A gentle tone filled the air as she hummed with a pleasant smile on her face.
She checked her reflection in the mirror and with a satisfied smirk, she twirled in the middle of the room.
"Lalala Lalala" she sang as she danced around the room.
"What a beautiful day!" She opened her window and yelled to nothing in particular.
A few passing guards furrowed their brows in confusion.
"Lalala Lalala" she continued singing and dancing.
"Oh, Sacred Blood. She has gone crazy!" A gasp from the doorway made Princess Divale halt in the room.
"Eebelle! What's the meaning of that?!" the Princess glared at her cousin.
"Oh, nothing, Your Highness, it's not like you don't dance in the middle of your room all day long," Lady Eebelle snickered.
"Oh, Eebelle, you came into my room this morning just to say that?!" the Princess rolled her eyes.
"You seem really happy this morning. Why? Is it because a certain suitor is coming over tonight?" Lady Eebelle sat on the bed and gave her cousin a teasing smile.
"Where is the gum I used to seal your mouth that day?" Princess Divale huffed.
"What? You didn't deny it," Lady Eebelle snorted.
"Eebelle" the Princess stared down at Lady Eebelle.
"You promised to tell me all the details of your love story! Tell me! I heard he courageously saved you from the soldiers yesterday! Did he?! Tell me now!!" Lady Eebelle's eyes shined with excitement as she let out all those questions.
~Courageous, my foot! When he was busy picking flowers~ Princess Divale inwardly rolled her eyes.
"Eebelle, I'm busy right now, go play somewhere else" the Princess sighed.
"Oh, so I should leave, right?" Lady Eebelle tilted her head.
"Yes," the Princess affirmed.
"Okay, I'm leaving. Let me just go and tell uncle who his daughter is in love with," Lady Eebelle stood up and headed towards the door.
Princess gritted her teeth, as she was about to strangle this little girl!
"Eebelle!!" Princess Divale dragged her cousin back.
"Yes, Your Highness?" Lady Eebelle smirked.
"Get back here" the Princess hissed as she dragged Lady Eebelle back into the room.
"So, are you finally ready to tell your love story?" Lady Eebelle smiled.
"Shut up and listen!" the Princess rolled her eyes before she sat on the bed, beside her cousin.
Then she began to narrate everything that happened yesterday in the park with Master Filen, only she omitted the details of a certain werewolf.
She inputted Master Filen's name where the werewolf was in the scene, to avoid Lady Eebelle from running her mouth over to the King.
"Now, are you satisfied?" Princess Divale rolled her eyes after she was done with the story.
"Aww, Master Filen is so brave!!" Lady Eebelle squealed with heart popping out of her eyes.
"The love you have for him must have grown to mountains after that act of courage, right?!!"
The Princess said nothing but gave her a small smile.
~If only you knew, Eebelle, if only you knew~ the Princess thought in her head.
A knock came on the door and the girls looked up at once.
"Your Highness, Prince Kelle is requesting permission to enter the room," the guard outside announced.
"Permission granted," the Princess said.
The door was opened and the Prince walked in with a bright smile on his face for his sisters.
"Pleasant Morning, Brother" the Princess and Lady Eebelle stood up and bowed.
"Pleasant Morning indeed," the Prince smiled.
"How are you doing, Divi? Yesterday must have been really tiring" the Prince asked.
"Oh, she's doing fine, so fine that she was danc-" Lady Eebelle was cut off when Princess Divale used her elbow to jam her stomach.
"She was what?" the Prince frowned.
"Nothing, Brother. You know Eebelle, she always likes to spew nonsense" the Princess waved it off.
"Hmm, still fishy to me," the Prince smiled.
"So, Brother, how are the preparations for tonight's dinner going?" the Princess quickly changed the subject.
"You just can't wait for tonight to come, can you?" Lady Eeblle snickered and the Princess gave her a death glare.
"When will you learn to just shut it for once, Eebelle?! For once?!" the Princess rolled her eyes.
