As Elizabeth gets closer to us her smile softens and doesn’t look as fabricated as before. The little girl a few steps behind her looks around with a displeased face. Ever since she got closer to us it seems the conversation around us has died down. Silence permeated the room.

            “We came here to give wish you a happy birthday Theodore”

            She then looks at the little girl, who’s response was to stay quiet. She gets on her knee and pulls the girl closer.

            “Do it like I taught you, or do you want to embarrass mom in front of everyone”

            She says with an almost pleading face that doesn’t suit the elegant and well-mannered Elizabeth I know. The little girl seems to give a little grunt as an answer. She stands up again and regains her composure. Mom gives her a sympathetic nod.

            “We are honored by your presence your majesty”

            They all give her a small bow. The small talk seems to have returned as people started to gossip about things they had heard about the princess behavior. I caught a tinge of regret on Elizabeth’s face as we moved a little away from the main part into a more private area.

            The ones who went towards the flower garden were mom, dad, Elizabeth, and Nathalie. It seems they wanted to have a more private talk.

            “So, how is brother doing? He looked very angry about me leaving so early”

            “I gave Henryk a hand, so things stay manageable, but more importantly, what happened to the cheerful Oriel I saw last time?”

            Mom looks at me with a worried expression, before offering me to her.

            “She has been ill for a week now; we tried a lot of things, but nothing seems to work”

            “I am sure she is going to be okay; she is a strong girl, isn’t she~?”

            She is looking at me with a motherly gaze, Nathalie looks at me with a sad expression.

            “Who is she?”

            “Oh right, Nathalie, this is Oriel, she is your cousin. I am sure you two will get along pretty well”

            She then kneels closer to Nathalie so she can get a better view. Nathalie doesn’t seem pleased.

            “She is boring”

            Ouch! that hurts… she pouts as she looks away from me. I can feel the sadness emanating from Elizabeth. Their relationship doesn’t seem to be the best…

            “Oriel is not boring she is just a little sick today”

            Nathalie doesn’t give any response and keeps looking away. Mom picks me up again and we walk back to the mansion. We entered back into my room where mom put me back into the cradle.

            My illness got the best of me and I fell asleep on the spot…