A few hours later, Sol and June were standing outside the theatre. It was the biggest and fanciest in the whole of New London. The sun was setting over the castle in the back and the air was nice and warm.

Sol paid 40 silver for his black suit, it was a three piece with a bow tie at the top. The tailor insisted he needed one for the theatre. He did seem to fit in with the rest of the wealthy.

Sol thought June looked stunning. He was so used to seeing her in jumpers and tracksuits that he didn’t know how to act towards her. Her hair was still curly but slightly straightened out. She was wearing makeup and a tight black pencil dress that exposed a lot of her curves. Sol had tried to protest it but she shushed him.

They walked into the golden lined theatre and sat down in a private booth at the top. He wanted the best view to see his sister, this was a big moment for her.

10 minutes after sitting down, an elf in a tuxedo walked onto the stage.

“Ladies and gentleman, I would like to welcome you all to this wonderful performance. I would also like to show our humbleness and gratitude to the Evergrand family who have blessed us with their presence.” The man said as he bowed to a private booth in the center.

The audience all clapped and looked up to the family.

Sol’s eyes landed on Elora who was standing up and bowing with the rest of her close family. There were roughly 15 of them in luxurious clothing. The Evergrand family was spread over countless cities and countries, there were probably thousands of them. Elora came directly from the leader of the family himself, adopted at birth for her magical power.

Sol put a hand over his face, “Shit,” he mumbled.

“What’s wrong?” June asked, “You don’t like the Evergrand family, they’ve done so much good for the city.”

Sol shook his head, “It’s not that.”

“Let us carry on with the performance. Please relax and if you have any problems please let us know by the various staff we have around the auditorium. Let the show… Begin!”

Sol sat up in his booth as his sister was the first one to step out. It was a musical theatre show, singing, dancing and acting. She was the most amazing out of all of them on the stage. Sol didn’t know anything about dancing but he could tell she was amazing.

When the intermission hit, the crowd roared from the excellence of the show already.

June got out of her seat while Sol stayed still.

“Do you not want to get a drink?” she asked.

Sol didn’t want to move, he was scared of bumping into Elora. Sol was not the most social person.

June grabbed his arm and tried to pull him up.

“Fine, fine.”

The two headed over to a bar in the theatre, Sol didn’t see Elora but he saw one of his teammates at the bar. He was drinking cranberry juice. He was not a fan of socializing out of work, of course he did, just not as much as the others.

Sol leaned back on the bar without making eye contact, “What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Oh,” Sharp said, “I enjoy these shows. I didn’t think you were the type.”

“Sol,” June said, “Sho are you talking to?”

Sharp turned to see June, “Mrs Thorn?” he questioned.

“Please, call me June,” she said with a lovely smile.

Sol’s eyes bulged, “You know each other.”

June nodded, “He’s a part time admin at the library. Do you two know each other?”

Sol froze.

“We work for the same group of nobles,” Sharp lied.

“Ohhh,” June said.

“Well anyway,” June said, “We’re here watching our older sister.”

Sharp spat out his drink back into his glass.

“Sisters? Sol, you have sisters? June is your sister?” Sharp asked. He thought they were on a date or something. Sol never talked about his life outside of the organisation.

Sol coughed, “Yes, June my younger one and the older one is in the show.”

“Her name’s Summer.” June added.

“Well this is pleasant,” Sharp said with a smirk.

“Indeed,” June said,

“I think the show is about to start soon,” Sol half-lied.

“We still have-”

Sol lightly grabbed June’s arm and pulled her away.

“It was nice to speak to you Mr Demy.” June said as Sol led her away.

They went back into their private both and June threw her hands on her hips, “What was all that about? Mr Demy is a very kind and clever man. If you ever want your sisters to marry you should stop being so rude.”

“You think of him like that?” Sol asked, mortified.

“Yes. I do in fact.” June said.

Sol sat down on the comfy chair and looked out over the auditorium.

“Mr Demy is a smart man but not someone you want to get close with,” Sol said.

Sharp was a very good man, regardless of his job. He was not the kind to sleep around.

“He’s respectful to me and besides he’s on the same intellectual level- if not smarter.” She said,

“No, now sit down and wait for the show to start.”

June opened her mouth and tried to protest but Sol wasn’t going to hear it. June was still 15 but people matured much faster than Earth. He just couldn’t imagine his sisters having boyfriends or what not- especially his darling June. Summer was a wild child but June was smart and level headed, it seemed she had taken a note from her sister's book.

The show ensued for another h no our, he tried to enjoy it but all he could think about was where his sister’s innocence went.

The show ended and the crowd roared in amazement, even the Evergrand family were on their feet clapping. June was also thrilled to see her sister succeed as was hollering with the crowd.

Sol’s head wasn’t in the right place. The pair headed into the grand hall where even more socializing would occur.

“Sol and Mrs Thorn, it’s a pleasure to see you again.” Sharp said.

June bowed in her pencil dress, “What are your plans for this evening?” she asked.

Sharp looked confused- Sol looked terrified.

“Urm- I believe a few of the librarians and myself will be going over the recent additions to the library, a few glasses of wine will be there too. I would ask you to come but-”

“June and I reall-”

“I would love to join you,” June said with a polite smile.

Sol went to protest again but June dug her nails into his skin, something Summer had done since she was young.

