Shards From Other Stars

11. Strings

Aldith looked for Quillan.

Her eyes roamed the room looking for the light brown curls, same shade as her hair—the only difference would be his had two shades—black from the roots and light brown from two inches after the black.

She moved from bookshelf to the next in search for the lad. As much as she was looking for him it didn't hurt to stop by a book or two that caught her eye, her curiosity would only settle if she held it for a minimum of a minute—so Aldith pursed her lips as she judged the brown covered book.

Don't judge a book by its cover, well, Aldith judged them by their covers all the time and the blurb as well as the first few lines of the first chapter—because how else would she know if it was worth it?

This one in particular didn't fit her standards, placing it back she returned to searching her brother. Her fingers brushed against the books and wood as she walked, some with smooth edges while others felt rough—and of course the wooden of the shelf was firm and smooth, for most of it.

Aldith came to a halt as she had spotted Quillan. He had himself fascinated by a book, which was quite unusual. His right hand rested against the shelf as his left held up the book, looking closely at him Aldith could see him mumbling the words as her read.

He was looking for something!

Aldith smiled at that discovery. True be told, Quillan wasn't much of a reader, he was barely a reader of anything other than maps—and him holding a romance book in hand was a dead giveaway, Haven must have told him something because they had read it together before and she adored it.

Aldith was a fan as well, just not as big as Haven—her reading buddy—or Quillan's girlfriend.

Aldith was still finding it hard to believe, Haven would have him in the library reading a book on romance just a few hours as they—her father and him—returned. She did laugh when their father, the King, had told her he would be in the library.

She had just woken up, a bit late but her bed was too comfortable to leave—she missed breakfast and a chance to welcome them as they had just arrived, but that was the past—she still got to warmly welcome their father with a hug, even if her mother was clinging onto his side throughout their interactions.

He was her husband after all, she completely understood her and him—he wasn't very different. The couples around here weren't at all—Aldith lived a life of torment with so many couples or flings around.

But back to topic, her brother—Crowned Prince Quillan. Not a reader, now suddenly one right after visiting his girlfriend for weeks—what a site to behold indeed.

Aldith was going to tease the s**t out of him for this and possibly give Haven a high five for the accomplishment when she came around. She took a few steps forward making them as quiet as she could, a smile on her lips.

Happy to have him back and maybe possibly get her sanity back—as much as she could recover after being around an annoying Wylie and a mother equally as bad.

Wylie was, being Wylie—her usual or should it be unusual self? Whatever it was, that was it. Her mother was just great at making fun of her, and laughing whenever she complained about Wylie—not caring one but about her whining.

"You couldn't even come and greet your sister, what kind of brother are you."

Aldith spoke as she leaned against the shelf—lightly, she didn't want to knock it down.

Standing in this proximity she noticed how he had changed, her father did as well. One, her father grew a beard—how fast that man's beard grew was somewhat a mystery, he went without it three if not four weeks back—now it was a full brown beard, that wouldn't last long as his wife would have him trim or shave it off.

She couldn't say the same for Quillan, his face had no signs of a beard anytime soon—probably kept it away, he didn't like those—maybe a mustache sometimes. He did however appear tanner than he left, the works of warm and sunny Ember of Vlack region.

Unlike Quillan her father's tan wouldn't be as noticeable even if he got it with his black skin tone.

Quillan turned to his sister, shutting the book and keeping his index finger between the pages he was on, a smile fell on his face—all the confusion he had as he was reading eased away.

"Should I have greeted you in your sleep?"

Aldith found herself in a bone crushing hug that had her feet lifted a few inches from the floor. Aldith giggled as he shook them a bit, her hand found Quillan's ear and pull at it because it seemed her requests to be let down entered one ear and left the other.

He had a tendency of always lifting her up and spinning her around whenever she allowed him to hug her, when she willingly hugged him—even if she did refuse, he never backed down.

Aldith always felt like a kid when she hug him, her father—even her mother babied her. His silly hug, her father's big warm bear hugs and her mother's hug that came with kisses and a bit of tickling.

Twenty three, that's how old she was, he was just twenty seven—a four years age gap and a noticeable height difference.

She secretly loved them even if she would put up a fight before she gave it—she was their twenty three year old baby.

