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*Annabelle's P.O.V.*
I smiled as I danced around the room with Anna and Lana. Even though they were not the type of girls I'd hang out with, I couldn't stop myself from dancing. I absolutely love band practice was being held in our music classroom, one of the two classes Michael and I had with Mia and Lilly. The people in the band smiled and chuckled as they watched us dance whilst the students that were too shy, which were pretty much all the sophomore students, sat on the stands and watched us involved in their own small conversations. Mia played the drum, smiling at me as she did so. Michael was playing the piano, along with Josh who was mostly fooling around and smirking cockily at me, and Lilly was playing the guitar.
"Okay, alright!" Our music teacher clapped her hands as she entered the classroom. "It was very lovely, but the band practice is over." She said, and Lana, Anna and I stopped dancing around, although I didn't stop smiling. Mia smiled and got up, walking over to the stands and standing in the front row, ready to sing. "I have a music class here. Out!" The teacher ordered everyone who was not a part of the music class. I walked over to stand next to Mia on the stands. "Alright, let's have the third group try 'Catch Your Falling'." Seeing as I wasn't in the third group, I jumped off the stands and walked over to Michael, sitting down next to him on the bench near the piano.
"Hey." He greeted quietly.
"Hey." I whispered, and smiled.
"Hey, do you want to be in the front?" I heard Mia ask, and looked up to see her offering her place on the stands to the student ho was behind her and next to Lilly.
"Okay, thanks." He thanked nicely, and she smiled, switching spots with him.
"No problem."
"Michael." The music teacher gestured to my friend, and he quickly opened his music notes, placing them on the stand in front of him.
"Are you sure you and your sister can't help me with my spotted petition today?" I heard Lilly ask Mia.
"I told you; Anna and I are meeting our Grandmother after school." My sister replied, causing Lilly to frown but nod either way.
"Oh, right." Just then Michael started playing the piano, and the music teacher gestured for everyone to start singing. Michael mouthed the words along, and glanced at the group, and I saw him stop mouthing the words and stare at Mia, which made me smirk. As he continued to stare, I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing and elbowed him in the ribs gently so that he wouldn't loose his note.
*After School*
"Isn't it here?" I asked my younger sister as I pointed to the beautiful house behind a metal gate on our right.
"Yeah, it is." Mia replied, looking down at the paper where the address of where our Grandmother was living was written. We shared a look, and then I shrugged, walking over to the electrical bell on one of the pillars, pressing it with my finger.
"The school tours are on Saturday, young ladies." I heard a voice from the speaker on the bell.
"We're here for meeting with our Grandmother?" I said, but it came out more like a question, pressing my finger on the bell one more time to work the mic that was obviously connected to the bell.
"Name?" The man asked again.
"Clarisse Renaldi." I said, pressing the button again before letting go.
"Oh." The man replied. "Uh, please come through the front door." He said, and must have pressed a button that activated the gate, since in slid to the the side, opening.
"Thank you very much." I said to the mic, pressing the button again before letting go and looking at Mia. We shared a look and sighed before stepping onto the property. I made my way down the sidewalk, but Mia however, made her way through the grass. "Mia!" I hissed, not wanting to upset our Grandmother before even meeting her, not knowing what kind of person she was. Just as I said that, a voice rang through the speakers,
"Get off the grass!" It demanded, and Mia looked around before quickly running off onto the sidewalk. Even after she did, a couple more voices repeated what the demand in different languages. I looked at Mia and then we both stifled our laughter before walking up the steps to the front porch. Just as Mia was about to knock on the front door, it opened by a fancy dressed butler.
"Welcome, Misses Thermopolis. We have been expecting you." He greeted, letting us in. We slowly made our way inside, and my mouth dropped slightly as I looked around at all the magnificent antiquities. This house looked like a palace!
"Um, oh, be careful!" Mia exclaimed, and I looked over to her, only to see another man touching her book bag, as if making sure that she wasn't transporting a weapon inside. "Please don't crush my soy nuts."
"Your soy nuts are safe." The man assured, and I recognized his voice as the same one that was talking to me through the speaker. Once he checked Mia, he walked over to me. "May I?" He asked, gesturing to my book bag.
"Uh, please." I replied, smiling a small smile. He smiled back, and started checking it, whilst I wondered why he asked for my permission, but not for Mia's. Once he was done, he looked at the butler. "Okay." He approved, and then went to sit behind the desk by the door.
"Right this way." The butler gestured for us to come into what looked like the living room. I looked around in awe, whilst Mia touched one of the vases. "Please," The butler started, but the tone of his voice obviously told that he did not want Mia to touch anything. She also noticed it, and quickly pulled her hand away. "Make yourselves comfortable." He said with a strained smile, and whilst Mia did so on a couch, I sent him an apologetic one, before also taking off my book bag and putting it on the floor beside me so that it wouldn't get in the way, sitting down next to my sister. Her book bag however, was dropped carelessly in the middle, so when the butler wanted to walk in the other direction, he had to jump over it, which made me chuckle silently. He then walked to another small room, whilst Mia and I looked at the flowers in the vase that was on top of the coffee table in front of us. We furrowed our brows in confusion when we saw pears in them, and Mia touched them gently with her fingers.
