6 My heart hurts

Surprised Anna nodded slightly and was about to enter the dining room when she was stopped by the same annoying blonde-haired Knight from earlier today. He pushed her away not so gently and Anna stumbled a few steps backwards flinching in pain.

'The little bastard used magic!' Anna felt a paralysing pain surge through her body, especially the right shoulder, where he touched her. It must be Lightning or something with similar properties since what Anna felt was an electric shock. Not given time to recuperate, her sister bumped into her as if she didn't have enough space and said:

"Sister? Do you not know that the older siblings always enter first?"

'Since when did a stupid rule like that exist!' back on earth Anna wasn't oblivious to manners and rules of the society even if she was a scientist. Coming from a somewhat affluent family, she attended some balls and galas, but most notably after she became a chemist. The discussion meetings weren't without rules, but Anna didn't go the extra step of raising the pinky finger or not crossing her legs when sitting down. She paid little attention to these matters but that didn't mean that she behaved like a savage, she took care of herself and her image and even wore make-up from time to time.

While Anna still stood there petrified, the group entered, closing the massive door after themselves. After five minutes, Anna was finally able to lift her legs, she tried to push the doors open with no avail.

'They locked me outside. That bitch! I'll drown her in the lake later!' the door had no lock so that was reassuring.

"Go fet-....." Anna looked around her, but the maid that earlier came with her here was nowhere to be seen. She looked around the corridor and somewhere in the distance, she saw a shimmery amber coloured table, small but tall enough to make her reach the door handle. She ran towards that direction and grabbed one of its curved legs. She pulled it towards herself but it didn't bulge, pushed it and nothing came to fruition. Frustrated she smashed her shoe into the table and a metallic sound was made.

'Fuck! Mother of God! My toes!' Anna rubbed her right shoe aggressive while hissing in pain.

"Is it a fucking gold table?" she often completely forgot that she was a princess and the Capital Palace was half made of gold and half of diamonds. Giving up on the idea of moving the table she walked back towards the familiar door and kindly knocked on the door. This meant defeat, Aura won this battle, unfortunately. After she knocked four to five times and no answer was heard, Anna thought that the door was too thick so maybe they couldn't hear her. She backed away ten steps and came rushing towards the door when it was finally opened by the butler.

'Oh no!' Anna tried to stop from running but sadly her short stubby feet twisted around and she landed on her left arm.

"Ow!" cried Anna in pain. Both her arm and legs hurt. The butler amazed by the turn of the situation asked to be forgiven and offered his hand. Anna took it and tried to push herself up but her legs gave in, falling yet again on the floor.

She had twisted her ankles...both of them.

"Selda!" cried her mother. She rushed to help her out and the butler ran outside to look for the Imperia doctor. Aura also came to offer help, looking worried towards Selda.

'You did this. Why fake caring?' thought Anna. There was one person that didn't try to help her, however, and that was her father.

He continued eating his dinner ignoring Cecilia's plea for help. When he felt a gaze directed his way he slowly turned his head towards Selda, his indifference surprised even Anna. She knew that he didn't care on much about Selda, but to no even mind, the pain his daughter was going through was a level of ignorance Anna had yet to see. If this is the way Selda was treated on a daily basis by her paternal figure, neglected and cast aside, Anna wondered how he could call himself the father of the Empire.

'Why did I expect....to be loved?' for some reason Anna felt her heart chill. Avoiding his stare, she hugged her mother who lifted her off the ground. Pressing her head on her mother's shoulder, Anna felt loneliness overtake her. Her father, back on earth doted on her so much as she was to the only daughter in the family. His warm smile, the way he patted her head and encouraged her to follow her own path...she missed it all.

"Selda, darling are you alright?" worried her mother brushed her daughter's hair away to look at her better. Unknowingly she started crying, slowly at the beginning, a salty crystalline tear slid down her rosy cheeks.

"Mother!" Anna burst into tears. Knowing that she will never be able to see her family again, Anna felt her heart sting so badly she wanted to yell. She would never be able to hug her mother, nor have dinner with his brother's family. Her cute nephew...she would never be able to spoil him. If only she knew that she would have died that day, she would have to spend more time with them.

"Mother, it hurts!" Anna's voice became raspy and she started gasping for air. Her throat filled with nails ached in pain trying to form the sentence.

"I know it hurts honey....the doctor will be here soon." said her mother thought it was her ankles that hurt. Her mother's face was pale, concern written all over her face, and she was trying to comfort Anna by patting her head.

Soon they reached her room, where the doctor was waiting for them. She was laid on the soft bed, and the doctor began the healing process. Anna stood there still crying.

"Sweety..." her mother squeezed Selda's hand but no response came from her. She stood there like a lifeless doll looking into nothingness.

"Put her to sleep." said her mother before the old man chanted something and Anna's vision darkened.

~

The next day Anna opened her eyes, filling more tired than ever. It was understandable since she has not touched any food for more than 24 hours.

"You finally woke up." the snake, Angus, came towards her looking at her.

