Hana's breath caught in her throat. The wooden platter in the woman's hands blurred as tears stung her eyes. That face… that smile… it was her.
"Mama…" the word slipped out, trembling, fragile.
The woman froze, her smile faltering as the platter nearly tilted from her grasp. Her eyes widened slightly, then softened with something Hana couldn't read. "I'm sorry, dear," she said gently. "I'm not who you think I am."
Hana shook her head, refusing to believe. "No… no, you're lying. It's you. It has to be you!" The smile, the face and everything about this woman similar to her mom.
Realizing the situation, Miko leapt onto the table, flicking his tail with annoyance. "Nut-head. You're seeing what you want to see. Stop crying before you flood the stew bowl."
The old man chuckled softly, though his eyes glimmered with sympathy. "Calm down, child. You're not mistaken… but you're not entirely right either." He gestured for the woman to sit beside him.
The woman placed the platter on the table and sighed, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "I'm not your mother. But I am… her twin."
Hana's breath hitched again, her mind reeling. "T-Twin? No… that's impossible. My mom never told me she had a twin!"
The woman's smile turned sad. "Because she couldn't. We are in different worlds, Hana. Worlds that were never meant to meet."
The room seemed to spin around Hana. Her heart ached with hope and confusion, as if she'd been given back a piece of her mother and lost it again all in the same breath.
The woman's words left Hana frozen, her mind spinning. Before she could speak, the old man leaned forward, his weathered hands folded on the table. His eyes softened, as though looking at her pulled on memories long buried.
"Glinda is my adopted child," the man said, nodding toward the woman with the platter. "And your father… he was like a son to me as well. I held you in my arms when you were only a baby, Hana."
Hana's lips parted, her voice stuck in her throat. "You… you knew my father? You knew me?"
Eldrin smiled faintly, a glimmer of warmth in his gaze. "More than you realize." Eldrin's gaze softened as he leaned back in his chair. "Both of your parents used to come here often, Hana. They would walk these very streets, visit these shops… fot their recipes."
Hana blinked rapidly, her chest tightening. "My parents… were here? In this place?"
He nodded slowly, his voice carrying both pride and sorrow. "In the human world, they were known as the best pastry chefs. People adored their work. But one of the reasons their creations were so extraordinary…" Eldrin's eyes glimmered as he gestured toward the platter of shimmering desserts, "...was because the ingredients they used were far from ordinary."
Hana's breath hitched, realization sinking in. The family recipe book… the strange ingredients… it all started to make sense.
Eldrin's voice gentled, as if he were reaching back through time. "When you were little, your father always brought you here. You'd toddle through the stalls, eyes wide at every strange fruit and spice. The villagers adored you."
Hana's heart skipped. Flashes of half-formed memories stirred scents she couldn't place, colors she thought were dreams.
"But…" Eldrin's smile faded, his gaze growing heavy. "They stopped coming after something happened. After that day… your parents never returned."
A chill swept over Hana's skin. "What… what happened?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Eldrin's smile faded, and for a moment the warmth in his eyes dimmed. He leaned closer, lowering his voice as if the walls themselves might be listening.
"Well, I can't tell you, Hana. Not directly."
Her brows furrowed. "Why not?"
He sighed, heavy with the weight of unspoken things. "Because it's like a curse. Once the truth is spoken aloud, the one who hears it… their very life will be at stake."
Hana's breath caught, her stomach tightening. "A curse…?"
Eldrin straightened again, his tone firm but kind. "Some answers can only be found, not given. And if you wish to uncover them, you'll need both courage… and strength."
Miko flicked his tail against Hana's arm. "Told you, nut-head. Trouble follows you faster than a fly to sugar."
"Shut up, Miko," Hana snapped, shooting the cat a glare before turning back to Eldrin.
Before the old man could speak again, the woman with the wooden platter, Glinda rested her hand lightly on Hana's shoulder. Her voice was calm but edged with caution.
"When you're here, please be careful, Sakura," Glinda said softly. "Some people… and some creatures… are terrible. They live for greed and will do anything to take what isn't theirs."
Hana swallowed hard, the warmth of the stew in her stomach now replaced by a nervous chill. The village didn't seem so welcoming anymore.
That name again.
"Sakura?" she asked, her voice sharp with confusion. "Why do you keep calling me that? My name is Hana."
Glinda and Eldrin exchanged a glance before Eldrin let out a chuckle, the heaviness in the air softening.
"You really loved Sakura Sticky Balls back then," Eldrin said with a small smile. "You could eat tons of that dessert without stopping. So the people here began calling you Sakura. And the name stuck."
Hana blinked, her mouth opening slightly. "Sticky… balls…? That's the reason?"
Miko snorted. "Pfft. Nut-head. Out of all things to be named after, you went with a dessert. How fitting."
