I'm preparing breakfast in the morning, when I notice that Russet is awake, and watching me. "Good morning, Lumie." E yawns.

"Good morning Russet. I'm surprised you're awake at this time. You mentioned that it's been hard for you to stay up during the day."

Russet stretches emself and squeaks rather loudly. "Well. Here I don't have any chores to do. So I'm not as tired. And brownies don't share the same sleep cycle as humans. We sleep throughout the middle of the day. But we're usually up in the morning too."

Maybe it's because e is so old, that e gets worn out easily. Sometimes, I worry about you Russet.

"What's on the menu today?" Russet inquires.

"Well I was thinking of making 'brunch'. You'll probably be asleep by lunchtime so I thought maybe I could squeeze both meals into one. Or uh... Is this your 'dinner time' and last night was 'lunch'? Wait..."

Russet smiles. "No, no. Just set something aside for me, whatever it is, and I'll have it with tonight's dinner. It doesn't matter what I'm eating, as long as I can share the meal with you." Russet hops over to the counter from the table. "Does Verwildert cook?"

I decide on a light oatmeal with almonds and peach slices."Rarely. He can put together a nice salad or sandwich. But the only real cooking he does is on the grill. His skills are spot on, and he makes a great cup of coffee." Speaking of which, I should start Papa's coffee. "I suppose he's more used to having a woman cook for him. I wish I could've met his mother. Then I could make his favorite meals the way she used to."

"It astounds me you know." Russet says quietly.

"Hmm?"

"The both of you. I've never seen a bond between two people so strong. You remind me a lot of Maroon and Petunia. It's as if the two of you are true kin. I swear, it must be fate." Russet turns away. "Honestly, if you didn't look so different from one another, I'd never guess you weren't related."

That makes me happy.

"Lumie."

"Yes, Russet?"

E stands up. "You don't need to do that. I'll make the coffee."

"Oh. Yeah? Are you sure? It's not that hard."

E pushes my hand away from the coffee maker. "I actually know how to use a few mundane appliances. And I already know how he likes it."

While Russet sits and watches the coffee maker, e speaks to me. "So, do you believe in it?"

Oatmeal is done. Now to chop the nuts and slice the fruit, I can hear Papa moving about upstairs. He must've smelled the coffee.

"Believe in what?"

"Fate." Russet says with a flick of es tail.

"I... do. To a degree."

Russet's ears fly up. "How can you believe in something to a degree? You either believe in it or not."

How do I word this? "Hmmm. Let me explain."

"Okay."

I fetch the bowls and spoons. "I do believe in fate. But I do not believe that everything is fated to happen. I do not believe that an entire person's life is etched in stone. I think, ultimately, that we manipulate our own destinies."

"Explain."

I begin pouring the oatmeal. "Well. What I do with my life, who I am. Is all up to me. But there are things in my life that I cannot control or change. Those are my fates."

"Fates?" Russet asks, looking even more confused.

"Mhm. We are all our own people. But that doesn't mean we aren't influenced by outside things. People are products of their environments too. Like... Kids who are abused at home develop shattered egos. Those that are spoiled end up overly confident and narcissistic. Someone who has never felt love may grow to be bitter and hate the world. You get it? You cannot help where you come from, or how you are raised, so that part of your life is fated to be."

Russet nods, slowly.

"However. Where you come from, who you surround yourself with doesn't make up your entire existence. It does shape you, but only by a portion. Your remaining personality is what will really define you and your eventual path in life. Your hobbies, likes, dislikes, etc. Your morals and values. Those things can be manipulated by others too, but ultimately- outside influence aside you have to own up to the other half of your person. And I think the mistake most people make is that they confuse influence with choice. I'll use myself as an example."

I sprinkle the nuts and fruit slices on top of the oatmeal.

"It was fated for me to grow up the way I did. You know... Poor. Did I like it? No. But it couldn't be helped. Although, that doesn't mean it is my fate to stay in poverty. True, I do have to try harder than most others, because I was born with disadvantage of having to catch up with the rest, just to stand an even chance, but no one said life had to be fair. Fate certainly isn't."

Russet's eyes are glued to me.

"I suppose that means it was also fated for me to be born the outcast. I don't know if Papa told you already, so I'll be brief. But my biological family hates me."

Russet's eyes bulge.

"They've been cruel to me my entire life. And that, I do not think was fate. It was something they chose to do. Because it was easier to turn me into a scapegoat, rather than accept things about me that they didn't like. That is not fate Russet. That is a destiny they chose. To exile me out of their lives."

