Aneira covered their eyes to try and keep themself together.They could feel the cold bleeding out from them and touching the items around them.

“Good morning,” The ghostly voice of Aneira’s father trembled through the thick air. Aneira shook their head and squeezed their eyes closed tighter.

“Good morning,” Laughed the voice of their mother. Aneira covered their ears but the voices were coming from inside their head, just as much as it was coming from outside it.

“And how are you, ansbryd?” Aneira couldn’t help but open their eyes to look at their parents. Sitting in the bed, as if laying in it, was their mother. Their father kneeling beside her and speaking to the pregnant bump in their mother’s stomach. Aneira squeezed their eyes shut again against the sounds and the visions.

“What about Aneira?” The ghostly voice asked worriedly.

“What about them?”

“They could hurt-”

“Shut up, SHUT UP!” Aneira snapped loudly. A lash of icy magic burst out of her. Shattering the memory as well as the mirror over the unused vanity. Aneira stood up quickly, staring in horror at the broken mirror reflecting pieces of their face back at them. They shook their head in disbelief before collapsing to their knees. Dragging the nearby bin to them to clean up the mess. Scooping up the pieces of glass up and dropping them into the bin numbly.

A knock from the front door stirred them from their trance. They wiped their hands off on their apron and ran down the stairs. They quickly opened the front door to Mr. Midgley standing there with a box.

“Hey there, Aneira.” He said roughly. “Brought that present you requested. Also got some stuff from our family for Roskva as well.”

“Thank you,” Aneira said as they held out their hands for the boxes.

“What happened?” He asked. Gesturing to Aneira's bleeding hands.

“Oh, there was some broken glass.” Aneira said quickly, wiping their hands off on their apron again.

“I’ll put these on the table then,” Mr. Midgley said and Aneira stepped aside for him to enter the house. “Can’t stay long. We’re heading into town.”

“Understandable.” Aneira nodded. “I appreciate you stopping by.”

“Think nothing of it.” He said and he placed the two boxes on the table. “Where’s the birthday girl?”

“Morning chores.” Aneira said.

“I understand that.” Mr. Midgley nodded. “Well, tell her happy birthday from us.”

“I will.”

Mr. Midgley nodded and left through the front door. Aneira watched him go and then looked down at their hands. Seeing for the first time all the cuts left on their hands from the mirror. They took the boxes and moved them to the kitchen.

Placing them delicately where Roskva would see them as soon as she came in. Then Aneira quickly pulled the cake out of the icebox, decorated and ready for the little celebration. The only thing missing was Roskva.

Roskva, for her part, had finished letting out the animals and feeding them.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”

Roskva screeched and threw a bundle of hay into the air as the little girl with little curls popped up from the barn’s opening.

“Oh my god, Narisse! You startled me.” Roskva said, laughing.

“Happy birthday!” Narisse laughed, repeating herself.

“Thank you! Are you here by yourself?” Roskva asked, looking around the yard.

“No, my mommy and daddy are on the way to town. Wanna come?” Narisse asked. Roskva tapped her boot for a minute awkwardly.

“I mean. I kinda. Well. Wait one minute!” Roskva ran to the house. Storming in through the back door.

“Aneira! The Midgley’s offered to take me to town, can I go?” She yelled. Aneira stared in shock at her.

“Uh. We- I thought” Aneira said slowly.

“THANK YOU!” Roskva yelled and ran back outside. She ran to the cart waiting out front.

“Ah there you are! Mrs. Midgley waved. “Happy birthday, my dear!”

“Thanks! Aneira says it’s okay for me to join you if you wouldn’t mind the company?” Roskva asked, Mrs. Midgley smiled and laughed. She looked at her husband who shrugged in response.

“All right, it’s a three day trip so be quick!” She called and Roskva whooped and jumped in the air.

“I’ll be right back!” Roskva called and ran inside, nearly knocking Aneira over in the process.

