To be one

"His voice is so soothing," she thought, feeling quite relaxed while listening to him, and he looked at her then smiled because he felt a need to connect more with his little sister, and knowing that his songs are helping him reach out to her made him happy.

More than an hour passed before he finished, when he did, Arion came out of the room and his assistant handed him a bottle of water.

"Thank you," he said as he rubbed his irritated throat, and Lyra approached him.

"That was absolutely beautiful," she said as he drank the water, then sighed in relief as he placed the bottle on a chair upon finishing.

"Thank you, Lyra. Do you want to go ice cream shopping? I noticed you love to consume it at night" he said, and she smiled brightly, pleased that they are finally connecting more than they have in years.

"Sure," she replied, nodding her head, and Arion felt both relieved and pleased.

"Let's go," he said, walking away, and she followed.

When they arrived at the car, they got in and he proceeded to drive to the ice cream shop.

"Can I come to your competition?" he asked, and she smiled nervously.

"Uh... are you sure about that?" she asked and he stared at her confused.

'Of course, I am, why wouldn't I be?' he replied.

"Won't it be strange for you?" She inquired, and he smiled as he observed her thoughtfulness.

"It's fine, I'd love to see you have fun unless you don't want me to, which is fine," he said, frowning.

"That's not it; you're welcome to come," she mumbled.

"Good," he said as they approached the ice cream shop, which was packed with people.

"Do I have to go in there?" she wondered as he got out of the car, walked over to her side, and opened the door.

"My sweet, loving little sister, you are obviously hot and need someone in your life, you are also shy, love being alone, don't like to hang out with too many people, we won't force you to do anything that makes you uncomfortable, but what's bad is that you don't open up to anyone, we don't want you to feel alone, have a love life at least, don't die of loneliness like my elder brother," he said creepily as he grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the car.

"Let's go," he proposed.

"S- sure...," she said nervously, trailing after him like a puppy.

"What's with the creepiness in this family?" she wondered as they entered the ice cream shop, where everyone smiled as Arion began ordering various flavors of ice cream while Lyra stared at him in horror.

"Uh... Arion... who's going to eat all of that?" she asked, smiling.

"We are, it will last a while. Of course, you can still come with your friends and buy ice cream, parfaits, and so on," he responded, and she sighed.

"God, help me," she mumbled.

"What exactly is it? You don't appear happy; rather, you seem to have seen a ghost "Arion said as she smiled and grabbed his shirt.

"That's enough ice cream," she replied, "I'm pleased, I don't want to be sick, you know, you bought ten different flavors, in big buckets, plus fudgsicles."

"All right, let's go, they'll deliver it to the castle," he said as they both exited the ice cream shop and returned home.

When the girl arrived home, she got out of the car and noticed Mira.

"Are you going out, Mira?" Lyra asked.

"Yes, sweetie, but wait a minute, did you two go out?" She asked with her gaze shifting from Arion to Lyra.

"Yes, he nearly bought me all of the ice cream," she replied, and Arion laughed as he wrapped his arm around her neck, and she pouted before Mira grabbed his arm and moved it away from the girl.

"Don't make Lyra feel uncomfortable, she's still growing and isn't used to certain things," Mira advised.

"I understand, and I apologize for making you uncomfortable, Lyra," he said.

"You don't have to apologize; I'm just not used to certain things," She said with a smile, and Arion patted her on the head because he knew it would be difficult for her to open up more to them.

"You are most welcome. It's almost night. I am going to get a few things done. I will see you guys later. Oh, and Mira, take her shopping sometimes," he said as he walked away, and Mira smiled, pleased that her siblings were getting along.

"He is correct. I understand why our older brother cared for you so much when you first arrived. He definitely felt needed. He is always cheerful and always wants what's best for us. He is like a parent, loving and kind. I am not sure if he is still the same, though, I am glad you are around, kid. Will you go shopping with me at times? " Mira asked as Lyra lowered her head and just let her hair fall in front of her face, feeling a bit frustrated.

"Sure, I'd love to," she replied while forcing a smile.

"Great, I'm not sure I'll be back by dinner, so eat and call if you need anything, okay?" Mira stated.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," she replied before the girl smiled and walked away.

"They're doing everything they can to make us one; I'll do the same," Lyra thought as she walked to her room as the sunset.

"She's right, he's just like a parent, always talking about wanting us to be a family one day, such talks, yet he's not here, damn it," she thought as she walked to her room, angry and frustrated.

"Just thinking about him makes me want to break something," she thought as she stepped onto the balcony and gazed out at the mountain range, recalling what the driver had told her about the waterfall.

"It's part of the kingdom, there must be a map, maybe there is one, the library," she reasoned as she dashed out of her room and heading to the castle library, which housed the kingdom's history and mythical stories.