Chapter 14: One Step At A Time

The village of Sigsug awoke to another tranquil day, its cobbled streets wrapped in the cold embrace of the approaching winter. The distant murmur of villagers drifted through the crisp air, creating an idyllic backdrop to the steady rhythm of change that marked the nearing end of the year.

Inside a simple cottage perched at the top of the hill, in one of the quiet rooms, Molly stirred beneath the blanket. Her eyelids fluttered softly as sleep clung to her like a stubborn mist, but she forced herself upright, pulling the cover off her body in one motion and stretching as the remnants of a forgotten dream slipped away.

With a small groan, she rose from bed and shuffled toward the bathroom, her footsteps quiet against the polished wooden floor. After brushing her teeth and taking a soothing bath, she slipped into a simple light blue tunic. The fabric clung perfectly, accentuating her slender frame while flowing softly to her knees. With another motion, she grabbed her dark purple robe from the bed and draped it over the tunic. Her fingers touched the fabric, testing its thickness, for this was the first time she had worn this particular robe, and it proved suitable to keep her warm for the nearing winter.

Molly gave a short breath of approval, and with a calm stride, she walked to the mirror, stopping before it to study her reflection. A ghostly upward curl graced her lips as she stared at herself.

Her crimson eyes gazed back in a slightly dull manner, her pale white hair cascading over her shoulders like a sea of spilled snow. With practiced ease, she combed through its long, silken strands before gathering it into a loose ponytail, securing it with a simple yet charming band. She smiled at her reflection, a small, fleeting expression that hinted at both anticipation and nervousness.

It had been three weeks since Jen had passed away. Throughout those three weeks, Molly had not left the cottage for the first two. She had not wanted to go outside, nor had she felt the need to. That initial week had felt like hell. Every night, a dream would visit her, a dream about Jen, about that same day she had dissolved into the light, and every morning Molly would wake with tears tracing silent paths down her cheeks.

Her lips pressed together, upturned with a fragile warmth.

Had it not been for the constant, comforting presence of Jasmine, Molly did not know if she would have survived that first week, nor even made it to now.

Ever since Jen’s passing that day, Jasmine had never left Molly’s side. Each morning, Molly would wake to find Jasmine already in the kitchen, breakfast prepared, waiting for her with a gentle smile gracing her features. In the evenings, Ren and his elder sister, Fiona, would always come to share dinner at the cottage, filling the quiet space with a liveliness that chased away the shadows. Molly had never been given the chance to truly feel alone.

Because there were people right here with her, anchoring her to the living. Just as Jen had said there would be.

A short exhale escaped Molly’s lips as she reached for a black orb resting on her shelf and slipped it into her robe’s pocket.

Her gaze shifted toward the bedroom door, her expression brightening in the process.

Today was important. She had plans, plans that had been swirling in her mind for a few days now, ever since she had started accompanying Jasmine to the bakery a week ago.

Today, she was going to try something different from simply watching all manner of bread being delivered to Eoma’s shop. Today, she wished to understand how the loaves were made.

Her dull eyes flickered with a gentle light as she recalled Jasmine’s promise of a visit to Eoma’s main bakery. And with that visit would come hands-on experience.

Today, Molly was going to bake bread alongside them.

She walked out of her room and entered the dining area. A tender expression surfaced on her features as she spotted two small bowls set upon the table, faint wisps of steam curling lazily above them.

Breakfast was already served.

“Good morning, little snow.” A familiar, warm voice called out from the kitchen. Molly glanced in that direction, and the black orb drifted out from her robe, hovering at eye level.

The orb shuddered for a moment before dissolving into tiny particles. They swirled in the air, shaping themselves with each motion until they formed a sentence:

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~ Good morning, Miss Jasmine. How was your night?

Jasmine, who had just stepped out from the kitchen, could not stop her expression from softening with affection. “Well, it was wonderful, thank you. How was yours?”

Molly’s whole face lit up at the question. The orb hovering at her eye level shuddered briefly before dissolving into tiny particles once more. They danced in the air, arranging themselves until they shaped her reply:

~ My night was good, thank you.

Jasmine chuckled. “That’s great to hear.” She turned toward the dining table and gestured. “Have a seat. Let’s eat.”

Molly gave a short nod. The tiny particles swirled into motion, pirouetting in the air before combining and reshaping themselves into a solid ball. It shuddered once more before retracting back into Molly’s robe pocket.

She walked to the table and settled onto a chair, her eyes drifting to the food before her. The corner of her mouth lifted as she saw what awaited her.

It was a bowl filled with white oatmeal, a scatter of blueberries mingling throughout the breakfast. Molly’s gaze slid to the side as she watched Jasmine set down two plates of sliced bread on the table before taking her own seat. Her attention shifted to Jasmine, who wore a slight smirk on her face. “I usually love eating oatmeal with bread. But I wasn’t sure if you would, and I didn’t want to disturb your sleep, so I decided to let you choose if you’d like it alongside your oatmeal,” Jasmine explained.

Molly’s gaze slowly drifted back to the oatmeal and bread before her. A ghostly smile threatened to claim her face. Why would she not want to eat both? This was precisely how Jen had always loved eating her oatmeal. Molly had fallen in love with the combination ever since she had first tasted it.