed locked on her, studying her before a frown appeared on his forehead.
"I heard that you skipped your classes today," Jason spoke with a stern voice.
"I did," Elianna replied, unremorseful.
"I know you disliked them. At least, try to attend them occasionally. If not you'll catch the King's attention," Jason sighed, closing his eyes and his shoulders dropped when he exhaled at her blatant admit to the arranged tutoring.
"I won't do such things for his worthless attention," she sulked while trying to conceal her annoyance at the mentioning of her almost nonexistent paternal figure.
"Elianna! Do not speak of those," Jason shushed as he opened his eyes wide while glaring at her.
"Jason, I know what I can and cannot do. I speak of those just because I am comfortable with you and I trust you."
"Do not trust easily. Even with the people closest to you." Jason reminded. "And you are to address me as Mentor, not Jason."
"Yes, Jason." she laughed mischievously.
━━━━━━━━━━
A few days later.
Thethia: Royal Palace, Queen's Bedchamber
• Jason •
"How's Eli doing?" The Queen asked.
Jason glanced towards the Queen and was relieved to be gazing into a captivating pair of bright gold eyes that brimmed with clarity and life. Since his return, he hadn't made another trip away from the Royal Grounds again because he noticed how her health had been deteriorating and her condition seemed to alternate in a relatively erratic manner.
Some days, the Queen was herself and other days, she was lost to the realm. Jason knew that no matter how much medical texts he had studied through in his lifetime, it wasn't going to provide a cure to all that happened which had changed her forever. Thankfully, he visited at the right time today to speak to her while in her clear mind.
"She's a very talented child," he complimented. "It's hard to believe that she's only eight right now."
"Is she happy?" she asked, but coughed out a peal of dry laughter. "What am I asking?"
"She's relatively optimistic and strong-willed," Jason smiled. "Sometimes she acts way beyond her age but other times she behaved exactly like a child."
"Really?" Tears began welling up in the Queen's eyes.
"Yes, Your Majesty. More of it, she actually resembled so much like you when you were young."
Faint sadness washed over the Queen's expression as she rested her hand over her chest and smiled weakly through her tears, "I wish I could see her. I wish I could hold her, even just once."
"I'm sure one of these days, you will," Jason comforted, unsure how to form the right words to ease the sorrow she felt.
He knew that she always held Elianna in her mind. Despite that Princess Elizabeth was always the one who visits her, she remained detached from her. Jason wasn't sure if her distance from her other child was because of the King, the despicable man who had conjured this mess and strained her away from that child. Or perhaps, it could also be the ache she felt in her chest whenever she saw Princess Elizabeth and thought of Elianna.
The Queen was a human, after all. She had been grieving since the day the twins were born. Her pity was reserved to the child who had entered this realm without a title, a name and the love from the Kingdom. Jason remembered that she used to versed about how her children would be adored and they would be the brightest light of her life, but life had to happen with a cruel twist.
Maybe no one would understand the Queen and the pain she went through. There wasn't a single day that she didn't think about her mistreated child that was abandoned in the solitude palace — in the deepest corner of the Royal Grounds.
At the thought of it, the Queen had never once addressed Princess Elizabeth as Eli.
To her, Eli only belonged to Princess Elianna.
※