Sky's POV:

Almost 2 months had gone by. I had never stayed away this long from Rain. I was born 6 months before him; my destiny was tied to his. In the past 2 months, I had not stopped training, or studying, or whatever it was I was supposed to do. But every waking moment was spent in thinking about what he was doing, how he was doing, whether he was okay or not. I know that many people would think there was some kind of romantic relationship between us. But the truth was, I was a very old soul who had waited centuries for the true Queen to appear. My job was to protect him from harm. But if he was not in front of me, how could I possibly do that?

"Naphon?" I turned around to see Idalia and Neoma standing there. How long had they been standing there; I had no idea. "Idalia? Neoma? Everything okay?" I asked, hurrying over to them. I must have looked very worried, because Neoma immediately said, "Nothing Naphon, we are just coming to check in you. You haven't come eaten with us in days. You are constantly busy. We are getting worried about you."

"I am fine. Please don't worry about me, really," I said, trying to put them at ease. "We don't believe that for a bit young man," Idalia said. "If you are really that okay, then come join us for dinner tonight," she added. I looked at both of them and realised that they would not take no for an answer. I nodded, not wanting them to worry about me unnecessarily. Although my mood was not really great, I knew that not showing up for dinner would create needless stress for everyone.

"Good evening Naphon," Raejin called out as I entered the room. "Good evening Raejin. Good evening everyone," I smiled. "We are so glad to see you tonight. You seem to have been hiding yourself God knows where," Avani said. "Not hiding at all. Just training," I replied. "Naphon, we know that you are missing Varain. It's okay to say that. You don't have to push yourself so much. It's okay to stop sometimes and just be happy," Avani said. "We all miss him. You boys stopped being students a long time ago. You are family to us, and nothing will change that. We miss Varain just as much as you do," she continued.

I knew that she meant every word that she said. I smiled at her and we all sat down for dinner. "Young man?" Alaz said. "Yes Alaz?" "How long have you and Varain known each other? I believe we have never heard that story, have we?" he asked around the table. "No, I believe we have not," Alizeh said. "Yes, tell us the story of how you met Varain," Llyr said, in his booming voice. "Well, my parents and Rain's had been friends for very long. My parents never wanted children, but by the time my Pa got to know he was expecting me, it was too late. So they had me, but never had any time for me. I spent most of the time with Rain's parents, even though I was a baby and Uncle Type was also carrying," I said. "And then?" Avani asked.

"Uncle Type told me this story, so I am pretty sure it's true. Apparently, Uncle Type was on complete bed rest when he was carrying Rain. And I would usually sleep next to him. And I was a very quiet and peaceful baby, hardly ever crying. But one day, I would not stop screaming my lungs out. Uncle Type tried everything, but I would not quit," I continued, remembering Uncle Type's smile as he reminisced. "And then?" Alizeh asked. "Rick was just 2 years old. He was also crying. He was not able to handle both of us together. He even had to call Uncle Tharn back from his work that day. He came back and carried me around the house, but my crying just became worse. Finally Uncle Type decided to get up and look for something to help me. That's when he realised that he was bleeding," I said. The ladies all gasped. "Oh my God! And then?" Neoma exclaimed.

"Uncle Pete immediately came over to pick up Rick. He wanted to take me, but I screamed like a banshee apparently," I said, laughing at the memory of Uncle Type laughing at me. "So Uncle Tharn took me along. Uncle Type was rushed in for an emergency surgery. Sometime later, the doctor came out with Rain and that's exactly when I stopped crying. And after that, I would be the happiest when I was next to him. That's how we literally met," I said. "And been inseparable since then?" Avani laughed. "Been inseparable since them," I replied. "You know, you must come to dinner every day and tell us about both your childhood stories. That will help you keep happy memories and give us some laughs as well," Raejin said, laughing. "Good idea Raejin," Avani said, as they all started to laugh and I was able to finally join in with them.

Michael's POV:

Within days of him coming to us, Gabriel and I realised that Varain was an extremely talented student. He was literally power personified. He picked up things in a flash and was able to apply his knowledge very easily. I was sure he was missing his best friend and his family, but not once did he falter in his training. He was always cheerful, inspite of the tough job lying ahead of him. On his first day with us, we had made him take a vow, that he would never release any details of his training to anyone. The necessary skills required to eliminate and destroy the sins must only be with the chosen one. He was the only one who could do what was needed. He had vowed with such solemnity that we were quite amazed.

"Varain, even a blade of grass can be used as a weapon. Today we are going to combine the skills that Avani gave you along with mage skills that you have. Are you ready?" I asked him. "Yes Michael. I am ready," he replied. "Let me demonstrate," I said. He watched intently as I showed him what to do. "Gluttony is one of the hardest sins to get rid of. However, if you combine the skills that I have just explained, it will not be difficult. You must remember though Varain. It will not be easy for you to get till the sin. And even when you do, they will have human faces, so you might feel guilty. But always remind yourself that you are meant to do this for an entire universe," I explained to him.

