A Cell Made of Glass

e to know why you are so set on celebrating my birthday which is not until the end of next week. ”

A sense of dread filled her heart as soon as the words left her mouth. Cairbre had something planned. The sly grin turned into something more mischievous, almost as if he were daring for her to ask more questions. To prevent herself from the trouble, Aithne held up her hands and took a step back.

”Nevermind, I do not think I really want to know. ”

Just as she was about to turn around and leave, Cairbre grasped onto her arm and pulled her in for a hug. Even if her older brother was absolutely intolerable at times and she despised their conversations or his plans for whatever else he has in store for her for next week, she could never tell him no. The two had been through too much together for Aithne to entirely push him away at any given point. After all, he is the very reason she was allowed to continue living.

Aithne never celebrated her birthday, nor did the majority of her siblings. Being born as the third princess into a family full of power-hungry beasts, she would eventually fall victim to someones tirade while on a conquest for the throne. After her birth, the Emperor declared her his successor, not trusting any of her corrupted siblings to ever lead the country properly. In his mind, an infant who has yet to taste the blood of their kin in the name of a fruitless war was the far better alternative. The only one of her siblings to actually respect this decision was Cairbre, a child only eight years older than her. He, alone, had watched three of his other siblings perish due to attempts on her life by his hands. Even though she had nothing to do with this, Aithne felt as if she owed her entire life to him.

If it made Cairbre happy to celebrate her birthday then she would not mind putting up with a few drunken relatives for a couple of days. After all, he did not mention anything about actually interacting with any of them, just that she would be in their presence. Thankfully, the capitols castle was quite large, so she would only run into someone if she actually intended to do so. Not too many of their siblings were still alive, so the main concern would be running into any loud-mouthed nieces or nephews. Aithne did not know if she could remain civil if a child were to pester her too much, especially when she was intentionally avoiding the rest of the royal family.

Cairbre pulled away, holding his hands on her shoulders and gazing proudly at her. ”You will not regret it, I promise, Aithne. ”

The princess looked slightly up at her brother, observing the satisfaction on his face before shifting around so he would not grapple her again for another embrace. As tradition, she was dressed more elegantly than usual due to knowing that she would have company of some sorts today. While she did have a few guests upstairs to help with a small ”research ” project that she had orchestrated, it was still expected of her to dress to the occasion when receiving others. After putting forth that much effort to meet the standard of others for the day, she was not going to have her brother be the reason for someone finding fault in her appearance, even if it were due to a slight wrinkle in her clothing.

With a faltering grin, she smacked his hands away. ”I already do regret it. ” Turning around and making her way towards a staircase, Aithne added ”Just let me know when to leave. Im busy receiving guests at the moment, so go rest for a while until lunch, Cair. ”

”Will do! ” He proclaimed as he motioned for the servant that held his cape to follow him on his way towards one of the downstairs hallways..

― ― ― ― ―

Aithne Elspeth Niamh Centhos, the third oldest princess in the Centhos family, was quite the interesting woman. Very few people in Kairos know much about her outside of the rumors that circulate around different towns. Some claim that she is a witch, ostracized from her family due to practicing dark magic, while others claim that she is a true deviant, causing chaos and destruction wherever she goes. While these stories vary from place to place, everyone has collectively agreed that she is not someone to be trusted, harnessing some sort of evil and malicious mindset that will be the undoing of the kingdom.

In addition to the idle rumors that have been spread about a woman, many things were said about her due to her appearance and the types of visitors that appear in her palace. Of course, she was as beautiful as the rest of her family, but her blood red hair and soft blue eyes made many question if she were truly a member of the Centhos family. Many of her friends ended up being male figures which caused a lot of curiosity between the commoners as they wondered if she were truly acting as a real princess should. Of course, rumors are made up out of gossip when others have nothing more to complain about, so she never saw a real reason to dispel this commentary.

In all honesty, the only reason why Aithne does not wish to live with her family or claim the throne is due to her disinterest in their politics. Of course, it entertains her to no end how easily the men in power will fight and argue over land that they may never even step foot on, but she would never want that sort of responsibility. Just having the title of princess and an easy life to follow was good enough for her. If the rest of the royals wanted to argue and murder each other just to have a crown and hold ceremonies then she would not be in their way.