"Three days...Did you just say three days?" Lucia asked
"It's as you heard" Luke said "Three days ago, during training, you suddenly lost control of your powers and passed out"
"During the time you were out, Diana launched an attack on Lupin and Lupin's soldiers were forced to make a move" he continued "With all the commotion that came with you losing control, Marcia and I decided it'd be best if you and I went into hiding, and prepare for the ceremony of divine intervention"
"Diana....attacked here?" Lucia asked shakily "Is everyone..."
"She did, but thanks to Marcia and Lupin's soldiers, nothing happened" Luke said
"But your appearance suddenly changed"
"Funny enough, this is my original appearance" Luke said as he stared at his hand "It's the mixture of all of my bloodlines in one true form. With the aid of countless prayers and sermons, the ceremony of divine intervention is meant to strip away impurities and bring out one's purest form"
"Ah. So this was the expected outcome" Lucia said
"I've been in the temple for three days so, my body has been absorbing divine energy" Luke said "This is not your fault"
Lucia stared at him with curiosity. His appearance had really taken a toll on her mind and it had seamlessly perked her interest.
"Uncle Luke..." Lucia said "...you said your current form is a mixture of all of your bloodlines. But I'm just curious as to how many there are"
"I have a total of six. From the first heart in existence, there's the angle and demon bloodline; this is because, the first hearts were products of both" Luke said in an almost bored tone "Then going down, you have human bloodline from the second heart, spirit bloodline from the third, elf bloodline from the forth, more human blood from the fifth and sixth hearts and dragon blood from my mother the seventh heart. While, In your case, it's all that and then, demi-god" he said and Lucia's jaw dropped
'Actually, it makes sense in uncle Luke's case. It also explains the scales I saw that day' Lucia thought as she remembered the first time she met Marcia "Wait a second, did you say demi-god? My mother was a demi-god"
"Not Pamela, but your father, Melvin" Luke said "All of the bloodlines I just called that started from the second heart, are bloodlines from their male partners. In your case, the bloodline from your father, is that of a demi-god"
"Why are you just telling me this now?"
"Because you asked" Luke said with a frown "'Golden hair is a common trait among Neinhart's royals' you've probably heard this before haven't you?"
"Yes...but my sisters weren't born with it" Lucia said while holding a couple strands of her hair
"That is because the saying isn't complete. Seemly like you only know a little about the royal court and more about the commoners of Neinhart" Luke said "Truth is, golden hair is only a common trait among Neinhart's royals, who inherited the Roosevelt family's bloodline magic. Depending on how golden the hair looks, the magical capability is determined"
At that moment, Lucia remembered the first time she went on a tour of Lupin. Luke had said something somewhat similar to what he's saying now.
"Because it's an ability from a god, you'll probably be able to use some of the Roosevelt family's bloodline ability. The ability to control time is something even hearts can't pull off, not to talk of every other human" Luke said as he rested against one hand and crossed a leg over the other "This also applies with members from the Sunshield family. The ability to completely control space and shift through dimensions, is unheard of for even hearts. The highest level of space based magic people and hearts can perform, is teleportation"
"I see"
"The ability to control space and toy with dimensions, is an ability the first Sunshield received as a gift from the god of space" Luke said with a bored expression "The eyes of the cosmos is proof that one inherited such bloodline ability. Just like not everyone born of Roosevelt blood received golden hair, it's the same with those born of Sunshield blood"
"So not everyone has the eyes of the cosmos?" Lucia asked and Luke nodded "That's a lot of information to take in" she said while pinching between her brows
"Anyways, just so you know, not much has really happened while you were sleeping" Luke said as Kian rubbed its head against his hand. He took a quick glance at it before deciding to stoke its head "You just need to focus on recovering and prepare yourself for the ceremony. Four days from now, all conditions should have been completely met by then and at midnight, the ceremony will begin"
"Okay. I'll be ready" Lucia said with a smile
"Is everything alright? You seem to be out of it" Luke said, as he brought his hand to lift up Lucia's head and had stopped rubbing Kian's head
"While I was unconscious, I met a man" Lucia said, while avoiding eye contact with him
"A man?"
"He healed me and we had a conversation with each other....well, I spoke to him, but he didn't want anything to do with me"
"Slow down for a second there, child" Luke said as he sat up "You're telling me, you met a strange man while you were unconscious, and he healed you. And after healing you, you started an actual conversation with him and he replied?"
