A/N: Are you a first-time reader or re-reader ;)? 

London, 1837

It was spring when it all started and spring when it all ended.

"Sophia, Sophia! Can you play with me, please?" Colette Brighton barreled into the room, her footsteps a storm against the wooden floor. Seconds later, a ball of pink frills and blonde hair launched itself onto the bed Sophia Brighton lay in, causing her to nearly tumble off.

Sophia shrieked. She dropped the book she had been reading and it loudly thudded onto the floor making her grimace. "Colette! You startled me. How many times must I tell you to not bother me when I am reading?"

Colette pouted her soft pink lips as she blinked up at Sophia with her rather doll-like eyes. "I apologize, sister. But please do play with me. I have just finished my lessons for the day with our governess and I am quite bored out of my mind."

Sophia sighed as she bent down to pick up her fallen copy of Oliver Twist, placing it delicately on the bed. She then gestured over to the pile of books by her bedside. "As I said, I am reading. I am almost done with this book and then I have a few others I must attend to. I haven't quite finished reading that scientific theory that was published and I must finish all the love sonnets of Shakespeare-"

Colette brightened. "Shakespeare? Oh, do you have copies of the plays? I want to read them. I love drama and plays. Mama said if she will take me to one soon." She made a move to grab a script, but Sophia swatted her hand away.

"Don't touch my books. I gave you one of my books once and you lost it!"

"I told you! Mama lost it when she was cleaning through some of my old things. She must have sent it away for charity by accident."

"Don't lie to me, Colette. Mother would never lose a book. She emphasizes that education and diligence to the same are of the utmost importance. Now, goodbye. Don't bother me."

"If you play with me now, I'll not bother you later. I promise. I swear it." Colette flashed Sophia a cheeky grin.

"Your sneaky little witch. Bargaining with me, are you?" Sophia grabbed a pillow off the bed and flung it at her sister. She tried to school her expression to look enraged, but one glance at Colette and her lips started to twitch into a smile.

Colette gave her an ear-splitting grin. "Of course. And now you shall be much more enthusiastic to meet my demands."

Sophia ruffled her sister's curls. "All right, ma Cherie. Let's go for a picnic, shall we?" She pointed to the window and gestured to the sun scorching the earth outside of it. "It is a wonderful day to do so."

Colette bobbed her head eagerly, her curls bouncing about. "Yes, we shall, we shall." She scampered off the bed, squealing for the maid to prepare a picnic for them both.

Half an hour later, they were both spread out on a blanket, soaking in the heat that rolled in waves down to them. Although spring had finally arrived after months of snow and cold disparity, the sudden warmth was surprising nonetheless. The city of London was having a clear and sunny day? People would have scoffed at those words if that very occurrence had not been seen by their eyes.

"Sophia," Colette said through a mouth full of biscuits that she was stuffing down her throat. Seeing Colette chew with her mouth open, and gobbling the delicacies like a madwoman, Sophia shot her a bemused, chiding glance. Her little sister's cheeks reddened in embarrassment and she righted herself. She then chewed with her lips sealed although she wasn't anywhere close to quiet about it. Colette, that dear, did love her biscuits.

Sophia sighed. She had to take one step at a time to correct her sister's manners, and she was a child after all. There was no need to be so strict with her. Her sister had years to train herself to be proper, under their mother's and her self's guidance.

Swallowing, Colette then continued, "Sophia. Do you think the man you will marry will be like the prince in the story you told me yesterday? Tall, charming and handsome?" She giggled at the last word, which to a ten-year-old, was a peculiar one, something that only adults spoken in private company.

The unexpected nature of the question caused Sophia to choke on the tea she was sipping. She managed to delicately spit it back into her cup, although some of it seemed to have entered the wrong pipe nonetheless and her chest burned. "Colette. I do not know, sister. Why..." she coughed again, her eyes watering up, "do you ask?"

"Well, Mama is always talking about how she loves this tall and handsome man, which is Papa, yes? I was wondering if that would happen to you. Do you think I would be invited to your wedding? Our cousin's wedding was marvelous last week. Do you think yours would be like that? Do you, do you?" Colette's bobbed her head up and down.

Something about the description of her father nagged at Sophia. Often, her father would come home in a drunken rage and turn into this scary being who threw around things or their mother. Tall and handsome was not the immediate adjectives one would use to describe William Brighton, but one did not think of such things about one's husband, Sophia reckoned. Without voicing her grievances, she put her cup down and tugged Colette to her, smothering her with her embrace.

"Of course, you will be invited to my wedding, you silly goose. You are my sister. Why would you ask that? I predict you will be even more beautiful than I will be at my own wedding and you," she bopped Colette on her nose and she giggled, "will steal my moment. We will have a lot of cake and music and wine-"

A frowning Colette cut her off. "But Mama says I cannot drink wine. She says it is only for..." She lowered her voice, becoming hush and secretive and Sophia bent down to hear her. "She says it is only for older people."

Sophia tilted her head back up and smiled down at her. "Well, I will tell Mother to give you a sip, if that is what you are worried about."

Her sister's eyes brightened, and she hugged Sophia tight. "Really? You are the most marvelous sister ever!"

"Am I now?"

A nod against her bosom was her only response.

