Luna groaned, cracking open an eye when she heard the clinking of cookware from the kitchen. Seeing as it didn't matter anymore whether she was on time for breakfast anymore, Luna took her time getting out of bed. After freshening up for the day, Luna reached into her nightstand drawer to take out some food she had taken out from the fridge the night before. Perhaps she could sneak some leftovers when Candace and her grandmother were finished.
When she heard dishes being picked up, Luna crept over to the kitchen. Some pancakes and sliced fruit remained on plates in the middle of the table. When both Candace and her grandmother had their backs turned, Luna swiped a couple of pancakes and a handful of fruit before retreating to a private spot to enjoy her meal.
Finding herself in the workroom eating her makeshift pancake fruit rolls, Luna couldn't help but indulge in a bit of self-pity. How much longer did she have to live this sort of life –stealing food, doing her business in the middle of the night, and avoiding her family in general so she wouldn't scare them?
Resting her elbows on the table and burying her face in her hands, Luna wondered what the point of all this was. If she wasn't going to disappear into nothing, what was she doing here? Hearing voices approaching, Luna stood up from the chair and moved aside as Candace sat in front of the workbench.
Standing behind Candace, Shelly nodded in approval as the young girl showed her the piece she was currently working on. "Very good. The stitching is clean and even. The seams are crisply pressed giving the dress a sharp look."
"I'm still nowhere as good as you."
"It takes time and practice, dearie," Shelly said, patting Candace's hand.
Candace smiled, though she didn't look particularly comforted. "I think I'll try making another dress."
"It's a lovely Saturday. Don't you want to go out and play in the snow with your classmates?"
The girl shook her head, looking back at the dress. "No. I want to improve my skills so that I can… so that I can help you with the shop in the future."
Luna tore her eyes away from the blouse she was admiring when she heard her sister's words. Candace having ambition and wanting to improve herself? Was she hearing correctly? Though now that she thought about it, her sister often stayed at home even when she had completed all her chores and homework. She had assumed that Candace had just hated socializing with others. It's not that she was wrong. She knew Candace as well as she knew herself. Her sister definitely did her best to avoid social situations. But her sister had sounded strangely genuine when she said she wanted to improve her skills to help the shop, instead of the words being just an excuse to say home.
From the expression on their grandmother's face, Luna figured that the two had gone through this conversation many times before. "Very well… I'll be visiting Irene at the clinic."
"Take care on your way there, grandmother ."
Luna curiously looked over her sister for a moment, wondering if she didn't know Candace as much as she thought she did. They grew up together, having never been apart for more than a day as long as she remembered. She should know Candace. She did. Shaking the doubt from her mind, Luna followed her grandmother out, deciding that she needed a walk.
When the day had come to a close, Luna collapsed onto her bed, feeling weary even though she hadn't done much. Opening an eye and look at her sister, Luna wondered why Candace never looked at her side of the room. "Do you miss me?"
As expected, her sister didn't respond. Rolling onto her back, Luna wondered for what seemed like the hundredth time that day what was going on. She couldn't fit her observations into an answer that fit everything together. There were many things that suggested that she wasn't dead and yet people were unable to see or hear her. Moreover, as far as she could tell from the lack of mention of her, no one remembered her at all. And yet, her belongings stood glaringly across from Candace in the room they shared. Turning her head and watching her sister knit, Luna asked, "Have you forgotten about me, Candace? You wouldn't, right? We grew up together. We've come this far together after our parents passed…"
Her voice choking, Luna turned away and raised an arm to cover her eyes. It was no use. As for finding the answer to this puzzling predicament, Luna had no idea where to begin. Well, she supposed that wasn't quite right. The only place she imagined that offered some hope was the library. It was a long shot but it wouldn't hurt to take a look tomorrow.
Head lightly hitting the library table, Luna sighed wearily. She couldn't say that she didn't expect this. She had browsed through the limited religion and parapsychology sections without finding anything relevant to her case. Perhaps there was a book out there that would help her but it just did not exist in this small library. Drumming her fingers on the table, Luna wondered if a medical book would be more relevant to her case. Perhaps she was slowly going crazy. Yes, that would explain many things.
