Made To Be Broken

Five

I shouldn't be annoyed with the ease at which Casimir Aldridge navigates the palace. After all, he's lived here all his life. But compared to the confusion I still feel each time I travel down the identical hallways, his speed and accuracy in getting from one place to another is astonishing. Then again, he could lead me in circles, and I'd hardly notice.

I know we've arrived there- though, he's refused to tell me where exactly "there" is- when Casimir stops to knock against a door. "Dessa?" He asks. His voice is softer, calmer, and it feels quite out of character for him, from everything I've gathered so far. There's a shuffling from the room beyond, and eventually, the door shifts open. Standing in the doorway is Odessa Aldridge, her jet black hair hanging in messy strands around her face- chocolate brown skin flawless and glowing with youth. Her light yellow dress is slightly shorter than most traditional gowns, and a bit wrinkled around the edges, as if she'd just been seated or laying down.

"Cas?" Her voice is soft, broken by tiny sniffles. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, nothing." Casimir smiles warmly, holding up the chalice with much more care than when he'd been flaunting it in front of me. "I was wondering if you could help us."

"Us?" Odessa turns to face me, and though her face isn't detailed with as sharp hate as the looks Nova had been giving me over breakfast, she's certainly still wary.

"Princess Aily is our guest, and is grieving just as much as we are, Dessa. We owe her all the same respect, do we not?"

I can't help but gawk at Casimir's words. Anything he'd showed me in the servant's quarters earlier was a far cry from respect. I wasn't even aware the prince was capable of respecting me, or my family, for that matter. But he was a much, much different person around his little sister, and I couldn't tell if it was for better or worse.

Odessa nods at Casimir's words, clearly not seeing the difference in personality that I'm seeing. She opens the door to her room, gesturing for us to come inside. It's quite different from the simple elegance of my guest room, and I take in each detail. The walls are covered in floral patterns, save for a singular wall occupied entirely by wood shelves, lined with small bottles and boxes. The shelves are connected to a long work desk of sorts, and an open door on the far wall reveals several other rooms, one being a bedroom.

"Would you happen to have any of that mushroom stuff?" Casimir asks, and Odessa squints at him carefully.

"Grallshroom? Is it for you, or for Kai? Because he keeps trying to steal it for... well, you know."

"It's just for me." Casimir's words are tucked behind a stifled laugh. "Holy hexes, that's... maybe you should hide that mushroom."

I'm left to wonder what exactly this Grallshroom does, and why Kai wants it so bad, as Odessa leans over and grabs a small box from the second-to-last shelf. Inside is an ivory-colored mushroom, which shimmers slightly when the light hits it just right.

"Perfect, thank you." Casimir takes the box from her, removing the mushroom and setting the box on the desk, alongside papers strewn everywhere. With his other hand, he grabs the dagger I hadn't notice was sheathed at his waist. A tiny belt conceals it mostly, but upon further inspection, the intricately detailed hilt is just barely visible.

Holding the mushroom in one hand, he begins slicing off thin strips with the blade. The strips fall into a small heap on the floor, and once he's gathered a satisfactory amount of the mushroom, he places each strip individually in the chalice.

I don't bother asking what this will do. Despite the fact that I'm far from trusting Casimir, he seems to know- at least vaguely- what he's doing. Odessa is eyeing me up and down carefully, assessing me in that quiet, judging way young children seem to. Of course, everything about Odessa Aldridge seemed quiet, especially for only being nine years old. I'd heard that all the Aldridge children had been adopted from different situations, and yet I suppose I didn't realize how much those unnamed situations left their mark on them.