DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: Dawn of Revolution

The Searchers, part 3

Four days later...

Even after she stewed over the painful subject during her work at Castle Rhoda, Murbella found no easy solutions to her family's delicate position. Were the sisters meant to stay together, or go their separate ways at last? There was wisdom in each route, but if no one could agree on where the family would go from here...

"You seem preoccupied, madam Murbella," the new king, Pevin Rhoda III, commented as he passed her in the hallway. It seemed he was always going somewhere, so restless on his feet. "Are you well?"

"I..." Murbella paused, carrying a thick folder of documents tucked under her right arm. On the plus side, the new royal family was so caring and considerate of its subjects, unlike the cruel days of King Belwin Rhoda XVIII. Then again, Murbella was not well, and she didn't feel like telling that to Lorelai's precious lover. Evidently, the king thought so too.

"Forgive me. Perhaps I should not ask," Pevin told her, motioning with a hand. "I have recently learned the dangers of curiosity."

"About your new wife?" Murbella said before she could help herself.

King Pevin Rhoda winced. "Yes, she... has many plots and connections that give me troubled thoughts at night. Yet she assures me all will be well for our kingdom and its people."

"I trust her. You should, too."

"I must agree, madam Murbella. Even with secrets, family must trust one another. Carry on." Pevin lifted his chin and stalked off.

Murbella watched him go. Part of her wanted to scorn the new king for acting so lofty when he understood nothing about life outside Castle Rhoda. Even so, Pevin clearly meant well, and maybe he would know something about family drama, considering who his sister was.

At least Maggie was there to encourage her troubled sister.

"A solution will surely present itself, Murbella," Maggie said as the two sisters roamed Castle Rhoda's front gardens during their brief window of free time. Bees and butterflies floated about, a nearby fountain bubbling with enchanted water. "Like you, I've given this some serious thought. Father and Minerva are contradicting themselves because they're confused, like us. We all are! A year ago, none of us could have expected anything like this to happen."

"Father is just so afraid of change," Murbella lamented. She idly reached out and picked at a honeysuckle blossom. "Now that I've cooled my head, I was able to think about it more critically. It's..." She bit her lower lip. "It's still painful to talk about, but I must."

"Go ahead," Maggie said gently.

Murbella took a deep breath. "This is really about Mother, isn't it? When we were little girls, she held us all together, like the sun in our sky. Losing her changed something in Father. I mean, we always knew that. But it's making him irrational now, even when we should understand each other more than ever."

"Yes, I considered that too," Maggie said. "Mother's passing affected us all differently. We were more alike with her around. And after that, we carved out new identities to distract us from the pain."

"Too new, according to Father," Murbella joked bitterly.

Maggie smiled kindly. "Murbella, you're not going to pin this entirely on Father, are you?"

"No, I'm not," Murbella said hastily. "It's just..." She sighed, running a hand over her face. "We're all so confused, plain and simple. Father says he's happy to see us try new careers, such as Miranda and Mozzie. Then he objects when they declare their intent to leave? What does he want from us? And then Minerva takes his side!"

"I can't blame Father for being afraid to lose the only family he has left," Maggie said softly.

"He's holding us back," Murbella said bitingly. "And he is overreacting! He's acting like Mozzie and Miranda will vanish forever. Mozzie didn't even say she'd leave Sassanoit at all! She just wants to be independent! She has every right!"

"Both sides are trying to do what's best for the family," Maggie reminded her sister. "Don't lose sight of that. We all care for one another. We just have different methods... and different fears."

"Is that so," Murbella said sourly.

"Yes. Father and Minerva are afraid that change will ruin us," Maggie said. "They fear it will finish what Mother's passing started: splintering the family. It would be such a dishonor to Mother's memory in their eyes."

"Getting stuck in the past is the real insult to Mother's memory!" Murbella cried hotly. She felt a surge of adrenaline at the very thought.

"And that is our side of the debate," Maggie continued. "No one is wrong, Murbella. We just have to agree on one course of action."

"So, anyone who argued for the other course of action would be wrong."

"Not necessarily," Maggie said, holding up a finger. "It's not always so cut and dried between right and wrong. Just different sides with the same desires."

