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"Up the stairs up the stairs." Martha sang, skipping steps, making her climb look awkward and exaggerated. "They must be in his bedroom, it's the only place we haven't looked yet!"

"There are other rooms, the ball room, the kitchen, the stables, the baths." Emily said, walking calmly beside Leo.

"Well, obvious places, dummy."

"I think brother's watching us, or using the servants in the walls." Annabelle said, skipping up the stairs and landing on the new floor, waiting until Emily and Lily came up before following them, or really Emily, down the much warmer toned hallway, Martha latching onto the doorknob of the closest door and opening it.

The room was bright, not having a single light but using the natural light from outside the windows, a few things here and there to subtly reflect it and brighten the room. Unlike the princesses' beds, his was large, and fluffy by the way Martha body slammed into it, flinging the multiple layers of blankets off and moving the pillows around, looking for an envelope. "Where is it?!" and threw another pillow onto the floor before flopping down onto the clean sheets, throwing the blankets back on herself, shoes and all. "It's not in here.' Came the muffled voice, the small lump moving around, a small hand taking a pillow from the floor and bringing it back under the white blankets.

"Of course it wouldn't be in his bed." Annabelle headed toward the wardrobe and a small table which held a wash bowl and a pitcher of water, peering into the drawer before putting the fragile pitcher on the floor, peering into it before lifting her sleeve and feeling around. "Nothing in here except water." and pulled her arm back out, drying it off with the towel before putting the pitcher back up, or tried to before it fell to the floor with a startling crash. "Oops." She looked around nervously, expecting to be scolded by Lily, snatching a pillow from the floor and covering the mes, moving class pieces underneath it with her shoe before checking the wardrobe. Elliot did indeed have clothes and shoes other than the white ones he wore, and in different colors.

"You always break something, Sister." Emily said quietly, moving to open the chest at the foot of the bed, carefully digging through papers and trinkets, looking at a picture before placing it on the floor gently. The trunk was soon closed, most things put away except for the picture which was standing proudly on top of it, the triplet moving to peer at the nightstand and the plush chair nearby with an ottoman. He didn't have a bookshelf, but a few piles of books, hardly enough to fill a bookshelf. Instead on the wall was a map with ink stains on it, a table underneath it with an ink well and a pen along with a wooden globe.

The picture held a woman with small white ears, hair long and straight and seemingly made of moonlight, robes trimmed with gold and eyes the most gentle of gray. In her arms was a four year old Elliot, fat cheek up against his mothers while his arms were wrapped around her neck. It was obvious the frame had been touched time and time again, the designs on the edges worn down, the varnish gone and the picture itself somewhat faded.

"I found it!" Martha cried snapping up from her pile of blankets, the envelope like a prize in her hand, ripping it open as the other two climbed onto the bed to read it. "Check her hat." The three stared, looking at one another. None of them were wearing hats, but all their eyes landed on the one atop the bentiens head.

"Miss Lily." Annabelle said sweetly. "May we see your hat?"

Annabelle went to get it. "No, brother said to look in the hat, and you're the only one wearing a hat." She said, walking back to the bed.

"You don't need to pick that up, there's a maid that cleans up messes like that, don't worry. Come and sit with us!" Martha said, patting the empty space beside her. "Just leave it. C'mere c'mere!"

Emily watched curiously, re-reading the letter. It was in brother's handwriting, it didn't seem to be forged, it even had a few ink marks to show it had been written recently, but it didn't make sense. He was in a meeting with Mother. "This is frustrating."

"Go back to square one." Annabelle read, sighing and falling back on the bed. "I hate this. Square one was in the gardens! I don't want to walk outside again!"

Martha had sprawled herself over Lily's lap, stretching in a very cat like manner before relaxing. "Well if that's where our presents are we need to go there." She sighed, playing with the bentien's fingers, or the ones she wasn't hiding. "Let's relax first. What's Reta like, Miss Lily?"

"I wanna know about what the guys did!"

"The economy?"

"The fashion!"

The three looked at the bentien expectantly before a maid walked in. "Excuse me, I was told I needed to come clean the Prince's bedroom."

Annabelle pointed to the mess and the maid moved, going to pick up the pillow, wincing at the mess underneath it but started to clean it up carefully, looking at the towel. "Is one of you bleeding?"

The girls shook their heads, looking at themselves quickly before Martha grabbed the bentiens hands and squeezed them, finding just a sliver of blood escape. "she did!" She them proceeded to make a noise and put her mouth over the cut, tongue licking the wound as Annabelle looked away.

"That is so disgusting. You could get infected, Miss Lily, especially with her mouth."

The maid smiled, picking up the basket holding the trash. "Your brother also told me to mention that if you didn't want your gifts that bad he would throw them out, however you have a remaining five minutes. Please excuse me." And walked our hurriedly before Martha could slam her with more questions.

Martha thought a moment. Separate? That didn't sound like fun. Hmf, men needed women to do cool stuff. "That's not fun at all." She muttered. Why would you separate men and women, it made no sense. In the castle men and women were always seen around each other.

"Craftsmanship? Like woodworking and metal making?" Emily asked curiously, tilting her head. That was certainly different, in Nalenyr most men worked in mines to get the money inside the mountains. They did have a lot of woods to get wood from, and fish were plentiful in the rivers, not to mention hunting.

Annabelle smiled, nodding furiously. "Yes! I would love to see it! You must show me once brother gives you permission!" But her excitement stopped as Lily did indeed pale to a very sickly color, almost shrinking away. the other two had caught it as well. "Miss Lily?"

"Are you all right?" came Emily's soft voice.

martha's hand gently touched the bentien's arm. "I didn't mean it..." But the man had soon changed the topic, Annabelle looking at the paper.

