AN: Hello once again lovely readers! First I want to thank all of you who read, reviewed and favourited, it means a lot really. Now about this chapter, it's longer than the previous one and it also has a lot of development in the story. With that said I just wanna ask you: Please don't kill me! And I hope that after this chapter you'll still follow my story. Well all that's left now to say is: Enjoy your reading and as always any reviews will be most welcomed!

CHAPTER 10

NAOMI'S POV

I get home and park my motorcycle at the usual spot in front of my house. After taking my helmet of and grabbing my keys out of my leather jacket, I go to open the door and notice that it's already unlocked. Finding it strange, I go inside and try to make as less noise as I can and when I enter the hallway and hear the sound of the telly coming from the leaving room, I immediately know what's going on.

"Nathan." I sighed, "I should have guessed." I say as I plump down on my couch.

"Welcome home Naomi." He says without much emotion in his voice, "Took you long enough to get here."

I scoff and ask bitterly, "Are you controlling me now?"

He shrugs and says, "Father asked me to."

"What?! Why?" I ask annoyed, "What did you say to him?"

He furrows his eyebrows, "I didn't say anything." His expression immediately changes to a challenging one, "Are you afraid I'll tell him your dirty little secrets?"

"Oh bugger off will you?" I say getting up to leave the room.

"Naomi wait!" He calls and I turn around to him.

"That's not the only reason I came for."

I sigh, "Fine. What was it then?"

He gulps and gives me a guilty look, "Earlier in the day, I realized I acted wrong with your friend."

"You mean JJ?" I ask trying to sound oblivious.

"No! I mean, him too. But I was referring to Emily."

"So? What's new? It's not the first time you were a prick to a friend of mine's."

He sighs and says almost desperately, "I'm trying to say I'm sorry ok?"

I squint my eyes at him confused, "Why now? What made you want to apologize this time?"

"Because in a certain way I could feel that that girl is important to you." He says with a hint of worry in his voice.

"What makes you say that?" I shrug my shoulders, "She's just another friend."

"Yeah well, you can call it anyway you like it. It doesn't change the fact that you look at her as if she is the most precious being in the room." He says bluntly leaving me with an open mouth.

I gulp hard, feeling the words stuck in my throat. I don't know what to say, I don't even know if I am able to say anything at all.

"Look Naomi, I know we have our disagreements and quarrels, but you're still my sister. I can sense very well what you're feeling."

He waits for an answer from me, but I can't give him one. After a short pause he speaks again,

"Just be more careful this time ok? I don't want you to go through the same shit again."

I nod and finally answer him, "I will be." He gets up and comes to me giving me a hug. I missed his hugs; I had almost forgotten how comfortable his embrace was.

"Thank you Nathan." I leave his embrace now, "And I'm sorry I snap at you at school. I know you left there hurt."

"Yeah well, I pretty much deserved it." He says smiling and I smile back.

"Ah but wait! That was one of the reasons for you being here. What about dad's request?"

He looks at me oblivious, "Honestly, I don't know. He just said I should come here to check on you. Maybe he just wanted to know if you were fine. Since you started living here on your own, you haven't given us many news."

I give him a sad look, "I'm sorry for that too. But it's hard for me to be in that house since, you know…"

My brother looks at me with a sad but kind smile, "I know baby sis, but it's hard on all of us. Just try to make a little more effort for me and dad, please? Especially for dad."

I nod and give him a small smile, "Ok. I will."

"Good. Well I have to get going now." He gives me a kiss on the forehead and goes to the door, saying before he leaves, "I'm glad we sorted this out."

"Yeah, me too." I wave him goodbye and after he's gone I let out a huge breath of relief.

After all this, I realize that I haven't gotten ready yet and I'm probably late to meet the girls at the water park. Shit! Hurry up now, no time for being picky, I just got to get up to my room and put my bathing suit and towel in my bag and get going. With that sorted in only a few minutes, I go downstairs and make my way outside to my bike. Ok, all I have to do is just start the engine and drive. Let's go "Babe"!

EMILY'S POV

The waterpark was not that far from our house, so with Alfred driving we got there in no time. We walk for a bit until we spot Effy laying on a towel near the water.

"Hello miss sunshine, trying to get suntanned are we?" Cassie asks her.

