Logan was thirteen when his father died.

Death was predictable. Everyone died. It was one of those few things everyone had in common. His father's death was his first experience with death and at the time Logan didn't think he'd be surprised if someone died. Death was predictable. Death was logical. There was no logical reason to be surprised about death. It was just a part of life. The end bit, the bit that was possibly the most unknown. Still, no matter if it was a bit unknown, it was still a most certain thing. Everyone died. There was no reason to be surprised.

At thirteen Logan had already accepted that one of his parents was going to die before he turned eighteen. He had already accepted that the likelihood of both his parents being there to see him go through all those milestones of adulting was unlikely. He had already accepted that there was little to no chance of both his parents being at his wedding if he chose to have one. He had accepted that it was not likely he'd have both his parents there to celebrate with him at the end of his schooling. He had accepted it.

He had also expected his mother to be the parent who died.

His mother was a sickly woman with a very poor immune system. On good days it would mostly consist of a terrible cough and difficulty breathing. On bad days she'd be bedridden with a constant cough and a bucket to puke into. Fevers were not uncommon and fatigue plagued her often. It had been a miracle she had ever been able to give birth, not once but twice, to two healthy boys. It would not have been unexpected if she were to pass in her sleep, or while reading in the lounge, or wherever else she was. It would not have been surprising. Everyone who knew his mother was ready for her death, they had already grieved, they were already prepared.

Logan's mother was not the one to die.

It had been his father.

At the time a serious sickness, though not serious enough for it to be dubbed a plague, had broken out across the continent and had struck the Dark Realm particularly bad. Both Dark Realm princes remembered that period of time well, their parents and uncle were stressed with diplomatic issues and though both princes were young at the time the adults in their family saw it as a learning opportunity for the two of them and so they were once again given a small taste of what would be their futures. Of course, at the time Logan had only heard of the princes and did not take too much interest in the Dark Realm.

It was a stressful time for his friends too. The Light Realm was trying to decide whether they should help their common enemy or not, maybe even take the opportunity to strike against them. Because of this, the Light Realm princes were often stuck doing the same thing the Dark Realm princes were, being trained for their future roles in the kingdom. And though Patton's mother's role as a member of the king and queen's council was not something he could inherit they too were getting minor training and insight into the job, so at the time Logan was often left alone.

Eventually, it was decided that Light Realm Military General Kieran Tafe would lead an expedition into the Dark Realm and attack some of the enemy kingdoms' military camps. Logan's father ended up joining the trip for a reason Logan was never aware of. They returned three months later, had lost five soldiers to the sickness, and over half of the remaining ones were battling it off. Among those that were sick was Logan's father, who absolutely refused to return home in case he infected his wife. So the man stayed with his brother-in-law, Tafe.

His health continued to deteriorate for over three weeks before the doctors told them there was very little chance of recovery.

Logan and his brother were in the room at the time. Logan had been reading aloud from a book while his father rested, his brother had been sitting in an armchair, half-listening, and half letting his mind wander. His father was hit with a sudden cough, Logan did not stop reading. His brother did not move from his chair. It continued for several minutes before it turned into wheezy gasps. Logan did not stop reading, his brother did sit up slightly and look towards their father, but made no other movement. Eventually, the wheezy gasps stopped and their father's body went still.

Logan did not stop reading.

Logan's brother rose from his seat and placed a hand on his shoulder. Logan stopped reading and looked at his father's still body. They each stared for a moment before silently leaving the room.

Their mother needed to be informed.

Logan stared at his brother's body. It sat in a cart along with five other young men's bodies. He had been called on to identify his brother's body. His mother was bedridden, and even if she wasn't no mother should ever have to identify her son's corpse. Logan didn't understand why his Uncle could not identify the body, after all, Tafe had been with his brother when he died. But he claimed he was busy, and so it was Logan who had to identify the body.

"Him," Logan said simply as he pointed to his brother's pale corpse. The other soldiers nodded, wrote the name on a tag, and tied it to his brother's finger. The body was then sent to a moratorium until the funeral. Roman and Remus had both been with him and kindly walked him back home.

"Are you gonna be okay Lo?" Roman asked as the princes watched Logan take a book off a shelf.

"I'll be fine," Logan said as he took a seat in a corner chair and opened his book to read, "Death is to be expected. It happens to everyone. There is no reason to be surprised."

Remus shrugged pitifully, "I mean, he was only eighteen. That's pretty young. Everybody should be surprised when a young person dies" Roman elbowed him slightly and shook his head, that wasn't the right thing to say.

