Six months ago, Alice came back from a long Sunday afternoon spent alone in the garden.
This in and of itself was not an unusual occurrence. In fact, it was a weekly constitutional and would have been more alarming had her sister chosen to forsake this tradition even if it had become a deeply somber, solitary endeavor.
But this particular Sunday afternoon had been…unique, shrouded in confusion and overall tinted with strangeness. Alice had come back she seeming...younger…somehow and in ways that were difficult to pinpoint or describe. Not in her mannerisms or habits, which were as cool and practical as ever, but something about her looked younger. Perhaps it was the innocent sparkle in her eyes or the roundness of her face, Edith couldn't place it, but the strangeness lingered and shaped the space around her.
And yet, Edith remembered being strangely...relieved to see her.
She could remember throwing open the front door and rushing down the path as Alice strolled toward the house, the light ruffles of her dress rippling slightly in breeze. It was her favorite, the blue one with the gold designs along the sleeves and skirt. Had she been wearing that when she left?
Edith nearly collided with her sister, stumbling to a sharp halt in front of her and roughly grasping her wrists. "Where have you been?!"
Alice blinked at her innocently, confused and a little surprised by her outburst. "I'm...sorry, Edith. I fell asleep in the garden." Her brows furrowed in concern as she eyed her younger sister for a moment before continuing, "It's only been a few hours."
Edith's own brows creased in thought and confusion as she realized Alice was right. The sun had not yet touched the horizon, and the heavens were still crystalline blue with only the faintest streaks of pink and orange beginning to smear themselves across the sky.
So why did it feel like her sister had been gone for a very long time?