A boy walks alone on a dirt path towards a house. He wears a slight dejected look on his face, but as he looks at the house he is walking to, that look is replaced with a small smile.
Bearon barely walked into the door before he was brutally assaulted by his older sister. Brutally assaulted, meaning being hugged really hard.
Muffled by her tight hold, he managed to choke a "Please let go" before being suffocated.
Skye, his older sister, looks at him with pride. "So! How was your first day at that little school?" She said excitedly
He turned away, not meeting her intense gaze. "It was fine."
Her smile lost a little bit of intensity. "Just fine? Do you want to talk about it?" she said worriedly
"No big deal, just the other kids making fun of me again is all." He turned to shut the door. "Nothing new." He muttered
"Already? How come?" His sister pouted
"Well, a couple of the kids there are from our town… They saw me, word got around, and… yeah. You know," he said, looking back at his sister
As her eyes met his, she looked into the amber eyes that reminded her of her father's. Only in color, though, as their father was a man who radiated confidence. He never got the opportunity to instill his son with such a thing; after all, he was only a boy when-
"Anyways!" she said, clearing her train of thought. "One day, they'll see how great you really are!" She said, hugging him again
"C'mon sis…" Bearon said
"No, I'm serious! You help with the field work in town for hours every day! No other kids are doing that, it's tough work; I mean, you're only 13 this year." She said, trying to bring his spirits up
"Well, they don't need to work because they actually have parents," Bearon said bitterly, pushing himself out of the hug
The only noise that could be heard was the faint sound of the wind outside.
After a long but brief moment, Skye spoke again, "Come on, Bearon, you know you don't have to work. I'm fully capable of taking care of us."
"Yeah, and end up how you did when we first left the shelter? You were sick for 3 weeks!" He emphasized, "If that, I don't know, mystery doctor wasn't in town, you would have died!" He began to tremble, but refusing to cry, "I'm not letting that happen to you again."
Skye sighed, "We've had this conversation before. I know better than to try and talk you out of it." She motioned towards the door. "I was just about to go to the market. Do you want to come with me?"
Bearon's mood slightly picked up, "Hey wait, do you think you can get the things for that stuff mom used to make?" He asked
"What, the pot roast? She made that often." She questioned
He shook his head. "No, the sweet one, I don't remember what it was called." his face scrunched up as he tried to think of the name
Recognition lit up Skye's face. "Oh! The honey bread? I haven't had that in so long, sure we can. The ingredients shouldn't be too expensive." She gleamed
___
Their little village was on the far outskirts of a main town called Maybridge. It was about an hour's walk if one took their time. The journey took one through the woods, but luckily there was a path to follow.
Bearon and Skye walked along a cobbled trail that would lead them from their village straight to the main town.
Skye began to talk, "You know, I heard that only a couple years ago, there was no trail from our village to Maybridge?"
Bearon's eyes widened. "So recent? How did the villagers get to the town then?"
The villagers were technically self-sustained. There was a river for water and they had farms for food. But many of the villagers utilized the town's resources for obtaining new seeds to plant or building materials. A lot of small villages outside of towns and cities do this.
Skye chirped, "Yup! And you know how they say the trail was made?" Without waiting for Bearon's input, she continued, "They say a single man showed up and created it in a single day."
Bearon scoffed. "No way, one person couldn't do this in a single day." He then looked at his sister. "You don't believe it, do you?"
Keeping her eyes forward, she confidently says, "You bet I do!"
Bearon laughed. "You're crazy."
"There are extraordinary people in this world, Bearon," she said with a serious voice. "You shouldn't remain so closed-minded."
The tone she used when speaking took the smirk off of his face.
"Gee sis, okay. I got it." He acquiesed
A smile formed on Skye's face. "Good! And don't you forget it!" She turned to him, "Because you're going to be one of those extraordinary people," She said, still smiling, yet serious
A self-deprecating smile filled his face, "Yeah, whatever you say," and they continued walking in comfortable silence from then on
___
The town was bustling; both residents and visitors from nearby frequented the vendors. The sibling duo spoke as they made their way to the market.
"You know the honey bread is literally just bread covered in honey, right?" Skye asked as she was browsing the jam and honey section
Bearon nearly shouted, "No way!"
A middle-aged woman nearby looked in their direction with a disapproving look
"Shh!" Skye's index finger reached her lips. "We're in public."
