The early bird catches the worm.

That was probably Aerendil's motto.

Too many times have his footsteps woken Mani in the early morning. Every single time, the sun had only barely risen.

This particular morning was no different.

Mani sat on a log, grumpily grumbling complaints to herself as she watched him move around and prepare breakfast. It was still dark out, the sun only rising a minute after. Her bedhead was on full display, and she hadn't made any effort to fix that.

After stifling a yawn, Mani spoke, "Why must you make so much noise in the morning? It has to be on purpose."

"Perhaps if you got off your lazy ass and started your day earlier, you wouldn't need to sleep in so much."

Mani groaned in annoyance. "You're not my mother, don't lecture me."

"Are you sure your mother and I don't share any similarities? Surely your mother must be as disappointed in you as I am?"

"Fuck you."

Aerendil snickered before going back to chopping some venison. He muttered something about 'hunting something different next time' but she couldn't care less.

Mani's eyelids grew incredibly heavy and in a moment of drowsiness, she walked over to the nearest place she could lie down. She plopped down onto Aerendil's bedroll and immediately drifted into sleep, not even bothering to use the covers.

Aerendil didn't notice her invading his bedroll like a parasite as he busied himself with breakfast.

The sound of chopping and bowls clinking together was comforting. It reminded her of the times where she would nap on a chair as her mother made her a snack. The Lyreedian delicacies her mother used to make were even better than those of professionals, in Mani's opinion. She missed her mother; she missed her family.

***

When Mani opened her eyes, she found herself in her old room. There was no time for confusion when a knock was heard from the door.

"Mani, dear? Come now, it's time to wake up. Estes and Aleistor are here to play."

"...Ma?"

The door opened slowly and revealed her mother, the ever-present gentle smile on her face still brightened every room she entered. The nostalgia came flooding in like a leak in a dam. Mani tried to say something, but nothing came out.

The adult Mani was only a spectator to this memory. Unable to speak, only able to watch through the eyes of her younger self.

When her mother noticed younger Mani on her bed, she clicked her tongue in disapproval. "Mani, you shouldn't make it a habit to sleep in. It's bad for your health."

"Aw... Sorry, Ma. I'll do better next time. I promise. Pinky promise," younger Mani replied and she noted the youthful sound of her own voice. She held out her pinkie for her mother to accept.

Her mother chuckled and accepted by interlocking their pinkies. "I'll hold you to that promise, dear. Now come on, you shouldn't keep your friends waiting."

Younger Mani quickly changed out of her sleepwear and skipped down the stairs excitedly. She's greeted with the familiar sight of her father talking with her friends as they sat at the kitchen island. The three of them glanced up when young Mani arrived at the base of the stairs.

"Mani!" Two young boys jumped out of their seat, abandoning her father as they made a mad dash toward younger Mani. Her father only chuckled at his abandonment.

"Estes! Aleistor!" Younger Mani met them halfway and they tackled each other in a hug. They erupted into a fit of giggles as they untangled themselves from one another.

The younger boy spoke first, "Mani! Mani! Guess what?! Director said it's our turn to get a family!"

The older one smacked his younger brother on the back of his head, eliciting a yelp from the latter. "Al, that was supposed to be a secret until we actually got adopted."

"But—" Aleistor started to protest but was cut off when Estes put his palm up in his direction, unwilling to hear any of Aleistor's excuses. Aleistor pouted and pushed his brother's hand away in defiance.

"Wait, really?! You'll get a real family, like a real real family?!" younger Mani exclaimed excitedly which made the two boys abandon their little fight and refocus on her.

"Yesh-" Aleistor's cheeks were squished by Estes to stop him from talking.

"Al!"

"Showwy... I hash cho chell her (Sorry, I had to tell her)." Aleistor tried to speak but his squished cheeks were making it a challenge.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

Younger Mani pouted too and pried Estes's hands off Aleistor. "Not fair, Tes! Why can't I know the secret?"

Estes didn't resist when his hands were pried off. He just pouted and kicked an invisible pebble shyly. "I just... wanted to make sure first. The other kids said if we keep talking about it, it'll jinx us!"

"What does jinx mean?" younger Mani asked.

"I don't know but it has to be bad!" replied Estes.

Now the three kids were just a pouting mess. Younger Mani spoke up after a while.

"I hope you guys really get a real family; I promise I'll pray for you."

Estes smiled softly while Aleistor grinned from ear to ear. "You're our family, Mani." Estes said.

"Wait really?"

"Yes, really. Is that okay?"

"Of course! I'll be the big sister."

"Wait but you're the youngest." Aleistor protested which only earned a shrug from both younger Mani and Estes.

"Same thing," the both of them said in unison.

The afternoon went by quick as the trio played in the backyard. Fits of laughter could be heard outside as they played tag. After growing bored of tag, they moved on to playing with a ball. The ball was passed between them as they ran around.

As the sun set, it was time for the two to return to the orphanage or they'd get into trouble. They shared a hug with younger Mani before turning to leave.

"Bye Mani! We'll see you tomorrow!" Estes waved as he sprinted off.

"Bye Mani!" Aleistor yelled as he caught up to his brother. "Tes, wait for me!"

