The prince and princess awoke at nearly the same times during the night, but fell back to sleep with odd dreams beckoning them. In the morning, the twins were exempted from their lessons by their mother and allowed a day to recover and make peace with the small changes they would now experience in their bodies and minds after yet another upset. Nuala said nothing to her brother, scowling at him from a distance as they ate breakfast and then went on to wander in the gardens just outside the palace. The servants had been ordered to keep as close an eye as possible on the two without intervening too greatly. Nuada seemed lost in thought to even his sister who found it particularly hard to decipher her brother's thoughts and feelings despite their link. Nuada wondered to himself about how to end the constant battle with his sister. Why didn't she love him? She seemed to want him dead every moment of every day. He thought repeatedly not only about the solution, but the source of the constant animosity.

Maybe she envies not being in line for the throne, one portion of his mind told him. Along with that, perhaps she envies the attention that goes along with being the first in line. She's jealous, yes, that must be it. She is selfish and jealous and that feeds a hatred that can only be combated physically. Nuada had heard many incredible tales of family members in legends thrashing one another to make a point to get along. Perhaps his fighting back once might make her step back. Yes, all I have to do is just gather the courage I need to . . .

"Brother!" Nuala shouted from the other side of the gardens. Nuada shuddered. Her tone was not at all docile and tender. He frowned and began to move towards his sister's voice. The princess stood proudly in front of a large willow oak and stared harshly at her brother as he approached. Nuada frowned and bowed his head to his sister respectfully. "I can hear you thinking, you know."

"I know," he said softly. He folded his arms behind his back and breathed deeply. "What have you to say about it, then? Is that what makes you so angry at me?"

"Being bound to a ridiculous little whelp is what angers me," Nuala continued. Nuada could hear the princess trying to mask the truth with her words and doing her utmost to continue to hide her true feelings and thought from her brother as well. The prince frowned. Unless his sister was thoroughly unconscious or deeply at ease, there would be no knowing the truth anytime soon. She strode past him and smirked. "Besides, it would be foolish of me to be jealous of you ascending the throne in the first place. That's never going to happen."

Nuada froze and stared at his sister in disbelief. "What do you mean?" the elf asked with anger rising in his voice. The throne was the only thing he had to look forward to. No promised romances, magic, or great feats of battle awaited him. The she-elf smiled brightly and began walking calmly among the trees, gazing up at their branches with feigned contentment.

"Well, if I understand correctly from listening in on your lessons, the future king must first attain a warrior title and train with the regiments. You can barely lift a branch that's half the weight of your finger," his sister chided. The prince frowned. His sister had insulted him on a number of levels, but never on this subject. It was well known around the palace that the prince was having trouble gathering strength and discovering his title. Nuala smiled wickedly at her brother. "You'll be lucky if you're allowed to wait on mother as a maidservant."

"That's a lie," Nuada hissed. The girl smiled and began sauntering away in the other direction. He growled and felt an odd, heated sensation rising through him at having his strength so challenged. This had never happened before, and it felt as though he needed to end it immediately before it could happen again. The girl ignored him and began circling one smaller tree. "Apologize, Nuala. That was a wicked thing to say."

"I'm not apologizing to you, weakling," the she elf replied. A glint of the fact that holding this new power over him made her pleased served to affirm the young prince's advanced theory that the girl was envious of his future position and current attention. He growled softly. He hadn't asked for any of it, what right did she have to hate him for it? "You should go back inside before you fall and hurt us again."

"Apologize to me, Nuala, for saying that," he demanded again. The prince was entirely confused and feeling as though his entire centre, his heart, were about to burst out of him. Nuala grinned and stood in front of him with arms folded tightly.

"Make me, prince no-title," she chided.

Nuada shouted angrily, unable to control himself any longer. He flew forward, throwing fist after fist and open hands into his sister. Nuala shrieked and fell to the ground as her brother attacked. Hearing the shrieks from the prince and princess, servants came running to see about the commotion. Every servant that arrived covered their mouths and froze in horror at the sight of the prince attacking his sister and screaming 'take it back'. After a moment, the small crowd of servants raced forward and began to try and pry both apart. Nuada breathed deeply, sweat and blood dripping from his face and the marks he sported that had been left on his sister. He stared hatefully into her timid yellow eyes as she panted and stared back. The servants lifted her from the ground as the two continued to stare at one another.

