Six years later

It's dark and cold, but it was always dark and cold when it rained, she thought to herself. The rain had come so fast most of the students outside at the time were drenched within seconds. Loraz walked in the rain slowly as she listened to each raindrop hit her umbrella with a quiet but harsh pitter-patter. It was always like this though, her walking alone. She was alone for some time now, at least that's the way it felt to her; the day it happened, still fresh in her head, played out daily in her memory. The day they all were separated, their destinies decided upon for them. She heard the story from the merchant nomads that passed through on their way to Ay Su. She thought they would always be friends and remain together happy and smiling, something so childish and sweet, a dream unlike the harsh cold numbness of reality. Her home was gone. The home she had hoped to one day return to had disappeared in a night of the fiery massacre. They were all gone...he was gone. How long has it been since she heard the news? She wondered as she pictured their faces.

Releasing her umbrella, she stood in the rain as if to wash her of all sins and sorrow. She thought the darkness that slowly consumed her could most likely be washed away with water from the heavens. Observing the dark sky and slowly picturing each face of the people she once called her friends; to her the only family she ever really had. Lives lost over a grudge she had nothing to do with. It was once a peaceful kingdom she heard from her mother, until her stepmother married into the royal family and killed off the king, but with no proof of the murder, she was never convicted for her crime and remained on the throne after the king was put to rest. It was rumored that the evil queen even killed off Loraz's birth mother the day she was born in order to claim the throne for herself. Her mother told her on the night they fled the castle she had a few of the maids help her with their escape by faking her death so that no one would come searching for them. She mentioned four men who protected them as they made their way to the far outskirts of the kingdom to the village of Yorland. She was told that if not for their help both would have died for sure.

She began to cry, was her death really that important to her stepmother? Did her birth parents suffer greatly as they died? Could the mother who raised her still be alive or did she finally take death's invitation and passed on? Were her friends alright? Did they make it out of the village safely when everything burned down? Did they all die because of her? She had so many questions that were unanswered and she had no one she could speak to about any of her worries as her last promise to her mother was to make sure she concealed her identity until it was time to take back Serenity.

"Why Ancestors? Explain to me what reason is there for me to have to suffer alone. I wish to know what good will come from me living on. How am I to go on knowing that everyone I cared for no longer exists? Is there no one who can help me with this burden? Am I to walk this path alone?"

Standing in the rain crying she let the rain hit her face, at one time her skin glowed and she was a radiant beauty, her hair was bright and flowed gracefully down her back in long waves. You could tell over the years she began to worry even more as her eyes once full of life were nothing more than empty shells of their former self. It looked as if her soul had drained from her body.

He saw her standing in the middle of the yard staring up at the sky as the rain poured down. Students stood nearby snickering as they watched her ruin her clothes and let her hair become a wet mess. He shot a look at a few of them, and they walked off noses up in the air. A sigh escaped him as he looked back out to her and then up at the sky. He stepped out from under the walkway that shielded him from the storm and made his way to her.

"Are you insane?"

Turning her head toward the voice she saw that it was Robert, and he was rushing out to her.

What could he want now? Is he here to check up on me again? How many times has this made it since this morning? She thought.

She watched as he ran through the water as each drop that hit slowly soaked him from head to toe. The rain that dripped from his delicate chin seemed to make her notice just how handsome he truly was. She could make out a muscular body under his wet clothes; a big unnoticed difference from when he was a boy and the strains of wet silver curls that clung to his face made his features stand out just a bit more. Everything was as if it were in slow motion as she looked at him. Shaking her head, she cleared her mind. Good looks or not she had to remember the treatment he gave her back in Mossca. He ignored her for years when they were younger, him showing interest now wouldn't make up for the way he treated her.

"What do you want from me?"

"Why are you... standing in the rain?"

"Because rainwater is the closest thing to the Ancestors."

"Are you...trying to catch your death?"

A wary smile crossed her face and she looked back up at the sky.