Russet nods solemnly.

"I, in turn, could've responded with my own hate. One would think I would, right? After all, who could blame me? I could've returned the favor. I could've grown up angry and resentful towards them. I can't even say I haven't thought about giving them a taste of their own medicine. But you know what Russet? I chose not to. The person I am today, wasn't fated to be. I crafted my own destiny when I chose not to walk in their footsteps. If I chose the former, you would not like the person you see today."

I take a breather and choose to wrap it up, too many hard subjects in the span of one day. "So the life I have today is one I made for myself. But like I mentioned earlier, what I didn't have a choice in, did affect my character. That is also fate, because it is absolute. Fate is absolute Russet. That's where it truly exists. Whether I turned out to be a good Lumie or a bad Lumie- I'd still develop certain attributes that are unflinching. But, those are traits that I developed because of my upbringing. Do you get my point now?"

Russet pauses, then bites es cheek. "Actually, yes. I do."

The coffee is almost done. I should make some toast. Papa likes to dip toast in his coffee.

"Goot, got it memorized?" I imitate in my deepest voice, pointing to my temple for emphasis.

Russet chortles. "Oh, that was terrible. Don't ever do it again. Ahaha!"

I puff out my chest and stand on my tip toes. Fists clenched. "Vat are you laughink at?!" I imitate again, pounding my chest for further emphasis.

Russet rolls in laughter. "Bahahahaha!"

I hurriedly put slices of bread into the toaster when I hear heavy footsteps approaching us.

"Vat's so funny?" Papa asks the room.

He is only met with awkward silence.

"Vell?"

It's becoming harder and harder for us to not snicker.

"It vas about me- vasn't it?!"

Russet and I look at each other, at him, back to each other, snort, and then burst out laughing again.

"AAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Ahahahaha!"

"Oi! Vat is it? I vant to know."

"L-lumie. Lumie. Do it agaiiiin~ Pfffft! Hahahaha!" Russet giggles, barely able to breathe.

I back away. "Nu-uh! He'll get mad at me."

Papa takes my shoulders. "Do vat again? Vhy vould I be upset?"

We can't stop giggling and it only makes him more angry and confused, Papa stares hard at me and I finally give in.

"Vouldn't you like to know?" I repeat in my failed Verwildert-voice.

Russet hollers in uncontrollable laughter, and falls off the counter. I sink slightly, holding my ribs.

Papa's mouth drops open. "I DO NOT SOUND LIKE ZAT!"

This only makes Russet and I scream in jolliness.

Huffing and puffing, Papa sits at the table, arms crossed. After wiping the tears from my eyes and picking Russet off the floor, I serve everyone their breakfast. All is forgiven once coffee is on the table.

Finishing off breakfast, I speak up. "Papa."

He looks my way from his coffee mug. "Hrm?"

"I wrote a letter back to Iris. I…" I stop.

Papa looks at Russet, who only shrugs es shoulders. "Vat is it? Go on."

I sigh. "I told them. I told them that I wanted to make my family forget about me forever."

Russet jumps in surprise and Papa's face goes to stone. But I know, behind his hardened expression is an undertone of relief. His eyes betray him.

"Missy. Once you make zat decision, zere is no goink back."

I try to smile, weakly. "I know. But… I'm not happy with them. I'm tired of not being happy. I don't want them to hurt me anymore. I have you… I don't need them."

Papa finishes his hot coffee in a serious of gulps and motions me up from the table. He rushes to my side and embraces me. "Are you sure zis is vat you vant?"

I hug him back. "Yes." I say sadly.

He doesn't waste a second. "Give me zee letter, I vill have it sent." We rush to my room and I give him the letter. It's already sealed, addressed and stamped, all he has to do is send it. "I'm vith you Missy. I support you." He says with a hand on my shoulder for reassurance.

He makes his way to his room to fetch his slippers.

"Wait!" I almost shout.

Papa turns around worriedly.

"I'm going with you."

He exhales in relief and nods.

I hurriedly get dressed, so does Russet. Then I hand em to Papa while clutching the letter in my own hands. It's so silly, it's just a short walk to the mailbox. But we treat it like a huge occasion. I guess it is when you think about it. With the sending of this letter, I'm never going to see my family again. Ever. I walk slowly over to the mailbox. And with one final look at the letter, I shakily drop it into the chute.

There! It's done!

I did it!

…Goodbye.

While we're still outside I anxiously yelp and jump up, the other two jump at my sudden action.