"More like sunburned." We hear a voice from behind us say in playful tone.

"Hello to you too Naomi." Effy says smirking.

Cassie turns to Naomi, "You got here fast." I also turn to greet her, but somehow my body is not cooperating with my body, seeing as I can't even look at her in the eye.

"Yeah I did, even though I had an unexpected guest waiting for me at home."

"Oh did something bad happen?" My cousin asks with concern.

"No, no, don't worry. It's all settled now." There's a short pause after that.

"So Emily, are you gonna say hi to me, or are you just gonna stand there?" Naomi asks me and I think she's a bit annoyed.

I finally lift my head up, "Yeah, sorry. I just…" My brain decides to go blank as soon as I see her crystal blue eyes pierce right into my soul. Nevertheless, I had made a commitment with myself, so even it's hard as hell, I have to apologize for what I said.

"I would like to talk to you alone, if you don't mind." Well look at that, I said it without even stutter.

"Fine, let's go then." She answers, "Girls we'll be right back. Don't soak up all the sunrays please. I would like some of them for myself too."

Effy and Cassie both laugh, as we go to walk.

"You know Emily, these walks of us all alone are becoming a habit."

"Yeah, you're right."

"So… What did you want to talk about?" She asks.

I stop now and try to look at her eyes, but immediately look away from her.

"I just wanted…" I begin to say but she interrupts.

"Emily, if we're going to talk, I need you to look at me." She says putting her hand on my cheek and turning my face gently to her. Then she kindly smiles at me and I feel myself blush profusely.

"Why is it so hard for you to look at me?" Naomi asks softly.

My heart starts pounding like crazy, almost leaping out my chest, "I don't know. I just… It's like you can see right through me."

"I see, it's the same for me." She says taking her hand from my cheek and clearing her throat, "Anyway, you have something to tell me, what is it?"

"I just wanted to apologize for what I said earlier, about it being bad for you to be at my house." I say, and I think I see a bit of sadness on her eyes, "I didn't mean that I didn't want you there, because I do. Very much!"

She insists, "But?"

I sigh, "But my father is very intolerable with certain things, and one of those is "No one enters this house, unless it's someone from our family our royalty." I pause, "So, when Cassie said you could come with us, I got scared that he would throw you out or get mad if he saw you."

Now she's the one who looks away to the floor, "I see. Well maybe we shouldn't hang out so much together then." She says with sadness evident on her voice.

I can't resist to grab her forearm, "No! That's not what I'm saying." She looks at me again and I proceed, "I don't want to stop seeing you. I couldn't… You're my friend."

She shrugs, "So, what do you plan on doing?"

"We can still be together, as long as you don't go to my house and my father doesn't know about our friendship, then it's alright."

She rolls her eyes and says with sarcasm evident on her voice, "Well that's just great isn't it?"

Hearing her speaking like this hurts me more that I could admit, but I understand perfectly why she feels like this, "I'm sorry. I know it's bad, but it's the only I can be your friend. Will you give it a chance?" I plead to her.

"Will we still be able to hang out at school?"

"Yes of course!"

"Ah fine! I accept then. How could I resist to those brown puppy eyes anyway?" She says smiling. I love to see her smile, it makes me so warm inside. But… wait a second.

"Puppy eyes?!" I ask her faking being unaware of what she's saying.

"Oh c'mon! Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about." She says chuckling.

"I have no idea, no clue at all." I say and smirk.

She shakes her head in disbelief, "You're a vixen Emily Fitch."

"Auch, now I'm hurt." I say putting my hand on my chest messing with her.

We smile at each other for a few seconds until we remember that we're supposed to be with Cassie and Effy, so we decide to go.

"Ah there you are! Long chat eh?" Effy states smirking.

"Yeah we had somethings to clarify." Naomi answers her sitting down.

"I'm glad you did. Emsy come and sit with me." Cassie says patting the space next to her and I do.

The four of us stayed like that, just enjoying the place we're at and the great weather in the company of each other's, talking about nothing and everything.

Eventually, the subject of conversation fell on what had happened in the afternoon at the pub.

"I'm worried about Cook girls. He isn't usually like that." Cassie says to us.

"I know. I will try to talk with him." Naomi says worried.

