"Please forgive me, Christiana," the redheaded lady stated as she once again sat in her favorite throne-like chair. "I should not have spoken in that manner in front of you," her Mother said while bowing her head slightly.

'Two apologies in ten minutes?' the child thought. 'What is going on?' Just as her parent was doing her best to hide her emotions, she tried to mask her own as she bowed in response.

"Thank you for bringing this matter to my attention, Christiana," the matriarch remarked, her tone calm and collected once more.

Then the older woman did something that startled her more than anything that had happened since she entered her Okaa-sama's chambers. Her Mother peered at her as if she was looking at an equal, all traces of the emotional mask she normally wore missing from her smiling visage. Then she walked over to her daughter, bending her knees and squatting down so she was eye to eye with her before taking hold of Christiana's hands.

She looked at her Mother in wonder, dumbfounded by this turn of events. From up close she could see that despite her Okaa-sama's age of fifty Colonial Years, she appeared more like a young woman in her mid-thirties. Considering that this was roughly the equivalent of twenty-eight Terran years, it meant that her parent seemed extraordinarily youthful for someone who had borne six children. Beyond a sprinkling of freckles, her progenitor's skin was smooth and unblemished without a single wrinkle to speak of. Despite her short lifespan, she could tell that Okaa-sama was quite the Eire-ish beauty.

After a few moments, the older woman broke the silence. "Christiana, in the future, please visit me with any questions that you may have. You and Haruhi are both welcome to come to me at any time, Mainday, Alterday, or Night," she said in a very subdued voice. "I promise you I won't be upset with either of you, no matter the reason," she continued with utmost sincerity.

She kept looking at her Mother for a few moments, confused by this unexpected situation. Finally, she responded by saying, "You only mentioned Haruhi-nee and I and not the others." Then she asked, "Is it because we are both gee-emms? Or is it because we are both Initials?"

Upon hearing this, her parent bit her lip in consternation. Then, replying in what the daughter thought was pure honesty, "It is because the two of you have the most potential by far of all of my children."

"Then why did you make Anastasia-onee your heir in the family business?" the girl inquired innocently.

At this, her Mother let out a merry laugh. Then she grinned before replying, "Christiana, while the company is important, I cannot see either of you wasting your time by heading it. You are both meant for something considerably greater than that."

"What do you mean by greater?" she asked, confusion written across her youthful face.

"Oh little one, you have so very much to learn," the older woman replied while brushing a lock of Christiana's golden hair behind the girl's ear with her fingers. Then her Okaa-sama rose to her feet while still holding the child's hand and led her over to her throne-like armchair. Then, after momentarily letting go of her daughter's grasp, she went over and placed another seat in front of her own.

"Come and sit next to me," she said while patting the cushion of the newly moved chair before sitting herself.

The bewildered child sat down in the seat facing her parent's. This was an additional first for the girl. Her Mother had never urged her daughter to sit with her before.

"Now Christiana, Karen informed me you once asked her about a certain children's drawing in the parlor," she began in a soft voice. "Do you remember what you were told?"

"Yes, she explained that one of the earliest Presidents of the colony drew it when she was a child," the girl responded. After all, that was an important memory of hers.

"Exactly," her Mother replied with a bright smile. "When President Pace first made that scribble, nobody would have dreamed that she would eventually preside over an entire planet." Then, after once again taking Christiana's hands into her own, she continued, "It was not until later, as the child grew, that her capacity as a leader became clear."

It only took a few seconds for Christiana to realize what her Mother was implying. However, a minute or two passed before she could give her Okaa-sama a properly worded response. "So you believe that Haruhi-nee and I have the potential to become President?" she asked, hoping that her guess wasn't right.

"Not exactly," the older woman began.

'Thank goodness,' she thought to herself, 'I don't think that I could handle that type of responsibility much less oneechan...'

"But I imagine that both of your talents would be wasted by staying in a backwater place like Simmon's Town. Not to mention running a mining company, no matter how large it is," her Okaa-sama continued as she let go of her daughter's hands.

"But what about Ana-onee?" the girl asked, wondering what made the two womb-mates so special.