"Russet!" I squeal.

"W-what is it?" E says worriedly.

"You can't be out in the open!"

Papa and Russet snicker. "It's okay Lumie, I'm cloaked." Russet reassures me.

"But… If you can cloak, then why did you hide in my bag? Why did I have to stuff you in my shirt at the airport?"

Papa grins at Russet. "You sly dog."

Es ears drop. "I just wanted to be carried around and look through your stuff. That's all."

I huff and puff. Does e not have any idea how furry and ticklish e is?! "Nosy little mouse!" I swat at em, but Russet dodges me. I continue to swat, but e effortlessly leaps and swings over Papa's shoulders, down his back, up his leg, to the very top of his head where I can't reach. "You can't avoid me forever." I say with a wagging fist.

"Verwildert, help me!" Russet squeals.

Papa only chuckles. "You're on your own. It's because of you zat I keep gettink smacked."

We're outside anyway so we decide to take a walk. "This place looks nothing like where we came from." Russet admires from the safety of Papa's head.

"Ah. Yes. Staten Island is a complete turnaround from zee city." Papa notes.

"It's so... Sparce?" Russet notices.

"Sparce?" I smirk.

"Er. There are houses, but no big buildings and crowded roads. There are more trees than where we arrived from, but this place is not a forest."

I walk hand in hand with Papa, shading my eyes with my right hand, looking up at the tall, thick trees that tower above us.

"Vat schould vee do today?" Papa asks us.

"Hmm. I'm at a loss. I don't know the area, what's a fun thing to do in the summer Lumie?"

"Oh." I blurt.

"Got an idea?" Papa guesses.

"Yeah, I do. Why don't we go to the beach?"

Papa thinks for a moment, then shrugs. "Come to sink of it…" He looks at himself, and we examine each other.

Papa is in cargo shorts, sandals and a floral shirt. I'm in green capris, a black tank and sandals with my hair tied to the side. Russet is even wearing a sunhat.

"Ve're pretty much dressed for it. Schould vee go back to zee house for zee batink suits?"

I contemplate this. "We don't have to. I don't need to go swimming, I can just wade in the water. You?"

"Nah. If it comes down to it, I've got pocket geld."

So we take the long walk to the beach. It takes us over two hours, and we stop to snag some ice cream from a passing truck and sit on a bench.

Finally arriving, I breathe out a sigh of relief. Staten Island, being an island, has its own beaches. But because it's not in the city, the mobs of tourists aren't swarming every inch of the place. Only a few locals have come out to enjoy the fine weather and water. And to be fair, there's so many other things to be doing in the summer. Jogging, bike-riding, fishing, etc. so the local population evenly distributes itself. A few stands dot the beach. Cold drinks, pretzels, hot dogs, shish kebabs. We remove our shoes and relish the feeling of sand beneath our feet.

Russet, being properly cloaked, also enjoys this luxury, es tiny footprints unseen to the mundane world. I break away once in a while to ask a vendor if they're hiring, but the two drag me away and make me promise not to start looking for work until at least a month into the break.

"But I only have 3 months, that's a third of my potential profit I'm not making!"

They overpower me and physically drag me from asking further questions.

Papa gets himself a hot dog, and Russet a basket of fried fish and French fries. Russet offers me some, but I'm not hungry. E tries to sneak a piece of fish into my mouth, asking me if I would like a French fry. Not fooled, I avoid it despite es cajoling. Papa walks behind us, hands in his pockets, cane hanging from his belt loop as Russet and I dodge and jump at the waves.

Russet is puny, and I worry about em getting swept up by the water and me having to dive in to rescue em. But my fears are dissolved when Russet reminds me how swift and lithe e is. Hopping, skipping and even flipping away from the waves. E goes down on all fours and agilely scurries to and fro. While I squeal and tip-toe and run just to avoid getting wet. We do let our feet get wet, Russet having to hitch hike on my ankle, dragging es tail on the sand so the waves can wet es tail. When I go deeper in, Russet climbs higher, hanging emself from my hip. I'm wading in the water, now knee-high with Russet swinging from my pocket to kick es feet in the water.

"Ah. What a day." Russet sighs.

"Isn't it though?" I agree dreamily. To think, I could've avoided years of pain and actually enjoyed my vacations if I had just stayed away from them. Then I feel a twinge of remorse for thinking such a thought.

Papa's voice pulls me from said thought. "Missy! Say cheese!" Papa hollers with a small camera in his hand.

