Since I’d visited the palace, I got to go home on Friday. I’d also received my usual basket of eggs and other goodies, so it was time to bake Nassius a birthday cake! Well, Eva would be doing the actual baking.
“Welcome home, sister,” Nassius greeted me.
He’d grown so much that we were now at the same eye level, which threw me for a moment. He was on his way to surpassing me in height.
“You’ve gotten so tall, Nassius,” I remarked.
“Yes, well, I am almost ten years old,” he pointed out with a smile.
Henry had grown as well, but he was still shorter than me. I gave the younger of my brothers a tight squeeze, feeling bliss in the moment as a shotacon.
This year, I get to spend my entire summer break with them! I’m so happy!
Once Nassius turned ten, he would have to dress up for dinner, so I needed to prepare some clothes for him.
“Soon, you’ll have to be on your own for dinner, Henry. Will you be all right?”
I’d been worried about Henry being all alone. The customs here weren’t very friendly toward children under ten.
“Mary will be with me, so I’ll be okay,” Henry replied. I wished he could join us, but there wasn’t much I could do, because this was conventional within the nobility. “Also, Nassius needs the chance to learn table manners.”
That’s a good point. The boys ate with proper etiquette in their room, but Henry was often overly energetic, which was normal behavior for a child five or six years of age. Unfortunately, that wasn’t acceptable at a noble’s dinner table.
“You’re not one to talk, Henry,” Nassius chimed in.
Nassius had also become quite active. Not only had he been horse riding and sword fighting, but he’d also been helping out Matthew in the garden. It was great to see, since he’d always been a bookworm.
Perhaps spending time with Samuel had also influenced this change. Our cousin had been chubby when we’d first met him, but he’d started slimming down after joining the riding club at the academy. Samuel sometimes came by on the weekends, which was nice for Nassius. He’d only had Henry or me to play with, so I was glad he could spend time with someone closer to him in age.
I used the old uniforms from Mary and Aunt Amalia to make patterns and sewed a tuxedo jacket for him. Once summer break rolled around, I was probably going to be sewing a lot more. I wanted to sew a bunch of dress shirts for Nassius to wear to school, as well as some other clothes for Henry and my father. We’d also been unable to provide anyone on our staff with new garments for several years, so I wanted to make some clothes for them as well.
During the summer, I would be busy tending to the gardens, but I also wanted to continue my research for the alchemy club. I couldn’t wait to take Magic Circles II and III, but until then, I could continue to make things using the magic circles in my textbook. I also had to design my sewing machine, and I still wanted to do some more research on the thread used in Magius’s cape.
Though my plate already seemed to be overflowing, I also wanted to be able to spend time with my brothers. That thought made me realize that the only time Nassius and Henry had ever gone outside was when they’d visited the church for their proficiency evaluation. They were quite sheltered, so it would be nice to take them out somewhere.
Do people have picnics here? I guess there are monsters in this world, so the outdoors may not be a place to leisurely enjoy a meal. You might end up being a creature’s lunch.
We were celebrating Nassius’s birthday on Saturday, since Sunday was going to be too busy with the boys’ riding lesson and my return to the dorm. Nassius was dressed formally for lunch, and he looked very handsome. That’s my little angel for you!
The starter was a salad with freshly harvested vegetables, which was topped with thin slices of chilled chicken, which were juicy and delicious. The soup was a tomato soup, which was made using the tomatoes we had been growing in the greenhouse. They hadn’t quite ripened on their own yet, so I’d used my household magic to speed things up. We had T-bone steaks as our main course, which looked quite big because of the bone included, and they were served with a side of steamed cabbage and potatoes.
“Happy birthday, Nassius!” I cheered.
Dessert was a birthday cake topped with strawberries, which I’d been growing outdoors. The cake was decorated nicely with whipped cream, and it was topped with ten thin candles, which I’d made.
“Make a wish, then blow out the candles,” I encouraged him.
Nassius looked serious for a moment, then he blew out the candles. I wonder what he wished for.
“The cake is delicious, sister,” Nassius raved. I’m so glad he likes it!
Henry also appeared to be crazy about the cake, which was adorable.
“I can’t believe you’ll already be attending the Royal Academy next year, Nassius,” my father suddenly said.
It’s so rare for him to speak up unprompted. He’ll answer questions and stuff, but he never really joins in on our conversations. Oh, is he talking because he has news for us? Is he getting a job?
I got my hopes up and waited for my father to say more, but he simply resumed eating his cake and said no more. Queen Victoria had suggested that he would return to work in the fall, so he should already have some news to share. It was strange that he hadn’t said anything.
Since Nassius was turning ten, he was getting his own room. He would still use the children’s room to study with Henry, but he would be sleeping alone in his own room. For his birthday gift, I’d prepared a bedside lamp. He hadn’t ever voiced any fears of the dark like Henry did, but I thought he should have one, just in case. If he didn’t need it, he could always just sleep with the lamp fully turned off.