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Chapter Twenty-Five
Esmerelda woke up the next morning, with the biggest smile on her face that she had worn all year. Today was the start of the summer holidays, she had survived her first year at Cackles and now she got to spend six glorious weeks with the people she loved most in the world, she was so excited about going home and seeing her sisters.
Flying home in the amazing summer weather was an amazing feeling, Esmerelda flew seeing the castle get further and further away until it was only a speck of dust, she had started to like Cackles more in the last few months now that she had a friend and things had calmed down but there was no feeling in the world like being with her little sisters.
"ESMIE" the blonde heard as she flew within a metre of her house. She looked down, seeing Ethel's face get clearer as she got lower, she saw her little sister run to the door and shout.
"SYBIE SHE IS HERE" she heard her sister say and then Esmerelda saw Sybil run out the door and look up at her smiling, they both watched her, as she got lower and lower until she felt her feet touch the tarmac.
"ESMIE" Sybil now said running up to her sister before she had properly landed and practically pulling her of her broomstick as she hugged her. Ethel joined her and hugged Esmerelda's other side.
"Hi!" Esmerelda said happily, it felt amazing to be greeted like this. She was grateful Ethel was clinging to her so tightly as she had to remove her arm for a minute so she could pick up her broomstick.
"We have being looking out for you since eight!" Sybil told her sister and Esmerelda chuckled, that is why Ethel had being in the courtyard. She had being on watch.
"I am surprised you managed to get out of bed" Esmerelda replied knowing they were impossible to get up before nine.
"We forced ourselves to we didn't want to miss you" Ethel told her as they walked.
Some people, in fact nearly anyone, would find walking hard when they had two girls clinging to them as they did so but Esmerelda had learned how to do it, she moved slowly and looked more like a penguin than anything but it worked.
"How was your first year?" Sybil asked interested
Esmie thought over her answer. She had no idea how so much stuff had managed to fit into one year what with the bullying and nearly getting killed by being thrown of a broomstick and then playing pranks and the whole period incident and the curse she was under. There really only was one word to describe her year.
"Crazy" Esmerelda replied "I am just glad to be back home with my two favourite people" Esmerelda replied.
"What are we going to do this summer?" Ethel asked looking at her sister.
"We have six weeks we can do so much but how about we go to the park right now, it is to nice to stay in?" Esmerelda suggested. Both girls cheered and Esmerelda smiled happily because she knew it was going to be an amazing day. Mind you spending a day inside a bin would be amazing if Ethel and Sybil were there, she told herself.
"Last one to the swings is a rotten frog eye" Ethel said as her and Sybil started racing to the swing set. Esmerelda ran after them but knew she would not be able to beat them, she couldn't run as much as she used to be able to and sure enough when she got there they were both already waiting for her.
"You are getting old" Ethel commented and Esmie laughed and pretended to be insulted.
"Hey you!" she said casting a spell and Ethel started to scream with laughter as the spell tickled her.
"Oh I am sorry, you aren't old please stop" Ethel said clutching her stomach as she laughed and laughed, she was so ticklish. Esmerelda left her to suffer for a few moments before she lifted the spell.
"Thank you" Ethel replied giggling still. Esmerelda put her finger to her lip and pretended to look around, wearing a mischievous grin.
"I think I will tickle Sybil next" she told them and Sybil giggled sweetly and shook her head.
"NO!" She said as she ran off, Ethel right behind her not wanting to be hit with a spell as again. Esmerelda laughed as well as she chased them playfully.
"AHHHH" Sybil screamed as her sister got nearer to her. She tried to outrun her but Esmerelda got closer to her because Sybil was running out of breath and she slowed down allowing Esmie to grab her from behind and tickle her under the arm, without magic.
"NOOO, HAHAHAHHAHA" Sybil screamed out, wishing she wasn't so ticklish. Ethel appeared behind them, gasping for breath because she was laughing so much.
"STOP" Sybil screamed out in between giggles. Esmerelda stopped after a few seconds and smiled. She had missed this, just good fun and playing with her little sisters, she loved hearing them giggle so much they cried with laughter, it reassured her maybe things were not affecting them as much as she thought because of their neglect.
Their parents treatment, or lack of, upset her sisters because they never bothered with them so Esmerelda liked to fuss over them as much as possible.
"Esmie can you push me?" Ethel asked plonking herself on a swing. Esmie nodded and pushed her sister telling her to hang on. Ethel yelped in joy as she swung back and forth.
"I don't like swings they are to fast" Sybil replied looking a bit scared as she watched her sister swinging.
"Yes but they are fun!" Ethel replied, enjoying herself.
The girls must have stayed out for about an hour until Sybil fell in a puddle of mud and Ethel started laughing at her because her face was covered in it. Sybil was clumsy sometimes, so it qould be her most likely to fall.
"SYBIE" Esmerelda shouted rushing to help her little sister, she helped her up and Ethel stopped laughing as she realised that her sister was crying. Esmerelda sat her on the bench that was in the park and tried speaking to her sister who was crying badly.
"Sybie where are you hurt?" Esmerelda asked in a panic. Ethel went to join Esmerelda.
"I am sorry I laughed Sybie" Ethel said feeling bad. Sybil showed her sisters her arm and it was bleeding.
"It is okay, it is just a little cut I can fix it" Esmerelda told her using a spell to heal it. Sybil kept crying though, even when it must not be painful anymore.
"Mum and dad are going to kill me for getting all muddy" Sybil said sadly.
"I don't know cleaning spells yet" Esmerelda replied and she sighed, knowing she would get into trouble. Their parents hated mess more than anything.
Ethel looked at the mud and before she could talk herself out of it she picked some up and sneered it on her clothes.
"Ethie what are you doing?" Esmerelda asked confused
"Well if we are all muddy we will all get told of not just Sybie" Ethel replied and Esmerelda smiled at her sister.
"Very true" Esmerelda said as she joined Ethel and covered herself in mud.
"But...you will get in trouble" Sybil said shocked.
"Exactly, we are the Hallow sisters, and we will all go down together" Esmerelda told her sister smiling. They were not going to allow Sybil to suffer with their parents wrath alone, they would all stick together.
That was how the girls walked home covered in mud and looking a right mess, they walked in the summer sun, the mud only getting more dried onto their skin but they didn't care because they had each other and they were happy.
Esmerelda had no idea it was about to change though.