Silence. A thick silence hung in the air of my room as I sat at the edge of my bed. It was chilling and sharp, causing my chest to burn incessantly.

Amity, our baby sister; that's all I or my twin brother sitting next to me could think about. She was here with us this morning, and she was gone by this afternoon. The dulling shock that had stunned us on our way home from school had begun to slip away. Replacing the feeling was a dull ache that made everything feel heavy, even the air I was breathing.

Sure, our relationship wasn't all lovey-dovey. Amity did have a very bad habit of telling our mom and dad about every little thing my brother and I did wrong, and I mean every little thing. She was a huge stickler for the rules, and, for some reason, she would get especially pissed when we did something bad.

But my other sibling and I didn't take too much offense to that. One: it was kinda funny to see Amity try and act mature while her face lit up like a torch and two: she was family. No matter how much trouble she got me in, I still loved her no matter what. And I knew that, despite her small patience with us, Amity loved us too.

On the flipside, Amity had her own… grievances, yeah let's call it that, with me and my brother. We had quite the habit of stirring up chaos in Bonesburrow. And while we would usually focus our talents on our teachers and other prudes, Amity was our most frequent victim what with her living with us and all.

While she wasn't gullible, it was just so easy to get her upset. All we really needed to do was call her "Mittens" and her face would ripen like a fine tomato, but my twin and I liked to have a little more fun with her.

Titan, I already missed messing with Amity and we had just found out about her passing two hours ago. I missed seeing her face scrunch up when she got angry. I missed hearing her screaming at the both of us whenever we unexpectedly popped into her room.

I missed having her curl into my arms as I comforted her from a night terror. I missed finally hearing her laugh after countless efforts of trying to cheer her up. I missed how she would slip us food after midnight when my brother and I were sent to bed early without supper. It usually started with a lecture from her, but it ended with her admitting that she didn't want to see her siblings go hungry.

All of that was gone. Amity was gone.

When I closed my eyes, I was brought back to a table at Hexside, back to that day's history class.

My brother was beside me, looking like he was about to fall asleep. His head was resting on the palm of his hand while his arm prevented him from slumping over. I could see his golden eyes flutter open and close as he fought to stay awake. I was doing the same, though I used both of my arms to hold up my head.

Then, a second later, the both of us were scrambling to fix our posture. Our attention shot towards the front of the room as a slightly muffled voice rang through the classroom. I can't remember exactly what it said, but it basically called both my brother and I to the healer's office.

I quickly glance back to my brother. The green haired witch just looked at me and shrugged. We were used to hearing our names over the intercom, but we had never been called down to the healer's office before. Both my twin and I agreed never to cause any trouble there. We loved messing with people, but it wasn't fun when sick/hurt people were involved. Believe it or not we had standards.

And even if we did do something there, we wouldn't be called down to the healer's office but instead be sent to the principal's office. Oddly enough, it didn't sound like we were in trouble. It sounded like the opposite, like someone else was in trouble.

"You think'n what I'm think'n Ed?" I asked my twin before closing the classroom door behind me.

"That we ended up sleep vandalizing again?" he questioned back slyly.

"I don't think it's that... yet. I'm thinking Mittens got a bit banged up" I answered while I gently rolled my eyes. Ed stared at me with a smile while I gave him one back.

"You think she got into a brawl with someone. You know our sis secretly loves throwing hands with people" he laughed.

Now, he wasn't being serious, but what he said was true. Amity was known to occasionally get a little... aggressive.

"Of course. Remember what she did to the maildemon when she was four?". I elbowed Ed gently in the side. "He refused to go anywhere near the manor for a year. '' I chuckled.

"To be fair, Em, we did tell her he was trying to break in," my twin pointed out while he held up his pointer finger, jokingly trying to look serious. "Still scary to think a four-year-old could tear the antlers off of a full-grown demon, though".

I let out a "psh" as I slightly waved off what Ed just said.

"They grew back," I laughed.

My smile then faltered a bit, which Ed noticed right away. He slugged me on the shoulder causing me to give my attention to him.

