"My lady, Madame has asked me to inform you that you'd be having dinner with her today," Blair said walking in. I turned and looked at her. Dinner. Will mother's children be there?
"Thank you," I said simply and turned to my note.
"Is something bothering you?" Blair asked. I looked at her, she looked genuinely worried but…
"I'm fine, thank you, Blair," I said and she smiled.
"Let's get you a dress," she said. Some habits can't change. Will I ever change? The thought hit me unexpectedly and I felt more down. Apart from my frustrating research, I was worried about my new siblings and what mother wanted to tell me. The things that bothered me were too many, but I can't tell anyone how I feel, I shouldn't.
I stood up and walked to the walk-in closet to watch Blair look for a dress. It's just dinner and she's making a fuss; habits really never change. Maybe I never will.
"I think I like this one," she said.
"Okay," I replied. The smile on her face was genuine.
I changed and walked to the dining room with shaky hands. I'd meet them today. I'm scared. I wasn't lucky with siblings before; I don't think I'd be lucky with siblings now.
I walked in quietly with my head down, doing my best not to pay mind to the eyes staring daggers at me. Should I leave? I took my seat at the far end of the table and kept my head down.
"This is the kid?" I heard someone say.
"Why is mother raising such a mannerless child?"
"And she wants to answer Alden?"
I clenched my fist to stop it from shaking. They already hate me, but isn't that better than liking me? I didn't look up, I just acted like I couldn't hear their comments.
"You won't even introduce yourself," one of them said and I looked up. I looked at them and folded my hands tighter.
"I…" The door opened and mother walked in before I could speak. She sat at the head of the table and looked at us.
"Livi, why are you sitting there?" she asked. Because I'm scared.
"N… Nothing," I said looking down.
"Come and sit with me," she said and I nodded standing. She looked at the boy beside her and he stood up quickly. She's making matters worse for me.
"Mother," the boy said looking hurt. They were all older and taller than me. If we stood together, they'd be able to look at the middle of my head. How did I get on their bad side?
"Sit down," mother ordered and he tsked, glaring at me. "Boys, this is Faina. She's your sister, so you must treat her well." She stressed the 'must' which made them angrier. "As you all know, she's a professor, so she has to focus on her research. No one is allowed to interrupt her research," mother ordered.
"We won't bother with someone that isn't even a member of Alden. She's just some slum kid that you picked up. Why would we…" one of them was saying but mother glared at him and he shut up.
"Unlike you, the 'slum' kid has achieved a lot. Tell me, what reasonable thing have you done with your life?" she asked and we were all dumbstruck. That was harsh!
"Let me get things straight with you three. I told you if you leave, you are no longer my children. You left, but I, out of motherly love, still took you in and gave you your power back. Don't take my kindness for granted. If you want a roof over your head and a lavish life, you must respect me, my daughter, and my rules. Clear?"
"Yes," they mumbled.
"Now, shall we eat?" she smiled. They left? To where? Is that why she adopted me? Is that why their relationship is so bad?
We ate silently without a word but the tension was evident. It was very awkward but mother acted oblivious to the awkwardness and tension.
"Livi, come with me," she said after we ate and I nodded. The person beside me clenched his fist tightly. I stood up quickly not wanting to waste any more time. "Oh, I forgot to introduce you all. Hayes, Gray, Avon," she pointed to each person and turned to leave. How am I supposed to remember that? Hayes, Gray, and Avon. I'll try to remember so that it doesn't cause problems later.
Mother walked out and I trailed behind her. She walked a few steps and stopped. I stopped as well and studied her. She sniffed and wiped her face. I don't need to look to know; she wanted to cry, but she wasn't… yet.
"Livi," she called and I stepped forward. "Do you think I was too harsh?" she asked and I looked outside through the window. I don't know the full story, so I can't tell if they deserved it or not.
"I don't know," I said and she turned to look at me.
"I guess, you're right," she said. Huh? I said I don't know. "Perspective differs," she said and touched my cheek. "Let's go, I have something to tell you," she said and started walking. It's time.
"Okay," I said following her. Don't be scared, Livi, it'd be fine, it's nothing bad.
We walked into one of the sitting rooms and mother gestured for me to take my seat. I sat down and focused on the deer head on the wall. Mother followed my gaze and looked at it, then a smile formed on her lips.
"I killed that," she revealed. Wow! "In Alden, we have a tradition among warriors that you'd have to hunt down any given animal and get its head within an hour before you can be called a true warrior," she said.
"This one was really easy to kill," she said. "I had Teon do it before he graduated, and the lucky kid passed, even though I told him to hunt a w…" She stopped and looked at me, then she smiled. A what?
"I promised to explain everything to you, so I will," she said and I nodded. It is time.