|Helena's POV|

I was sitting in the Valide Turhan Sultan's chamber with her, Zeynep Sultan, and Aysel, sharing lunch after this sad morning.

When I woke up, I found that Orhan had already left... During breakfast, the hard moment came-I said goodbye to my father, who was leaving because he couldn't waste any more time, especially after ensuring that I was safe here... I also handed him some letters to deliver to the rest of the family.

"Don't be sad, Helena" said Turhan Sultan, pulling me out of my thoughts "I know being away from your family is hard, but we are your family now, and you can consider me like your mother"

"Thank you, Valide" I smiled at her and Zeynep "You all make me feel so loved here"

"What do you think, Helena, about taking Ahmed and Aysel for a walk in the garden?" Zeynep suggested with a smile, then added while looking at her mother "That way, we can leave my mother to finish some important paperwork for the harem"

"Yes, that sounds like a great idea; the weather is lovely outside" I said, glancing at Turhan Sultan "If you allow us"

"Of course" she smiled a little"Enjoy your time"

After we took Aysel, we passed by Ahmed's classroom and brought him along... He was so happy to skip his lesson.

"You were right" Zeynep turned to me "The weather is really nice"

"It is" I smiled a little and turned to see Ahmed running around, but my attention was caught by Aysel trying to pick a flower.

I felt a wave of concern about the possibility of thorns; my obsession with flowers had led me to read a book about most types, and I knew very well which flowers had thorns.

"Wait, Aysel" I rushed to her, but it seemed too late-she had already picked one and cried out a little... I bent down and quickly took it from her hand, causing a few thorns to prick my own fingers.

"What happened?" Zeynep hurried over to us.

"She got a thorn in her finger" I said, taking Aysel's hand to examine it, ignoring the blood coming from my own fingers "Does it hurt?"

"Yes, a little" she replied sadly, shaking her head.

"Um" I pretended to think while looking around, then smiled at her "Okay, I have an idea" I took her hand and walked her to a fountain, tore a petal from the flower, dipped it in the water, and gently rubbed it on her finger "This will be very good, plus a little finishing touch" I smiled and kissed her finger "A kiss!"

"Thank you, Helena" she beamed with happiness and then looked at my hand "Now it's your turn"

Suddenly, we heard an announcement «Destur, Sultan Orhan Khan hazretleri»

Even though I understood its meaning now, I'm still convinced it's a declaration of war.

I straightened up while noticing Zeynep adjusting her shawl over her hair... When I looked towards Orhan, I saw him surrounded by other men, and Ahmed was running towards him.

"My lion" he said, ruffling Ahmed's hair with a smile "Aren't you supposed to be in class now?"

"No, we decided it wasn't necessary" Ahmed replied confidently, making us all laugh.

"My flower, Aysel" he moved closer and picked her up "Are you enjoying the garden?"

"Yes, but..." she raised her finger "While trying to pick a beautiful flower for you, this happened"

"Was it bad?" he asked, examining her finger with concern.

"Not that bad" she smiled, pointing at me, which made me quickly lower my eyes "Helena helped me, and she even kissed my finger, and now it's all better"

"And did you thank her?" he asked softly, looking at her as if she were the most precious thing in the world.

"Yes, of course" her expression changed slightly "But I'm sad because she hurt her fingers too"

"Really?" He turned to me, and before I could say anything, he took my hand and started checking it "Does it hurt?"

"No, no..." I hurried to say, feeling embarrassed, especially since everyone around us had turned their eyes away "It's not that serious, Your Majesty; I washed my hands"

"Even so, don't ignore the wound" he said with a smile, then set Aysel down "Well, I was just passing by and saw you all, so I came to say hello" He gently brushed his hand against Aysel's cheek, then we all smiled as he left.

"Zeynep, let's head back inside" I said, looking at her, but she seemed lost in her thoughts and didn't hear me well she was looking at someone "Zeynep Sultan" I waved my hand in front of her eyes.

"Oh, sorry" she turned to me, her face slightly pale "Were you saying something?"

"Yes, I was suggesting we go back inside, but it seems like we're on the verge of spilling some secrets" I said jokingly, raising an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" she asked, trying to look away.

"What's his name?" I took Aysel's hand, and we started to walk.

"Okay, I give up" she said with a smile, her cheeks turning pink "It's Mansur Pasha... We've been in love for about a year now"

"Oh, that's romantic!" I replied softly, making sure the children wouldn't hear us "How did he confess to you?"

"He sent me a letter confessing his feelings" she smiled gently, as if recalling the moment "I already liked him, but I was shocked when I received the letter"

"That's sweet" I smiled back, even though the age difference made me a little uneasy-she was seventeen, and he seemed to be in his late thirties "Let's hope your wedding is soon"

"Inshallah, it's my only dream" she said excitedly, then turned to me "Okay, enough about me... How was your romantic night with my brother?"

I didn't see this coming... How could I convince her that nothing romantic happened? All we did was sleep for hours... Well, it wasn't a bad idea.

"It was good" I replied with a smile, and then we headed back inside to get ready for dinner.