Crito took a deep breath. She had already started the band off, and she trusted them when they told her that they knew what they were doing. She wandered around the ballroom and cheerfully said quick "hello"s to people she recognized. There seemed to be several people of high importance that night. Makes sense; this is to celebrate the recent peace treaty, so the nobles and war heroes made their presence, Crito thought.

       The bright room was filled with lighthearted music, laughter, storytelling, and dancing. Crito was walking past a rather enthusiastic storyteller to grab a glass of wine. She didn't drink too often, but she could handle a glass or two. The glasses were never filled halfway anyways. She took a sip and tuned into what the storyteller was talking about. By the sounds of it, he was talking about a battle he took part in.

       "-and then I firmly planted my foot on the Prerissan's chest armor and pointed my sword right at his throat. He said nothing as he looked up at me with bitter hatred and disgust. I knew this kind of guy would've made it his life goal to get his revenge if I let him live, so I trusted my already blood-stained sword into his throat! Let me tell you, as I watched the maroon liquids spill and bubble out of the wound and stained both his skin and the grass beneath him, I relished the satisfaction that came with it," the man finished.

       He then went on to joke about how many knights looked terrified before he ended their lives. That was when Crito left. I understand that you're passionate about what you do, but death is not a joke, she thought. As she made her way around the room to check on the band, a certain someone catches her eye. It was a woman with pale blond hair in a waterfall braid that flows across her back. She knew who the woman was; she was constantly praised for being warm to guests and welcoming nobles from other kingdoms before meetings. Melisentia.

       Curious, Crito made her way over to the smiling woman. She seemed like an interesting person, and she wanted to know her a bit more than she already did. Crito tapped her shoulder, and Melisentia turned around. "Good evening, miss. You sure do look lovely tonight," Crito greeted with a slight bow.

       Melisentia chuckled slightly and bowed back. "Thank you; you look nice tonight as well," she said. "You're Crito, the one who organized the music, correct?"

       Crito smiled and nodded. "Yes, and I'd like to say the musicians have done a brilliant job with it," she said. "And you were present while the higher nobles were discussing the peace treaty," she added. Melisentia's nodded. As Crito looked at the woman's energetic green eyes, she was reminded about a rumor she heard among the kingdom. It hadn't bothered her all too much previously, but it was enough that she wanted to know the truth. "I've also heard from around that you had a younger sister, yet I don't even know her name."

       "Oh, you must be talking about Spira," Melisentia said.

       Oh, so it is true, Crito thought.

       "She is a kind young woman, yet she seems to dislike putting herself out there," Melisentia thought aloud.

       "Is she here tonight?"

       "Yes, she is. If I know her, she'll be out on the balcony," Melisentia told her.

       Crito looked towards the colored windows that lead outside. It was still rather early for a ball, and the sun was still setting. "Alright. Farewell, it was a pleasant time talking to you," she said to the princess and made her way over to the doorway.

       It was much quieter outside, yet the music could still be heard, and the sounds of the people were audible. There weren't many people on the balcony. All she saw were a group of friends talking, a couple getting rather affectionate, and a few more individuals simply enjoying the peace. Crito let her eyes wander to try and find the unknown princess.

       Her gaze rested upon a woman with the same hair as Melisentia's, except her's was tied up in a bun with a few strands coming from its base. While leaning against the stone edge, she was standing at the corner of the balcony. Her grass green eyes scanned the landscape of the kingdom, the fields beyond, and the beautifully colored sunset painted by the sun and clouds. Crito smiled as she was almost certain that she was the unknown princess, so she walked over to her and rested her arms on the edge about a foot away from her. "Hello," she greeted.

       The woman's head jerked up slightly before she turned to look at her. She smiled awkwardly before returning a "hello" and looked back down at the kingdom. Crito looked at her for another moment or two, then followed her gaze. I assume that this kind of stuff doesn't happen all to much to her, she thought. She decided to stay and try to get to know her, although it seemed like she wasn't the talkative type.

       "It's a beautiful sight, isn't it?"

       Spira looked at Crito from the corner of her eye. "Yes, it is," she said. They were silent for a few more moments before Spria broke the silence. "Do you need anything?"

       Crito shrugged. "Nah, I just heard about you from your sister and decided to chat with you, that's all," she said.

       She did not know how to respond, so instead, Spira looked back at the landscape. "The music is lovely tonight. Do you happen to know the arranger?"

