Once an Enemy
Chapter One: Prologue
The thunder rolled in the distance striving to catch up to its lightning counterpart. It was an odd but beautiful scene, one I knew Aunt Elenet would crave to paint.
At the border of the earth and the heavens you could see the setting sun, almost blinding with its golden rays. Yet, if you looked carefully you could catch a glimpse of the patch of blue sky around it. Surrounding this almost unfitting light were the tempestuous dark grey clouds that yearned to engulf the entirety of the sky, but were dissuaded for they were blinded themselves. And true to the setting of dusk, at the margin between the storm clouds and the brilliant sun were vivid hues of purple, rose, orange, and gold that stained the bordering clouds.
It was a regal sky that did not befit the war-torn lands of Remalna.
Father did the best he could to drive back the Norsundrians, the efforts locking the two armies in a cruel stalemate. Even Mother rode sometimes, so sick with worry that she simply couldn't sit still.
It had been the worst night ever, that night they had argued. My sister sobbed silently, balled up on the bed as Alerec paced nervously around the room. I listened hunched at the door joining our rooms to our parent's.
We had never heard them fight.
We had heard stories from Aunt Nee and Uncle Bran of their rather one-sided "debates" (to be nicely put) before their marriage, but we had also heard to they had promised never to argue like that again.
It only meant that the war was taking a toll on not only the kingdom but even our close-knitted families.
All three of us flinched when we heard father raise his voice.
He never raised his voice.
Oria started to cry in real earnest. I didn't blame her; my throat was painfully constricted, and it hurt too. At once Alerec rushed to her and attempted to quiet her down or at least muffle her wails.
It was then that everything else went silent, leaving Oria's howling the only eerie sound. I heard footsteps on the other side approach the door, and I promptly skittered away. Mama hurried in first, followed closely by Papa, who gently closed the door behind him.
Sitting down beside Oria, Mama pulled her into a warm embrace, rocking her while slowly rubbing her back. Papa joined us on the bed and quietly beckoned Alerec and I to scoot beside him.
He put a comforting arm around our shoulders. In his own subtle way he was embracing us as well. Yet, his gesture also gave us strength and the will not to cry, but to stay resilient.
There is war, his eyes told us, but nothing will ever come between us five to break us apart.