"Where did you put it?" Ray asked, looking through the bookshelf with growing impatience.
"I don't remember," Rui mumbled, already searching random corners of the room that had absolutely nothing to do with books.
Meanwhile, Grace lounged across the bedside, half-lying with her legs dangling over the edge. Her head rested against her left hand atop a pillow as she watched the two with a soft, contented smile—the quiet sort reserved for someone thoroughly enjoying another person's chaos.
"Found it!" Rui suddenly announced.
"You did?" Ray asked, perking up.
"Yeah..." Rui sighed dreamily. "My moony."
"Moony?" Ray echoed, one eyebrow rising.
Rui held up a small handmade wizard plush, dressed in gold-patterned fabric with lace, beads, and a tiny ribbon bow. A pointed hat with a bell perched atop its head, star-shaped button eyes gleamed, and a miniature potion bottle hung at its side. Adorable. Dusty. Slightly tragic.
Rui hugged it tightly. "Oh, Moony, I missed you so much. I thought I'd lost you—"
She froze.
A chill crept up her spine.
Slowly, she turned.
Ray was staring at her.
Not with curiosity. Not with confusion.
He was staring straight into her soul.
Rui let out a weak laugh. "Uh... Moony," she said, her voice wavering, "I'll... play with you some other day."
Without breaking eye contact with Ray, she carefully—very carefully—set the plush on the drawer as though it might explode, then immediately turned and resumed searching for the book. A single bead of sweat trickled down her forehead.
Grace couldn't help but chuckle softly, her fond smile only deepening as the two resumed their frantic search.
.
.
.
"Found it!" Rui announced—again.
Ray didn't even look up this time. He simply let out a long, exhausted sigh. "Rui... not again."
"No, I actually found it this time." She held up the book with a grin. "The book."
That got Ray's attention. He turned, one eyebrow lifting with cautious hope.
"Really?"
"Yep. Look." Rui held up the book as though she'd just uncovered a long-lost treasure.
It was... a storybook. The cover featured a rather questionable illustration of an egg—one that looked oddly uncertain about being an egg.
They handed the book to Grace before climbing onto the bed beside her, the mattress dipping beneath their combined weight as they waited expectantly for her to open it.
Grace sat up, swept her cape aside, and took the book. She blinked at the peculiar cover before reading the title aloud.
"The Oval Egg?"
Her voice carried the perfect blend of confusion and concern reserved for something that might be literature... or an elaborate prank.
She looked at the two of them, one brow slightly raised, her expression asking, "You're seriously making me read this?"
Their sparkling, expectant eyes answered before either of them could.
"It's really good. And really emotional. We already read it once, but..." Ray declared proudly, "we couldn't get enough."
Rui nodded so vigorously her ponytail nearly became a helicopter.
"Well... if you insist," Grace muttered, already bracing herself for whatever awaited inside.
She opened the book.
(Rui, I understand. But Ray too?) she thought, shooting him a quietly judgmental sidelong glance before clearing her throat.
"Once upon a time, there was an egg named Oval..."
Her voice was light and airy, carried by the cool breeze drifting through the slightly open window after the rain. The curtains swayed gently, the soft whisper of wind filling the spacious room. To the right of the bed stood an enormous bookshelf, a silent guardian of countless stories and every other subject it faithfully watched over.
The bed was warm and absurdly comfortable, which meant Rui and Ray were already dozing off like two overfed kittens. Grace, however, was too absorbed in the story—and far too invested in discovering what kind of author would name an egg 'Oval.'
The room was dim, but not nearly dim enough to lull her to sleep. Not that it would have mattered. Her own room was practically a cave, draped in dark tones—a quiet declaration that she and bright colors had long agreed to stay out of each other's lives.
Finally, she reached the last page.
"...and they made an omelette out of him and ate him," she finished evenly, as though this were the most perfectly reasonable ending to a children's story.
She stared at the book for a long moment before letting out a soft, disbelieving breath.
"Wow. What a story," she murmured. "I really ought to have a word with whoever's publishing these."
She closed the book with a firm 'thump.'
"So... what n—"
She turned, only to find both of them fast asleep, their mouths slightly open, their innocence restored by unconsciousness.
She leaned back, resting her cheek against one hand as she gazed at the two of them.
(They've grown so much...) she thought, a soft smile tugging at her lips. (When they were born, they were little sunbeams.)
A fondness bloomed within her, though she would never admit just how hopelessly smitten she was with her younger siblings.
(I still remember how clingy Ray used to be.)
She shook her head, smiling. (The moment I stepped out of sight, he'd start wailing like I'd abandoned him in a forest. The boy was obsessed. Honestly? Still is—just… downgraded.)
A breathy laugh slipped out.
(Then Rui was born, and that was the day he discovered the sacred truth of elder siblings everywhere: younger siblings are adorable, yes… but they're also spectacularly, heroically annoying. He got promoted to Big Brother and instantly realised it came with no salary and a lot of suffering.)
Her amusement lingered for a moment before fading into something gentler.
(Though… I understand why he's like that.)
Her thoughts drifted into the past.
(When we were small, Father and Mother were always on the move. Service to the nation took them far, yes— but there was another place they went, one they never named aloud. Whenever I questioned it, they'd offer the same vague answer about something 'very important.' So it was only natural for Ray to cling to me… and drift away from them.)
She exhaled softly. (They were wonderful parents, truly. But this side of them...)
Grace let out a slow, weary sigh. (I know adults have their secrets. I'm an adult now— I've collected a few of my own. And I always thought that once I was older, I'd ask again. That maybe they'd only hidden it because I was too young to 'understand,' at least in their eyes.)
Her breath trembled, breaking unevenly. (But now… even though I'm older… I'll never get the chance to know.)
For a beat, the room went still— and so did her thoughts.
"Honestly… moping again? Get a grip, Grace."
"Now then… where was I? Right—Ray and Rui." A soft brightness returned to her voice.
(They're still adorable, obviously, but as newborns—)
A giggle burst out of her. Then another. She rolled from side to side, hands covering her face, completely defeated by her own memories. She radiated the chaotic energy of a hopelessly doting older sister, seemingly oblivious to the two children sleeping beside her.
(But not just looks), she said, smiling as she tried to compose herself. (They're brilliant in academics as well, especially Ray. But his social skills? Those are… nonexistent.)
(A barren wasteland.)
(In that sense, Rui is miles better. She can actually talk to people without short-circuiting.)
(Friends flock to her, the same way excuses flock to Ray whenever someone tries to chat. She gathers people; he gathers escape routes.)