Disclaimer: I do not own Blood+ in any way, shape, or form.
Ripples.
Chapter O.N.E.
_"Merge"_
"The future is bright as two great companies merge together." -Gary Gall
"Once upon a time, in a land known for its rich history and fertile soil, two beautiful children were born in a grand castle."
A small voice interjected excitedly, awe clouding her voice. "A castle?! That means they're princesses!" Green eyes sparkled behind auburn bangs, a beaming smile splitting her lips. She loved stories involving princesses. It was rare her mother ever indulged those fantasies, not wanting to immerse her only child in such wild thoughts and would rather her focus on reality, but tonight had to be a special occasion. For why else would her serious mother break one of her rules just to tell a bedtime story?
The older woman chuckled lowly, gently running her fingers through her daughter's unruly hair. She absently noted that she needed a haircut again soon. It was getting to be past her shoulders. "Why assume the children are girls?" She teased. "Boys can be beautiful, too."
The child scrunched her nose up, clearly disagreeing with her mother. "No they can't," She denied with all the surety of a six year old. "Girls are beautiful and boys are gross."
Her mother shook her head at the childish logic, but gave a small smile anyway. "Alright, the two children are princesses. However, like most stories, their is tragedy in the beginning. The two girls lost their mother at childbirth, leaving them to be raised by their widowed grandfather as their father had abandoned his lover in her time of need. Their grandfather was a very important man, well known by his community as being wealthy and kind to all he meets. However, underneath his kindness, he hid a terrible secret from his community."
The child's eyes widened comically, leaning closer and whispering, "A terrible secret?" She pulled her crème blanket closer to her face, hiding partially under it so only her eyes were barely visible through her bangs.
Her mother nodded her head. "Both girls were separated almost immediately after birth, one being given up and the other he kept as his own, raising her like she was his own child. She grew up spoiled rotten and denied little in her life, while the other one suffered in silence, neither girls aware that the other even existed."
A choked gasp and the little girl looked near close to tears. "That's horrible, Momma. Why would he do that? They're family, aren't they?" The child hoped there was a happy ending for the beautiful princesses. That's how all her other stories ended, so in her mind, that's how this new story should end. With a happy ending and a happily ever after.
Her mother's eyes seemed to soften, but the little girl couldn't tell what the emotion in her eyes was. She never had been good about reading her mother's emotions. "Eventually, there came a time when the sisters were reunited. Many obstacles attempted to keep the two apart, but now that they had found each other, they were loathe to let anything stop them from being separated again. Unfortunately, fate had other plans for the princesses."
Small shoulders hunched downwards and she found that she didn't really like this story anymore. Why did it have to be so sad? "What happened?" She asked softly, peering into her mother's hazel eyes.
Strong arms encased her child into an embrace, drawing her closer as she huddled into the safety her mother provided. "The younger one was killed by someone she had admired," She murmured, shushing her daughter's growing sniffles and caressing her bangs soothingly. "And the older one went mad with grief and anger, razing the once beautiful land in flames and blood to avenge her sister's death."
"She blamed her people for her sister's death?" Thin eyebrows pulled down in confusion as she wiped stubbornly at the tears in her eyes. She shifted in her mother's arms until she was propped up on her own and facing her parent properly. "But it wasn't their fault?"
Her mother's cropped hair shook back and forth. "One day, and I hope you never have to experience this, if you ever lose the one you hold closest to your heart and they were ripped away so savagely because of petty reasons like the youngest princess had been, you will understand why the older princess did what she did."
She cocked her head to the side, confused but accepted the vague explanation. "What happened to the older princess?"
Her mother sighed and leaned back into the wall behind her. "Years later, once her vengeance had been sated, the oldest princess fell into a state of depression and sorrow, disgusted with herself for the havoc and deaths she had caused. Taking her sister's deceased body and going into hiding, she cast a powerful spell over herself, forcing herself into an eternity long sleep so that she would never have to experience the loss of another loved one again. Her body was never found."
Such a sad story. The little girl pitied the lives of the two princesses even though they didn't exist. They didn't deserve to live the life they had. They hadn't even done anything wrong. "That was very sad," She said quietly.
Her mother pulled her child across her lap, holding her to her chest tightly. "Never forget the message in the story, sweet one," Her mother whispered into her head. "Even family is capable of doing heinous crimes to ones that should be loved."