I came home last night feeling groggy and expended from last night’s secret escapade. By the time it was morning I found Key sleeping on the beaten up couch in her baker’s working attire with one arm dangling onto the side and the other was being used as an arm pillow. It seems like it was almost noon so I might as well prepare a meal. I discovered Rey sitting at the dining table playing with small disfigured wooden dolls. Maybe the two went out yesterday to the craftsmen?

I took a look around the patched holes and aging wood that were chipped away over the years. We managed to fix up the house on top of this hill to livable standards, flushing out everything that wasn’t human back into the forest down under. Our home was aged quite significantly, showing all the signs. Creaking floors, maroon walls washed out almost barely failing in comparison to faded brown. This sort of thing would give the seven legends in your village a run for its money, for this looked like a haunted house abandoned for decades.

It however, had windows! Sort of. It was hidden in a way you couldn’t tell from the outside unless you have lived here for a few days and scrapped into the depths of the house’s secrets. The windows were functioned by a rope from the inside, once yanked the embedded wall would tilt the square part of the wall into a miniature drawbridge of sorts. Pulling again with would fit the piece right back into the wall. It acted as the perfect discreet defense, no one can sneak in if closed, unless of course they brought a hatchet to it of course.

With one bedroom, the main room, and the small area we called the dining room, made up everything that was inside the house. With the crappy furniture to the cargo crates we connected and draped over to use for a dining table. However, even though this place is a crappy mess, It serves its purpose for sleeping without the caution of wondering if we’re to be killed by ravaging wolves when nightfall or if the Tylwyth would come and snatch up Rey. But those were myths. Right?

“Uke. Uke. Uke!” the youngest sung from the table, noticing me stroll towards the pots and cabinets. They were still fairly new, a gift from Merry who I feel put us even more into their debt. Rey walked close behind me and tugged lightly on my loose shirt.

“Heyo.” I replied as I took a glance back at him sulking. “Rey, tidy up your hair. It’s beginning to appear messy again.”

Unlike the golden smooth hair Key had or the light brown hair I acquired, Rey was born with unruly crimson hair. Which is a rare trait to have from what we were told from Miss Clarines and Merry. They were the only three we have found to have red hair apart from Miss Clarine’s sister, but she hasn’t been back in town for years we were told. Key seemed surprised at first but became solemn after a few seconds because unlike me, she retained all of her memories of our past… Troublesome really, the idea that my whole life up until four years ago is shrouded in mystery. Key never wants to speak of it and I can never bring myself to make her cry anymore. So, I came to the decision of waiting for her to tell me on her own. It must not have been pleasant memories if I just suddenly discarded it. Right?

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

With not much to work with and trying to spend frugally, improvisations must always be made. it was hard to come by simple ingredients, with the amount of foreigners passing through making it quite difficult to procure certain necessities. The market prices had become inflated over time and the common copper was being transferred less and less. These were desperate times.

I took some firewood from the bin and tossed it into the fire, very difficult. At least it’s good for setting the fire under the pot. It wasn’t the most luxurious circumstance, but the taste should be about the same.

Reaching far into the cupboard I took a hold of three small eggs I obtained three months ago. Cracking it into the pot and stirring it until only the yolk covered the bottom. Next was the bag of grounded meat that we have been spreading thin for meals throughout five months. Scooping up a handful and placing it in the middle of the pan, covering it in the egg. The firewood crackled underneath, fuming a larger flame and heat for the food to cook. It was just about finished, placing the food onto wooden trays and placing a freshly grown tato inside.

“Ok! Dinners ready! Rey go wake up your sister.” I said, as I set a pile of scramble eggs mixed with minced meat and potato on the table.

Key entered the room with her hair all ruffled covering most of her face leaving only her dazed eyes peeking through the layers of hair. Unlike my hair, which was just long enough to hang over my right eye while the rest hung down on the side of my head. Usually my medium-cut hair would look like ragged rags hovering over my forehead while Key’s hair would be cascading down her back long enough to go just below the waist. Rey on the other hand, his dark red hair would start to get more wavy and curly whenever it reached a certain length.

“Hmm…Uke looks unusually happy today.. Rey! Rey, don’t you agree?” Key said while smirking. “Now that I’m thinking about it, I did hear the door slam rather late at night. Is it perhaps Uke was..” Key said, leaning in towards me with a fork in hand.

To release some tension in the room I swallowed down the remains of my portion of potatoes, chased with a hasty gulp of water.

“You are misunderstanding something.” I replied shakily, facing Key with a smile and patting her head “I came home at the usual. You must have still been dreaming. Are you getting a fever since it’s almost winter? There, there. Let your older brother take care of you.”

I patted her head two times roughly in defiance and walked towards the water bucket near the sink to clean off my plate.

“Hmph! Is that so? Well if you insist on taking care of me, let Rey and I come to the pub tomorrow. On the courtesy of your pouch of course.” Key gave off a confident request to which I felt like she would not move away from this topic if I didn’t agree to her desires.

It’s not that they weren’t allowed to come, but whenever she came to the pub she would drink to the point of passing out and since she was a ‘beautiful’ girl with golden hair, drunkards would be trying to take her home, becoming more of a hassle than I wanted to deal with while working.

“Ok. But!” I raised a finger in semi-protest. “I’m wrapping you and Rey in a scarf until I’m done. Also tuck your hair underneath your hood!” I scolded Key and Rey behind me as they just replied with

“Yessir!” and “If it looks good!”

Which frankly did not make me feel better.