“Roskva! How-”

“Three days! I’m going to be back in three days!” Yelled Roskva as she threw herself into her room and pulled a bag up and began throwing clothes haphazardly into it. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Roskva ran right back out the door. Again almost knocking Aneira over.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

“But what about-” Aneira tried to object but the door slammed in their face. Roskva ran to the cart and hopped up into the back of it and sat down in the nearest seat.

“Thank you so much for letting me come! This is the best present ever!” Roskva grinned so big it nearly cracked her face in half.

“It’s not that big of a bother.” Mr. Midgley said with a shrug. “Oh, there’s Aneira.” Mr. Midgley waved and Mrs. Midgley and little Narisse waved as well but Roskva stared at the grim figure of their sibling in the living room window.

Aneira watched the cart until it was out of sight. Holding back tears. They pressed their lips together to stop their bottom lip from trembling. They dropped the curtain and turned for the kitchen. They took the cake and put it back into the icebox. Drifting along the kitchen counter in silence. Continuing on in their own chores.

Roskva felt her stomach lurch as her house vanished from sight. It made her nauseous.

“You ever been to town before?” Narisse asked. Sitting across from Roskva and bumping up and down with giggles on the dirt road.

“I think so, when I was really little.” Roskva said, also bouncing with the cart.

“Why don’t you go with your parents?” Narisse asked. Roskva couldn’t help noticing Mrs. Midgley looking around from the corner of her eye.

“I lost my parents. A long time ago.” Roskva said, looking down to her hands. Wishing she’d washed her hands before departing.

“Oh no, that’s such a shame.” Mrs. Midgley said sadly. “Who took care of you two?”

“Aneira did. Aneira’s always taken care of us,” Roskva wiped her hands together and looked up at the front of the cart. Watching the path ahead. The Midgley parents shared a look between them and then looked back at the road.

“I’m sorry, they must love you very much.” Mr. Midgley said simply. Roskva smiled and nodded with a sigh.

“What are we going to town for?” Roskva asked. Quickly changing the subject.

“The king’s passed and the prince has been going through presentations in preparation for his coronation.” Mrs. Midgley said. “Being a part of the kingdom, we thought we should see how this guy measures up to the good Queen. May the river rest her.”

“The Queen?” Roskva asked. “I didn’t know we were a part of a kingdom.”

“What?! How did you not know?” Narisse asked.

“No one ever told me.” Roskva shrugged sheepishly.

“Well the Prince’s mother was the good Queen and we loved her. Never did we have a better noble.” Mrs. Midgley gushed dreamily. “She was a commoner like us, then she married the good King and we had such a wonderful period of peace.”

“Oh that’s nice.” Roskva smiled. “I guess everyone’s pretty sad that he died so recently.”

“Oh no! The good King didn’t die recently.” Mrs. Midgley laughed. “The good King died a very long time ago. The Queen remarried eventually and that’s the king we lost. As well as the father of the prince.”

“Oh. I see?” Roskva said slowly. Not quite understanding but still trying to follow the lineage.

“It’s okay if you don’t quite understand. Royalty is always a little confusing.” Mrs. Midgley laughed. “But the important thing is that the prince is about to become the king and we need to assess how this term is going to go.”

“Sounds fun!” Roskva said. “Will we get to meet the prince?”

“Probably not, we’ll see him and we’ll hear his policy but we won’t really meet him.” Mr. Midgley said. Roskva nodded slowly, then she shrugged.

“Can we visit a market? Look at all the pretty things?” Roskva asked hopefully.

“Sure, I don’t see why not.” Mr. Midgley said. “The wife and kid will love to visit the markets. The missus practically buys the whole bazaar.”

“I do not!” Mrs. Midgley laughed, playfully hitting his shoulder. Mr. Midgley laughed and Narisse looked at Roskva and rolled her eyes.

“My parents are so weird.” Narisse said with a shake of her head.

“I mean, at least they’re here.” Roskva shrugged, smiling. “It’s nice to see them so in love.”

“Yeah, that’s true.” Narisse laughed. Roskva looked about the mountain road, moving at a steady pace. Still her thoughts traveled back to Aneira. Feeling something gnawing at her from inside.