"Hey. She's fine, Em. Now, the guy she beat up, that's who I'm worried about" he laughed reassuringly. I tried to give him a confident look back but failed. I grabbed my dark green braided hair and lightly twirled it around my finger. What if Edric was wrong? What if Amity really was badly hurt?

What if she got into a fight with someone much stronger than her? Yes, she was feisty and was amazingly good at conjuring abominations for her age, but, when it came to casting other spells, she still used a training wand for Titan's sake.

Before Ed could say anything else, we reached the door to the healer's office. I hesitated for a moment, but Edric just walked right in, his usual grin rested on his face. I closely followed him, trying to look just as confident.

Both our confidences plummeted once we heard the greeting from our very exasperated mother. The look on her face was all too familiar. She was tiredly frustrated, like she was accepting that she put her faith in the wrong witch.

Who was this incompetent witch she was so disappointed in? We could only guess. Who knew, she could have been annoyed at all three of us or even the healer possibly.

Though, mom's angry frown couldn't completely hide her anxiety. To the common eye, she seemed to be as rigid and composed as she always was. But everyone who lived under the same roof as the businesswitch could see that she was more than just vexed. She was scared.

My gawk then turned to my father. My heart dropped to the floor when I saw the grief in his tired golden eyes. He kept a composed look on his face, just barely though. His brown hair was more deshelled than it usually was, like he had been grasping at it, and his dark colored coat was covered in large scarlet spots. It wasn't visible, but you could just feel the pain seep off of him.

"Edric, Emira, I'm sorry you two have to do this so soon, but…". Our father stopped.

His sadness peaked through his tired look of apathy. I could see his gaze shift uncomfortably while he thought about what to say.

The more the silence stretched on the shallower my breath got. If it was making the calm yet powerful Alador speak so non-matter-of-factly, then whatever we were in here for was a lot worse than I had imagined.

Oh, great Titan. Amity was hurt. Amity was really hurt.

"Go ahead, Alador. Tell them '' my mother whispered. Her voice was uncharacteristically gentle.

At that my father let out a deep sigh. He closed his eyes and bowed his head toward the ground so he wouldn't have to see our reaction to what he had to say next.

"We called you two down here so you could say goodbye to your sister. She is currently on life support but, seeing as her chances of recovery are nonexistent, she will be taken off of it very soon" Alador explained.

I think my heart stopped for a moment. I was prepared to hear that Amity was badly hurt… but that. Titan, I could have never been prepared for that.

Our sister, little Mittens, was going to die. And I was being forced to say goodbye right then, at that very moment. I couldn't run away from it. I... Titan, I...

"There has to be something we can do!". I turned to Edric who had his fingers tangled in his short hair. "Can't we take her to one of those fancy healer's clinics outside of Bonesburrow? She can't be-". The distraught witch was cut off by our mother's howl.

"Edric Blight! Do not speak to your father like that!" the witch snapped. Her voice then calmed into her usual gathered tone. "You heard your father. Sadly, your sister's stomach was severely damaged when she was injured. Even if she hadn't lost as much blood as she did, there's nothing any witch can do to save her. The healers are willing to keep her alive long enough for us to say goodbye but only for a small amount of time. We don't want to prolong Amity's suffering for longer than we have to".

Edric opened his mouth to respond, but I gave him a warning glare, which he thankfully noticed. He then bowed his head to our mother and father, before slipping through the curtain Amity was behind. I did the same, though not before releasing the tension in my chest out with an inaudible sigh.

Nothing in the Boiling Isle, or in any other realm, could ever make the sight of Amity laying there with a mask made from healing magic on her face bearable. She looked so pale and frail, like her life had slowly been bled out of her.

Her gasping breaths were very far between. When she did take a breath, her chest would swell up, causing her back to slightly lift off the bed, before she momentarily went limp, and her chest clasped in her dead weight. All the while haunting moans escaped her throat.

The sight, the sound she made, the entire situation was one of the most hellish things I ever had to experience. I was able to hold my tears in while in front of my parents, but I couldn't stop them from running down my face once I saw the shape Amity was in.

