I'm the heroine's dead twin... nice! (BL)

Part 12.5

Ophelia POV

Today is a good day... yesterday, the duke gave us the order to clean up a room. The one young master had prepared for the little lady of the house, the one he had spent weeks planning for. I had seen it first hand, how he would order catalogs left and right, search for things that young ladies would like, furnish the room with an elegant, timeless style, study colour theory along with the psychological effects of each colour, just to make sure that his sister wouldn't have any trouble sleeping there on her first night, he even forbade us from using black or white anywhere in the room, saying that black could feel too foreboding to feel welcome and that white could be too harsh on one's eyes first thing in the morning. All that plus planning the little lady's schedule and keeping up with his own.

And now that room was finally going to be put to use.

Our little lady was coming home. Any minute now.

I had a spring in my step that I could see was present in most, the duchy was a lot livelier than usual, the servants were eager to finish their chores early to be able to focus on our youngest masters later.
Everyone was looking forward to the twins' reunion the most, after all.

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And truly, they didn't disappoint. That hug was truly the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life. Also, it was a pleasant surprise to see that my lady was, in fact, a small, silver version of the late duchess. The children, despite only being fraternal twins, resembled each other, even more than my master resembled the little duke.

Sadly, the atmosphere was broken by the three horsemen of my patience's doom, "Escort her to her room and clean her up. Arius, I hope you remember about our talk from last time."

'OF COURSE HE REMEMBERS!!! Unlike someone, my little master knows how to fulfill his duties.' I clenched my fists, no need to get kicked out yet, 'In time, once they get into contact with the elven imperial family.'

Thankfully, young master got us out of there quickly. When we got to the room, I noticed the twins observing each other. Most of us were still getting used to having two cuties as our masters, but truly, young master was being way too formal.
'Not that I can blame him, those darn peacocks.'

Soon after, Ari told us to clean up the young lady, "Make sure she doesn't get sick." He said, before sitting down on one of the couches. The young lady requested for only me to bathe her, Sebastian must have told her about me.

While I was bathing her, she confirmed my suspicion and proceeded to ask me about Ari, which I of course answered. Sadly, yet also surprisingly, she first asked about the relationship between her twin and their family. I managed to only give her a vague answer, Ari had talked to me about the topic before. I knew he would tell her before breakfast tomorrow.

I quickly changed the topic and honestly, I then came to regret it with the way it headed.
'Dumbass! What if she feels like she is being compared to her twin?! Good f*cking job, Ophelia!' For the rest of the bath, I just silently admiring her shiny silver hair.

After the bath, all the maids present and Ari joined forces to dress up the young lady. In the end, Ari chose an outfit matching his, for her to wear. The rest of the day went smoothly. The twins had some alone time during lunchtime, before we celebrated their birthday together, excluding the peacocks, of course.

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Today was a good day, I thought, crying as the doctor bandaged Ari, "THAT WITCH! Not even on your birthday does she leave you alone!" I burst, once we're alone.

"Ophelia! Do you want to get locked up?! You know what'd happen if she knew about this!" Of course I knew of the fates those brave servants faced, the only reason why I'm not one of them right now, is because the first few incidents happened while I wasn't there, afterwards Ari explicitly forbade us from interfering.

"Still! Look at yourself, young master! You're, once again, covered in bandages! BANDAGES! A child! Do you realise just HOW messed up this is?!" I couldn't contain my anger anymore, how could I?

"Of course, I do! I know that she's everything you, the servants and many others say she is! I'm not defending her! SHE'S NOT MY SISTER. So talk! You, Lilith, Alice, everyone. Talk. But not where she can hear you."

Realisation hit me then, "Young master... you have a plan, don't you?" I watched as a hollow smirk slowly found its place on his face. "You're dismissed, big sis. Good night."

"...Good night, Ari." No matter, I'll support him regardless.

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Today is a terrible day, I sprinted towards Ari's room, his cries echoed inside my head.

I got there shortly after it stopped, bursting into the room, manners be damned.
The sight that greeted me was terrifying,

"Ophelia. What if I told you that I'm from the future? One where my twin was killed causelessly?"

'What?'

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Here's a chapter with our favorite nanny, hope you enjoy!