***WARNING - Slight description of psychical violence***

~After Breakfast~

Luciano and Chèrise walked side by side in silence to his study, his hands clasped behind his back and hers in front of her waist. His jaw was tense, teeth grinding soundlessly in his mouth. Chèrise fidgeted her thumbs nervously, the silence awkward and downbearing. This was the first time the two had been completely alone in centuries, and she wasn't sure where their relationship stood any longer. He wasn't the same Luciano she knew when they were younger, no longer that cheerful boy with the ability to soothe others in an instant. No. He had become something worse over their time apart. He became just like his grandfather, something he swore he'd never do.

Upon reaching the study, he opened the door for her, motioning for her to step inside. She bowed her head in thanks and scurried past him. He moved in behind her, closing the door with a soft click. He leaned against his desk, arms crossed over his chest and a bored expression plastered to his face.

"Are you going to tell me why you wanted to talk or will we continue our quietude?"

"Luci," she began with a soft sigh, letting her shoulders slump forward. Her legs carried her past him and over to the window, beginning to pace as she thought up the best way to go about what she wished to speak. "You have to tell her who she is. I mean tell her who she really is. You can't pussyfoot around this any longer. You can't keep telling her that you'll explain later but truly offer no solution to this mess that you've dragged her into, and you can't keep your heart so locked up."

"Chèrise... I can't. She's not ready for the truth. She'll likely think I'm more crazy than I already am," he huffed, watching her from over his shoulder. "Not to say I'm crazy. Because I'm not. She just thinks I've lost my marbles due to her kidnapping."

"And I told you kidnapping her was wrong, but do you ever listen to me? No! You never ever do anymore." She turned to face him, eyes alight with fire. "Need I remind you that my sister knows your pain because our mother had a hand in her fiancé's death... So I know better than you think." Hot tears welled in her lower lash line as she continued. "Take (y/n) to the West Wing. It's about time you confronted your nightmares and trauma."

"No," he said firmly, pushing himself away from the desk. "It's off limits for a reason. I'm not ready. I... I can't go back there..." His voice grew quieter with each word, eyes falling to the rung under his desk.

"Luciano, please... You've been avoiding your trauma for hundreds of years. You have to face it! You can't let it control your life!"

Chèrise approached but tensed when he struck her cheek, a look of panic on his face as he lowered his hand. He was unsure what had happened in that split second. What made him think it was okay to bruise her beautiful babydoll face. He reached for her, to which she shrunk away in fear, backing up to the door. Her hand gripped the knob tightly behind her, twisting it quickly and pushing back on the door.

"F-fine... I see there's no talking to you... But remember this, brother... The more you fight, the more you hide, the angrier you'll grow... You'll end up alone..."

"Chèrise... Chèrise, come back! I'm sorry!" he called as she hastily retreated, hoping to find Gilen or at the very least someone she trusted.

~Early Morning - Not Too Long Before Sunrise~

Luciano had spent hours looking for Chèrise but to no avail. She was elusive, but he was more than determined to find her and apologize for his actions despite not being a hundred percent sure what all had happened in those few moments. He hadn't had a lapse in memory for centuries, but that split second was enough to cause him concern. He wondered if perhaps a spirit possessed him, which wouldn't surprise him. From hearing Chèrise talk, he knew her mother's vengeful spirit often followed her for torturous purposes. It wasn't until Anna and Lauren brought him to a maid that had seen the French princess a few hours earlier that he came to know she visited the hospital wing with a cut on her cheek.

He rushed there in hopes she hadn't left, but alas, she left not long after she arrived, having been carried off by some unknown force that only she could see: another spirit. A nurse graciously gave him directions to the garden, which he narrowed down to her being in the mausoleum of his deceased relatives. The soon-to-be king nearly tripped over the top step just before the entrance to the beautifully constructed building, catching sight of her being rocked in front of the altar at the back of the resting place.

"Thank God I found you..." he panted, attempting to catch his breath.

The princess squeaked and attempted to hide behind her companion, his father, Giovanni, only to remember that Luciano couldn't see the deceased man. "I-I'm sorry Your Highness! I won't step o-out of line again... Please have mercy..." she begged, hands shielding her face from another hit she was sure was coming.

The auburn haired male approached her quickly, sinking to his knees to hug her tightly against his chest, his nose buried in her chestnut locks. "Don't apologize... I'm the one who should be sorry..." he whispered.

She teared up, looking to Giovanni for help. "I overstepped again... I'm sorry..."

"Shh... Let me talk..." he growled, an edge to his voice as he shifted her so she sat in his lap. The ghost shrugged, floating off to the side in a sitting position of his own and giving an apathetic look. "You shouldn't be apologizing. I should. I'm sorry I slapped you. I didn't mean to. It felt as if something came over me... And I'm sorry for breaking your shoulders after my fiancé died... My anger got the best of me, and I took it out on you when it wasn't your fault. You were trying to help, and I should have respected that there are limitations to your powers."

