the past: childhood's hour.

part i

la luce che tu hai

"Dear Amara, where did you get those earrings?" The queen studied the hanging stars with gentle hands, feeling their smoothness and appreciating their quality stone. Her eyes fell to the matching necklace around the child's neck and a smile spread on her face. "Oh, I see… so you're the girl."

Amara's cheeks flushed with red heat and she stood rigidly still, "Um, what girl… Your Majesty?"

"Ravus mentioned giving a gift to a pretty girl in his class, but I hadn't an idea it was you." The queen continued, with a ponderous look on her face. "I should've guessed it however, as you two are always off together." The queen looked back down at the flustered face of the child, "Oh! Are you alright, dear?"

'Pretty?', she thought.

Amara nodded fervently, "U-um yes, Your Majesty! Sorry, I just… I'm..."

"That's quite alright, love," the queen crouched down and was eye-level with the child. "I was very shy at your age, too. It's not a bad thing, own it."

A bashful smile made it's home on Amara's face, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Not a thing," she replied.

From far behind the queen came a pair of footsteps, solid and firm as if someone of great import was making the rounds. Amara was frightened at the prospect of talking to someone else and aimed her eyes towards the ground.

"Mother!" The voice of Ravus came and he bolted for the queen.

Amara looked up at the sound and peeked her head around the queen's shoulder, blushing when she saw Ravus' surprised smile.

After Ravus hugged his mother, he took a step back and smiled at Amara. "Hey— er, hello Lady Amara."

"Hi, Ravus." Amara mumbled.

"Love, we were just talking about you." The queen winked at Amara, stifling a laugh at her bashful expression. "But nevermind that, what did you need, sweetheart?"

Ravus furrowed his brow at his mother's comment, but didn't ask about it. "I wanted to know if you were ready to go… Lord Amphion and Lady Callisto have arrived."

"Ah! That's right, our day trip." The queen stood up, "Is little Lady Bianca in tow as well?"

'Hopefully not,' Amara thought.

"Yes, she asked for Luna but I told her she's with Noctis."

The queen nodded, "That poor boy… I hope he recovered fully. I believe his father's coming today, so be sure to give him your blessing."

"Yes, mother." Ravus nodded.

"Right, well… if you two are ready, why don't we walk out together?"

"Sure!" Ravus exclaimed, he led Amara by the hand, "C'mon, we've gotta get our swords."

"We're practicing today?" Amara asked, following after him.

Ravus smiled, "Why not?"

x

The duo stood in a lush thicket of greenery, that was situated in the private woods a ways behind the castle. The Montane Woodlands, as it was called, stretched far and wide behind the castle, acting as a play area for the royal children and a quiet spot for the queen, Sylva.

"Before we start..." Ravus flourished his sword, "what do you remember from last time?"

Amara shifted her weight to her other foot, letting her sparring sword fall, "Well… you said never let your gua— hey!"

Ravus hit her across the abdomen and Amara reached for her sword; her hand was hit away and he swiped a leg across her own, causing her to fall to the ground.

Amara glared at him, rubbing her mid-back, "That's not fair, you didn't even say start."

"They don't say start out on a battlefield, or do they?" Ravus picked up the sword and tossed it at her.

Amara caught it in annoyance, "What business does a prince have out on the battlefield? You'll be stuck managing the kingdom, not fighting."

Ravus twirled the sword in his hand, "And what if I want to fight?"

"I never thought you'd want to," Amara admitted. "Maybe you're too… nice for that?" She wanted to say 'sweet' but her shyness killed the urge before it formed into a phrase.

"Well… being nice is good, but it doesn't protect you from getting hurt." Ravus' voice grew quiet and he thought about what else he wanted to say.

Amara didn't care for conversations that leaned on the darker side, "Is there really a need to worry about things like that?"

"Of course. The world isn't always so perfect."

"But... for right now it is." Amara offered.

Ravus frowned a bit, "I guess I can't expect you to understand. You being nobility and all; you're kept away from all of that."

"And you aren't? You're royalty… the most secure and protected class in Tenebrae."

He let out an annoyed sigh, "You're not getting it… nevermind."

"Huh?" Amara mumbled, confused at what he was trying to say. "I mean you can say it… if you still want to."

"No, it just… anyway, let's get back to what we were doing." He resumed his offensive stance and brandished his sword.

Amara nodded slowly, "Right."

x

Two hours waned and the children were now sitting down, shoulder-to-shoulder up against a large oak tree; it's branches low enough to sit and climb on. The latter of which the two did beforehand, pretending to be treasure hunters on a journey.

"These outings are usually just an excuse for our parents to be in each others company." Ravus started. "Why do they bother making it a family thing? Why not just go it alone? It's a bit disingenuous."

Amara shrugged, "Maybe when you have kids, you'll understand."

"I don't think I need to have kids to understand," Ravus studied the leaf in his fingers.

"If you had them you wouldn't have asked that question."

Ravus chuckled, "Always the know-it-all."

"It's just a guess, really." Amara replied, playing with the edge of her shirt. Her eyes wandered up to the bright sky, one cloud in particular was perforated with a perfect circle and at it's crest was a mountain range-like structure.

'Weird, it's like someone cut it out,' she thought, 'with a stencil.'

Ravus tossed the leaf away and folded his hands together in an attempt to hide their shaking. He looked over at the daydreaming girl and took a breath.

"Remember that promise we made?"

Amara turned to face him, "Hm? What about it?"

"Is it still… in action?" He put on a brave face, but Amara could detect a nervous energy underneath.

She cocked her head to the side, "Of course. Why wouldn't it be?"

"Well, I just..." he blushed, "stop making this hard!"

"I'm not!"

He scratched his head, "This… kinda goes in with what I was trying to say earlier." He paused and bit his lip, "Seems I still can't say it."

"Ravus." She pressed, annoyed at his sudden reservedness.

"What?"

"Just say it."

"Well, okay." Ravus let out a nervous sigh and opened his mouth to speak, but before he could a grimaced formed. "Maybe later."

Amara hit his shoulder playfully, "Rav… you wasted my time."

"It's your fault," he shook his head. "You always make me so ner—"

One of the servants staffed for the day trip, came bustling around the bend urgently. "Forgive my intrusion, Prince Ravus and Lady Amara, but the Lucian royalty is en route. Queen Sylva has called the outing to a close and you two are to depart soon."

"Thank you," Ravus stood up, dismissing the servant with a quick gesture.

Amara followed suit and was soon standing next to the prince. Though he stood more than a head taller, Amara found it comforting and not intimidating to look up at him.

"These always end quicker than I expect." Ravus mumbled.

Amara nodded and picked up the sparring sword next to her, "Well, maybe next time it can last longer, and hopefully I'll beat you then."

"Whatever," he laughed, "that's not happening."

"So you say." Amara and the prince began walking, "So about that promise."

Ravus clenched his jaw, "What about it?"

"I still accept." She put a finger on her chin, "Do you accept a promise? That doesn't make much sense."

"Grammatically I'm not sure on the rules." Ravus twirled his sword in his hand, "But thank you, Hani."

Amara raised her eyebrows at the nickname; it was rooted in her middle name and no one else called her that. With a smile, she said, "Of course, Ravie."