章 13: Memories of the Past
Thirteen years prior on Planet Name...
Gen, twelve years old, spread her arms wide as her older brother Law, who was twenty-five at the time, held her in the air and spun in circles. Wind brushed her cheeks, "Planet Name's The True Love Song" filled the wedding reception, and the surrounding people laughed. There weren't many people, just a few important officials and the family members who would have approved of Law marrying Planet Name's princess, Princess King—first name Princess, last name King.
It was a laid back ceremony. Princess was the next heir to the throne, so her act of marrying an orphan of a fallen elite family would have caused riots. To avoid this she borrowed from the traditions of D'nathal, and Law married her as her secret mister, which some people in the know-how called him.
The dance floor was empty except for Gen and Law. Princess watched them from afar, hands resting on her pregnant belly. She stood next to the longevity turtles, which were to be named and released at the very end of the reception.
A droid stood next to her. Humanoid with boxy shoulders, small skinny legs, and a single eye, it antagonized Gen with its presence. Even now as Law lifted her into the air, she wanted to toss a stone at it.
That's what it deserves for never recognizing her, Gen thought. Her current puffy, pink dress did little to soothe her frustration. She had wanted to wear a suit, because suits were handsome, but she was left with a girly, itchy dress. It pricked her soul.
"Gen, smile a bit for me, won't you? I just got married," Law said as he slowly stopped spinning. He teetered a little; his constant spinning of her in the days prior to the wedding did little to get him used to the dizziness.
Gen smiled, donning a perfectly sincere guise. Her words didn't match it: "Why does the droid get to be here? I want to kick it. It has a mean AI."
"Can't you get along with it?" Law patted her head. Seeing that the groom's family dance was done, the other guests walked onto the dance floor and began pairing off.
Approaching, Princess stood next to Law and hooked her arm in his. She chuckled and said to Gen, "Even at a party you still have a bone to pick with droids."
Gen wrinkled her brows and cocked her head. "I do? What makes you think that?"
"You were glaring." Princess patted Gen's head, revealing she had been watching them. Whatever Law did, she would do to.
"No, I wasn't."
"Stop lying." Law flicked Gen's forehead, causing Princess to flick his. He then kissed his new wife on the lips.
Grimacing, Gen found the pair unbearable to watch. She didn't like how Princess married her brother; it made Law have less time for her. She felt closest to Law because he always recognized her no matter what she wore. Everyone else had trouble, including Mind; and she only forgave her second brother because he was crazy and fixated on refrigerators.
Gen pursed her lips then forced tears to fall from her eyes. Fake crying, she sniffled and said, "Droids are mean."
"Gen." Law wrinkled his brows and picked her up. She was too large and old to be held, and Gen imagined they looked very awkward, but she was happy. She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled in triumph. Law said, "Princess, please give us a moment."
His sweetheart nodded.
He then took Gen into the kitchen, which was connected to the reception area; the kitchen was built next to it so that Mind wouldn't wander far.
Law placed Gen on the counter. She sat next to a few of Mind's gizmos, and doing a cursory glance around the room, she couldn't find him. She guessed her thirteen-year-old brother was crouching on the other side of the kitchen island, outside her view.
Law wiped away her tears. "Gen do you want to tell me what this is all about?"
She sighed. "I'm wearing a dress."
"Gen," he said her name sternly and raised a single brow at her.
"I really don't like them." Gen shook her head. "I'm being honest. I really don't like them. And..." she went silent.
"And what?"
"Do I look pretty? Five people, FIVE people wanted to send me away." She held up her hand, splaying her fingers wide. The problem didn't lay in beauty, but that people didn't realize it was her in the dress; and Law knew it.
He sighed. "Of course you're pretty. You're gorgeous." He paused to smile. "They didn't recognize you because you stunned them with your beauty."
Gen flared her nostrils, not believing him. She said, "So you mean to say my normal self is ugly?"
"Gen, let me ask you something." Lifting himself, Law sat onto the counter and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Did you say your name was Gender Bender?"
She looked away and mumbled. "I don't like that name."
"Gen, if you do that..."
"What does that matter?" she asked. Her eyes met his. "The droids never recognize me and they've got freakin' scanners! I grow a centimeter, and people find me only somewhat familiar. And when I change my name...they...they think I'm a complete stranger."
He sighed. "It's an aura side effect. You can't change that."
