Omen of a Bluebell

It takes nearly an hour and a half to reach the address from the letter, and when we finally stop, my nerves are cinders.

Cari and I just gained more wealth than either of us have ever seen. Combine that with Bella looking so stunning that I can’t force myself to look away for any more than a few seconds…

Well, my brain started turning to mush an hour ago.

What’s even worse for my health is that she’s been giving me small smiles throughout the entire trip, so by the time we actually arrive, I’m a frazzled mess. Cari, on the other hand, has long since returned to her excited jitters.

It’s honestly ridiculous. Out of frustration, I down another dose of the medicine, hoping that it’ll take the edge off so I can at least try to seem normal around the kids. The cooling sensation the medicine once gave me is barely there, though.

After drinking one every hour for most of the day, they might as well be flavored water.

How many have I even drank?

I check my Starlight Bangle with a mental flick and find only twenty vials left. The number makes my jaw tighten. I want to growl with annoyance, but I force myself to think about the new medicine I was promised instead.

I just have to wait it out and keep myself together until then. Then I’ll be back to normal.

Or at least something close enough that no one else will notice.

The house we arrive at isn’t nearly as fancy as I’d expect of a merchant family. If anything, it’s aggressively homey.

The yard is full of small gardens arranged less for symmetry than for color, and the path to the door is cluttered with decorations at every turn. Wind chimes, painted signs, little trinkets tucked into corners, and at the very end, a tan welcome mat that reads: “Welcome! We have snacks.”

“Oh, sweet mother of rock and stone, kill me now,” Orik mutters, almost quiet enough that I don’t hear him.

At the same time, Cari knocks on the door. My ears twitch as, barely a second later, childish squeals erupt from inside.

Moments later, the door opens to reveal a human woman in a floral dress and a well-worn apron. Her short brown hair is threaded with silver, and she carries the comfortable softness of someone who has spent a lifetime feeding others—and taste testing everything along the way.

Her eyes light up at first upon seeing Cari’s clear excitement, giving her a bright, welcoming, and affectionate gaze. But the smile falters as she takes in the number of us on her doorstep. The warmth remains, but something sharper settles beneath it.

An... alertness, mixed with suspicion.

Human Alchemist

Level 62

“Hello there. May I help you?”

Her voice is weathered, but soft and soothing.

Cari, despite her excitement, stumbles over her words even as she holds up the letter inviting us over.

“H-hi!” she starts, her voice cracking. “I’m Cari. Are Nyra and Lyra here? Is this the right address?”

The moment she says her name, the woman’s eyes flash with recognition and joy.

“Oh my! I’ve heard so much about you!” she says, her voice kept low as she tries to whisper through her excitement. Her eyes scan our group and land on me, and her smile broadens. “That must make you Emilia, then.”

I just nod. Cari is one thing—I’m used to her excitement and antics. This woman is something else entirely.

“Oh, you have no idea how excited the girls will be when they hear you've come to visit! I’m Darla, their mother,” she says, then glances around conspiratorially before stepping out and closing the door behind her.

“Now before we set up a nice little surprise for the girls, who might the rest of you be?”

Even while outside, she keeps her voice low. I know right away that she’s trying to make sure Nyra and Lyra don’t know we’re here for as long as possible.

I can just feel the scheme brewing.

Just then, even more happy squeals break out from inside the home, and her face softens into a smile so warm that it makes my chest ache with longing. I recognize the look immediately.

Her smile is that of a mother with too much love to give. So much that it spills out in quiet, unguarded moments.

Bella speaks then, offering her a half bow. She seems to take the hint, whispering the rest of our introductions.

“I’m Bella. These three are our escorts from the Academy—Ela, Orik, and Sarys,” she says, pointing to each in turn.

Her eyes widen at the mention of the Academy, then her gaze suddenly turns mischievous.

“Well, don’t stand around like strangers, come in!” she says, waving us forward with far too much enthusiasm as she opens the door once more. “But stay quiet, I want to surprise them.”

Our escorts look hesitant for a moment, but still enter without complaint. Once inside, I find the home to be ten times as cozy as the exterior decor suggested. I can’t help but stare for a moment at the sheer amount of knickknacks and cozy additions to the space.

I’m not given much time to look. The moment we’re inside, she closes the door behind us and starts shuffling us around.

“You stand at the front here, to hide her… yes, just like that. And you behind him—perfect,” she orders, guiding everyone by the arm.

As she does, she whispers to us, “I apologize my husband isn’t also here to greet you, but he’s out for work. He’ll be delighted to hear you visited, though.”

Sarys merely lifts a brow as he’s repositioned, a faint smirk tugging at his lips as though he finds the whole thing quietly entertaining.

Ela is nearly the opposite. She stiffens as she’s moved, ears flicking back with embarrassment. But she pointedly avoids everyone's gaze as her tail gives a small, treacherous twitch.

Surprisingly, when she starts to manhandle Orik, the grumpy dwarf lets her without much protest—though he mutters something under his breath about this ‘not being in the contract.’

Despite it, she situates him right in the front, between Ela and Sarys, blocking most of the view of us from behind their legs.

She situates Cari, Bella, and I behind our escorts, hiding us from view. When she starts moving Bella and me, she coos at the sight of our joined hands, and my face turns scarlet.

I quickly snatch my hand away, opting to occupy myself with grooming my tail instead.

