Brother. <3 500+ words.
######Running her finger along the binding of the tattered book she clutched in her hands, Princess inhaled silently, her mind racing with tidbits of worry at what she knew she had to do. Though it had happened under terrible circumstances, the girl was more than grateful for the talk she had had with Anselm on the rocky shore. No longer was she angry with how her brother had handled the news about her and Haven, but rather, she was feeling completely awful for how she had treated him after her lover had come to the borders. It had taken her too long to realize that Ares had only wanted to protect her and her honor, and though she did not completely agree with what he had done, she appreciated what he had wanted to do. She loved her brother too much to hang on to the anger that had bloomed, because she was not Tokyo. She never would be, and she hoped that her brother would tell her if she ever became too much like their mother. By continuing to harbor that anger towards him, Princess felt as though she was no better than the older Chance woman.
######Her talk with Anselm had yielded good results, even if she had taken some time to treat her wounds before acting on the results of the conversation. Her shoulder was still sore, and her neck had obviously been wounded recently, but once the bleeding had stopped occurring, she had taken a walk into one of the human cities, coming up to the big stone library with the strange-looking felines outside. No one would miss any of the books if she took them now, since all of the humans were gone. A whole day had been spent yesterday looking through the many books. It took a great deal of time until she found what she was looking for; a book that mentioned an Ares. Surprisingly, it was the name of the Greek god of war, whatever a Greek god was. Perhaps it was different from the other god she had read about once, in snippets of that thick book with the very thin pages. It seemed like a good present for Ares, since she had realized while searching that their birthday was just a day away. It had snuck up on them very quickly, it seemed. But now, she was a full-fledged adult, a whole year old, not just a woman in the standards of experience.
######She studied the title of the book in her hands, tracing her finger now along the faded letters. Universe, the Gods, and Men, the cover read, though she could not make out the name of the human that had written the book. Perhaps her brother would find enjoyment in reading this book, like she had enjoyed the bits and pieces she had read in the library. Raising her hand to his closed bedroom door, Princess braced herself for the potential anger that might come from her brother. One knock, then two, and then she lowered her hand to rest underneath the book with her other hand. She had not thought to wrap the gift, but now that she thought of it, it was too late. All that she had was her regular blue dress, and she was wearing that - she couldn't very well try and wrap his present in it! "Ares? It's me. I have a gift for you," she added, hoping that it might quell any potential resentment he might feel.
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