Harmony War

Epilogue - My Mother's Crown

June 17th, 1900

He abruptly lodged his duffle bag into the corner of his room; seeing as it served no use anymore, he didn't bother being gentle. He didn't care. The weary traveller was looking for only one thing - one person - and nothing else. Besides, to him, the bag and its contents were only a reminder of the two years he couldn't see her directly, only being able to communicate via letters. He hoped, begged and prayed to the Sun Goddess herself, that nothing in their relationship had distanced or had become strange in that duration (even though they communicated on a fairly regular basis, once a month, and were apparently on great terms). Pacing around the house and shouting her name, once again to no avail, he gave up.

Sitting down on the couch with an exasperated sigh, the freshly-made soldier leaned back and frowned - only to smile automatically, after only thinking of her smile. Even though their beloved parents were gone, they always knew they were going to be okay: they always had each other, no matter what. It was the promise they made, way back when they were little, holding hands and strolling through the streets with their mother and father behind them. Even in the current day, they hadn't outgrown their physical intimacy, the bond between them was too strong to let a little bit of social expectation change their friendship. He was grateful, not only to the Queen for not having to take a loan to keep their childhood home, but to her too, for being such a smart little rascal that they didn't even need to be covered much for their living expenses - her scholarship funds had more than taken care of the brunt of it.

His reminiscing abruptly came to a screeching halt, when he heard the sound of keys unlocking the front door. After checking his watch, if only to further confirm his exciting suspicions, he rushed to the door. 'She must have been studiously working hard at the library' , he mused, smirking to himself at being such a fool as to forget that adorable side of her.

"Alina! I'm... Home."

His smile quickly faded upon reaching her and seeing her at the doorway, but not to give way to any negative expression: instead, he found himself simply shocked and transfixed in amazement, seeing her two years older since their teary goodbye at the train station. The sunset glowed behind her radiantly, but he quickly found himself pondering upon how his sister could be so much more stunning - he froze, realising that the star they worshipped every day now only served as a secondary feature, to highlight her beauty and draw attention to her. The straight, mixed pink and purple strands of hair signifying the Lenore lineage, descending down into her rear hips, and her azure eyes, glowing like gems, inviting him to stare into the deep blue seas. She was slightly taller, her grey dress short, her white uniform and golden tie ruffled but cleanly pressed at the same time.

"Hey, bro," she smiled sweetly, closing her eyes, a look of pure ecstasy on her features, betraying her aloof posture.

Fyodor's gentle smile returned; seeing her trying to hide her emotions, as per teenage rebellious phase, was cute to see. But he knew: the facade would crack as soon as...

She hugged him with all her might, burying her face in his chest. He held her close, stroking her hair. "Hey, yourself," he greeted, unable to hold back a small, light chuckle, though he was unable to deny the tears forming in his own eyes, as well. "It's been a long journey, but I'm finally back here for you."

Reluctantly loosening their longing embrace, she looked up at him and beamed. "You didn't have to do that, all for me," she began pouting and looking to the side.

"No, sis," he objected, unconsciously pushing a lock of her hair back behind her ear with his finger, as it began to fall on her face. "It's just me and you now. It couldn't be helped."

His mind briefly wandered to his first journey, sitting in solemn solitude in the train car, a large, albeit rather light, bag at his side, staring at a picture of their family before putting it in his pocket, knowing that whenever it would get too much at the camp, he would always lighten and warm up upon seeing them (his sister, his lifelong best friend, especially).