Raf,
I don’t understand why you had to go and live somewhere else. You’re my brother, so you’re supposed to live with me, right? It’s so boring here without you. If you had to go, couldn’t you have at least taken me with you? It’s not fair that you get to go places and I’m stuck here with Papa and Pavlos and Sera and Agathe, Elena, and Daniil.
Papa and Pavlos have been ignoring me for weeks now. They’re always so busy doing official things and whenever I try to tell them about my day they smile and pat my head and tell me to come back later. But then later comes around and I can’t find them, so I have to go and tell one of my ladies instead. But that’s not very nice, either, because the ladies were with me all day so they already know everything I did.
Like for example, today, my lady Nysa and I spent all afternoon exploring the gardens. The garden looks extra pretty right now, with all the flowers in bloom, and she was teaching me some of their names. She taught me all about campanula (I had to ask her how to spell it), those flowers that look like bells. Do you know the story about where they came from? Aphrodite lost her special mirror that makes everyone look beautiful. And a poor boy found it and wanted to keep it because he liked looking beautiful. And Aphrodite made her son Eros go and take it back, but they fought and the mirror broke, and then there were campanulas everywhere! I didn’t know there were so many cool stories about flowers, did you? There’s one about crocuses too.
But anyway, Papa said he was too busy to listen to me talk about flowers, which was okay because Papa is super smart and probably knew all the stories anyway. So then I went to try and tell Pavlos, because it sounded like something he wouldn’t know, but he wasn’t interested, either. He never really wants to talk to me, anyway, because he’s got three little girls of his own so he doesn’t need a sister. And Sera took all the girls with her to the marketplace or something, so then I just had to tell Nysa the story that she taught me! At least I can tell you in this letter, because even if you don’t care about flowers, either, you still have to read it because I sent it to you and you love me or something.
Are you coming home soon? I’m sick of trying to play the harp. There are too many strings and it’s boring and my hands are too little. Watching you and the horses is much more fun. What was the name of the big white one Papa bought you? He had a nice-looking face. I think you must have brought him with you ‘cause I can’t find him in the stables. Not that I get to go to the stables very often. Nysa says it’s not becoming of a lady or something silly like that.
Please come home, Raf. I miss you. And when you come back you have to tell me all the fun stories about Thesnia! Are there flowers there that we don’t have here? I pulled up a campanula to tuck in with this letter so you can look at it every day until you come home and remember that I’m here waiting for you!
Love always,
Sofia
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