Our slow and steady breathing was drowned out by both the wind and the rustling leaves, his cheeks flushing a pale pink from what I presumed to be excitement. I had just gotten back from a busy work day, and in such, my hair was far messier than his wind blown Raven locks, exhaustion heating up my face. I had yet to know what my flushed expression would look like to other people, oblivious to how strange it must look. But I knew it would cross out any possibility of albinism.

"Okay, let's do this." Yuu said, voice light as if he were walking on air. His back was to his mother's cherry blossom so he could face me. I was in the center of the garden, only a few steps away from him. We closed the space, an anxiety coursing through me I suppressed beneath the plague called curiosity.
I took a deep breath, allowing my pounding heartbeat to slow to a steady pace as I lifted my right hand, the ruby gem urging me forward, but still giving off a tense feel. As if it wanted me to be careful. To not do anything dangerous or ridiculous. Yuu's left hand mirrored mine, our outstretched fingers intertwining as our palms pressed together. The gem sparked to life, replacing the yellow lights surrounding us with a warm red.

It only lasted a millisecond before a pain coursed through me, vision flashing temporarily to some place unknown. A white room. The pain was lasting, a painful shock that tensed my muscles and sent me jumping away from Yuu, hissing in pain. My ears were ringing, drowning out his concerned voice for three minutes.
"Mika? What happened? Are you alright?" Were the questions he was spewing as his quiet voice rose in volumes in my head.
"I... Don't know. It's worse than the last time." I muttered, my temples throbbing with pain.
"Last time?"
"The cliff."
"I didn't know that was happening to you. I'm sorry." He murmured, voice barely above a whisper.

"It's fine. Something wrong with me, not you."

"No, Mika, that's not something wrong with you. I think it's something wrong with me." I squinted at him, confused by the point he was trying to make.

"Something about touching me is activating whatever it is you're feeling. It's not the same with Min."

No.

No, Yuu.

"So, if we don't have physical contact, we can avoid that."

That's not the problem.

Yuu.

It's my mind.

Not you.

There's something wrong with my mind. My memory.
The pain was familiar.

Please, listen to me.

It's not you.

It was never your fault.

• ♛•

My chambers were silent when I had exited, the entire hall void of life. Heeled shoes echoed loudly as I peered around corners curiously. I avoided staring at my little brother's abandoned door for too long. I knew that the room was dusty by now. He had not only left a pain on me with his death, but on the servants as well. He cared for them, even if he had denied it around Orpheus and myself.

There were no voices or murmurs of servants until I had walked down a flight of stairs, finding a group of maids gathered together with a lady of Orpheus' court, all of them talking in excited and hushed whispers.
"Gloria, what's happening?" I asked in a low tone, startling the group of four. They ushered me to the balcony with them, pointing to the large line of Windows visible from the courtyard below, where I could see Orpheus sitting in his throne.
"Someone ordered an audience with the king. We were all sent away except for Neridia. She's still in there, being his advisor and all." Gloria explained. The large doors opened, and we all but toppled over the railing as we struggled to view the person whom had entered. He had dirty blond hair that was wind blown from what I assumed to be days of flying. So he was a duo-winged. It would have taken me thirty minutes to do the same. His tan skin had peach splotches upon certain areas except a majority of his face that could be instantly recognized as Vitiligo, making him stand out from the rest. But I could see the copper color that flowed through his veins, even from this distance. He wasn't wearing clothing from our land, I had noticed. Although covered by a long jacket, he wore jeans and a T-shirt beneath.

Earthen clothing.

"What do you think he wants?" A maid whispered.
"I don't know, but it must be important. I was told that this man was requesting an audience for weeks on end, even going as far as flying around the castle and trying to find Orpheus's chambers." Gloria said back, revealing information that would have otherwise been deemed top secret. I watched the man run a hand through his messy hair, bowing deeply to my brother. The conversation started out calm. Both speaking in low voices, a yellow gaze meeting caramel brown eyes. Then they began arguing, and I had to leave. I knew where it was going. Gloria and the maids followed. No one wanted to see the wrath of Orpheus, even from afar. Not even Neridia, who was cursed to sit through it every single time. Watch every single detail. She would often go to Gloria's chambers and ask for the memories to be wiped from her mind. Over time she stopped asking, merely entering the lady's chambers for the comfort only someone who has been through something similar could give. As far as I knew, the two were not romantically involved. They just couldn't share with me, for fear that I would tell my brother.

I tried explaining one day that I felt just as much pain as they, but confided in someone not even the two women so scarred by my brother's temperamental attitude could know about. Even though I considered them to be close friends after my brother died, they couldn't even get a hint that my girlfriend was an earthen governess, of all things. Gloria made the servants escort me to my chambers, apologizing to all of us. When I saw her running down the hall, orange braid whipping behind her, I knew she was after Neridia. She would try and take her away before Orpheus could order her to do something.

Now, don't get me wrong, I love my elder brother deeply. He just... Has a bad temper. Especially when it comes to humans. He would figure out that the newcomer had ties with earth and would end him without a second thought.

Just like our brother.

But unlike me.

He loved me more than his younger brother, so his life was nothing compared to mine. Even though I was the only who had fallen in love with a girl from Earth and cherished her every day and night- the one who helped me sneak away for more than usual died. He only wanted me to be happy.

Orpheus did, too. Just in his own blinded and misguided way. He wanted me to be safe and happy. Similar thoughts with different ways of carrying it out.

My thoughts were eating me alive as I lay in bed, waiting for someone to tell me it was over. Instead of loitering until I was in the clear, I locked my door and slid a note beneath it that alerted them that I had retired to bed early, and to leave supper in the kitchen where I could access it later. I opened my window, watching a child soaring through the sky before he vanished below. Placing my feet on the ledge, I pulled myself up.

Then I fell.

It wasn't an unintentional fall, just a way to get my blood pumping and to scare the shit out of my handmaiden Caeline, who was three floors below me at the time. A red light slithered from my necklace to my back, strong wings lifting me into the air and away from the land within the sky.

And to the Earth below, where my love awaited me.

Corinna was already bounding into the meadow when I had grown close to the ground, her panting loud in my ears despite the distance and showcasing her exhaustion, but her eyes were bright with joy. I flew into her, wings vanishing into the air as we tumbled to the ground laughing. She was by far the most ridiculous person I had ever met.

I told her that, and she kissed me softly. The kind of teasing kiss that leaves your lips tingling once the other pulls away.
"I'm merely faithful to you, my princess." She joked, peppering my face in kisses with her hands on my ears. I laughed, allowing myself to be spoiled by her. My cheeks were flushed with affection and joy, her grin widening at the sight.
"Stoop iit," I complained, my tone revealing that I didn't really mean it. She obeyed regardless, sitting us up in the grass, a flower petal stuck in her brown hair.

"Matthew is gonna kill me. I saw you and abandoned him in his office." Corinna sighed, puffing out her cheeks as she exhaled dramatically.
"That was your decision. I would have gladly waited." I pointed out. She bit her tongue.
"I know. Couldn't help myself."

We talked until the sun had begun to set, and then Matthew had begun to search for her. I had nearly forgotten about the day's troubles until I landed on my bedroom floor, a distant buzzing ringing in my ears before the wings upon my back vanished. I tried not to imagine what Neridia must have been going through at that moment. What she had gone through once before.

When she had to do the same to my brother.

It was never her fault, I knew and accepted this.

It was Orpheus's fault.

His hatred for the human race-

That was his only fault.