Author's Note:

*laughs uneasily* I was gone for nearly a week (due to sickness. My cold ends up being an upper respiratory infection, including an ear infection) and this story already has over 1000 votes and 15K views? I'm a little shocked. I'll try my best to update as often as possible. It's just a little difficult right now since I'm still recovering from my infections.

Well, in any other case, here's the fluff I had promised you guys earlier. I wanted to post it the day after I posted chapter 6 but... as I have stated in the previous paragraph, my sickness got worse.

...--------...

Tanaka was visiting the Rosettas' library, curious about his grandfather's academic notes that Henry had always praised about when he saw his (Thomas') older brother enter through the double wooden doors with a couple of his friends that he didn't recognize following him blindly. Their loud voices broke through the tranquil silence of Tanaka's carefree afternoon and the transmigrator found himself mourning at the loss of his peaceful reading time.

Rarely did Tanaka find himself in the mood to do anything else other than sleeping and eating, and he was looking forward to going through his grandfather's journals, which held a lot more sophisticated research than anything he had read in Evadne Academy's own renowned library. But now, it seemed that he would either have to leave or wait until he could be left alone.

Tanaka was currently on the second floor laying down near one of the bookshelves in a little camp of cushions and comforters. He was able to convince one of the butlers (Javier, a brown-haired, bright-eyed middle age man who, other than Henry, often comes into the library to dust the shelves) to build him a tent out of one of the blankets and a fort out of pillows. (And if a pillow fight was then prompted by Fifi, who had happened to be passing by with snacks as they were making Tanaka's nest, that was another story to be told.)

He was quite comfortable hanging out in his makeshift nest and unless Edward and his companions had a reason to look up, the youngest Rosetta doubted they would notice him any time soon. Other than the garden shed, the family library was one of his most common napping spots. Most of the time, the servants participating in the casual manhunt for their young master would check the library first before looking into other places, but other than the butlers and the maids, the rest of the Rosetta's didn't normally visit his favorite place.

Both his (Thomas') father and Edward were more political-minded and had no interest in notes or books of discoveries and scientific (magical) experimentations. Both his mother and Katherine didn't like to be cooped up in one room being the social butterflies that they were. Also, they didn't like to host social events in the library because of the stuffy, old book smell, so this place was often ignored. Tanaka was very surprised to see Edward here since he would often spend his spare time either in their father's study or in the parlor. Actually, this was the first time that Tanaka ever saw his brother entertaining guests.

As one of the more prestigious noble families in Evadne, therefore in all of Astria, there were many people that were constantly trying to gain their favor. Sometimes, that meant inviting them to their estate to butter them up or hosting parties to show off their wealth and to impress other nobles. Apparently, since the Rosetta family were the ones that often needed to be impressed rather than do the impressing, they would only host a social party once a year (not including Katherine's and Edward's birthday extravaganza, which was still talked about in school), so it was rare for them to have visitors.

In fact, now that he looked closely at Edward's expression from afar, his brother looked a lot more... humbled. Pleasant-looking and honest, and his young face held something akin to softness.

Tanaka couldn't help but feel a little baffled seeing this strange but familiar side of Edward. It was familiar not because he had seen it personally before, but because Thomas' brother would sometime give that soft expression to the heroine or people who he was close to in the game. Otherwise, he had no experience with it-- for some reason that he didn't bother trying to explore, Thomas' and Edward's relationship had already been strain before Tanaka had taken over.

Tanaka had never thought to amend their relationship because he was not Thomas and it would feel too much like he was trying to replace Daichi.

"This is amazing! Spectacular! Extraordinary!" One of the boys gushed, his long, bright red hair swinging from side to side as he twisted his head to catch everything within his line of sight. From behind the group, Morgan and Amir stepped into the library and closed the mahogany double doors. "To be in the library where the great Summa Magician Alexander Rosetta had often spent his time and kept all of his notes-- you have done me a great favor in showing me this Sir Edward! I do not know how I can repay you!"

