Before dessert got served, the kids were ushered outside to play in order for the adults to talk business. Cassandra didn’t really want to play rowdy with the other kids so she sneakily stayed behind to listen in on the grownups’ secrets. Totally unbeknownst to Alis, who had long since fled to lounge on some pillows nearby, in hopes of culling her growing stomach ache.
With an ear pressed hard against one of the walls, Cassandra could vaguely hear Varon Clerebold’s gruff voice say, “I’ve heard that your son’s genosaur can’t fly despite having wings? So how come you let him settle for it? Why, don’t tell me the Breeders are getting sloppy these days, letting people bond with poor genes?”
The familiar tone of Lady Dray replied back with a tinge of pride. “Well, actually Peres’ genosaur is a witchagon that has been bred to live longer than its peers. Essentially it’s more part teragon than a witchgiant. That’s why its wings aren’t as functional as such... It’s rather simple really. We thought, why should it be able to fly if it’s going to die?” Motley laughter vibrated through the walls.
Then Varon Irondane inquired, “So your family tends to resonate with teragons? And not witchgiants as well?”
Lady Dray replied again in her husband’s stead. “You could say that. Hammond’s lineage does tend to resonate well with teragons while mine has its strongest bonds with the feyrion breed… I do believe that Peres’ bond with his current partner came about due to its prominent teragon blood. But who knows, really?”
Silence followed, giving Cassandra the impression that her mother’s response somehow hadn’t been adequate enough.
Varon Clerebold cleared his throat in loud rumbling coughs before he assessed the Irondane’s potential. “Urhm!... To be honest, my family hasn’t had much luck outside of the teragons either. But I won’t complain! They’re magnificent for farm work. I’d just really like one of those snappers, you see?... The Divines know, I hate those damned snarcous as I hate the corrupted scourge! But! If a collaboration between our families were to be made-… Well, let’s just say that I’d shave my beard to have some snappers on my side! HARR HARR! Oh, those cheeky adorable rascals! I tried having one as a pet once! And it bit my fourth toe right off, did it! So I tore off its tail. Man-oh-man, have I never seen a genosaur so pissed before! Puhahahaarrh! That’s why I want a son who can really talk to them fellas! Talk and be merry, and perhaps, let his old dad in on the fun?... Do you get me?...*Cough,* No offense…?”
Cassandra masked her amusement with a hand covering her mouth. She was really starting to like that foolish Varon Clerebold. The Irondane’s didn’t respond immediately to the man’s fumbling proposal. They let the subject simmer like a stew before loosening their tongues anew. “We’d love to make such an union happen between our two families. But, unfortunately. Or rather, fortunately, Rey has already been promised away to our dearest partners in business. We do, after all, expect him to take up the mantle. Including my forefather’s name, do we not, Varon Dray?”
The shy gentleman admitted, “Indeed. He can have whichever daughter he should so desire. But I presume he'd wed Janet as they’re closer in age.”
“What!?” Cassandra hissed, now listening in with greater intent.
“Then what about that lovely baby you're baking in there? If it resonates well with snapper shifters would you be so kind as to grant it to one of my lively children?” Varon Clerebold crassly asked the Irondanes.
The otherwise stable Varon Irondane was about to respond to his request, when his wife sang out, “Why, of course! We’d be honored. And I’m sure our child would be too.”
“Exactly,” her Varon agreed.
Cassandra pushed herself away from the wall of secrets. She persistently tried to recreate what Rey looked like, alas, her former interest for the subject made the image rather hard to fabricate. She couldn’t let this slide as Rey might turn out to be someone she would have to depend on in the future. If anything, she would prefer it if the arranged marriage landed on Janet’s lap. But this wasn’t a certainty as Rey had been given the privilege of choosing whichever Dray he wanted.
