Soothingly with gentle strokes, Prince Cedric rubbed underneath his cousin's eyes. Those lovely crystals of starlight, which he believed held an endless supply of water, finally dried up.
Still he couldn't yet sigh in relief. Despite the lack of tears, her breathing remained uneven while her anxious emotions wearily sapped her strength.
The precocious boy truly was at a loss.
Living out his days in the palace, shifted from one tutor to the next, Cedric Ronov's life was tedious at best. As a child of the royal family this was unexpected. Not many children born from royal blood did not live precarious lives. Fighting for one's place for their royal rights. Cedric, as he is an only child, fortunately avoided this fate. After all, not much competition is fought when your sole opponent is yourself.
Having his father and mother to himself, one would think the boy is beyond spoiled, frivolous with an almost whimsical nature. Taking the cues of life with a fickle mind, believing all was his and so by nature, of course none had the right to rectify any impulsive behavior. Those thoughts would be understandable as they weren't wrong, but also they weren't correct.
With such food for thought, although both the emperor and empress hadn't neglected their son, their affections also hadn't been overly abundant.
Around the age of three and leading to four, Cedric had listened to his fair share of outpours of affection. Not directed towards himself, but for a cousin which he had never met. Over the years, it had gotten to the point that despite his initial curiosity, he'd begun to develop an abhorrence for his younger cousin.
The affection that belonged to him, which had been solely for him, had been stolen away!
If that wasn't enough, the very givers of affection, his parents were also slipping from his grasp. For the young child whose life was birthed on a silver platter, the small world he called his own, was balancing on a ledge of anxiety.
It was only natural that tantrums would follow. Then of course his punishments would further enhance his distaste towards his cousin. At such a young age, the boy had learned to hate.
Passed the age of eleven, a mere two years ago, the time had come for the boy to face his enemy. Finally he could put a face to a name. Finally his boiling insides would spill out, burning his opponent at the stake. The very one he'd imagined his enemy on while he proved to his parents, she had deceived them and he was the better child!
Walking through the Duke's estate, his mind so focused, his nerves so tense, Cedric's tunnel vision was unable to admire the beauty around him. Following his mother who'd come to visit, he who had looked ready for war, stared at the door to his cousin's room, weighed down by buckets of nerves.
Shaking in his shoes, many images of grotesque creatures or shadows with glowing eyes passed through his mind. Was she really as he imagined her to be? If so, how was he to win against the beast of his nightmares? The boy was indeed a child, as only a child's thoughts would become so ridiculous and unrealistic.
Taking her son by the hand, the empress led him inside. Thanks to his mother, Cedric was forced to face his enemy with no preparation. And so his eyes remained on the floor, as he took one stiff step after the other.
"Aunty you've come to visit me?"
Startled, uncertainty had befell the boy at the sound of such a weak voice, listening as it coughed and wheezed. Was his enemy already defeated before he'd attempted the fight?
When he looked up, the one who assaulted his mind nearly everyday, filled his vision. Finally his hatred has an outlet. Finally he can yell and scream, blaming her for stealing his parents. Finally he can demand for her to go away!
Yet, he did not.
Instead of a demon which he had imagined, laying in bed was a small girl whose complexion was deathly pale. Her long golden brown hair fanned across the pillow, while her crystal blue eyes laced in exhaustion, curved into a smile.
He didn't know what his mother said, but it obviously made her happy. And for some reason he couldn't understand, it also made him happy.
A child's mind is as fickle as the moon. Cedric's stubborn hatred which had burned so hot, had sizzled out into nothing. Now in its place was a curious interest in this sickly cousin of his.
Even now, that interest hasn't waned, but has become stronger as he'd gotten to know her. Over the time she had spent in bed, wrought with fever, Cedric would be there to keep her company.
Even so, despite all this time, many months of painful treatment, he'd yet to see her shed a single tear. Least not until today.
Her weakness which didn't pertain to her body, but her emotional state was new to him. Hence his reactions were stiff, his follow through was uncertain.
"Alicia are you feeling any better?"
Her nodding head lifted a weight off his chest. Cedric was relieved, but still uncertain as his heart inquired further.
"There's truly no pain? If there is, you'll not keep it hidden, right? You'll tell me, won't you?" The boy was deathly afraid, even though his outer stature appeared to have somewhat stabilized.
Alicia had calmed down, her muddled mind had cleared as it revealed her shame which seeped from the depths of her soul.