As the red-haired boy continued to declare his excitement and gratitude, Tanaka couldn't help but think that this overly hyperactive character sounded... familiar. Actually, much to Tanaka's horror, there were only a few people in Evadne that he knew to actually have red hair, and those people are the regal members of Astria's royalty. Since the people downstairs were associated with Edward, that means... (Tanaka remembered playing as the heroine when a certain excitable character appearing out of nowhere, innocently dragging the heroine everywhere against her will no matter how hard Tanaka tried to evade him. Just thinking about... was just too tiring to comprehend.)

The other boy who had followed Edward, who has green-eyes and light-brown hair, snorted with an expression of disinterest on his face. Tanaka didn't recognize him and he didn't think that this child was actually one of the capture targets either. Judging by the brief flash of annoyance that Tanaka had caught on Edward's face, it seemed that Thomas' brother didn't really care for the extra addition either.

"Calm down, Xander," the unfamiliar boy drawled with boredom laced in his tone as he brushed his gaze around the room with bitter eyes. It seemed that he didn't want to be here, which made no sense to Tanaka. If you didn't like the place, then just leave. Wasn't it too troublesome to be so coy about it?

"I--" 'Xander' looked briefly embarrassed. "Pardon my enthusiasm--"

"It's okay, your highness," Edward intervened softly, his eyes so gentle that Tanaka had to momentarily pinch himself to check whether he was dreaming or not. "I'm afraid my father and I are not very interested in the intricacies of academic research, so these books have been lying in the dust for a long while. Do enjoy them at your leisure. And Sir Nicole Gallant." Ohhh, the full name. Not to mention coupled with Edward's cold and chilling tone really did make someone want to cower in a corner. Tanaka thought at the moment that Edward really did look like their father with that frigid disposition: the blond, stylish hair and icy-blue eyes seemed to be a trademark along with the inherited handsomeness. 'Nicole Gallant' had stiffened at being singled out by the Rosetta. "Please be aware of your status. The Crown Prince is not someone you can call so familiarly."

After being lectured by Edward, Tanaka could see an ugly frown wrinkling Nicole's face, but the other gritted his teeth and conceded. "My apologies, your highness," Nicole said stiffly, his words polite but his tone unwilling.

Xander looked very uncomfortable with the situation, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly, "There is nothing to apologize for, Sir Gallant. We are classmates and I do understand if you want to drop formalities--"

"That will not do, your highness," Edward quickly argued, looking quite exasperated.

Surprisingly, Xander didn't try to quarrel back. It seemed that this wasn't the first time they had discussed this topic since the prince could only shrug and give an apologetic smile to his classmate.

Nicole subtly sneered when Xander looked away and Edward was busy paying attention to the prince before adopting an indifferent expression. "Still, are we just going to read all day? Come on, that's lame."

"The purpose of this visit was due to the fact that his highness had requested access to my grandfather's library," Edward cut off, a sharp light passing through his blue eyes. Obviously, he was irritated by the other's non-subtle attempt of diverging the prince's interest to another subject. "You knew this when you had invited yourself to my home. If you had wanted to do other activities than what had already been planned for the afternoon, then we can schedule it for another date."

Nicole didn't bother hiding this scowl this time, his face slightly red by Edward's cold lecture. "Well, are we just going to waste our day going through all the books in this library or is your highness looking for something in particular?"

"Well..." Obviously, Prince Xander wanted to spend the whole day going around exploring every single book in the library, but he also did not want Nicole to be bored and left out either. Obviously, the short-tempered boy had no interest in the library or anything within it. "I would like to read some of your grandfather's notes on the theory behind the elemental conversion. Afterward, we could do something else; would that be acceptable, Sir Gallant?" Prince Xander compromised, which caused Edward to give the smug Nicole a chilly stare. Tanaka was surprised Nicole hadn't turned into a literal ice block-- Edward had a rare ice-based element and being a second-tier magician, he was more than capable of freezing someone on the spot.

Nonetheless, Nicole ignored Edward's icy disposition and continued prattling on without acknowledging the threat to his life. "So, where are these notes then? We don't have all day."

Both Xander and Nicole turned around to look at their host, one impatient and the other beaming with anticipation. Edward was first startled by the sudden attention, but once he understood what was asked of him, he surprisingly ducked his head down in embarrassment. Not that his cheeks were red or anything like Tanaka would usually see when people are embarrassed, but Edward seemed more humble at that moment.