Murbella shook her head. "There's your professional diplomacy again. You got me good, Maggie."

"Let's give it a few more days," Maggie said, taking her sister's hand and giving it a squeeze. "Personally, I see things your way, Murbrella. I fear that Father and Minerva are indeed stuck with the mother we no longer have with us, and it's hurting them. But we cannot force the issue. Coax out their willingness to see the problem our way. In fact, they might make the first move."

"They've been pretty quiet about it so far," Murbella noted. She thought back to the painfully tense family meals the six of them had had since the big argument. Only surface-level small talk, everyone dancing around the issue floating in their midst.

"I trust them," Maggie said earnestly. "Minerva loves us so much, Murbella. She's our leader as the eldest. Give her a chance to show it."

Murbella forced a laugh. "She was born just two minutes before you and was crowned the eldest sister. It barely even counts." She had joked about that plenty of times growing up. The sisters' mother had sometimes told the tale of her five beautiful daughters emerging into the world two just a few minutes apart from each other, with Murbella being last, and thus being the baby of the quintuplet squad. And now Murbella had to behave like the mature adult she was and do the right thing.

"Okay. I'll wait," Murbella said, squeezing Maggie's hand back. She managed a smile. "Our family should heal itself on its own accord."

"Couldn't have put it better myself," Maggie said brightly. She still seemed a little on edge, but hopeful. "Now, why don't we get some drinks in the castle before returning to our duties. We've got a kingdom to run."

"Lead the way."

*o*o*o*o*

Three days later...

Early one evening, while Farraday's chefs were still preparing dinner, Farraday summoned his five daughters to the second floor study. It was a cozy square room lined with bookshelves, a few paintings, and a window giving a panoramic view of the small mansion's grounds.

With her gut squirming with anxiety and anticipation, Murbella filed in with Mozzie, Maggie, and Miranda in tow. "We're here, Father," Murbella said. She and her sisters took their seats on various chairs in the study. "Good evening. And to you, Minerva."

The eldest sister was already there, seated on a winged chair with dark blue padding that contrasted with Minerva's yellow gown. Farraday stood right behind her and to her left, a hand resting on the chair's back.

"Good evening, Maggie, Mozzie, Miranda, Murbella," Farraday said, his tone carefully neutral. He cleared his throat. "Your sister wants to speak with you before we adjourn to the dining room."

"Of course," Maggie said, hands folded on her lap. "Whenever you're ready, Minerva."

"Thank you." Minerva swallowed, giving her four sisters an uncharacteristically timid look. She took a deep breath. "I apologize deeply for how I behaved last week, when we had our heated... well, discussion about our respective futures we sought for ourselves."

"I regret my previous conduct as well. It was unbecoming of me," Farraday added. Murbella had the impression her father and eldest sister had rehearsed this.

"Apology accepted," Maggie said graciously. She smiled at Mozzie, Miranda, and Murbella as if to say Right?

"You're so kind," Miranda told Minerva, mirroring Maggie's smile. "Thank you!"

"I forgive you," Mozzie told Minerva. "And I apologize too if anything I said hurt you or Father."

"I welcome your apology, Minerva," Murbella added. "I, too, am deeply sorry if I said anything to hurt you."

"You're blameless, Mozzie, Murbella," Minerva said quickly, motioning with her hands. "Please rest easy."

"This is partly my fault," Miranda admitted. "Remember? It's like I wanted to fight you, Minerva. Ugh, it's embarrassing just to think about it!" She hung her head.

"I implore us all to move on from any unkind words we spoke last week," Minerva said gently but firmly. "Even more than apologies, we all need some clear explanations. There are some... things... that I must confess to the four of you."

Murbella leaned forward in her seat, eyeing her oldest sister closely. What on earth could Minerva have been hiding all along? Minerva was the one who kept the sister squad together with her no-nonsense leadership, before and after joining Lorelai's revolution! Based on their faces, Maggie, Mozzie, and Miranda were just as confused.

Minerva looked down and twisted her hands in her lap. "As the oldest of us, it fell to me to look after us all after Mother passed. And that continues to this very day. It's a great responsibility, one that I never took lightly."

Murbella could feel the quiet tension among her sisters practically double. Any discussion of their late mother would have that effect.

