Title: Treats
Prompt: Advent Calendar (8/25)
Character(s): Jaenelle and Daemon
Word Count: 297
This is perhaps my favorite short to date.
It was the fifth day of Winsol, and instead of waking gently in her husband's arms, Jaenelle woke suddenly, launching herself upright. A card floated three inches from her eyes, suspended by a delicate piece of Craft.
With greedy fingers, she snatched that card from the air and opened it. She read the masculine script three times, her lips forming the words soundlessly, before she vanished the card. Every day, she woke to a card, and every day the card contained a different message.
This one challenged her to find something that floated when clothed and sank when naked.
She didn't talk to Daemon during breakfast. As she hunched over her coffee, protecting it from any wandering fingers, she ran the riddle through her mind. Floats clothed, sinks naked. She registered his amusement only enough to know how smug to be when she figured out the answer. But the answer was elusive at best, and she went to dinner frustrated and annoyed. If she didn't figure out the answer, would the cards stop? She didn't want them to stop. Successfully answering the riddle meant receiving a simple gift. She loved the four gifts she had received, cherished them already.
The fruit plate was set on the table for dessert, and Jaenelle reached for a slice or orange only to find there were no slices of oranges. Just whole oranges.
She stared at the orange, a useless piece of trivia settling into place in her mind. "The skin makes an orange float," she declared triumphantly, holding the orange aloft.
Daemon looked up, a smile on his face. A small box appeared in front of her, and Jaenelle very carefully opened it. Delight suffused her, leaving her warm and content, and she clasped the locket tight to her chest.