Identity (Editing)

Chapter 24

I twirled around in the garden with a large grin resting on my face. The flowers were in fresh bloom, the entire area covered in reds, blues and purples. Little blades of yellow-green grass poked at the soles of my bare feet as I ran. My long jacket trailed behind me, the gold trimmings catching and reflecting the rays of sunlight onto the ground. It created dancing orbs among the grass that flitted around like dancing faeries. The wind picked up into a warm breeze, blowing my oversized pirate hat off of my head. It swam through the air, just over the tips of my stretched out fingers and landed in a small thorn bush.

"My hat!" I cried, trying to reach it without getting pricked by the dark green leaves. I balanced precariously on my toes, arching myself over the side of the bush as I stretched.

"Kylee, you're going to hurt yourself doing that." A male voice called and I spun around, linking my arms behind my back and smiling innocently at him.

"Doing what? I wasn't doing anything." I giggled and swayed back and forth on my heels. He sighed, a small smile playing on his lips as he walked towards me.

"Do you want me to get your hat for you?" He asked with his eyebrow slightly raised. Another small breeze blew between us, blowing my braided hair into my face. I sputtered and giggled, swatting the braids away like annoying flies.

"I wanna do it!" I told him with a wide grin and reached up, pricking my arm against the sharp leaves.

"For an eight year old girl, you sure do get yourself into a lot of predicaments." He chuckled, reaching over me and lifting the navy blue hat from the top of the bush.

"I could have done it." I mumbled, crossing my arms and pouting up at him. He placed the hat softly on top of my matted hair before kneeling down to my height.

"But what kind of brother would I be if I didn't help out my favourite little sister?" He asked with his brows raised.

"I'm your only sister, so I'm the bestest there is!" I giggled, pulling him into a bear hug. "I love you, Duke."

"I love you too, Kylee." He smiled into my hair and hugged me back softly.

This was the Pantarei family. We were a royal, high societal family that many people of old England looked up to. Life was perfect for about ten years but that quickly changed when Duke was forced into training to become the next heir. I never knew a lot of what happened during those sessions, but Duke always left with a sour expression and a few more cuts on his arms and legs. The more training progressed, the more Duke closed himself off from people until one day when he left in a fit of rage. He left everyone and everything behind except the sacred sword, Dein Nomos. I had heard stories about how the blade allowed one to connect to nature, but I was always skeptical about it. He was gone for two years, leaving me behind to face the remaining wrath of my father. I was forced to give up my carefree life style and all of my pirates clothes were destroyed with the claim that I needed to stop living in a blind childhood fantasy. Duke only visited twice. The first time, there was nothing really different except that my father had become more bitter and demanding of me, claiming that I needed to be what people wanted. "Princesses can't be pirates and dress like boys..." He would say.

My father detested my blue eyes and forced me to wear coloured contacts, saying that green showed etiquette and power. I was forced to wear puffy dresses that wrapped around my ankles when I tried to walk. Classes started too. Walking in heels, keeping my back straight and my chin held high, and learning how to address people of both upper and middle class became part of my daily life, my never ending nightmare. Somehow, two years passed of this and I ended up shutting myself away in my room, cradling the small stuffed animal that Duke gave me a few years before he left. I feared that this would go on forever, or at least until I went insane, but it all soon changed.