In the blink of an eye, five years passed.
Gina had shed her identity as the Yale family's puppet and become a talented perfume expert and a resilient single mother. Her daughter, Odell, sharp as ever, noticed her mother lost in thought about her missing older brother and innocently asked whether she was missing him. Gina held Odell close, smiling to reassure her daughter and herself that they would surely find the missing child one day.
And yet, not even in her dreams could Gina have imagined the ironic twist of fate awaiting mother and daughter. The tides of life led her, hand in hand with her daughter, right back to the very place she had once fled — the palace of Crown Prince Cecil Toronto.
The steward confirmed that Gina was indeed the perfume expert invited for the day, her manner somewhat stern and probing. She instructed the mother and daughter to follow her, reminding them pointedly that this was the prince's residence and that they were not permitted to wander about.
Seeing Odell looking frightened and gripping her hand tightly, Gina crouched down to gently reassure her daughter not to worry. She politely thanked the steward for the reminder, thinking to herself that Cecil was still the same as ever, always craving absolute quiet.
She told her daughter to wait in the hall, carefully warning her not to run around and disturb the concealment magic that had been set in place. The reason she was so anxious was that Odell's eye colour and hair were identical to Cecil's. Without the concealment magic hiding them, her daughter's true identity would be exposed instantly. For years Gina had lived in hiding, using magic to alter her daughter's appearance and making a living crafting sachets.
She had risked coming here today, knowing Cecil was away, to search for any clue about her missing child.
Once alone in the waiting room, Gina finally allowed herself to breathe out in relief, letting her guard down. Her eyes clouded with sorrow as she unconsciously whispered Cecil's name, old memories flooding back into her mind. Over the past ten years the neighbouring empire had repeatedly launched attacks, but it was Cecil's own magical power that had driven back the fire dragons, protecting the nation's peace. His reputation now was formidable, and no one dared look down on him.
Just then a servant's panicked scream rang out, announcing that the young master had vanished, throwing the whole estate into chaos. Catching wind that Cecil was about to return, Gina flinched, startled, her fear of being discovered rising again. She asked a servant what the commotion outside was about. The maid snapped that the mother and daughter should mind their own business and hurry along once their task was done, out of sight.
Meanwhile, a pet bird named Anne suddenly flew over to chat with Odell, asking her when her mother would be back. Delighted, Odell chased after the playful little bird as it flew off down the hallway, drifting out of her mother's sight.
In a sun-drenched garden, a finely dressed little boy named Theodore Toronto stood alone, lost in thought. The boy sighed wearily, telling himself that even though he had managed to sneak this far, the adults would probably catch him again soon. Theodore looked sad, his eyes welling up, as he wondered why he was kept locked away at home, never allowed to step out into the world beyond.
Suddenly, quite literally, someone fell from the sky.
Odell tumbled off a balcony right onto the spot where Theodore stood, making him jump in shock. The hard impact left Odell aching all over, and in her panic she suddenly remembered her mother's warning never to let the concealment magic on her be disturbed. But it was already too late. The disguising magic dissolved, and Odell's true hair and eye colour slowly emerged in the sunlight.
Theodore stared wide-eyed with astonishment, watching the girl in front of him transform, unable to understand what was happening.
The two children stared at each other in stunned silence, astonished to see that they looked exactly alike, like two drops of water. It felt just like looking in a mirror. From their faces to their eyes, everything matched perfectly, without a single difference.
Odell fumbled nervously, worried her mother would scold her for breaking the magic. Seeing this, Theodore put on a grown-up air and tried to calm his new little friend. After talking, Odell realised that Theodore had been forbidden by his father from going outside because of his frail health.
The clever little Odell came up with a bold idea: swapping identities with each other. After all, the two of them looked exactly alike. Odell suggested trading places for three days, so that he could finally get the chance to go outside and play to his heart's content, escaping these four suffocating walls.
Odell confirmed the plan once more, and Theodore asked her again if she was really sure. Then the boy cheerfully introduced himself as Theodore Toronto, and the girl happily gave her name as Odell in return.
Odell laughed, her eyes crinkling with excitement, clearly thrilled by this fascinating game of disguise. She even generously lent Theodore her pet bird, Anne, to keep him company. The two clever children agreed to use the bird to pass letters and keep in secret contact with each other during the swap. Odell giggled in her disguise as a boy, while Theodore looked at his new friend with gratitude for helping make his dream come true. Little Theodore offered Odell his heartfelt thanks before the two of them set off on their adventure.
Meanwhile, Gina was frantically searching for her daughter, her heart burning with worry at not seeing Odell anywhere. She anxiously clutched a curtain, because Odell was such a well-behaved child who had never once wandered off on her own like this before. Gina rushed around searching everywhere, her instincts warning her that something was terribly wrong. Thinking of Cecil about to return, she deeply regretted her reckless decision to come back into the tiger's lair. Fear engulfed Gina. If Odell were discovered, she would lose everything, and she could not bear to endure any more loss.
Gina froze in place when she spotted a small figure huddled in a corner, wrapped tightly in a hooded cloak. She called softly for Odell and saw the child — Theodore, disguised as Odell — looking at her timidly. Overcome with emotion, Gina rushed forward and threw her arms around the child, sighing with relief, believing she had found her beloved daughter.
Wrapped in the warm embrace of the birth mother he had never known, Theodore's face flushed red, his heart pounding, and he hesitantly murmured the word, "Mom."
Noticing that her child seemed a bit strange, Gina quickly apologised, assuming the disguising magic on Odell had simply worn off and revealed her true appearance. She gently reassured the child that it was all right, that as long as they stayed close she could reapply the concealment magic right away. Theodore asked again, surprised, just to be sure. Gina kissed the child's forehead gently, declaring that he was her priceless treasure, and urged him to hurry home with her.
Theodore obediently complied, feeling for the first time the sacred bond of a mother's love.