'Why must weakness be so hard to shake off?'
This pure disdain towards weakness, her frailty, was not a feeling which could develop overnight. No not even formed over a decade. This aversion flowed far back and beyond her modern life. So far in fact, Alicia can't say for certain when it started.
Be that as it may, this weakness that reached the level of a final boss, could not stop her from stubbornly fighting for the impossible. Even when the boss fully healed the damage taken in the time she took her next strike, still she wouldn't give up.
But doubt had begun filling her mind at one point. Had that duplicitous god placed an immunity status upon the final boss? She wouldn't be surprised if that were the case.
The weakness drooping her shoulders became even more so as her thoughts spiraled down. Despite her body gaining stability, her magic slowly returning, this problem was one she could not avoid as she'd hoped. Even now the image of her exhausted father hadn't left her mind.
"Alicia?"
The cooling touch of her cousin's hand pulled her out from her depressing mood. His obvious concern pricked her heart.
"I'm sorry Cedric." Rubbing at her eyes, a forced curve raised her lips. "It's unfair for you to take care of me. I promise, I won't show weakness like this again."
Cedric frowned. Though he agrees it was troublesome to adapt to this sudden change in his cousin, it wasn't to the point for her to act like this.
"Why do you say that? What weakness? All my eyes see is my strong cousin relieving some stress."
"But I cried. I cried so shamefully at that." Her voice cracked with its rise in volume. Slowly her head fell as she gripped his pants. "I'm weak big brother Cedric, I truly am."
"What? How does crying make you weak?" Anger fumed in Cedric's eyes. He lifted her chin and they bumped foreheads. "Who was it who told you such nonsense? Who dared to bully my cousin?
"No, you misunderstand." Alicia pushed him away. Fiercely she shook her head then looked into his narrowed eyes. "Crying doesn't make you weak, but reveals what does."
Smacking her hand to her heart, Alicia's red eyes pleaded. "Don't you understand? How can I protect myself when I have such a fragile body? I don't like it, I don't want this weakness, but what more can I do?"
"How is that so?" With a sigh Cedric caressed her hair. "Can't you protect yourself just fine?"
Alicia huffed out a scowl as her blood boiled. Was her cousin taking her for a fool?
"I can't use my magic without ending up in bed. Without my magic I lose strength in my body and I can't move without help. With me like this, how can I protect myself? Tell me Cedric, what am I supposed to do!"
Part way through her angered words, those two limpid eyes had refilled as they spilled water down her cheeks once more.
Shocked by the coldness brought about by the opened window's breeze, Alicia looked at the tears falling to her hands in anguish. Why couldn't she put a stop to the flood? Why of all people to inspire her tears to shed anew, was it him?
She felt so vulnerable in his presence. Not the kind of vulnerability brought upon by fear, but the one which makes you feel safe. Safe enough to release all your deepest secrets with certainty, they won't be shared.
Despite his future which she couldn't be sure was set in stone, his future which was painted as the worst kind of man a woman could fall for, a man that played with one's heart then would throw it away once his interest was lost.
Despite that knowledge, she couldn't hate him. Despite that knowledge, she trusted him.
Cupping her cheeks in both his hands, Cedric wiped away her tears as his confident smile widened into a toothy grin. "Of course you can protect yourself. With my cousin's smarts, your craftiness and your thoughts that can even outwit my father, how can you not protect yourself?"
"Are you saying I should let myself be protected by using my head? Wouldn't that still amount to the same?" Alicia's eyes widened with a clear crispness. Her body shook in expectation, waiting for her cousin's answer.
Somewhere deep down, she knew the words he was about to speak would change her life. And she couldn't wait to hear them.
A crafty smile lit up the clever boy's face. For just a moment, she caught a glimpse of his future, the future of the mad emperor.
"If one is fooled into following and giving one's all towards their liege, who's to say if it was by their own will? As the one in control, why not let others do the work for you? It does not mean you are weak if your hands aren't the ones shielding the sword. Wouldn't that mean all rulers in history are a bunch of cowards?"
An innocent laugh followed his words, vanishing the image of his future self. Alicia smiled as she too laughed with him.
Although she still felt weak, fragile and incapable, the heaviness which had suffused within her heart, had somewhat decreased.
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Author's note: In case of theft. This is an original -English- novel done by yours truly [MyKataren]. This author will state here and now, oh ye thief of old, thanks for the free advertisement!
Original : www.tinyurl.com/MVPGAwebnovel