Lutz tried not to let thoughts of Myne interfere with his work. If he had time to worry, then he had time to sweep the floors...
...Tidy the shop...
...Count the change...
But while his hands kept busy, it wasn't enough to empty his mind. A problem he never had before. Usually he wouldn't have anything to think about when he was helping his dad with carving or foraging in the forest. But now…
Ugh.
Was this part of growing up? No wonder Master Benno always frowned.
Lutz tried occupying his thoughts another way. Each time the bell jingled and a customer stepped inside, he would imagine what clothes he'd pick out for them. A red wide-brimmed hat to bring out the green eyes of a lady. Long, draping sleeves for the man with a gold watch shining from a thick leather belt. And a simple brown dress for the young girl with green—wait.
"Tuuli?" he called out, before remembering himself. He stashed the cleaning rag away and took long strides towards her that he hoped looked professional rather than panicked. "What are you doing here?" he demanded. "Is Myne alright?"
"She's fine." The girl had been gazing at the splendor around her, but at his rushed voice, she tore her eyes away and refocused on Lutz. "My apprenticeship finished early today. Myne's feeling better, but Mom's still keeping her in bed just in case. She wanted me to check with you about work."
Lutz managed a small chuckle. His heartbeat had stopped pounding. "Has she been bugging you a lot?"
" All the time." Tuuli sounded annoyed, but she couldn't hide her slight preen. The same one Ralph did when Dad gave him a major responsibility. Except this time it was Myne entrusting hers to her sister.
Lutz glanced around the shop. Only a few customers were milling about; the other employees could handle them. Grabbing a wooden board and an inventory sheet, he led Tuuli to the back of the store.
They had the room to themselves. He ticked off the inventory list while whispering to her about yesterday's happenings. "Think you can remember all that?" he said, and she nodded, her eyebrows furrowed like Myne's when she was solving a problem.
"Yeah, I can. I won't forget."
"Remember, this is business. You have to keep it a secret."
This time Tuuli's look reminded him more of his mom than Myne. "I am older than you, Lutz. I know how to handle business, too."
"Right. Sorry, Tuuli-sama."
That brightened her expression.
"Tuuli-san?"
The children jumped, turning to the doorway. But it was only Mark-san, holding the door ajar. "Ah, I thought I saw you come in here."
Tuuli nodded, suddenly quiet. Oh, yeah; she'd only seen Mark-san a handful of times. Did she even know his name?
The man smiled pleasantly at the girl. "If you have a moment, may I speak to you before you leave, Tuuli-san?"
"S-sure. I mean, yes, sir."
Tuuli shot Lutz a look, who only shrugged, before walking towards Mark-san. Lutz wanted to follow her to see why he wanted Tuuli, but he restrained himself. Maybe he or Benno-san also had a message to give to Myne.
Myne .
He bit his lip and tried not to think about when the fifth bell would ring. If he had time to count the seconds, then he had time to count the inventory.
Myne didn't remember much after she'd collapsed at the gate, but she had brief memories of her dad sitting beside her in the dim candlelight and Lutz holding her hand. The Consuming's fever had disappeared as quickly as it came after the first day. But it had still taken its toll. She was left weak and ill, with a regular fever to worry about. It had improved since she saw Lutz, but it was still warm enough to warrant another day in bed.
When she improved on the second day, Dad had to return to the gate. Tuuli and Mom checked in on her when they could, but they had their own work to do, leaving her alone for large parts of the day.
And that meant she grew horribly, unabatingly bored.
She'd counted the number of wooden planks that made up the ceiling (25) three times. She'd thought through her projects from front to back at least a dozen times. She recited the stories her mom had told her when she had a break until she had them memorized verbatim and her fingers itched to write them down.
Alas...she was still stuck in bed.
Myne was huffing, tying her hair into as many braids as she could just to keep her hands busy, when she heard familiar footsteps.
"Tuuli!" she called out excitedly. Then coughed, her voice still scratchy from fever.
But the door flew open and her sister rushed in, a smile on her face and her cheeks flushed from the walk. Myne beamed.
"Tell me what happened!" she rushed, sitting up.
Tuuli grinned, but that didn't stop her from pushing her firmly back into bed. "Lie down before you get sicker, then I will. And...what'd you do to your hair?"
Myne quickly ran her fingers through the braids, unentangling them. "Nothing!"
Tuuli rolled her eyes but climbed into bed besides her. Myne listened eagerly as her sister told her about Lutz's and Mark-san's progress yesterday. Already, plans were being made and readjusted in her head. Lutz could've handled most things thrown at him, so she wasn't worried about that, but she still didn't like being out of the loop. Knowledge was power in any universe, after all.
When Tuuli finished her explanation, Myne grinned. "I can't believe you remembered all that without writing it down."