"Death would be the ultimate escape...it sounds inviting...don't you think...."

Robert picked up her umbrella and held it over them.

"What nonsense are you spitting? Do you really have a death wish at your age already?"

Loraz knocked the umbrella out of his hand then pushed him away from her.

"Why do you care if I die? How does what happens to me concern you? At one time you hated me and now you are always by my side, why is that? Why do you always find me, is it because you are always looking for me? Is this some sick joke you've been planning to unleash on me? Or are you finally just willing to play as my 'big brother' all of a sudden?"

All of her mixed feelings had reached their limit and she lashed out. She stared at him, her eyes red from her fallen tears. This wasn't what she wanted to happen, she didn't mean to take out her confused anger on him and yet it was too late to take back what she had said. He had been so nice to her over the last few years and she returned his kindness with harsh words.

He just looked at her, not at all surprised at what she said. After watching her for some time he expected it sooner or later. What she said was only half true, but she didn't know that he found her so irritatingly irresistible that it pained him to think about how he treated her in the past. Ever since she showed up to Mossca he had eyes on her, captured by her beauty as she stood there waiting to be introduced. Knowing that if he showed her any kind of attention the target on her back would have been ten times greater than it was. He knew that Loraz wasn't a real princess of Mossca and often wondered where she came from. After a while he just stopped caring about her origins and tried to stay clear of her. It wasn't until they both came to Ay Su and started attending The National University of Zanooma that he finally gave into his feelings and accepted that he loved her and he always had. He did not expect his father to send Loraz to 'Royal High' and thought he'd be free from her until he married off to some unknown princess; he figured anyone who would help him forget about her would be good enough. Unfortunately for him, things didn't go as well as he planned in his efforts to show her that he wasn't the heartless person that she thought him to be. Most of the time he would find her in the garden walking alone and he felt the loneliness she gave off every time he looked at her. She lost what little shine she had left once she stepped into the university and wondered what could have turned her into the dark person she had become. The cheerful spark she once had finally vanished. Had she given up already? If so, what could she have given up on and why did it haunt her so much. A wary smile crossed his lips. He picked up the umbrella holding it over them again and then took her hand in his.

"You need to come inside and dry off. Come I will walk you to your room and ask them to bring you some tea so you can warm up."

She pulled away from him and glared at him as the rain water trailed down her face.

"Why do you always have to be nice to me now, I don't get it. When we were younger and I tried to befriend you you'd play terrible tricks on me and even force me to tears. You once even told me that we'd never be family and you'd never accept me as your sister. You even ignored me for the last two years I was in Mossca. Stating that I shouldn't compare myself to you because you were above me," The pain in her voice was obvious, "So why now that we have reached adulthood do you show me the kindness I no longer look for."

Robert looked her straight in the eye. The rain now had soaked them both and their outfits were most likely ruined. He walked closer to her and reached for her then pulled her toward him. Her face buried into his chest she began to cry. He stroked her wet hair gently.

"You are right...why now...I still can never think of you as family. Though I have tried many times I can't bring myself to do it...I don't even want to be just friends," He looked up towards the sky for a moment and exhaled, "I am only just now starting to be honest with myself on why I do what I do when it comes to you. Though I am still much too afraid to admit what that reason is to you, I can clearly tell you that I have never hated you; I just wished to protect you in my own selfish way."

He then pushed her away and went to walk away from her. She grabbed his hand without thinking her face was now a beet red. Did he just say what she thought he was saying? She wasn't clear what was going on; she had too much already on her mind to even think clearly. He looked at her and smiled. It was all he could do to keep from touching her any further. His desire to have her had to be kept under control at all times.

"Robert, if being your sister was wrong or too much, then I have already told you that we didn't have to be siblings. A person who I could confide in would have been nice in that place. Was it wrong for us to even be friends? What kind of protection is ignoring my very existence? Who were you even trying to protect me from? That castle's royal family was a nightmare to me. My only savior in that awful place is the man I now call father."

