Little little mouse

Well, that is.... unexpected. Who would’ve thought that the two farmers who just arrived would turn out to be related to the royal family, heh. No, Lenny isn’t going to joke about this (though she did consider it, just to lighten the mood), because seeing how exhausted and clearly stressed out the poor sisters looked, this was no time for jokes. Plus, it was stressful and a lot of work for her, since she had to rewrite Cerise and Rosemary’s documents and records to reflect the new circumstances…

“Ooooh, so you’re both, like, lost princesses!” It wasn’t exactly true, but Trinnie and Keahi were already so impressed and excited by this news that the exhausted Valroux sisters didn’t even want to correct the kids. Yuuma was a more perceptive boy, but he decided to ask Julian, another adult, so as not to bother Cerise and Rosemary. And judging by Julian’s reserved and somewhat cryptic answer, Yuuma realized this was some kind of complicated adult problem, so he didn’t get involved. All the kids in Ridgeside Village would soon get the full picture mostly from their parents’ gossip.

“Sheesh... That’s rough.” It was a somewhat dry response, but to tell the truth, Anton didn’t know how to support Rosemary and Cerise. Finding out by chance that you’re related to one of the wealthiest families in the Republic — and with such a complicated and tangled past at that — is pretty tough. Still, Anton wants to support his friends in this difficult time somehow, either personally or through Julian, their mutual friend.

…Never before had Maive wanted so badly to empty a bottle of expensive, strong wine to forget all the headaches she’d been dealing with as she did right now. But she needed to keep a clear head. So many meetings and conversations with relatives to explain the situation regarding the new family members, so many outbursts and scandals over why all this had only come to light now! Even before the official results, Madame had already guessed what the verdict would be, and yet, like a bolt from the blue, the news stunned everyone at the Amethyne mansion. Well, Maive had already been caring for the Valroux children as if they were her own grandchildren even before all this commotion. It’s just that she’ll be the one left to sort out all the family’s problems…

The rest of the mansion’s residents were not so much stunned by the news as they were terrified of falling on the wrong side of the exhausted and irritated head of the family. Nevertheless, Irene and Sonny, for their part, hadn’t changed their attitude toward the sisters (except that they now addressed them as members of the Amethyne family should be addressed). Zayne was already eager to meet the sisters’ loved ones (Rosemary’s friendly, gallant husband and, um, Cerise’s withdrawn spouse). Curious Ariah and Louie were torn between the desire to ask Rosemary and Cerise about everything that was happening, and fear of their grandmother's wrath, so they wouldn’t meddle in the adults’ affairs (for now, at least, until Maive gets everything in order.)

Jio has no idea which gods or spirits he managed to anger to warrant such a punishment from the higher powers, but he’s already (insincerely) repenting and hoping this ordeal turns out to be nothing more than a terrible dream. Unfortunately for the elf, this was his reality, so he has to reluctantly socialize with his wife’s new relatives, pretending he doesn’t want to kill that old hag, who’s already laying down all sorts of conditions and rules for him and his wife. Still, for Cerise’s sake, Jio restrains himself and accepts the new realities of his life.

Julian walked past the Valroux sisters, Jio, and Maive, not wanting to meddle in other people’s affairs, but he managed to spot someone on the roof of a nearby house. He headed over there — and found Daia, sitting relaxed on guard duty, surrounded by several bags of snacks. Officially, she’s monitoring the situation so she can step in and defuse any tension if necessary, just in case. But the ninja also won’t pass up the chance to hear the juiciest gossip from the other residents, because boy oh boy, the valley is the most interesting place she’s ever been. Daia also invites Julian to join her, to which the young man shakes his head slightly in reproach and sits down next to her, eavesdropping on the conversations.

Why are Kiwi’s friends so tired and angry? Jio is really angry, just like Cerise, Rosemary too, and Julian looks sad. Did something happen? Did someone hurt Kiwi’s friends? Well then, Kiwi is going to stab them! Lots of sharp knives and kunai to stab Kiwi’s enemies! Amethyne, family ties? Kiwi doesn’t quite get it. Did those people from their huge house make Kiwi’s friends like this? Well then, Kiwi will go visit them and stab them! (The three farmers and Jio had to spend a long time explaining to their Junimo friend what was actually going on.)