"It's not a big deal," she said dismissively. "I already told you I'd do whatever I can to help you too. Even if that means being your errand girl."
"You'd make the best errand girl," Myne giggled.
"Gee, thanks." She rolled her eyes. "Anyways, that's not all. Mark-san wanted me to tell you something else. He said that when he and Lutz were at the woodcarver's shop, he noticed that Lutz and one of his brothers were kind of angry at each other. Or, at least, his brother was angry. Lutz just ignored him."
"That...sounds like Lutz." Myne sighed. One didn't need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out that said brother was probably Zeke. She knew Lutz would see him at the woodcarver's shop, but she hoped they'd be mature enough not to fight in the middle of the store. Well, at least Lutz was… "I've been meaning to talk to him about that. Hey, Tuuli?"
"Yes?"
"Has Ralph said anything to you?"
Tuuli straightened. A faint blush covered her cheeks. "What do you mean?"
Myne resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She might've been dense about her own social life, but her sister was like a heroine in a shojo manga. Whenever she and Ralph would spend time together in between their apprenticeships and chores, she'd come home smiling, humming under her breath the whole time. She didn't even mind when Myne asked her for help with her chores...usually.
"I mean, does Ralph tell you much about his family?" Myne clarified. "Has he mentioned anything that's been happening?"
Tuuli shook her head, her blush fading. "He sometimes mentions them—lately he's been grumbling less about Lutz—but he doesn't really talk about his family a lot. No one in their house seems to," she muttered. Then frowned, and tugged on her sister's sleeve. "Don't you think it's sad, Myne? It makes me grateful our family can talk with each other openly."
Myne hummed, nodding. She remembered distant conversations between her and her mom when she was Urano. She'd tried to listen to her mom at the time, but...wasn't always successful. Or the best daughter, actually… Usually her thoughts had been so taken up by daydreaming and books that she couldn't recall much of what they'd talk about. She'd just go along with things to make her mom happy.
But here, even when she had to break her illness to her parents, their voices rang clearly in her ears.
Tell us everything. You don't have to hide it.
Of course I'd know. I'm your father.
And Tuuli's.
I'm going to look for a way to cure you, too! We'll always be together, Myne.
Myne smiled, stroking back a strand of her sister's silky hair. It's funny. Unlike most only-children her age, she had never wanted another sibling. She'd always been content by herself. But now...she would never give hers up.
And neither would Tuuli.
"I'm grateful that we talk to each other, too," she said, squeezing Tuuli's hand. Her sister giggled, then scooted behind her.
Her fingers gently combed out Myne's hair. "Here, I'll show you how to put your hair in a real braid."
With matching braids, the girls played a few rounds of a card game until Tuuli had to help Mom make dinner. And then Myne was bored again...
Thankfully, the next break from tedium came sooner rather than later.
"Lutz, you came!" she cheered when the boy stepped into the room. "You didn't have to," she added, but she was grateful nonetheless. She wouldn't have him leave anytime soon if given the choice. He had changed back into his normal clothes, but his hair was still slicked back and shiny. He took long strides towards her and immediately pressed the back of his hand to her forehead, his eyebrows pinched with worry.
"Lutz, I'm fine!" she protested, swatting his hand away.
The boy clucked his tongue, irritated, but his expression relaxed. "I wanted to see for myself how you're doing."
"Well, like I said, I'm fine. ...Mom still won't let me out of bed, though."
"Good. Your face is flushed."
Myne cringed, like an arrow had struck her heart.
"And you're not recovering as fast. You stay in bed longer each time."
The cringe intensified.
"Don't give me that look," Lutz scolded. "Your face will freeze up."
Myne stuck out her tongue. "That's not even true, Lutz. And you didn't even notice my braids! As your punishment, you must play with me!"
It was childish, but it managed to break that worried look of his. He frowned, suspicious. "...Tuuli's busy, isn't she?"
"...Yeah…"
Lutz gave her a dry look, but sat down on the stool. "Your braids look cute," he conceded. He picked up the stack of cards lying beside her. "I have a little time before I need to go…"
Myne grinned. She taught him the basics of Go, Fish, and they played for a few rounds. She won the first time, but he caught up quickly enough. After his first victory (she would've had it, if she'd called for Triangles…), she said casually, "I'm bored. Can you tell me a story, Lutz?"
"A story?" He frowned, scratching the back of his head. "Isn't that your job? I don't know that many like you do."
"I'm sure you can think up something. Tell me...something about your family."
He raised a knowing eyebrow at her. "Tuuli talked to you, didn't she?"
" Wha—? What makes you say that?"
He gave her a look.
"...How did you know?"
Lutz shrugged. "Mark-san talked to her before she left the store. And the day before, Mark-san seemed curious about Zeke. I just pieced it together."
Myne shot him a wry look. "In another world, you would've been a detective."
"A what?"
