Sryine finished her demonstration of the gifts for her brother, a demonstration which appeared to receive a measure of praise in return. Her parents were still out and about, but she had found her brother working here on her arrival.

“It seems like the village really is missing out on quite a lot, leaving us to struggle behind the rest of the world. Your assertiveness in collecting and adjusting so rapidly to such excessive change does you proud, I’m sure our parents would agree that you’ve held strongly to the family vision in your own way. But you seem tired from your journey, please make yourself comfortable and take some time to relax. I’ve got a lot to actually worry about myself, but I can already see a few uses for some of the things you’ve brought back, it should make even the morning’s tasks far shorter, leaving us an opportunity to enjoy lunch together.” Sryine’s brother really hadn’t seemed to have changed much, he was still too occupied to do much of anything. Sryine was even going to be left once again to her own devices, much like how things had gone before. However, she also noticed that her brother was presenting her with an actual measure of respect and admiration, he was actually trying to make her feel comfortable. Making arrangements for a family lunch gathering.. she couldn’t even remember when that had last happened.. not even which year it might have last been. It didn’t even matter that she had no assurance that her parents would have time for such a thing, even her brother alone made it a massive improvement.

However, immersed with her nostalgia, she still quickly found herself outside in the town square once again as a matter of habit. She was however cloaked in an illusion.. but not of one of complete invisibility, something far more obscure. She was a presence, someone familiar, but not familiar enough that anyone could remember who she was. She was there, she was nothing to be worried about, and she wasn’t that important. It was an illusion formed over concepts much like the composition of a dream, a process so invested in complexity that it would have been impossible to achieve had she not had so much power to work with in the first place. She found a seat, sitting next to the water again much like she had before. She swirled some wind through the water, forming patterns of ripples over the surface. It really was nothing compared to the displays she had put on before, and was even less a demonstration of what she was capable of at that time. With the capacity of her augmentation, she could put a demonstration on display that would cause a distraction that would put the catastrophe of the cafe to shame. For that same reason, it was also a really bad idea to attempt anything of that sort. Thus, she instead kept to herself quietly.

“That’s a bag extra of grain than last season. Come on, we really can’t afford such a thing.” “Autumn is supposed to be a good season for grain, but our stock of meat isn’t doing as well as expected. Maybe all the animals are moving to seek shelter for winter early.. maybe we’re in for an early winter this year.. but there has been a lot less of a return from our hunts. A few cuts of meat have a lot more value than some unprocessed grain too, you should know how much grain is lost in processing.” Two villagers were trying to make a trade with each other, but both were under hard times. The demand for grain was really high right now, and even with high supplies, there were concerns about how much work was demanded of people to ready grain for trade. It was this demand for physical labour that the grain process was unable to keep up with. Because of how much work it took, most of the grain being traded was still unprocessed, reducing its value even further. Meanwhile, it seems hunting wasn’t doing so well right now, even worse than projected for the season. So the animals outside of the village were keeping themselves scarce.. Sryine suspected that she knew who might be responsible for that. This was another good reason for not walking around emitting excess flame while sustaining the illusion that everything was fine, the animals near the village would pick up on that too and become even further scarce. Even so, she really didn’t like hearing this news, it was really bothering her that something even related to her was causing problems for the village.

“Sorry, I couldn’t help but here there seems to be some concerns about food supplies for the village. As a member of the village, I couldn’t help but worry about what lasting impact this could have for my own family’s dinner table. If neither of you mind, do you think I could help out you both, to provide an enriched solution to both problems? I mean, I heard that the village head’s family just obtained some kind of grain mill that was really good at processing the stuff. I got my own hands on the thing, maybe I could see just what could be done about the grain you have here?” Sryine took one of the bags and opened it slightly, shifting the illusion of an instrument into it that she really didn’t have. Instead, she invoked her gift into the contents of the bag, committing wind to heat to rapidly delve through the bag and process the contents. Grain was mostly wood element, it was enriched when left in the purity of its own dominance. Most of the rest of it though was also wood element, stuff that didn’t have the same rich value as the rest of the grain. So there was then good wood, and bad wood. She wanted the good wood to behave and the bad wood to disappear.

Her flame loved this even as a concept, asserting dominance and destroying what remained in contempt of it. The flame element saturated the contents, the wind taking place of the contents destroyed in the flame. Finishing the process, she set the bag before the two of them for their own observation. Together, they looked into the very rich and fluffy flour that still filled a large portion of the bag, absolutely no wasted resources at all. Technically, there wasn’t an instrument anywhere that might have achieved a quality this extreme, especially in that short of a time. However, there was no way anyone would figure this out until the village could possibly learn about the reaches of their own fame, and understand the limitations of the instruments beyond it. The grain mill instrument alone was going to have an improvement in the process, more so if they got a much larger model, so it was going to take a while for them to determine any sort of difference.

