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A Rose Of Cinders

Chapter 4:

Alex sat in the kitchen, toying with a wooden walking-stick. He had made it for his dad a couple of years ago, intending to give it to him at his birthday, but he never had had the chance to do so. His fingers delicately traced the lines of the head of the man that was curved into the wood. He missed his dad. Not the man that was supposed to be his dad at the moment, but the man that used to be his dad. The man with whom he had played soccer, whom had taught him all about girls and horses. He missed that man.

The clock stroke eight, and a little cuckoo appeared, proudly chirping the time.

Alex sighed. He was bored out of his mind. Every minute he would look up to check on his sister, to see if she was okay. Her state or position never changed. She'd lay there, softly sobbing, silently hoping that he wouldn't notice it. Her knees were pulled up to her chin, her thin arms surrounding her legs, in a fetus-like position.

He wouldn't say a thing, or make any noise. He could understand why she felt like this. He couldn't comprehend it – he had never missed out on a chance to see the love of his life – but the least he could do was to try and understand Liza.

Another one of Liza's sobs broke through the silence, it resounding in the room, and Alex's heart ached at the sight of his little sister being this heart-torn.

He, Maria and Liza never held things from one another, but Liza had never told Alex, nor Maria about her crush on the Prince, which was why they knew Liza had it bad. It wasn't some sort of puppy-love; it was a very serious crush on the Prince, and not just because he was the Prince.

The atmosphere in the room was heart-wrenching, it was almost as if their mother had died again. Maybe something had died today. Maybe the most important part of Liza, her hope, had died. It had been Liza's hope that had gotten them this far. Liza's hope had made him hope, had made him believe in a better future, for both of them.

That hope, the hope for a better life, had died tonight. She'd hoped for a meeting with the Prince. He knew that – maybe unconsciously – she had hoped that when she'd meet the Prince, he'd fall in love with her, too, and marry her. She could see the Prince later on in her life, but it wouldn't be the same. He would be married, and any possibility for a marriage between them would be ruled out.

He sighed again, looking at the petite form of his sister, wishing that he could comfort her, help her, but he knew that it wasn't possible. Bertha and Tess had locked them up in their own kitchen. He had huffed at them, telling them that they couldn't do this, but they hadn't paid any attention to his protest.

It surprised him that they'd even bothered to leave the little window above the door open, in order to make sure they would get some fresh air.

He heard a mouse softly squeak somewhere close to the fireplace. When it made its way to Liza, Alex couldn't suppress a little smile. Maybe the little fellow could cheer Liza up, comfort her like Alex couldn't.

There had been times that Alex had been jealous on the bond Liza had with animals. He had envied how she could handle horses, and he had envied the friendship she had had with the mice and birds around the house. Now, when Liza needed a friend more than ever, he was glad that another person, or rather: another animal, could be there for her.

The mouse crept under the blankets and gently nudged her, pushing its little snout against her face. Alex saw Liza opening her eyes and smile weakly at the sight of her little friend. She turned her eyes up and looked at Alex. He sent her a sympathetic smile, ready to comfort her in whatever way needed.

The melodious chirping of a little bird caught their attention. A brown sparrow had flown through the little window, and was carefully trying to land on the kitchen table. The bird looked at Alex, an inquiring look on its face. Alex suppressed the sudden urge to make a face at it, and was relieved when it turned its gaze at Liza. When it flew up again, a little red spot on its throat became visible.

Liza let the sparrow land on her finger, and softly stroked its feathers, making them gleam even more. All of a sudden, she stood up, walked over to the sink, filled a little tray with water and held it out to the bird. The sparrow drank the water greedily, and the tray was empty in a matter of seconds.

Alex closely watched as his sister interacted with the bird. She looked deeply immersed in thoughts, and he knew that she'd connected with it. The bird peeped softly, as if talking to Liza, and Alex saw her face lighten up, brighten with hope. Maybe her hope hadn't died after all, and had it only been dormant for a while, waiting to be ignited again.

The sparrow left the kitchen and Alex was just about to ask Liza what happened when it returned, a large key dangling between its beak. It flew tremendously low, the key obviously way too heavy for it. Liza quickly reached out to catch the bird, and it landed safely in her hands, handing her the key while doing so.

Liza took the key between her fingers and held it out to Alex, smiling triumphantly.

"Let's go to Maria's," she said, happiness radiating off of her. "We still have two hours to get ready," she added, a mischievous smile plastered on her face.

"Why, Liza," Alex replied, faked shock etched on his face.

"You are not… You are not intending to disobey an order of Bertha, now are you?"

Liza giggled softly, and Alex thanked all the gods that he knew of for it.

"Take it, or leave it, bro," she teased him, and took a dirty, stained shawl off the coat-hook, wrapping it around her head and neck.

Alex watched at his sister opening the door and at the little bird leaving the safe harbor of her hands.

Liza turned around and looked back at him, a smile still gracing her features.

"You coming?" she asked him, "or should I lock you up again?"

Alex vigorously shook his head. "I'm on my way!" he yelled, and quickly grabbed his hat off of the table.

The door was almost closed when he reached it. He quickly put his foot between the wall and the door, it nearly being crushed in a most dangerous way. He heard Liza giggling and he pushed the door, hard, until it opened. Letting out an ominous growl, he slammed the door close behind his back.

Liza was nowhere to be found.

He growled again. He had a sister to chase…

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