Sister Talk
“So, anyways Rose, I hear you like adventuring! Your auntie actually likes adventuring too!”
Putting her hand in her mouth Rose doesn’t respond.
“And…She’s back to full baby mode. Can we speak in Draconic now?”
“Sure.”
“I have to say I’m surprised, Ruby. From my research and her appearance together with what I've heard from you and Scarlet I expected her to be…More grownup. But even when she has these flashes of intelligence, there isn’t much there. It’s not even on the level of a small child, more like a baby with the ability to speak.”
“That’s why I told you, she really is just a baby. It seems to cause her considerable strain to keep up this veneer of competence. Most of the time when she has these flashes it’s like she wakes up only to resist feeling loved.”
“You know…That child is a D-Ranked adventurer. I’ve checked the quest records as well and she has some pretty impressive feats under her belt.”
“I heard this before but I still don’t believe it. I mean look at her.”
“I know…But my sources are reliable... I have heard child soldiers experience a similar disconnect where they act all grownup but the second they get some love and safety they go back to the little kids they are. Please don’t let her go back to the battlefield Ruby.”
“Do you think I want her to go back!? I’m only doing this because I hope that this will make her trust me enough to come back and stay permanently.”
“She seems to trust you plenty already, just let her stay and forget. Let these memories of being an adventurer all just become a bad dream for her…”
“Well…I’m certainly not encouraging her to go back but if she wants to I won’t hold her here. This place needs to be her refuge. She must never think of it as a prison.”
“Then why not remove her curse at least? You have the sacrifices, you have the mages, why are you still waiting?”
“Because she told me to wait.”
“But didn’t you say that this curse causes her quite the amount of suffering?”
“It does, but she’s scared that without it she’ll be too vulnerable. To get freed from her curse means that she has to rely on others and right now she doesn’t have the trust to do that just yet.”
“She hid behind you when she got scared of me and she’s happily lying in your arms. She has plenty of trust in you already.”
“If I remove her curse now all that trust will evaporate. I need her to come to me and be the one to ask for it. Otherwise it will all be for naught.”
“Fine…Your mind is obviously made up for now. Let’s talk about something else.”
“Yes...How is Scarlet doing? Is she improving?”
“Honestly, she has no talent but a lot of motivation. She relies way too much on her strength and thinks she needs to face every threat head on. She is the worst type of pupil.”
“Sigh Carlo said something similar on why he doesn’t want to train her. That kid has no sense of danger.”
“Speaking of, what is that good for nothing doing right now?”
“Apparently he has kidnapped the woman that tried to become Rose’s mother and is training her in Talon.”
“You really did marry an idiot.”
“Sigh I know…But he was such a cute idiot back then. And you have to admit when he does set his mind on something he almost always succeeds.”
“And of what help is that when he leaves you alone with your kid? He should at least have stayed here and dealt with state affairs for the time being. The fact you have to rely on me in this vulnerable moment already proves he has failed as a husband and as a king.”
“You’re as harsh on him as ever…”
“Am I wrong though? Ever since he became a man he turned completely into a buffoon. At least before he had some charm to him. It’s like he isn’t even trying anymore, he used to at least be romantic and reliable. But now? He leaves you alone with your traumatized child. That’s unforgivable!”
“Well…After what happened it is probably best for him to stay away from Rose for a bit…”
“After what happened?”
Avoiding her eyes, the Queen answers, “N-nothing…”
“After what happened?”
“It’s…Best if I don’t tell you big sis. You’re prone to anger after all…”
“Dearest Ruby, I am calm as a summer’s breeze right now. Either you tell me now or I’ll hear it from Scarlet’s mouth.”
“Ah…Well…I should preface this by saying it was a genuine accident.”
“Go on…”
“Well…When Scarlet and Rose summoned him he…Might have…Accidentally…Beat up Rose until she nearly died. It was a huge misunderstanding though!”
Seemingly very calm, Carmilla smiles and doesn’t say anything for a bit.
She then brushes through Rose’s hair and says, “Don’t worry Rose, I’ll kill him for you.”
“Don’t joke about such scary things in front of her, Carmilla!”
“I’m not joking. I’ll fucking kill him. Neglecting you is one thing, that’s your problem. But beating children, especially at that age is unforgivable. He has obviously become more beast than man. I’ll send out an extermination quest the second I get back to work.”
“Look I understand your anger, Carmilla. I felt the same but-”
“No, no buts. Nuh uh. There is nothing you can follow with after ‘nearly killed your child’ that I would accept as an excuse. If you’re worried about the public, I’ll assure you they’d gladly see a king that enjoys beating their children executed. I assure you!”
“Carmilla…He already has taken all the blame and painted himself as a villain so that Rose can be happy here. He has shown enough penance. If you actually go ahead with this all you will end up doing is taking Scarlet’s father away from her.”
“So as long as I have Scarlet’s permission I can kill him?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“Oh? But that's exactly what I heard. I’m going home now, Ruby. I need to talk this over with Scarlet and Emillio. My mood has soured too much to stay right now.”
“I understand. Let’s meet again next week.”
“I might come sooner. We’ll see.”