For Apollo Wings, who has been asking since the start for Pinocchio.

Thanks for all your patience, guys.

When You Wish Upon A Star (Pinocchio) – The Hawke Siblings

A small snuffle came from the bed next to Marian after Mother left the room. The sound continued for a few minutes, before an even smaller voice emanated from the corner –

"Bethy?"

Carver was sitting up in bed, his wide blue eyes flicking nervously between his twin and his big sister, and Hawke smiled. She stood, tiptoeing over to the source of the whimpering, the itchy wool blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She sat on the edge of Bethany's bed, motioning for Carver to join her.

"You alright, sis?" she whispered, a small hand reaching out to smooth her little sister's hair.

"I don't like it here," came the snuffle from beneath the blanket. "I'm scared."

Marian knew what she meant. She'd been as afraid as Bethany when her own magic had manifested, back when they lived in the Bannorn and the twins were only toddlers. Now it was Beth's turn to feel the fear and self-doubt, and Carver's to hide his fear with courage. He may have been only eight, but he slipped into a solid mask all too easily – except his eyes.

"It's going to be alright, Bethy," he mumbled, perching on the edge of the wooden bed. Bethany had finished dinner and thrown herself beneath her blanket, refusing to look at or speak to any of them; not even Mother.

Marian looked through the window, her hand still stroking Bethany's hair. Nights in Lothering were pretty – the Wilds to the south meant that the sky was always a clear, dark blue, the stars gleaming. She motioned to them now. "Look, Beth, Carver – can you see that?"

Carver, ever the boy, ran to the window and peered into the sky. "What?" he asked, somewhat petulantly.

"That big star up there. Can you see it?"

"Yes! What is it, Mari?"

Marian smiled to herself, remembering Father telling her the same thing when she was their age. "It's a Wishing Star," she whispered, leaving her spot on Beth's mattress to join the little boy at the window.

Carver gasped. "Like Father told us about?" Marian nodded. "Bethy! Come and see the Wishing Star!" he sung, excitedly. "Maybe it'll make you better, and you can wish to be happy again – can't she, Mari?"

"If she wants to." Marian wasn't sure she liked Carver's idea of Beth 'getting better', as if magic were a disease they'd accidentally caught from playing in the woods.

A soft rustle, and a little dark head was at Marian elbow. "Where is it, Mari?"

Marian knelt and pointed at the solid pinprick of light in the distance, like a little diamond on the blue velvet of a noble lady's dress. "Now, close your eyes," she instructed, "and think about your wish."

They twins' faces screwed as they concentrated.

"When you wish upon a star," breathed Marian, the old folk tune blossoming in her mind, "makes no difference who you are – anything your heart desires will come to you."

"Anything?" whispered Bethany, her eyes still tightly closed.

"Anything," Marian repeated. "If your heart is in your dream," she explained, "no request is too extreme – when you wish upon a star, as dreamers do."

Carver's bright blue eyes, the exact same as Marian's – Amell eyes, their Mother said – sprang open, and he looked quizzically at his big sister. "Why?" he asked, slowly. "Is it the Maker? Does he hear our prayers through the stars and make them come true?"

Marian hid a smile. "Maybe," she replied. "That's what the Reverend Mother would say." Bethany's eyes, the same dark brown as their father's, opened now, and the three stood watching the sky. "Fate is kind," reassured Marian. "He brings to those who love –" she squeezed their shoulders, and they looked up, smiling – "the sweet fulfilment of their secret longing…"

For Mother and Father to be happy, she thought suddenly. That's my wish. No more running. No more being scared. Just to be happy. She thought of Mother's tired face, once so beautiful and young; she thought of Father's booming laugh, growing rarer and rarer these days; she thought of Bethany's dark eyes when the fire had blossomed at her fingertips, her horrified shriek; she thought of Carver's tears after the village boys laughed at him for his patched and mended clothes.

"Like a bolt out of the blue," she whispered, her voice catching, "Fate steps in and sees you through." She wished, one more time, closing her eyes like she'd told the twins. "When you wish upon a star," she breathed, "your dreams come true."

The three stood by the window for a moment, until a slight breeze flowed through and made Marian shiver. "Come on," she sniffed, "back to bed."

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What's this? Cate updates?

Don't hate me. I still love you.

Also sorry about this most shocking piece of writing. Will try and improve soon.

xx

Up Next - Merrill wonders what lies in wait just around the river bend.