It had been a long time since Lyonnel had visited Ruth. It wasn't that he didn't have time; it was simply that he didn't know what to say to his grandmother whenever she questioned anything about Hera.
“Hera is fine. She prefers to spend her days alone at the library, reading a book.”
He constantly said that every time Ruth asked about Hera, and Ruth always got the same answer, which made her suspicious of any answer he gave after a while.
But there was no lie behind Lyonnel's answer. He would always instruct Shie to keep an eye on Hera's activities for a week whenever he decided to visit Ruth. And, Shie had little to say about Hera's activities, which were always the same every time.
The only time he ever told a lie was when Ruth began to probe into Hera's relationship with her father, and he stated that their relationship was improving for the better, since he didn't want to hear his grandma curse his father fiercely.
However, Ruth's next question caught Lyonnel off guard.
“So, why didn't I see you with Hera at any of the banquets, but only with that woman and her child?”
Lyonnel had no idea how to answer that question, and he couldn't just make something up. He also refuses to discuss it with Ruth, so his monthly visits have been reduced to once every four months, then once a year, due to his obligations as the next Duke of Silverna.
Ruth clearly knew why Lyonnel no longer visited her as often as he used to, as shown in his monthly letters and the fact that he no longer responded to her questions concerning Hera in any of his letter responses.
And now that he was back at the Greene mansion, apart from preparing for the arrival of the Duke and Alicia and her mother to attend the Sixon family event, he also wanted to meet Hera after such a long time.
But who would have guessed that Hera would react like that when she saw him.
Lyonnel was lying on his bed, arms outstretched, about to close his eyes, when he heard a knock on the door.
Jaz slowly opened the door to Lyonnel's room. He did not enter Lyonnel's room, instead standing in front of the door and announcing something. “Please follow me into the dining room since Lady Ruth has requested that she want to have lunch together with you.”
Lyonnel couldn't refuse his grandmother's request, so he followed Jaz into the dining room.
When he arrived, Ruth was already there, having arrived before the cook had finished preparing their lunch. Their minds wandered, each thinking about their own thoughts, until something crossed Ruth's mind.
...
“Lyonnel... Lyonnel... Are you daydreaming?” Ruth repeatedly pinched Lyonnel's arm with her fingers, trying to get her grandson's attention. “Is that man still allowing them to stay with you?” There was a strong disdain in Ruth's voice and a bit of curiosity.
Lyonnel couldn't say anything and could only smile stiffly when Ruth started talking about them. He was well aware of Ruth's dislike of Alicia and her mother staying with them, as well as the rumours circulating among the noble ladies about Madam Helen being the future duchess and other things.
“Alicia's father will be back soon. So they will not be living with us in the future.”
“Oh…” Ruth drank a glass of the warm water given to them while they waited for the meal to be served. “Is he going to disrupt that man's relationship with... that woman and her child?”
Lyonnel gaped at what Ruth had said, particularly at the unpleasant tone of her voice. “My father and Madam Hellen do not have that kind of a relationship.”
“I truly want to trust what you're saying. However, from the standpoint of the other nobles, particularly because you routinely brought Alicia and her mother to the banquets. Your words do not seem to be enough to convince me that nothing happened between them…” Ruth sighed heavily and irritatedly clicked her tongue. “What if Hera found out about it? What will her reaction be? Her own family is more gentle with others than with her... Ahh... I'm so upset that I can't even stop thinking about it.”
Lyonnel had a pained expression on his face. He felt even more guilty after hearing Ruth's words. “Grandma, my father has been trying to change his attitude toward Hera... After Alicia and her mother leave, I will take Hera home…”
“Do you know why Hera came here?” Ruth placed her hand down and fiddled with the table's napkin as she interrupted Lyonnel. “Freya had figured it out on their way here. She had no intention of coming back. When she's out of there, she appears to be happier. What gives you the impression that she'll return and give you guys some time to make things right?”
“What do you mean, grandma?”
“Your mother made that last wish for you and your father, but you two just... tsk…” Ruth rumbled on, as if she couldn't hear what Lyonnel said. Her heart sank as she remembered her daughter's last wish for that man, a wish that he ended up ruining with his own hand.
“You know what my mother's last wish was?”
“Why do you think I suddenly got cast away? That man was furious because I had kept that knowledge from him, but he still didn't want to listen to my explanation at all.”
“...”
Lyonnel was silent, his mind whirling with many questions he wanted to ask about his mother's last wish. But before he could speak, the dining-room door opened and Mrs. Oz and several maids walked in carrying platters of their meals.
Their lunch was filled with silence. The only sound that could be heard was the clinking of the cutlery against the plates. Apart from that, no one was willing to speak.
Lyonnel was the first to finish his lunch and withdraw to the room he always occupied when he came to visit.
And as if their brief conversation had never happened before, Ruth merely waved him off and urged him to rest after his long journey.
Lyonnel walked inside his room and came to a halt when he noticed someone seated on the sofa.
Shie sat on the sofa in his human form, a troubled expression on his face, which Lyonnel hadn't expected to see.
“What are you doing here? I thought you were supposed to be with Hera right now?”
“Lyon...Master... About your sister…” Shie's voice grew quieter as he pondered if he should say what Hera let him learn about herself or not. “She knows about me. She was aware of my power as well.”
“What did you just say?”
“Your sister... She shouldn't know about me, right? You never mentioned anything to her about me, and I've never met her before. So, how did she come to know about me?”
“...”
Shie stomped his foot. “She even told me to take on the form of the cat she used to own.”
Lyonnel's brows creased as his hand came to a halt just as he was about to remove his vest. “Say that again.”
“She urged me to change into her cat, Little Black.”
Hera remembers Little black. Then why did she lie before?
“Is there anything else about her that I should know?”
Shie shook his head, deciding that now was not the time to say anything else that he was still unsure about. “She kicked me out after I refused to respond to her and went back to sleep.”
“Keep an eye on her. Maybe transform into a more common animal, make sure she doesn't know you're observing her, and report any weird behavior to me straight away.”
“... Alright.” Shie stretched his arms and slowly turned into a small bird, then he flew straight out of the open window.
Leaving Lyonnel clueless as to what he should do now, Hera knew something she shouldn't have known based on Shie's brief report. It made him wonder how much she knew about what was going on in the Silverna mansion.
Lyonnel swallowed hard. His eyes widened as he recalled Ruth's words. Was Hera aware of the rumors or not? Maybe that's why, for the past two years, she's kept quiet while considering whether or not to leave the Silverna mansion?
At that point, Lyonnel realized that he didn't know anything about Hera, and the girl didn't want him to know anything about her to the point of telling a lie.
i hope you are well now. Thank you for the story but please don't force yourself to the detriment of your health and well being.
Aw... Thank you... I'm fine now
Thank you for coming across and reading this story...