"I apologize. I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the organization of the library. Therefore, I do not know where the requested notes are placed."

"Is there a servant you can call on that does know?" Nicole asked curtly, his irritation clearly shown on his face.

"My father's aid, Henry--"

"Henry Volkov?!" Xander blurted out excitedly, causing Tanaka to blink.in surprise. He couldn't help but wonder why the Crown Prince of Astria seemed starry-eyed over their head, elder butler. The older butler who would tell bedtime stories to Tanaka. Who would sometimes rock Tanaka asleep or buy books with his own paycheck to give to the youngest Rosetta... maybe Henry was actually a famous writer? He really did know how to tell a good story...

"Yes," Edward responded with his tone full of mirth. "But he's doing errands for my father outside of the estate. There is also Javier, but he has a day off today."

Which was pretty much the reason why Tanaka decided to read in his second-floor nest today. It was not often that he got to have the library all to himself. Javier had always accompanied him whenever he's exploring through Thomas' grandfather's books and Tanaka did not mind most of the time, but he liked reading alone sometimes too.

"So are you telling that we have to scour through the entire library just to find one measly set of notes?!" Nicole both groaned and whined at the same time, displeased by the way things are going.

"We came here to explore my grandfather's library in the first place, not to entertain you," Edward pointed out stiffly, not giving Nicole any face.

"I thought you guys were going to do something exciting with the way his highness was bouncing around all day, not something as boring as reading. We have more than enough textbooks to keep us occupied for class."

"I apologize," Edward responded stiffly, his tone insincere as he gave the whining male a cold look with a hint of a sneer. It was an expression that Tanaka often saw whenever he happened to bump into the older Rosetta. "I'm afraid not everyone is interested in foolery and debauchment such as yourself, Gallant."

"What is that supposed to mean, Rosetta?" Nicole snorted darkly, detecting the underlying barb in the other's words. "Don't tell me that you're still soured over being uninvited to the class excursion to the Flower District?"

"Do not call it a 'class excursion' as if such a distasteful place was even considered appropriate by the school board."

... Huh. Considering that Evadne was considered a 'Holy City,' Tanaka didn't think there would be such places available. Then again, Tanaka never really went anywhere other than the academy and the Rosetta estate.

Either way, the vile grin on Nicole's face did not forbode anything good. "Just because you're a virgin doesn't mean you have to be such a prude."

Suddenly, the temperature started to fluctuate. Tanaka could feel the air around Edward steadily dropping in temperature while the air around Nicole seemed to be growing hotter. Much to Tanaka's surprise, now that he's paying attention to the magical energy inside the room, Nicole seemed to have a fire-base element with a two-tier aptitude. His aura flared like flames and lashed out indiscriminately and violently while Edward's own aura was as still as a winter forest: deprived of life and as silent as a graveyard. When those completely contrasting magical energies meet, pushing upon each other in a fight for dominance, Tanaka could have sworn he could feel a spike of energy being created in between the two second-tier magicians.

Xander looked conflicted and seemed to be debating whether he should interfere and play the peacemaker. It was not always a smart thing to intervene between two powerful magicians, especially when the person trying to break apart the fight does not have the necessary skill to protect themselves and, at the same time, control the two arguing casters. Xander had confidence in dealing with one-sided brawls since Edward would rarely lose his cool (if at all, which was why the Prince was baffled and confused by the turn of the argument), but he was not sure how to calm down both Nicole and his best friend. Usually, it was Edward that would be reminding him not to overly excite himself.

Both Morgan and Amir, on the other hand, kept their heads down and opted not to interfere. Probably because it was not their place to but seriously.... Weren't they the adults here?

Tanaka grumbled and crawled closer to the wooden, barred railings, sticking his face in between the posts so that the people on the first floor could see him. If it wasn't for the fact that the fight was happening in the library, one of his favorite napping spots around the estate, he wouldn't have cared whether Thomas' brother and this Nicole fellow duked it out.

