The Story of Our Evil

Introduction

Once upon a time, in a kingdom far away from the world that we call home, there lived a queen who presided over the Kingdom of Light. She was a very kind woman, and up to the point of her death, she was loved by her people.

The kingdom rejoiced when their beloved queen gave birth. Not to just one child, but two.

The twins, named Aether and Lumine, were all that their mother could have asked for. The children were said to have been blessed by the church bells, for Aether was a bright boy; always fascinated by the sky and the wonders it held. Lumine, on the other hand, shone with beauty and always grew up close to her brother.

The kingdom flourished. While many do say that the twins were blessed by the church bells, others state that these blessings from Celestia allowed their home to prosper into a lovely land.

But the good things in life don't last forever, you know.

For when the twins turned six, Aether was taken away to study abroad, due to the fact that the throne could only have one heir. Lumine and her mother could only weep as Aether was brought away in a carraige, never to be heard from again.

Despite this hardship and the trying times that followed, Lumine continued growing up under the kind influence of her mother. The princess was kind. A gem that the kingdom was lucky to have.

However, this so called 'luck' did not last long either.

Years later, the queen was found dead, lying in a pool of her own blood in the middle of her bedchambers, evidently murdered by a spy from an enemy kingdom.

The people of the kingdom were devastated, but more so was Lumine. Her whole world was turned upside down. As the heir to the throne, she was coronated as queen at the young age of fourteen, and she left to rule a whole country- alone.

Gone was the kind princess that would always walk around in town, all smiles. The once kind and happy princess had been replaced by a tyrant ruler that would resort to the cruellest, most unthinkable means to get her way.

It wasn't long before the people dubbed Lumine the Queen of Evil, due to her ludicrously high taxes, throwing people in prison for the smallest reason, or having people killed for nothing. The people had been suffering for years before another change occurred in the kingdom.

Lumine had been sitting on her throne when the entrance doors creaked open slowly. A hooded figure entered the throne room.

The intruder's face was cloaked in shadow, so Lumine couldn't see what they looked like. "Who are you?" she called out. "Who allowed you to come into my castle, and what do you want? Hurry up and answer, for I do not have all day."

"Relax, my queen, I mean no harm," a calm male voice replied. "I wish to loyally serve you until the day that I die. Allow me to be bestown with this great honor so that some pressure may be relieved from you."

Lumine's brows were furrowed. How come this man's voice sounded strangely familiar?

Obviously, she didn't trust the figure just yet, so she said, "I cannot accept you as my servant until you show your face. Lower your hood at this instant."

The person under the cloak obeyed her command, and he lowered his hood. Once his face had been clearly brought into the light, Lumine gasped. Her vision began swimming with tears as golden brown eyes similar to hers sparkled mischievously back at her. The young man staring back at her had blond hair that was tied into a long braid that cascaded down his back, and a bright smile was spread wide across his face.

"What saddens you, my queen?" said the boy, his voice faltering as he tried not to break out in laughter. "Is my presence in this room too much? If it is, I shall take my leave n-"

"Stop it right now with those formalities, Aether! I c-command you!" Lumine cried. Without anymore words, Lumine leapt up from her throne, ran to her brother and crashed into him, embracing him as they both toppled to the ground.

As Lumine hugged her brother, she let go of him to poke and pinch his face. "Is it really you?" she sobbed.

"Of course, Lumi, how many other twin brothers do you have?" Aether laughed, despite his squished cheeks.

"Do you know how much I missed you?!" Lumine exclaimed, hugging her brother even tighter.

"I missed you too, Lumine, but...ugh, you and your gown are going to break my ribs," he snickered, and Lumine let him go at once, frowning at him in disgust.

"Silence, you. This is no time for jokes, I haven't seen you in eight years." Lumine reprimanded him, but even she was beginning to giggle herself amidst her sobs. "But being serious...why, and how did you come back?"

"I missed you too much to live far away from you, Lumine." Aether said, wiping tears of joy from his own cheeks. "When I heard you were coronated queen because Mother was killed, I needed to see if you were alright and alive. Now that I know you're okay, I can be at peace."

"Now that you're here...I can have a king to rule beside me!" Lumine exclaimed happily. "I can bend the rules a bit, it's really not that hard...but why the long face, brother?"

For Aether's face had suddenly become crestfallen. He shook it off, and he replied, "Forgive me, Lumine, but I feel like rising to the position of king would be too much for me. I only want to make you happy, so like I said before, I only wish to be your loyal servant."

"Are you sure?" Lumine wondered aloud. "We haven't seen each other for years, and I feel like you deserve only the best, and the best position for you in my eyes would be the position of king."

Again, Aether shook his head. "I fear that the position of king would not suit my objectives, for all I want to do is to keep that beautiful smile alive on your face. Therefore," he said, kneeling to the ground and taking Lumine's hand, "all I wish is to be your servant, dearest sister."

"If that's what makes you happy, you can be my servant, Aether." Lumine said, as he kissed her hand. "I just have one request of you...please make me happy by always being by my side."

Aether smiled at Lumine as he stood up from the ground. "As you wish, my queen." he said happily, hugging his sister once more.