"Are you okay, Ash?" I asked my brother with a worried glance as I noticed his heavy eyebags.

"I. Am. Exhausted," he groaned as he plopped himself on the nearest couch and rested his eyes.

With a relaxed sigh, I sat down by my brother's side and gave a warm smile.

"Thank you so much...for everything," I murmured as I rubbed his shoulder a little.

Although I'm sure Ash would never admit it, I knew exactly how hard he worked to make sure everything in the wedding would be perfect from beginning to end.

"Humph. It wasn't that big of a deal. What type of brother would I be if I couldn't even do a single favor for my baby sister?" he muttered with a great yawn.

I chuckled a bit at his reaction and let him slowly fall asleep.

"You...owe...me...big time..." Ash said as his voice gradually fell.

The wedding was scheduled to begin in six hours...and the entirety of the dukedom was hectic trying to prepare everything on time.

So far, things seemed to be running quite smoothly.

I gave a small sigh as soon as I noticed Ash's breathing come to a peaceful slow and stood up from the couch before leaving the room completely.

As I walked through the halls, I caught a glimpse of fluffy, strawberry-colored hair.

"Wolfe...!" I called out as I quickened my pace to reach him.

His curly red hair bounced a little as he turned his head around to face me, suddenly aware of my presence.

"Oh...hello," he said as he nodded his head in my direction.

"Where were you going?" I asked.

"Nowhere in particular...?" Wolfe replied with the cock of his head as he fumbled a bit with his fingers.

Nowadays, Wolfe always seemed a bit awkward...or, more specifically, it always seemed as if though he were attempting to keep a reasonable distance away from me.

I mean...I could at least understand why he was like this...

But still...

It was upsetting...

"Since we have quite a bit of time before we are needed to do anything, would you like to go somewhere?" I asked Wolfe with a bright smile.

"...huh?"

"Ah...I just came up with a good idea. Do you want to do some sword sparring with me?"

"But...your appearance will..." Wolfe murmured with a frown as he glanced down at my delicate, lilac-colored gown adorned with deep blue flowers.

"Oh. I almost forgot about this stupid dress," I clicked my tongue as I tapped my high heels against the wooden floors.

"If that's the case, then I will be off," Wolfe nodded his head and turned around, ready to leave.

"Wait...!" I yelled as I grabbed onto his wrist to stop him from going anywhere.

"..."

"It's been a while since we've done anything together though. How about we do something fun? It doesn't have to be sparring," I said.

"..."

Wolfe's expression was stiff for a while before it eventually softened and he reached his hand out to me, giving me a few gentle pats on the head.

"Maybe next time," he said.

"Oh...Okay..." I nodded my head a bit sadly.

Maybe we could do something fun after the wedding.

After all, once I get rid of the Marquis and Marquess, everything will be over.

.

.

.

A While Later

.

.

.

"AHHHH! THE ANGEL IS HERE!" the king, Uncle Gloria, roared from the moment that he saw me.

"Good evening, Uncle Gloria. I thank you, on behalf of the Cyllia household, for assisting our humble family in holding such a grand event at the royal palace," I said with a graceful, deep bow.

"Oh my~ Fufu~ She's such a mature, young lady now," Uncle Gloria laughed as he stepped to me.

No matter how many times that I met with the king, I always needed to stifle a slight gasp.

This man should be in his 50's now but he looked no older than 20!

It was as if though it was impossible for him to grow old...and if he was aging, he was definitely aging backward.

"How have you been, Cordelia? Ah...wait, let me go find out where my son, that pesky brat, is...I'm sure he must have been eagerly awaiting your arrival. He has always grown excited whenever you plan on visiting the palace, you see," the king said as he looked around the pristine venue.

"I-Is that so...?" I asked.

I didn't believe it at all in the slightest.

The mere thought of Florence being excited over anything these days...was something that seemed very unlikely.

"Oh, there he is!" the king said and I immediately reacted by snapping my head in the direction where Uncle Gloria was pointing to.

And there Florence was.

He was greeting a few noble ladies out of courtesy and had a perfect, unreadable smile plastered on his face.

As if though he could feel my gaze, his eyes flickered upward and landed on mine from across the venue.

The corners of his lips lifted slightly into a wider smile and, with a polite gesture, he excused himself from the noble ladies to make his way over to me.

I gripped my two hands into tight balls and gave a curtsy in greeting the moment he stepped in front of me.

"Good evening, Cordelia. How have you been?" he asked as he gently lifted up my face to look at him.

I paused.

...Cordelia?

How long has it been since I've heard Florence call me by my real, first name?

Ever since we were children, he has always playfully called me "Lia" with an honest grin on his face.

But now...

Nothing about the Florence in front of me seemed real.

His fake smile...

