2 | Books and Herbs

//Belladonna//

We walk through the forest on our way to town, travelling the same route we've been taking since we were able to walk. The ground is soft and wet from the moss and dead leaves, I take a breath and smell the cold cooling air, it smells like rain and rotting leaves, it smells like autumn.

We walk in silence the way their, comfortable silence, it's always been that way with us. Whether we are not speaking a single word, or are talking like incessant birds to one another, it's always been open and comfortable with us, and I love her for it.

We finally make our way into town, it's swarming with people, either selling something for buying something. We stay close to one another and loop our arms together. Then people start to notice us, and soon the waves of people part and back away from us.

I start to hear their whispers, I hear them saying Nia looks like an angel, beautiful and pure, then I hear what they are saying about me. They say I'm a witch, just like our mother, they wonder how such a kind and beautiful girl like Nia could be related to such evil witch's like me and our mother. I don't blame their wonder about that, I've always wondered it myself, how someone so kind and pure hearted could be the daughter of someone so evil and cruel.

She ignores their whispers about us, and keeps walking like she didn't hear a single thing, when I know she heard it all. The thing about Nia I love the most is that she doesn't care what people think about her, she doesn't care if they love or hate her, and she doesn't care that just by being seen with me leaves a target on her back.

I've tried over the years for her to keep a distance from me in front of the towns people, but she's never listened, and made a point of always being close to me when we go to town. And though I'd never tell her, I'm grateful she never listed to me.

We finally arrive at the book store and quickly enter. We walk through the doors and see the place is the same as always, messy. The owner of this place, Betty, sits down in her usual spot at the front counter, she has books stacked on the counter and papers littered around them. She has on her big glasses that make her look like an owl, her hair a frizzy mess with pencils and things caught in it, she wears a drab purple/grey dress but her bright coloured smock pops in contrast.

She's caught up in reading something and taking occasional notes, she doesn't notice when we walk in, even with the bell ringing when we opened the door. We walk up to the counter and Betty still doesn't notice so Nia says something to get her attention.

"Good morning Betty" she says sweetly.

But Betty is so enthralled in what she's doing, she doesn't even notice Nia's words. Annoyed I slam my first down on the table and she jolts back so fast her chair tips back and she falls with a loud thump. Some of her books go tumbling but I catch them before they hit the ground, I place the books back on the counter gently.

Nia goes rushing to where Betty fell down to help her, I stand where I am and watch her, not particularly bothered to help. Don't get me wrong Betty is a nice women who's treated me better then most, but my emotions like empathy and care have been crushed so far down in me that I just don't feel them anymore. They were crushed a long time ago thanks to my mother, at the time I hated her for her cruelty and harshness with me, for trying to crush my emotions, but now I'm thankful, emotions are what kills you. That's why I only try to feel emotions for Nia, if I do ever feel emotion now, it's anger.

Though when I look at Nia helping Betty up I feel a tinge of guilt, then it's gone.

"Are you all right Betty, you fell down pretty hard?" Nia says in a concerned voice to Betty.

"Oh I'm fine dear, just got a fright is all" she smiles warmly at Nia as she says it.

Nia looks at me and gives me a look saying 'apologize Don', I huff a sigh and say to Betty when she is back in her seat…..

"Sorry Betty didn't mean to scare you" with a convincing enough tone that she smiles at me and waves her hand off "oh it's fine, I was so sucked into my reading I wouldn't have heard a cannon go off if it was right next to me" she breaths a laugh.

Nia comes around to my side when she thinks that Betty is stable on her chair. Betty looks at us and smiles showing her few crooked to us. Betty is around sixty I think, she has owned this store since before we were born, and has always been kind of like a cooky old aunt to everyone in town.

"I just got a new shipment of books last night, there over in that corner for you girls to look at" she says and yawns into her hands when she finishes speaking. Nia's face lights up when she hears this, exited to read new books, to be fair, so am I.

"Thanks Betty!" Nia almost squeals with delight, she was about to rush over to the books when she remembered the flowers in her arms.

"I almost forgot your flowers Betty, here I picked them this morning for you" Nia takes the flowers out of her basket and hands them to Betty's awaiting hands. Since we don't really have a lot of money Betty made a deal with Nia when we were young, all she asked for were fresh flowers anytime she wanted to read one of her books. Nia had agreed in an instant, but had said that the flowers would be payment for both of us. So now whenever we come to the book store, Nia brings flowers to Betty.

"Thank you dear" Betty smiles at Nia.

We go to where the new books lay stacked, we sit down and begin to look through the books. I find two books that interest me, one is about a girl travelling through worlds for treasure and adventure, and the other is a bit different then what I'm used to reading, it's a romance. I usually don't go for that sort of mushy shit, but I thought why not.

I get the books and thank Betty, Nia says she needs another couple of minutes, so I tell her I'll wait outside. I open the door and hear the bell jingle, I shut is closed behind me and lean against a stone brick wall near the book store.

I open one of the books and start to read when I hear a conversation coming from a man and woman walking past me.

"Have you heard that another young girl has disappeared in a couple towns over?" The woman says to the man.

"So many young men and woman are disappearing all over the land" the man says to the woman in a worried tone.

"Do you think the rumours are true?"

The woman's voice shakes with fear.

"I don't know, but keep your doors and windows locked" is all I hear the man say before they're to far away to hear the rest.

My mind races to think of what they were talking about, to why I'm just hearing of this now? I look around the small town square as if I could find the answers hidden behind the brick and stone.

"Donna I'm done" I jolt back when I hear my sisters voice next to my ear, I look at her with a racing heart. She looks at me with a curious look and tilts her head to the side.

"Are you okay Donna?" She looks at me with worry.

I take a deep breath to stop my racing heart beat, when it's stop beating so ferociously I answer her.

"I'm fine Nia, you just surprised me is all" I say in a calm voice.

She looks at me a moment longer then says "ok".

We start our walk back home through the town, less people now that it's not morning. I look over at Nia and see she has three books in her basket, I read the titles and see that they are all cheesy fairytale love books, typical Nia, always reading about stupid love books and silly fairytales.

I know what your thinking, I just got a stupid love book, but it's not about some silly Prince Charming and helpless Maiden, it's classified as smut, don't judge.

By the time we're home it's already late afternoon and our mother hasn't left her spot since we left, her back is hunched as she's taking notes and chopping up her herbs.

"The list of herbs I need are on the table, don't take too long" she says without looking at us in an annoyed tone.

Nia walks up behind our mother and kisses her on the cheek, giving her a small hug. Our mothers body tenses at the contact, the affection. Even though our mother has always been cold and distant with us, Nia has always tried her hardest to get close to her, to get love from her. I gave up on that hope a long time ago, but Nia still try's.

"Ok mother, we'll be back soon" Nia says sweetly to her, it brakes my heart seeing her try so hard for something she'll never get. That's one of the reasons I hate our mother, not because she's never gonna show me love, but because she denies it to Nia.

Our mother doesn't say anything back to her as she leaves her side, we place our books in our room and grab our coats. Nia carry's her basket while I grab an empty cloth bag to carry our herbs in, and we're out the door. Into the forrest we go I suppose.

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Hi again, I know it's a bit slow at the moment but things will start picking up next chapter, and the story really starts to begin.

Thanks!