The girl turned her head when she heard footsteps in the hallway outside the room. Seeing as the library was technically closed and she had snuck in herself, she was slightly apprehensive when the door opened. Her breath caught in her throat when Gill gazed directly at her. Was he somehow able to see her?
Shaking his head, the blond muttered, "Can't people clean up after themselves?" Brushing past Luna, the boy picked up the books she had been examining and began shelving them.
Luna's shoulders sank, her brief moment of hope crushed as soon as it had been ignited. She watched Gill as he found the original locations of the books with ease. If anyone, Gill would know if this library held the book she needed. The girl gazed down at the notebook she had brought with her to take notes. Could she chance getting stuff thrown at her again or the word of a ghost spreading through town? Then again, the always serious Gill didn't come across as the type to throw things or start babbling about supernatural occurrences. With a little more confidence, Luna decided to give it a try.
Keeping the message brief, Luna wrote in big, bold letters: "It's Luna. I need help!" There was no missing it. Luna held up the piece of paper at the front of the aisle, waiting for Gill to finish with his task and look up. The blond didn't even look startled as he brushed past Luna and her message.
"It's a randomly floating piece of paper, Gill!" Luna cried in exasperation, waving the item in her hand. "You just don't walk past it like it's nothing!"
She trailed after the boy as he unpacked his bag, pulling out a notebook and a pencil case. Frowning, Luna looked down at the piece of paper in her hands. Now that she thought about it, no one commented about her out of place belongings either. Were the things she owned invisible to the eye? That was easily fixed though. Taking a pencil from Gill's pencil case, Luna began writing on the adjacent page of his notebook. The blond remained blissfully unaware of the floating pencil and scribbles on his page.
"Gah, what is this?" Luna muttered, pacing by the table. She gazed up at the ceiling as if the answer she sought were written on the building. "What did I do last time?"
It was more of a rhetorical question since she remembered clearly what had happened last time. Slowing to a stop, Luna studied the boy. So she had to do something he couldn't ignore. Hesitantly walking up to the table, she took in a deep breath, yanked his notebook from underneath his hands and tossed it across the room.
A strangled sound escaped Gill's lips. Standing onto his feet, the blond stared at the book, mouth agape. Having caught his attention, Luna walked over to the notebook, found the page she had written her message in and shoved the book in his face.
Her classmate didn't respond at first, merely stared unsurely at the page. With knit brows, Gill gently gripped the bottom of the book. "Are you a Harvest Sprite?"
"A… what?" The term sounded familiar though she wasn't sure where she had heard it. It was a recent term she had come across too. Luna wracked her brain for the answer which slowly came to her. It was just today that she had read a snippet about tiny elf-like beings that aided the Harvest Goddess. That wouldn't have been her first conclusion when faced with mysterious moving objects but at least he wasn't running from her or throwing objects at her.
Shaking her head, Luna jabbed at the page with a finger. "No, I'm Luna."
Gill continued to look quizzically at the item before him. "I don't understand. What am I supposed to do with my notebook?"
The blond boy came across as an intelligent student so Luna didn't understand why he was having such difficulty. Perhaps she had overestimated his abilities. Tearing out the page she wanted him to look at, Luna dropped the book and held up the piece of paper for him to see.
"I still don't understand. This is just a blank piece of pap— Did you just eat a sheet of paper?!" he exclaimed, looking completely aghast.
Luna pulled the sheet back, glancing from the uneaten page with her clearly written message back to Gill. She waved the piece of paper in front of the blond again but his eyes were no longer directed at it. The paper crumpled in her hands as the discouraged girl tried to figure out what to do now.
"Are you still here?" Gill questioned, peering around the room.
"I might as well not be," Luna scowled. What was left for her to do? Perhaps there really was nothing she –or anyone— could do. Sighing deeply, Luna watched Gill as he quizzically picked up his notebook. He looked frustrated with himself and slightly disappointed with how things had turned out. Despite being disappointed herself, Luna was glad to find that she didn't need to worry about being careful around him. Snapping out of her despondent state, Luna continued to search around the library for a book that could be helpful.