I grabbed her small frozen hand. Both Edric and I stared at her for a moment that felt like eternity. Finally, Edric spoke.

"Mittens" he started before he weakly began to laugh. He lightly ruffled our sister's disheveled hair with a joking smile. "Come on. You know I had to call you that one more time". A light sob slipped out in the form of a chuckle. I could see an amalgamation of love, nostalgia, and sadness shine in his eyes.

"Look. I know we've had our fair share of falling outs but… please, sis". Edric stared down at green-ette. His remaining fragment of confidence seeped away, making the poor witch quiver.

"Em and I care about you". Edric lowered his voice to a whisper. I almost didn't hear what he said next. "You're one of the only good things to have ever come out of this stupid family. I...love you. I always will".

A smaller moment of silence haunted the air before Edric took a step away from the bed. He gave me a hesitant glance to signify that it was my turn to say something.

"Amity," I said after I let out a deep breath. I squeezed my sister's hand as hard as I could. "You know, we didn't tease you to hurt you. We only did it to spend more time with our strong baby sister the way we knew how to. You always studied so hard and were always so worried. We thought that we could pressure you into having fun, into breaking some rules like we do. We wanted you to have more freedom than our damn parents ever gave you".

I felt a tear drip off of my chin causing me to quiver. It was like it reminded me even more of the awful sadness controlling my every thought. It took all of my strength to continue instead of completely breaking down. "But we failed you. I failed you. You weren't happy and now it's too late for us to help you. I… I wish you could hear me, but you can't because I failed to protect you!".

I stopped for a moment to calm myself down, making sure to slow my breathing. I liked to think I was a very chilled out person but who could stay calm during a time like this. All the things I needed to say to Amity she could no longer hear. All the things I was saying were falling on nearly dead ears.

But I had to say it. I had to let the truth out even if it was too late.

"I love you, Amity. And… I'm so sorry that I wasn't a better sister to you" I sighed. I rubbed my thumb against her limp hand as I whispered a final goodbye.

I felt a hand delicately land on my shoulder, the small pressure eased my pain slightly. I slowly loosen my grip on Amity's hand, as another moment of silence, this one being agonizingly long, began.

Minutes felt like hours as my brother and I just soak in our sister's presence for one last time. The only sound that filled the air was Amity's moaning. None of us could utter another word; the silence just spoke so much more.

Finally, our father walked behind the curtain with our mother close behind him. As soon as they both moved to the other side of Amity's bed, I fully let go of my sister's hand.

Our five minutes were up. It was time to let Amity slip away.

I took one last look at her while she was still alive then closed my eyes and waited for the moment to be over.

"Emira". Edric's soft call broke me away from my horrible memory. My golden eyes stay pointed towards the floor, but I flick my ear to signify I heard him.

"Mom's calling us downstairs".

I let out an annoyed sigh. Edric slowly got up, his gaze not moving from me, and offered me a hand. I happily took it. Though I wasn't too happy about getting up, I was thankful for my sibling's support.

Edric began to walk out my bedroom door, but I slowed him to a stop by grabbing his shoulder.

"Wipe the tear trails off your face. Don't want mom to know you were crying". I grew silent while my twin did as he was told.

We stood there in a moment of preparation. Usually our mother's ramblings were tolerable, but, after the awful afternoon we just had, listening to the gigantic fit about the family's image was going to be unbearable.

"If she tries to turn this into a publicity stunt, so help me Titan" I growled to myself.

She did seem to show a small bit of grief when she stood at the side of Amity's bed. She had her hand intertwined with the young witches' and was even rubbing the back of it with her thumb. I could swear I even saw a tear fall down her cheek when they announced her daughter's time of death. It was subtle enough that you had to look closely to see it but it was there.

She was very good at hiding her emotions in order to look professional, too good in fact. Even when we had entered the privacy of our own home, she expertly stifled any sign that she truly cared about Amity in any way, shape, or form. It sent a chill down my back. It made me wonder how much Amity's passing had really affected her. It had affected her, that didn't surprise me, but how much and in what way was a mystery.