The different personality...

Where in the world...did the Florence that I grew up with go...?

"I've been doing well, your highness. May I inquire the same for you?" I asked spitefully.

If he was going to change the way he calls me all of a sudden, then I would do the same and call him by his title instead.

I refuse to acknowledge the man in front of me as "Florence."

But he didn't even flinch or show any signs of irritation at my change in attitude.

In fact, the rigid grin on his face never went away.

"Father," Florence said as he turned to the king, "it has been a while since I've met with Cordelia. May we be excused for a moment?"

The king contemplated Florence's words but then soon nodded his head and replied, "Of course. You kids go have some fun."

For some reason, Florence and the king stared at each other for a brief moment as if though they were communicating with one another with their eyes alone.

What were they talking about, I wonder.

"Well then, thank you, Father. We will be off," Florence finally spoke as he gripped onto my wrist and pulled me away somewhere.

I followed him without much resistance.

I wished to observe the different Florence in front of me to the best of my abilities.

Why did he change?

Surely, there has to be a clue somewhere...a clue as to why he was acting completely different now.

"Cordelia, you stupid girl," Florence finally spoke.

"..."

I glared at him.

"Hah. I haven't seen you in so long and you've already changed the way you look at me. Do I disgust you perhaps?" he asked as he walked with me somewhere much more secluded.

We were in a small, beautiful, and lush garden with a small pond in the center surrounded by lush trees and warm lanterns.

I recognized the place immediately.

It was the same place I had first accidentally stumbled across Florence when we were young.

"No...you don't disgust me," I decided to answer honestly as I made sure to not lose eye contact with him.

"Is that so? Well then, I'm glad. It just shows that you were always meant to be mine," Florence chuckled a bit.

"Excuse me...?" I asked.

"Don't you understand? There's no one who deserves to be with you more than me. And the fact that you are able to accept my love without repulsion just shows we are a perfect pair," Florence said.

"...I haven't been able to understand a single word that you've said this entire time. You've gone insane," I stated plainly.

"Maybe I have. But no matter what, you'll always accept me for who I am, isn't that right?" Florence asked as he dipped his head close to mine with a smirk.

"..."

"Say...tell me...why haven't you come to visit me at all lately...? You've been ignoring me, haven't you...? Why...?" Florence asked as his eyes stared deeper into mine.

I flinched a bit.

Something in his eyes scared me.

They weren't normal...they were empty...and devoid of all emotion.

"Ah. Did I scare you again?" Florence asked apologetically as he gripped both sides of my shoulders so I wouldn't back away, "Don't leave me. I won't do it again, I promise."

"I won't. That's not what I followed you here for," I said as I tried to brush Florence's hands away.

"Is that so...?" Florence asked as a grin appeared on his face.

"I wanted to see if I would get a chance to see the old Florence again. But the only person that I got to see was a disappointment," I spat with a frown.

"..."

"Just...humor me for a moment. Just for today, even if it's for a tiny little second...can you let me see the old Florence again...? I miss him...I miss him so much..." I pleaded as I reached my hands out to touch both sides of his face.

Florence...

I know you're in there somewhere...

...but where are you...?

For a moment, Florence's expression changed into something...real.

I widened my eyes.

"Florence...?"

It changed so fast that I almost didn't notice it...but...as soon as it came, it disappeared.

And my heart broke.

"Ah...the look in your eyes right now is so painful to look at, Cordelia...could you please stop it?" he asked as his fake, unreadable smile returned to his face.

"..."

"You've been with the other boys for so long that I bet you've started hating me...right? Haha...if I kill them, there won't be a problem anymore though," Florence muttered as he gripped my shoulders tightly.

I widened my eyes at Florence's casual remarks.

How could he...

And before I knew it, I had already raised my palm and slapped Florence across the face.

"Stop it."

--------------------------------------------------

A/N: That's it for this chapter! Wow, now that I think about it, it's been a while since I have written anything related to Florence, right-?

Does anyone have any theories about why Florence has changed so much since the start of this story? Ahahaha~ I wonder why the Florence x Cordelia ship had to sink... (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

Also...wahhhhhhhhh!!! I'm so sorry for such a short chapter, everyone! I forgot that I had an AP exam THIS MONDAY!!! AHHHHH!!! In other words, I need to do some very, very last-minute studying. Haha...I messed up.

Anyways, I can almost guarantee next week's chapter will be much longer to make up for the short chapters lately! For now though, I need to go study so...please wish me luck...｡゜(｀Д')゜｡

I wonder if this is karma for always bullying you guys...

...Thanks, again, to all of my readers/voters/commenters for everything that you guys do! I love you all and I promise to write longer chapters again soon!

Stay safe, everyone~

Okie byeee!

Word Count: 1807