Grr… darn homework and reports and studying for midterms… anyway, I'm finally updating. I don't really like the beginning of this chapter… I had to add to it since there was a gap in my original story… anyway, I don't like the beginning. I like the rest of it though! Different kind of twist… Oh, and I divide things by making the first letter of the paragraph bold. Not the greatest divider, but I'm not that creative. Just FYI.

HottStuffMelv: YAY! You made my day, too! THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEW!

The next day was the same, and so was the next day, and the next day. I would wake up before dawn every morning, and go to bed shortly after everyone else in the house. It was a nightmarish routine.

After a week, though, something else happened. Robert walked into the room when I was scrubbing Amelia's shoes. He stopped and stared at me for the longest time. Amelia didn't notice. She was dictating a letter as Emma wrote.

Something registered in Robert's eyes (you could tell because not much goes on behind those eyes, so when something did go on, it was a big deal).

"Elisa, my mom wants me to do laundry. Do it for me." He ordered.

I just stared at him blankly. Amelia stopped dictating her letter, and towered over Robert.

"And just what makes you think that you can tell dear Elisa what to do?" She asked in her sweet voice, emphasizing the "dear" a little too much.

He shrugged. "You do it all the time. I want to see if she'll do it for me."

The curse telling me to do his laundry screamed in my head. The pain began. As Amelia and Robert continued to argue, I began to shake. I couldn't bare it much longer, but I couldn't obey that stupid order from Robert! I was about to keel over, so I was going to do the stupid laundry. However, Robert stopped me.

"Elisa, don't do my laundry. We have decided that I will get you to do stuff for me for half of the day, and Amelia will get you to do stuff for her the other half. Right now, it is Amelia's half of the day. Meet me by the horse barn when the sundial's shadow hits the three.

I was furious that we were being fought over and "shared" like some toy. It was disgusting.

I met Robert at the barn, where he began to give me a series of absolutely ridiculous chores, such as trick riding on Moonlight, talking in another language, and other idiotic chores that were a waste of my time. So, of course, I made it hard for him, but he always had something else for me to do. As soon as it was time for dinner, he forgot about me and I rushed to Moonlight.

"Let's take a ride, shall we?" I whispered, and he nickered softly. I jumped onto his back, and we started out at a walk, warming up, but then after some trotting and walking we both couldn't stand warming up any longer, and galloped away from the quickly sinking sun. Away from chores, away from Amelia and Robert, away from being ordered around… far, far away… for the moment.

It seemed that Amelia, Aunt Sarah, and Robert were going to stay forever. But then I heard that they would leave in one week after being in Kent for over a month! I was overjoyed. I wouldn't have to be a slave anymore, and Emma wouldn't have to be a "lady-in-waiting." For the whole long month I had tried to find any time I could to ride Moonlight for an hour or two of freedom. And so it went on, until the final week.

It was about three days before my tormentors were to leave. I was off on one of my gallops with Moonlight again, after obeying Robert's crazy commands.

Lou was in the orchard (for once, since he was always with the centaurs), but he was not alone.

I began to make Moonlight quietly trot past, not wanting to intrude, when I heard what Lou said.

"Amelia, I would like to ask you something."

There was something lovey-dovey about his voice that I didn't like. Plus he was talking to Amelia, which I also did not like.

"What is it, Lou?"

Now that was something new! I had never heard Amelia talk that way before. I was getting worried, so I kept listening, and pulled Moonlight to a halt.

"Amelia, will you – will you marry me?"

I almost fell off of Moonlight. I begged and prayed in my mind for Amelia to say no. (When Ella and Charmount became Rulers of Kyrria, a law was passed that women had the right to choose whom they were to marry. In this case, I really disliked this rule.) There was a surprised silence.

"Oh, Lou!" (There was a short pause. The tension rose. She was going to say, 'Lou, how dare you ask me such a thing' in her high-pitched, lofty voice, I knew it! She wouldn't stand marrying the son of a poor man!) "Of course I will, my darling!"

I didn't want to hear anything else. It was too overwhelming. I dug my knees into Moonlight, who took off immediately. My only thought was why in all of Kyrria would Amelia marry a poor man (I pictured her marrying an old noble who she only liked for his riches), and even worse, my brother? I tried desperately to hold my head high as I passed them, and I tried to hold back my tears.

"So that explains the long nights away! And she said she was going to 'check on the centaurs.' Sure she was seeing the centaurs, but she probably didn't pay any attention to them!" Emma shouted in disbelief.

We were lying on our beds that very night, when I told Emma the whole story.

"Well, we'll make the best of it. Besides, if Amelia is hovering over Lou all the time…"

"Or if Lou is hovering over Amelia…"

"Then we can get away from Amelia for as long as we want!"

Emma sprang out of bed in excitement. "You're right! But…" She lay back down. "But there's Robert."

"Oh. Well, who cares about him! He won't bother us, will he?"

"Yes."

"Oh."

There was a silence. Our hope was fading.

"Well, um, we can, uh…"

"Don't you get it? We can do nothing!" Emma sighed, frusterated, and slowly sank back into her bed.

"He probably won't bother us, though. He kind of follows Amelia's lead, and if she quits ordering us, he'll quit ordering us."

"Maybe."

Emma did not sound a bit hopeful. I fell silent, my hopes gone, and then I fell asleep after mumbling to Emma, "I can't believe Lou fell in love with that – that horror."

In the morning, Lou and Amelia announced their engagement. Father was home, and he seemed more pleased than all the rest of us combined (probably because his son was marrying the daughter of a rich lady). Flora (being polite) was happy for them, but I didn't think she was really and truly happy. Mother was pleased and she "wept for joy" as she put it. Aunt Sarah was smiling faintly, but something about her expression told me that she was not very happy (for some reason). Robert looked like Robert. His face showed no expression.

"We will be wed on the day we leave!" Lou exclaimed, grasping Amelia's hand, who looked at him in pure love (which really scared me).

Everyone fell silent, confused.

"Because," Amelia began to add quickly, "I thought that maybe Lou, Emma and Elisa could come back with us to Frell for a time so Lou could find a job and we could live on our own. And Emma and Elisa will be able to stay with their brother for a while."

NOW everyone was gasping and saying "what a wonderful idea" and all that junk until I felt sick. I was going to LIVE with Amelia at HER house! It was like a nightmare come true!

"Father," Emma shouted above the noise, "we probably should stay home and all, because, well, because the horses and centaurs needed to be tended to, and, um, the house needs-"

"Oh, nonsense!" Father said, laughing. "Don't worry about the farm. We have Gilbert and Peter to take after the horses and centaurs. And the house will be fine with your mother and Flora."

"And what about Moonlight?" I asked quickly. "I can't leave him!"

"You could take him with us." Amelia said, before my Father could say anything. "We have a villa not very far east of Frell. He could stay there, and you could visit him when you want."

Father nodded. Why wasn't anyone asking us if Emma and I wanted to do this? Did they really think that we were thrilled about this idea? I couldn't say anything in front of Amelia, especially after being ordered not to complain about her to my family and Flora.

Emma and I tried everything. But there was always an excuse for our excuse. Finally, we gave in, and fell silent. We were doomed.