The walk to the main house wasn't far but to (name), it felt as if she was being put on death row. She committed a huge violation to the rules so it was only natural that she had to be punished, but she felt a sense of being outdone. Technically the fight wasn't her fault, Philip was the one who threw the first punch but she was the one who overstepped the boundaries.

"The last thing I need is to be released from the class entirely." (Name) informed herself. If she was sent back home now then not only would she be a laughing stock, but her parents would be to blame. In all honesty, her parents were the only ones who didn't see her as a troublemaker- maybe a bit reckless but never pass the extent of it being an annoyance.

With a sigh, (name) came to the realization that the main house coming closer and without a moment's doubt there was Mikhail. Standing at the gate with his arms crossed and a sterned look on his face made the (h/c)nette feel a wave of nervousness. At the same time, she felt a need to hold her head up high to prove that she (technically) wasn't in the wrong and she needed to prove it.

Her steps were heavy and slow. Her ankle felt painfully uncomfortable to the point she felt her lips twitch downwards for a split second. Forcing an indifferent expression to paint her face, (name) bowed in respect upon standing in front of the snow-haired man. Looking up at Mikhail's stormy/icy blue eyes that held disappointment, the teen felt herself flinch. Mikhail didn't even say a word before turning to walk into the estate with (name) following behind... agonizingly slow. Now that she kept walking, the pain on her ankle was beginning to feel a little too intolerable. But she had to keep going in order to prove that she wasn't weak. That she wouldn't be affected by a situation like this.

In the courtyard where Alexei, Sachi, Yuliy, stood, the (h/c) haired teen saw Philip and his friends kneeling in front of them. For a second, panic arose in her chest until she took a deep breath; no matter what she said, she'd have to suffer the consequences anyway so what was the point in being nervous. Now with her heartbeat steady, (name) prepared herself for whatever her punishment may be. Standing beside Philip, it took (name) a second to kneel. She had to resort to biting her tongue to suppress any sound of pain before the clan leader stood.

"Lady (last). Young Master Philip."

His deep voice boomed with utter disappointment.

"I'm ashamed to have heard that you started a fight which resulted in the use of spiritual energy." Alexei's glare made a shiver go up (name)'s back. She felt small and inferior as the clan leader continued speaking: "you both know the rule- especially you, (name)" the mentioning of her name made (name)'s gaze shoot down for a second before trailing back up while avoiding the man's icy blue eyes.

(Name) wanted to open her mouth to defend herself but she knew it would only be futile. No one listened to her in the first place so she fought against the urge to talk.

"The use of spiritual energy against another is forbidden and the fact that you were fighting doesn't help. Both sides will be punished!"

Alexei announced to the guards that stood behind the two groups.

"Philip and his group will kneel here all night while (name) will have to kneel under the waterfall by the west side."

Yuliy's eyes widened at the mentioning of the water at the west. There were two waterfalls in the Land of Sirius. A spirit cleansing one and the one used for punishments- the one by the west. The reason being that the west one is harsher and more powerful while the spirit cleansing one was calmer. Kneeling all night wasn't the easiest task- and with the fact that her ankle was hurting immensely didn't help either.

A silence had filled the air and Yuliy opened his mouth to defend the girl but was stopped when she replied "this disciple understands" with a bow of her head. 'You idiot!' Yuliy mentally shouted knowing fully that if he tried to speak out now the result would remain the same.

But... what if there was a chance?

After all Yuliy is his father's son- the youngest at that so if he tried talking to his father in private then maybe- just maybe there was a chance he would lighten (name)'s punishment.

Soon, (name) was led out of the estate and to the waterfall by the West. With a sigh, Alexei restated to Philip and his posse that they must remain kneeling until tomorrow before leaving, Sachi following after. The Jirov brothers exchanged glances before the younger of the two opened his mouth while maintaining a stoic expression "brother, may I speak to you?" He asked gaining a confused look from the older.

"Of course, Yuliy. Let's walk shall we?"

"Actually brother, this'll involve both mother and father as well."

Mikhail's face shifted into one of concern before inhaling softly and replying "well then let's go speak with them." With both brothers off to follow their parents, Mikhail glanced at Yuliy in attempts to read his expression. He wasn't the easiest to read but after knowing him his whole life, Mikhail had gained a natural sense of what his younger brother could think.

"It has something to do with Lady (last), am I right?"