The idea of marriage struck Cassandra as evident, but it had to be with a worthy partner. If Rey was the one, she had to know who he was or at least what he looked like. Not that she would admit that it mattered, but similarly to her past life, Cassandra had high standards when it came to looks. Or perhaps, it would be more fitting to say that she had high standards when it came to everything: Be it girls, clothes, or books…
She hadn’t really paid attention to Rey before, but now she wholeheartedly prayed that he looked somewhat similar to his stunning dad! And so what if he was a male? Cassandra was in a female body now, and it would be a shame to deny the difference. Being given this rare offer, she had to experience the other side as well. Plus, she was currently in a book-verse or something? So wouldn’t it be fair to say that whatever happens in the book-verse, stays in the book-verse? Else she wouldn’t be able to live. If she had to question her morals every step of the way.
Cassandra left the room with a cheeky expression. “Welp, might as well get a look at the guy.” But before she did, she went dashing straight to Alis’ side: A small pitstop on her way.
Upon seeing the child, Alis wanted to express her rue for being such a drag. She opened her mouth ready to spout apologies, when a roguish burp erupted instead. And as rude as it was it made sure to suicide bomb itself into her beloved Cassandra’s face.
Alis’ already pale complexion rapidly turned paler. She tried to waft away her crime, regrettably, it was too late for such take backs. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Cassandra. I’m so terribly sorry! I didn’t know that-... Oh, forget it! Uhm… Just tell me. Where are you sneaking off to now?”
The victim of her gastric attack scrunched their nose and awkwardly tried to giggle it off. How could she be mad at Alis for something so basic? No, instead of being offended Cassandra let her mild hands wander across Alis’ forehead, and to her dismay it was disturbingly cold. She pried, “Should I call my parents? Do you need any help?”
Alis gulped down a snake creeping its way up her gut. She should be getting some more rest, but appearances had to be kept. Hence she crawled up from her refuge and wobbly escorted the child outside, despite her commonsense telling her to stay put.
Cassandra resisted Alis’ tug and frowned. She wanted to prohibit the teen’s recklessness by taking a stand, but of course, her 3-year-old frame was incapable of withstanding the force of Alis’ 47 kg. Not before long they had reached the Clerebold’s backyard. The place where all the other kids spent their time frolicking.
Outside, the air was fresh, smelling of earth and mist. They heaved the scent deep down into their lungs. Their attention was soon captivated by a cult of noble brats hollering in the dying rainfall. Those kids were making a racket around a dangerous swing, attached to the twig of a tall scots pine. And upon it, two of the group’s urchins rode against the cold wind. One sat obediently at the front of the seat while the other kept the monstrosity going.
Cassandra stood impressed by the swing’s length and gliding span. Her jaw slackened the moment she tilted her head backwards, thinking: If those kids aren’t careful they’ll end up catapulting themselves over the Clerebold’s roof right into a horrible mess.
The swing’s violent sway seared itself into Alis’ eyes as it went back and forth. Back and forth. Going on instincts, Alis moved her trembling hands to aid her stomach. It was a meager attempt to appease it. It really didn’t help at all. She spun around and retreated into the nearest refuge of lush shrubbery and tilting trees. Meanwhile, Cassandra remained engulfed by the other’s fun. Totally oblivious to Alis’ plight. That was, until she heard the grotesque sound of vomiting.
“Alis!?” Cassandra exclaimed as her feet toppled over the Clerebolds’ wetlands. She was heading towards the girl at full throttle, hoping to bear witness to her tragedy, when said teen came wandering out of the bushes already done with her deed. Alis slinked out of the final shrubs carrying an eased expression, and a leaf with which she delicately dabbed her mouth.
Once the plucked leaf had served its purpose, she flung it aside and got over herself. Taking to soothe her protégé instead. “Don’t worry,” she rasped, “It was meant to happen sooner or later... But still. Don’t tell anyone about this. They’ll only suspect the worst, even though I truly have been sick since this morning. So... No going around telling people that I threw up in the bushes, okay? If anything, they’ll only misunderstand the situation and possibly heat their pitchforks for meaningless battle.”