"I know it's not. Look." She raised her hand and created a little pulse of aura. It was tiny, but it had grown larger and more solid than it had been the week prior. "This is my aura break, and it has nothing to do with being invisible. I know side effects always relate to one's aura break, so you're just saying that to comfort me."
Law shook his head. "That's not your aura break."
"How do you know? I haven't fully awakened. Come little pulses." She flicked her fingers and made more pulses. Seeing them excited her, and her lips pulled up into a grin. "One day, I'll build a force field."
He rubbed her head. "Trust me, that is not your aura break."
"You're just trying to comfort me because I'm unimportant. So worthless that nobody remembers me." Her eyes began to swell. "Only you care about me."
Law hugged her. "Don't say that, and don't trick yourself into believing it. Mind loves you too. Don't you, Mind?"
A small snort of assent came from the other side of the kitchen island. He was eavesdropping, as always.
Gen gazed at Law. "May I enroll into Aura Knight Academy? I don't want to be a nobody. I want to be a hero and rescue a prince someday. And then we'll marry."
Law laughed and ruffled her hair. "When you're fifteen. But only if you learn to be more honest. Understand? No more pretending to be someone else, no more fake tears, no more pretending to be confused. No more manipulation. Got it?"
Gen wrinkled her brows.
Law sighed. "It's fine to a certain extent. But you need to at least know your true self. I love you for you, not some fake guise."
"Okay. I promise."
"Want to return to the dance floor?" Law coaxed her, "We'll soon name and release the longevity turtles. I'll let you name one, even if you decide to name it 'Dead Carcass' or 'Turtle Soup.' "
Gen shook her head, and he jumped down from the counter. When he reached the door, Gen called out to him.
"Wait! Why, err, how do you recognize me? No matter what I disguise myself as, you always know it's me."
Law smiled. She never forgot his words: "It's because I love you."
"Then, will someone else ever love me too?"
He laughed. "What, I'm not enough?"
Gen leapt off the counter and pranced to him. She clutched his hand and thought of Princess's belly. "I want to get married too. And have little children to protect."
"Isn't this too soon to be thinking about children? I'm twenty-five; you're twelve."
"If I don't start now, how will I marry by your age?" Gen tugged his arm. "I gotta first make myself unforgettable."
Law shook his head, a faint smile on his lips. "Here, if you're single and still not married by twenty-five, I'll set you up on a date. It'll be with a man who will fall in love with you at first sight. Got it?"
"I'm not stupid," she said. "Love at first sight? That only happens in fairy tales."
"But you're special. You will be the princess of a fairy tale." Then Law called out to behind the kitchen counter. "Hey Mind, let's make this promise. If Gen isn't married by twenty-five, we'll find her a husband. Got it?"
"Okay!" Mind exclaimed.
—————
"Hey, little lamb? Little lamb!"
"What?" Gen looked up. She was back at the fashion gala, thoughts no longer drifting. Umbra's brows were furrowed. The music had stopped and so did their dance, but she didn't remember any of it. It had been years since the last time her mind had drifted like that, and it left her exhausted.
Something warm and wet covered her cheeks. She went to touch it, but Umbra was quicker. He used his palm and thumb to wipe away her tears. His touch felt soft against her skin. No calluses.
"You were crying," he said, and Gen nodded.
"It's not important."
A burst of cold assaulted her back and the rest of the room. Aether had aura broken, summoning his seven ice shards. They orbited him as he strode towards Gen. He said, "Umbra, get away from her."
Umbra's smile grew malicious. He clapped, forming five orbs as his palms pulled away from each other. "Want to play?"
"Please, don't," Gen said and placed herself between the two men. She felt frustrated at everything but didn't know why. The back of her neck tingled; the spectators were glaring at her, each of their stares painfully sharp.
"As you wish, little lamb." Umbra dismissed his orbs. He smirked at Aether. "So now you're jealous."
"So petty," Aether said.
Their auras exuded pressure against each other. Caught in the middle, Gen used all her willpower to stop herself from slamming an aura barrier into both of them. If only she wasn't Dessy but instead Gen; she'd kick them in the groin then flee.
Instantly, the two men halted and their pressures abated. They faced the door.
Gen frowned. Who could it be this time? She hoped it wasn't Janus Puresoul. All she wanted was to lay in her bed and sleep.
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