Logan did not respond.

After his father had passed Logan's brother began to train under their uncle's wings so he could join the military. Two years later and the boy was finally able to convince Tafe to let him accompany him on one of his expeditions. The regiment had been ambushed by Dark Realm soldiers almost as soon as they crossed the border. Out of the one thousand, four hundred thirty-four men that went six hundred twelve of them returned.

His brother was not supposed to have been fighting, he was simply supposed to observe and learn. But it had all happened so quickly. Tafe claimed he had tried to protect him. Logan had never doubted it. Tafe had always preferred his brother over him, almost seeing him as an actual son rather than a nephew. According to witnesses, the general had attempted to push his nephew behind him in an effort to protect him. However, Logan's brother had seen a Light Realm soldier struggling to defend himself against three Dark Realm soldiers and tried to save him, both of them died.

"How's your mom?" Roman asked.

"She has not stopped crying since we learned of his death. Nor has she left her room."

"That sucks."

"It does."

The princes ended up staying the night with Logan, just in case he wasn't as alright as he claimed to be. Patton had stopped by earlier in the evening but was not able to stay the night with the rest of them and had gone home by now.

It was a little past three A.M now, and Logan was still awake, a light spell illuminating the page of the book he was reading out of. The twins were both asleep in a nest of pillows and blankets that littered the floor. Or at least, Logan had thought they were both asleep. He wasn't aware that Roman had woken until the prince had taken a seat next to him. Logan looked up at him for a moment before looking back down at his book again.

"You're awake, I didn't wake you did I?"

Roman shook his head, "Nah, you didn't do anything."

"Are you going to attempt going back to sleep?"

The prince shrugged, "Figured I'd keep you company. What's your book about this time?"

Logan smiled, not taking his eyes off the words, it was that smile he used whenever someone asked him to talk about something that had caught his interest. It was a small smile, but a very confident and excited one as well. It was a smile that Roman had fallen in love with when he was only twelve years old. "It's about the creation of mountains and how mountains in different types of ranges differ from each other. There are also a few chapters on the spiritual involvement of mountains. It's really quite interesting."

Roman nodded, though he was not at all interested "Sounds like it."

"This chapter is about the type of dirt and rocks that make up the Gisha mountains."

Roman had to bite his tongue in order to prevent himself from calling Logan a nerd, "What are the Gisha mountains?"

"They're the tallest mountain range in the Airsten kingdom. Do you think if I ask, my uncle will bring me a rock the next time your parents send him?"

Roman shrugged, he didn't really like Logan's Uncle. The man was ruthless and Roman honestly felt safer not knowing much about him. "Wanna tell me about Gisha dirt?"

Logan nodded, a part of him knew Roman really had absolutely no interest in this topic of conversation but another part of him didn't care and simply wanted to speak for the prince as long as time would permit. Roman moved so the two were shoulder to shoulder and Logan began to explain what he had learned so far about Gisha dirt and what made it so important.

An hour later Roman had fallen asleep again, his head resting on Logan's shoulder, and the young scholar was still reading. Ignoring the heavy feeling of his eyes and the pull of sleep, he turned the page and continued. The whole house was silent, the only sounds coming from the nightlife outside and the soft snores of his princely companions.

Not much time had passed when a loud sound rang through the home and woke the twins with a start, Logan too looked up from his book with a question on his face. A second later the sound of something heavy and silverware scattering followed. Roman frowned as he moved to get off the bed and picked up his sword from where he had deposited it before slowly opening the door to Logan's room.

When the sound came again, the other two boys stood as well and followed Roman. Eventually, the three boys found themselves in the kitchen. The sounds being made were the sounds of the drawers being thrown out of their pockets and the content inside spilling to the floor. Lady Croft, Kieran Tafe's younger sister, and Logan's mother, was looking desperately for something in the drawers and seemed to be failing. She was mumbling under her breath in a desperate-sounding tone.

"Mother?" Logan asked as he took a step past his friends and towards his only living parent, "What are you looking for?"

"Logie-Bear!" Lady Croft said Logan could feel a blush creep up his face at the nickname, "Do you happen to know where your brother kept the good knives?"

Logan blinked at her in confusion before slowly bending down to the ground and picking up a sharp chopping knife, carefully handing it to his mother. He watched her look and move around the room eyes flickering between items as she did so, "Mother, you're not planning on cooking, are you? It's far too early in the morning for you to be cooking."

His mother shook her head with a soft smile on her face, "Then don't you think you should be getting back to bed?" Logan asked before stepping forward again and attempting to lead his mother back to her bedroom, "Come along mother, we can't have you catching another fever."