"I have the notes," a clear and solemn voice uttered through the tension, causing the other people in the room to freeze from where they stood. It took them awhile to figure out where the voice came from and it took them even longer still to recognize who the boy was. Even Edward had to do a double take as he looked up at his so-called 'little brother,' who was uncharacteristically laying on the ground on the second floor, therefore dirtying his clothes, like an actual child with his small and chubby face popping out from between the bars of the railing. It was a funny sight, seeing those plump cheeks squished together. "'The Experimentations on the Conversion of Elements Monitored by the Use of Crystal Projection, co-authored by Albert Jones'. Is that what you were looking for, Xan.... your highness?"

Right. Royalty. He couldn't really call the other by his first name anymore. Or by 'Prince of Smiles' like Nanami had always done whenever they were talking about the game...

"Oh, yes!" Xander responded joyfully, his eyes sparkling at the reminder of the reason why the came into the library. So thankful that the book he had requested was within his reach, he did not notice his best friend's -Edward's- conflicted expression, nor the nasty sneer growing on Nicole's lip. "Would it be too much trouble to borrow it for the day, young one? Or are you currently occupied with it yourself?"

It was a little weird hearing such formal language being targeted towards him, especially since Xander is the prince and the only people who had bothered to be polite to him were the servants working in the Rosetta estate, but Tanaka shook his head in response nonetheless. "I can read it any time. You're visiting." Tanaka reasoned simply as he lifted himself up to his knees and hands. "Hold on. I'll get it."

Though they couldn't see him from the first floor, it would have been a particularly shocking sight (mostly for Edward) to see the youngest Rosetta crawl into his makeshift tent of blankets and pillows. The fact that there was a childish structure like a tent made out of blankets and pillows in the first place would certainly garner stares and disbelieving expressions.

All the while, as everyone else was paying attention to the young boy shuffling around on the second floor, no one had noticed how Amir had his mouth covered with a gloved hand, his face turned away as he tries not to display the amusement curved in his eyes. Nor did they seem to notice his shaking shoulders and his slightly hunched back, almost unbefitting of a high-class butler.

Honestly, the little one had yet to stop amusing him. There wasn't a day since the time he had temporarily babysat the youngest Rosetta where the child didn't do something that was sure to make his day. Of course, he already knew of the little one's nest built on the second floor; he had carried the young master out of it plenty of times.

Sooner or later, Tanaka dragged a pile of notebooks from within his blanket-tent. There were at least seven and the papers within each binding were rather thin, but the height and the length were a little bit longer than Tanaka's arm. With some difficulty, he was able to gather all the books into a single pile and into his arms. Grunting, he lamented not being able to use magic to help him with his burden instead.

He had gotten pretty skilled at levitation in the past couple of weeks, but he could only practice when he was left alone since he promised Amir not to show it to anyone other than the man himself. And since he was in the presence of company, obviously he couldn't levitate stuff no matter how much easier it would be for him.

Either way, going down the stairs with an armful of books that blocked the sight of his feet was rather dangerous for someone of his stature and height. Clarisse would have a heart attack if she ever saw her young master attempting such a thing as she often did whenever he was trying to be independent and/or self-sufficient.

Apparently, the road to adulthood for him was a long one.

Both Edward and Xander couldn't help but step forward seeing how unbalanced the youngest Rosetta seemed on his feet as he was slowly moving down step-by-step on the stairs, the Prince more willing to accommodating to the younger boy while the oldest son of the Rosetta was hesitant and confused by the appearance of his little brother.

But then, Tanaka did trip, causing Edward to yell out and for Xander to instinctively run forward quickly despite the large distance from the stairs.

Tanaka let out a belated 'oh' as he noticed his world tilting. He thought he was doing well going down the stairs even if he seemed unsure of his steps at the time, but then he felt a flash of incoming magic and something had obstructed his path, causing him to trip forward. The magic dispersed in the air as soon as he had tripped over it and Tanaka couldn't help but marvel over the possibility of being able to concentrate magical particles into a solid form without having to convert it to an element even as he was falling.

Despite the long drop below, he wasn't too worried about getting hurt. He could feel Amir's repressed aura gliding through the air as if he was skating on ice, his vast and endless core growing closer and closer, and Tanaka didn't even make a sound when he landed into the butler's cradling arms. Safe, and relatively unharmed if he ignored the throb of his nose from the notebook that accidentally hit the bottom half of his face, Tanaka looked up at the exasperated expression of the older man. It was an expression that Tanaka often saw on Clarisse's face (figuratively, of course).

