"Ah! Sister, you're here too!" Exclaimed a delicate-looking youth.
The beautiful youth was dressed in a pink long dress with matching flower pins on his hair. He ran towards Zenia and hugged her tightly that she felt like suffocating.
"Why are you dressed like that?" Zenia could still not believe her eyes.
"Why? I'm helping you not to become a sacrificial lamb!" The youth declared proudly.
Zander smacked his little brother's head without hesitation.
"Aw, you're so mean brother." He answered with tears in his eyes as he gently touched his head.
Zenia reached out to her little brother and took him into her arms as she patted his head.
"Little Zeze, you will always be sister's favorite brother, unlike someone who's willing to give me away." Zenia harrumphed and refused to give her big brother a glance.
"Aw, Zenzen I already explained everything to you. Please don't hate your big brother." Zander pleaded while holding back the tears from the frustration that he felt.
"Come now sister, let's not talk to brother anymore for the rest of our lives." Zekiah muttered as he held Zenia's hand and took her away.
Zander's younger siblings started running away from him and left him while he was still in a daze.
"Zekiah Anisen, you will pay for this!" Zander's voice echoed loudly when he finally recovered his wits.
Zekiah Anisen was the youngest among the Anisen siblings. There was only a year difference between him and his sister Zenia. Zander was older to Zenia by seven years and Zekiah by eight years. Zekiah loved his sister the most and their small age difference contributed a lot to that.
When they were small, most people who had seen Zenia and Zekiah for the first time always thought that they were twin brothers or twin sisters. Both were mischievous and very naughty. They were fond of playing pranks and loved to fool everyone they met. Zenia would wear the same clothing as Zekiah to make everyone think that they were a pair of male twins. Sometimes, Zekiah would wear female clothing that looked similar to Zenia's dress and the people would mistake them as a pair of sisters.
They loved how everyone got fooled. But, Zekiah had a traumatic experience when he was five years old while wearing one of Zenia's clothes. A princely and handsome figure from another kingdom suddenly rushed to him and gave him a bouquet of flowers. The handsome youth even kissed him on the lips and declared, "Zeze, I will marry you when we grow up."
Zekiah burst into tears and did not know why that handsome youth would do such things. He was perplexed and could not think straight. He clearly heard the young man called his name, but how did this youth knew his name?
"Why did you kiss me, and why would you marry a boy?" Zekiah asked while wailing.
The youth turned pale upon hearing Zekiah's questions. He could not believe that the beautiful Zeze was actually a…guy? Not far from their spot, Zenia was enjoying a spectacle. She guffawed as she looked at the youth's face changed from white to red. She tricked Zekiah into replacing her in the spur of a moment and decided to teach the handsome youth a lesson.
"Who told him that I should be his betrothed, whatever that is? Just because I played with him coz he's nice and cute he thinks he can bully me?" Zenia thought to herself back then.
Before the incident with Zekiah, the handsome youth told Zenia to wait for him to give her the symbol of their betrothal. He even asked Zenia if she would agree to seal their promise with a kiss. Zenia quickly agreed and the young man was just too happy when he left to prepare the things that he needed.
Zenia did not waste her time and made Zekiah replace her. They were both wearing a green dress at the time. No one would notice any difference because the color and style were practically the same. There were only subtle differences between the two dresses.
Prior to the meeting with the handsome youth, Zenia simply told Zekiah that they would prank someone. Zekiah did not bother to oppose and just went with Zenia's plan. When Vaughn left, she quickly waved at Zekiah, who was hiding back then, and told him to replace her and wait for the handsome youth's return. She did not tell Zekiah about the prince's 'small ceremony'.
Zekiah only stopped crying when his father came into view. Both parties were apologetic as they cleared up the misunderstanding. Not far away, the prince saw a retreating figure with a dress similar to that of the boy in front of him. He ordered one of his shadow guards to follow the figure and know more about her.
The youth's eyes turned gloomy and somehow able to put the puzzle pieces together. He was only ten years old and yet he already possessed the mind of an 18-year old youth. A sinister plan formulated in his mind and he did not mind waiting for a long time to execute its completion. A good hunter must be patient when trying to catch a rare prey.
Zekiah was not interested in the matters concerning the military. He preferred to be known as the peerless scholar. Military Advisor Ovid Anisen could only sigh when he learned that his youngest child wanted to pursue a different path. He could have been a great military tactician and commander. His ability to quickly remember names, faces, and places could help them a lot.
When they were far enough from Zander, Zekiah suddenly stopped and faced Zenia.
"Sister, if they insist to marry you off, I will do everything in my power to stop them. I can stage a rebellion if I had to. I can also replace you when worse comes to worst."
Zenia lovingly looked at her brother. She raised her hand to touch his head and stroked his hair.
"Zeze you have really grown up and you're even taller than me now."
Zenia stopped stroking Zekiah's hair and looked at him in the eyes.
"I won't let you sacrifice your own happiness for mine. Who knows, the prince may not be as bad as we think?"
Zenia tried to give him a reassuring smile, but Zekiah knew his sister better than herself. He did not make any comment and simply hugged her.
"If you're having difficulties, just escape. Anyway, you're good at it."
Zenia lightly patted Zekiah's back and chuckled for a bit.
"I will always be your sister and if you face any difficulties while I'm not around, I will come running wherever I may be."
Zekiah smiled and continued hugging his most beloved sister.