She didn't notice how much time had passed until Gill started packing up his books. Peering out the window, she saw that the sun had already sunk beneath the horizon. Although it was the same each year, Luna still couldn't become accustomed to the short days during winter. She noticed that it was snowing heavily again, adding to the already thick layer of snow coating the town. If the chill that was able to reach towards her from behind the glass was any indication, it was going to be another cold night. The room became drenched in darkness when Gill turned off the lights. Hurriedly gathering her own items, Luna made her way out before the room was locked.
Stepping out into the cold, Luna readjusted her scarf, hoping it would offer her more protection in a different arrangement. If there was any difference with the ends of the scarf wrapped around her neck, the girl didn't feel it. Thankfully, her home wasn't far. Arriving back at the shop, Luna knocked on the door. When no one came to open the door for her, she tried again, knocking harder. Another long moment passed and the door remained closed. "Please don't tell me people can't hear me knocking as well now."
At last her grandmother emerged from the kitchen. Luna smiled in relief; she had, for a moment, feared that she had lost one of the few remaining things that demonstrated her existence. Stopping by the window, the woman peered out. Looking down both sides of the street but finding no one, the seamstress returned to what she was doing before.
Now pounding on the door, Luna called, "Wait! Come back! Candace! Grandma! Open the door!"
Her demand was ignored, the older woman seemingly brushing off the noise as the work of the wind. It was only logical after all. Even so, Luna couldn't help but be upset. Fist limply hitting the door, the girl murmured, "It's your granddaughter…"
The cold now becoming greatly uncomfortable, Luna tried to figure out another place she could stay for the night. Shaking off the snow dusted over her, Luna straightened. Most shops were closed on Sundays and considering the time, her only option was the inn. Scurrying up the steps, Luna reached for the door of Ocarina Inn but found it locked as well. Luna stepped back, looking for the inn's hours on the sign. As she remembered, the inn was only closed on holidays and after ten in the evening. However, it wasn't either at the moment. The girl tried pushing the door again but was unable to make it budge.
Frowning, she walked over to the window and peered into the inn, finding it empty. It was an eerie sight considering how busy the inn usually was in the evenings. The mess she had made a few days earlier was cleaned up but Luna couldn't help but wonder if the inn's change in hours had something to do with her previous actions.
The girl massaged her temples. Where could she go now? Lately, it felt like the entire world was against her. She would freeze to death by the time she reached any of the buildings in Flute Fields and the Garmon Mine District was equally as far. "Why me?"
Hugging herself, she moved into the alley to shield herself from the wind. As soon as she stepped in between the buildings, the chill lessened though she was still far from warm. Sitting on the ground, Luna gazed out at the gusts of snow blowing past. Would she have to live like this forever –unable to interact with others or have others interact with her? Could she live like this forever? It sounded like a miserable life but she wasn't sure if she liked the alternative either. Though she was half-expecting to disappear into nothing anytime, she was afraid of what would come after that. Perhaps it would be nothing but that in itself was frightening .
Luna bit her lip to keep her teeth from chattering. Already, a thin coat of snow covered her hair and jacket. Though not experienced with surviving in the cold, keeping herself warm by moving sounded like a necessity if she didn't want to freeze into a block of ice. Slowly standing up, Luna looked out of the alley. Venturing back out there seemed like a bad idea. She could barely make out any other buildings through the thickening snowfall. However, staying in the alley for the rest of the night didn't sound like a viable plan either.
Even though she had stopped looking for miracles long ago, preferring to rely on her own hands to reach what she sought, she wouldn't have minded if the world dropped her a miracle now. Luna shook her head in disgust a moment later. As if a miracle would drop from the sky for her. She didn't even believe that the Harvest King and Harvest Goddess existed but… Straightening, Luna stopped, eyes alighting in realization. "The church isn't far."
