Keeping Secrets...

I had to admit, I wasn't expecting him to be such a good dancer.

"You know this song?"

"Gertrude's Dream Waltz." He looked down at me with an eyebrow raised and oh I hated how small I felt at the moment.

"Genius in every note. Why wouldn't I?"

"No I just..." I caught Ursula giving me a little nasty look from where she danced with her partner. I decided to take a bold step by twirling in Alexander's arms, making sure he dipped me and a lazy smile made it's way to my face as a final move. That certainly didn't please her.

I chuckled softly as Alexander brought me back up, and the little applause died down.

"That isn't part of the dance." He said flatly.

Doesn't he have a sense of humour?

"I know. I only use it to deflect proud, jealous harpies."

He looked confused for about two seconds before he realised. "Ah, Princess Ursula. She's quite..."

"Proud and jealous?"

He paused, trying to find the right words. "Jealous, I'm not so sure. But Proud? I could say she has enough reason to be." He shrugged.

"Enough reason? I believe we're all royals here if not related to. And I don't think the Bronze Empire has proud royals."

"Yes. But what if a certain princess was next in-line to the throne of Cyria?"

"How? Ursula is Bronze princess."

"Hmph. I'm sure you didn't know that her half-uncle dearest rules Cyria. Also promised her she would rule next.

How could a Bronze princess have a relative ruling the first Golden kingdom?

"How-"

"Don't ask me. I guess a little fooling around here and and there and boom! You've got yourself quite the compound family." He said, smiling to himself. Now he has a sense of humour.

I rolled my eyes. Since her uncle didn't have a queen, and Ursula was the firstborn, she would rise to the throne.

"But what if her uncle decides to get married?"

"And if they have a child?" He looked to where Ursula stood at a desert table. "We'd probably have one very upset princess as and end result."

With all this newly digested information a lot of things about Ursula's personality began to make sense.

"So that's why she likes to step on everyone else..." I wondered out loud.

"Everyone else? What, you're special?"

"I don't take nonsense lying down from anyone."

He chuckled. He chuckled.

"I'm sorry. Did I say something amusing?"

"No no. It's just that it's somewhat hard to believe that."

"Excuse me?" We had stopped dancing now.

"Well you just don't look like a no nonsense person."

"Right. Because you would know what a no nonsense person looks like."

"Well of course. I have a vast knowledge of certain things."

"Oh? I never would have thought it possible!"

He frowned at my overly sweet tone. "Are you trying to imply something?"

"It took you that long to figure out?"

His eyes widened with initial shock, then narrowed with anger.

"Why you miniscule brat!"

Miniscule? Oh no he didn't.

I took a deep breath, and looked him in the eye with calmness on my face. Slowly I raised one leg and brought down my heel on his foot.

He screamed and let go of me to hold the injured foot while hopping on the other.

By now the music had stopped, and everyone had turned to see the cause.

"What happened?" Fern ran to my side and stared at Alexander hopping and muttering who knows what under his breath. May quickly walked up to her brother to calm him down.

I turned to Fern, "He called me miniscule! Miniscule!" But he was looking behind me.

"Uh Freya?"

"What-" I turned and yelped when something cold splashed against my face. I furiously wiped at my eyes and a bit of the substance dripped into my mouth. Wine?

"Alex!" I heard May's scolding voice. Of course it had to be him. I wiped the rest of the wine from my face with my soiled dress, and saw Alexander standing on one leg casually twirling an empty wineglass in his hand.

I moved to pounce on him but a pair of hands held me back, and Alexander started laughing at this until May frowned and took hold of his left ear and squeezed.

"Ah ah ah! What are you doing?!"

"Keeping you in-line." She answered through gritted teeth.

"That's enough!"

I could make out our parents marching towards us from my peripheral vision.

"Inside. Now." Mother's stern voice echoed throughout the ballroom.

This isn't going to end well.

°°°°°•••••°°°°°•••••°°°°°

I desperately tried to sleep but I couldn't. Every new position seemed to be more uncomfortable than the last.

"So hot..." I whined into my pillow. "It's the middle of October, why is it so hot?"

It felt like I was forgetting something, and it was just on the tip of my tongue. I sat up and tried to remember what I was forgetting, which was really hard considering this teeny tiny ringing in my ears.

