It was all Aleydis could do to maintain her composure at Father's announcement. She had been certain that her parents had forgotten all about her request and had been busy trying to figure out how to remind them without coming across as a whiny child.

Still, everyone in the ballroom was watching them closely, so she couldn't laugh and dance like she wanted to.

Not only that, but she could hear the hidden sadness in her father's voice at the thought of her leaving. It reminded her all over again that she would be away from Colbini for years. Although she knew that it was for the best, since it meant that she could stay in Colbini for the rest of her life, but a small part of her was still sad and anxious at the thought of being away from her home and family for so long.

So caught up was she in her conflicting thoughts that she nearly missed the end of her father's speech, her attention returning right as he bide them all to enjoy the rest of the evening. As the crowd scattered, the noise level increasing as they all started discussing the announcement, her father turned to her and held out his hand, "Would you honor me with a dance?"

She curtsied quickly before taking his hand, letting him guide her out to the dance floor. To her surprise, her father was silent for the first part, seeming to focus on the dance and her. They were reaching the middle of the dance when her father finally spoke, his voice warm and low, "I'm going to miss this."

Aleydis tilted her head, trying to figure out what he meant. "The ball? But I thought that you hated balls. Too much politics, not enough eating and laughing."

He laughed quietly, skillfully twirling them around a pair of dancers who had misstepped. "No, I'm going to miss dancing with you. What am I going to do without my little ray of sunshine to brighten our days and keep us smiling?"

Aleydis felt her resolve wavering. It was one thing for her to be sad about missing her home and family. It was another thing to make her family sad because she was leaving. She didn't want them to be sad when she was doing this to make them happy.

Before she could speak, he smiled down at her, "I'm not trying to make you feel guilty, sweetheart. I know that this is what you want to do. I know that you've put a lot of thought into it and a lot of research. But it doesn't mean that we won't miss you while you're gone, just like how I'm sure that you're going to miss us as well."

She nodded, feeling suddenly teary. Her voice wobbled a little as she answered, "Yeah, I'm going to miss all of you. I'm going to do my best to learn as fast as possible so I can come back to you sooner."

He shook his head, "No, what you need to do is to enjoy learning and make as many friends as you want. Enjoy this time of life, before everyone expects something from you. This is your time to just be yourself and have fun, experience new things, and make lots of fun memories. Can you do that for me?"

Although that sounded harder than studying, she nodded eagerly, "I'll do that, I promise."

X

Although two months seemed like forever until it was time for her to go to the academy, the time flew. Every day was packed with things that needed to be done before she could leave.

It took a full week for her wardrobe alone. She'd tried to explain that the students would be wearing uniforms, but they insisted upon making her a full wardrobe to take with her, for when she was relaxing in her rooms or visiting the town with friends. Her mother had looked so happy at the idea of her spending time with friends and having fun together that Aleydis hadn't been able to refuse again.

Her tutors were also trying to cram as much knowledge into her lessons as possible, wanting her to appear polished and educated instead of a backwater clumsy princess from a minor provincial kingdom that no one had ever heard of. She left her lessons with her mind positively aching from all the learning she was doing. She didn't know what being able to name all of the royals in each country going back a thousand years had to do with attending the academy, but she was too scared to ask after she'd dared to ask her etiquette tutor why she had to master fifteen different types of silverware and the tutor's fervent lecture on the subject of eating utensils going all the way back to the very first recorded civilizations.

It didn't help that both she and her family were so busy that it was nearly impossible to carve out time to spend with each other. Aleydis wanted to spend as much time with her family as she could before she left, so she could memorize everything about them. But her parents were still dealing with the issues produced by the drought, especially since winter was just around the corner and they needed to make sure that everyone was provided for.

If the monsoonal rains came as expected in Autumn, that meant that the snowfall would most likely be very heavy this winter. Since the harvests had been lean over the past few years, although no one had starved, the winters had also been relatively mild. If there was a lot of snow, people wouldn't be able to forage, so it was of the utmost importance that people have enough firewood to outlast the storms. Not only that, but they had to make sure that there would be enough food for both people and livestock until the early growth next spring.

Not only that, but even Alrik didn't have any time for her, although he did his best to make sure that he ate every meal with her, even when their parents couldn't so she wouldn't feel lonely. She had thought, once it had been announced that Alrik was the crown prince, that people would back off on trying to feel the pair of them out for who would be more likely to inherit the throne.

And it had worked, in a way. They had stopped hounding her about ethics or policy questions. Instead, they would offer her a brief 'best wishes' or tell her to get in touch with so-and-so at the academy or the city that surrounded the academy and they would be able to help her with anything she needed. Why she would need an apothecary that specialized in arthritic rubs, she had no idea, but she politely thanked the elderly count and excused herself as soon as possible.

But what especially irritated her was how her brother was now twice as besieged as before the announcement, people hounding him to talk to their parents about this or that policy. Not only that, but there were several different nobles and merchants who were courting his good favor with empty flattery and expensive gifts. She could sense his growing frustration with the whole mess, but somehow he managed to keep smiling even as he artfully dodged their stupid flattery and managed to get away from them without accepting a single gift that would obligate him to at least hear them out in the future.

Because of these people who thought they were adults but were acting like vain children, her time with Alrik had become almost nonexistent since he didn't want to subject her to the headaches he was currently enduring. Didn't they realize that the days until she left were dwindling fast?

She was getting so irritated by the whole thing that she almost snapped at the next person who asked if they could 'just spare a moment, it won't take but a minute of your time, Your Highness'. It was only Alrik's hand resting lightly on her shoulder that kept her from speaking, an awkward smile pasted on her face while the two chatted lightly before the noble wandered off, undoubtedly looking for some other high-ranking person to pester.

Once he was certain that the noble was gone, he turned and smiled down at her. "Just be patient for a little while, Aley. They'll settle down soon."

It was all she could do not to stomp her foot from frustration. "But Rik, we don't have time! I leave next week for the academy. They're taking up what little time we have left with their foolishness. I hardly see any of you anymore. And I know that everyone is getting ready for winter and it's important, but I feel like you guys don't have time for me since I decided to leave."

She resisted the urge to scrub at her eyes where she could feel tears forming. "If you're mad at me for leaving, just say so!"

He immediately knelt and pulled her into a hug. "Oh Aley, no, of course we're not mad at you."

She sniffled as she rested her head against his shoulder, "It feels like it."

He pulled back enough so he could smile at her. "Of course not. We're all very proud of you. I'm sorry that you're feeling that way. I'll talk to Mother and Father and we'll all take a day to just spend with you, no interruptions, before you leave. People have been wanting to talk about the changes, but we didn't realize how sad you must feel about leaving, even as you're excited to be learning. We're sad too but we didn't want you to worry about making us sad when you're so excited."

He stood and held out his hand. "C'mon, it's almost dinner time. Let's go grab Mother and Father and we can talk over dinner about what you want to do before you leave."

She accepted his hand, her frustration draining away as she smiled at him. "I would like that."