"It said square one, which was the gardens right? We need to head back that way." And got off the bed, walking toward the dow with Martha soon following behind. Emily stood beside Lily, gently grabbing her wounded hand. "We'll find you a nurse on the way, okay?" And led her out.

The three hurried to the gardens, going through the twists and turns of the castle before finding their way in the back once again, the sun hovering over the horizon. Where in the gardens though? Would it be right in front or deeper in it? They hadn't gone in too deeply before heading towards brother's area. After a quick argument between Martha and Annabelle they walked towards the gardens, Emily pointing out the envelope on a small garden table before grabbing it.

"This is not square one." She murmured, reading the handwriting.

"But this is the first place we came!" the tomboy yelled, on the verge of having a tantrum. "This treasure hunt sucks! We've been everywhere!"

"Oh!" Annabelle said, raising her hand. "We were in the playroom before this! I remember because Lily found us first! They're in the playroom! The playroom!" She exclaimed again, grabbing the bentien's hand and dragging her away, her sisters following shortly behind. It didn't take long for the small group to re-enter the playroom, Elliot standing there and curiously looking at the bookshelf, six colorfully wrapped presents on the opposite side of the room.

"Welcome back. I'm to imagine that was somewhat more frustrating then the last one." He said with a smile, watching as Annabelle leaped toward the gifts, shaking each one before reading the labels, taking hers away.

"How was the meeting?" Emily asked, smiling at her brother before going to the presents. She didn't catch the small flash of annoyance on his face.

"As predicted. Open your gifts before Martha drools over hers." Elliot didn't have to finish, the girls ripping them open like hungry dogs attacking food, a loud, shrill scream of happiness being emitted from Annabelle.

(( =w= their gifts are in my journal. ))

Elliot placed a hand on the bentien's, giving him a soft smile. "All is well, you mustn't worry about such matters." He said. His lantern was no where around him, an oddity, but the lights in the room seemed to be having a hard time staying a calm, neutral white, flickers of colors dimly appearing here and there before disappearing again. "It is a common occurrence, Miss Lily, so you really needn't worry."

Annabelle looked up from unwrapping her doll house. "Brother, where will Miss Lily be sleeping?"

"We're moving a mattress into my room so she could sleep in there, why do you ask?"

"Well she said she'd bathe with you if you wanted." Martha said, having the wooden doll attack the soldiers, knocking them down like bowling pins.

"But women don't bathe with men, so that won't be happening. No Miss lily will stay in my room until she is comfortable with the occupants of the castle, then she will get her own." A lie, because no doubt her history will reach most if not all the ears of the castle. Her safety was only in his presence. he looked at Emily who seemed to have little questions, analyzing her chess set in the light. "Annabelle wants to see Miss Lily's Retian clothes."

The pigtailed twin clapped her hands. "Oh yes! May we may we?!"

Elliot laughed. "Of course you may, you three wait here, I'll walk her to my room so she can change, her belongings are there." And motioned for Lily to follow, walking out of the playroom and closing the door. "So what do you think of my sisters?"

The prince couldn't help but chuckle. "They are indeed." And nodded a hello at a passing maid who was quick to look away. "And I'm aware, I had to follow you quickly after my meeting with Mother, I was afraid I'd miss you four." His chuckling grew a little louder, the lights around them flickering to a happy yellow before he paused, silencing himself and letting the lights return back to white. "I apologize about placing the hint within the fur of your hat, I was still planning out the stages of the treasure hunt when we stopped at the last town to buy your clothes." He said, looking at the clothes she was wearing before his ears twitched forward. Running around with his sisters should not have made her clothes so wrinkled.

A darker color flickered in the lamps before turning back to white, silver eyes looking away. "I would have preferred to take you to my small alcove in the gardens, but I'm content with my sisters taking you as well. As long as you enjoy yourself."

So Elliot's guess wasn't wrong, how painful. He looked away, keeping his breathing even, watching the lights and making sure they stayed a neutral color. "We will discuss this in my room where people can't eavesdrop, Miss Lily." and continued walking, silver eyes staying on the lights. Not many could hear through the walls, yes, but they could see the lights, Elliot did not want that. Climbing the stairs he glanced back, making sure she was following before continuing and opening his bedroom door, motioning for her to enter first. Angry or not, he was a gentleman, manners were mandatory, no matter the situation.

Closing the door behind himself he kept his eyes closed, thinking, ears flat against his skull, thinking, words flitting through his head and inhuman speeds, sentences slowly forming in his mind. "I had told myself this situation might have happened." He said slowly, looking at the floor. "It is understandable why it did happen," and judging by the lack of any physical wounds she did not fight back. "And I will not be angry at you for following what you have learned. It will take a while to break and re-accustom you to my rules, but I have the patience for it." he wasn't looking at her, there were no lights to show his mood, and with his head angled downwards it was even harder to tell. The ears atop his head stayed flat, and his hands stayed behind his back. The prince was not allowing himself to be read, whether he was angry or saddened at this thought was hard to tell.

"You are forgiven, Miss Lily. You will tell me who touched you later tonight, my schedule at the moment is very tight, and I've but a few more minutes before I leave to socialize with Nobles. After you change I will take you back to the play room and depart. Please change quickly." And with that opened the door and waited outside, closing it with a soft 'click' behind him. The lights outside turned a dark red, the anger now visible on his face as he leaned against the wall, slowly forcing himself to calm down. He had little time to eat, a meal would have to be skipped then off downstairs to the drawing room to socialize, make conversation and watch as they tried to gain his favor. It was all politics.

By the time Miss Lily exited the room, everything was once again white, the prince calm and even giving her a soft smile. "You are ready, yes?"

(( With how often Elliot gets annoyed or angry he's going to get an aneurysm. ))