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They have decided. They hate their window; normally, it allows the perfect natural lighting for light reading on their bed as the sun sets; currently, it allows a thin sliver of the sun’s harsh rays to burn their eyelids, demanding them to open.
“Berry! Wake up! We have to go out today!” They hear knocking on their door. “How late did you stay up this time?” Berry grumbles as they hear the door open. “Come on, I let you sleep in long enough,” his sister shakes their shoulder.
“I’m awake, I’m awake! Don’t shake me so much~”
“If you had gotten up the first time I called you, I wouldn't be here shaking you right now, would I?” Berry tries to cover themselves in their covers, but Em yanks them out of their hands. “Nope! You are getting up now! I’m making pancakes, and they’ll get cold if you keep sleeping,” She picks up the book on their pillow, “I’ll take this, and give it back once you finish eating.”
Berry groans as they hear their door close. My room is too dark. They wave their right hand. On their nightstand, runes carved into a lamp flicker before lighting the room. It seems like we’ll have to replace the magic stone soon. I’ll need to let Em know. Berry yawns as they begin dressing for the day.
Exiting their room, Berry notices their sister’s door ajar. They see unwrinkled bed sheets and a messy desk. They walk through the short hallway and head to the kitchen. Berry hears Em humming their old song. The scent of blueberries and a soft, melodious voice come to mind. They shake the memory off and sit down. Em keeps mixing the ingredients and humming. Her limp faerie wings twitch; Berry scratches at their left arm.
“Do you want blueberries on your pancakes?”
“Yes, please,” Berry observes their sister as they go through the familiar steps of making pancakes, “Wasn’t it my turn to cook today?”
“I was up early, and you were sleeping pretty deeply; didn’t want to disturb your rest,” she glances back at Berry, “It’s one of their books, right?”
“Yeah, I found a copy last time we went to town,” they stroke one of the daffodils in the vase in front of them. They remember the vast library filled with books of varying sizes and from different ages. They miss the hours spent reading on the wide cushioned windowsills or on their lap, listening to their voice as they read another tale. “Do you think they’re okay?”
From the corner of their eye, Berry sees their sister still, the longer of her torn wings twitches. “I don’t know,” she admits.
“Okay,” They scratch again. Em plates their pancakes.
“Quit scratching at your prosthetic, Berry. You’ll hurt your remaining set of nails,” she takes their hand of their prosthetic and hands them their plate, “The runes on that can be finicky if you scratch at it too much.” Berry concentrates magic into the prosthetic; the fingers curl and the wrist twists as they direct it.
“Sorry, the runes are still holding up though. Where did we get the daffodils?” Berry lifts a blueberry to their lips. The sweet flavor spreads on their tongue. Em sits across from them; a mix of grapes and blueberries on her plate.
“The florist gave them to me last time we went to town. ‘To give us hope through the tough times’ he said. They’re not bad, but I would have preferred chamomiles; we could have made tea.”
“Tea? Really?” Berry lifts an eyebrow.
“What? Chamomile flowers are cute, and you can make good tea with them,” Em shrugs.
“Are we going to town after breakfast, then?”
“Mmhmm...we need to restock supplies, plus I need to get some more herbs for my tonic.” Em nods as she cuts her pancakes.
“Oh...did you run out?”
“Yep, I forgot to get more herbs when we went last time even though I was running low. The pile we collected is still going to take at least two more weeks to dry properly; air’s been quite humid,” Em picks up a few blueberries. She chews them slowly, savoring the taste. She remembers them braiding her hair. She twirls a strand around her finger. I need to trim it again; I can’t let it get as long as it was before.
“Were your nightmares bad last night? I noticed your bed was untouched,” Berry questions.
She glares at them, “Did you snoop in my room?”
“Your door was ajar. I might seem blind half of the time, but I can still see well!”
“Sure, crashing into your door tells me that,” she giggles as she gets up to clean her plate.
Berry follows her, “That was one time, and, in my defense, I thought I left it open!”
“You did. I closed it,” she throws them a mirthful smirk.
They sputter, “I...uh...really!? My nose was sore for a week!”
“I know. It was hilarious!” Em cackles as she takes their plate, “Go get dressed; your book is on the counter. Once I’m done tidying up here, we can go.”
“Okay,” they sigh, “I’ll be ready in 10 minutes!” Berry glances at the daffodils one more time. We’ll see you soon, Mama. Just wait a little longer. They turn around and head to their room, remembering the scent of blueberries.