With their permission, she also completed the same results with the other bags they had on hand, really enriching the deal for the grain tender. This broke them into a quick agreement that was still rather one-sided. Of course, people were still going to go hungry if there were other food shortages, and hunger caused problems. Hunger though could also cause solutions. Still weaving the pitch of her design for her tantalized audience, she turned everything to a new angle, food preparation. In this case, she fortunately had some cooking instruments on hand, mostly because Riyxia had really gone all out for breakfast and thus they had a lot of extra supplies. Her brother had not been interested in matters such as cooking, so she hadn’t shown him such a thing, but this was an audience that could appreciate such matters. In almost a blur, she put together what she needed to prepare some really savoury plates. First, she made use of some of the grain, adding a collection of other stuff she had handy.. and some she had to subtly conjure on the spot, creating the start of some uncertain baked goods. Now, properly making such a thing might have taken a while, but the baking process mostly involved the proper use of warmth, and that’s an idea she had been starting to have a lot of fun with. In the meanwhile though, as a distraction, she also turned to a couple pieces of meat that were involved in the process, setting them aside for two different projects. Doing three things at once was becoming almost impossible for anyone to follow, suddenly stopping because all three things were done at once in far less time than should have been possible caught everyone off guard.

She first presented the meat pie to both of those before her, the warmth radiating from the pies carrying the savoury flavour hidden inside each pie with it. There was initially a question of if the meat had any chance of being fully prepared so quickly, but her second offering showed cutlets of meat in an otherwise very simple yet overwhelming display of the senses. Such meats were prepared perfectly, somehow not even turning even an ounce black and still remaining very juicy.. but actually being far too warm to touch or even eat, the heat having pierced straight through it. She could feel that subtle pride within her, the feeling that rather than destroying something, she had utterly dominated its elemental composition. This was a compromise her flame was starting to savour, possibly as it matched to another subtle side of her other nature. It was a feeling of control, something she had not had to sacrifice for her other side, but something her other side had actually profited in as well.

“So the pie is for you both to enjoy, I’ve actually got a second one almost ready so that you won’t have to decide on how to properly divide it. This is the sort of thing you could produce fairly easily if you knew how to make everything work. The cutlets however aren’t for people, you should take them on a hunting trip today, bait the animals who are still looking for some juicy morsels. Just as this stuff smells so good to people, the animals are going to come running for it, especially the bigger ones. Make sure to make proper use of some of the instruments available for preserving such meats, that way a good final haul over autumn could still leave us with plenty of good meat through to spring.” Sryine’s final statement finally brought resolution for the concerns of both parties. Sryine bid them both farewell as they rushed off to make the most of what had just happened. As they left, Sryine noticed a shimmering form standing nearby, someone else had been watching her at some point. She waved discreetly to Riyxia, knowing better than to open conversation with empty air in such a busy place.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“So you did notice me there, I’m obviously not as good at remaining unnoticed as you it seems.” “Brother! I’m guessing everything went well then?” “Naturally, though it seems you’ve also been keeping busy. I honestly almost missed that it was you here, but I expect that was the point. I was wondering what might be a decent lunch to partake in together in consideration of your return, but after the smells left over from your work, I’m not sure there is any chance I could find anything that could compete with your own. That really was remarkable, and not just the food you had prepared. Almost naturally, you had taken up the concerns of the villagers, resolved everything quickly making use of your outside discoveries, and left those who were suffering doing far better than they had been. That’s exactly the Maexiqhezyhr way, you definitely have the family blood running through your veins.” Sryine’s brother had actually figured out quite a lot of what Sryine was up to in the short time he was present. He did however end with one glaring error that Sryine just didn’t want to correct, there really was nothing so familiar about her own blood. The two of them withdrew back into the family home, Sryine starting quickly on getting a suitable lunch prepared. Her brother quickly found himself following her own instructions in the process, doing what was asked of him to make sure everything was ready for her. She could have probably done everything on her own, but that would have taken a lot of effort, and she had already pushed herself like that earlier. She also did consider that getting a chance to work with her brother on something was a novel experience of its own. Meanwhile, he took note of how strongly her leadership ability stood out in that short process, clear and authoritative, even more than her mother. In not more than a short while, lunch was prepared, the two of them sitting down to enjoy it together.

“Well, I can say this is quite a remarkable lunch. I don’t suppose this is actually normal for you beyond the village?” “Actually, no, I’m usually too occupied with other stuff for something like this. It’s honestly kind of a recent thing, to be honest. Though, I did have something quite like it just yesterday.” “Oh, so sort of a farewell feast for the start of your journey?” “I guess it might have counted for that, but it was far more an unscheduled and last minute date.” Sryine’s brother sputtered over the water he was drinking at the time in order to try and cool his throat down, having totally not expected Sryine’s comment. He had no idea what to say about that, especially considering how Sryine didn’t even bother to mince her words there. His little sister was dating someone? Her comment was even a verbal shrug that followed a more physical one at his stunned expression. He tried to form any kind of retort.. an inquiry, a complaint, an instruction.. anything. He just couldn’t, his little sister honestly felt too far beyond his reach to even assume he could express any form of expectations. Everything he had seen, there was no way he could assume he could measure up to anything in something he couldn’t hope to fully understand. More so, everything she had done, he couldn’t even doubt that she would make decisions that were the best for her. His little sister wasn’t so little anymore, she had seriously matured.. in many ways overtaking even himself, he had no choice but to admit that to himself.