He knitted his fingers with hers and pulled her into him. They were close enough to hear each other's hearts and taste each other's breath.

"The target on your back would have become a lot bigger had we formed bonds while in that castle. While it was selfish of me to do what I did I still believe if I hadn't things would have been worse for the both of us. If you still wish for a brother, my dear Loraz, you will not find him with me and I will tell you now I wish for so much more than just your friendship," He then pulled her hand up to his lips,"Now come we must get you inside before you freeze."

Loraz blushed and her eyes went wide; she had never really looked at him the way she did now, being that she was mostly lost in thought for so many years, she failed to realize that Robert was not the brother she was told she had to love and respect, but a boy who had grown into a man that had always been watching her grow into a woman. She stood frozen for only a second then nodded her head in agreement to his suggestion. What could this feeling that flowed throughout her body be? It was warm and at times she felt hot, maybe she was coming down with a cold after standing in the rain for so long. She couldn't explain it or shake the feeling away, could this feeling be the effects of Robert's words. Impossible she thought; she must be with a fever that's why she was feeling hot. Although she had to admit from time to time she would catch herself staring at him from a distance. No, that had nothing to do with it. Young women her age were allowed to look at others and fantasize without it having any deeper meaning. If you could even call what she thought about when staring at him fantasizing. No, she had to remember that love would never find her again and happiness had died a long time ago. It was not written in her destiny to ever be happy. One day her stepmother would find her and she refused to let that evil woman hurt another person she cared for ever again. She quietly told herself to push the warm feeling she felt for Robert deep down inside and lock it up forever. There was no way that it would be possible for anything to ever happen between them. He would forever be the brother figure she grew up looking at from afar. Or maybe they finally become friends and work on the friendship that he tossed to the side so long ago.

They quietly walked back toward her room, a trail of water behind them. Along the way, servants saw them dripping wet and rushed to aid them.

"Oh, my dear. You're all wet, the both of you. Come, come we must hurry and get you out of those clothes." One servant said.

"Yes. Yes, Prince Robert this way, please. Princess Loraz, please follow the young lady over there and she will assist you." Another servant said.

As they were each dragged away by servants and led to their rooms Loraz kept peeking back at Robert. She stopped walking then turned around quickly to see Robert was just about to turn a corner and disappear down another hallway. When they were younger and still in Mossca she would see him in the library a lot and would go there often in hopes to find out more about him. Robert's only true crime against her was his cruel tongue and his intense cold shoulder. Maybe it was as he said and he was pretending to hate her all that time because of his elder brothers. If that was his way of protecting her, while it didn't work, it was kind of cute of him to think it would. Her chest began to hurt and her body became heavy as she watched him. She understood this feeling all too well. She tried to ignore it and tell herself she couldn't fall for him.Yes he was nice to her the last five years and yes he did make it so she wouldn't be alone all the time since she was here. While that didn't make up for the way he treated her in their youth, she did always wonder what it would be like had they actually become close. Yet he stated he wanted more than just friendship. What more could she offer to him than just that? Her heart was far too broken to give it to anyone at the moment. She watched as he slowly turned the corner and then she started running back towards him with the wet skirts to her dress in her hands.

"Robert!"

He stopped in his tracks and took a few steps then turned to face her. He was a bit shocked at the sound of her voice echoing down the hallway as she sprinted towards him.

She ran up to him and pulled him by the collar so that they were face to face. Close enough to kiss she stared him in the eye as she caught her breath.

"I understand your feelings. My heart is not ready for what we seek, but bare with me. In time maybe..."

Loraz then kissed him on his lips then rushed off towards the maid, her face red and she was screaming internally as she quickened her steps.

Robert's eyes went wide then a smile crossed his lips as he began to laugh wildly.

"At last you finally see me..."

He walked off to his room laughing and touching his bottom lip. The warmth she left behind for him lit his desire even more.