Tamsin and I climbed the stairs and moved through the quiet hallways, heading toward Cassia's room.
"What do you think? Why didn't Miss Cassia come down?" Tamsin asked, genuine concern threading through her voice as we walked side by side. "Is she sick?"
I considered it for a moment, but the idea didn't quite sit right.
"Normally I would say she got too absorbed in some novel she found and simply forgot the real world existed."
Tamsin clearly hoped for a better explanation, but that was the best answer I could offer. I looked up, crossing my arms as I sank deeper into thought, then added, "But I doubt that's the case. She should be at the party…"
We were just about to round the corner when a hand suddenly grabbed mine and yanked me forward.
"There you are—"
I turned sharply. It was Cassia. She didn't give us even a second to process before she started dragging me along the corridor.
"Wait! Cassia, I can walk, you know!"
While Cassia dragged me down the hallway, I noticed she was still wearing her ordinary day clothes, nowhere near ready for the party. Was that the reason? Had she simply frozen over what to wear? I could understand that kind of panic. But something felt wrong.
Her face was tight with tension, eyes darting constantly, scanning every shadow as if danger might leap out at any moment.
She pulled me all the way to her room, Tamsin hurrying close behind. The instant we crossed the threshold, Cassia slammed the door shut and twisted the key with a sharp, decisive click. She pressed her back against the wood, chest heaving as she fought to steady her breathing. My concern sharpened into something heavier.
"Cassia… what happened?"
My voice came out low and serious, eyes searching hers for any clue. For a heartbeat she just looked at me, then stepped forward and threw her arms around me in a tight, almost desperate hug.
"Lucia, thank God you came…" she whispered, voice cracking. "I don't know what to do anymore."
She drew in a deep, shuddering breath, clearly battling back tears. Her arms tightened around me as the words finally broke free.
"My parents are going to announce my…"
Her voice fractured. The tears she'd been holding spilled over, hot and unstoppable. Her hug turned fierce, almost crushing in its desperation.
"My wedding..."
My eyes widened in shock. Both Tamsin and I stood frozen, stunned into silence. Cassia's parents had never seemed like the kind of people who would arrange something like this. Then again—
"But how come? You're no older than Miss Lucia," Tamsin blurted out, her voice thick with concern and disbelief. She added quickly, "Mr. and Mrs. Viremont didn't seem like they would make such a decision."
Tamsin had voiced exactly what I was thinking. I wrapped my arms around Cassia more tightly, rubbing slow, soothing circles across her back. Between broken sobs, she managed to speak, her voice raw and trembling.
"…Damn relatives… Some other royal family saw me at a party I attended."
She paused, breathing heavily, then forced the rest out.
"…They liked me… Thought I could be their perfect daughter-in-law."
Oh, I remembered this event now—this very party. Back then I hadn't known what was happening; I only learned the truth weeks later. At this gathering, Cassia was supposed to meet the guy, and then the announcement of her engagement would follow. It was all tied to some business or family alliance.
Both Cassia and the boy already knew each other, yet neither had any idea they were being paired. The young man had discovered the plan first. He'd found out she was the one his parents had chosen and somehow managed to cancel the announcement—because she wasn't the type of girl he was looking for.
So there was no real need to worry. The engagement would never happen.
But the pain Cassia was feeling right now could not be ignored.
Just as Cassia was about to explain the rest, I gently guided her toward the bed and sat down beside her, keeping one arm wrapped securely around her shoulders.
"Then your relatives somehow managed to fill your parents' minds with false hope, right?" I said, my voice low and understanding, making the obvious guess.
Cassia nodded slowly, her brow furrowed as she struggled to find the right words. Tamsin, ever the comforting presence, spotted a stack of napkins on the side table and quietly brought them over.
Cassia took one, but her fingers were too frozen with shock to actually wipe her tears. They trembled in her lap.
"They're just going to announce it," she whispered, voice cracking. "And when I turn eighteen… it will be over. Marriage."
She fought to hold back the fresh wave of tears, dabbing at her eyes and trying to fix her expression into something steadier. Then she added, barely audible,
"Mother just told me that it happens with every girl and I should at least try to…"
Another burst of tears broke free. She pressed the crumpled napkin against her trembling lips to muffle the sob. I gently pulled her hand to my chest, holding it there so she could feel the steady beat of my heart beneath the corset. Tamsin stood nearby, her own face heavy with shared sorrow.
I was the only one in the room who remained calm. And because I was calm, I could make a change.
But the truth was far more complicated. I had no way of knowing whether this event would actually repeat. I had tested and altered several smaller moments from my previous life, yet the outcomes had never been consistent. Some changed dramatically; others remained stubbornly the same.
I still didn't understand how I had gone back in time and been reborn as a girl. I had no grasp of how time itself worked, or how much I could truly change. Fusion stories always made it sound simple—make different decisions and the future shifts. My parents staying together was one large proof that change was possible. But was it because of my choices, or was fate simply toying with me?
"You know... about me. What I want..." Cassia spoke between shaky breaths, her voice thick with hopelessness. "I'm just… I just wish to fall in love, but..."
There were still so many sides of her—and of Tamsin—that I had never seen in my previous life. I was witnessing new vulnerabilities, new fears, new dreams they had never shown me before.
Unlike protecting Tamsin from that man and from Uncle Rowan, protecting Cassia felt easier—if the events repeated, of course. All I had to do was comfort her, stand beside her, and steer things away from disaster.
"Calm down," I said, my tone serious even as confusion churned beneath the surface. "Let's find a way. Do you know the guy?"
I added gently, "Maybe we can try convincing him not to let your family make the announcement."