"Let me down!"

"You like this, my little sister Aldith!"

Quillan spun them around. His hold not loosening up but the contrary, he held her tightly as not to drop her and not let her succeed in freeing herself.

"Quillan, I'm going to tell on you!"

A chuckle left his lips as he placed her down. "You're such a child!"

He laughed even louder as she pouted at his statement. He knew she wasn't a child, sometimes but he liked getting on her nerves and he couldn't help but baby her every now and then—she was extremely cute when she wasn't glaring at you with a sword in hand, or body slamming people around.

"You missed me."

Quillan said while smiling at her. He easily towered over her with his tall frame, over their father and mother too—the man was of average height—with a wife taller than him in a few inches. Aldith was the shortest of the four, seconded by their father then mother and then Quillan—a few inches difference between mother and son.

Aldith cleared her throat ignoring him. "How was it? Everything okay with Haven?" she asked as she wiggled her eyebrows.

His smile grew wider at the mention of his lover—soon to be wife. "You're going to be happy because I am getting married!"

"So with dad and her father, went by okay?"

"Of course. It was a bit weird him being the King and all—"

"Weird?"

Aldith asked cutting Quillan off. An eye roll from the latter, he shook his head—it wasn't like he wasn't getting to that, she had a problem with listening to everything he said when she was excited.

"Yes, he couldn't stop addressing him as King or your majesty even when he insisted he doesn't! But they got along well. We did stay longer—"

"And you saw your girl. How is Haven? I hope you told her I missed her, it's been months since she came here."

See, she was quite impatient.

"To Deni or the castle?"

"Both actually. Haven's so busy up in Ember now I don't have a reading buddy."

Aldith tsked as she crossed her arms. She hadn't seen Haven in a while, too long for comfort if she'd be honest. She was still reading of course, alone—but she had no one to vent to or have them vent to her over a book.

It could have been lovely if she could visit. Well, now she could—it was just a matter of time.

"She's fine and I might have forgotten to tell her."

Aldith gasped. "Hey! You're ruining my name to my soon to be sister, Quillan!"

"In my defense, she might leave me for you Aldith!"

"She would never."

"You are too charming little sister." Quillan chuckled a bit as Aldith glared. Unlike most people, he was never really intimidated by her glares—most times, she sometimes was—a bit much? Which was too scary for comfort. "And reading buddy, don't you have a friend now?" He smirked knowing exactly how that would get under her skin.

"Not a friend." Aldith hissed.

"I heard she's around you 24/7—"

"I sleep at night!"

Slowly, Quillan nodded his head with a smirk still on his face. From the fierce glare to her balled fists, he could tell how annoyed her 'friend' had made her since they met. The first impression wasn't great either, from what their mother had to say in chatty manner enjoying storytelling—even acted out the scenes.

"She might be watching over you while you sleep!"

He joked, laughing out loud as he spoke—Aldith however didn't find it funny, not in the slightest when the possibility wasn't very slim.

She furrowed her eyebrows. "She would not?"

She had to give the girl the benefit of the doubt, right? This all seemed a bit far fetched—but Aldith looked up to her brother believing it by the second.

Wylie was predictably unpredictably.

Quillan frowned slightly, he hasn't met her but that seemed like a line she wasn't going to cross—with how they were up eachother's throats everyday, she would either do that to annoy her or kill her in her sleep.

"You sure?" He questioned. Laughing once again at her confusion, Quillan shook his head—she was easy to mess with.

"Not the point here. I am with that thief because mom said I should!" She lightly punched his shoulder, because he was now enjoying this too much.

"Such a baby!" Quillan cupped her face but not before tossing the book he held somewhere around them, despite her resistance—he didn't let go, rather squished her cheeks more. "But it is for the best and on the bright side you can go wherever you want now. Like me, your big brother and maybe pay Haven a visit or aunts and uncle!"

"You do it alone, I have to go around with her!"

Aldith mumbled trying to make the words as clear as possible. It proved quite the challenge to speak with your face being squished—he was keen on not letting go.

"I am a witch like mother—well I mean aunt Nolan—and I don't mind the guards."