“So, you’ve already heard about this?” June looked at Julian somewhat wearily and said that even if he’d covered his ears, he would still have heard the chatter and whispers of locals and visitors at the hotel about the Amethyne scandal instead of his own thoughts. To be honest, the pianist doesn’t quite understand what has gotten everyone so worked up about people’s personal lives to the point that every conversation somehow circles back to the two farmer-sisters and their ties to a wealthy local family. And it’s kind of disrespectful, anyway, to discuss secrets behind the backs of those you call friends.

To be honest... yeah, Bert, Olga, Kimpoi, Naomi and Malaya have already discussed the fact that their young friends turns out to be related to the Amethyne family, but after the news broke, the four of them are doing everything they can to support Cerise and Rosemary, because you can tell from their faces how exhausted they are by all of this and definitely don’t want to discuss personal matters they haven’t fully figured out themselves. So Bert and Malaya suggest they go for a walk, away from the noise; Olga and Naomi glares sternly at their friends and others to get them to stop chatting and asking questions, and Kimpoy suggests they have lunch at Pika’s. Rosemary and Cerise’s favorite dishes, and, by the way, on the house, because Pika decided to give the poor farmers some support, too.

So all those rumors Maddie had overheard are true? She wasn’t particularly fond of gossip — especially since Cerise and Rosemary were her good friends — and she didn’t like that other residents were discussing the sisters’ affairs behind their backs, but it seemed the situation was very... messy. Maddie still tries to offer the sisters moral support, shooting angry glances at anyone who pesters them with unnecessary questions when both Rosemary and Cerise have other things on their minds.

“Let me guess — that old hag is tearing her gray hair out because there are yet more contenders for the family inheritance or something?” Blair’s comment might not have been very polite toward Maive, but to be honest, the young fisherwoman also found it unpleasant to hear Maive’s remarks about “smelling like sea waste” every time she walked past Blair or her mother Carmen. So she doesn’t feel sorry for the head of the Amethyne family. She’s just worried about the Valroux sisters, who are now stuck in all this like quicksand. Carmen might give her daughter a gentle scolding for her comment of Maive, but she’ll also focus more on Rosemary and Cerise, seeing how exhausted they are — both from the event itself and from the rumors and never-ending questions. So much stress, ay ay ay!

The Amethyne?! So, everything the locals have been whispering about!.... Well, yes, Philip, Kenneth Shiro had heard about it, because, well, almost every passerby was talking about it. Um, yeah...... It's not exactly pleasant when your personal affairs become the main topic of conversation in the village, so the trio refrained from asking any questions, other than offering moral support to the exhausted Valroux sisters.

Shanice had worked with the Amethyne family for some time, and she was the first to comment on the striking physical resemblance between Cerise and Maive, but those words were spoken within the family circle, and she considered it merely a coincidence. When all these rumors were officially confirmed, Shanice was shocked at how spot-on she’d been. Kiarra and Lorenzo asked her if she’d ever seen the “lost” brother at the estate, but Shanice made it clear to them that it had been a very long time ago and that it wasn’t very nice to pry into other people’s business.

To be perfectly honest, Belinda didn’t care at all about the drama unfolding in the village, because she had more important things to do than watch mortals’ scandals. Raeriyala was curious, but Belinda said there was nothing there worth paying attention to. However, when the sisters’ moods began to take a toll, and with Jio constantly preoccupied with this scandal, Belinda and Rae decided to intervene. Not directly, but covertly, so that the people dear to her could resolve their own disputes. And the spirits of the Ridgeside Forest invites Cerise and Rosemary to the Spirits Realm, to escape from my problems, at least for a little while.

Like a wildfire, rumors have spread throughout the village, and given how even non-local guests at Richard’s hotel are whispering to one another, the situation for the farmer sisters and the members of Amethyne is quite complicated. The only thing the hotel’s owner can do is sympathize with everyone involved in this mess, because it’s definitely a shock and a headache that will last a long time…

“Bhahahahaha, what a mess!” Corine gave her laughing father, Ezekiel, a very stern look, because instead of offering any support to Valroux sisters, who were exhausted from the recent events involving Amethyne, he had simply laughed it all off. But he isn’t insensitive or gloating (so, Corine, don’t give your father such a menacing look…), he simply doesn’t understand why Amethyne is making an already complicated situation even more complicated with all these arguments and official statements. “What my father meant,” Corine added, “is that if you need help or a quiet place, we’re always happy to have the two of you in our home.”

