8.4

“Aidan, what are you doing?” whined Yuno as she sat next to him in the garden.
      “I’m reading, can’t you see?” He sighed and closed the book. “What is it?”
      “Clearly I’m upset. I come here to spend time with you, so we can get to know each other better, and you’re just wasting your time by studying. We should do things together before our parents make us marry each other. You know their talks are still going on and you refuse to pay any attention to me.” She pouted.
      “My apologies, princess.” He put extra emphasis on the last word to make it sound as insincere as possible. “I am preparing myself to rule this empire, so forgive me for not jumping with glee upon the sight of a maiden trying to tear me away from my important self-study.”
      “Psychology can’t be of any significance to ruling a people. Why would you need to know how they think or feel? You have a council for that,” she scoffed.
      Was she pretending again or did she really not see the importance of it this time? He sometimes couldn’t tell if she was just faking it another time or if she really couldn’t see the meaning of certain things.
      “Let me explain the way things work in this city, Yuno, because I don’t know if you’re pretending or if you really don’t get it. The council is like a representation of the people. They tell me what they think is what the people want, what the elites and the common folk want. It’s my duty – not theirs, mine – to determine what is in the best interest for everyone. So yes, I need to understand psychology. And economics. And how societies work. It’s part of my job to prepare myself to be a fit ruler, so the council has no reason to stage a coup.” He made every word very clear and stern – almost like his father, he noticed.
      “I know, Aidan. I’m well aware.” Yuno groaned and let herself fall back into the grass, face staring at the sky. “You should know I don’t usually mean a word of what I say in public. My parents want to believe I’m just pretty. I should be the good girl that can just tell her right and left hand apart, knows how a stove works and what flowers are beautiful in a garden. You know that damn well, mister “I am the heir”.”
      “And you should know that I have an image to uphold as well. My servants expect me to be diligent and to put all my effort into becoming a good Father. If you are required to look like a care-free loving housewife from the novels we read, then I also have to look the part, correct?”
      “I suppose so. Will you read from your book to me then? I’m bored out of my mind already and my parents are still drinking with Father Xavierno.”
      “Deal, as long as you keep your voice down and don’t ask too many questions.”
      “You’ve just gotten yourself a student, Brother Aidan,” Yuno laughed.
      Her strawberry blonde waves glowed in the light of the setting sun, Aidan now noticed. The turquoise summer dress complimented her features magnificently. She looked absolutely regal, even though the dress didn’t even closely resemble a formal or royal-worthy evening gown.
      Quickly, he opened the book – ‘Introduction to Psychology’ – again on the first page. A hasty distraction from his sudden focus on Yuno’s attire.
      “Chapter one: introducing psychology. Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behaviour. It comes from the ancient Greek words “psyche” and “logos”, meaning life and explanation – so basically, the explanation of life I guess? Psychology is a part of everyday life. It can provide insight into personal or family difficulties, but can also be used to solve crimes.”
      “Crime? We don’t really have crime, right? Except for the occasional servant stealing cutlery from their family so they can eat their own meals with a sliver of luxuriousness.” Yuno hadn’t even made it past the first paragraph before asking her first question.
      Aidan sighed. “True, but I think these books are a little older than our city. I feel like these are pre-war books, reprinted to look new.”
      “Why though? We aren’t allowed to read the fiction from the old world, why are we allowed to read up on scien–” She paused mid-word and Aidan saw she had connected the dots herself. “–never mind. Continue.”
      “As I was saying, psychology can be used in day-to-day life. Psychologists are researchers in essence. They study different fields. The interpretation of dreams, the effects of hormones on thinking, how people from different classes respond to each other, to name a few. There’s actually a whole list in here, but I don’t feel like it’s necessary to go through that in its entirety. The reason I’m reading this is to understand how people from different classes react, what their story could be and what they would need or want in the future.”
      “Very noble of you, Brother. You make a woman’s knees weak with this talk, honestly,” swooned Yuno, pretending to be overcome by his charm. She fanned herself with one of the books scattered on the grass and batted her eyelashes at him to tease him even more. When she saw the ‘are you done?’-look on Aidan’s face, she knew she had achieved what she was hoping for and collected herself. “Continue, please.”
      Aidan sighed, took a sip of water and positioned himself more comfortably in the grass before continuing to read to Yuno from the book.