"Yes" Lucia said
"Are you sure this wasn't a dream?" Luke asked in a serious tone
"It wasn't, I swear" Lucia said desperately "He wanted me to forget about him, but according to him, he didn't have enough magic power to make it happen, since he had used it up on healing me"
"Do you remember his face?"
"He never let me see it, but there's no way to forget his voice, his eyes and even his hair" Lucia said and Luke raised a brow
'Unbelievable' Luke thought, "I need actual details on this person and you're telling me you don't remember his face?" He asked
"I said he didn't let me see it" Lucia argued with her voice raised as the door suddenly swung open
"What is it?" Luke asked with an annoy tone, as he glanced towards Emerald who had come in with a trolley of food
"We brought the princess's meal" Emerald said, while Pattery stuck her head out from behind her "Pattery had been knocking for a while, but nobody answered. As the princess's chamber maids, we're to enter if on the fifth knock, nobody answers"
"I didn't know Marcia added that to your itinerary" Luke said with a scowl, as Emerald and Pattery entered the room with the trolley and began to lay food on the table
"Her majesty wanted to make sure the princess was well attended to" Pattery said with a smile and Luke let out a sigh
"Certainly" Luke said as he abruptly got up from his seat at the table and announced "I have other things to do now that I'm sure of your condition"
"Take care, Uncle" Lucia said with a pout as she lowered her head
Luke stared at her head for a while before patting it. The unexpected display of affection made Lucia's eyes to widened as she lifted up her head to stare at him. He immediately took his hand off her head and left without a word.
"Sir Luke is a bit socially awkward" Pattery said with a slight giggle as she watched Lucia touch her head with a blush on her face
"I know....I've known for quite some time now" Lucia said as she picked up her cutlery "Let's eat, Kian". 'My Uncle cares but just doesn't know how to show it' she thought as she ate happily.
******
Lucia let out a yawn while her three chamber maids helped her get dressed. It was a simple, cotton violet dress with wide puffy sleeves, and a high neckline held together by a single sapphire broach.
'How boring' Lucia thought as she looked out the window of her room and saw the city of Lupin right outside
"Princess, shall I braid your hair?" Ruby said while holding a hair brush
"Of course" Lucia said as she took a seat by the window while Ruby did her hair
It had already been three days since Lucia had awoken from her long awaited slumber. No much had happened since then except for the restrictions that had now been put on her, and the fact that neither Luke nor Marcia had come to see her.
As it so turned out, Marcia had abandoned a lot of her royal duties when Lucia came to Lupin as such, she was currently facing the music for her neglect. Luke of course, had made a promise with Lucia to pick her up when the preparations for the ceremony were completed.
In the meantime, Lucia wasn't allowed to wander out of Hessia. And even walking around Hessia had to be done with caution.
"I feel like a prisoner in a tower" Lucia murmured
"But the princess isn't a prisoner" Pattery said "Her majesty and Sir Luke are just a bit...overprotective"
"Pattery, only a prisoner is not allowed to roam freely in their own space" Lucia said, with a sigh. "I'm lucky to have Kian at least" she said before glancing at the winged lion in question. It was on her bed with a navy blue leather collar around it's neck.
"Speaking of Kian.... Princess, have you been able to get the information you wanted on his species?" Emerald asked, as she draped a dark red shawl over Lucia's shoulders
"Even after reading through all the books in the library....there's nothing about him" Lucia said, as she felt that Ruby was done with her hair and decided to stand up "It's frustrating... honestly. No matter how much I search, or how much I look into it, only more questions arise on the Unnamed kingdom and Kian"
"We're you looking into the Unnamed Kingdom, too?" Ruby asked
"What else could I possibly do?" Lucia asked as she went to lay on her bed "I'm more worried about my own kingdom more than anything, but news on Neinhart, isn't reaching me at all. I'm quite sure that it's the work of my Aunt and Uncle....they probably know that any news that comes in, is surely going to upset me" she said as she buried her head in her pillow
"Princess..."
"Can you three just leave?" Lucia said in a shaky tone "I want to be alone"
"Prin..."
"We understand, princess" Emerald said, interrupting Ruby "We shall take our leave" she said before the three chamber maids took a bow and left the room
'Dad, I miss you' Lucia thought as she remembered her father's smiling face however, another face also came to mind. It was that of Diana. 'Sisters, maybe if I had been a little bit stronger....no, if I had paid more attention, would all four of us have had a different future?'