On my silent walk in a forest nearby, I saw something dark green and soft between two bushes. It had been trapped there, dirty, filthy, and alone, tangled in the small sharp branches. I thought it was just thrown away so I couldn’t resist opening it. The content of the backpack, because it was a green backpack, left me speechless. 230Please respect copyright.PENANADAJkidOtcQ
It was a pair of scissors, razor blades, a rope, and, what I thought looked like sleeping pills, or maybe painkillers. I wasn’t sure. It also contained endless plastic bags, which I assumed would be used mixed with the other harmful supplements. Maybe they would then be tied over the poor creature’s head while taking their own life. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAnLcncT0Hle
I took the backpack with me, concerned that an animal or perhaps a child would hurt themselves by mistake if I just left it to whomever to explore the gears in there. 230Please respect copyright.PENANABXtAyctIgN
I was going, slowly and quietly, and without seeing where I was placing my feet. I just continued thinking about the whimsical, peculiar, green bag. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAjYsn26Nq9Z
Suddenly, I was walking into something that was hanging in the tree right in front of me. I screamed so loud I was damn sure I had made myself deaf forever. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAcSN8WQZEOQ
This was unfortunately how I went mad. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAH2609BKSKl
Ellie sat beside the table in the dining room. She was peeking at her mom who was sitting right next to her. She decided to ask her. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAWsWfir3JLn
”Mom… how is Nels? Can I go to him now?” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAOoZYnLqECT
”Elle Madina, please don’t disturb your brother, you know that he is very sick, right?” 230Please respect copyright.PENANALC3fCueZPo
”Yes, I know…” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAv0lhQ1B8zw
”Right, now go and prepare for school, darling” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAYoYeMWCVUU
On her way to school, she ran into Ingrid. Ingrid sighed and continued walking. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAPBYabbVj0W
”Wait!” Ellie shouted after her. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAEbeAH2WIRe
”What? I’m late to work!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANABM7cNTZ5V3
”I know how close you were to my brother and I was thinking…” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAZKejjsEsCI
”What? Nels is not the same anymore and I don’t want anything to do with either you or your crazy family!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANA98XTydYDte
Ellie felt how her eyes got shiny from some sudden tears, but she didn’t want Ingrid to notice. 230Please respect copyright.PENANA8nEhghGLuA
”Goodbye, you big crybaby!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANA2NI3HrobR7
Ingrid laughed and started her walk again. It wasn’t fair. Ingrid was an adult woman and was behaving like a bully against a girl who was just starting high school. Ellie turned around and ran all the remaining way to school with a big and nasty lump in her throat. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAJZDX41l3XR
She couldn’t really focus on the school that day. Ellie was sweating and tears were dropping on the quiz paper. Her vision started to become blurry. She closed her eyes and opened them again, but still couldn’t see properly. What if she too was going mad? Could madness be contagious? She hopes not. She doesn’t want to end up like her brother. 230Please respect copyright.PENANArr4K80ERV9
Even if some part of her mind thought that he actually deserved it after what he did to her at that time. Of course, he did apologize. But it happened again, and again… 230Please respect copyright.PENANA3UccGBti8D
After school, Ellie went home. She needed a new pair of shoes and was going to ask her mother. She didn’t look forward to it. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAIQVshU75Yt
“Mom?” Ellie stood at the door opening and peeked at her mother sitting and watching some television. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAMwSYrBLm7s
“What now, Ellie?” her mother replied with an annoyed voice. “Can’t you just go to your room and finish your homework instead of always bothering me and talking about disturbing your poor brother?” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAs2mJlcgwvj
“But mom…” Ellie was nervous. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAfHFwbJT63D
“Yes, what? Her mother turned around with an angry look in her eyes. She clearly had a bad day. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAOLlplb5aac
