DISCLAIMER: Fortunately Shuumatsu no Izetta doesn't belong to me. So all rights are reserved to Ajia-do Animation Works.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: So I'm serious about this writing thing again. I want to try to get things moving again. Hopefully muse decides to agree and not freeze me out. That would be a true issue. Still I can't help but feel I owe a bit on this. So we'll see what happens.

Clash at the Cottage

(Izetta's Cottage: Living Room)

Finé attempted to gather her thoughts into cohesion but found herself in utter disbelief and feeling the sting of betrayal. The fact that Izetta could even move outside of her chair had been kept from Finé. Let alone the fact that she was on the doorstep of walking again.

Izetta for her part had looked over to the door when she heard it open but as soon as Finé walked in she immediately faced forward. Izetta continued to muscle her way though her therapy ignoring Finé.

"Izetta, what is this?" Finé finally managed to speak.

Izetta had reached the end of her course and began to turn around only to find Finé beside her gripping her arm lightly. Izetta began to move again breaking Finé's loose grip on her. Soon after this Izetta saw Finé at the other end and attempted to bow her head down so that she did not have to meet Finé's gaze.

By the time Izetta had managed to swing her body back into the chair she found her writing implements being shoved in her face. If Finé was doing this on purpose Izetta didn't care to even look up. She just took the marker and note pad and began to write.

[I was working hard. Why are you here?] Izetta asked as her frosty demeanor was not lost on Finé.

"Do I need an invitation? Tell me at what time did I become a stranger?" Finé fired back.

[What do you mean? I just asked why you showed up unannounced.] Izetta wrote apparently not caring what tone it carried.

But Finé was all too aware.

"Unannounced? So now I need to announce myself? Is that what you're telling Izetta? That I'm not allowed to just randomly show up to visit you? Though I see why now. Just how long have you been 'working hard'?" Finé said with a strained cord as she crossed her arms and secretly did her best to hold back the tears.

[None of your business.] Izetta's anger began to flare though her writing as it became evident that she did not feel at fault. Not in the least.

"'None of my business' It is my business! It's been my business for the past ten years! And now your telling me that it's not? That all of a sudden your recovery is none of my business?" Finé near shouted.

[I won't let you try to say that my hard work is because of you Finé. It's because of me! Because of my hard work! Because I didn't want to spend the rest of my life chained to this stupid chair!] Izetta stated as she too was now on the brink of tears.

"So me trying to find you the best doctors and get you the best care means squat? Izetta you're being childish." Finé stated before clasping her hand over her mouth.

[Childish? CHILDISH?! This was supposed to be a SURPRISE but I guess even you can be an ungrateful bitch Finé. Get out.] Izetta wrote now near sobbing.

"After everything we've been though and all this time you dare to say that to me!?" Finé shouted now clearly in tears.

[GET OUT!] Izetta scrawled in big letters near shoving it in Finé's face

Finé wiped the tears from her eyes and looked one last time at Izetta.

"I'll leave. But don't expect me to cry for you again Izetta. As apparently you are strong enough to do things on your own. You know where to find me when you get over this tantrum." Finé stated soon after walking towards the door nearly running into Bianca.

"Lady Finé … I don't know what to say." Bianca stated.

"You knew about this Bianca?" Finé asked flatly.

"Yes." Bianca barely managed to say.

"Remove yourself from my sight. I will call for you when I need you. Henceforth all reports will be delivered via a proxy. Is that understood?" Fine ordered firmly.

"But Lady Finé if you could just hear me out for ..." Bianca stated before she was cut off by Finé's raised hand.

"Is that understood?" Finé repeated apparently too in shock or anger to be moved.

"Yes, Your Highness" Bianca said formally.

"The same goes for Lotte. Make sure you tell her." Finé stated as she knew that Lotte was obviously complicit in this mess. Finé walked out the door and back out to her car. An afternoon of surprise had been turned into one of pain. Finé got back into the car and didn't even raise her head to look at the driver in the mirror.

"Take me back to the palace." Finé barely managed to say though sobs. The car then began it's drive down the dirt road.

Bianca stood dumbfounded as Finé's car pulled away and left. The fact that Finé wouldn't even hear her out stung more then the fact that things appeared to have fallen out worse then anyone of them could imagine.

"...'Remove yourself from my sight' She couldn't possibly mean it like that, could she? After all these years and she said that to me." Bianca muttered to herself in disbelief.

"I heard everything. Lady Finé apparently didn't even notice I was in the room." Lotte said as she walked out onto the porch and closed the door behind her. "This is all my fault."

"How is it all your fault? We both kept things from Lady Finé." Bianca responded.

"It is all my fault. If I hadn't suggested the surprise in the first place I … I …" Lotte trailed off into tears. "... it is all my fault, it is."

Bianca pulled Lotte into her arms and began to massage her back soothingly. After a few moments Lotte managed to pull herself together and walked back into the house to find Izetta sitting in her chair taking her braces off. The atmosphere left very little to say.

"I'll get dinner on." Lotte stated only to be greeted with a upheld notepad.

[I'm not hungry.] Izetta stated.

"You have to eat Lady Izetta. You'll need your strength." Lotte said hoping to play into Izetta's drive for improvement. Izetta relented with a nod.

Soon after Bianca entered the house and walked over to Izetta's chair. Bianca knelt so that she was at Izetta's eye level and looked into Izetta's eyes.

"I know you didn't mean for it to happen this way Lady Izetta. Despite all of our best intentions Lady Finé ended up hurt by our desire to surprise her." Bianca said.

[Watch where you tread, Bianca.] Izetta wrote as she looked back into Bianca's eyes wearily.

"We have to fix this in time." Bianca stated.

[There is nothing to fix. I'm tired of writing. I have nothing else to say.] Izetta wrote before pulling the pad and pen away.

(Landsbrück: Palace: Finé's bedroom)

The ride back to the palace and the subsequent hours had gone by like a blur. Finé nodded her way though most of it. Dinner came but she wasn't hungry. Even tea did little to settle her stomach. Reading did little to distract her mind. Everything was still too fresh. Finé tried to fathom in what realm did Izetta think it was okay to not tell her about her recovery. Everything was beyond her right now. Finé already regretted most of what she had said to Izetta. But did Izetta regret most of what she said to Finé?

Finé was doubtful that this wound would heal quickly. Just the thought of the feelings of the day made Finé's stomach turn. Finé tossed and turned but nothing seemed to help and sleep was hard to come. Tears still welled up every now and again but for the most part had subsided for the moment.

"Did you really mean all of those things you said Izetta? I just don't know..." Finé whispered to herself as she finally dozed off.