Sitting at the dining table, Carilysh and Ethan ate in silence, neither of them brave enough to break the awkwardness between them. Placed in front of them was a roasted fish, whose stomach was filled to the brim with fruits.
Ethan picked up a sliced strawberry and munched on it, his face scrunching ever so slightly at the sweetness of the fruit mixed with the sour taste of the boiled fish before morphing into an reserved expression of delight. The contrast of the flavors both fascinated and bothered him at the same time, creating an enchanting combination of savor.
Ethan was truly grateful that Elyon accepted to renovate the kitchen before welcoming the new Pillars, complying to the request of the Crowns. Despite hating humans and Earth, the Clans remained obsessed with the idea of being better than them, and as such begged their God to keep an eye on their material advancements, which He begrudgingly accepted.
The screen in the living room, the fridge or even the electric stove were all imported from Earth by the God and installed to make the life of the citizens easier, or at least this is what He said.
For Ethan, who hated, or rather couldn't use his fire, regardless of the fact that he doesn't even have to cook, it was revolutionary.
Drying one's clothes without having to summon air, or having to use the right amount of fire, washing them without needing to flick your wrist to conjure water or walking to the river and back, and therefore saving time and energy, truly marvelous.
'Humans are incredible.' He mused silently, a smile playing on his face.
Zeraphiel once told him about the strange things humans ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the different types of clothes and styles they wear, the animals roaming, swimming or flying around, as well as the multiple way they communicate or travel.
Ethan was in awe, and confused on how his cousin could know so much, yet he never dared ask. Nor did he dared dream of ever visiting Earth one day.
Although recently, with Alyssa's arrival, he secretly entertained the hope that, maybe, they would be allowed to visit Earth, even if for just one night. At the same time, he was aware that a few details destined this hope to remain a simple dream.
Carilysh, who had already finished eating the fruits and was now using her fork to fiddle with the fish instead of consuming it, tapped her fingers against the table while observing her plate. The silence stretched on and on, rendering Ethan nervous. He never really talked with Carilysh before, the only time he tried ending in a failure.
When she was thirteen, Carilysh lost her older brother, his body was found near the river, beaten to death. Hearing this, Ethan couldn't help but feel sympathetic, and therefore attempted to comfort her by offering her flowers, it was the only thing the child could think of at the time. Carilysh, however, threw the flowers in his face and yelled at him to leaver her alone.
Understanding that she most likely acted under the weight of grief due to suddenly losing her brother, Ethan kept the interaction for himself and, noticing that the succubus purposefully did her best to avoid him, also kept his distance.
So now, he had no idea what to say. For a prince, he was far from what we call a smooth talker. People were too unpredictable for him, too hard to read. With characters in books he could imagine as many scenarios and dialogues that he likes, mixing and twisting and trying every options, controlling their reactions and words.
If he wanted the gory warlord to wear a pink frilly wedding dress and smile happily when he calls him a pretty princess as they dance under the moonlight, then in the safe space of his mind he could even make him giggle and blush shyly.
On the other hand, impossible to mentally control real people. Too many factors to consider : the person's mood, likes and dislikes, which are bound to change with time, personality, motives, mentality, beliefs, personal experience... How was he to know what to say and when to say it as to not attract their anger ?
Yet, doesn't he have to learn how to properly socialize if he wanted to be a good ruler ?
Such a problem made him understand why he wanted to work in the castle library as a child.
"What were you doing on the stairs ?"
Ethan snapped out of his thoughts upon hearing Carilysh's question. It was nearly four in the morning when he wake up in his bed, lost and confused as to what happened the night prior. All he remembered was sitting at his desk, ready to indulge in some nocturnal reading, and then complete black out. When he opened his eyes this morning, he suffered an intense headache of unknown origin that he decided to ignore.
However, when he arrived at the bottom of the staircase, he felt drained of all energy, pushing him to sit then lay on the stairs. At that moment, he even envied the late King Kezek, Queen Ephemera's husband who allegedly committed suicide, thinking that at least dead people don't have to make choices.
It was not the first time he endured a moment of mental exhaustion, always coming unannounced, at any given moment. His uncle explained that he was just being a dramatic child and that he would get over it with time, although Ethan had the impression it was only getting worse.
His aunt said he was only nervous because of his upcoming coronation and dismissed him with a wave of the hand.
Ethan made the conscious decision to keep all of this for himself, responding in a whisper that he was thinking. Carilysh didn't probe further and they resumed their silent eating. Even after finishing eating none of them spoke. Ethan was feeling pretty troubled. Should he take this a chance to improve his socializing skills ? Except, he still had no idea what to talk about.
He glanced at his now empty plate and decided to give it a try.
"The food was good." He said with as casually as he could, although his slightly hesitant tone betrayed him.
Carilysh grimaced as she stared at the remaining of the roasted fish.
"It was fine."
Ethan shifted uncomfortably on his chair at her disinterested tone.
"Who cooked it ?" He asked hesitantly.
"Zeraphiel." She answered.
"Ah."
Ethan frowned. He usually never ate with the other Pillars, preferring waiting in the library for them to leave before going to take one or two pieces of bread, or skipping his meal all together. However, it would have been rude to refuse to eat with Carilysh after she offered although she didn't have to. In any case, due to him avoiding the kitchen as much as he does, he wasn't aware that his cousin was the one who cooked the roasted fish.
'It's not suspicious of me to compliment the food he cooked, right ?'
He pondered if he should say something mean or cynical to counterbalance him complimenting the food, but before he could decide Carilysh stood up, taking the plates in her hands, distracting him from his thoughts. He immediately got up too, proposing to wash the dishes himself. Carilysh frowned and refused. However, seeing his fluster face, she relented, observing him as he effortlessly scrubbed the plates.
"Zeraphiel's mom taught you, didn't she ? Or was it Zeraphiel himself ?"
Ethan nearly dropped one of the plate in surprise, his heart beating rapidly. Carilysh crossed her arms over her chest, and eyeing him as if he was stupid for believing she wouldn't notice something so obvious. Nevertheless, she reassured him by saying that, as far as she knows, his uncle was unaware of the truth.
Ethan nodded nervously.
"It's none of my business what you do." she affirmed, taking a red apple out of the nearby fruit bowl. "I have no interest in exposing you."
She took a bite out of it.
"I'm not doing this to be nice. You could have told your family how I treated you back then, you didn't. I'm just doing this to repay you." she explained, wanting to make it clear she wasn't actually trying to be nice.
Ethan tilted his head, completely confused about what she meant. In his eyes, her reaction was absolutely warranted so he had a hard time understanding why she wished to repay him.
"But you didn't do anything bad though."
Carilysh nearly choked on the apple and glared at him in disbelief.
"You-" she sighed and shook her head.
"Forget it."
She finished the apple before heading for the kitchen's door to leave for the Precipice. After opening the door, she turned one last time towards him.
"You know, it's about time you stop being the weird guy. You should try to make some friends for once."
With that, she slammed the door behind her, leaving Ethan to take in her words.