“How long do you expect to stay for, and when will you be going back?” “There are a couple of things I would like to look into here, but I don’t expect to be more than a few days. I think for the next time I return, I should figure out how to bring a cell signal over here. If we can get the village connected with cells, it would be possible to communicate far more often.. to even expose the village to information from around the world.” “That might be nice, we could actually wish you a happy birthday maybe next spring. Hopefully you managed to find time to celebrate your birthday on your own this year.. considering you sort of missed the year before that.” Sryine’s brother brought up something she had totally forgotten was a thing, her own nineteenth birthday having passed so long ago. Riyxia might have recalled such an event, even the book from then, but she had been far too otherwise occupied to even recall if she had done anything for the occasion. In reality, it had only been a quick gift exchange.. they didn't have the time to do more.. but specifically she had never felt the need to free up any time at all for it.

She didn’t even remember exactly when anyone else’s birthday was, but she knew she was supposed to be the youngest. A year and a half later though.. the fact that Riyxia didn’t age at all implied that Riyxia’s physical age had now gone from being the oldest to being the youngest. The fact that technically her actual essence had only gained life again just before spring made things like birthdays lose even more meaning. Even her memories didn’t do much to build up this impression, none of her past birthdays had been much more than the thrill of getting a new book.. an event that paled in comparison to some of the things she had gotten for herself away from the village. For her, getting a day of a book gift from her closest friends had just blended in with the everyday gift of having such friends at her side the whole time.. but that wasn't the only reason for not considering as much value to the occasion.

When attributed to the fact that Riyxia really wouldn’t find much pride in celebrating any birthday of her own either.. the whole importance of the idea just lost all meaning to her. The actual Sryine had died before she could enjoy her eighteenth birthday, this was just her picking up everything from where the original Sryine had left off. In that light, her birthday was more fittingly somewhere around the night of her own awakening. However, that had been a slow and drawn out process, so trying to figure out exactly which day that might be would be difficult. This was the worst possibly for Riyxia, who would have just been a vague spectre until they had arrived to awaken her completely. In fact, that day they had then all come together.. it was possibly the most meaningful of their lives, when the flames of their essence truly came awake. Such a day was probably far more meaningful to them all, in honesty.

“I’m not a child anymore, I’ve got more important things to do than to worry about such events. But I suspect that you’re going to want information on any sort of wedding that might come up in the future, so there is always that.” Sryine again turned things around, leaving the room in another moment of silence. Her brother really felt like there was no room for him to even think he could make any expectations of his sister anymore. She would do what needed to be done, he wasn’t a part of that process in the least. Even so, she was still treating him as family, even still making mention of wanting to include him in the meaningful moments of her life. She was even here to visit. He really had to simply be happy with everything.. to be happy with how much she’s grown.. and to let her be free. Their lunch concluded shortly after that, with a sparse assortment of parting words. Sryine felt she was done here for now, that it might be better to return again another time.. somewhere before she left the village again.. hopefully at a time when her parents would be around. Her brother would let them know she was in the village, so the opportunity was sure to arise. She then left the home to find a shimmer waiting outside for her beside the entrance.

“Let Vwyx know I’m on my way back. I have no idea how much you managed to hear standing outside, and I know you probably didn’t even try listening, but sometimes you might just hear things.. and it would probably be nice to have someone to talk to about it right now. I really don’t think there is much meaning for a birthday that just celebrated another's life, and I don’t even mean that in disrespect of that side of me, but I feel there is far more value in cherishing the life I have now instead. I guess I’m going to have to wait to hear your side of things, but I really think that fateful day our flames came together.. to awaken together in your father’s lab.. that’s far more of a birthday than anything else I might have had. In our own little way, the three of us aren’t just friends, we’re almost actually sisters, all connected by the similarity of our blood, unshared by anyone else in the entire world. This might be the family of the life I’ve taken up for myself, but you two are the family of the other side of myself.. I feel that way more than visiting this place. If Jwyexzn and I really do have this whole couple thing work out, and then if we really do get married, you’re the family I want at my side more than the one here. Oh, and maybe you could ask Vwyx what it would take to get a cell signal around here, the village could really use a feature like that.” Sryine decided that she would actually take the opportunity to actually talk to the open air beside her, as the spectre followed her back towards Vwyx. Sryine hid herself completely with another illusion, leaving no semblance of herself present but the shimmer Riyxia would see of herself in turn.

It was like two spectres walked hand and hand back towards the workshop, sisters of the same sort. When all three of them were together again, they would be ready to confront the afternoon as a whole family.