"Young Master Thomas," Amir began, his tone on the edge of a scold. Both did not take note of Prince Xander's gaping mouth or Edward's blank gaze and no one in the room also paid any attention to the dark, sour expression on Nicole Gallant's face either. "I believe Miss Clarisse had explicitly discouraged young master from performing tasks that required labor? Especially after the young master had almost buried himself in potting soil?"

"... I was trying to help..." Tanaka argued, the notebooks somehow still tightly grasped in his short arms even after his near tumble down the stairs. He didn't think that helping Conrad plant some new seed would be so difficult and laborious... Well, Conrad didn't really expect for their lazy young master to try to carry a bag of potting soil either.

A flash of amusement passed Amir's dark eyes before he descended down the stairs gracefully despite the additional burden in his arms, unlike Tanaka's own clumsy attempts from earlier before.

Regardless, Tanaka didn't complain about being saved like a damsel-in-distress. He also didn't ask to be put down either, even after they finally settled on solid ground. If one actually looked closely at Tanaka's expression, he would have appeared very comfortable and relaxed being carried by the butler.

Nonetheless, Amir knew his place and knew how inappropriate it would be to coddle the little one in the presence of guests, so as soon as he moved a couple of feet away from the stairs, the butler leaned down to deposit the youngest Rosetta onto his feet. Tanaka was disgruntled having to be displaced so soon after he was comfortable but understood his position, though he didn't really care about the opinions of the people in the room.

After being placed down on the floor, Tanaka easily recovered from his near-accident and ran over to the Crown Prince with... bare feet.

Amir had to cough to keep himself from laughing while Edward nearly choked in his bewilderment.

Edward thought back to his prideful and spiteful little brother Thomas, who had always tried to antagonize him, compete against him, and spread detrimental rumors about him whenever he had an opportunity to do so. Then he looked at this Thomas, who suddenly seemed smaller, a lot quieter, and more humble than before.

At first, he thought that maybe his younger brother was trying to make a better impression of himself on the Crown Prince. It was rather timely that he would have the notebooks that His Highness was looking for and that he would coincidently be at the same place where he was going to take the Prince (even though they lived in the same household-- many of their family members tend to ignore or neglect to visit the old library other than sending a couple of senior servants once in a while to clean it up), but then Edward took a good look at the youngest Rosetta.

He recognized the Evadne Academy uniform only by the shorts his little brother wore. Both the vest and the jacket are missing, along with the tie. His white dress-shirt were untucked and crumbled, probably from laying on the floor as Edward had first seen him do. Even his hair was not gelled back to his usual imitation of their father. Thomas' entire appearance looked unkempt and unbefitting for a noble, which brought the attention to whether his young brother was actually trying to make a good impression in the first place. He looked more like a commoner or a servant boy rather than a young son of the Prime Minister.

...Is this really his brother? Who was usually so obsessed with his reputation and looks? Who would have done anything for his goals without a thought for the people trampled in his path?

Prince Xander, on the other hand, didn't hesitate to approach, his face full of concern for the youngest Rosetta. "Are you alright? That was quite a nasty fall," the red-haired boy asked with sincerity while reaching out to help the younger boy with the notebooks that were still too big for his arms. After all, the little one was very small and could've been hurt very badly. "Pardon my manners, I am Xander Charles Ricardo Lynel Hubert Windsor. May I ask for your name? You must be a page boy of the Rosetta's, yes?"

Tanaka didn't hesitate giving up the notebooks to the royal prince though he blinked at being mistaken for a servant. He had a contemplative expression on his face, unoffended by the assumption as he debated whether telling Xander the truth would be more or less troublesome for all purposes intended.

Either way, it seemed that he doesn't have a choice anyway since Edward awkwardly cleared his throat and pointed out, "Your Highness, this is my younger brother, Thomas."