It would be a warm building too –far better than this alley. The storm raged angrily beyond her temporary shelter. Luna steeled herself as she stepped out. The cold briefly took her breath away. The snow flung at her face stung and Luna struggled to draw her scarf up to cover more of her face. Turning to her left, Luna started making her way to the church. Her boots sunk in the soft snow, slowing her progress. While closer than other accessible buildings, the church was by no means a short trip from her current location. Then there was the challenge of the uphill path towards her destination.
She really hates the cold, she decided. Not that she hadn't before but the thought kept her from focusing too much on the cold and how it's eating away at her. The tips of her toes were stinging despite being previously numb. Why couldn't winter be over?
The pink haired girl was caught by surprise when she collided with someone, not expecting anyone else to be out in this weather at this time of day. Rubbing her arm, Luna exclaimed, "Watch where you're going!" Of course the other doesn't answer and she realizes that complaining would be a waste of precious time.
She was about to turn and continue on her way to the church when Luna realized that she could follow this villager to their home. Most of the villagers were good natured individuals and would help those in need. Surely, he wouldn't object to aiding a helpless child if he was aware of her presence. It wasn't like he would know she was there anyway. Plus, it sounded like a better plan than dragging herself over to the church. Sticking close to the villager, Luna shadowed his footsteps, hoping that he was intending to go home. She almost collided into him again when he stopped.
A click of a lock opening sounded and warmth brushed her cheeks as a door is opened. Luna quickly slipped inside the building, relief flooding into her along with the warmth provided by the building. How she had taken this feeling for granted. Sinking to her knees, she leaned against the wall. It felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders and now that it was gone, she found herself exhausted and sleepy.
"What… are you doing?"
The floor was uncomfortable but, surprisingly, she found that she didn't care too much. Perhaps she could relocate to that couch over there but her limbs suddenly felt very heavy. Closing her eyes, Luna allowed sleep to claim her.
Her head ached when consciousness came to her. Despite having fallen asleep on the floor, Luna found that she didn't want to move from her less than cozy spot. After a moment though, she noticed that her head was seriously aching from resting against the wall all night. Lifting her head off the wall, Luna opened her eyes. "Huh?"
With furrowed brows, she stared down at the blue blanket draped over her. Where had that come from? She briefly surveyed her surroundings. An above average amount of bookcases lined the walls of the building and the walls that weren't covered by bookcases were decorated with intricate ornaments.
"You're awake."
Luna turned to the source of the voice and found herself looking at a villager she was sure she had never encountered before. The young man's attire was difficult to describe and she was torn between thinking it eccentric or avant-garde. Seeing his mismatched eyes focused on her, Luna nervously asked, "Can you see me?"
The man nodded his head in affirmation.
Luna wasn't quite sure how to reply. This was the answer she had been wanting to hear for the past few days –though she would have preferred for this to happen when she hadn't snuck herself in a complete stranger's house. Nonetheless, Luna couldn't help the smile that blossomed on her face. "Then this nightmare is over! You can't imagine how terrible these last few days have been!" she was babbling but the girl was just too relieved to care about anything else.
The man didn't appear to know how to respond to her reaction as he stiffly remained in his chair. Before Luna ran out the door though, he said, "The spell... is still there… if that's what you're talking about."
"Spell?"
"…Yes."
"What spell?" Luna pressed when he didn't elaborate.
A long silence settled between the two as Luna waited for the other to say something. Turning around in the stool he was sitting on to completely face her, he said, "To simplify, it's a spell… that makes people… overlook your presence."
Luna looked oddly at the man. "Spells are components of fairy tales and not reality."
The man shrugged. "If that's what you want to believe."
Surely magic spells were not real. "I mean, if magic is real then the world would be…" Luna vaguely waved her hand, trying to find the right word. Those that had access to the spells would use them to their advantage and get whatever they could out of them. It was only human nature. She knew that she would. Then others would see and also want more but resources in this world were limited. With the wide range of possible moves available with magic, the competition to come out on top would lead to… "Chaos."
"There aren't many magic users," the man explained, dipping his head in acknowledgement of her concern. "We're all aware of… the chaos you believe would result without limitations… so it is in our best interests to… be careful." He grimaced as he looked over at Luna. "I apologize… I don't talk to people often so I've nearly forgotten how to speak… eloquently."