However before Logan could cross the large kitchen and reach his mother the Lady of the house had turned the knife towards herself, and the look in her eyes had changed. For a moment, the three boys froze as they realized just what Logan's mother planned to do before jumping into action, both princes moving to run forward and Logan yelling loudly as he used his magic to send the knife flying out of her hand, "Mother, no!"

Lady Croft screamed as she reached towards the flying knife before she dove down to find another weapon she could use on herself. Logan and Roman rushed forward to try and stop her again while Remus began trying to desperately pick up any dangerous utensils.

Logan's mother was screaming at Logan and Roman to let her go and let her be, begging them to put her out of her misery so she could be with the rest of her family. For a sickly woman, she was rather strong and did manage to deliver a few good kicks to them. It was made even more difficult due to not wanting to hurt Lady Croft and how much she was struggling.

"Remus!" Logan shouted as he hugged his mother and pinned her arms down, "Go get my Uncle!" Remus watched the scene for a moment before dropping his armful of utensils on the counter and running out the door to do as he was told.

It took twenty minutes for Remus to return with General Tafe and another thirty for both Tafe and Logan to calm Lady Croft. Eventually, they were able to lead her to bed, Logan's uncle removed any possibly dangerous items from the room. Tafe also chose to lock her door, something Logan did not agree with but chose to allow, and trap Lady Croft in her room until a doctor could check on her.

The twins and Logan returned to his room a little while after, Remus taking a seat on the ground while Roman and Logan sat next to each other on the bed. "Are you okay Logan?" Roman asked quietly, "That was kinda... intense."

Logan looked at Roman with confusion, "Why are you worried about me? I was not injured. I was not the one who attempted to hurt myself. I am fine. There is no reason for you to worry for me."

The twins both frowned, "I mean you did have to look at your brother's mangled dead body," Remus said, "And then with what your mother just tried to do. I think I'd be more worried if you weren't okay."

"That's stupid," Logan declared, "I am fine."

It was eventually decided that Kieran should move into the Croft home. Lady Croft was not well mentally or physically and Tafe would feel more comfortable if he was there to keep an eye on his sister and her health. He also claimed Logan would need another male role model in the home, apparently it was something necessary for a boy to become a 'real man.'

Tafe and Logan did not get along. For one thing, Logan had magic and Tafe hated people with magic. For another, Logan greatly reminded everyone of his father. They hated Logan's father. For another, Logan was much more well-versed in knowledge than he was in fighting. And lastly, Logan was not his brother. Whatever traits Tafe had liked about Logan's brother were traits that Logan did not possess.

Logan did not like Tafe for far too many reasons to count. His morals were one thing, normally Logan did not see value in a persons morals but Tafe's were far to malicious and old fashioned for him to not care. His uncle always seemed to be trying to change him, or belittling some bit of him. It was not appreciated. Kieran also did not seem to like that Logan was smarter then him, though Logan himself was very smug about this. One very big reason Logan did not like him was that Tafe saw Logan as lesser then him simply because Logan had a lower title. Tafe insisted Logan address him as 'General' or 'Uncle'. Meanwhile Logan was lucky if Tafe added a 'Mr.' to his name, not that he cared what the General called him.

However, both Logan and Tafe did care for Logan's mother. Lady Croft was Tafe's younger sister, with her husband gone and her last remaining son being 'weak, disgraceful, and unable to learn his place' (in Tafe's opinion) it was his duty to care for her until she remarried or her son finally grew up, gave up magic for good, and began to work towards an actual career instead of burying his head in books every second of the day. Lady Croft was Logan's mother. He was her only son she had left. Their father was gone. Logan pretty much considered himself the only family his mother had (Logan hated to call his uncle or grandparents family). It would not be honorable if he did not attempt to take care of her, as she had done for him and his brother. And while Logan may not see any value in honor, he did value his mother. She was his mother.

So, the two managed to agree that Tafe should move in with Logan and his mother, as well as hire some help. Logan couldn't care for his mother on his own, this was the best course of action. They would have to put their hatred and differences aside.

Another thing they agreed on was that despite Logan's birth title, it was not unlikely that he would eventually become one of Roman's advisors, or at the very least have a place in his council. For this reason, Logan often accompanied Tafe to events such as dances, tournaments, or really whatever wasn't deamed as classified and the prince might also be present at. The goal was to give him some sort of preparation for his future role.

But one thing was for sure. They did not like each other. They may be related, but they were not family.