"And you did such a wonderful job, Minerva," Mozzie said earnestly. She clasped her hand together under her chin, her eyes radiating sympathy. "I could never do what you did for us! I still remember you holding me until I finished crying at Mother's burial. It felt like you were the only thing keeping the spirit in my body."

"And me," Maggie added, putting a hand to her heart. "Anytime I struggled with our studies, you were there to help me, even long after the moon rose."

"And me, too!" Miranda put in, raising her hand. "Minerva, remember that puppy I found in the alley, and how much I wanted to adopt it? You talked Father into letting me keep it for a month until we gave it to a shelter. I was so happy."

Farraday chuckled. "Ah, yes. I was worried about the pup chewing my furniture or soiling the rugs. But it put such joy in your eyes, Miranda. Minerva was quite happy for you."

Murbella's eyes widened with pleasant surprise. She had forgotten all about that! Miranda had named the puppy Laddie after a funny character she read about in a fairy tale book right here in the study.

"You were so strong, Minerva," Murbella told her fondly. "We owe you so much." The sisters had told Minerva that before, but Murbella meant it now more than ever.

"That means a lot to me, Murbella," Minerva said, her voice getting choked up as she made a watery smile. "I must confess: I may be our leader, but at times, I confused leadership with forcing my will onto the four of you. I had no right. I did wrong by all of you."

"We forgive you! Totally!" Miranda cried, raising her hand again. "We love you as our sister, Minerva. No matter what any of us do, we will all forgive her. Isn't that how we've always done things?"

"This time, I went much too far," Minerva said, her eyes watering. "This is a new chapter of our lives, for all six of us. This brings me to my main point: I will not stand in the way of your future plans any longer. I was wrong to even try it. Father feels the same way."

"Daughters, I can't ask you to forgive me so easily after all these years for the way I stifled your lives," Farraday confessed heavily. He looked down, his eyes distant. "When your mother was taken by that plague, I thought I had lost everything. I clung to you much too tightly. You five were all I had left of her. But I had no right to deny you your free lives just because your mother lost hers."

"F-Father," Mozzie choked, tears on her cheeks. "We all miss her. Let's have that be a reason we're closer now, not a reason to drive each other apart."

"Hence my apology," Minerva continued heavily. "I can't be Mother's substitute any longer. We are all grown, and the civil war is won. We are all our own people now. I was too stubborn, and too afraid, to see that."

"To let go of your role," Maggie presumed. "It must not have been easy to admit this. I'm in awe."

"Yes." Minerva gripped her chair's arms tightly. "As of tonight, I'm not our leader anymore, sisters. I'm just Minerva, plain and simple." She was breathing hard. "Mozzie, Miranda, the world is yours. Father and I will run the family business as we always intended, and as for the rest of you... please send me letters about your wonderful adventures!" She smiled again. It seemed strained.

"Minerva!" Miranda leaped to her feet, crossed the room, and threw herself onto her sister in a generous hug. "I'm sorry if me going away scares you! But I promise to send letters! Mozzie, too!"

"It's a promise," Mozzie said with a timid laugh.

"Thank you both," Minerva said, and then she started sobbing.

"M-Minerva! What's wrong?" Miranda cried.

"It's... it's just..." Minerva wiped the tears from her cheeks. "This is such a burden lifted off of me. F-forgive me if this sounds selfish, but..."

"But what?" Murbella prompted her gently.

Miranda backed away as Minerva clapped her hands over her face. "For years, being Mother's substitute was all I knew. I fought so hard to keep us together against everything we faced! Our grief, our frustration at the world, fighting the royal army in the civil war... I always had an enemy to unite us against as our strong leader. And today, it's over. I don't have to pretend to be strong anymore!"

"But you are strong!" Maggie cried. "Minerva, what are you saying?"

"I was so terrified I'd fail at that role," Minerva admitted tearfully. "It haunted my days and nights! What if I could never be like mother? What if I was fooling myself? I never felt good enough for Mother's memory, however much I tried. Hiding my fear and my weakness in front of your four... it was an ordeal. Now I can be just your ordinary sister, and... I..."

"Minerva -" Mozzie started cautiously.