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Cassandra grabbed the teen’s hand and spat, “I promise! But only if you go and get some proper rest! And that’s now!” Alis’ stood flabbergasted by the little one’s demand. But this didn’t scare the child. Not when their heart was beating so hard and furiously. “I’ll be fine alone. So go now... Go and rest.”
The teen hesitated. But seeing as the other children had been allowed to roam freely as well, she conceded. “Fine… I trust you’ll come for me if anything should happen.” And like any good child, Cassandra nodded as she watched the young woman do as told.
The second Alis went out of her sight, Cassandra lost some of her prior confidence. The damper being her growing doubts towards the other. The looming possibility was still there. Cassandra began to question what she had seen. That perhaps, it wasn’t the outcome of an irritated stomach. But that of something far more alarming. What if Alis had been exposed by those birminty leaves? What if she was actually pregnant?
These sorts of questions haunted Cassandra’s mind. Especially the ones concerning their trust. They’d known each other for three whole years. A considerable amount of time to have spent together. Which made Cassandra believe that Alis certainly wouldn’t lie straight to her face anymore, even though she was still being perceived as a child... At least she hoped this to be true.
“Waaa! Let me off!” Janet weeped. The swing dulled for a moment only to drastically increase in tempo and height, all thanks to the encouragement coming from their onlookers below.
The boy in control of the giant pendulum didn’t need much egging on to yell back at the sourpuss in front, “Stop crying! You choose this for yourself. Now! Here we gooooo!” At the curves peak the kid forced Janet to jump along with him, and together they flew unbound. In midair, her scream reached its highest note, then they fell through a barn’s narrow skylight, and her scream faded into a miserable squeak. The sudden deafening of her voice became a worrisome sign to those who stood witness.
All spectators, including Cassandra, ran towards the old storage unit to check whether the two kids had survived the dangerous drop or not. They filtered into the dust-ridden place and thanked the Divines when they saw those lucky rascals come shooting up from a mound of hay. The healthy sight of them got the small bandits in a party mood. They congratulated the pair for coming out of the challenge whole-skinned, and laughed as if nothing had gone awry.
Cassandra stared dumbfounded at the exhilarated gang and thought: Don’t tell me all of this was planned from the get-go!? What an insane stunt!To jump from a swing into the skylight of a barn in hopes of plopping safely into a haystack!? Life isn’t a game, you know! And this world certainly isn’t one either! Should I tell their parents? Or do the Clerebolds already know of this sick setup? Mercy… What if their parents are just as insane as their kids? What if they condone this madness?
An image of the Clerebold couple flashed before her mind’s eye. She had to admit that the idea didn’t seem inconceivable. Their contraption was in plain sight. How could their parents not know of this game they played? They didn’t even try to hide their ritual when Alis and Cassandra: Two outsiders, came to spectate. Cassandra stared at the haypile as her budding idolism towards Varon Clerebold took a punch in the sack.
One of the couple’s oldest spawn helped Janet up from the pile. He brushed her off and gave away a compliment to the other kid who’d made the leap. “Excellently done, Rey! You can now be officially accepted as a member of our Wingless Riders’ club! As for you, Janet? I hope you liked the thrilling experience! You better savor it since we usually don’t let unbonded people try out our membership test. Just, remember not to spill a word to the adults! If our parents should come to know that we let an unbonded jump the Swing of Might, we’ll be forced to dagging the neighbors sheep for months!”
Janet swept two digits beneath her tear-ridden eye. She blurted out an, “Huh? Wha-? I won’t tattle? But that doesn’t mean you guys aren’t jerks! You never once said that I had to make the jump as well. All I wanted was to ride the swing! And now I’m all dirty and sore!”
Rey picked a straw from his black mane. “Oh, shush! What did you expect? You knew full well what the game entailed and yet you dared chicken out midway? You’re such a cry-baby. Hmph! I’m telling you. She’s a lost cause guys. We’d better hurry to the hideout before Janet decides to tattle on us.... Who’s with me?”
