Word Count: 2211
I
Seven years ago to the next day, Calida almost died. It was an accident that had left her flesh seared and her face marked by a long scar running through her left eyebrow to her left cheek. The scar was what she hated the most. Not because it flawed her face-she had never been considered beautiful, that had been left for her sister- but because it made her different. Defective people were seen as bad luck to their family; her parents wanted desperately to rid her of their family, but no men were willing to offer themselves as possible suitors. When a man came to their home, her father all but launched himself at the poor sir, indifferent to whether the man was but a mere boy, barely of age, or three times her senior. At the young age of ten, when she had gotten her markings, had been when she learned that others mattered more than her.
"Lida!" A sweat voice called to her.
Calida sat against a tree at the edge of the forest, a writing pen clutched in her left hand, a pad of paper on her lap. She looked up to find her younger sister bounding towards her through the field of grass from their home. Anthea had an indisputable resemblance to their mother with their heart-shaped faces, rosy cheeks, curvy figure, blonde curles, and sparkling green eyes. Thea was dressed in a flowing, soft yellow, floral dress that showed off her curves and long legs in an innocent way, her arms just barely covered by a tiny blue sweater that she left to hang open. She and their mother had that in common too. The tenderness of their appearance drew the attention of others away from the ugly, selfishness within.
"Thea." Calida set the pen down and looked up at her sister. Her beauty was almost painful to look at. Though she was two years younger, Thea had long outgrown her in the deeds of womanhood. She knew how to draw the attention of men. She kissed boys and touched in ways that made Calida uncomfortable thinking her seemingly innocent little sister could be so impure.
"Would you accompany me to the market? Mother has sent for me to buy ingredients for dinner. Plus, if there are a few extra coins, Talia is always selling on weekends. I may help myself to a new dress."
Calida stood, dusted off the black material of her pants, and stuffed the notebook and pen into her bag. "I would rather you return the extra coins to mother. We can't spare money for things we don't need."
Merely shrugging, Thea skipped through the fields towards the market. "I'm sure mother would not mind me sparing but a few coins for a dress. As long as she can wear it too." She giggled, then held out her hand for her older sister to grasp.
Despite the vast difference between them, Thea was always her little sister, and Calida cared for her deeply. She grasped her hand, soft and warm compared to her rough ones, and they walked together to the market.
"Have you been writing another story?" Thea asked, swinging their interlocked hands merily.
"I've been trying, but I can't seem to get the correct words."
Thea sent her sister a confident smile. "I am sure it will come to you. You had always been brilliant at creating stories, Lida."
Calida shrugged the compliment off. She had always held a passion for stories since her grandma had first told her tales as a child. Yet they were never extraordinary. Thea was the exceptional one. She was the story teller, the muse. People always told her she had an extravagant voice, the voice of someone destined to entertain. Thea sang, she told, she talked.
Once, when Calida was fifteen and Thea thirteen, she had just finished performing a tale Calida had written about a Goblin and a Princess falling in love to a crowd of townfolk. Their father praised her as the people showered her with applause.
"So elegant and beautiful, Anthea. Romantic yet tragic. Lovely yet dark. So free and wild, imaginative. I love it!"
Thea had beamed proudly. "Thank you, father. Calida wrote it."
The smile had immediately dispersed from their father's face as he turned to Calida. "So childish and immature, Calida. You are almost of age. It's best that you soon rid those foolish perceptions of life from your mind. You are no longer a kid. No one would take a bride that thinks as an adolescent."
Calida's grip tightened as she thought of all the times their parents had shamed her for the same reasons they had praised Thea. Thea was to be of age in two days, yet their parents did not pester her to grow up. Thea played, and her unadulterated yet obscene acts were founded off her juvenile beliefs of the pleasure of love, and she fell too easily. She was still naive to the true pain of life that Calida had learned at a young age, and she intended to keep it that way. She didn't notice she had been digging her nails inti Thea's flesh until Thea winced and drew her hand away.
"I'm sorry." Calida said, taking her sister's hand to rub the indents of her nails gently.
"It's quite all right, Lida. Just stings a bit." They walked in silence for a breath, before Thea announced, "I'm planning on performing the Goblin and the Princess for my birthday."
Oh. Calida gave Thea a tight smile. "It is Father's favorite."
Thea clapped her hands jubilantly. "It is, isn't it? Father says I perform it so well, that I make such a beautiful tale." She grinned over at her sister.
Calida kept her lips seeled in the smile, though she was impelled to remind Thea that is was her story. She wrote it. Yet the look of glee on Thea's face made it almost immoral to do such.
They reached the market, and Calida immediately felt the stares. For Thea, looks of awe towards her astonishing beauty. For Calida, looks of terror towards her damaged appearance. She always wore an eyepatch over the area where her right eye had once been, but the scarred skin still showed from underneath. She fingered the cloth of her hood, feeling the urge to pull it over her head even though she was already warm wearing the sweater in the spring weather. Thea seemed oblivious to the attention they had conjured, strolling through the market and smiling at the merchants as they called to her, offering her low prices for fruits and a gift rose. She excepted it with a sweet smile on her face, and Calida lurked behind like a shadow.
