Before Anna Maria von Burien was the main character of male's dreams all over the Kingdom of Castille, she was an awkward teenager with a bad attitude. Her chubby, faintly freckled cheeks turned red easily. The insecurities she experienced were armored by a terrible attitude. No one could hurt her if she hurt them first.
Since she had her father's favor by looking like his side of the family, she took advantage of his good graces and took it out on her older sister.
Leonor had an easygoing nature and therefore an easy target. Her treatment became far worse after her mother passed away. She had no barrier from her father and sister's harsh personalities. Spending time alone was the best way to avoid having to be on guard all the time.
As Anna Marie walked into the room, her brown eyes darted around and she frowned at her sister who vulnerably sat on the bed, healing from the bad luck that befell her. She had papers and books in her arms, showing the reason why she had a hard time opening the door.
"Were you talking to yourself?" the younger girl asked. "What sort of madness have you fallen into?"
Leonor could only cast her sapphire eyes at her sister and give an expression of disinterest. It was her only defense against someone so persistent. She would get into trouble if she opened her mouth because Anna would run to their father.
"Regardless, you've missed your lessons the past two days and father is getting worried you're shirking on responsibilities," Anna continued, walking further into the room. "Better study up, dear sister."
The last words were said with venom as Anna stopped at the bed and proceeded to drop the books on her unsuspecting sister.
Leonor let out a yelp as she braced for the impact, causing her leg to move more than she wanted it to. Immediately she reeled in pain.
There was a noise from her wardrobe and both sets of eyes went in that direction, however, Anna was distracted by her satisfaction of causing Leonor pain and getting the reaction she so desired.
"Get out of my room!" Leonor finally shouted, being pushed too far. She could no longer not respond.
Anna was satisfied with her objective and let out a laugh before running out of the room and not looking back. Her cruelness towards her sister wasn't even a thought after a few minutes while Leonor was left with bruised pride and her leg throbbing.
From the armoire, Valerio looked on in horror as he witnessed the lady be mistreated in such an unprompted manner. She didn't stand up for herself and took the treatment as if she deserved it. When the books were dropped onto the injured girl, he fell against the back of the wardrobe so he wouldn't push himself out and ruin their cover.
If Leonor was treated that way without doing anything, he couldn't imagine what happened to her when she was in trouble.
The second the door shut, Valerio burst from the armoire and was at Leonor's bedside, crouching on the bed as he looked at the state of her leg.
"How dare she!" he exclaimed, though he kept it under his breath so he wouldn't be caught. "How on Earth does she treat you with such disrespect?"
Leonor let out an even sigh and she pulled the books and papers off of herself calmly, deciding it wasn't worth it to respond more than she already did.
"There are some things that aren't worth a response," Leonor admitted. "It's easier to pick apart someone's reaction than their silence."
"My lady…"
Valerio's eyebrows were knit together in frustration but when he was met with a dejected expression from Leonor, he realized he needed to calm down. She didn't need someone loud at that moment.
She worried that her father had mistreated him while, all along, she lived her life being mistreated. The more he saw, the more he realized she didn't live a comfortable life full of ignorance as other nobles he had experienced. Money had done nothing but burden her. She was the heiress to a man who wasn't kind to her. He imagined there was much more he hadn't realized.
Valerio silently organized the papers and books that Leonor had pulled off of herself and he placed them on the table at her bedside.
He had gone there to see if she was alright, but she was worse off than he could have ever imagined. Her leg injury was low on the list of things he was worried about.
Leonor observed the teenager as he occupied himself. It was clear to her he was trying to calm himself down before he could speak again. To control himself in such a way made her admire him more. She was surrounded by too many people who did whatever they wanted without consideration for others.
"Now I have to know," Leneor quietly broke the silence that had fallen between them. "Why do you normally wear a hat?"
At the tip of her tongue was a compliment she would never have the courage to say. She really wanted to ask why he would cover such a beautiful head of hair. If he didn't wear a hat, he would always have hordes of women following him around. Wasn't that the dream of every boy his age?
Valerio sat back on his heels and he smiled faintly at her question. It seemed he couldn't ignore it any further. She had seen him without the hat a few times by that point.
"The first reason is that people looking in orphanages will prefer someone with lighter hair," he explained. "They would make more believable heirs and be accepted into society more easily. I don't want to leave the orphanage. I want to work as much as I can so the others have food to eat."
Leonor's eyes widened as he revealed more than she expected him to.
There were times after her mother passed away when she wished her father would die as well. She wouldn't be sent to an orphanage but to one of her relatives who might treat her more kindly. She was lucky to always have somewhere to go, unlike Valerio.
"And the other reason?" she whispered.
"I'm from a kingdom where most people have hair and eyes like mine," he admitted. "It doesn't hold the same meaning that it does over here that's why I choose to hide it."
Her lips fell open at his admittance. She was speechless.