Chapter 105: 105-Changed
Princess Sheana startled awake from her sleep. She had dreamed a strange dream, one she couldn’t make sense of no matter how she looked at it.
In the dream, she had been sitting on a swing with Aenyra. They had sat incredibly close together. Then she had cupped Aenyra’s face with both hands and kissed her deeply.
Her feelings for the dragoness grew stronger every day, especially now that they were mated.
Her heart beat for Aenyra. The dragoness’s name lingered in her thoughts, her soul, and even the desires of her body.
The problem was that Aenyra refused to talk about their bond. She completely rejected the idea that they were now something akin to wives simply because they were both women.
Princess Sheana desperately wanted Aenyra to accept her so they could be together. That was her deepest wish.
After waking, she quickly bathed and changed clothes. She chose a skirt, the colour of molten amber, the same shade as Aenyra’s eyes, and paired it with a simple white top.
When she looked at herself in the mirror, she was thoroughly pleased with her appearance.
She styled her hair into a braided bun, decorated it with a phoenix-shaped hairpin, and applied her makeup. Once she was finished, she slipped on a beautiful pair of shoes and left her room.
Outside, she found Nytherael sweeping the house with a broom.
"Why are you making yourself suffer by cleaning all by yourself?" she asked, genuinely stunned to see a great fox like Nytherael holding a broom.
"Yiwa isn’t here with me, and the others who can be brought in to help are still paralyzed. If I don’t do it myself, who will?" he replied.
If Aeltharion weren’t sick, he wouldn’t have complained about holding a broom and cleaning. in fact, he would have volunteered for the task. Since he was currently receiving treatment, there was no issue with him stepping up and doing it.
Nytherael could have used his powers. One snap of his fingers could have cleaned the entire house in less than a minute.
But his mind was crowded with too many thoughts, so he preferred doing things the old-fashioned way to clear his mind.
"And why are you cleaning like this? There’s an easier way. Wait..."
Princess Sheana raised her hand and prepared to snap her fingers to clean the house instantly, but Nytherael stopped her.
"I know there’s an easier way, but cleaning like this helps me sort through everything going on in my head. Leave it alone."
Listening to him, Sheana realized she, too, had countless thoughts troubling her. Most of them revolved around Aenyra.
She had no idea where she stood with the dragoness, and Aenyra stubbornly refused to give her a chance to sit down and discuss their relationship. So she could only have doubts and endless disturbing thoughts.
"Give me a spare broom. I’ll help," Sheana offered.
Nytherael released her hand and stepped back. Then he looked her up and down with complete disbelief.
"You? Clean?"
"Why shouldn’t I clean?" Sheana placed her hands on her hips and argued.
"No, no. Don’t take it the wrong way. It’s just that you don’t look like someone who’s ever held a broom in her entire life."
"That’s because I haven’t," Sheana admitted. "But it can’t be that difficult. If you can do it, why can’t I?"
"Fair enough."
Nytherael smiled and handed her the broom. He stood back and waited to see whether she could do it or she intended to make a fool of herself.
Princess Sheana accepted it and copied the way Nytherael had been sweeping. The moment she swept a pile of dust, it scattered into the air.
Then she accidentally inhaled some. Immediately, she began coughing violently.
Nytherael burst into laughter. Watching her struggle was simply too much entertainment for him to pass up. He laughed so hard tears formed in his eyes.
"It’s perfectly fine... cough... to laugh at me... cough... go ahead and laugh until you’re satisfied," Sheana complained.
"This is why people shouldn’t start jobs they’ve never tried before. Give me the broom and go away."
Nytherael snatched the broom back and shooed her off. Before Sheana could protest, her sister arrived.
The moment she spotted Sheana, she grabbed her by the hand, gave Nytherael a quick greeting, and immediately dragged her away.
"Once I’m done talking with my sister, I’ll come back and help you," Sheana called over her shoulder.
"Don’t come back. My work will never end if you help me," Nytherael replied.
"Go safely and stay away."
There was nothing wrong with Sheana helping. He simply needed the peace of being alone with his thoughts while he cleaned.
Sheana sighed, heavily understanding the dismissal and followed Samahita. She couldn’t understand why her sister had dragged her away without explanation, so she waited until they reached where Samahita intended to take her.
Samahita led her far from everyone else. Only when they reached a balcony did she finally release her hand.
"You’ve changed so much, little sister, that it’s starting to worry me," Samahita said.
"What do you mean?"
"Weeks have passed, and I haven’t seen you wearing outfits designed to provoke people, nor have I seen you seducing anyone. It’s almost like you’re not my sister anymore," Samahita explained. "What’s happened to you? Why have you suddenly changed so much?"
Sheana fell silent. She hadn’t realized her behaviour had changed that drastically. For all those weeks, her thoughts had been consumed by Aenyra.
She hadn’t had even a single spare moment to think about anyone else, much less flirt with other beasts or concern herself with how she dressed around them.
"There’s nothing wrong with me." She smiled. "I’m just tired."
It was a lie but one that Samahita couldn’t refute. Her sister had just recovered from a troubling illness. The world around them was in chaos, and everyone was drawing thin of good ideas and energy while dealing with the problems around.
"Are you sure that you are fine?"
"Yes, I am positive of that."
"But you do look worried. You know you can come to me with your problems, right?"
"I know that, and I trust that, sister," Sheana leaned against the wall, her heart heavy with thoughts about her future. "When we create the free world in the future and the world prefers you to rule over me... I hope you’ll remember your love and care for me today," she said to distract her mind.
Her words hit Samahita hard. It reminded her of her vision, unlike Sheana’s thinking. It wasn’t her the world favoured but rather her sister. Sheana was the only one destined to rule the free world.
"Why do you sell yourself short. There’s a chance that you might be the one favoured by the heavens," she said weakly.
"Me?" Sheana scoffed.
That was a truth she wouldn’t accept even in her wildest dreams. She was simply not cut out for such glory in her life. She was lucky enough just to be considered by destiny for such honours.
Her only goal was to charm Aenyra and live the rest of her life in peace, surrounded by love.
"You should think it through," Samahita encouraged her. "When you are empress one day, I trust that you’ll do right by the people. Won’t you?"
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