As Xander took the books into his arms, he turned around to look at his friend and blinked. "Younger brother?" The red-haired boy questioned out loud, not fully absorbing the introduction just yet. Then he looked back at Tanaka, who had this resigned-like expression on his face. Though Tanaka didn't think that he really bare any family resemblance to his brother, the Prince somehow put two plus two and became completely flustered by the new information. "I completely apologize for my rudeness, Sir Thomas! I didn't mean to imply--"

"It's fine," Tanaka quickly intervened, recognizing the signs of a long apology. Prince Xander always had a sincere personality and Tanaka remembered the time where the red-haired young man would recite three paragraphs of long, flowery apologies during a time he had thought to have offended the heroine. Without giving the Prince a chance to continued, Tanaka pointed to the notebooks in Xander's arms. "All four set of notes are grandfather's experimentations on several hypotheses he had created in concern towards element conversion. In the first two books, he had already disproven some of those hypotheses. The third and the fourth notebook are ongoing hypotheses he had yet to finish investigating. I suggest looking over the fourth notebook."

"Why the fourth notebook?" Xander asked curiously, his previous offense temporarily forgotten. Tanaka could practically see the perked up dog ears and the wagging tail behind the other.

"I believe grandfather was closer to the truth in the fourth notebook. But I've heard the topic was rather controversial in the academic field."

"How come?"

"Because it describes a primary, more flexible manifestation of magic rather than following the Krienburg theory, which claimed that--"

"--magic is created by thought and intent without an intermediate in between, correct?"

"Yes. Krienburg is not entirely wrong, but the theory is too simplified. But it's simplicity is the reason why it has been widely accepted by many magical scholars."

"So you think your grandfather's, Alexander Rosetta's, hypothesis of the existence of a preliminary form of magic to be more credible?"

"Yes. Though it would be difficult to prove..." Considering that this world had yet to confirm the existence of atoms and subatomic particles. They have yet to even look into the nature of light as well...

"May I ask why you find it more credible?"

"That's because..."

As both Xander and Tanaka continued discussing more on the requested experimental notes, Edward had been giving both of them blank looks. Up until recently, Thomas had been focused on politics and increasing his connections with other nobles just like his older brother and their father. Since when was his obsessive and power-hungry little brother ever interested in academic experimentation and theorem...?

"Can you read the damn book already so that we can do something else?" Nicole finally commented almost on the edge of yelling. It seemed that he got sick of being ignored for the past several minutes.

"Oh!" Xander looked slightly flustered and apologetic as he paused in his discussion with the youngest Rosetta. "Of course-- I'm afraid we'll have a discussion more on the subject later, little one."

"That's fine," Tanaka conceded, almost in a rather disappointed manner. Though he didn't care much for the Prince's endless amount of energy, he almost missed talking about science with other people. The Rosetta household had been a strictly political household since the death of Alexander Rosetta and all his peers would be considered 'second generation' young masters and missus. A lot of them couldn't care less about magic particles and energy conversion and all the other stuff he had been discussing with the Crown Prince. Tanaka was really surprised by how well-versed Xander was in academic studies-- not that the Prince was ever stupid in the game, of course, but he had thought the other's interests would be more focused on politics and humanitarian subjects.

Seeing the non-subtle dejected look on the younger boy's face, Xander couldn't help but raise his hand and pat the other's curly hair. Edward was waiting for the other's temper to flare, as it usually did whenever someone would treat him like a child, but it never came. Instead, Tanaka looked a little bit happier at being petted.

"Don't worry young one. I'll be coming over a lot more since I have been granted access to the Great Alexander Rosetta's library. Isn't that right, Sir Edward?" Xander looked back at his friend who was staring at Thomas unblinkingly, his eyes starry with a sparkling grin that would usually make the girls in their class scream in adoration. Edward could only give the prince a stiff smile after staring at the hand on top of Thomas' head for the longest of a while.

"Of course," Edward agreed without a single indication of his conflicting feelings.

"Excellent! Then shall we enjoy our reading time? Oh, and do join us, Sir Thomas! The more, the merrier!"

Well, it was not like Tanaka had any plans to leave in the first place. He was here first.

As Xander practically ran to the nearest table to read the treasured notebooks, a strange and tense silence settled in between the remaining three young masters. With a sneer, Nicole was the first to break off from the awkward trio as he took a random book from the shelves and settled down on a sofa placed in the corner of the library. Tanaka almost flinched at how harshly he handled the book he grabbed, especially since the sour teen was almost literally ripping through the pages without a care for its fragileness. It was questionable whether Nicole was actually going to read though.