"Brother, she keeps on telling me to shut my mouth!" Lady Eebelle whined and went to rest her face on the Prince's shoulder.
"Easy there, girls. Divi, you shouldn't tell our baby girl to shut her mouth, she has every right to talk" Prince Kelle patted Lady Eebelle's shoulder and gave Princess Divale a wink.
"Oh, please" the Princess rolled her eyes and pushed Lady Eebelle to move out of the room.
"That's right, Father is calling us all in the courtroom," Prince Kelle said as he stepped out of the room with Lady Eebelle hanging on his arm.
"All of us? Including Brother Kindare and Brother Khinel?" the Princess asked.
"Yes, he said he needed to speak with us all," Prince Kelle nodded.
"Alright, let's go" the royal siblings marched down the hall towards the courtroom.
As they got into the courtroom, they saw the Empress and the Emperor on their throne already but the King was glaring down at someone.
Princess Divale shifted her gaze and it landed on her second elder brother, Prince Kindare. She instantly knew what was wrong.
This wasn't the first time such had happened.
Prince Kindare was glaring down at the table as his eyes were red to the brim. His hair was messy and it looked like he hadn't slept for some days now.
"Pleasant Morning, Father and Mother" the royal siblings greeted.
"Pleasant Morning, Your Majesty," Lady Eebelle bowed.
"Have a seat," the King gestured and they all took their seat.
It was custom for the ladies to sit at one side and the males would sit at the opposite side, so Lady Eebelle and the Princess sat beside each other, opposite the two princes.
"You all must be wondering what I called you here for," the King started.
"Yeah, right!" Prince Kindare snorted.
The King glared at him but said nothing.
"Tonight we are having a dinner with one of the prospective suitors coming over for dinner, and it's in our best interest that we are to be in our best behavior," the King said.
Prince Kindare snorted under his breath but it didn't go unnoticed by anyone in the room.
Princess Divale could already feel the tension building up and she was hating it already.
It always happened every single time.
"And-"
"Oh, please, Father, cut the bullshit!" Prince Kindare hit his fists on the table and everyone jumped from the shock.
"Kindare, mind your language. Do you know who you are speaking to?!" the King bellowed.
"We all know what you wanna say, so why all the courtesy of bringing us into the courtroom?!" Prince Kindare slurred.
It seemed the hangover was getting to him.
"This isn't the first nor the second time you pull this shit! Each time we want to have an official meeting, you hold this meeting as a pretense to tell me indirectly to stay away from the dinner!" Prince Kindare hissed.
"Kindare-" the Empress had tears in her eyes now.
"Mother, please! You all don't have to pretend! You are just trying to tell me to stay away from the dinner so I don't embarrass you all and most importantly, I don't taint the perfect Divale!" Prince Kindare spat.
The Princess looked up with shock and tears in her eyes, the way he said her name was filled with so much disgust.
"Brother-" Divale tried to talk.
"Cut the crap, Divi! Don't bring in the shit of you trying to console me, you don't know what it's like to be the black sheep in the family! You don't know what it's like to insult by your own parents, every single day!" Prince Kindare stomped his fists on the table and stood up.
Princess Divale looked down at her thigh in shame. Lady Eebelle quickly held her hand so she wouldn't cry.
"So save the good daughter act for Daddy, Princess. I don't need it!" the Prince hissed.
"Kindare! What is wrong with you? How can you speak to your sister like that?!" the Empress rose and yelled at her son.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Your Majesty. I have committed a tremendous offense by dare raising my voice to the great Crown Princess. Apologies, Your Highness" Prince Kindare bowed mockingly.
"What have you become?" the King said with a pained tone.
"I need a drink!" Prince Kindare staggered out of the courtroom as Prince Kelle went after him.
"Divi, it's okay" Lady Eebelle caressed the Princess's arms to comfort her.
Princess Divale was barely holding the tears in her eyes.
She felt hurt that her brother would think of her that way.
The family meeting had ended the way it always does...