"...And we need new pillows for the Prime Minister's wife." A voice was heard, and a beautiful woman with medium blonde hair and gray eyes walked in. She was wearing a formal fitted black dress, tights, and heels. She was talking to a handy speaker, and had a office head phone in her ear, which led me to assumption that she was taking care of the political stuff. "She's allergic to goose feathers." She finished and put away the speaker, before turning to me and Mia, so we both stood up in respect. "Hello Annabelle, Amelia. She greeted, shaking our hands with a warm smile, making us smile in return. "I'm Charlotte, from the Genovian Alta Cheacore."
"Hi." Mia greeted back with a smile.
"It's lovely to meet you." I said with a warm smile of my own.
"Um, where are we?" Mia asked.
"The Genovian Councelit." Charlotte replied.
"You've got pears in you-your flowers." Mia said, and Charlotte nodded.
"Genovian pears. "We're famous for them. Now if you two sit down, she'll be with you in the moment." We both nodded and sat back down.
"No. I don't need a moment." Another voice was heard from the stairs, and everyone suddenly literally jumped to their feet. Another woman, who I'm guessing is our Grandmother, made her way down the stairs. She looked very well for her age, which I guessed was around 60 years old. In fact, you could tell that she was a bery beautiful woman once, and still hasn't lost her beauty. She had short, blonde hair, and radiated with wisdom and kindness. She was also wearing a black dress and tights, along with heels. She also had a dark purple scarf around her neck. "I'm here. Annabelle, Amelia." She smiled warmly. "I'm so glad you two could come."
"Hi." Mia said, not really knowing what to say. "You've got a great place." She said as out Grandmother walked over to us.
"Thank you." She replied, and took in a breath. "Now, I'm sorry, but I have to ask because we haven't met before, unfortunately. Which one of you is Annabelle, and which one is Amelia?" She asked, and we both chuckled.
"It's alright." I smiled. "I'm Annabelle, and this is Amelia." I said, and I could see the sudden relief that fell over her and Charlotte, which got me slightly confused.
"Well, let me look at you two." She said with an even bigger smile, and Mia and I both smiled back. She took off her glasses, whilst I just stood there. Grandmother looked at me first. "Annabelle, my dear, you are an absolutely stunning young lady." She smiled, and I blushed a little.
"Thank you." She then looked at Mia, and her smile faltered a little.
"Amelia, you look so... Young." Mia glanced at me as if not knowing what to do, and then put her glasses back on.
"Thank you. And y-you look so..." She trailed off, and Grandmother looked at her expectantly. "Clean." I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing, and I saw Charlotte do the same thing.
"Charlotte? W-Would you go and check on tea in the garden?" She asked, and then turned to us. "Please, sit." She sat down on the chair in front of us, and we sat down back on the couch we were sitting on before. There was an uncomfortable silence between us as Grandmother continued to look at Mia worriedly, and Mia started banging her teeth against each other, looking around.
"So." My sister finally spoke up. "Um, our Mom said you wanted to talk to us about something, so shoot." She said, and Grandmother snapped out of her daze.
"Oh, before I... shoot, I have something I want to give you, Annabelle." She said with a smile, making me look at her curiously. She picked up something from the table, and handed it to me. "Here." My eyes widened when I saw what it was. It was a beautiful silver box with many gorgeous engravings.
"Thank you." I said, and grabbed it form her before opening it. What I saw inside made my jaw drop. It was a beautiful silver necklace in a shape of a heart, with the Genovian seal on it. I picked it up gently and handed the box to Mia, before looking at our Grandmother with wide eyes. "Wow." I breathed out.
"It's the Genovian crest. It was mine when I was young. I want you to have it, seeing you are the oldest daughter." She said, and I smiled. Even though I have never met the woman before, I started to feel as if though I knew her forever. Mia looked at the necklace with wide eyes, and while doing so, dropped the box. The sound made all of us jump slightly, while she picked it up. "Ah, and that was my Great-Grandmother's." Grandma said, and I nodded.
"I'm sure she'll keep that safe." I assured her, gesturing to Mia, who nodded before putting it in her book bag. It didn't want to fall inside through the small space between the zippers, so she shook it violently until it fell in, which made me and Grandma cringe. A perfect way to prove to her that Mia will take care of it. "Now, what did you want to tell us?" I asked, trying to change the subject while putting the necklace around my neck gently.
"Something that I think will have a very big impact upon your lives." Grandma said.
"I already have braces." Mia said with a smile, not realizing the serious tone Grandma was using.
"No it's-it's bigger than orthodontion." Grandma said, and then looked at me. "It will especially have a big impact on you." She said, and my brows furrowed in confusion.
"The tea is served ma'am." Charlotte said with a smile, walking in.