The brothers were then left to themselves, one considering whether to run back to his nest/tent while the other stared unabashedly at the unfamiliar creature before him. The air around the youngest and the oldest seemed ambiguous with a lot of words left unsaid, most of those words coming from Edward himself.

What are you scheming? What are you planning? What is your goal? Are you interested in research now because the Prince is? Why are you dressed like a commoner? In remembrance of your mother? Your crazy mother who hated my mother, who told you to hate everything about my mother, including her kids? Why is it that you decided to act like a little brother now?

He remembered being seven and his father had brought in a child that was only skin and bones with barely any meat in between. There was a woman at the time by the gates with curly long hair that was the same shade of brown as the child his father had forcefully shoved onto one of the maids. She was screaming, nearly sobbing with red and unfocused eyes and when his mother had stepped out to investigate the commotion, the unknown woman's face suddenly twisted as if a demon had taken over.

"It's all your fault!" she had screamed at his mother. "If you and your demon spawns had never existed-- you and your bastard children should have stayed in hell!"

He remembered the suffocating hate targeted towards him and how her magic had stirred in the air as if ready to lash out against him. And when he turned to look at his father for guidance, he saw the child's dark expression almost a mimic of the woman's face in the corner of his eyes. Edward couldn't forget how those brown-eyes had glared at him full of detest and hatred.

Where did that hate go? Did you not considered me an eyesore from the beginning? Didn't you want to throw me in hell like your mother did? Why are you acting mature all the sudden?

Alas, Edward could not ask any of those questions in present company. He didn't think he would be able to ask any of those questions even if they were alone. He had long given up on having a little brother and had accepted the fact he had earned a rival instead. Nobility had always been cut-throat, even within the supposed safety of your home.

"... Do you know any books that are not full of grandfather's experimentations and theoretical analysis? I'm afraid I do not have much interest in those," Edward inquired, a faint trace of resignation in his voice. It had been weeks since he had last truly interacted with his younger brother. Subconsciously, he had noted that the other had been quiet and reserved as of late, but he had thought the youngest Rosetta had been biding his time for the next opportunity to become their father's heir. He wasn't expecting a complete 180-degree change in personality.

Tanaka was surprised by the question since Edward didn't seem like the type of ask his little brother for anything. Even for help, but the small boy answered nonetheless. "Grandfather's diary. It's interesting," Tanaka suggested without judgment or malice in his words, unlike what Edward was used to. "It's upstairs in my tent."

"... Your tent..." Did he hear that correctly?

Tanaka nodded in response, pointing over to the place on the second floor where he had previously peeked out from the beginning of their interaction.

Edward was hesitant but followed the other's direction nonetheless. With a single glance back at his strangely mellowed little brother, he climbed up the stairs and walked toward the location where the younger boy had pointed at, only to had found a tent made out of blankets surrounded by a fort of pillows.

Edward: "........" Was this really his little brother? Or was he possessed by a demon or some type of evil entity? But what kind of entity makes blanket tents and pillow forts?

Nonetheless, the blond-haired teen tried not to feel embarrassed as he got down onto his knees and crawled into the little entrance to find the book his brother had recommended.

All the while, Tanaka, concluding that it would have been a bothered to climb up the stairs once again, pitter-pattered to the familiar dark-skinned butler, who had on the same professional and polite facade that Tanaka was familiar with. But the transmigrator can recognize the amusement flashing in the other's dark eyes, especially when he reached up and pulled on the other's jacket sleeve.

"How can I be of service to you, Young Master Thomas?" Amir questioned rather indulgently, the corners of his lips twitching visibly.

"Height," Tanaka replied bluntly, looking up at the older man with sparkling eyes.

There was a notebook that Javier had told him about. His (Thomas') grandfather had written out some properties he had noticed about these 'primary manifestation' of magic and Tanaka wanted to compare and contrast his own observations with Alexander's. He had plans to read it today when Javier was absent and that he could use his magic freely to reach for the book but now that there were guests, he had no choice but to ask for help.

Amir on the other hand only seemed more amused the more he interacted with the little one. "Which book does Second Young Master want for this servant to obtain?"