Luciano cried as he rocked her, his entire face now buried in her hair, soaking the top of her head with his tears. He hadn't cried in such a long time that it pained him to show this weakness in front of one of the people he was closest to. The princess reached up to play with his hair, being mindful of his curl, knowing full well that he never let anyone touch it and with good reason.

"L-Luci... It's normal... to be a punching bag for others, so I'm not angry at all... Please... I forgive you, okay?"

"No..." he growled again. "I shouldn't have laid a hand on you... You didn't deserve that... I'm such a shitty older brother..."

Chèrise sighed and nuzzled into him. "It happened, and we can't change what's already been done. We can move on though, oui? We can improve." She paused. "Together."

"I want to... I want to so badly... But there's always going to be a part of me holding on to remorse, holding on to the regret of my previous actions," he whispered, nuzzling back gently.

"Let's not talk about that anymore, okay? I've forgiven you. I know it's been hard since your parents died."

He whimpered softly at the mention of them.

"You know... I discussed attempting to bring them back with their spirits," she hummed, picking up her head and bringing his to rest against her shoulder. "They won't let me... but they want you to know they've been hugging you and tucking you and Flavio into bed. They're always with you both."

Luciano was silent for a moment, his walls crumbling further as he sobbed harder and hugged her a little tighter. "I miss them so much..."

She continued to play with his hair, raking her fingers through his soft locks while taking over rocking for him. "They know. They're sorry for leaving you both alone."

"I could have saved them if I had noticed sooner... If my hearing was a little better..."

"No. It could have been dealt with earlier if my sister and I weren't always hiding from pu-"

"Don't you dare go shifting the blame onto yourself... It's not your fucking fault. You were dealing with your own issues. It was safer for you to remain hidden because if it wasn't them, it could have been you and Aìne."

The brunette knew he was right, but it still hurt to hear. "But you lost your family and soulmate... It wasn't fair to you at all..." she whispered.

"But losing you would have been just as bad..." he sniffled. "You've always been my little sister. Blood or not, you're family too."

She sniffled and held on to him firmly. "You've always been family too... My big brother." She inhaled deeply, then exhaled slowly, taking his cheek while doing so. "You have to reconnect with (y/n). You must open up and show her you're not the asshole she thinks you are. Let her visit her human family. Let her know you're sorry."

"If I let her visit them, she'll never come back. Who in their right mind would come back here after being let go? It's not like I could go after her once she's back underground." His gaze shifted to her, magenta eyes red and irritated from crying.

"I can follow her, but you have to remember this is all to build trust with her, so trust her. Please?"

It was his turn to inhale deeply. "Okay... I'll... I can see what I can do." He rested his head against her shoulder, his own slumping in defeat.

"Good." She swayed and rocked him to give him time to relax and decompress. "Once you're calm and cleaned up, go talk to her."

"I can't. I promised her five days away from me. That'd be going back on my word, and as you said, I need to gain her trust, not break what little I have with her."

"Good boy. Then I'll send Gilen to her to let her know she can see her family. I'll follow in the shadows to make sure she gets there safely and comes back. I know I'm not as good as my sister, but I'm decent."

"No. I don't trust humans not to harm you if they find you. You'll stay here where you can best be protected."

"No," she argued back. "Someone needs to keep an eye on her. I'll be fine."

Luciano sighed, hiding his face in her neck again. He knew what had to be done to keep her at the castle, but he knew he didn't have the strength to go through with such a cruel plan. Not at the moment anyway, so he went with his second and only other option. "Chèrise... Your grandmother visited after the incident after breakfast. She doesn't think you should be here because it's too dangerous. I have to protect you, and the only way I can is if you remain here."

The woman blinked as she processed the new information, then groaned. "She thinks you'll hurt me like you had back then, after the murders. Sure, the human king wants me dead because I may or may not have assisted some of your best hunters in bringing down some human soldiers, but that doesn't mean anything if he can't catch me," she admitted quickly, then whistled in hopes he hadn't caught what she said.

"What was that?" he questioned, lifting his head to look at her with an alarmed expression. "What was that last part?"

She pouted, though she could only blame herself for outing information she had promised herself to keep secret for his sake. "Your hunters gathered intel on the human king. They found out he was plotting to send assassins to off you, and I was recruited to help take them out. One hunter royally fucked up and an assassin escaped after seeing my face. He told the king I was involved and a warrant for the 'Siren of Death' was made up."

"Chèrise, what were you thinking? You could have been killed!" he shrieked, cupping her face with shaking hands.

"Your life was in danger, big brother, plus I was safe!" she huffed while looking into his eyes.

"Obviously you weren't if there's a warrant out for your death. What would I have done if you died on my behalf? I've already told you that I can't lose you. Your grandparents and sister would never forgive me."