"It was my way of clinging to Mother's memory! So I felt like we never lost her," Minerva blubbered. "I kept us all together to honor her. But now I can say good-bye to Mother properly this time. I can move on. Now I can..."

Minerva surprised everyone when she bolted to her feet, buried her face in Farraday's chest, and bawled at the top of her lungs. Murbella could hear years of released strain and grief pouring from her eldest sister, and she felt sympathetic tears stinging in her eyes. She had no idea! No doubt Minerva felt like she was losing Mother all over again right now, but it had to happen eventually. The sisters all had all decided on their own ways to move on, and this was Minerva's.

"It's all right," Farraday said gently, holding his daughter as she sobbed and wailed into his silk vest. "Let it all out, Minerva. Your mother would have been so proud of what you've done." He sniffed and blinked back his own tears. Interesting - this was the first time Murbella had ever seen her father cry! Even at his wife's funeral, Farraday had been like a statue, his face stony and his eyes unreadable during the entire burial. Maybe he had been trying to project strength and endurance in the face of the family tragedy. Well, there was no need for that anymore.

It was another moment or two before Minerva parted from her father, wiping her cheeks one last time, her breathing heavy. She took one last deep breath, looked around at her sisters, then smiled. "Excuse me, but I had a few things to get off my chest. I'm sure I'm done now."

"You can cry on my chest sometime," Miranda said brightly, fists on her hips. "I'll be there for you, Minerva! I'll cross the continent for you if I must!"

Everyone chuckled at that. Miranda was so refreshing when people needed it.

"Holding my sisters back and clinging to the past is no way to honor Mother's memory. That's clear to me now," Minerva said confidently, clasping her hands in front of her navel. "I apologize once again, Mozzie, Miranda, for my misguided intentions! In fact, I'm excited to hear about your new adventures!"

"I can't wait," Mozzie said with a smile crossing her face. She stood and tossed her hair. "Minerva, I'll make you proud! And you too, Father! This is how I'll pay you both back for protecting me so selflessly."

Murbella couldn't help a carefree smile of her own as she got to her feet. "Perhaps one day, I may do the same," she volunteered. "For now, Queen Lorelai needs me. I'm comfortable with my work. But when the Kingdom is stabilized, and Lorelai can hire more royal clerks, who knows? I may travel the world and search out all its wonders. I could ride one of those Talwyddian airships, sail on a Trassian explorer ship, ride with nomads in the Khanate... anything." She felt her heart race with excitement at the very thought. Whew!

"No matter what paths you choose, daughters, you have my support," Farraday said, puffing out his chest. "And this time, I speak true. I swear it upon my ancestors' names! My five girls are grown up. Who am I to stand in their way?"

"We'll be careful, Father," Murbella promised him. "I have seen how terrifying the world can be. But... it's our world. We must accept it as our own."

"At least, all the fun parts," Miranda added, and everyone laughed again.

"I'll miss you all," Minerva added fondly. "I have half a mind to get out there myself and see those airships or nomads with my own eyes."

"Do it!" Miranda cried.

Minerva shook her head. "I've already made up my mind to support Father's business, Miranda. That's the path I chose. Everyone's letters will be good enough for me."

Everyone gave her an expectant look.

"And maybe a few souvenirs," Minerva added, and the sisters nodded in agreement. That was more like it!

There was a knock, and everyone jumped as the study's door creaked inward. "Sir? Ladies?" one of the maids, a middle-aged half-elf, said. "Your evening meal is about to be served. Can we expect you in the dining room?"

"Ah, yes!" Farraday said briskly, clapping his hands and making for the door. "Daughters, let us adjourn to the dining room, and daydream however we wish about airships and nomads."

"Good, 'cause I was getting hungry," Miranda said lightly, hurrying to join her father. "I need energy for the roads ahead! Haha!"

Maggie snorted. "She never changes." Then she headed for the door and motioned. "Coming?"

"Of course," Minerva said loftily, holding her chin up as she joined Maggie at the door. Mozzie gave Murbella a friendly nod as she departed too, leaving Murbella to take up the rear, her mind swirling with thoughts. For all she knew, this would be one of the family's last meals together for quite some time. Better savor every last morsel! Yes, that sounded like a wonderful idea.