A gentle warmth spread through her at her sister's words and she hid her smile in Colette's golden curls. She could feel her sister gently careening into sleep in her arms, her body growing lax. Sophia felt drowsy as well. Her toes curled. Thank God for spring and all the warmth it brought.

The white landscape of winter was exploding into fragments of color, from the leaves stretching their arms up to the sky as they grew, to the flowers blossoming into arrays and rows of paradise; red, blue, green, yellow. Sophia threaded her fingers through the grass which they sat on, allowing its softness to caress her fingertips.

The world around her was blooming and Sophia felt like she was reawakening as well. Most of the winter had been spent behind closed doors, studying and learning instruments and without a doubt, reading. Yet, as spring chased winter away, it seemed Sophia must also follow—which meant more outdoor crafts like mastering croquet and horseback riding were ideal. They weren't horrid tasks, but a book was far more occupying to her.

That tranquility was shattered by the appearances of an anxious-looking servant, Agatha, and Jenkins, a sour-faced man who always cast an eye of disapproval at Sophia, regardless of what she was doing. Even now, he viewed her unclad feet with faint disgust. Agatha beside him seemed to be waiting for his command to approach Sophia, and when he jutted his chin out, she immediately rushed to her side.

"My lady, forgive the intrusion, but might I ask where Lady Conway is? I am to...to give her something." Agatha's temples were dripping with sweat and her grey eyes darted about frantically. She wrung her hands in front of her as if she was squeezing water out of a wet cloth.

"Agatha, what's the matter? You look nervous and aggrieved." Sophia threaded her eyebrows together and pursed her lips wondering what had gotten her maid so agitated.

"No... no... nothing at all, my lady. But it is...is... of utmost importance that I deliver something to Lady Conway."

Sophia held her hand out. "Give it to me. I can give it to my lady mother."

Agatha shook her head furiously—so much so that some strands of her wispy grey hair came free of her bun. "No, no. I have instructions to give it to my Lady Conway and her only." She curtsied. "Thank you. My lady, I'll take my leave. Apologies for the intrusion. It was the other servants who directed me to you, my lady as they had no inkling of where my Lady Conway was. They thought you would know, my lady. Apologies. Apologies."

Agatha was breathing heavily, her words falling over one another. Sophia opened her mouth again to ask what had happened. But before she could do so, Agatha backed away and broke into a sprint when she got near Jenkins again.

It was strange indeed, but Sophia decided to not let it prey on her mind. She would enjoy her time with her sister. Curling up next to her, she dozed off, all her woes disappearing—until the evening came.

As Sophia clambered up to her rooms that evening, hushed voices came filtering out of her parents' chambers. Sophia knew she shouldn't eavesdrop but when she heard Agatha's voice, she couldn't help it. Her servant's behavior earlier made her feel disconcerted like something was terribly wrong and no one was telling her.

Moving away from the stairs that led to her rooms upstairs on the second floor, she crept towards Agatha's voice. She trod softly, making sure her footfalls could not be heard and pressed her cheek against the slightly ajar door.

She could make out her mother's voice and Agatha's, but they were too quiet for her to understand every word. Words like 'not mine,' 'a boy,' 'heir' caught her ear, yet she could make no sense of it. What boy? What heir? Only her sister Jeanne had been born a year ago. Sophia stepped forward a bit more to hear better but froze when she heard the unmistakable sound of a bag of coins.

"This was all I could get for the jewels, my lady. He would not pay me more," Agatha said.

"That... right." Lillian's words were still drowned in silence. "This...s...do."

Sophia frowned. Why was her mother selling her jewels?

"When are you going to tell my Lord of your status?"

"That...child? I can't. It is...doubt...suspects. Jeanne...n...his." While Agatha had disposed of secrecy, her mother's voice was still too faint for Sophia to catch what she was saying even if she craned her ears. However, Sophia's heart still fluttered and her stomach tumbled. Whatever this was, it did not seem like good news.

"My Lord Saxon wishes to meet you. He asks if it's true."

"George ...can't meet... dangerous. My husband...enraged...find..." A small jiggle of coins followed. "Here, Agatha. This is your...share...silence...you mustn't...anyone...happened. Go... money...to Lord Saxon and buy...silence. Please. And... love him."

Sophia could hear someone walking towards the door and she stumbled away, slipping into an adjacent room. Moments later, her mother passed by her to make her way downstairs.

That was close.

Sophia turned around, pressing her forehead to the wall.

What was happening?

All the talk about heirs and Jeanne and things being dangerous. The world tilted on its axis and Sophia tried to breathe in and out to stop it from reeling. She clutched her dress in her hands, hoping to dry her sweaty palms. However, her heart continued to flutter rapidly in her chest and blood surged to her ears, drowning everything out.

Should she confront her mother on this? It seemed like she was in trouble if she had to sell her jewels—for that was the unmistakable jingle of coins. Did her mother need help?

A few minutes later she stumbled up to her rooms, still feeling dizzy. She just sat on the edge of her bed, letting her feet dangle over the edge as she wondered what she should do or could do.

Little did she know that would be the least of her worries of that night or for a long time to come. 

A/N: First of all, thank you so much for opening this book and reading it. I really hope you liked this chapter <3. Please, feel free to leave your comments and vote! I appreciate them a ton <3

Leave me your theories here on what exactly you think Sophia overhead. --->

I love you all <3