𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭

𝟎𝟐. 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐭 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐭𝐬 | 𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒚

Henry sat in the plush red velvet seat that gave him a good view of the polished wooden stage. They were in one of the many theatres in the Amethyst House of the Arts in the neighbouring Moonrose Empire to watch a performance specially put together by the only school in Eden.

Many might wonder, given how big Eden was with its many kingdoms and cities, how could there only be one school? Well, Henry thought that it was a rather smart move on the Council of God’s part as one school meant that the future generations of Eden could learn and bond with one another, creating friendships instead of unhealthy competition and rivalries. That was how Henry had many allies throughout Eden, although, of course, he bore some ill feelings towards some of his peers, but it wasn't anything serious.

“So?” Isla prompted, bringing him out of his thoughts.

Henry knew immediately what she meant and rolled his eyes at her. Even though she was his twin, they looked almost nothing like each other, save for the hair. He had always been told that he looked more like their father with his defined jawline, strong brows and thick head of hair, though no one knew where his dark hair, which all four siblings shared, and red eyes had come from. Meanwhile, Isla looked more like their mother with her soft features and warm brown ones.

“So, what?” he shot back, a small smirk playing on his lips.

Isla merely gave him her infamous cheshire grin that had him on high alert. Whenever she sported that grin, it meant that she was up to something and that didn’t necessarily mean it would be good for him.

He narrowed his eyes at her. “Isla…” he warned. What was she planning now?

His sister merely leaned back in her seat, looking back at him with wide, innocent eyes. “Yes, my favourite twin brother?”

“I’m your only twin and you better not do anything.”

Isla just gave him that infuriating smile before she turned back towards the stage. Meanwhile, their youngest brother, Lucien, turned back to smirk at him. This action caused the girl leaning against Lucien to turn around as well.

“See any girl you like, Henry?” Lucien teased, causing his wife to laugh.

Henry still couldn’t wrap his head around how Lucien was the first of the four siblings to get married to their childhood friend—Princess Verity of the Underworld Kingdom. Verity wasn't known for her beauty or smartness, but for being a people's princess, putting the starlings’ needs before her own and meeting them. And that was perhaps why she had scores of suitors before her marriage.

Isla elbowed him sharply in the ribs, bringing him back to the conversation. She had managed to hit one of his rib bones which left him hissing in pain.

“All the ladies that came earlier were quite pretty,” she noted, ignoring her twin's scrunched-up face, “but what about their personalities?”

“I think the main question is, how good is his taste, personality-wise?” Verity prompted, causing his siblings to laugh. Lucien was laughing so hard, he buried his head in Verity’s shoulder.

“Yeah, imagine if all the girls he shortlisted end up like his ex.” Isla laughed.

Henry winced as they laughed even harder. “Can we not talk about her?”

Jacob cleared his throat, causing everyone to snicker, and said, “Well, maybe if you abandon the notion of love, you would save yourself a lot of trouble and heartache. Honestly, the way the world views love nowadays is—”

“Children, the show is starting,” his mother interrupted, causing all of them to quiet down.

Henry sat up straighter in his seat as the heavy velvet curtains lifted from the stage, revealing the intricate set. A small smile graced his lips, knowing full well that this was going to be one hell of a show.

“So what did you think of the play?” Henry’s father asked, as the royal family and guests happily dug into their dinner.

Henry looked at his siblings and they couldn’t help but chuckle to themselves as they remembered the performance. It was a hilarious disaster—the stage had just been waxed before the performance so the actors were slipping around the stage. Meanwhile, another actress had frozen in the middle of her part and must’ve forgotten all her lines as she started a few nonsensical arguments with the other characters and even a chair! Her fellow actors stared at her in confusion before quickly playing along when they realised what had happened.

However, despite all this, the play was still a big hit. When the curtains dropped, the whole audience was in stitches, and couldn’t stop cheering and clapping. It was one of the best nights of Henry’s life.

“I think it was quite enjoyable, though very embarrassing to think that that is our school making a fool of itself,” Princess Annabel sniffed, delicately nibbling on a piece of venison.

Princess Annabel was one of the most beautiful princesses in Eden, with her long silky black hair and milky white skin. Everything about her screamed delicate and submissive—the epitome of a perfect wife. To his parents at least.

Henry had only interacted with her once before the Festival. Both of them were still in school and although there was a five-year age gap between them, the school thought it would be a great idea to pair the older boys with a class of younger girls during one of their dance lessons. And the first and only time he had ever spoken to her that time was when he rejected her proposal to go out for a meal.

He was pulled back to the conversation at hand when someone rebuking Princess Anabel piqued his interest.

“Oh?” Lady Charlene said. “I thought it was rather creative and brave of them. After all, it takes a lot of effort to be able to continue with the performance when everything is not going according to plan. The actors kept their heads high and carried on. If anything, I’m very proud of them.”

Henry exchanged a glance with his twin. As embarrassing as it was, he must admit that he was intrigued by Lady Charlene. Princess Annabel’s response was one expected of a noble, but Lady Charlene’s…that wasn’t something he saw every day.

“Well said, my lady,” he replied with a small smile playing on his lips. “Well said indeed.”