The girl arched an eyebrow, believing 'completely forgotten' would be a better description but that wasn't the biggest issue at the moment. Raising her hand, Luna massaged her head with the tips of her fingers. She wasn't sure whether to believe his word or not. However, if she didn't believe him then she would have to revert to the ghost theory which also was fairly unbelievable. She did want to get to the bottom of this though and had no other idea of what to do. Pushing her apprehension aside, she said, "So you can see me because you're magical?"
"Yes… and no…" The man traced the design of his necklace with a finger. "How to explain…? Magic users are susceptible to spells as well... but I decided to investigate when you bumped into me last night... because it was an oddity. Which led to uncovering you…"
Luna took a long moment to consider his words. "So the other villagers can't see me? Or remember me? Just… agh, how does that even work?"
He looked oddly at her as he considered her question.
Irritation blossomed in her at that reaction. Alright, perhaps the answers to her questions were obvious but she didn't really expect him to provide answers. "Yes, yes, I know, magic, right?"
"Yes… and the human mind is a flawed thing… easy to manipulate. There is so much to absorb every day, every moment, that the mind ignores many things… even if it's right in front of you. The spell takes advantage of that."
The pink haired girl stared incredulously at the man. "Yeah, but I'm an entire person! How do you miss that?" She gestured at herself to emphasize her point. Yes, she was small but she was a solid and immaculately dressed person.
"You'd be surprised at how much people miss."
Luna sighed. So she was still stuck in this nightmare and the only one who could see her sounded more interested in admiring the enchantment than worrying about her.
"Wait…" Pushing her hair back, Luna asked, "Can you break the spell?" Though his sentences were filled with pauses, overall, what he said fit together. Slowly, she grew to accept his assertion. "A spell… So it's a spell then. How did this spell end up on me in the first place?"
Her mind was a blur, working to process everything she had learned. A spell had been cast on her, to make everyone fail to see her presence and forget about her existent. Getting up, Luna paced angrily back and forth to work off her pent up frustration. To think that this entire nightmare was caused by a spell –by someone else. Eyes blazing with rage, she asked, "You weren't the one who did this to me, were you?"
"I should be able to break the spell… once I find the required spell… and the ingredients for it…" he said calmly, answering her first question. His eyes were pensive as he examined her. "This spell is unwanted then?"
"Obviously," Luna snapped. Hadn't he noticed how upset she was during the past few minutes? "Who would want to live like this?"
A hint of amusement flickered across his expression but disappeared as quickly as it appeared. "I didn't cast the spell on you… though I have a guess as to who did…"
Luna's eyes narrowed. "Who?"
The man tilted his head to the side. "Does it matter? Even without your clashing personalities… confronting her… would only bring more trouble."
"But I just can't let her get away with it!" Luna argued hotly. To think that someone could go around causing harm without consequence didn't sit well with her. "Didn't you say that there was a balance? Isn't she breaking some sort of rule?"
"Consequences… are inevitable," he answered, his voice growing distant. "She already lives in isolation… deep in Fugue Forest as a result of… past actions."
Luna wasn't sure what he meant when he said consequences were inevitable but it sounded like he was just offering her empty words to appease her. However, she didn't know what else she could do against a magical being that had harmed her. It seemed that she had no choice but to let it go for now. That didn't mean she was happy with it though. "I suppose I'll come back later to see if you've found the spell."
"Yes but finding the ingredients might take some time… depending on what they are."
Luna nodded, slowly letting the anger and tension leave her body. She had at least found a solution, even if the reason for everything that had occurred wasn't as pleasant as she liked. Letting out a sigh, the girl picked up the blanket that had fallen to the floor. She should be happy. She was happy. This will soon be all over. Folding the blanket, Luna placed it on a nearby table. "Thank you. For your help." Awkwardly tugging at the hem of her jacket sleeves, she added, "I'm Luna."
"Wizard… though most people call me the Fortune Teller."
