The castle was mostly quiet, in an eerie way that out Rosamund on edge. Sage, however, seemed perfectly at ease, so she stayed calm. The sisters were led through a dim hallway, with the only light being that from hanging torches.

 As they walked on, Rosamund could voices rising in the room up ahead.

 "I am telling you, Niklaus-"

 "No, I am telling you, Finn. This is my castle. How did we get here? Because of me."

 "Niklaus, surely he does not have to tell you every-"

 "Stay out of this, Elijah!"

 "Is that them?" Rosamund asked in a whisper.

 Sage nodded. "Yes."

 The doors to the dining hall opened, revealing five people on their feet, chairs pushed back, all glaring at each other. They all turned to look at the sisters standing in the doorway.

 "Sage." One of the men walked over to them. "I am happy you came, but-"

 "Of course I came," Sage said with a smile. "I brought my sister Rosamund with me. I could not possibly leave her home alone. Rosamund, this is Lord Finn, the man I have been telling you of."

 Rosamund gave a quick curtsy. "I am happy to meet you, Lord Finn. Your sister speaks well of you."

 He gave her a nod. "And she speaks well of you, Miss Rosamund."

 "Oh! Finn, you scoundrel," one of the other men said with a grin. "You did not tell us you had a ladylove."

 "Not now, Kol," Lord Finn said through gritted teeth. To the sisters, he said, "Sage, do come sit by me. Rosamund, would you sit there by my brother, Lord Elijah? He will do you no harm."

 When everyone was seated, the blond man at the head of the table said, "Well. I certainly wish Finn had said sooner that we would be having guests. I would have a much better supper prepared." Glancing at Lord Finn, he said, "Perhaps I should introduce us all. I doubt our brother speaks well of us. I am Lord Niklaus; on my right here are Lords Kol and Elijah; on my left here is Lady Rebekah. And you girls already know Lord Finn, it seems. He did not tell us he had friends."

 Rosamund looked at Lord Finn. His hands were curled into fists, and he glared at his brother as he spoke. She would have thought that, as the oldest, Lord Finn would have been the one to sit at the head of the table. 

 "If you do not mind my saying so," she said, "But...I would have thought since Lord Finn is the eldest, he would be at the head of the table."

 "Ah. Usually so, in other families." Lord Niklaus gave her a smile. "But I am in charge of most affairs here, you see."

 She nodded and quickly looked away. "Of course."

 She continued to stare down at her plate. She had been to the castle a few times before, years ago, but it wasn't the same as she remembered, not with these people there.

 "I am sorry if he frightened you at all."

 Rosamund looked up at the man sitting next to her. He had a much kinder face than his brother, and his smile made her feel a little more at ease.

 "Is he the second eldest?" she asked him.

 "No, I am. Niklaus is the third."

 "Oh. It is very strange, though, for the third son to take charge of all affairs, is it not?"

 Lord Elijah slowly turned away. "I suppose you could say we are a...strange family."

 Rosamund would have liked to speak with Lord Finn, but her sister seemed to taking up all of her attention. She didn't speak to the rude one, Lord Kol, and she certainly did not want to talk to Lord Niklaus. She wasn't sure what to think of Lady Rebekah. The young blonde woman ate her dinner mainly in silence, but Rosamund noticed her glance at Sage with distaste. So, in the end, she ended up in a few short exchanges with Lord Elijah. Unlike his brothers, he was kind and soft-spoken, and they got on well.

 But soon Lord Finn rose from his seat and said, "Let me escort you both home. It is dark now."

 "Goodbye," Rosamund said to Lord Elijah, who gave her a smile and a nod.

 The three walked down the hill together, Sage and Lord Finn arm-in-arm, and Rosamund on his other side at a slight distance.

 "I am sorry if my brother Niklaus came off as rude," he said. "He can be quite a nuisance, but he did not mean anything bad by what he said."

 Rosamund could tell as he said it that he himself did not believe it.

 When they arrived at the cottage, Lord Finn said, "Goodnight, and thank you for joining me tonight. You made supper with my siblings a little more bearable."

 "Of course," Sage said with a smile. "We were happy to join you." Rosamund gave a smile and nod. Lord Finn gave them a quick bow, and began to make his way back up to the castle.

 "I told you," Sage said. "Is he not kind and noble?"

 Watching his retreating figure, Rosamund answered, "Yes. I suppose he is."