One of the three boys, who had the same golden hair as hers, suddenly grabbed her by the elbow and dragged her through the corridor while Rivienne's expressionless eyes still locked with the white roses, turning her head amongst all the chaos.
"I saw her entering the chapel earlier. You want to see her too. Don't you?" The boy was excited to the point he did not know that he was marking his sister with another bruise.
When he stopped at the end of the corridor, Rivienne crashed into him. "Oh! Goodness. Look at you. Why don't you take that off? It is fine now," The boy held onto her veil.
No!
Rivienne wanted to stop him, but his hands were faster than hers. And his grey eyes, too. He froze, seeing the bruise on her cheek. And then his hands cupped her face, ignoring the slight force of her hands on his. Rivienne was afraid to look at his face.
The one who gave this bruise was just like this person, though she was sure he was not the same person. After all, those three looked the same since they were born together. Rivienne looked at the trail of rose bushes from the corner of her eyes when the boy brushed his thumb across her cheek, giving tears to her eyes.
"Stay still. Didn't the maid take care of this?" He asked, taking no notice of her fruitless wiggling. Because he did not have the answer, he let go of her and clicked his tongue. "It's your fault. Proper ladies do not talk back or shout at others… Now I can't let you meet saintess like this,"
'I don't want to meet her,' Rivienne did not talk because proper ladies should not talk back.
The sky started to rumble.
"There she is!" The boy's eyes lightened up, seeing the saintess over Rivienne's head as his hand naturally waved in response with a smile. Rivienne also turned to see her, but before even she thought, the so-called saintess in white had locked her black pearl-like eyes with hers.
Rivienne frowned at the sudden horror in them. The saintess trembled, and she fell on her knees. Suddenly, a flash glowed upon the temple, and a loud lightning struck the roof, shaking the entire ground.
"Aaahh! Save me!!!" Saintess screamed.
Shocked, Rivienne did not have a chance to do anything but chase away along with the wave of the crowd that overflowed the hall. She did not have anyone to call or hold her. She somehow stopped far away from the building and in the garden.
What a disaster.
She took a look around, brushing her pink dress. People were running to the carriages even though the rain was getting stronger. Children were crying and shouting while the rest of the priests ran here and there. A scary-looking squad of knights made their way into the chapel, threatening other people. Still, the rumbling and lightning continued as Rivienne stood there watching the unfolding chaos, drenched in water, alone amidst the people who ran for their lives.
"Make the way to the imperial princes and princesses!!" An armoured man with a beard yelled, and everyone moved out of the way.
Rivienne worried about the roses and the butterflies. Even through the rain, she squinted her eyes, trying to have a look. Water trailed down her hair and face. Since the roof was still there without collapsing, she convinced herself that they were all right.
When the cold wind reminded her of the way home, she wiped her face and the golden tresses that stuck to her face. Beads of water formed when she turned her head, expecting at least one of the familiar faces. Second by second, the rambling and her heartbeat got louder.
She used to be afraid of lightning and thunder, but after the miraculous last week, she was not anymore. When her nervous gaze fell on the road to the backyard, she barely saw the blond hair.
He also saw her as he stopped with his red-haired sister. For a second, Rivienne's heart rested, and then the boy turned away as if he did not see his other younger sister.
What?
She froze there as she was going to walk to him. Her eyes circled by the wonder she was experiencing. When the sister and brother dissipated into the crowd, Rivienne did nothing.
She breathed as her clenching hands let go of the dress. She felt her whole body deadening.
The rain around her stopped as a shadow hovered over her. She hiccupped, feeling the familiar fear that she felt once before. She was afraid to turn around.
"Why didn't you run for a shade? A cold is the last thing you want now, my lady,"
Jeremy dropped his coat on Rivienne's head and dragged her along with the umbrella. Rivienne could not believe it, though she did not have a reason not to. Jeremy would always pop up when something happened... with one exception in the last week.
"Killi- One of them told me that ladies don't run like wild animals," Rivienne managed to answer him even though he did not pay any attention to her.
The little lady did not see the front as she was covered with Jeremy's coat, and before even thinking, they were in a carriage. Jeremy wiped her head, ignoring her hair and whining as the carriage moved, following the others. He regretted when he took back his coat as Rivienne's hair was like a bird's nest.
"Um…" He blinked, not knowing what to say. She would be furious if she were to see her current hair. If her nanny Vanessa were here, he would be dead by now.
He decided to say nothing as he cuddled her with the coat and sat back.
Rivienne sniffled. "… A thunder hit the roof. I thought it would collapse on the rose bushes," As the story that he already knew began, Jeremy rested his chin on the palm leaning on the window. "I wonder if someone died. That lady… saintess shouted, saying to save her."
He found a handkerchief in his pockets and roughly wiped her face. Since he was her knight, Rivienne was used to his iciness and continued to talk about things that Jeremy did not listen to. She saw that his black hair was stuck to his skull, making him look like a grown man even though he was still thirteen years old. He was drenched more than her.
"Were you not scared?" Jeremy asked, checking her wound on the cheek. "Does it hurt?"
"… No" To be frank, Rivienne forgot about all.
Jeremy leaned back, clenching his jaw. "Why don't you cry?" He asked as he was hopeless every time Rivienne began to sob. She would sleep on a lake of tears, remembering the reason for her lament over and over until she forgot it. And then she would walk in front of everyone like nothing happened.
Brightly.
"I promised Leo," Rivienne was excited to answer. "I won't cry."
Jeremy sighed.
"When he is back, I'm going to go back home with… achoo!"
'He won't come'
Jeremy had no courage or right to share those words with her. All he could do was protect her ladyship. He held her head, making her blow her nose forcefully, avoiding her big shiny eyes. They only shone when she talked about her cousin.
"When is he-"
There we go again.
Jeremy heartlessly pinched her nose. "Now sleep! You must be tired after sitting still for a long time,"
"But when is Leo-"
This time, Jeremy did not need to find a useless excuse as the carriage suddenly stopped. He did not know it was moving that fast. He could barely catch Rivienne, who went flying. Something seemed off. Through the experience, Rivienne also knew. She did not move or make a noise as she clenched herself in Jeremy's arms.
Jeremy's hand slipped under the seat where his sword hid. "Don't let go of me" He whispered to her. "Remember last time? Hide and-"
SLASH!
It was a split second, and Jeremy covered her sight. Yet Rivienne saw the blood splattering all over the glass window before ruthless rain washed them instantly, before Jeremy stepped into the woods through that rain, carrying her.