"What is that?" I furiously rubbed my ears but it didn't stop. In fact it seemed to be getting sharper and actually felt like a needle was going through my eardrums.

Who or what could be making such an annoying sound in the middle of the night?!

The sound was unbearable now and I couldn't block it out despite both hands on my ears now. Was everyone in the castle hearing this?

I decided to check with Freya and came down from my bed. A few steps from my door I stopped.

There was someone on the other side.

I could hardly make out what seemed like a silhouette of feet outside. If it was my sister, she wouldn't be lingering around the door like that. This person however, was only standing in one spot, perfectly still.

I tried to piece together a plan but the incessant ringing hadn't stopped and by now I just wanted to rip my own ears off.

"Just shut up!" I stomped my foot in frustration. Immediately, the silhouette bolted without a sound. I followed and peered my head into the hallway. The person had gone right, but there was nothing and no-one in the hallway now except me.

I decided to tuck my suspicions away for now and knocked on Freya's door. She didn't answer, so I knocked harder. How could she possibly be sleeping with such a noise? I decided to open it myself.

Once I stepped inside, I noticed Freya in a corner of her room, hands on her ears while she looked at me with desperation in her eyes.

"MAKE IT STOP!" I could only read her lips, the noise drowning out everything else.

She managed to point awkwardly at her desk across the room with one hand. My eyes followed to her drawer. A sliver of blue light shone from the little spaces. I rushed over to pull it open, and didn't expect to see the Aunt Genevieve's box vibrating with so much energy it bounced up at me. I moved out of the way and it landed on the floor between me and Freya, still vibrating and emitting blue light.

In a split second decision, we both dove for the box, and almost immediately we realised...

"It... It stopped..." She whispered, as a smile grew on her face. "It finally stop-" I put my hand on her mouth.

"Shhh! This thing didn't wake mother and father up. I'd like to keep it that way, thank you." I let my hand fall after she nodded.

We both sighed in relief that the box hadn't somehow woken up the entire castle. Maybe the entire city.

"Which reminds me, how is it possible that no one came to check on the noise?" Freya wondered aloud. I shrugged, not having a reasonable answer to the question, but glad that it didn't happen.

"And why would Aunt Geny give us such a loud gift? The others weren't like this!" I glared at the box which was still in our hands.

"Well, we might as well see what's in it now."

I left the box with her and watched as her eyes went wide at the contents. I moved closer to her so I could see as well.

"They're beautiful..." She held up a tear-shaped sapphire necklace that was lined with silver.

I took the other one and put it on.

"Hey, it matches your eyes." She pointed at the gem, then my face.

"Yours too."

She held the necklace so delicately as if the slightest wrong move would break it. "Well? How about actually putting it on?"

She put it around her neck and fidgeted with the clasp.

"Here." I leaned closer to her to fix it properly.

"Thanks." She said when I leaned back into original position. I looked to the box in her hand.

"Hey, look." It had started glowing again, and the light started to form an image.

We watched as a figure came into focus.

"Aunt Geny?" Freya said way too loud and I shushed her, again. The person in the image spun around with a squeak. That was Aunt Geny alright.

"Hello loves!" She waved frantically. "You gave me quite a surprise. I didn't think you would have opened the box so soon."

"But... it's supposed to be opened at midnight... isn't it?" I asked.

"Well yes, but I thought you might ignore the little alarm I set. I was even on my way now to-"

"Little?!"

"What? What's the matter?"

"Um... It was quite loud Aunt Geny..." Freya scratched the back of her neck.

"Well last I checked, alarms are loud so....." She held her chin in thought. "What's the problem with it?"

"That little alarm is the standing definition of a piercing scream. Emphasis on piercing. It could have woken everyone up!"

"But it didn't. Look around you." She gestured to our room. "What's that? You don't see anyone? Exactly! Because this particular alarm is only heard by it's recipient." She put her hands on her hips, smiling victoriously. I had so much to say but I just swallowed it all in a breath. Precious sleeping time was being lost.

"Alright alright." I signified my surrender by waving an imaginary white flag.

"Ha ha!" We watched her jump and do a little dance around her... well I didn't even know where exactly she was standing. Together, Freya and I have only been to Aunt Geny's house once. I've been there twice. At least that's what my parents tell me. I didn't even have a stable memory of anywhere near her house. Though I wouldn't be surprised if she had her house built somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

"You said you were on your way?" Freya asked after she finished dancing.