"I'll do it again," Nuada whispered. Nuala's eyes widened in shock and fear at her brother's words and the determination in his eyes. He narrowed them at her and spoke more loudly. "I'll do it again, Nuala. I mean it. If you hurt me anymore, I'll hurt you back; I'll hurt you more."

Nuala closed her eyes and brought her hands over her battered face as she began weeping. Nuada, for the first time in his childhood, simply watched the servants cart his sister away as he was taken in the other direction. Tears streamed down his cheeks, but he did not sob or weep. He felt more powerful than he had ever felt in his life. The servants fussed and spoke quietly to one another as they hurried the prince back inside and sent for one of the physicians. Aine came racing into the room before the physician, shrieking at the top of her lungs as she scooped the boy into her arms.

"Oh! My baby! My sweet little baby!" she cried as she pulled him to her tightly. Nuada breathed heavily and closed his eyes, taking in the comfort of his mother. The door at the far end of the room burst open as the king came storming in. Aine turned to him for a moment, frowning.

"Aine, put the boy down," Balor said firmly. Nuada shuddered at the sound of the old king's voice. He had never truly faced his father's wrath, but he had seen other members of the court tremble before him. Aine tightened her grip on the boy and stepped away, glaring at her husband. "Aine, Nuala needs you. Go and see to her."

"Balor, I . . ." Aine began in a tone with matching sternness. This time Nuada felt his mother's grip loosen. She frowned at her husband. "He's only a child, Balor."

"I am aware of the ages of both of our children," the king replied angrily. Aine sighed and set Nuada on the ground gently stroking his head. Balor growled more loudly, standing over the child. Aine frowned and bowed her head respectfully. The last thing she wanted to do was add to the boy's punishment or humiliation by making Balor even more angered. She left the room quickly, silently beginning to sob. Nuada held his hands behind him sheepishly and looked up at his father in terrified anticipation. "Nuada, did you strike your sister?"

The elfling thought carefully about his reply. "Repeatedly, father," he replied as proudly as he could. If he was going to be in trouble for what the girl deserved, then at least he would speak his mind. Balor shot him a look and strode to a chair in the corner of the room. The boy watched him take a seat fluidly and then raise a hand, gesturing for the boy to come and join him. He nodded and moved to stand in front of his father, hiding his trembling as best he could. "I am aware of the severity of my actions."

"Are you, now?" the king mused. He placed a hand on his knee and stared at the boy as silently as he could for several minutes. He could no longer contain himself after a brief silence and began laughing. He slapped his knee and leaned forward. "Well done, my boy! How absolutely incredible! Your fury in righteous anger was so focused! You have made me so proud, Nuada. Well done!"

"But father, I . . ." the prince protested in confusion. Was his father congratulating him on thrashing his twin sister? He shifted uncomfortably as his father gestured for him to come even closer. What was the king playing at? He stepped to standing immediately in front of the king, his eyes cautiously fixed on him.

"Now, of course you understand that the wounds you inflicted were wrong, but the end result will be marvelous," the king said as he pulled the boy onto his lap. He pulled a few strands of white gold hair away from his child's face. "You have sent a powerful message to her and now she will admire and admonish your strength. Not to mention that she will finally begin to focus herself on perfecting the finer points of her feminine nature rather than looking for trouble."

--------------------------------------

"Your father was glad you hit your sister?!" Aidan cried. He began laughing as Nuada shook his head and turned to face Aine' more fully.

"My father was often mistaken about situations involving my sister and this was no exception," the prince replied firmly. Aine' sighed and looked down then towards her brother. "Father did not recognize the true source of my sister's wrath and probably never would have had I not discovered my title simultaneously in discovering why she hated me."

"How did that happen?" Aidan asked with excitement. Nuada frowned and turned toward Leopold and Aidan with the same remorse he had shown his sister. Aidan scooted back a pace at the prince's expression.

"More importantly, what was wrong with mother?" Leopold asked softly.

Nuada shook his head and turned back to Aine', seeing a similar circumstance with the half-demons. "She was very unhappy, nephew," he explained. "And she felt entirely alone in it."