“Please,” June whispered to him.

A flurry of emotions came over Sol, “Ok,” he finally said.

“Do not worry Sol, she will be safe with me. After you, Mrs Thorn.”

Sol caught Sharp’s arm as he went to pass by, “Lay a hand on her and I’ll kill you. Do you understand?” Sol threatened.

“I wouldn’t dare,” Sharp said honestly, “And you should be proud of your sister. She is by far the smartest in the library, more so than me.”

Sol swallowed and then let go of Sharp’s arm. “Walk her home.”

Sharp nodded and caught up with June who was looking to exit.

Sol could feel another tear building. Sharp was probably the best man for June but he just couldn’t imagine it. He turned around in the middle of the grand hall to see him standing alone. Everyone else was talking to each other.

He felt a hand on his shoulder to see Summer behind him. Sol embraced her.

“That was an amazing show, everyone had their eyes on you,” Sol said.

“Thank you,” Summer said, “Where’s June?”

“She went off with a colleague of hers,” Sol said.

“Mr Demy?” Summer asked.

“You knew she liked him?” Sol questioned.

Summer rolled her eyes, “She doesn’t shut up when you’re not home. He seems like a good guy so don’t worry.”

Sol swallowed the lump in his throat. Just as he did he saw Elora walking up to him. People were parting out of her way.

‘Oh fuck’ Sol thought.

Summer noticed straight away and curtseyed with perfection. Summer was a huge fan of Elora, she followed her on every social media platform. Sol could even tell she was nervous. Sol didn’t bow and Summer was pulling on his sleeve.

Elora curtseyed to Summer and then to Sol.

“Nice to see you here, Sol,” Elora said.

Summer’s eyes darted up to Sol.

“Nice to see you here Elora, this is my sister- Summer.”

Elora turned to Summer with a gleaming smile, “Well that’s not surprising. Such a talented woman, your performance was outstanding.”

“Urm- thank you Lady Evergrand. How do you know my brother?” she asked, nervously.

To her, Sol seemed so casual it freaked her out. Elora was of the highest of society except for royalty. She had millions of followers online.

“He’s done a lot of work for my father, he’s an excellent fighter. A dumb and fearless one however,” Elora replied with a smirk to him.

“You never told me you had worked with the Evergrand family,” Summer said with a hint of crazy in her voice.

“Please do not worry Summer, his work is kept secret in accordance with our contracts,” She half-lied.

“Oh, I never realised.” Summer said with a small bow.

“Not to worry. Anyway, there’s some people I must see now. So take care,” Elora said.

Summer looked as if she was about to collapse, she still curtseyed perfectly again while Sol just nodded.

Elora walked past him and secretly handed him a card, “There’s an afterparty if you want to come,” she whispered in his ear.

Sol took it, “I’ll think about it,” he said.

“Meet me there at eight, I promise it will be worth it.”

She pulled away and headed over to her family.

“What did she say?” Summer asked.

“Just work stuff,” Sol said. “Are you ok? You look pale.”

“Am I ok?” Summer rhetorically asked, “I just met Elora Evergrand and she spoke to my brother like an old friend,”

Sol laughed at her, “You were really impressive by the way. You should be proud of yourself.”

“Thank you, anyway I’m going out clubbing now so I’ll see you tomorrow.” Summer said.

“Do you need money?” Sol asked.

“I’m fine, thank you for such a wonderful birthday.” Summer said.

Sol gave her a hug then she went over to her friends. Sol was then again stuck alone in the room not knowing what to do.

He glanced at the card.

‘The Golden Goose.

23 Post Masters Lane, Royals Court District.’

Sol left the theatre and wandered into a nearby bar. He sat down and looked at the card again.

“What are you after?” A dwarf asked behind the bar. He was on a raised platform so he could converse with customers better.

“Something strong,” Sol said.

He needed a minute to process what happened. His darling June had just run off with his teammates.

“What’s troubling ya?” The dwarf asked as he placed a drink in front of him.

Sol was no drinker in the slightest but even he felt he needed one.

“My uh- sister. She’s gone on a date with one of my friends,” Sol said honestly.

“Is he a good guy?” The dwarf asked.

Sol nodded, “Just can’t imagine my sister going on a date.”

“How old is she?” The dwarf asked.

“15.” Sol replied while knocking back the drink. It burned his throat but his pain resistance was too high.

“Let her be,” The dwarf said, “You gotta trust the people you love. Speaking from experience, I had a young lassa at home the same age as her once. I wanted to punch that little twot in the face when she brought him home.” The dwarf said as he rekindled his own memories.

“Then what happened?” Sol asked.

“I asked around a bit, about who he was- used me connections as a bar owner. Then I spoke to him and he didn’t turn out to be a bad guy. My young lass is a bit wild you know but she’s got her head swivelled on.”

Sol nodded his understanding.

“And remember, worse comes to worst you can always kill him,” The dwarf said jokingly.

“Not a bad idea,” Sol said.

“I was just joking.”

Sol smiled and loosened up a bit.

“Another?” The dwarf asked.

Sol thought for a moment then glanced down to his watch, it was half seven and it would take him 15 minutes to get there.

“I’ll go for a few more since I’ve got a few more questions,” Sol said.

“Blast away young man, the answers come along with every drink.”

In the end, Sol decided to go to the after party.