"Sorry…" Bearon said quietly. "But really, it was just that? How is it so good then?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "Probably because mom made it." Her eyes seemed to drift as though lost in thought. She always did this when their parents were mentioned. Bearon was only 5 years old when their parents passed. While he was saddened by their passing, his memory didn't allow him to dwell on it. His sister was 5 years older than him, though. Old enough for her to vividly remember their parents. She loved to tell stories of them, but it always made her sad, so he didn't ask often
"Then we have to try really hard when making it!" Bearon said to bring her back to reality. He smiled. "Make them just as good as we remember."
She smiled back, "Mhm, that we do."
They continued to browse around the market for a while longer before getting everything they needed and began to leave.
"Wow, we ended up getting a lot more stuff than I anticipated!" Skye exclaimed, holding multiple bags in her arms
"I know, right," Bearon said. "Luckily we brought enough coins, if we didn-" he was suddenly cut off when a cloaked man bumped into Skye, making her drop some of the things he was holding
"W-Wwatch where you're going!" His loud and shrill voice reverberated through the town, passersby began to stare
Skye, still on the floor, tried to apologize. "I'm sorry I wasn't looking where I was goi-" she was cut off
"Sorry don't cut it! Nope it don't cut! Knives cut." The man began to just seemingly spew out words, losing his train of thought before his entire demeanor changed suddenly.
The man looked at Bearon, who was checking on his sister while periodically peaking over at the perpetrator of his sisters problem
"Don't ever get in my way again." He spoke, voice seemingly an octave lower.
As he walked passed the two, Skye momentarily looked up, and the man made eye contact.
Then everything went black
___
"Don't you worry your little head about it," A grandmotherly voice sounded. "If she's not awake by tomorrow, Priests from the Church will be here tomorrow for an event; they'll fix her right up."
Skye's eyes shot open, she had to try hard to speak. "What. Happen." As her clarity returned, she found she was still in the street.
"You're okay!" Bearon practically jumped on her. "I was so worried."
"What happened? How long was I out for?" Her ability to speak returning
A woman's voice, the same one from before, sounded. "Just a few minutes, little lady." A nice-looking middle-aged woman said. "I saw the commotion and came over to help after that despicable man left." She finished with disgust on her face. "You see, people like him are the reason the Church is coming tomorrow."
Skye was confused. "I think I heard you mention the Church before. What's so special about them? Also, what is your name? I'd like to thank you properly."
A look of surprise filled the ladys face soon replaced with understanding, "You kids must be from one of those disconnected villages," The siblings felt slightly insulted, but the lady continued. "Well, to keep it brief, the Church keeps us safe. People like that man are apprehended and dealt with properly" She said with a righteous expression, turning into a sweet smile she says, "My name is Diana by the way, I'm glad you're okay, miss?"
"Skye, and this is my brother Bearon. You were correct; we live in a village not too far from here. We didn't have that great of an education growing up." Skye said with a regretful face. "But my little brother here is attending an academy in this town! He'll grow up very educated, isn't that right, Bearon!" Pride filled her face
"Oh, you attend Maybridge academy?" Diana says, "I hear your school is the purpose of them visiting tomorrow." Noticing their confusion, she clarifies. "The Church! Every so often, the Church sends Priests to choose students to recruit. I hear they get great benefits, or so the rumors say anyway." She says.
Skye lights up. "You hear that, Bearon! You have a great opportunity tomorrow!"
"Yeah, if I even get chosen," Bearon responds
"You seem like a good kid," Diana says. "I'm sure you'll catch their attention." She said with a smile.
Skye spoke up, noticing the sun was beginning to drop "Wel,l it's getting late. Thank you for checking in on me and telling us about the Church." She says appreciatively
"Oh, that's no problem at all, sweetie. You two should run off home now, I bet your parents would want you back before dark." She said, meaning well
A crestfallen look fell on Skye's face, which confused Diana.
Bearon spoke up, "It's just us."
Diana gasped, "My apologies children, I had no idea, so young too…" she said sadly "If you two ever need anything, I have a shop in the market. It has my name on it, so you can't miss it." She offered, "I'm always willing to lend a hand."
The siblings thanked her and went on their way.
The trip home was like a blur. As they were approaching the house, Bearon noticed something was off about Skye
"Hey sis, you okay? You don't look too well…" He asked worriedly
She forced a smile "It's okay, just been a long day. Now let's make that honey bread!"
"Are you sure? We can wai-"
"Of course I'm sure, come on I'm gonna leave you behind." She said teasingly
Bearon smiled, and they finished the evening eating honey-coated bread that tasted nothing like their mothers. However, they ate it all the same.