⚠️ T/w: mild violence, family conflict, and addiction issues ⚠️
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Later in the evening~

Eliza got to her house after making only 20 coins that day. The triplets didn't come out to meet her as usual, which was weird. She quickly entered the house, thinking something was wrong.

"Don! Giselle! Sierra!" She called them. She heard tiny footsteps scurrying around in her room. She smiled, relieved, and went to her room. She opened the door and saw a mess. The triplets paused in their tracks and stared at her.

Eliza was dumbfounded. She entered her room and stared at it in horror. The triplets gulped and looked down at their feet.

When they came back from school, they met the door to Eliza's room opened, and the room was in a huge mess. The triplets probably knew that it was their brother who did this because, yesterday night, they heard the conversation between him and Eliza. They didn't want Eliza to be angry, so they decided to cover for their stupid brother, hoping Eliza would at least calm down, thinking they were the ones who did this.

After all, they are just kids. Eliza would understand that.

"What happened?" Eliza spoke, and the triplets looked at themselves and gulped.

"We were playing tag, so we entered your room to hide." Don spoke while the other two nodded. Eliza looked around the room; her dresser was opened, her bed was tipped over, and her clothes were all on the floor. This wasn't the mess three kids playing tag would make. She instantly knew what was going on.

She walked to the triplets and hugged them. The triplets thought that their plan was a success. They secretly celebrated and high-fived one another.

"You don't need to lie." Eliza said that and released them from the hug. The kids frowned; they thought their plan was a success. "I definitely know what happened."

"But it's true!" They chorused

"No, it's not." Eliza went to her dresser and climbed it. The kids were watching her as she did this. Eliza stuck her hand in the hole, and just as she suspected, her savings were gone.

"Marcus stole all my money." Eliza said sadly, and the triplets gasped. They suddenly felt angry with their brother. Eliza got down from the dresser and walked towards them.

"Go relax, I will take care of this mess." The triplets felt sad, but they knew Eliza wanted space, so they walked out of her room and closed the door behind them.

She picked up her clothes on the floor and arranged them back into her dresser. She got to her bed and tipped it back.

She arranged her bedspread and her pillows, and in a few minutes, her room was back to the way it was before. She sighed and sat on her bed, feeling sad, dejected, and extremely angry.

The triplets were outside her room with their ears pressed to the door, listening to whatever was on inside.

"She's surprisingly quiet." Giselle whispered. "I am scared of her silence." The boys nodded in agreement with their sister. Marcus enters the house sluggishly with his head down, a telltale sign of his misfortune. Eliza senses his home and comes out to meet him.

"Don! Sierra! Giselle! To your room. I want to talk to your brother." Eliza said it coldly. The triplets did not wait an extra second and immediately dashed into their room, locking the door.

Eliza looked at Marcus coldly. Marcus internally cursed because he knew he was in deep trouble.

"Eliza, H-how was your day?" He stuttered, feeling uneasy with the way Eliza stared at him.

"Cut the trash! Where is my money?" Eliza spoke, trying to control the anger in her voice. Marcus brought out the sack he took from Eliza's room, brought out only four coins from the sack, and showed them to her sheepishly.

"Where are the rest?" She questioned me again. Marcus kept the coins back in the pouch and scratched the back of his head, trying to avoid her icy gaze.

"It was taken from me." Marcus answered

"It was taken from you, or do you use it all for gambling?" Eliza raised her voice at Marcus, who was annoyed at the way Eliza accused him.

"You know, if you had given me the money in the first place, none of this would have happened. It is your fault." Marcus pointed his finger at her. She sighed angrily and folded her arms.

"I didn't give it to you because you would waste the money!"

"How do you know? You always treat me like I don't know what I am doing. If I get like a million Luminae, won't you spend it also?" Eliza clenched her fist. She was doing everything in her power not to punch her idiotic brother into unconsciousness.

"Marcus, that money was for the family. You gambled it away. The money I worked for with my sweat is all gone! Can't you stop gambling and be responsible?"

"I am being responsible. I am just looking for the quickest way out of this hellhole." Marcus argued back.

"There is no quick way if you keep gambling away our possessions like an idiot!" Eliza retorted

"Did you just call me an idiot?" Marcus said, "How dare you call me an idiot? It's not my fault you prefer to work like a slave...!"Eliza punched Marcus in the face before he could complete his statement. He fell to the floor, groaning and holding his face. She took the remaining four coins left with him and stormed off to her room.

Eliza went to her bed and started crying. All her efforts were wasted because of her stupid brother and his gambling addiction. She saw the flyer she picked up yesterday on the floor. She stood up from her bed and took the flyer. She wiped her tears with the back of her hands to read the flyer.

The flyer stated that each part-time worker would get 20 Luminae per hour they worked. The gala would start at 6 p.m. and end by midnight. That's a total of 120 coins.

'This can get me quick money. Don't worry, Eliza, everything will work out.' Eliza sniffed as she held the flyer. She looked back at the ceiling and decided to change her money-hiding spot to a more secure spot in case a situation like this happened again.
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Amelia arrived at the mansion with her personal maid, Emma. The servants greeted her as she entered the mansion.