Instead of telling him, Tanaka ushered the butler towards a particularly large bookshelf near one of the windows. As soon as they stopped just right under the book Tanaka wanted, he pointed it out. Promptly, Amir followed the finger and took a book with a green covering and blue binding. The closer the butler moved the notebook to the little one, the brighter the young boy's face. Amir couldn't help but pause, seeing the elation on the other's face, before suddenly moving it away. The further away the book was to the boy, the more confusion and longing Amir could see on the child's face. Entertained, he played with the other like this several more time.

The little one was really just too amusing.

This was how Edward had found them as he was going downstairs with the diary tucked near his side, just minutes before Amir finally stopped and gave up the notebook. To actually see his cold and impassive butler baiting his brother like a cat would with a mouse... He really felt as if he had stepped into a different world.

As soon as Tanaka had acquired the notebook, he carefully dropped it on the floor and sat down from where he stood, too lazy to find a couch or a sofa to curl into. They were not really comfortable to sit in, and the tables and chairs were made for an adult rather than someone of Tanaka stature.

"...Thomas, it's not sanitary for you to lay on the floor," Edward couldn't help but point out. He knew that Henry and Javier would sometimes dust the room, but he wasn't sure how often they had swept the floors.

"It's clean," Tanaka half-heartedly argued, too concentrated on the contents of the notebook to give the older Rosetta a glance.

Edward spared a glance at the browning, white tiles and looked at the little one with clear disbelief. He had really wanted to ask what his little brother considered to be 'clean'.

"Your brother is right, Sir Thomas," Xander chirped up, looking away from his own studies to observe the young boy on the floor.

"It's fine," Tanaka insisted, determined not to move for the rest of the afternoon.

The Prince had a contemplative expression on his face before putting down his book and standing up from his seat. Much to Edward's surprise, Xander walked up to the boy and lifted him up by his armpits. Without so much of a pause in between, the red-haired teen then took the youngest Rosetta into his lap as he sat back down. Tanaka was initially startled by the Prince's sudden actions, gripping onto his book almost desperately as he was launched into the air, but as soon as he was settled on the other's lap, he relaxed and leaned back against the other chest. It was warmer this way, anyway.

As Xander contently reached back for the notebooks on the table without any discomfort on his part, Edward stared at the two strangely comfortable people blankly. "...Your Highness, what are you...?"

"What's wrong, Sir Edward?" Xander questioned absentmindedly as he read the methods section inside of the book before looking back at his stunned friend.

Edward wasn't sure what to say in all honesty, especially since the two people in front of him looked much to cozy for something that was rather embarrassing to watch. "Thomas--"

"Oh! My apologies. I do not mean to hog your younger brother," the Prince sincerely expressed as he beamed at the older Rosetta. "But I found that children seemed to be less fussy if you place them on your lap, so I thought Young Thomas would be more comfortable this way."

Seeing the other's bright expression, Edward almost facepalmed realizing that the Crown Prince had assumed the wrong age for his younger brother. Sure, Prince Xander was taller and more mature-looking than any of their peers, and Thomas was almost worryingly small and below the average height for thirteen-year-olds, but that didn't mean...

Edward looked back at the casual pair once again, taking note of how Prince Xander's stature practically dwarf the younger boy in his lap. Actually, if he didn't recognize the boy sitting in the Prince's lap (well, Edward really doesn't recognize this Thomas he had been interacting with for the last hour but that's another thing to ponder about later), he would have thought his little brother to be around 8 or 9 as well.

In the end, since Thomas didn't look offended or even uncomfortable with being treated like a child, Edward didn't say anything and basically just gave up. Today was a long day with assignments piling up and people like Nicole to deal with, so he took a seat next to his friend and his younger brother and started reading the diary that had been recommended to him, escaping from reality.

...--------...

Author's Note:

There are so many things I want to say to you guys.

First of all, thank you for all the home remedies that you guys had suggested to me. I had tried at least half of them because I was very miserable for this entire week that I hadn't posted chapters.

Also, thank you for your kind words in regards towards my writing and how the story is faring. It's very uplifting for an amateur writer like me, lol.

Also, thank you for your patience for this chapter. I'll try to start on chapter 8 while I'm still lucid and probably look over my other stories as well since I have time.