Seeing Yuliy's shoulder tense up confirmed for the older that what the younger wanted to discuss was the punishment for (name). But why? What was he planning on talking about? Did he want to make the punishment more severe? Yuliy was the one who was holding her back but that didn't have any real meaning, right? And he was the one who gave (name) her first punishment so perhaps he was fed up.

Making it to the Clan Leader's door, the two knocked on the wooden sliding door to hear an "enter" signaling them to slide the door open. There Alexei sat with Sachi beside him. Seeing his sons, a smile covered his face. "Ah, my sons. Come have some tea with your mother and me" he offered to the two. Both Mikhail and Yuliy sat on the cushions and were poured a cup of tea.

"So what did the two of you wish to talk about?" Sachi asked seeing the conflicted look on Yuliy's face. Clearing his throat, Mikhail had informed that Yuliy wanted to discuss something concerning (name) which caught the two parents by surprise. They weren't expecting Yuliy to concern himself with another. With the attention on Yuliy, the youngest of the group took a sip of his tea before taking a deep breath.

"Father. Forgive me but I believe Lady (last)'s punishment was unjust."

Now this made Alexei double over as he was caught in utter shock. His youngest son who was perceived to be distant and cold... was defending someone. Feeling Sachi nudge his arm made Alexei realize he was gaping. Clearing his throat, Alexei looked at Yuliy with a hardened gaze.

"A-and what can you use to prove that?"

He asked curiously. Yuliy's face remained stoic as he began to explain; "as someone who was just passing by, I became a witness when Young Master Philip called out Lady (last)." After briefly explaining what had happened between the two, Yuliy's eyes softened before he bowed his head.

"With everything being explained, it can be said that the Young Master Philip was the one who offended Lady (last) and she, therefore deserves a lighter punishment."

"Even though she used her spiritual energy?"

"Even though she used her spiritual energy."

Alexei looked to Sachi mentally asking for her opinion on the situation at hand. The raven haired woman turned to her husband and nodded her head towards him as if telling him "it's all on you" which made Alexei turn back to gaze into Yuliy's eyes.

They were so certain.

Something Alexei respected about his youngest son was that when he talked his eyes never betrayed him. If that was how he felt then there was nothing that was going to stop him.

So with a gentle smile, Alexei face a nod before saying "if that is how you truly feel then I shall grant you permission to take full control of Lady (last)'s punishment." Yuliy's eyes widened slightly as he was sure his father would deny his request, but instead he gave him the responsibility of taking charge. Backing up, Yuliy places his hands together on the floor before bowing down, "thank you, Father." Getting up, Yuliy took grabbed his sword that was on the floor and walked out of the room, sliding the door closed behind him.

Now that the youngest was out of the room Mikhail looked up at his father, "Father, apologies but are you sure? Despite not being the one who started it, Lady (last) was the one who broke the rules." Mikhail wondered aloud earning a grin from Alexei.

"Mikhail, you saw the look in your brother's eyes too didn't you?"

A smile danced onto Sachi's face as she knew what her husband was referring to. "Yes, I thought it was very justly of him" she said while locking her fingers together. Mikhail sighed before he released a smile of his own.

"I guess as long as Lady (last) is here she will be well protected."

꒰◍ᐡᐤᐡ◍꒱ᐝ.∗̥✩⁺˚⑅ ꒰◍ᐡᐤᐡ◍꒱ᐝ.∗̥✩⁺˚⑅ ꒰◍ᐡᐤᐡ◍꒱ᐝ.∗̥✩⁺˚⑅

Hiya! I'm not dead yet babes (unfortunately) but I do wanna apologize for my S U P E R long absence because you guys deserve more than that. But uhh let me give you a quick update on me real quick:

I came out to my parents a week ago and tears were shed on my side but things ended up okay and my mom was like "it's J isn't it?" And I was confused at first but then she said "I kind of guessed when you were talking about her" so that was that. My dad is still trying to get used to the fact that I am bisexual but he's being supportive.

Anyways how are you guys doing? I know we're all going through a hard time rn with this covid-19 (can I say that on here?) but I just wanna say I hope you all stay safe and healthy. Things are changing in both good and bad ways. Despite that, I won't stop worrying about you. Be careful babes💜

With that being said, I'll see you guys the next time I update so please stay safe and stay tuned.

Also I posted a Shinobu X F! Reader so there's that so soothe my gay soul.

Bye for now you guys! I love you💜💜💜 and I'm here for you ʚ♡⃛ɞ(ू•ᴗ•ू❁)