"Oh, I am sure that Anastasia can manage the Washington mines and the other businesses reasonably well," her parent responded with a smile. "She is quite qualified even though she is not my bloodDaughter." Then after a moment's thought, she continued, "I also think that she will make a good Mother for my Aftercommer, thus putting the company back into a genetic Washington's hands. But, while she is competent, she still does not have the same potential that you two share."

"How do you know that for sure?" she inquired, not wanting to believe that the Sister she admired was inferior to either Haruhi-nee or herself.

As soon as she asked this question, the genuine grin on her parent's face disappeared. Instantly, the wintry smile of her aloof mask replaced it. "I just have a strong feeling about this," she responded. "Well, that and the sudden spike in both of your grades during the past Year."

Even the trusting girl realized that her Okaa-sama was being less than truthful and that she was hiding something. However, there was nothing she could think of to disprove what her Mother had said. She had no choice but to let the matter drop. As a result, an uncomfortable quiet fell across the room, one she did not dare to break.

After what seemed like an eternity, the matriarch broke the silence. "So how is your training progressing, well, other than you were late to practice three times?"

"Saito-sensei says I am making steady progress," Christiana replied, trying her best to mask her lack of enthusiasm. "Also, she complimented me on my athletic ability," she continued, trying to be truthful while casting herself in the most positive light possible.

"Yes, I have been getting weekly reports from Saito-sensei," the matriarch revealed. "However, while what you have said is true, your instructor has also reported that you have little enthusiasm for your training."

'Crap,' she thought, 'I tried my best to look interested in martial arts practice, but I guess I am not good at acting.' Then she deliberated, 'What should I say to hide my indifference while not upsetting Mother?' and began wracking her brain to devise an acceptable excuse.

Because of this line of thinking, the girl took too long to respond and the older woman inquired, "Don't you love your brother?"

"Of course I do!" she responded without even a second's thought.

"Then wouldn't you like to attend middle school with him and be in the same class?" her parent asked, "You would also skip a grade if you get the position. After all, with your academic ability, I believe you would thrive in a more challenging environment."

"I want to go to the academy with Johnathan-nii," Christiana responded, "and the added schoolwork wouldn't bother me. Those things aren't the issue."

"Then what is?" the matriarch asked in visible interest, her green eyes centered on her Daughter.

Under normal circumstances, she would have noticed her Mother's sudden focus on her, but she was too busy trying to think of a believable excuse for her negative attitude. 'I can't tell her I don't want to be separated from Haruhi-nee,' she thought. That would just be too embarrassing for her to admit. While she wanted to go to school with her brother, if she did, then they would separate her from her sister. To Christiana, having to choose one sibling over the other was like asking her which hand she desired to have cut off.

At least with her current situation, she did not have to make the judgment herself. The law said that males could not go to school until they reached middle school age. Thus the fact that the girl went to grade school with Haruhi-nee and not Johnathan-nii wasn't Christiana's choice. The government had decided for her. However, once she entered middle school, the regulation would no longer apply and it would force Christiana to make a decision that she simply could not make.

"If I get the position, then it'll allow me to go to the academy with Johnathan-nii, but I'll have to be highly alert at all times," she said to her Mother. While it didn't explain her attitude, it was still the truth.

"Yes, you will be required to stay on your toes, but that is only in between classes and at lunchtime... in middle school at least," her Okaa-sama replied. "But that is just an obligation of the position."

"What if it is not a responsibility that I am willing to take?" the girl countered after a brief pause. It was the best excuse Christiana could come up with on the spur of the moment.

The girl's Mother shook her head in apparent consternation. "Since you want to be evasive right now, we will continue this conversation another time," the woman said. "However, I want you to think about this saying until we talk about the subject again." Here the matriarch paused for a moment, apparently to add emphasis to her next statement. "Even the most protracted journey begins with the first step. I believe that winning this tournament is just the start of a glorious adventure."

With that, the red-haired woman motioned for her daughter to leave the chamber.

'Thank goodness,' she thought as she bowed to her Okaa-sama, 'This has been the longest and weirdest conversation of my life.'