“Me!” The other kids sang in unison, fully hooked on Rey and his domineering opinion. They followed his lead and ran off, oblivious to what their actions might invoke. Cassandra stepped aside to let the flock of tiny bulls pass, but Rey wasn’t that eager to leave yet. He halted before the potential recruit and asked her, “Wanna come along?”
Cassandra firmly shook her head to this. Her mind rambled: And join a cult of crazy kids? That’s a hard PASS! Do I look like someone who has the body of an immortal? I’m not even a decent-sized kid yet! Rey had a displeased smile slide onto his face before he hurried on. Cassandra glanced after the 6-year-old’s back feeling miffed. The biggest impressions Rey left behind was his arrogant attitude and surprisingly delicate blue eyes. It felt like he had stolen them from someone else.
Shortly after he had left, Cassandra began regretting her missed opportunity. She should have just straight up slapped Rey’s face to make him instantly hate her. That way, his future fiance would no longer be a mystery. But then… What if that backfired? It was really hard to discern Rey’s worth with no one around to testify or compare him to. Only the creator, who’s name she would not utter without a curse, could possibly know of this. Cassandra sighed: Planning one’s future can be really frustrating. But I guess, if push comes to shove I can always throw away my title and bail on Janet. That’s my luck for being born third in line and for having a sister I won’t pity! Hehe.
The fleeting horde was gone within seconds, leaving Cassandra behind to deal with Janet alone. Said older sibling was not a push-over despite her eager tear ducts. This, Cassandra knew all too well, which was why she initially inspected the girl for any signs of aggression. The awkward silence was heavy on her tongue. She tasted it thoroughly before letting out a cautious, “So?”
The undesirable peep caught Janet’s heated attention. After a spell’s tinkering with her brain, Janet gave her sister a tired, presumptuous look as if she’d already seen through Cassandra’s intentions. She growled, “No, I don’t want to play with you. Go fetch Alis or something. I have worms to catch.”
“Worms?” Cassandra echoed, slightly intrigued.
Hearing the toddler’s interest in the matter, Janet casually replied, “Yes, worms… Wanna join me in the hunt for their squirmy lives?”
Cassandra declined, not willing to be an accomplice in one of her sister’s burgeoning schemes. They were never without consequences. Janet felt impartial to her sister’s redrawal. Unsurprisingly, she had been let down once again. “Hrmph, you’re so boring,” Janet grumbled. With her expectations already lowered due to her sister’s consistently boring and drab nature. Never had they shared an ounce of fun. This time was no exception.
Briefly, Cassandra thought about joining her sister to gather some live bait for her grandpa, alas, how was she supposed to transport them back home safely? In lack of a proper solution to this problem, Cassandra passed her time on the deserted swing, letting it lull her away. Her eyes hunkered mindlessly down on Janet’s crouching figure. Behind their empty gaze a thought popped into existence. I’m bored… But clean. The same can’t be said for Janet, that odd vengeful creature. She’s clearly not over the way the boys treated her… Hah-... I can’t wait to see what she’s planning to do with those worms… I bet someone’s got a nasty surprise coming for them.
“TIME FOR SNACKS!” a servant hollered into the vast yard. They kept a cowbell ringing till the last child had been accounted for. The throng of kids it summoned, hastily washed up, then joined the table for their next meal. Their tiny bodies were still humming with untapped energy that made their legs swing beneath the tablecloth and their fingers playfully pull at its hems. Compared to them, Cassandra came off as an apathetic, lazy creature, who’s only goal in life was to exist. She walked like a sated house-cat over to her chair. Where a pair of delicate hands would wrap around and delicately seat her on her cushion, the way it had always been done.
Cassandra took notice of her helper’s hands and smiled, knowing that they had regained some of their usual warmth. She looked up at Alis’ face now glossed in a healthy pink tint in contrast to its former chalky gray hue. Even the gleam in her eyes, and the wetness of her glowing sunset lips, had made a full comeback.
Alis was tickled by Cassandra’s lasting stare. She turned her head, about to chat with the little Dray, when a servant’s arm came flying through the gap between them. It carried their plates and served them without a flaw then left in a flash.
