~~~~~~~~~~
A warm breeze blew across her face as her golden eyes fluttered open to a light knock on the door, "Come in", Selene spoke up with a raspy voice.
The door to creaked open slowly, to reveal a man with long bright golden hair that was styled into a ponytail, he looked to be in his early twenties with glistening golden eyes that stared back at her from behind the door with worry.
[ My dare sister Selene, you have been treated unfairly, relegated and made to live in the background but do not fret, you have not been forgotten, for father and I love you very much].
It took her all the restraint she had not to flinch at the gaze of the eyes that were similar to hers,[This must be Selene's older brother Bastian Arin Estridsen].
"Selene are you ok? Larisa said you were still running a fever and father and I worry for you".
[So she really did snitch on me], She sighed as she looked a little thoughtful.
"Please allow the physician to examine you", his voice carried sadness and his words weighed heavily on her chest for some reason.
"Brother! I do not wish to meet with the physician", she sulked as she yanked the blanket over her head while grumbling.
"If that is what you came here for, you may leave. I do not wish to speak to you, Larisa or even father", she raises her nose in the air and turns her face the other way.
He was taken a back by her sudden reaction, "Selene I'm sorry, I was being insensitive", he sat on the edge of the bed as she instinctively lean on his broad shoulder, "Selene?".
"Hmm", she replied with her eyes closed.
[I know I'm acting a little out of character. Selene is always calm and comported at all times, she is almost like a porcelain doll but I can't help to think that they would unknowingly keep nudging us towards our early graves and she knew it too].
"Did the physician offend you in any way? Is that perhaps why you do not wish to meet with him?".
She frowned, "No brother".
"Then what is your reason?", he peered down to have a clear look at her face while he waited for her response.
Her eyes darkened visibly, [Because that physician is the reason I may not be able to make a full recovery], she buried her head into his shoulder.
[He is slowly feeding me poison because Marquis Sullivan wants to overthrow father. This is one of the reasons I will die when they bring me face to face with my twin sister, who I was never meant to meet. The golden sun that brings light, scorches and burns, Soriya].
A wave of sadness washed over her as she tried not to visualize the imagery in the novel, to not see the corpse of the person in front of her mangled and bloody.
[ Did she really love her family that much that she would willingly take poison just so that they would not worry for her, she must have suffered a lot instead of dying while building her resistance to poison. She made them to live in their delusion].
"No brother, I can't tell you it's a secret".
[Maybe acting cute and childish will get me out of this, I'm lucky that Bastian has not unlocked his abilities yet].
She began to make cute faces at him. She hoped that he would drop the question as she observed Bastian's face show confusion.
He froze in place dumbfounded and unable to speak again due to disbelief.
She jumped out of the bed and dragged him by his sleeve to stand up, like a child wanting to show an adult something new they discovered.
She put on a child's voice, "Come brother, you can't stay here, you have to work and assist father, he is old after all, father might break his old back if he climbs the stairs to attend all those meetings you know".
Still in a trance like state he followed her to the door of her room as she pushed him out, " Ok brother, bye bye ".
She closed the door behind her knocking him back to reality, "Wait! don't you want to eat anything Selene, you haven't even had breakfast and it's already the afternoon, you have to eat something, or are you that unwell?".
"No brother, I'm not hungry",[ I kind of lost my appetite].
He is still perplexed and unable to understand as he replayed the whole event over and over again but with every replay he only gets more confused.
~~~~~~~~~~
"How is Selene?", the king's voice wakes Bastian from one of his replay.
"Yes father?".
Sharp green eyes pierce holes through Bastian, "I see you were not paying attention, Bastian".
He took a sip of tea from his tea cup, savoring it's warmth and flavor as the breeze in the garden blow across his neatly cut silvery grey hair while Bastian looked shocked.
[ How did I get here? Wasn't I just in front of Selene's room?].
"Ah, my apologies father".
[ I should really try to be more present, things could have gone really wrong].
"I want to know how Selene is fairing, the child has always been on the quiet side", he said as a he smiled sadly his expression softens.
"Father I do not think Selene is well in the head, perhaps the fever has taken over her mind", he shifts uncomfortably on his sit as he tries to avoid eye contact.
" She refused to meet with the physician and will not even eat anything and she is behaving like a child".
The king's green eyes shot open,"What do you mean Bastian?", the atmosphere in the garden became stifle as the king glowered at him.
"Father, I...".
The emperor stood to his feet hastily dropping his teacup, " I must meet with Selene".
[Why is this child acting strange? The paperwork can wait].
He took long strides and vanished from the garden in a matter of seconds, leaving behind a Bastian drenched in his own sweat.
[What an unpredictable old man father is].
He moved through the hallway like a phantom,
[Selene, my daughter, my pride].
His expression deadly as he took a sharp turn in the passageway and vanished.