"Look! It's Talia!" Thea pointed then waved to the apple-colored-hair girl surrounded by silks and cloths. Talia waved back, but eyes Calida wearily.
"Why don't you go browse and Talia's stall and I'll finish buying for mother. I'll find you once I've finished."
Clasping her hands with joy, Thea squealed, "Wonderful idea, Lida! Do hurry, please."
Nodding, Calida hurried away, clutching their bag of coins and their mother's list. Yet as she went to the stalls, the owners eyed her with distaste, some completely ingoring her, others charging her higher prices.
"Lords, protect me from the morbid..." An old man muttered after quickly shoving a bag of peaches into her hands and distancing himself into the back of his stall. She sighed and placed the coins she owed on the table, before hurrying away. The process was painfully slow, and she silently wished Thea had opted to help her with the shopping instead of heading for Talia's.
As she stepped away from an elderly woman's booth, she looked around for the booth of spices, only to find a man behind the mechanics stall staring directly at her, unyielding even when she shot him her a cold glare with her one eye. He looked to be in his thirties, which brown hair and blue eyes. He could have been handsome, but it seemed the years had not been good to him. His face was sunken, and extremely dirty, seemingly not just from the oil. His hair was greasy and dark bags painted his eyelids, and his skin looked thin and pale.
His eyes scanned over her, and he backed away from her as she stepped up to his stall. His body quivered as he slowly backed away.
"Why are you here?" He whimpered. "You told me you wouldn't come back!"
She stared at him, confused. "What are you talking about?" She had seen the man before, but had never spoken to him. His booth had disappeared for the best part of the year, and she had not seen him since.
"Why are you here?" He repeated fiercely. His face was absolutely heartbroken, and his eyes glimmered. Calida scurried away, heeding that her presence caused him pain, and decided not to hurt him anymore.
After what seemed like hours of revolting glances and being chased away from many stalls, she collected all the items in her basket and weaved her way back to Talia's stall. Talia sent her weary glance from over a patron's shoulder, but didn't complain when Calida entered the large booth, following the high sound of Thea's giggles.
Stepping around a rack of dresses, Calida found herself staring at Thea's back, and the face of a boy she had never seen.
They were chatting animatedly, Thea giggling to whatever the boy was saying. A smile played at his lips, and his composure was cool and nonchalant. His eyes burned a bright amber that she had never seen before in their town, and his wind-swept hair was a shade of yellow that resembled the golden glow of fire.
"Thea." Calida called. Her sister's petite form turned, and the grin on her face widened. "Have you finished?" She felt the boy's eyes on her, but the unique color was unnerving, so she kept her eyes on her sister.
"Lida!" Thea mused. "Yes, I've got it here somewhere..." She spun in a circle, eyes searching for something that wasn't there. "Oh, I guess I don't." She giggled. "Silly me. Perhaps we can come back tomorrow?"
The idea of another day in the market, under all the patrons' appaling stares, but the hopeful yet pleading look on Thea's face made it impossible to refuse. It was to be her birthday in two days after all.
"Yes." Calida gripped the basket in her arms, and snuck a glance towards the boy. He was watching her intently, as though expecting something from her. "Thea, who is you-"
Thea gasped. "Oh how rude of me! I've forgotten to introduce you two!" She turned towards the boy. "This is Lucien, Calida. And Lucien, this is my sister, Calida."
Lucien flashed her a smile, murmuring, "Nice to meet you."
Calida nodded back silently.
"Goodbye, Lucien." She giggled when Lucien took her hand and kissed the top.
"Goodbye, Anthea."
The way he spoke brought a blush to Thea's cheeks, and she quickly turne away. She linked arms with Calida, and they began the treck home. Thea continued to gush over Lucien like a child who had just seen a small puppy.
"He has the most magnificent eyes, doesn't he?" Her own eyes grew hazy as she continued to rave over the boy. "And his hair!" She cooed. "It must feel magnificent to run ones hands through..."
Clearing her throat, Calida picked up their pace. The way Thea talked made her uncomfortable, as it sounded anything but innocent.
"There is to be a party in five days. Lucien has invited me."
Calida raised an eyebrow at her sister. Although Lucien had seemed like a particularly nice person, and had not openly judged her when he saw her face, there was something that wasn't quite normal. Someone with eccentric eyes like his couldn't be normal.
"Are you sure you want to be hanging with this boy?"
Scoffing, Thea replied, "Yes! Lucien is very kind to me."
"I just don't want you getting hur-"
Thea stopped and stomped her foot childishly, crossing her arms. "I am almost of age, Lida. I am not a child anymore. I can take care of my self." She turned her back to Calida. "You mustn't fuss over me anymore. It is embarrassing."
Calida blinked, shocked by her sister's words. Thea had always depended on Calida. She never said thank you, never said please, yet Calida did it anyway because she was her sister. "Okay." She whispered.
Seemingly not hearing her sister, Thea continued, "I'm trying to make more friends, find a boy, and that won't happen if you make me look like a child. Just because you have no friends doesn't mean I don't. I have to live my life. You are not my babysitter, you are not my guardian. Just... Stop."
Calida continued on walking, not waiting for Thea any longer. "Okay." Just loud enough for Thea to hear behind her, she said, "Tomorrow, go to the market yourself."
ns 15.158.61.48da2
