Chapter 1

Easter peered outside the curtains, wondering when he should make his entrance. Three girls were close together, their fans open to hide their mouths, giggling slightly. He sighed, making his way up to them. Mother gave him no goal today, other than to simply be present. Elizabeth's father was more ambitious.

"I heard neither princes are engaged yet," the duke said. Easter knew what he was hinting at.

"F-Father!"

"It would be better for you to marry into the royal family. It would be beneficial for all of us, Elizabeth."

"Of course I know that, but I can't!" Elizabeth's family was quite influential, but they were only in the middle, compared to all the other dukes.

"Yes you can, Elizabeth. The crowned prince will be attending tonight. Try to seduce him."

'This girl is dead,' Easter thought, sighing internally. 'The crowned prince was the one that killed her. I wonder how the duke would react if he knew.'

"Yes, Father," he sighed.

Back to the present, he fanned out his fan, smiling a little while waiting for the door to open, and out of it, his dear brother. He didn't hear a girl's voice behind him, making him jump.

"Elizabeth! What are you doing, looking so love struck at the place the royal family stands?" Lovestruck?

He laughed, a little nervously.

"Lovestruck? Ah- my father just..." he sighed. "Oh, you know how my father is like, Rachael."

Rachael laughed. She was the daughter of another duke, Duke Legon. Easter hated Duke Legon. He was fat, demanding, and looks like a pervert. Nothing out of his mouth makes any sense. Every time he asks for audience with Easter or Osiris, they stand at a window and mock him while a servant is sent to send him away. They like to laugh when he fumes and stomps away on his big chubby feet. Although, his daughter isn't that bad.

"The crowned prince is a hard target," Rachael pointed out. Easter nodded.

"But... I still want to try." Rachael's eyes widened.

"W-What? Really? When did my little Elizabeth get so bold?" Easter, frankly, just had nothing to do, and wanted to tease his brother a little. Besides, Elizabeth was dead anyway, so it didn't matter.

He laughed again, quietly. He opened his mouth to say something, but the obnoxious trumpets blasted the tune signifying the royal family's entrance. Easter bowed down silently, looking up at the podium where he would have stood. He was so used to bowing down now, the place up there felt like it wasn't where he should be, yet also where he should.

"Glory to the Royal Family."

Osiris's eyes observed the scattered nobles coldly, standing upright, his red pupils glaring down at everybody. Only Easter met his gaze, and their eyes locked for a moment. The queen saw him too, her yellow eyes void of emotions, her hands resting perfectly at her waist, her posture straight and commanding. Her pitch black hair rolled down her shoulders in smooth and elegant strands. The king's demeanor was more melancholy than the last time Easter had visited him, perhaps because of his work. His red eyes seemed less of color than Osiris's, but his authority was not to be questioned.

The three of them, standing there, made Easter feel much lonelier. Should he be up there, standing with them? He didn't know.

After they could lift their heads, Easter headed towards Osiris's direction. He was talking to some nobles with an uninterested look on his face. He looked towards Easter, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards momentarily. Easter stood behind the nobles, his fan closed and to his mouth. 'Come talk to me.'

"Why, if it isn't the daughter of Duke Marion," he said in a haughty voice.

"Your Royal Highness," Easter replied, bowing.

"Lift your head. Has your family been doing well recently?" From the corner of the eye, Duke Marion was smiling at him, but he didn't know that Elizabeth had actually died.

Easter smiled at Osiris. "Yes, your highness. After my father filled the contract for the northwest mines, our house has been rather lively." He fanned his fan quickly. 'I'm single.'

"Oh? I remember that. How about your fiancé,?" Easter sighed, putting a hand on his cheek.

"My fiancé... I'd rather not talk about Ezra." He eyed Osiris, who was frowning at him. 'I'll tell you later.'

'You better,' Osiris replied. He spoke, "Ah, well, that's a shame."

Easter smiled at him slyly, opening his fan just under his eyes. 'I'm shy but willing.' Osiris was trying to keep his composure. "Your Highness, your eyes look especially beautiful today."

"Is that so? Thank you, Lady Marion."

"Recently, I have taken an interest in painting. Your eyes would look more charming in front of the moon, Your Highness."

Osiris gave him a sly smile. "Oh? What are you hinting at, Lady Marion?" Easter smiled at him.

"Would you like to take a little walk outside, Your Highness?" he asked, turning his fan to the back and fanning it slowly to match his question. Osiris looked back at the nobles staring at him greedily, and the girls whispering at him. He sighed, whispering into Easter's ear.

"Do you really think I can?"

Easter smiled at him. "Of course you can, Your Highness. I'd be honored to see the Crowned Prince under the moonlight." Osiris sighed. 'That wasn't my point.' Easter simply opened his fan at his heart. 'I love you~.'

They exited the ball, standing in the flower garden outside. Easter sat by the fountain, Osiris leaning on a tree.

"Prince Easter, I do not reciprocate your feelings," Osiris said sternly. Easter laughed.

"O Your Highness, I plead thou be merciful on such gorgeous day," he replied. Osiris sighed.

"I chose to humor you. What are you doing?"

"Humoring my father, Your Highness."

"Oh please, stop calling me that. It makes me feel mocked." Easter covered his mouth with his fan.

"Your Highness, unlike you, I wish to keep my identity hidden."

"I wouldn't dream of contravening my brother's plans."

"You are so kind, Your Highness." Osiris chuckled, seeming more relaxed, than the cold and practiced mask he wore outside and in the palace. He walked over to sit by Easter, making small talk as Easter waved his fan around in random gestures to confuse Osiris.

Then, a small boy came. His eyes were vacant, his hair dyed purple, looking black in the midnight moon. The queen's little messenger boy and puppet.

"Her Majesty requires His Highnesses to return to the ball," he said. The puppet was always there to interrupt them, to pull them out of their own little world. Osiris nodded, and Easter bowed at him, choosing to stay by the fountain and brush the water listlessly. They both put their carefully crafted masks back on.