"I—"

A tsk or two from him had her holding back her words, that and the fact he literally placed his hand over her mouth. All she wanted to say were now only muffled.

"You, aren't and have showed your displeasure with the guards multiple times. Plus just because the four regions are united and are ruled over mother and father doesn't mean bad people don't exist and can do magic—like your thief—they would harm you in a heartbeat."

Ignoring, as best as he could, her stupid attempts to bite down on his plam—which were rather ticklish now, Quillan shot Aldith a glare before continuing.

"And no, a sword can't always save you. Especially if you plan on going city by city in all of Radae Isles, you'll need that witch—trust me. She's a fire witch—"

Quillan groaned as he wiped his palm on the fabric of her shirt, he wasn't getting her saliva on his clothing.

"Musical witch." Aldith swatted his hand away.

"The musical fire thief!"

"Musical witch is fine, your royal Highness."

Aldith turned her head immediately, glaring at the person standing beside her with their hands resting on her shoulder—Wylie puckered her lips as she wiggled her eyebrows at Aldith.

His light blue eyes went back and forth between the two watching them carefully— He happened to have their mothers light blue eyes while Aldith had their father's hazel eyes.

Quillan didn't let their little exchange go by unnoticed, it was rather fun and—interesting.

"Quillan is fine."

He held out his hand for Wylie, which she did giving him a firm handshake.

"Wylie."

Once her hand retreated, she turned to face Aldith again who had already been staring—glaring—at her still.

"Hey Princess, you wanted to see me." Wylie smiled.

She was a bit happy and it was a cover-up of a sort, from how Aldith had her own hand over Wylie's—that was on the Princess' shoulder—squeezing the s**t out of it. She however wasn't planning on retreating her hand, she took a step forward closing the distance between them.

"I will slap that smile off your face!" Aldith hissed still glaring at Wylie. First the hand on her shoulder, and now she wasn't literally in her personal space—more than she was before.

"You were much kinder last week."

"You were injured and don't you dare it was my fault."

"It was!" Wylie whimpered as she attended to her hand, that once was on Aldith's shoulder. She did withdraw her hand but didn't take a step back—she wasn't backing down. A few cry out she spoke, "Anyway, why did you want to see me?"

"I want to go to Qolis, today since you can finally walk."

Aldith remained unfazed as well, standing right there and not backing down either—it wasn't like they weren't practically hugging with her brother watching or anything.

It was totally fine! and normal.

"Just like that?"

"Yes, I already asked Mom and she said yes—not like she wouldn't allow it." she had a whole plan set if that were to happen, which was—go anyway and if stopped, make a scene.

"This is past noon."

Aldith raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"You won't get there today—maybe tomorrow mid afternoon at best?"

At that, Aldith furrowed her eyebrows not getting her point exactly even if Wylie has placed emphasis on each word.

"She means you'll stop be the town Lore for the night, since you started late." The two of them turned to the Prince as he spoke, they might have forgotten about him being right in front of them.

Wylie nodded her head as she turned back to the Princess.

"Fine by me, as long as I get there." Aldith took a step forward then embraced her brother. "See you when I get back, we have stories to discuss."

Pulling away she turned, only to be met with a pouting Wylie—one she suspiciously stared at with caution.

"Why are you doing that?"

"You're so sweet to everyone but me." Wylie frustratingly said, her arms pointing back and forth between herself and the two siblings.

It wasn't a lie, she happened to be very 'kind' Princess with everyone but her—she was getting kicked if not smacked day in and out whenever it was just them or not.

"Give her time." Quillan comment with a light smile. She was a hard cookie on the outside and partially on the inside but she was a softie even with her hard exterior.

"I don't—"

Aldith cutting herself off as Wylie groaned hunching her back as she held onto her healing leg. Standing beside her she placed her hands over Wylies gently.

"Are you okay?"

Wylie looked up with a triumphant smile catching a smile of Quillan's as well. "I don't think I need time." He hummed agreeing, that was very kind of Aldith.

Which didn't last long as she stomped on Wylie's right foot causing the girl to hiss in pain, Aldith stormed off upset and tired with her shinanigans. Quillan was left there chuckling at Wylie limping after her and of course Aldith altering all the cuss words she knew—which were a lot

It was concerning.