It had been quite a while since I came here but all I had done was looking after the emperor and taking lessons. And now I was stuck because the emperor didn't want me to tell anyone about him waking up while Arashi might be angry with me because I tried to pry into his sensitive matters.

Just when I thought everything was going well, it crashed again. I released a frustrated sigh. 

"Has something happened?" Rei asked and I shook my head.

"I can see it clearly on your face. Tell me what happened between you two?" She asked as Noya had fallen asleep in her laps.

I looked at her with wide eyes. "How did you know that?"

"Because you always seem confident and energetic even when you are tired but suddenly you are not. I believe it is because of my elder brother." She stated matter-of-factly and I was impressed that she could read me that much.

"He may be angry with me..." I mumbled.

"Why? What did you do?"

"I asked him about Yukina..." 

"Oh!" She said, "then he should be angry with you."

My heart sank. I didn't know who she was and he wouldn't tell me and I wanted to know why he reacted like that.

"How about we take a day off from this lesson today?" She proposed.

"We can?" My eyes sparked but at the same time, I didn't want to miss it since it was the only way I could win the empress's heart.

"Yes, let's go to the garden. My mother used to love gardening. You may find it peaceful and calm." She said as I nodded.

She called a few maids and they took the young prince with them as we went to the old palace. I saw there were many cherry blossom trees around the ruins of the old palace. The algae and the moss had created beautiful decorations on the walls while various plants had set in lines which were in full bloom. It was magnificent and beautiful just like Arashi had described. 

"It is beautiful..." And calm. The wind, bees, squirrels, birds, everyone was playing lively in it and had created a blissful atmosphere which made all those worries vanish from my head. It might be for a little while but I was awestruck by this. It felt so close to home. The home we used to live in. Suddenly, I was missing it. I was missing our old house in Godoyama.

It was peaceful there and I loved it. 

"Our mother was so into it, our father had no choice but to collect various plants from all over the countries." She took me to a corner as she said, "This corner has all those rare plants he brought from the western kingdoms."

The flowers were very small in size but in various colors. Violet, red, deep blue, blue, yellow, white and much more. They had blossomed together and there were next to no leaves, only flowers. And it left a sweet smell in the air that all those bees were lingering around them. 

It looked like the garden was still taken care of. I was glad at least they hadn't forgotten about it. 

"They all are magnificent." I whispered and somehow I felt my heart was in peace. The restlessness was gone. 

"Yukina was a small country's princess just next to us. It had been ruled by Wansai since long ago. You can say they weren't in power anymore," Rei suddenly said as I looked at her.

"She was lively, cheerful and a strong girl. Her father had no other heir so he proposed a marriage proposal to us which my grandfather refused. Since they had no power and the small country was poor." She continued, "But she was a child around my age. She was beautiful already and my grandfather suggested that she could stay here while he would become her guardian and would look for a wealthy suitor."

Rei looked at a distance and said, "Her father agreed and Yukina started to stay here... Soon my brother fell in love with her and Yukina also loved him. But my grandparents didn't like it so they decided to marry her off."

I felt my heart clenched at that. They only loved each other. The emperor and the empress didn't have to be so cruel. Didn't they love Arashi? Didn't they wish for his happiness?

"But the day when she was about to be married off to another suitor, we found her body lying underneath the hill. All tattered because she fell from the cliff." She said and I gasped in horror. I placed my hands on my mouth as I hadn't expected that climax and my belly tied into a knot.

"Everyone says she had killed herself because she loved brother Rian and Brother Rian was so heartbroken that he left the country for five years." She finished and finally looked at me. And my heart broke for Arashi. 

All of a sudden, I imagined if it Arashi who was snatched away from me, how would I feel and I instantly knew how much he loved her. I felt so stupid for asking that all of a sudden.

I didn't know it was that painful. My tears started to fall as I now felt the pain he felt that time. This is why he was angry when I brought up that subject. I made a grave mistake and I wanted to apologize to him. 

"I should go find him." I said in a broken voice and Rei smiled. 

She nodded, "Go, talk to him. I am sure he is not angry with you. He is angry with himself because he thinks he killed her. He still feels responsible for that incident and that was why we all were shocked when he said he married you."

"We knew he wouldn't marry anyone because he was so broken at that time. He stopped smiling, he stopped talking. He practically lost himself. All he did was battle, battle, battle and his army. He still thinks that if he was strong enough, he could have saved her." Rei said and scoffed, "That is why I said, we siblings never had luck when it came to our loved ones. He lost his lover and I lost mine after that. We both are unlucky."

She gave a smile full of pain and my heart clenched tightly. 

"Bianka, when he took you here, I was so happy that he was finally moving on so, don't let him get lost again." Her voice sounded like a plea as she added, "Grab him by his neck and drag him with you, no matter what hurdles you face. Don't leave him like Yukina did." 

 I saw a little moisture in her eyes. I knew she loved her brother dearly and wanted him to be happy. And I wished that Rei somehow found someone too.

I couldn't contain my tears as I burst out and hugged her tightly. I started to sniff as she patted my head like an elder sister. She sighed. "Now, now, don't cry. Just make sure you both are always happy and I will always be supporting you both no matter who comes your way."

She muttered, "This time, I wouldn't be silent anymore. I wish I had fought for Yukina too because she became alone at the end as no one was siding with her."

It sounded more like a promise to herself. Maybe, like Arashi, she was feeling the same. She felt responsible too for her death and now, it all made sense.

I looked at her and I saw there was fire in her eyes as she said with a determined face, "I will fight for both of you even if I have to fight with my own grandparents. Bianka, I can promise you that."

"T—thank you, Rei!" I said between my snuffle as I couldn't even say a word. She didn't know she just gave me the power to fight for what was mine. And I would fight for the sake of both of them. 

----
15th Aug, 22
(1361)