Instinctively, I smile and wave. Russet hops in mid-air just in time for the flash. I wade out of the water. "Papa. Are you allowed to take pictures with Russet in them?"

He waves me off. "Of course I can, I just can't get zee pictures developed at a local spot. I'm not actually goink to print zem. I'm goink to duplicate zee captured images and transfer zem to photo paper vith blue magick. Zen I vill destroy zee camera."

Throughout the day, Papa joins us back in the water, and we have a splash fight. Russet does fall into the ocean, but I only panic for a second, because e swims better than any fish. To make a point Russet squirts water in my face, and coyly dives back down into the water to avoid my grasp.

"How can you see underwater? It's salty." I ask em.

"My eyes aren't made like yours, but I can't see anything through this gunk even with my non-human eyes!"

We take more pictures, order shaved ice and sing songs. Russet and I make a sand castle, with em crowning emself "ruler by divine right" to which I smother em in sand and crush the castle.

"No! My kingdom!" Russet laments dramatically.

"Too bad. Viva la resistance, you miniature tyrant!"

Papa and I write words in the sand. All in German of course, to which passersby scratch their heads at. Silly words like "I bet you can't read this." And "You have no idea what I'm saying." The morning having passed, Russet tuckers out and falls asleep. Papa tucks em into his pocket and we try not to walk too much, so e doesn't have a bumpy ride.

We end the day collecting sea shells as the sun sets. It takes longer than I would like because we have to sort through the throngs of litter to find anything decent. Russet awakens to partake in that. With many little shells crammed into our pockets, our feet sandy, clothes still a little wet. We walk back home again, Papa and I hand in hand, Russet atop his head, craving another nap. The spitting image of a happy family.

"Vat are you goink to do vith zee sea schells Missy?"

"I have a few ideas. Making jewelry is probably the most expected. But I could also craft charms, maybe structure them to form some sort of sculpture."

He grins and rubs the top of my head. Papa has always been my biggest fan when it comes to my work. The walk home is long enough for Russet to feel refreshed. We all make a break for the showers, then I prepare tonight's dinner of original bratwurst, which are large and grilled on the stovetop in a potato-bread roll. With a side of coleslaw.

"Good night Papa." He bends down to hug me lightly, and we kiss each other on the cheeks.

"Gute nacht, Missy." He says gently.

"Gute nacht, Russet." He waves to em. Papa retires to his room.

Wanting to stay up late, Russet and I enjoy tea in the living room. E sitting atop the piano, me in my armchair.

"Wasn't today marvelous."

I grin. "It was- Russet?"

Then a smile creeps upon es face. "I don't think I've ever seen you smile so much."

"Um. I've been happy." I tilt my head.

"You're different when you're around him, you know. You're not so rigid and uptight. Not so…"

"Stressed?" I answer.

"Exactly. I like it. I wish you could be like this more often."

If I can catch a break nowadays, then I will be. "So do I." I admit.

"Smiling and laughter befits you Lumie."

R-really? Never heard that one before. "Ehehe. Why the compliments all of a sudden?"

E shrugs. "I don't really know, myself. I'm just speaking the truth. I quite like it here myself. The air isn't as clean as at Iris, but around the property itself, it's a very pure space. Reminds me of home."

E must mean es Otherworld home. "Do you ever miss the Otherworld?"

Russet sighs. "No."

"That's it? Just. No?"

"I prefer this world, to be honest. I rather like being surrounded by humans. The sights, the smells, the sounds. Mundane humans are a source of trouble, but brownies have a rich history of coexisting with common folk long before we associated with wizards. And this house is truly a home. I've been exploring it while the two of you sleep at night. I can sense an air of security and comfort."

"Could that have anything to do with the wards Papa and I put around the house?"

Russet awakens. "Making wards already? So that's what it is. What are the terms of the ward?"

I stretch and yawn. "Nothing crazy. Er. Too crazy. Papa and I each poured our feelings into the spell. He was the main spellcaster, but I have my influence. The ward is meant to welcome and protect our loved ones. Friends, family... and to... punish our enemies or intruders." I clear my throat. "Papa said that if anyone tried to force their way in, they would die slowly and painfully. He wouldn't give me the details, so I don't even know what would happen."

Russet frowns. "Verwildert is not to be trifled with."

I whistle. "No he is not."

"Speaking of him." Russet recalls. "Back in the school, he told me about you. About how the two of you met."

I pale and sit up straight.

Russet's face is stern. "You were so young. You're very fortunate to be alive Lumie, let alone untouched."

Don't remind me.