The expensive pottery came decorated with a scoop of carrot ice cream, drizzled in honey and dried goldberries. On the side laid a bun all buttered up and toasted. Cassandra inspected the dessert, but never tasted it. It was simply too strange for her. Even though she believed her adaptability to be high, she still had limits. And apparently one of those limits was carrot ice cream. The silliness of it made her think that perhaps if it had been beef flavored, then-? Cassandra shook her head at the thought and picked up the friendly-looking piece of bread. While munching on it, she got the feeling that their second meal was wrapped in a cozier atmosphere. Probably due to the different families feeling more comfortable and well acquainted with each other.
The current rowdy and playful mood created the perfect opportunity for Janet to strike and extract her revenge. That sneaky little rat only needed a split second for her plan to spring into action. And off it went! With help from a catapulting spoon. The object didn’t even make the slightest splatter when it landed on Rey’s plate. It was what one would call: A masterful landing, indeed.
Cassandra, who had been so fortuitous to witness this little stunt in action, sat with her mouth agape and her eyes glistening. Something, Lady Dray quickly found reprehensible. Since she didn’t have the patience to be polite, the Lady just went ahead and closed her daughter’s food-funnel shut for her. “Eat properly, dear. Girls don’t chew with their mouths open!” She lectured in a hissy whisper.
Being policed like this, Cassandra felt obliged to point out the graver mischief wiggling about on Rey’s plate. A mischief that the Lady and all the others had ostensibly overlooked. At first, her mother didn’t get the hint, but Rey’s yelp soon fixed that.
All it took was a clink from his spoon for the shock to spread collectively like a wildfire to the rest of them. One by one, people stared at the victim, and not before long a mix of reactions commenced. Although the Clerebold’s tried their best at holding back, they soon broke out into chuckles and knee-slaps. Whereas the Irondanes looked at the worm as if it had come to devore their very souls. As for the Drays? Well, it can be said that there was a certain sense of dread building up on their side.
Rey hooked the squirming mess out of his ice cream, and demanded to know, “Who put this here? Was it you, Hurk?”
The eldest Clerebold child shook his head vigorously and held his hands up in a defensive pose. “It wasn’t me! I swear!... For if it had been me, you would have already swallowed it, haha!” Rey curled the corner of his lip amused, then directed his question at Peres instead, along with the dangling earthworm.
Peres was stunned to be accused, but he did make a good point, “How could I have done it? I was with you the entire noon! Yet that worm you’re holding is still very much alive and kicking. If it had truly been me the creature would not be so happy to see you. It would be rather dead, or at least deadish, for lying that long in my pockets! That’s why it couldn’t possibly have been me!”
But since Peres was the last one to be called out by Rey, people’s suspicion lingered on him. Peres hated this kind of treatment. To make it disappear, he quickly deduced that whoever had done the juvenile act was most likely a child, and that the earthworm, judging by its vigorous wiggling, must have been dug up recently. Since the child was liable to have used their hands to dig it out, they should still have some dirt underneath their fingernails. No matter how brilliant they were at scrubbing their hands clean.
After having come to this conclusion, Peres surveyed every hand that napped on the table’s cloth. None of them held true to his theory. So he took to inspecting those he couldn’t see. The first pair being some that belonged to his neighbour, Janet. Peres didn’t hesitate for a second before he went ahead and heaved up her paws for examination. Seeing their brown edges powdered with grains, Peres squinted his eyes at her with spite. Those who had held their focus on Peres now stared at Janet as well. They quickly put two and two together, and the culprit was marked.
“It can’t be... You did this, Janet?” Rey stated aloud. Despite his wrinkled eyebrows, he was impressed.
The girl wrested her hands free from her brother’s clutches. Like a burning kettle her head steamed red and her defensive walls crumbled to bits. They stood no chance against the flock of eyeballs now centered on her. She had been thoroughly exposed with nowhere to hide her shame away.