Hana dropped her face into her hands, groaning. "Unbelievable…"
"About your parents… I'm truly sorry for your loss, Hana," Eldrin said gently, his eyes dim with remembrance. "Daniel and Seline were two of the kindest souls I've ever known. But fate can be cruel, an unfortunate event took them away, leaving behind a daughter who had to carry more than she should."
Hana's throat tightened, her fingers curling into her lap.
"I know you," Eldrin continued softly. "You're stronger than you realize. One day, you'll uncover the truth of what happened. And when that time comes, you'll understand everything."
Eldrin leaned back, glancing at the windows where the sky outside was dimming into deep blue. "Alright, it's been a long conversation. It's getting dark here, which means in your human world… it's nearly morning. Eat first, Sakura. Then I'll show you where to look for the places you've been searching for."
Hana's eyes widened, her spoon clattering against the bowl. "What? Oh no! I almost forgot! I need to open my bakery tomorrow!" How can I forget I'm a working adult now ?
Miko flicked his ear lazily from his spot on the table. "huh… you're standing in a different world, and that's the first thing you worry about?"
Hana buried her face in her hands. "Of course I worry! What if my customers..oh wait… I barely have any." She slumped forward with a groan. "Still! My bakery is all I have!"
Glinda's soft laughter drifted through the air, though there was sympathy in her eyes. Eldrin only smiled faintly, as though he already knew Hana's path would never be the same again.
Before Hana left Eldrin's warm little house, Glinda pressed something into her hand a small bundle wrapped in cloth. When Hana opened it, her eyes widened. Inside were Sakura Sticky Balls. Even though she didn't clearly remember ever eating them before, a strange sense of familiarity washed over her, like déjà vu. Her chest tightened, as if this dessert carried a memory just beyond her reach.
"Take these with you," Glinda said kindly. "And this, too."
Glinda also handed Hana a folded piece of old brownish paper, its edges curled and frayed with age. The ink was faded, yet the markings glimmered faintly under the light, as if refusing to be forgotten. Strange symbols decorated the corners, and the parchment carried the faint scent of smoke and earth, like it had weathered centuries.
At the bottom, written in flowing, archaic script, were words that made Hana's throat tighten:
"Though thou behold this realm as small, know it is vaster than thine eyes can see. Tread not in folly, for a single misstep shall lead thee unto a fate most grievous."
Hana blinked rapidly. "Okay… why does this sound like it came straight out of a fantasy prophecy? Wrong fate? Grievous misstep? What am I supposed to do, tiptoe everywhere?" she muttered under her breath.
Miko yawned from her shoulder, his tail swishing. "Perfect. Just the kind of riddle a nut-head like you would trip over. You're already clumsy in your own kitchen, imagine what chaos you'll bring with a cursed map guiding your every step."
Hana puffed her cheeks. "Hey! I'm not that bad!"
"You once burned rice. Rice!!." Miko deadpanned, licking his paw without even glancing at her.
"That was one time!" Hana protested, though her grip on the map tightened nervously.
Hana clutched the map tightly as she and Miko merged back into the bustling crowd. The village was still alive with chatter and movement, even as the sun dipped low on the horizon, painting the sky with streaks of amber and violet.
Lantern posts flickered to life, casting warm glows along the cobblestone road. Smoke curled lazily from quiet cottages, carrying the scent of roasting meats and freshly baked bread. The air itself seemed alive, humming with the pulse of the strange world she had stumbled into.
The road stretched ahead, guiding them toward their first destination: The Verdant Cauldron. Hana slowed, raising the map closer to her face. She studied it carefully before stopping in her tracks, eyes going wide.
"Wait… I don't even remember the recipe!" she gasped. "I left the book back at my house! Miko, what are we even doing here if I don't know what to get?"
Miko flicked his ear, letting out a long-suffering sigh. "You're so clumsy."
Hana groaned, pressing a palm against her forehead. "I'm serious! How am I supposed to prepare for this? I was literally dragged into this world without warning!"
Miko leapt onto the low wooden fence nearby, his tail swishing lazily. "Relax. Every problems you created there will a solution. If I'm not mistaken, at the far end of this village stands the Eternal Whisper Tree. They say it answers any question asked, if it still exists. It's been… oh, maybe five hundred years since I last saw it."
Hana's head snapped toward him, eyes wide. "Mocking me while helping huh? what a worst combination" Hana glared a miko, " Wait, five hundred years?! You expect me to believe that? How can a cat live that long"
He smirked. " Told you I'm not a normal cat, nut head. Believe what you want. Doesn't change the truth."
She glanced toward the horizon nervously. The light was fading faster now, shadows stretching long and deep across the road. "Is it far from here? We need to be back before the sky turns completely dark."
Miko's golden eyes gleamed with mischief. "Wanna try your luck?"