       Crito responded with a small laugh. "Yeah, it's me," she said.

       "Oh," Spira murmured, and her face grew light pink with embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I didn't know-"

       "Don't worry about it; everything's fine," Crito cut her off. She waited for Spira to cool down before saying anything else. "What kind of things do you do in the castle?"

       Spira took a few moments to think and hesitated before answering. "I-I normally don't do anything regarding other kingdoms like my sister, but instead I spend my time writing stories or editing documents. I guess you could say I am advanced in literature," she answered.

       "Well that sounds interesting," Crito said and leaned her head on her hand. "Are any of your stories public?"

       "No, but I don't plan on that happening anytime soon. They're only public to the royals who have access to the castle library," Spira said.

       Crito was about to ask 'now why is that', but then decided not to. "Either way, writing sounds like a fun time," she said instead.

       Spira smiled slightly. "Yeah, it really is," she said. "What about you? What do you do?"

       "Me?" Crito laughed a little bit before answering. "I fix woodwind instruments, I make them, and basically anything else that has to do with woodwind instruments," she said with a smile.

       "Well that sounds like fun," Spira said.

       Crito nodded. "Yeah, and I also like to play - flute, mostly," she added.

       "Oh?" Spira's eyes lit up. "Well that's a coincidence. I play flute as well."

       "Really? Well, that's grand! For how long?"

       Spira shrugged. "Since I was a small child," she answered. She looked back towards the horizon, where the sun was just about gone.

       Crito followed her gaze. It sure is pretty tonight, she thought. "Maybe we could play together sometime," she suggested, not really thinking about where she was nor who she was talking to.

       Turning her head to look, Spira's eyes widened. "Are you suggesting that we should get together again sometime?"

       "Why not?" Crito, without looking away from the sun's fading colors, smiled and laughed. "I assume you don't leave the castle too often, nor have too many visitors, so it'd be nice if you had a change," she said and locked eyes with Spira, her jaw clamped closed as she's unsure with what to say. "Besides, it seems like no one in the kingdom knows you too well, so I'd like to open up a new opportunity for you, since it seems like not many people tried to open up your world," she added.

       Spira stayed silent for a while. Slowly, Crito realized what she had said, and the longer she waited, the more she regretted it.

       Well, it's too late now.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

       Gilbert wiped his forehead with his sleeve and sighed as he looked down at the recently cleaned floor. He smiled as he went to take a step outside to make sure the broom was clean before he put it away. As he opened the door, he propped it to keep it from closing to let some fresh cold air in. He leaned on the wall as he took care of the broom and let his mind wander.

       What am I doing here? It wasn't the first time he had pondered that answer. He had accomplished so much in his life, it made him wonder if he was wasting his life away doing what he was doing now.

       Look, Daddy, look! I cut it in half!

       Oh look at you! You're basically a knight already!

       No, Gilbert cringed on the inside as he pushed away the memories. Just...no. He flinched as a fleck of dust got caught in his eye. "God damnit," he snapped and his eyes teared up. He blinked slowly to get it out; it didn't take too long. He decided to simply hit the broom against the wall just enough to get most of the junk out of the bristles.

       You're getting strong, little man! Wait until you're strong enough to take a head clean off!

       Soon enough, I will be doing that without a sweat!

       Stop, Gilbert glared down at his hands and took a few deep breaths, then turned suddenly and sharply swung the door. Before it hit the frame, he slowed it down so that it didn't slam shut. He placed the broom where it belonged and got himself a glass of apple juice. What he really wanted right now was a mug of liquor, but Xavier never wanted him to bring any home, and he didn't want to go out to get any. So, he'll just have to down some juice instead.

       He walked into the living room where Xavier fell asleep on the couch. The fire was dying in the hearth, and a dark green blanket settled below Xavier's shoulders. He looked calm, and his mouth was open slightly as his head rested on the armrest. Gilbert smiled slightly as he pulled the edge of the blanket to cover Xavier. He went to sit on the other side of the couch, then remembered that Xavier had a lame leg.

       Taking a seat in a separate chair, he took a deep breath and took a swig of his juice. He spent some time watching Xavier sleep. I will make the official unit someday, but for now, I think I'll be fine with staying here and helping him out, he thought and smiled at the idea of taking it easy. He brushed a hand through his hair and chuckled. But, that's no excuse for me to get lazy.