"I won't do it again, okay? Please, stop worrying so much."

"I'm not going to stop worrying because you're my sister!" He pulled her back against his chest, burying his face in her hair again. "You're one of the few I have left... I'll always worry about you..."

"I'm sorry..."

"Hush child... No more apologies. If you want to make it up to me, move into the castle. I'm sure Gilen would enjoy that as well. It will take much convincing on your grandmother and sister's parts, but I'm willing to put in the effort if it means your safety and well being is ensured."

"They'll want to inspect every aspect of the castle and the nearby towns."

"We haven't had any large scale attacks for centuries. Just a few people either sneaking in or out on very rare occasions."

"Still, they'll be cautious, brother. They worry."

"I know. I'll talk with your grandmother later about it."

She pushed herself up from his lap and helped pull him up from the cold stone ground. Giovanni floated behind them as they began walking back to the castle, the sun slowly peeking up over the trees. Luciano held her hand as they walked, swinging their hands slowly back and forth.

"Have you ever thought about talking to your parents?" Chèrise asked as they entered the ancient stone structure. Maids closed the doors behind them and tightly closed the curtains of the nearby windows to block out the light.

"Like... Just talking aloud to them?" he questioned, quirking a brow at her.

"Sort of. I mean face to face."

"I mean... I've sat in the mausoleum and talked to the corpses. Does that count?"

"Kind of. They heard you but..." She looked over her shoulder to look at the ghost of his father. "Do you want to try what we talked about?"

Giovanni nodded, signature Vargas curl bobbing at the sudden movement. "If you're okay with it. I wouldn't want you to wear yourself down."

"Who are you talking to?" Luciano asked.

Chèrise ceased walking, causing the auburn haired male to also stop. She held her free hand out to the deceased before closing her eyes at the feeling of his hand in hers. She whispered in ancient French, causing Luciano's brows to knit together in confusion. He'd never heard her speak in the language, much less heard anyone else speak the dead language more recently. Soon enough he felt a presence beside him that hadn't been there before. His breath hitched when his eyes landed on his father, spine rigid and skin growing pale at the sight of the dead.

"Papa...?"

"Ciao bambino. It's been awhile."

"I... Can I touch you?"

"Yes, but we don't have much time and cannot let go of Chèrise's hands or the connection will be severed. She's allowing me to borrow her energy to manifest, and I don't want her to pass out from me taking too much."

Luciano reached out, hand pausing centimeters away from the older man's face before connecting to touch cold flesh. "I've missed you..." he whispered, tears welling up once more.

"I've missed you too," Giovanni whispered back, pulling his son into a one armed hug. "You've made us all so proud... You've become a wonderful ruler in your grandfather's absence and will do many great things for our kind."

"Grazie..."

"But you must give the girl some time. She's not one hundred percent the love you once had. It's a new age, a new time period. Her likes and dislikes may be different. Her memories of you are but lingering fragments at the back of her mind that she won't give second thought. She's the same yet different."

"I know..."

"Then you have to rethink your approach. You can't win her over like you did the first time. She'll fight you tooth and nail, but the reward you'll reap in the end will be sweeter than the freshest nectar. It'll take time and careful strategy, but you can do this."

The tears cascaded down his cheeks in a flood, soaking into his clothes as they rolled off his jaw and chin. Giovanni pulled him in a little closer, pressing a tender, loving kiss to his forehead.

"I must go now, my son. I love you... And please know that your mother and I are always with you. Your grandmother and grandfather too. We all love you and your brother so, so very much."

"I love you all too... More than words could ever properly convey..."

With that, Giovanni faded away, leaving Luciano to hug the air where he once stood. Chèrise swayed as she came out of her trance-like state, the whispering in ancient tongues coming to an end. She nearly fell over had it not been for Luciano's quick reflexes despite his slightly disoriented state. He scooped her into his arms and immediately headed for the medical wing to have her checked over by the royal physician. He knew the doctor wouldn't be able to do much but put her on fluids and advise of bedrest until she could regain her strength but better safe than sorry. Her grandmother, Viola, was already on his case about keeping her safe, and if word reached her that he had laid a harmful hand on her earlier in the day, his head would be on a golden platter for sure. For now, all he could do was watch over her and attend to his duties as the Prince Regent while he waited for the next five days to pass.

~Author's Note~

DreamsForDays here! Sorry that it's been a long while since the last chapter! I was having trouble writing again, so I do apologize if this chapter isn't all that great. This is an all new chapter that includes two scenes that were not included in the previous version of the story. This included what Chèrise and Luciano discussed and the aftermath of that discussion later on in the day. There's also a little bit of a show of the French princess's abilities. And another huge thank you to SheriAnderson for helping me out with the dialogue between the princess and the prince! Thanks for reading! Feedback in the comments is always appreciated! Until next time!