"Someone who solves mysteries. But I'm not the one telling the story." Under the covers, she tapped her toe against his knee. " You are."
He frowned. His default expression lately. "Why do you want to know?"
"Do I really need a reason to want to know more about my friend?" she asked. "You know my family really well. It only seems fair." And , a little voice whispered in the back of her mind, he's right. Your fevers last longer each time.
"Alright… But just because you look really bored." He pursed his lips as he thought. After a moment, he said, "You know about Pig Day, right? Hey, don't barf, I'm not gonna talk about that. But a few years ago, when I was...four, I think? Zasha, Zeke, and I were too young to go help with the pig, so our parents took Ralph and left the rest of us at home with Fey's mom. We were still expected to take care of Mom's chickens, though. Well, long story short—"
"That's cheating! I want the long story."
"Don't interrupt, or you won't get any story."
Myne pouted, but didn't speak again.
"Long story short, the rooster got loose when Zasha forgot to close the gate. Zeke got soooo mad at that, they got into a fight. When they finally remembered why they were fighting, the rooster had run through the neighborhood. I knew I wasn't fast enough to catch it—although I tried for a few minutes—so I'd climbed up on a roof to keep track of it while my brothers did the running.
They'd chased it all through the streets, trying to catch it with basket traps and feed. Eventually, I got tired of watching them, so I ran to catch up. After Zasha had gotten his head stuck in a basket—don't ask—and Zeke was out of breath, I just quietly walked up behind the rooster—and grabbed it at the legs like Ralph had taught me.
Zeke and Zasha—once he got his head out of the basket—were so impressed they'd followed me all day after that, nagging me to teach them how to do it."
Lutz's eyes had lit up as he'd told the story, and his smile was light and carefree. Myne smiled. "That sounds like a really nice time."
"Yeah." His lips tugged down. "It's been awhile since we've had one."
"There's always time to make more," she said. "Can you tell me another one?"
"Don't be spoiled, Myne. You have to save something to look forward to." He gave her a crooked grin. But it didn't reach his eyes this time. Myne wondered if he was also thinking about the next time she'd get sick.
"Alright. Promise you'll tell me another one soon?"
"I promise," he said, his voice soft.
She gently squeezed his hand. "You should talk to your family more. They do love you, even if they don't always show it the way you want them to."
Lutz frowned. "My family isn't the same as yours, Myne. Gunther-san spoils you. My dad has four sons and barely has time to rest, let alone talk."
He looked down at his hands. Tanned, but clean, with smooth calluses lining underneath his fingers, long since healed. "Zeke and Zasha make fun of me because I don't have dirt on my hands when I come home—the customers don't like it at the store. But they see it as me getting weak and soft."
"They're your brothers, Lutz. They don't understand, and if anything, they're probably a little jealous."
"But that's exactly it. They don't understand. How could they? They haven't seen anything we have, Myne." Lutz sighed, and slumped forward until his elbows rested on his knees. "You and I... We get to talk with specialists. And go over business plans. And spend hot days in a store, not a stuffy workshop." Myne opened her mouth to interject, but Lutz flicked her on her nose before she could. "Don't get me wrong; our work is still hard. I still use my hands more than any other merchant I've met. But that's barely anything when it comes to my dad or my brothers. And my dad's lived his whole life that way."
"But Ralph doesn't tease you anymore…"
He frowned. "How'd you know that?"
"Sisters know everything."
"I'll trade you a brother for Tuuli."
"Nuh-uh! We promised to be together forever!"
The corner of Lutz's mouth lifted. But then he shook his head. "Not teasing isn't the same as accepting, Myne."
"But it's a step in the right direction," she insisted. "You thought your mom would never listen, right? But then she accepted your dream once you really told it to her. Maybe your dad will, too."
But Luz didn't look convinced. "My dad thinks all merchants are lying thieves," he said in a deadpan tone. "He's not going to understand."
"He won't if you don't communicate with him."
He snorted. "Communicate? With my dad? I can count the number of words he's said in a year on my hands."
"And how many have you spoken to him?"
"Lots."
"About your job , Lutz."
He frowned at her.
Myne squeezed his hand again. "If you have time to work, you have time to talk to your family."
His eyes flicked up to hers. "Copycat," he grumbled.
She chuckled. "It's worth a shot, Lutz."
"And if it isn't?" he argued. "If he kicks me out? I'd have to be a live-in apprentice."
"No," she said sternly. She remembered what he'd told her about live-in apprentices. How they were forced to live at their workplace and were often delegated to the attics, some shabby garret with nothing to their name. "If that happens—and it won't—you'd stay with my family. You're family already, Lutz."
He smiled at her. It was small, and weary, but it was a smile.
"Thanks, Myne. I'll...I'll try."
"Good." She nodded. Then let her lip curl up. "Now let's play another round. I need to redeem myself."