Peak of Autumn, Week 4, Day 7

I debated it. I did. I thought maybe, just maybe, it was time. Time to brave the estate proper –not simply leap from a window sill and explore the same labyrinthine hedges. How much worse could it be, after all? In the hedges, I found the worst of Eunora’s family. But there was too much unknown for me to be willing to overcome the anxiety of Eunora and head through the halls. My will faltered every time I considered it, and something snaked itself around my throat. Eunora herself had often been forced to attend the governess’ class with the twins –and Raphael for a year before he aged out two years ago.

The more I thought about it, the more I wondered what had possessed Lina. She was the governess to every one of the Dawns –though the elder children hadn’t attended her classes in years. All she taught was basic arithmetic, history, and religion. She must have known I turned eight –otherwise, she would be here, ruler in hand. In Eunora’s memories, Lina was stern but fair. Like the rest of the estate, she was simply here for a paycheck. Perhaps if Eunora had been a genius like Theodore, a magical prodigy like Evelyn, or a martial prodigy like Raphael, Lina would have cared more about her schooling –instead of letting her fill her head with the fairytales of the Divine and the rose-hued history of the Dawns. Then again, Eunora isn’t just the meekest of the elder children –she’s also the fourth child, the second daughter. What use is someone so far removed from inheritance? No one invests in the child forgotten –not when Eunora lacked the traits that drew people in. Lina was also the one who would chaperone meals –the Count and Countess so rarely attending left it a wild occasion otherwise. Yet, not a word for months.

As I was lying staring at the ceiling, a knock resounded. I rolled over, grabbed Noir, and slid out of bed. Unlike yesterday, the maid squad had come closer to noon —and I was already dressed in a soft purple capelet with a white blouse adorned with ribbons tucked into a matching pair of lilac shorts. White stockings that went up past my knees, with embroidered flowers in the same soft purple, and I had to slide back into my soft leather shoes —the biggest oddity was how many shades of purple leather were in my closet even when a third of it was gone. My hair was already braided, so I had no need to do anything but leave. I prepared myself, and as I went to open the door, a second knock resounded.

Taking a slow breath, I pulled open the door, only to be assaulted by all three elder Dawns. Standing before me was Theodore, with his arms crossed. Raphael towering over the other two with a too-sweet smile. And Evelyn with a scowl so faint it could be written off as a dream.

“Oh, Nora,” came Evelyn’s smooth voice, “Good. You’re here.”

“It’s time for lunch, sis,” was Raphael’s too-sweet voice.

“Father’s home.” It was Theodore’s flat contribution.

I stared at the three of them, disbelief and suspicion filling me. I thought about just closing the door in their faces.

“So?” I pushed out.

Raphael’s smile dropped, whereas Evelyn’s grew. Theodore did not react.

“So, it’s time to stop throwing a tantrum. We’ve got to eat together,” Evelyn’s voice was sharp despite her smile, and I saw Theodore shift his arms.

I felt my irritation grow, and I heard myself speak before I could bite my own tongue, “Oh, do we now? Since when? Because we haven’t shared a meal since Rise.”

“Well–” Theodore started, just to be cut off by Raphael.

“Come off it! Who do you think you are?” He hissed, voice low, “Stop acting out and just do as always. We’re already running behind because of you.”

When Raphael began reaching out to grab me, it happened quickly. I leaned back and slammed the door, only for Raphael to try and hold it open —which led to the door slamming down on his hand as he was unsurprisingly ill-prepared for the force I used. While in the grand scheme of things 30 Strength may not be much, it was certainly more than he had expected. Raphael let out an undignified yelp, and I cracked open the door to see his quickly reddening face —as well as odd looks from Evelyn and Theodore. I only had a brief second to consider what this would look like.

“You’ll leave me be —and ice that hand— if you know what’s good for you.”

I decided I didn’t care all that much about what it looked like and decided to lean into it. They were infuriating anyway. Before they could fully respond, I snapped the door closed, flipped the lock, and made my way out the window —a now familiar passage out of my room. Maria could simply unlock the door if she needs to wrap up whatever packing she wants to get done today. Or not. At this point, I really couldn't care less. And there really wasn’t much left of my room after yesterday’s packing frenzy. There was what remained of my closet, a vanity, an empty bookshelf, and my bed with a spare set of bedding folded up next to it.

“[Silent as a Shadow]”

The ice-cold feel of mana enveloped me as the world dulled into shades of gray. The only thing as vibrant as before was my irritation. It was festering beneath my skin, and I wanted to scream. Evelyn and Raphael and Theodore have no right to bother me. One day was too short a reprieve from them. So, when I arrived at one of the courtyards in the hedge maze, I did something truly sensible this time. I made sure to stay awake –and I sat in the front corner so no one could see me. No naps or sunbathing in a wide open space for me –not when the Dawns were roaming about. Perhaps in the borderlands, I would be able to relax. As I settled into the corner, I was greeted with a System notice in its evergreen hues.

