Anna couldn't remember the last time she had felt this alive. Caius Veylindor had stepped into her world like a ray of sunlight piercing through a murky storm. Though the animals still clawed at her legs each morning as she tended to them, and the plants she watered seemed to wilt in defiance, her heart carried a lightness she had never known. Someone had finally seen her, spoken to her, and called her by her name.
At first, their interactions were tentative. Caius, with his aristocratic bearing and sharp amber eyes, seemed out of place in her small world. Yet, he would sit with her in the garden as she watered the plants, asking her questions about the books she read or the flowers she liked best.
One day, as Anna gathered berries near the woods, Caius appeared, startling her.
"You eat these?" he asked, inspecting the small, uneven fruits in her basket.
Anna flushed. "They're… all I can find sometimes. They're not bad, I promise."
To her surprise, Caius plucked one from the basket and popped it into his mouth. His face twisted in mock disgust, and he grinned. "You have terrible taste."
Anna giggled, a sound she wasn't used to hearing from herself. "I didn't say they were good!"
That afternoon, Caius helped her pick better fruits, teaching her how to spot the ripest ones.
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Over the weeks, Caius became a fixture in Anna's life. They spent hours exploring the estate grounds, talking about everything and nothing. Caius shared stories of his family, his dreams of adventure, and the traditions of the wolf-shapeshifter clans. Anna listened intently, marveling at his world, so different from her own.
In return, she showed him her favorite hiding spots: a quiet nook in the library where she could read without disturbance, an old tree with a hollow trunk perfect for storing her secret treasures, and the garden's lone patch of wildflowers that somehow bloomed despite her touch.
"You should smile more," Caius said one day as they sat beneath the tree. "You have a nice smile, Anna."
Anna blushed, her hands nervously twisting a blade of grass. "Do I? I didn't think anyone noticed."
"I notice," he said simply, and her heart soared.
For the first time in her life, Anna felt wanted. She began to wake up each day with a sense of purpose, eagerly anticipating Caius's visits. Even when the animals lashed out at her, clawing at her legs as she fed them, she bore the pain with a smile, thinking of the warmth in Caius's gaze.
"Maybe," she thought to herself, "I can finally be someone's friend."
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The Shift
But as the days turned to weeks, Anna began to notice a change in Caius. His visits were less frequent, and when he did come, his attention seemed divided.
It started subtly—his glances lingering on Isabella a moment too long, his smiles reserved for her. Anna tried to dismiss the growing ache in her chest, convincing herself that she was imagining things.
"Isabella is just… easier to talk to," she told herself. "She's so beautiful, so kind. I shouldn't be jealous."
One morning, as they all sat in the garden, Caius laughed at something Isabella said. Anna, who had been recounting a funny story about her failed attempts at gardening, trailed off mid-sentence. Neither of them noticed.
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When Caius suggested the trip to the market, Anna's heart soared. She spent the night before carefully combing her hair and cleaning her worn dress. But when Isabella joined them, Anna's excitement dimmed.
The market was everything she had dreamed it would be: bustling with life, vibrant with color and sound. But as Anna tried to share her excitement, Caius's attention remained fixed on Isabella.
At one stall, Anna hesitated over a small brooch, its design simple but beautiful. "Caius, what do you think of this?" she asked, her voice hopeful.
He glanced at it briefly. "It's nice," he said, before turning to Isabella, who was admiring a sapphire necklace. Moments later, he bought the necklace for Isabella, fastening it around her neck as Anna watched in silence.
Her fingers brushed the brooch, but she set it back down. "Maybe next time," she whispered to herself.
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At first, Caius's shift in demeanor was so subtle that Anna barely noticed. He still visited her occasionally, though his once-lively conversations grew shorter and more distracted. When he asked her to help with Isabella, Anna assumed it was a temporary request, a small way to be useful to him.
"Isabella's been feeling overwhelmed," he said one day, his tone gentle yet insistent. "She could use someone to make things easier. You're good at that, Anna."
Anna's heart swelled with the faintest flicker of pride. "Of course. I'll do whatever I can."
So began her days of servitude to her sister, under the guise of friendship. Caius would ask her to fetch Isabella's favorite flowers from the garden, to polish the silver combs in her vanity, or to clean the study where Isabella liked to sit and sketch. Each request came with a smile and a word of thanks, and Anna obeyed, eager to prove herself.
But it was during these tasks that Anna began to notice the change in Caius's gaze.
At first, it was a lingering look toward Isabella during family dinners, a smile that reached his eyes whenever she spoke. Then, there were the moments when Caius seemed to find fault in Anna's actions.
"Anna, you shouldn't just drop the flowers there. They'll wilt faster if they're not in water," he chided one morning when she brought a bouquet to Isabella's room.
"I was just about to—" she began, but Caius waved her off.
"It's fine. Just… think ahead next time, okay?"
The moment Caius began suspecting Anna of something more sinister was unspoken but marked by a distinct tension in their interactions.
It began with small observations. He noticed how Isabella sometimes grew quiet when Anna entered the room or how her hands trembled slightly whenever her sister was nearby. Once, Isabella flinched when Anna passed too close, her wide, innocent eyes glistening with unshed tears.
"What's wrong?" Caius asked Isabella afterward, his voice low with concern.
Isabella shook her head, a perfect picture of reluctance and vulnerability. "It's nothing," she murmured, her voice barely audible.
But to Caius, her hesitation spoke volumes. "You can tell me," he urged. "I'm here to help."
Isabella gave him a weak, tremulous smile. "I don't want to cause trouble. It's just… Anna can be a little rough sometimes."
"Rough?" Caius's brows furrowed.
"She doesn't mean it, I'm sure," Isabella said hastily, her voice softening into an almost angelic tone. "But… she can be a little overwhelming."
The words lingered in Caius's mind like a splinter, small but irritating. He began to pay closer attention, watching how Anna moved around Isabella and how Isabella reacted in return.