"What happened?" asked Anna.

"The doctor cured your ankles and arms but he said that you won't be able to walk for more than a week."

"Aren't they supposed to be cured?" drowsy Anna rubbed her tummy. She picked a cracker from the coffee table and began chewing on it.

"If you had powers yes...but because you don't have any magical core, it takes a toll on your body"

"Hmm...did anything else happened while I was out?"

"Not much, your mother stood beside you the whole night. She seemed worried."

"Father?"

"Are you even asking?"

"I need to change his attitude about me." determined Anna planned to become cute for her father. If she were to acquire her father's love then maybe she would be able to live a better life here in this Palace. She had no intention of taking the Crown, not that Prince she and her sister fought over in Selda's last life.

The snake said nothing and looked out the window. It was a beautiful spring morning so Anna decided to learn more about this world. Since she couldn't move her feet a small wheelchair was provided for her that worked without anyone pushing it. It worked on magical ores, commonly used around the Empire instead of things like electricity or gas. It wasn't very practical as only Power mages were able to activate them, but they did work for a very long period of time.

She made her way to the library, in order to find more about the culture and characteristics of this world.

"Now then let's start." happily Anna speed towards the library which she had no idea where it was. Therefore she got lost multiple times, though the corridors of the Palace, she didn't mind it as she wanted to learn the layout of the place. She already had her breakfast but she packed some of the snacks she found on her coffee table because she didn't know if anyone will bring her any lunch or even dinner. When she finally found the library, it was already time for lunch so she checked the library and as expected it was left unattended. There weren't any guards at the door either so Angus had the open the door using his mist. She found a corner in the library and crouched on the floor, laying the handkerchief containing the snacks on her lap. She took an apple out of her dress pocket and a banana putting them in front of her.

"So then what do you plan on doing?" asked the snake while he licked a jam sandwich.

"Well for the start I need to find out about this continent more if there are any others and the geography. I need to know where is the best place to escape to." she bit into the tangly apple and smiled at the flavour it offered.

"You really plan on running away, huh?"

"Well I'm not too sure why my sister hates me but I don't plan on getting in her way. She can get the Crown for all I care."

"She won't inherit the Crown." stated the snake smiling maliciously.

"What do you mean?"

"You have a little brother, and he seems more proficient in powers than that small fry."

"Huh? I have a brother?" only then did it hit Anna that the small child the Empress was carrying on the day she reincarnated could have been her younger brother. So then Aura is bullying Selda because she feels inferior to her younger brother? Bullying the weak? Isn't that a coward way of living? That is a pathetic reason but could not be excluded as she didn't know what was going through Aura's mind.

"But surely, since she is older than him she can overshadow him easily."

"Not by a lot. Bear in mind she is only one year older than you." stated the snaked as a matter of fact manner.

"What? But... she looks like she is at least 12!!"

"Yes, yes she does. Because powers make you somewhat superior to normal humans. That is why they develop sooner than other kids and are more physically apt. Have you not seen your father?" asked the snake, he couldn't believe that she didn't know this for some reason.

Now thinking about it, Anna realised that besides the charming face her father, Caldari, he also had a sturdy body with well-defined muscles seen even through clothes. On the other hand, the butler who seemed not to have any powers was two heads smaller than him, even a bit shorter than her mother.

"How old is my father then?"

"Well, he just turned 35 this January, although you were not invited to the party." the black snake avoided her gaze. It didn't surprise her. He didn't care for her existence at all, but she planned to change that.

"Did he always acted this way towards me?" asked Anna.

"No, from what I know he did like you even if you had no powers, but because of your problematic behaviour, he started ignoring you more and more until you were moved from the west wind where you lived with your sister to a detached Palace." the girl must have had it very hard, she most probably was pushed by her sister and unable to defend herself, she became a nuisance.

"How was she in her last life?" muffled Anna after shoving two sandwiches at the same time.

"To put it lightly....hmmm... a headache. She became really short-tempered when she grew up, disregarded her mother, refused to listen to anyone and that lead to her demise. Her reputation wasn't the best, behind closed doors she was called Godless but never in front, although to be honest, she was quite popular with men. However, her best friend, Derick chased them away from the majority of the times. The only one he wasn't able to be Dominik, that dark Prince."

"Is that the Ricky boy she was talking about in that bloody space?" Anna started gathering the remaining food around her and stuffed it inside the small pockets of her grey dress.

"Yes, Derick Lucien Reed. He comes from the second if not the most powerful dukedom in the continent. He...well...he had a passion for a useless case as Selda's."

'So he loved her then.' How sad must have it been for him. Seeing her reaction inside that space means that she regretted not being with him. People cannot escape fate no matter how much they try said someone and they were not wrong up until a point. Anna never believed in a God nor fate back on Earth, but she had to admit some things are just outside the spectrum of change. Although the Gods that she heard about from Angus sounded more like people owning too much power, they seem to not pay a lot of attention to humans nor the worlds surrounding them.

However, Anna swore before not to get too involved with the people from Selda's last life.