“It doesn’t matter” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAm5bHCqPX7v
Ellie turned her back to her mother and walked with slow and sad steps toward the stairs, hoping that her mother would follow her and become nice again. But she didn’t and as much as it was expected, Ellie just couldn’t help to feel disappointment. Ingrid saw Aline outside of the music store and hastened to open the door from the inside. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAY2C9odovwr
“Oh, I just wanted to say hello, I had some errands to do nearby!” Aline explained in an apologetic manner. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAetixyylicW
“Of course, sis, you’re always welcome here! Do you want some coffee? I can put some on in the staff’s room. I have lunch break now anyway!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAZEGsuBoMgC
“Yes please, that would be nice” Aline looked shy. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAJ5szuqREi7
“Well, Ingrid, you know that time when we were...” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAcQjEJldKSe
Ingrid turned around, almost with the same shy expression as Aline. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAujBUNQIoyw
“Yes, I know what you’re thinking about…” Ingrid answered. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAea7D0N23Ud
“Yes… it was a year ago. Today.” Ingrid blushed. 230Please respect copyright.PENANADCaG07yVOU
“I know”. 230Please respect copyright.PENANARusFC08BlJ
“You do?” 230Please respect copyright.PENANANxhqTw12TF
“Yes” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAcnknfkqePH
Silence. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAq9Qu0N7vVs
Both girls looked at each other and then started to stare at the floor. They both remembered. Ingrid was still holding the coffee pot in her right hand, prepared to pour some into the mug she was holding in her left hand. Aline placed herself in a chair beside the small and quite old-looking table. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAKMK9vymPf8
“I just want you to know that I liked it very much” Aline just broke the silence. 230Please respect copyright.PENANARKCNgc97r6
“Me too, but I don’t know… it feels weird because… You’re like… My adoptive sister. Well almost at least” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAXW9DAnZ5jK
“Carl has not adopted you, Ingrid. You just live with us.” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAU4tCX4LwSo
“I know, but I always wish that he was my father, that’s why it feels weird with… you” 230Please respect copyright.PENANA3w7qvlTqKO
“I can understand that, of course” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAq1T6geKx2f
The girls looked at each other again, both with a sign of repulse on their faces. They were drinking their coffee in silence when Conrad stacked into the office. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAsqUv0TbLny
“Ingrid, what do you think you’re doing? You lazy coward, it’s people in the store!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAC5tNE52V4D
Ingrid jumped up from the chair. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAfDyTgdBnek
“I’m sorry, we forgot… I’m... Conrad? Are you drunk?” 230Please respect copyright.PENANABaaoXBYYgs
Ingrid closed one eye and stared with the other directly at Conrad. 230Please respect copyright.PENANAWCEdEtQix4
“You are!” she shouted, higher than she’d expected.230Please respect copyright.PENANAkIvQ0pkT3E
“You don’t need to care about that, just do your goddamn job!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANADPdA22lJjg
Ingrid and Aline went out to the store. One customer was to be found. Conrad was yelling as if it would have been a hundred! 230Please respect copyright.PENANA1TKYuLpr1N
“See you at home” Aline slammed the door behind her and Ingrid sighed. 230Please respect copyright.PENANA0j2ojSGoB3
Cassidy nodded but felt extremely bored. The oracles were arguing again and wanted her opinion on some small simple task they were doing. She was tired too, and her eyes started to close themselves. All of a sudden she was hearing a sound from the crystal ball in the room behind her. She just heard the sound of someone whispering something. Yet she didn’t think about how she was able to even hear the sound with a stone wall in the middle.230Please respect copyright.PENANAyL3HYpiy1l
“Okay, my gentlemen. I need to go” she said to the oracles and walked down the hallway. 230Please respect copyright.PENANA1cd0xZiv2v
“But you barely listened, my Queen!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAhzRXm2lVL9
“I give you permission to solve the problem on your own, I have some things to do!” 230Please respect copyright.PENANAsLmZj8GPTK
The oracles went silent.230Please respect copyright.PENANARmHIaav3KM