I thought I'd find Isolde in the park by the central lake. But there was no trace of her. No silhouette, no voice, not even a clue.

  I began searching the surrounding area. Nothing. The emptiness started weighing heavier than the silence.

  My heart pounded violently, as if trying to escape my chest. My throat tightened, and an uncomfortable, almost painful pressure built behind my eyes. Tears threatened to spill - not from sadness, but from some primal worry.

  I ran. I tore through the kingdom's streets at full speed, dodging people, ignoring fatigue, screaming her name with no response. Every second without seeing her was another twist of the rope around my neck.

  And then...

  "Hey, asshole! What the hell did you say about my brother?!"

  "Isolde, I think you should calm down."

  "WHAT?!"

  I recognized her immediately. Her voice, sharp and furious, cut through the air from the other side of an alley. Distant, but alive.

  I took my first full breath in minutes. Any longer and I might have collapsed from the anxiety.

  I charged into the alley without a second thought. The sun was still shining; fear didn't have time to take root.

  And then I saw her.

  Isolde - unmistakably herself - completely unhinged. Screaming death threats with the kind of rage reserved only for when someone touches what matters most to her.

  "Get over here, you piece of shit! I'll kill you for insulting my brother!"

  Alicia, seemingly resigned to playing peacekeeper, held her back with both hands. Isolde thrashed like a wild animal, trying to lunge at three boys laughing a safe distance away. Mocking her.

  Something in me ignited. An instinctive spark. Without thinking, I scooped up snow and packed it into a tight ball.

  "Leave my sister alone!" I yelled, and hurled it.

  The snowball hit one boy square in the face. He stumbled back, shocked - as if he'd never imagined someone like me would intervene.

  Not exactly the scene I expected to walk into today.

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  "The fuck?" the boy snarled, wiping snow from his face. "Why'd you do that, idiot?"

  "Because you're messing with my sister," I said firmly. "And I won't allow it."

  "What? We didn't even say anything to her!"

  Lies. I saw that smirk. The taunt in their eyes.

  "Lucy?" Isolde blinked at me, momentarily confused, her voice dropping.

  "Why were you provoking them?"

  "Provoking them?! She started it! Why are we the bad guys here?"

  I paused. That... made sense. Isolde wasn't exactly diplomatic. She could have instigated it.

  But...

  Even so. I couldn't side with them.

  "Either way, you were laughing at her. That's enough."

  I was about to continue when Alicia cut in:

  "It's true. Isolde did start it... but not maliciously."

  She still held Isolde back. Smart. If she let go, those boys would be on the ground in seconds.

  Whatever they'd said or done, they'd pissed her off. Badly.

  So... were they at fault too?

  Didn't matter.

  My job wasn't to judge.

  It was to stand by her.

  "Get back here, you pieces of green raccoon poop!"

  I froze for a second.

  What kind of insult is that? Raccoon poop? And green?

  I wasn't entirely sure what had started the argument, but right now, my role wasn't to understand—it was to have her back. She wouldn't lash out like this without reason.

  Though... knowing her, maybe she would.

  Who had provoked whom? What exactly had they said?

  I didn't know. And that unsettled me.

  The other two boys helped the snowball victim up and quickly retreated. No words exchanged—just uncomfortable glances and a hasty escape.

  Odd.

  "What? Scared now?!" Isolde wasn't about to let them leave without a final roar. She's always been like this.

  But the boys ignored her and walked away without looking back. I scooped up another snowball, hesitated... then let it drop. Admitting a mistake—even something as trivial as throwing snow—was a necessary lesson in humility.

  I sighed and turned to Isolde. She still looked upset, though... not at them anymore. At me?

  I approached nervously.

  "What was that about?"

  Alicia answered first:

  "They were talking trash about you. Isolde reacted. At least I stopped her before she broke their faces."

  "Oh..." My voice dropped, uncomfortable.

  "And you... why'd you hit that kid with a snowball?"

  "Instinct," I admitted bluntly. "Thought they were bothering Isolde... but I see now that wasn't exactly it. Issy, you shouldn't overreact to words."

  "Shut up," she snapped, sharp as a blade. "If you'd been here, you'd have heard what they said about you."

  "If you'd been here."

  It wasn't just words. It was an accusation. Short. Precise. Devastating.

  It hit harder than I expected. She was right—I'd left her alone. Didn't matter that I hadn't meant to. I still did it.

  But why were they insulting me in the first place? I'd never even interacted with those kids. Hell, I barely interacted with anyone besides Isolde and Alicia.

  Idiots.

  "Sorry. My fault for leaving you. Shouldn't have gone to Uncle Reginald's."

  Isolde pouted and looked away.

  The sun was setting strangely fast. Long shadows crept across the cobblestones.

  "We should head back. Something about this light feels... off."

  "Hmph! Fine."

  "Thanks for looking after her," I told Alicia.

  "Don't mention it. But please don't leave her with me again. She's too..."

  "Stubborn?"

  "Hey! Who are you calling stubborn?!"

  "Ow—!" Isolde thumped me—more symbolic than painful.

  Alicia smiled and waved.

  "See you tomorrow."

  "Yeah."

  I took Isolde's hand. Despite her anger, she didn't pull away.

  We walked home in silence.