It was the smell of burnt toast that woke her.
Alice sat up, her hair tangled from sleep, blinking at the soft morning light that streamed through the cream curtains of her new room. For a few moments, she had forgotten everything—forgotten that her parents were gone, forgotten the coffin and the flight, the tears and the ache.
But then it all came back.
Still, something felt different this morning—something warm.
She padded to the door in her fluffy socks and opened it slightly. A thin trail of smoke floated down the hallway from the kitchen. And then—crash!
A muffled voice shouted, "No! No! Don't touch the pan—!"
Curious, Alice crept down the stairs.
In the kitchen, a young man stood frozen in the middle of chaos. There was flour on the counter, a broken egg dripping onto the floor, and a half-burnt pancake stubbornly stuck to a pan. He had messy brown hair, glasses that were slightly crooked, and a sheepish grin that didn't match the disaster around him.
Standing at the entrance was Elvin, arms crossed, brows raised.
Chris.
"Elvin, I swear I followed the video tutorial—" the man began.
"You turned the stove to maximum heat and then walked away," Elvin replied dryly.
Chris rubbed the back of his head. "I got distracted by the dog video. You'd understand if you saw it. The dog sneezed and fell off the couch—"
Alice giggled.
Both men turned toward her.
Chris's eyes lit up the second he saw her. "Oh! You must be the princess Elvin's been talking about!"
Alice blinked. "Princess?"
Chris grinned and bent down to her level. "Elvin said you're braver than half the soldiers he's trained. That makes you royalty in my books."
She looked at Elvin, who pretended not to hear. His ears turned slightly red.
Chris extended a flour-dusted hand. "I'm Chris. Technically your... cousin? But let's skip the titles. You can just call me Chris."
Alice reached out, shy but curious, and shook his hand.
"Elvin told me you were coming, so I thought I'd surprise you with breakfast," Chris said, stepping aside to reveal the battlefield he had created. "Unfortunately, the breakfast tried to surprise me back."
"It looks like it attacked you," Alice said innocently.
Chris burst out laughing, the sound easy and warm.
Elvin sighed. "Go shower. I'll clean up."
"But—"
"Now."
Chris saluted. "Sir, yes sir." He winked at Alice before disappearing upstairs.
Alice turned to Elvin. "Is he always like that?"
Elvin gave a reluctant smile. "Always."
She followed him into the kitchen, picking up a napkin to help wipe flour off the counter. "Is he really your brother?"
"Half-brother. We share the same mother."
"Do you like him?"
Elvin paused mid-wipe. "He drives me crazy."
"But?"
"But I'd trust him with my life," he said simply.
Alice smiled.
By the time Chris returned, freshly showered and still humming, Elvin had managed to make proper pancakes—golden, warm, and stacked high with syrup and butter.
They sat together around the small table.
Alice listened quietly as the brothers talked, bickered, and teased one another. Chris told stories of childhood pranks, of Elvin falling into a lake while trying to act cool in front of a girl. Elvin shot him sharp glances, but the amusement in his eyes betrayed him.
It felt like family.
"So," Chris said between bites, turning to Alice. "I hear you're moving in. Permanent royal residency?"
Alice nodded slowly.
"Well, good. I've always wanted a little sister," Chris declared. "I can teach you important life skills."
Elvin groaned. "Don't you dare."
"Like what?" Alice asked, eyes twinkling.
Chris grinned. "Like how to sneak cookies after midnight, how to make exploding slime, how to impersonate Elvin's voice to confuse the soldiers."
"Absolutely not," Elvin muttered.
But Alice giggled, and something deep inside Elvin softened.
Later that afternoon, as Alice sat in the living room coloring a picture with the new pencils Chris had brought her, she heard Elvin and Chris talking in the hallway.
"You're doing good, El," Chris said. "She's smiling. That's more than I expected so soon."
"I don't know if I can give her everything she needs," Elvin said quietly.
"You don't have to be her dad," Chris replied. "Just keep being her Elvin."
Alice smiled quietly, pretending not to hear.
Because she already knew—he was more than enough.