A glance at Bella tells me that she wasn’t entirely unfazed by Darla’s reaction, either, her cheeks having turned a light shade of pink. Still, she keeps her composure, acting as though nothing happened at all.

Darla breaks the silence then.

“Now, when they come out, I want you to split when they least expect it so they can see Cari and Emilia and Bella. Can you three do that for me? The timing has to be just right,” she whispers to our escorts.

Her face is grim, as though failure is an unacceptable outcome.

Ela, Sarys, and even Orik all give her firm nods, despite just being volunteered to do something silly.

Darla claps once. “Perfect! Okay, here we go! Everyone ready?”

Everyone nods. Even me. Honestly, I can’t help but be a little excited with the plan. Maybe there are better ways to show someone you care, but I can't think of many.

Besides, even if I'm not quite as close to the girls as Cari is, I do still like them.

They always whispered about how I smelled like flowers or candy when they thought I couldn’t hear them, and it never seemed to matter how many times we visited. It was always the same, delighted discovery.

I found it absolutely adorable, even if I never said so aloud.

It definitely wasn't the compliments about my fur that won me over.

They had a habit of dragging Cari, and occasionally me—when I wasn’t busy terrorizing the Matron, anyway—into little games the moment we arrived. All around sweethearts, those twerps.

At my side, Cari practically vibrates with glee, barely restraining herself from jumping out in front of everyone.

Darla gives us all one final look over before stepping to the front herself and cupping her mouth.

“Children, come downstairs! We have visitors!”

A small chorus of complaints erupts from the girls, echoing off the walls and into the living area. Still, the pitter-patter of bare feet on wood quickly approaches us.

It stops suddenly, and through the crook of Ela’s arm, I can just barely make out the two little heads that peek from behind a wall at the bottom of the stairwell. The familiar shocks of blond hair, one in a ponytail and one loose, are all it takes for me to recognize them.

After a week of Cari and me constantly mixing them up, Cari decided to solve the problem herself. One quick game of rock-paper-scissors later, Nyra won the right to choose who wore the ponytail.

When she asked for us to give Lyra the ponytail because “I want my sister to be pretty,” our hearts melted a little. It took two weeks for Cari to stop gushing after that.

Now, seeing them still wearing the hairstyles Cari gave them, I can’t help but recall the moment and feel a little warm and fuzzy.

The moment they see our group—or rather, the three armed and armored guardians in front of us—they tuck back behind the wall quickly. A whispered argument over who should go first follows the moment they’re out of view.

It's so unsubtle that I have no doubt each and every one of us can hear them, but nobody speaks up to force a decision. Moments later, they both agree to go at the same time, hesitantly stepping out of the shadow of the wall, toy dolls in hand.

They give our group shy little waves, followed by quiet “hellos,” and Cari jerks beside me, her sisterly love overflowing for an instant. At my other side, Bella peeks between the arms of our makeshift wall.

I catch the moment her features soften into adoration, and it takes me a moment to peel my gaze from her.

Darla lets the girls hesitate where they stand for a heartbeat before crouching down to their level, her voice dropping into something conspiratorial.

“Girls,” she says gently, “do you remember how I told you that sometimes, very good things happen when you least expect them?”

Two pairs of eyes immediately widen, curiosity overtaking their shyness.

“Well,” Darla continues, her smile turning downright mischievous, “I think today might be another one of those days.”

Then she straightens and steps aside before giving our group a nod.

Ela and Sarys step apart slowly, with Sarys nudging a grumbling Orik aside as he goes. Suddenly, there’s nothing left between us and the twins but empty space.

“Surprise!” Cari bursts out, unable to contain herself any longer.

For a split second they just stare at us—then the room explodes with delighted squeals.

“Big Sis!” “Miss Fox!”

Their dolls are quickly forgotten in favor of crashing into the two of us with their mightiest hugs. Nyra slams into me as if trying to take me to the ground, while Cari endures a similar assault from Lyra.

Both babble on and on about how much they missed us, how much they have to show us, and a dozen other things that I barely manage to follow.

Still, I return the hug, even using my tail to wrap Nyra up.

“That tickles!” she complains between giggles.

Instead of easing up my attack, I swish my tail around with renewed vigor, making sure my fur tickles as many places as I can manage. Nyra squirms, trying to free herself, but I hug her tight, ensuring she gets her prescribed treatment.

Cari, upon realizing what I’m up to, does the same with Lyra, her delicate nails scrabbling under Lyra’s arms and around her sides, only to snatch her up each and every time she tries to escape.

We only stop when both of the girls are gasping between laughs. It’s then that I notice everyone else looking on, each and every one of them looking amused.

Oops.

I might have gotten a bit carried away.

I give Darla a sheepish look, but her smile only brightens, her eyes crinkling with joy. Bella, on the other hand, gazes at us with a mix of envy and delight.

But she doesn’t move to join us.

I make the decision for her.

“Oho? Survived my tickle attack, did you?” I muse, deepening my voice into something more sinister.

Nyra freezes under my gaze like a deer that spotted the hunter, only just barely having caught her breath.

“I see, I see…” I continue, keeping my tail wrapped around her as I tap my chin with contemplation.

I glance toward Bella.

She seems confused at first, then recognition flashes across her features, followed by a slow, unmistakably wicked smile.

I look meaningfully back to Nyra.

She looks over, finally spotting Bella for the first time. Her eyes widen, and she starts to squirm and squeal, desperately trying to escape.

“Let’s see how you handle hers, then.”

I start cackling as I lift the squirming girl.

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