"Sister!" A small boy of 8 years ran to her and hugged her. Amelia smiled warmly at her younger brother.

"Slivian! You've arrived!" She ruffled his dark, midnight hair. He released her and beamed at her. Slivian Hawthorne was the youngest child of the Hawthornes. A smart, charming, brilliant boy with a big heart and a bright personality who manages to warm the coldest of hearts He resembles their father with his dark hair and facial features but with his cool blue eyes, which he got from his mother. He is going to be a heartbreaker when he gets older, but for now, he is Amelia's adorable little brother, whom she adores to bits.

"I miss you, sister! I even brought gifts. One for you and one for your sister, Madeline. I wanted to give it to you both when you arrive."He said enthusiastically. Amelia dramatically touched her chest; her brother was too cute and adorable.

"Aww, you shouldn't have!" Amelia kneeled to his size and hugged him. He giggled and hugged her back.

"Amelia, you are back!" Her mother and father descended the stairs looking regal, fancy, and polished like the nobles they are. Their father had dark hair and stern brown eyes compared to their mother, who had warm blue eyes and reddish-gold hair. And there was also Madeline, following their parents down the stairs.

Amelia stood and greeted her parents.

"Amelia! Where would you have gone for so long? We didn't even meet you at home after we picked your brother up from school," Her father said. Amelia doesn't say anything.

"Anyways, it's time for dinner already!" Her mother said happily. "Now we can eat like a happy family." Amelia gulped. She didn't want anyone to realize that she didn't feel comfortable eating food served in the house. She also couldn't tell her parents that she had already eaten. They would be mad at her for disobeying the mandatory family dinner rule.

Amelia cried within her as she followed her family to the dining area begrudgingly. The servants served them their food. Amelia stared at the dish uncomfortably. She didn't yet understand how she started having a phobia of food served in her house. She sank into her seat, looking around.

The family started eating, and Amelia only sipped the water in her tumbler and occasionally poked her food with her fork and knife.

"Mother, Father. We received an invitation today." Madeline spoke, and a servant handed the letter they got earlier to the Duke.

"It is a Lu'minara celebration at the Blackwood Hotel! It is really popular among nobles. Tell them we accept the invitation." The Duke examined the letter and handed it back to the servant. Amelia's ears perked up when she heard that familiar name again.

'Blackwood? Do I personally know any Blackwoods? Amelia thought as she involuntarily started chewing on her thumb nail.

"Amelia!" Her mother called and snapped her out of her thoughts. "Such bad habits. You have food in front of you; you still chew your nails."

Amelia blushed embarrassed, and hung her head low.

"She is fond of such horrible habits that are improper for a lady! You hear that, Amelia, such bad habits." Madeline spoke with a haughty tone that the other members of the family except Amelia failed to recognize. Amelia glared at Madeline, and Madeline smirked at her.

"The gifts I promised Sister Amelia and Sister Madeline." Slivian suddenly remembered and ran out of the room. Their parents chuckled.

"We raised such cooperative children!" Their mother gushed, and their father agreed, but only if they weren't oblivious to the attitudes both Amelia and Madeline were giving each other. The youngest rushed back into the room, panting with two small boxes, and handed them to both sisters.

Madeline and Amelia opened their gifts and saw a necklace with half of a heart pendant that formed a full heart when joined together. They both had conflicting expressions. Their brother looked at them with expectant eyes.

"Why...thank you!" Amelia started. Madeline nodded and smiled awkwardly.

"The girls at school said you both would like something like this, but I bought it," their brother said proudly. Their parents clapped happily, gushing about the ingenuity of their son.

Although the necklace was pretty, Amelia couldn't help but feel angry with it.
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Soon the season of Lu'minara came closer, and the kingdom of Veridian started the Lu'minara festivities.

Lu'minara in the old tongue means festival of lights, and it's celebrated every winter. The Lu'minara came to be when early Veridians made the goddess of light, Aurora, their patron. In appreciation, she made lights of different colors appear in the winter sky as a sign of promise to the people. They name the lights Aurora Borealis.

The Aurora Borealis is not only visible in Veridian, but this is the story the Veridians believed was the beginning of the Lu'minara celebration. It is a celebration everyone in Veridian looks forward to each year.

Everyone in the Hawthorne house was excited for Lu'minara. Colorful decorations were put in place for the season, and servants looked forward to spending a whole day with their families.

Preparations for the awaited Lu'minara gala were made in the Blackwood hotel, and Victoria continued to supervise the progress of workers and ensure that everything was in place for the gala.

Eliza had a hard time looking for part-time jobs to do because, during this season, shops and businesses were closed. The triplets weren't happy at all because of their brother, who ruined the Lu'minara mood in their house, and Marcus still sported a very noticeable purple bruise on his face with a swollen eye, courtesy of Eliza, who was still very angry with her brother.

Soon the day of Lu'minara came. The special day marked the beginning of their new fate, as promised by the goddess.
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A/N:
Aurora Borealis is an actual phenomenon that
happens in real life in the northern part of the world. It's also known as the Northern Lights.
It fits into the story so I decided to use it in the book.

Thank you for understanding~