"Thank you Michael. You and Gabriel are really doing a lot for me. Helping me so much," he said. "To tell you the truth Varain, in the beginning, both of us were not very willing to do that. We were forced to," I laughed at his horrified expression. "I am sorry," he began, but I held my hand up. "As I said, in the beginning. But I can assure you, that is not the case anymore. We really enjoy training you and we are sure you will make a wonderful Queen. Just do as we say and all will be good," I said to him.

Rick's POV:

One more day marked in the calendar. It was like I was just living each day to mark off one more day. Almost 3 years had gone by. There was no change in Rain's condition. Not a single person had given up hope though. We knew that each day brought us closer to seeing him again. A couple of months ago, I had received another mail from Lord Raejin. He had stated that we would be very happy to know that both Sky and Rain were doing well. Their training was going well and that they would be home soon. Just that one sentence had given us a new lease of life.

Venice and I, as well as Pai, Fah, Pat and Pran had all both completed one year at college. We were soon starting our 2nd year. Uncle Vegas wanted to start preparing for our ascension, as in officially take over our positions in the kingdom. Of course he would wait for Rain to come back, because it was not possible to do that without him. Zander had permanently moved into my home. Dad and Pa were thrilled to have him there. They had started talking about our mate ceremony. Uncle Vegas and Uncle Pete had also decided to start planning for Fah and Chai's mating ceremony. Even Pat and Pran, had decided to wait till Rain came back for their official ceremony, even though a handfasting had already taken place in Pran's hometown.

As far as Rain and Venice's ceremony was concerned, it depended on what would be the situation once Rain came back. Whether he would forgive him or not, that was the question uppermost on everyone's mind. Knowing my brother and his loving and caring nature, I knew that he would eventually forgive him. But I also knew Sky. Sky had a violent temper and there were times he could not be controlled. This meant that he would not forgive Venice and would not allow Rain to forgive him either. I would not be surprised if he killed him as soon as he returned.

I was just lost in my thoughts when Zander walked in. "Hey babe," he called out. "Hey Zan! What's up?" "Uncle Vegas and Uncle Pete are here. Mom and Dad are calling you," he said, smiling. "Oh! Is everything okay?" "It must be. They didn't look worried or anything," he said. "Okay, let's go," I said. We went downstairs hand in hand. "Uncle Vegas, Uncle Pete, how are you?" I asked them, kissing Uncle Pete on the cheek. "We are good," he said. "Rick, I have something really important to ask you," Uncle Vegas said. "Of course Uncle Vegas," I said.

"I know you received a mail from Lord Raejin recently. Did he give you any idea as to when Sky and Rain will come back to us?" he asked. "No Uncle Vegas. No mention of an exact date of return. Just that it will be soon. I don't know when that soon will be," I said. All four of them looked quite crestfallen. "What is the matter? Isn't it good news that he will be back soon? It's not something indefinite. We at least have hope. Sooner than later, they will be back, and that should be good enough for us, right?" I asked.

"Well, we were hoping to start preparing for all the pending ceremonies, including the ascension ceremony. But that is only possible once Rain comes back. His mate ceremony with Venice also needs to be planned," my Pa said. "Are you fucking serious?" I said angrily. "Mind your language son," my Dad said. "I am sorry. But are you really serious right now? Even after knowing all he did, after knowing how much he hurt Rain, you still want to plan a ceremony? Do you even know if he will ever forgive him?" I ranted.

"Are you that sure that he will not forgive me?" I turned around at Venice's voice. "I know my brother. He may consider forgiving you, but I also know Sky. He will never allow Rain to forgive you," I said to him. "It's not Sky who has the right to decide, right?" he asked. "Are you sure about that?" I asked. "What do you mean?" he asked. "Who do you think has the most right to decide for Rain, the family and mate who never knew anything about him or the one friend, who was not just a friend but a guardian and protector?" I asked. Everyone looked dumbfounded at my question.

"We all know the story of how even at 6 months, he knew that harm could befall Rain. He was able to warn both of you and get Pa to the hospital. He stopped crying after he saw Rain. He was always by his side. He knew every single thing about him, including the fact that he was the bearer of the prophecy and the future Queen. Did we know anything about it? Did we ever bother to find out anything about him? Just because he was always happy, we just assumed that he was okay, when he was anything but," I was crying by the time I was done, Zander holding me in his arms.

I looked around at everyone. "And you? Your Majesty? Do you believe me now? Do you really think you deserve his forgiveness?" I asked Venice, venom dripping from my voice.