I want to ask them something, but I don't know if I should. I end up deciding to, "Do you have any idea why he acted like he did?"

Effy sighs, "I may have a clue why."

"Well tell us then." Cassie insists.

"Ok." Effy pauses, "The other day I heard Tony and Cook speaking at my house, and for what I understood, it seems that Cook got called to go fight the war."

Cassie and Naomi both look at her with great worry evident on their faces.

"What, why?" Cassie asks with her voice breaking.

"I think they're already choosing the people who will fight, starting by the ones who don't live near the city." Effy says with a low and sad voice.

I'm really confused by this, "War? There's going to be a war? What are you talking about?!"

Naomi looks at me with a shocked expression, "How could you not know? It's a war that your family summoned!" She raises her voice mad at me.

"Naomi! Don't talk to her like that! She has nothing to do with this." Cassie snaps at Naomi and holds me to her.

"Cassie what's going on?" I ask my cousin starting to get scared.

Effy and Naomi look at her shocked, "She really has no idea, does she?" Effy states coldly.

Naomi looks at Cassie with disappointment, "You didn't even had the guts to tell her. Nice one Cass."

"Cassie? What didn't you tell me?" I insist with her.

"Naomi is right. The Royals always had a quarrel with another Empire, and it's been years since they agreed to stop the wars and each one would live in his own lands without disturbing the other." Cassie pauses, and looks at me with so much sadness, that I almost don't recognize me happy and strong cousin, "But it seems that now… The other Empire wants to take everything our family conquered and owns, which means that we have to fight one another."

I step away from her, "No… It can't be. Please tell me this isn't true! Please…" I plead her in disbelief. Please tell me this is all a dream.

"I'm so sorry Emily, I'm so sorry you had to found out this way." Cassie says now crying.

I look at Effy and Naomi, and both of them are quiet and with cold hard expressions on their faces. Why won't they say anything?

"Naomi, Effy! Tell me it isn't true!" I say anxious.

Naomi looks at me with so much sadness on her voice and her beautiful crystal blue eyes are now a shade of dark, almost empty, "I can't Emily. Everything that Cassie said it's true. Your family is sending us to war."

"No… Don't say that…" I say as the tears start pouring down my face.

Cassie comes closer to me and says, "Emsy, we should go home now. It's getting late."

I shove her away, "No! Don't think for a second that I will go home to a family that's sending people to war! That's choosing a friend of mine to go fight for them!"

"You should do what Cassie's saying. It's best if you go and rest, it's getting late." Effy says coldly without even looking at me.

"I can't! How am I supposed to face my father?!" I say angry.

"Cassie. I agree with Emily. If she goes home in the state she's in, your family will get suspicious and will start to wonder where she learnt such information." Naomi says worried.

"What do you suppose we do then?" Cassie asks losing her patience.

Naomi stays silent thinking and after a seconds says, "You can come and stay at my house. I live alone so no one will be there. Also your family doesn't know me, so they won't be looking for you there."

"Naomi I don't know, you could get in big trouble." Cassie says, "I don't want you to suffer because of us."

She gives us a small smile, "You're like my family Cass. If I don't help you what kind of friend would I be?"

I'm having so many mixed feelings, I don't know what to do, I'm starting to get locked on until I feel Naomi putting her arm around my shoulders, "C'mon Ems, it's no good to be suffering here in the cold. Let's go, both of you can rest at my house. Effy you come too, I'll phone Tony later to pick you up. Is that ok with you?" She says.

"Yes, of course. I'll go too." Effy says, "Also, someone has to drive us there, you don't expect to take us all on your bike right?" She gives us a small smile.

"Yes, you're right. I had forgotten." Naomi says to her, "I'll come early tomorrow in the morning to get it."

After they had settled what to do, we entered Effy's car and she drove us all to Naomi's house. I was still stuck to the information I had just learned about and I felt so tired I ended up falling asleep; hoping that this was all just a nightmare and that soon I would wake up.

AN: So... That was it! Once again, I hope you're still with me on this. And believe me when I say that it was really emotional and hard for me to write this chapter, but even so, I decided to take a risk and publish it. If you have any complaints or just want to give your opinion feel free to leave a review. I'll see you until next chapter, hopefully.