1869
| The Capobianco family are - outwardly a family of cursebreakers. Amongst the community of Palermo however, Luca is a figurehead and leader while mainly dealing in stolen and cursed artifacts. Having taken the helm of the family business, he wastes no time in beginning to train his children on the various aspects of the areas they're expected to take over: Luca II, as the eldest, trains extensively with his father, expecting to one day replace him as capo. His days are spent learning about the family and practicing magic with their family tutor. After one particularly grueling evening memorizing terms and vocabulary, Luca witnesses his brother's first sign of magic when a feral fox tries to take Sybella's basket of fruit. Enraged by her ruined treat, Sylvano makes the basket chase after the fox, trapping it underneath until help can be fetched to dispatch it. Sybella's turn comes quickly after by rendering the fox completely mute. |
| 1876 - 1884 | Eight years of school pass. Sybella learns her independence despite her and Sylvano having been put in the same dorm. At first the twins are inseparable, but once Sylvano finds friends, he soon craves independence from his sister. Sybella is originally hurt by this, and there's a time when Sylvano occasionally fears being the object of his sister's wrath and waking up in a bed of spiders, however after a day or so, Sybella takes cue and finds her own group. By their third year, the twins fall into their respective routines. Their lives rotate around each other, but they mostly stay to their own groups; that is until fourth year comes to pass and they're allowed to attend a school dance.
Having run in similar circles around her brother's group of friends, Sybella is not perturbed when one of them asks her to the dance. After her gentle rejection, she expects nothing more, thinking the request was merely a courtesy as the sister of a friend. But when a second, then third asks, she goes to Sylvano to ask if there's some sort of game afoot. Sylvano is completely taken aback. After realizing that the interest in his sister is not merely out of kindness, Sylvano goes to their newly graduated brother for advice. There, he receives an eye-opening crash-course on the desires and interests of men and the role women play in them. To say that he is rendered speechless is an understatement, but he returns to Incantima with a mission and a message: no one is to touch his sister without his permission.
Sybella hardly takes this kindly; after further thought she realizes she's rather flattered and intends to accept not only one of the boys' invitations to the dance, but three; in a diplomatic manner, of course. After having been rendered speechless yet again, Sylvano recovers from his shock and then learns another quick lesson on what happens when denying his sister her wishes. In the end, Sybella compromises by going to the dance with Sylvano as her escort and accepts multiple dances with multiple of his friends, including an invitation from a rather bold Working Class man. Neither of her brothers are happy about this.
Fifth year comes and goes without (much) incident. While Sylvano's goal is to become a curse breaker, Sybella's is to be dutiful and learn how to be a lady. Again, this doesn't sit well with her and she embarks on a relentless campaign to get her brother to teach her what he knows. After some resistance for a few weeks, Sylvano eventually caves and, at the risk of their father's wrath, begins to teach his sister what he knows. As one of the top students in the class, Sylvano's lessons are not without their difficulties, but Sybella persists. During the summer at home, Sylvano and Sybella are found out by their older brother who, much to their surprise, very much agrees with the idea of Sybella learning from not just Sylvano but the both of them. While neither their mother or father would approve of Sybella learning the ropes, they finally convince Luca I and Chiara to let their only daughter go into healing. It's not the outcome any of them had hoped for, but it's better than nothing.
Seventh year approaches and Sybella is ecstatic for the coming out ball. She and her mother spare no expense on fabric and jewels for the day. Meanwhile, Sybella grapples with having received a few invitations for the first dance. While not exactly a marriage proposal, she is conflicted about the intense feelings she harbors for each individual; each of them special in their own way to her. Upon reflection she tells herself she's merely being selfish and forces to pick one at random, which still doesn't sit well with her. |
