Hanging out again

Pulling the Queen aside while Rose is playing with Sher Aka and Rayla, Carmilla takes on a serious expression, “I’m sure you know why I’m talking to you right now.”

“Sigh Yes…”

“Ruby, this isn’t the right decision.”

“Then what is? Do you want me to tell her now at the last minute that I changed my mind and she’s not allowed to leave? I promised her she can leave whenever she wants to. If I want to keep her trust I must let her go.”

“I understand. I also know she needs to get ordained anyways but if we remove her curse that will stop her from the suicide mission she has planned to go on afterwards.”

“If you want to convince her of that, be my guest. But I won’t force it on her.”

“Maybe you won’t but…Your husband is here. I’m sure he’d take the fall for that too.”

“...”

“She already hates him anyway, you can be the savior in this and make her trust you even more. I’m sure she’ll feel sad for a few months but afterwards she’ll be better than ever.”

“...”

Taking a few minutes to think, the Queen takes on a pained expression as she answers, “No. This all started because of my husband's scheme and I don’t want any part in this. Rose might forgive me if she finds out how I reacted once Carlo was here with her in his arms but she won’t forgive me if she finds out I was part in orchestrating this. Our relationship must not start on half truths, lies and schemes. When she trusts us she will come to us and we’ll be there with open arms. We just need to be patient.”

“But Ruby,-”

“No. It’s my final decision, Carmilla. Don’t continue to tempt me.”

“Alright…I understand…To be honest with you Emilio and I intended to kill her companions before they got to the party.”

“I see…What made you change your mind?”

“The fox girl…She said that eventually Rose will find out and will never trust me again. Obviously I know that’s bullshit because I can make more than sure Rose will never find out but…It did nag at me. No matter how low of a chance it would be for her to learn about it I would not be able to handle the guilt of her finding out and hating me. In a sense Carlo has got me beat there. I’m sure if he was in my position he’d just done it for her good but I’m not as selfless. I want to be close to my family. That kid was so proud when she told me that you named her after me…I…I don’t want to disappoint her.”

“Chuckle That’s just like you big sis…I’m glad you didn’t give yourself up for her. Carlo likes to play the hero but what kind of father is he if his idea of good parenting involves making his daughter hate him? Even if it was best for her in the long run…There must have been a better way, even if it’s harder. I want us all to be a family together. Not give ourselves up for each other. We’re Resplandors, if the world is unfair to us then we’ll just have to claw at it with our hands and teeth until we get what we want.”

“Kikikiki, Well said Ruby. I almost gave in to your husband's idiotic thinking. Let’s path out our own way, like we’ve always done.”

“Yes, I’m sure together we will get her back.”

—-------------------------------------------------------

“Hey, ane!?”

“Yes?”

“Can we hold tails?”

“Pfft Sure take your choice, I have more than enough.”

“I want to do it once with each of them so let’s just start with that one.”

“Alright, you’re the boss~”

“Also, ane?”

“Yes?”

“You really need to learn how to take care of yourself better. Your tails are all matted.”

“Pfft You noticed, huh? It’s because I didn’t have my little sister to brush them for me~”

“I’ll brush them tomorrow then, my arms are too weak to do it like this.”

John then leans over to me and whispers, “That’s your big sister, you know? She needs to learn how to do it on her own. She shouldn’t rely on you for this.”

“But if she can’t do it I should help her, right?”

“Nope. Big sister helps the younger sister, not the other way around. Imagine if she gets married because of your superb tail brushing and then she can’t do it on her own.”

“That would be bad…”

“Right? So, from now on only do it for her after she learned how to do it herself. It’s for her own good.”

“You’re right…Ane!”

“Yes?”

“I won’t brush your tails anymore until you can do it on your own!”

“Why?”

“Because you need to learn! I’ll do it again when you can do it by yourself.”

“Sigh But I like spending time with you like that…”

“Then how about I brush your hair instead?”

“Sure! That sounds great.”

Getting an elbow to the side by John, Rayla adds, “I mean…How about I brush your hair instead?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah! I’ll pay you back for all the tail brushings.”

“Pfft Gao!”

“By the way, oko. What’s with the bracelet? Are you matching accessories with Scarlet? If so, I want one too.”

“It’s a magic item. I promised mama that if it activates from me taking too big of a hit I’ll come home and stay.”

“Did your court magician make it? Can I get one too?”

“My magic teacher made it and she said she’ll only do it for me and manya.”

A bit intrigued, John asks, “Do you know your teacher’s name? Have they contributed to any research?”

“Gao! Her name is Mrs. Clawthorn.”

“Clawthorn!? Like the Clawthorn!?”

“I dunno.”

“Is she covered in clothing, speaks in  riddles and is completely arrogant?”

“Uhm…She was covered in clothes at the start but she didn't do the other two things.”

Scarlet interjects, “It’s the one you’re thinking of, John.”

“Wow…Rich people sure are something else…So, is she teaching you Dark magic?”

“Not really. So far we’ve only been playing together.”

“Playing together…? Scarlet, I think your mother might be getting scammed.”

“Nope. Her training is going well. Anyways, you wanted to try out playing with her favorite toy, right?”

“Yes, I’d love to,” Sher Aka answers.

She then picks me up, sits me down on her lap and plays the rattle with me. Afterwards she brushes my hair and sits down at the fireplace with me where she sings me songs until I fall asleep.