"Just a plan B. Incase you two didn't wake up to open that box tonight. Now here's an interesting piece of information. Pay attention." She brought a large cauldron in front of her, and began throwing random things from the shelves behind her. "Those necklaces are quite special. They have a sort of... protection spell on them, and I implore you both to never take them off."

What?

"Wait, never? What about the bathroom? When I'm going to bed?"

"Never. Or at the very least, almost never take them off. I suggest never."

"But why? What do we need protect ourselves from?" Freya shifted to another position.

We both saw Aunt Genevieve stiffen for a few seconds, before dropping a vial-the last item- from a shelf into the cauldron, and faced us. "The time for me to tell you hasn't come yet."

"Could you... elaborate please?" Freya leaned closer to the image.

"Look, I know it might seem like there aren't any significant threats to you, but you'd be surprised how much trouble a young royal could get into..." She trailed off. "I'll be going on a little trip soon, and... I might be gone for a long time. For the time I'm gone, I just want to ensure that you two are well protected. Just promise me you'll try your absolute to not take them off. Plus, I've been saving these for your thirteenth birthday! Which was yesterday! Huzzah! Hooray! And now, Tata!" She moved a hand around the rim of the cauldron and it shrunk to the size of a small purse. She picked up the shrunken cauldron and dropped it into her bag.

"How long will you be gone?" Freya's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Oh don't worry loves, you'll barely realise I'm gone."

"It's quite hard. Seeing as you're leaving right in front of us and all... just saying." I shrugged.

"Oh I'm not leaving right away. You still have to promise me that you'll both do your absolute best to not take those necklaces off."

"Do you promise to come back with more stories and souvenirs than ever before?"

"Challenge accepted. I promise." She raised her eyebrows at us, waiting for our word. I looked at my sister and turned back to Aunt Geny.

"We promise." We answered.

"Alright. I'm off then. Bye!" She waved as the image began to melt away.

"Right then. What time is it?" Freya asked as she stood and stretched her limbs.

"Um... Wow! It's only a few minutes past one." I pointed at the wall clock that hung above Freya's bed.

"Well we'd better get back to bed then."

"Okay." I jumped on the bed and snuggled into the foam. Freya followed.

"Do you think she's being a bit secretive?" She asked out of the blue.

"Hm?"

"Aunt Geny. Do you think she's being secretive?"

"About what?"

"I don't know... Everything?"

"The only thing she hasn't told us is where she's going and personally, I don't think it matters. She's a grown woman, it's up to her if she wanted to tell us or not, and I'm more than sure that she's able to take care of herself."

She hummed in thought, while I tried my hardest to fall asleep.

°°°°°•••••°°°°°•••••°°°°°

"Alright. I'm off then. Bye!"

She waved to her niece and nephew as the body mirror stopped showing them and took a few steps back to its position against the wall.

One more thing to do. She thought.

She stared at herself in the mirror and let out an exhausted sigh. It took a lot of physical and mental strength to uphold this image, but for the sake of those around her and for those she loved... She must.

She closed my eyes, and pictured her true form, until a shudder ran through her body.

She felt herself growing taller, slender, and more powerful. The familiar hiss of numerous snakes close to her ears let her know that her transformation was done.

Before opening her eyes, she made sure she had turned the opposite way before opening them. She took in her form and couldn't stop the little smile that played across her face.

"But it does feel good to be in my own skin again."

Within a second, a fine pair of dark brown wings sprouted from her back, and they began to flap, lifting her off the ground with ease. As she soared higher she snapped her fingers and the cave which she had exited from disappeared.

She flew south, over the kingdom of Xeldia. As she flew above the castle grounds, she sighted her two favourite people in the world through an open window. One of them was nearly falling off the bed they slept in.

With an eyeroll and a ghost of a smile, she blew a kiss in the direction of the open window. A magical swirl of wind went into the room and lifted the unknowing boy back to a secure position.

She lingered there for a bit, as she wasn't sure when she would return.

While looking to the sky she whispered, "I've done my part goddess. They're in your hands now... Please. Keep them safe."

She turned and continued to soar up and into the clouds, completely vanishing from sight.