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[Congratulations! Silent as a Shadow is now Level 2!]

“[Inspect]”

[Silent as a Shadow: You are noticed, yet ignored. You lurk, yet no one cares. Like a shadow, your presence is taken as fact. This skill allows you to blend in plain sight. So long as you do not draw undue attention to yourself, it is harder to be found suspicious. This skill requires mana to maintain. Ability to mute your aura increased per level. Decreased relative perception per level. Duration limited. Cooldown applies.]

[Silent as a Shadow: 1st Tier Skill. Duration of 10 minutes. Cooldown of 2 hours. Current level of [2] out of [40].]

A single level had increased its duration from 5 minutes to 10. Would that continue at the same rate for 40 levels? [Quick Calculation] told me that if that held true, then I would be able to use the Skill for over three hours at a time. But unlike my other Skills, this one did more outside its description than the rest. And it had yet to level past 2 —despite my using it multiple times. Like [Quick Calculation] and [Inspect], growing the Skill took more effort. I didn’t know why, but that, too, left a foul taste in my mouth. Most of the System was supposed to be taught after Awakening —only until this week, no one even knew I had aged up.

My skin crawled at the thought of my ignorance. Anger welled in my stomach and I felt righteous indignation begin to overcome my senses, the edge of my vision darkening. My throat began to constrict—

“No.” I brought my hands roughly to my face, slapping my cheeks with all the force I could stand. As the stinging settled in, I choked out another, “No.”

I snapped my head to the side, looking at where I’d dropped Noir. My anger was fueling me. I didn’t want to create another being of rage. I could barely handle myself. So I chose a different path.

“[Weave of Darkness]”

A neatly rolled ball of black yarn formed from the overcast shadows hiding me.

“[Weave of Darkness]”

Another black ball, this one with thinner, more thread like strings.

“[Weave of Darkness]”

This time a ball of iridescent yarn formed, the light striking it from all angles.

“[Weave of Darkness]”

Another iridescent ball with thinner, more thread like strings. The black was receding from the edges of my vision and my choppy breaths began to smooth. But I was a well of power.

“[Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness]”

Balls of yarn and thread began to pile in front of me. It was the opposite of destructive and the more I spoke the more I felt the pathway the mana was making to create the materials.

I didn’t stop.

“[Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness]”

[Congratulations! Weave of Darkness is now Level 5! New features unlocked!]

[Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness] [Weave of Darkness]

I didn’t even notice that as I continued using the Skill, I had stopped speaking. Or that there was now a deep green shade mixed in with the black and iridescent balls of material.

[Weave of Darkness]

It was freeing to release my anger in a productive way. But as I used the Skill once more, I felt a snap inside of me and the ice cold of my mana refused to manifest another ball of yarn. Something told me I could keep pushing if I wanted to, but as I reached for the Skill the coldness was no longer kind. It was sharp and uncomfortable and I decided it wasn’t worth it.

Looking around myself I took a breath.

“This is an eyesore.” I sighed as I leaned forward, my hands draped over my knees.

“[Quick Calculation]”

I counted 25 hefting balls of varying colors, most were the black of a Shadowless Night, some were the iridescent of a Shadowless Day, and two were the green of what [Inspect] told me was a Shadowless Forest. I held those two reverentially, digging my fingers into the soft yarn. I had never loved a color more than the deep evergreens I could see from the Dome in elsewhere. They were so rare under the glass —so few trees that weren’t tinged with the red hues of the doru-nutrients that fed them. Even surrounded by the hedge maze, with its dull greens and blues, the dark green of the yarn was deeper than the System notices that popped up in my head.

Suddenly, I was hit with a horrifying realization as I turned my head back to Noir, “How am I going to get these back to my room?”

The silent bunny wasn’t capable of judging me. Intellectually I knew that. I huffed.

“Right, yeah, I’ll try and weave a quick basket.”

Taking the thickest yarn I used [Weaving] to guide me as I began twisting the yarn using my fingers and arms. I was small enough and the thick loops it would create were still tight enough they would be able to hold the balls of yarn and thread. I sat like that, looping and tucking and passing the yarn from hand to hand, for the rest of the afternoon. Thanks to my Skill and Eunora’s muscle memory, I was quick as ever as I did my best to make a rucksack shape large enough to hold all 25 balls of yarn.

As the suns began to set over the horizon, the only trick left was to carry everything back up through the window. Only that wasn’t possible. I wasn’t able to add handles or any way to actually grip it.

Whether I was ready or not, it was time to go through the manor.