"Bye bye guys!"

Younger Mani played by herself a little more after they left, not wanting the day to end so quickly. She kicked the ball around and then ran after to catch it. When she decided that it wasn't as fun as when the others were around, she ran up to her backdoor. Her stomach grumbled and demanded her attention to feed it.

As she opened the door, she almost tumbled backward in horror. Blood spilt over the kitchen floors was the first thing that met her eyes. No, not just the floor. The blood painted the entire room. The air turned heavy, and it got harder to breathe.

"Mama! Papa! Where are you?!"

No answer.

Every hair all over her body stood straight. She couldn't move an inch.

"Lizzie?! Gael?! Please... anyone..." Younger Mani sniffled as she took a small step forward. The present Mani was screaming at her to run, leave this place, but she went unheard by her younger self.

"Mama... Papa..." Younger Mani continued to cry as she took a few more steps inside. As she passed the kitchen island, her breath was knocked out of her lungs as she tumbled backwards. She backed away with wide eyes as she started to violently sob. A loud scream left her lips as she shut her eyes, trying to erase the memory of what she saw.

An arm stuck out; the body it's attached to was obscured by the island.

Something saw her. Two eyes bulging out of its skull. She couldn't describe it. The sight was both there and not, everything seemed hazy. One thing was for certain.

It was giving chase.

Mani backed away, unable to get onto her feet.

"Please... Please... Mama, Papa!"

"Please!"

Mani jolted up and her eyes snapped open. She could feel the cold drops of sweat trickling down her forehead. She panted heavily as her heartbeat pounded within her ribcage.

"Human? Are you okay?" The first sight she saw was Aerendil's face.

She noticed how much she was trembling when she felt his hand on her shoulder. "Aerendil?"

Mani couldn't describe the sheer amount of relief she felt when she saw his face, or she wasn't willing to give him the satisfaction. He removed his hand immediately when she finally spoke. Mani looked down at her own hands, the nightmare was still fresh in her mind. Her gaze drifted to his blanket draped over her lower body. Wait, did he put that there when she was asleep?

Mani wiped the sweat off her forehead and nodded. "I'm fine. Just a bad dream."

"You're shaking. Was it that bad?" he asked as he handed her a washcloth. She took it after mumbling a 'thanks' and wiped the remainder of the sweat.

"It's fine. Sorry."

"Why are you apologizing?"

"Your bedroll is full of sweat."

He glanced down at the bedroll in question with a pondering look. When he looked back up, she avoided his eye contact. She already knew what he's going to say. One hundred percent.

"You're washing it," he said, wording it like there was no room for debate.

"Damn, have you no mercy?"

***

Mani ate her breakfast quickly then took his bedroll to the river. While washing it, she thought back on the nightmare. What was the point of that nightmare? It was actually a memory until things went haywire at the end. Her parents were still alive, her siblings were still alive, so the nightmare was odd to say the least.

Whose arm was that? What was that thing?

***

She returned with the wet bedroll and hung it on a rope strung along the trees to dry. Aerendil seemed to be working on something as he hunched over their makeshift table. She paid him no mind until he hissed and yelped in pain. She glanced over at him to see his palm bleeding; she furrowed her brows as she walked over.

"What happened?"

"Ah... Nothing you should concern yourself with," he said.

"Let me see it."

"I said—"

Mani ignored his words and snatched his hand toward her. The perpetrator was a knife that was tossed onto the table when he cut himself. The thing he was cutting was... a nut?

"Uh?"

"Don't ask."

Mani snickered as she walked away to grab her bag. Aerendil only watched her movements without a word, but there's a slight furrow in his eyebrows. She took out her first aid kit and cleaned his wound. He was being strangely quiet during the entire process.

When Mani was finished wrapping a small band-aid on the wound, she put her things back into her bag and admired her handiwork. It wasn't perfect but it worked.

She looked up at him, trying to hint that she would like praise now.

He stared at her.

She stared at him.

Silence.

He broke eye contact first. Looking away as a tinge of red appeared on his pointed ears.

"You're an idiot."

Mani's jaw dropped at the insult. She was expecting at least a 'thank you' or something.

"Rude."

"I could have just healed myself, dumbass," he said bluntly.

Oh.

"No, that band-aid is magical. It's better than your magic. Trust me."

"You're an embarrassment."

"And you're mean."

Mani rolled her eyes as he did the same. That was actually embarrassing, she honestly forgot he could do that.

She crossed her arms. "Well, why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I wanted to see how far it would go until you realized. You never realized."

"Okay, please shut up right now."

"Not only that, but you looked very serious doing it."

"I said shut up."

"I even stayed silent so that you could think about what you were doing. It was quite entertaining."

Mani flipped him off as she walked away, tired and embarrassed from listening to him.

He continued to mention it while making dinner, showing no signs of ever letting it go. If Mani wanted to eat, she would have to endure the endless talk about that small slipup.

The day ended when they retired to their respective sleeping arrangements. His bedroll was already dry from the wind and sun hitting it all day.

With one last quip about her stupidity, he went silent for the rest of the night and so did she after one last middle finger.