The inexplicable coldness finally in my body receded minutes later. At the behest of my mother, they decided not to call on a healer. Apparently, the matter was not really a physical one.

I felt like I had been thawed from a block of ice. They had me lie down on a bed to rest. I didn’t really get to see what happened after because I unknowingly fell asleep. I only stirred to the sound of my mother and Laksa talking.

“Hellenia, your daughter is not like any other child who walked through those doors. It is a good thing I was the one to evaluate her, otherwise, I don’t know how things would’ve gone. Keep this to yourself. We’ll see how things turn out for her.”

“Alright.”

“I don’t think it’ll be wise to call on the healer here to look at her, though.”

“It’s okay. Kora is in Oblivion. I’ll get him to check on Evyionne.”

“Indeed.” There was a pause. “I do recommend you do something,” Sir Laksa said.

“What is it?”

“The Temple of the Gods.”

“There is no real temple in Venerya. If I would have to ask the help of one, I would have to…” my mother trailed off.

“Would you need some help in that regard?”

“No,” she replied. “I know another way for it. However…I need to check on something else. Would you help me? It is very important.”

Despite fighting my consciousness and trying to keep awake, I eventually still dozed off. When I came to, there was a disturbing bang on the door and a rattling on my bed. I woke up, startled by the commotion. I was convinced there was an earthquake—at least, my dream told me there was. I was almost convinced by the possibility until I saw something slithering under my bed. It was a green fabric so puffy it nearly did not fit under…and a glittering shoe, popping off a socked foot.

Just before the door opened, a hand reached out from under to snatch the fallen shoe to hide with them below. I looked up, and a head poked in from the crack on the door.

“Excuse me?”

I exchanged stares with a man. A very familiar one too.

If my memory wasn’t wrong, it was that steward from before. The arrogant one. I believe Laksa called him “Steward Anson.”

I rubbed my eyes sleepily before staring at him, wondering what he had come for—though I very well knew the answer.

He cleared his throat and pushed his chest forward. “Have you seen the girl I was with?” he asked, seeming to know who I was as well.

I debated what to answer. Should I say yes or no?

“Excuse me, must I repeat myself?” he asked again, mildly irritated by my clueless silence.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I don’t know. I did hear someone passing by earlier.”

He didn’t seem convinced. He looked around the room for anything suspicious. Eventually, he decided I wasn’t worth his time and closed the door.

After some time passed, I felt the stowaway shift from under the bed.

“You can get out now,” I said.

“Thank you!”

I eyed her again, taking my time to examine her closely for the second time around. She was as I had first seen her—except more disheveled. The prim and proper little girl of a while ago had turned into an utter mess. My guess was that she’d gotten that way from running around.

“So…why are you running away? Who was he?” I asked.

“That man?” She sighed. “He’s my…what is he?” She tapped on her chin. “I really don’t like him.”

“Yes. He seemed very arrogant,” I said.

“I know!” she exclaimed.

“Where are your parents?” I inquired.

“Well, he definitely isn’t a parent.” She indignantly stomped her foot. “Besides, it’s not like they can simply come out and accompany me.” She rolled her eyes and sat on the edge of the bed, playing with her fingers as she did. “They’re way too busy at the moment.” Light flowed into her face and she brightly smiled at me.

“Why? What do they do?”

She didn’t answer and instead said, “Can I stay? Let’s play a game!”

“What about that man?”

“What about him? I don’t like him,” she said, placing both hands on her waist and flying forward to land face first on the bed. “Ughhhh. I’m so sick of it. Please let me stay. Let me stay and I can keep you company. How about it? Isn’t that a baggage?” She perked up, putting her chin on her hand with her elbows propped on the bed. She gave me a blinding smile.

A baggage? Sure. It might be. Definitely.

“I don’t think that word means what you think it means. In fact, that didn’t make any sense.” I gave a sigh. I wanted to send her away, but I was bored and there was no sign of my mother anywhere.

“Which one? Baggage?”

“It’s bargain.”

“Ooh. Good to know!” she exclaimed. “So. Can I stay?”

“Who are you anyway?”

She gave a wide grin. “I’m Erenol.”

“Evyionne.”

“Evy—what?” she stuttered. “Never mind. Let’s stick with that.” Her pigtails bobbed, and she twirled some strands of hair around her small forefinger. I knew she was technically my age (my biological one at least), but I could not see her as anything more than a child.

I frowned disapprovingly.

“You can’t make my tongue be tired,” she said, taking a hint of my displeasure. “Anyway, you can call me Eren. Won’t that be great? We’ll be instant friends!”

“Say my name and you can stay,” I challenged.

It was her turn to frown. “Evieeeeyoohnnn.”

“Nope.”

“Eva—ugh!”

“Not that either.”

“Urggggghhhh. Say it again for me, please?”

“Evyionne.”

“Evahyuhn!” She raised both fists victoriously after belting out the syllables with much difficulty. “I said it right. I said it right, right?”

I raised both brows skeptically.

“You know, you’re really pretty,” Erenol—or Eren—told me. “Like…really weird pretty. How’d your skin get like that? Did you stay under the sun too long? I saw gardeners stay out in the sun and they got very dark after a while.”

“I was born like this.”

“Ohhhh! I know! I know! Did you come from the West like the others? You’re not like the others though.”

“Yeah, I guess you could say that,” I whispered. “But I’ve never seen that place.” In truth, I knew about it, just not as intimately as I should. “I grew up here. My mother raised me.”

“And your father?”

“I don’t know who he is,” I replied.

I had to stick with the story. My adoptive mother never told me I was adopted—just that my father wasn’t Erindalian.

She nodded. “You’re like me. I don’t see my father at all. My mother? Well…she’s not feeling good.” Eren breathed deeply and looked down. She drew shapes absentmindedly on the sheets. “Where’s your mother? Wasn’t she like that…really pretty lady from before?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “I had to sleep here and when I woke up, she was gone. I’m sure she’ll be back later. She told me she’s taking me somewhere.”

Eren’s eyes brightened. “Can I come?” she asked.

“What about that man?” I pointed out.

“I don’t want to go home. I hate it…” she trailed off. “I don’t want to go back at all.”

I sighed. I felt a little bad for this kid. “You can’t go with us. People will think we’re kidnapping you or something.”

I decided not to have her elaborate about it any longer, staying silent and looking out towards the windows. The room had previously been occupied by me alone. Right now, that wasn’t really the case. Taking my silence as a cue, endless chatter began going off in the background like an Armalite. I retreated into the sanctuary of my mind, blocking out the sound with a wall of thoughts.

Damn. This girl was a blabbermouth.

“What about you? Why are you here?” she asked.

I smoothly slid back into reality. “I wasn’t feeling well,” I told her. “Do you know anything about what this test’s for? I only read about it a little. My mistresses hasn’t told me much about it.”

“Haha, then let me tell you! My governess practically hampered this into my brain!” she enthusiastically climbed onto my bed, inching to my side.