*Orlin*
I panted as I flew to the nearest hospital with my sister in tow. She was breathing, thanks to that kind stranger, but her pulse was weak. I had to make sure she was out of the danger zone, and this weather wasn't helping either.
I roared as I tucked my wings behind me, speeding up. I couldn't waste any time. I had to save Rose!
Once at the hospital, I covered Rose's face with my coat and rushed to the desk. I took out a golden seal depicting a rabbit with a female lion's head. It was the symbol of our family. Showing it to others usually meant to keep hush and do as we asked them to.
The eyes of the woman at the desk nodded, already aware of what to do.
The woman stood up and led me to a closed off hallway with an elevator. Waiting by the elevator were various doctors and nurses. As soon as they noticed us, they rushed over and took Rose away inside the elevator. They were taking her to an emptied out floor in the building. It was to avoid having the news of her attempted suicide leak out. Although, knowing the media of this country, the news would probably find its way to the press some day.
I could already imagine what the ladies at the court would say. Stuff like 'she just did it for attention' and other stupidities like it. I turned away, trying to keep my tears from flowing out. This was all the fault of Eileen and father.
Gritting my teeth, I curled my hands into tight fists. Why, just why was everyone so mean to my little sister? She was a kind and lovely girl who loved to read and keep to herself. It wasn't like Rose asked to be born with a frail body. If anything, the fact she even went to the ball at all made her strong. Being born weak was no reason to mistreat anybody!
"Orlin!" Artemia called out, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"Thanks for coming, Mia," I said, turning around and smiling weakly at my girlfriend. On the way, I made a call to her on my mobile phone. Usually, I didn't like carrying it around with me, even on a satchel, but the situation called for it. And I was glad I did. It made arranging things here easier.
Mia gulped. "So, how is Rose doing? Is she okay?"
I smiled slightly. "The doctors just took her away, they're gonna run a few tests to make sure." I lowered my head. If not for that mystery man, my sister probably would've left us today.
Artemia leaned her head against my chest and gave me a tight hug. I hugged her back and cried into her shoulder.
Was I a bad brother? Had my defending her only made things worse like father liked to claim? The bullies still said mean stuff about her when I wasn't around. How would I make it stop? Could I even do so?
"Why are people so mean?" I whispered, my body shaking.
"It's because they let evil take root in their hearts," Mia whispered back as she rubbed my back.
They let evil take root? Was it the fault of the whispers of demons? Or was it just the very nature of people themselves that made them bad?
People didn't like to openly express it, but some believed that the Sky Father created evil alongside the good. Did he do so because good couldn't exist without a counter like how he made light to counter darkness?
Or was evil an unintended bug in the creation? Or maybe it existed in some shape or form before the genesis of the universe. Like how pitch blackness existed before light. Then, did that mean that the primordial state of being was evil and darkness?
"Rose doesn't deserve it," I whispered. "She doesn't even hurt a fly. If anyone does, it's me."
"Why do you say that?" Mia said, looking into my eyes.
"I mean, I have killed before on the battlefield." I glanced at my hands. They were calloused from training with a sword since I was five. Father made me train relentlessly, wishing for me to be strong and ready to become the next king. Mother would help me sneak out of my training whenever she felt I was too exhausted.
I missed her so much. Life without Mother got harder for all of us, but none experienced more hardship than Rose. Father held it against her that Mother died. Even if he would not outright say it, it was as obvious as day.
"True. But that you regret it means that you haven't lost your humanity," Mia whispered.
"But I still did it. Doesn't that make me worse? A person who still takes life despite knowing how precious it is?" I asked as I continued to stare at my hands.
Artemia put a hand over my right and interlaced her fingers with mine. "True, but you do it to protect the kingdom. If not us, then at least yourself."
I averted my gaze. "You have a point, but I wonder if there's another way."
She smiled slightly. "It would be nice if so."
"Do you think I should call Father?" I asked, pulling away from her.
Her brow furrowed. "He has a right to know."
"Yeah, but do you think he would care?"
She sighed and shook her head. "Wish I could say yes, but I know he's not a loving man. He treats both of you more like tools than children."
I nodded. He'd always been harsh. How had he turned out that way? My grandparents weren't like that.
----
Mia and I went to the emptied hospital floor. We didn't say much, but her gentle touch spoke more than words could.
"Sire, your sister has awakened," a doctor said as he opened the door in front of us. I stood up from my seat and walked into the room.
"Orlin," Rose said, voice shaky. She slowly poked her head up from the covers. "I'm sorry, Ore."
I sighed. "It's okay. I am not angry at you." I sat by her bed side and patted her head.
She blinked, looking at me with those innocent, yet sad eyes of hers. "Y-you're not?"
I shook my head. "More sad than mad." I lowered my head and reclined my elbows against my knees. "I just wish you would've come to me instead." I reached out and patted her shoulder. "You know that I'm always there for you."
"If there's something you can't tell your brother, there's always me you can come to for help," Artemia said, smiling slightly.
Rose looked down and sighed. "I know, but after Father said that it would've been better if I'd died, I lost my sense of reason."
"Don't listen to him!" I snapped, sitting up.
She hid back into her blankets. "I know, but he's still my dad. I guess part of me still longs for his affection."
"Did you think he'll love you for this?" I asked, slicing the air with my hand.
Rose shook her head. "No. It's because of his lack of love that I felt empty." She covered her eyes with her right arm and began to cry. "I even began to doubt your affection."
"Rose," Artemia said, sitting on the other side of the bed.
"I know what I did was dumb! After I heard Ore call my name, I snapped out of the trance I'd found myself in. But it was already too late." She removed her arm from her eyes and smiled slightly. "Thankfully, you saved me."
I shook my head. "It was not me who saved you, but someone else. A guy in a black hoodie."
She blinked her tears away. "Then who did? I thought it might've been dad, but you would've recognized him."
I sighed. Like Father would do something like that. If he had regrets, he certainly didn't act on them.
"I'm not sure who he is, but I will be eternally grateful that he was in the right place, at the right time, and acted upon it. I did offer him a reward, but he rejected it. Saying he didn't expect stuff in return for saving the life of another."
Artemia smiled. "Sounds like whoever saved you is a real hero."
"Wonder who it was," Sis said, staring at the ceiling.
"Does it matter? You're alive and safe," I said, grinning.
She smiled slightly and nodded. "Yeah, but..." Sis shook her head. "Nevermind. It's not like I will see him again."