Interestingly, Jeric vaguely remembers his adoptive father, the Governor, once mentioning a “criminal organization” and “possible involvement with Amethyne” when, as a teen, he managed to sneak into a meeting of important people and overhear part of the conversation. But he was quickly found and scolded, and his game console was taken away for a week. Jeric hadn’t thought about it… until Rosemary filled him in on what had happened to her and her older sister. “Oh. So you and Amethyne are related?” Jeric’s voice betrayed both shock and a hint of sympathy to Valroux sisters.

Faye immediately took advantage of the one-hour break to discuss the latest sensational rumors with Alissa, Ysabelle, and Paula. Cerise and Rosemary are distant relatives of the wealthiest family in the Ferngill Republic… they certainly won’t keep quiet about something like that. What’s more, Ysabelle said that even non-locals at her grandfather’s hotel are whispering about it. If the girls spot Julian walking by, they’ll immediately grab him invite him to their table because, according to the rumors, he knows the juiciest details better than anyone else. Although they’ll be respectful if Julian doesn’t want to say anything.

“Oh, hey, Rosemary! Is it true that, um….” At the last moment, Sean remembered that he shouldn’t have asked Rosemary or her older sister directly about all those events that almost everyone in the village was whispering about, because this whole connection with the Amethyne and the other rumors were probably quite a headache for the two sisters. Well, at least that’s how Ian had explained it to him, asking him not to bother his friends and clients with overly personal questions. “Eh, there’s nothing to hide here anymore, so I can tell ya,” and Sean immediately forgot all about his responsibilities as he listened to Rosemary recount the whole story. Ian joined the conversation too, making sure to comfort his friend after everything that had happened.

If Cerise and Rosemary need help, or just someone to vent all their pent-up stress to, Flor is always ready to invite Valroux sisters over for a cup of coffee. She figured they could really use a little peace and quiet after so many hours of talking with the head of the wealthiest family, who turned out to be their relatives. There’s so much tension in the air when the sisters chat with Maive… Flor is curious, but she won’t ask them a bunch of questions unless they want to talk themselves.

Sari will be honest and straightforward: as long as it doesn’t concern the well-being and safety of Princess Undreya, all these extraneous problems of the local humans don’t bother her. Pipo and Acorn will respond almost the same way, because after so many years, they’ve finally found their Kingdom’s long-lost princess, and protecting Undreya has become their top priority. At least, they didn’t get involved until Undreya herself became terribly curious and went to ask the sisters (and Julian) why people were gossiping so much about that family of that rich grumblers. Because that’s way more interesting than being under the watchful eye of her newly arrived “nannies” 24/7. So does that mean Rosemary and Cerise are kind of like lost princesses too, or what?

That past incident involving an assassination attempt on one of the Amethyne members… No, Bryle knew as much as everyone else — that the assassination of Madame’s brother had been successful. It was simply after that incident that the Governor arranged for additional security for himself, and later for his adopted son as well, which is how Bryle ended up in Ridgeside Village. He’d heard a lot about those shady people who hunted down the rich and powerful politicians for their evil schemes, theories about murders and blackmail… Shit, what a mess. He felt bad that his close friends were now caught up in this. And Bryle also started to worry about them a little. He knows the sisters can definitely stand up for themselves, but he can’t help but worry a bit.

Given the circumstances, Lola and Freddie decided to uncover yet another shocking secret, which, as it turned out, was connected to the Valroux sisters… It was actually them who were supposed to kill Maive’s brother. Yes, Freddie and his wife Lola had been hired to take out one of the Amethyne members… but the task was not completed. Why? “Our client lied to us,” Freddie replied, gripping Lola’s hand tightly. According to the informator, Maive’s brother was the one who had been trying to harm the old couple, but it turned out that the client himself was the enemy, so Lola and Freddy let their target go and advised him to go into hiding. As for the client, well... “He got what he deserved.” Now, another tangled web of events has unfolded for Cerise and Rosemary.

So, the Amethyne heirs? Oh, Cerise and Rosemary have no idea.... just how little Mr. Aguar cares about any of this. Although, no, that was rude — he does care that his young friends and assistants have been under so much stress for more than just a day now, but all this fuss over who, on their father’s or mother’s side, is the heir to yet another wealthy family is such a trivial commotion compared to more important matters, isn’t it? And don’t look at him like that — both farmers would agree that saving the village from a magical earthquake, for example, is much more important than this, because everyone could die, and then it wouldn’t matter who’s related to whom.