"The walls of her bedroom will be the only ones that'll see her cry over this" I sighed silently.

While we headed down the stairs, our mother called us into our dining room. Her voice was as sugar-coated as ever. It took what little energy I had left to push back my growing anger. Even at a time like this she still acted sickeningly sweet.

When we both eventually crept into the chandelier lit dining room, we were greeted by our mother's back which was rigidly straight and slightly away from the seat back. She was settled in her usual seat at the end of our enormously long dining room table. One of her ears flicked in greeting and she gently put her folded hands onto the table.

Without hesitation we joined her, Ed sitting to her left and I sitting to her right. Our eyes were glued onto our mother, so much so that we didn't even know that someone was sitting at the other end of the table.

"You called us, mom?" Edric began. She shut her blue eyes before nodding slightly.

"Yes, dear" she acknowledged back. "I called the three of you here to give you some exciting news".

My brother tilts his head, inaudibly asking what our mother meant. My focus turned from my mother towards the rest of the table.

Mom was right. There were three of us besides her. There was another smaller witch sitting at the other end of the table. Our golden eyes locked, mine wide in shock while the other witch's were bashfully squinted. She gave me a sheepish wave when she noticed me gawk at her.

No. No way! That witch was no ordinary house guest! That witch was…

"Amity?". My voice was quiet, but my surprise was clear. Edric turned his head towards me, confusion still plastered on his face. He gave me a "huh?" before quickly following my stare to the end of the table.

Then his golden eyes grew as large as I had ever seen them. An amazed smile sprouted onto him. I could see him slightly shake as he fought the urge to shoot up and embrace his dead sister.

"Shut up! You're actually here, Mittens? We missed you!" he shouted in excited relief. Amity's uncomfortable expression turned into a puzzled one. She didn't speak but I heard her loud and clear. "You did?".

"We missed you a lot. You don't know how happy we are to see you again" I confessed with a reassuring grin. I was tempted to go off on this huge speech about how we both loved her despite our differences, but I thought against it rather quickly. It would've overwhelmed my little sister, so I opted with just adding on to what Ed said.

"Yeah. Who's gonna keep me and Em outta trouble?" Ed continued jokingly. His look of excitement slunk into a sly smirk. I teasingly rolled my eyes before I made my jab.

"And who's gonna help me keep our annoying brother in check" I scoffed with a smirk of my own.

"Yikes" Edric replied a little less smoothly. "First Amity gets stabbed, and now I'm getting burned".

If looks could kill, I would have two ghost siblings. Seriously! Edric was so dense! I wanted to jump out of my chair and smack him as hard as I could! But then mom would start ranting so I stayed put.

I then looked over at Amity to see she surprisingly looked calm, her expression being apathetic.

"How long was I out?" she questioned composedly.

"About two hours" Edric answered like he didn't just joke about our sister's traumatic death. Amity's apathy sunk into tired disappointment. I let out a small laugh as I looked at her deadpanned scowl.

"Really?" she dryly huffed.

"In our defense, Mittens, we did think we were never going to see you again". The words were meant to be joking in tone, but they ended up coming out softer than I intended.

Both Edric and Amity frowned. Amity opened her mouth to respond but our mother, who we all totally forgot was in the room, let out an "ahem".

"If you three are finished with the family reunion, I would like to start discussing what I actually called you here for" she announced with the usual "patient" smile on her face.

All three of our attentions snapped towards our mother. Her eyes lit up and she went into what I and my siblings called saleswitch mode.

"As you can see, despite the deadly mishap from earlier, Amity is present with us. It was very difficult to bring her here today, but I managed to connect our dear Mittens to our world via this amulet".

As she spoke, she lifted up the magenta-colored necklace resting elegantly on her chest. She promptly displayed it, turning it left to show Edric, right to show it to me, then bringing it back to the middle to bring Amity's attention to it.

"The stone is made from the same crystal that oracles use to communicate with spirits, but we are not just merely communicating with Amity. Your sister is currently infused with this enchanted element" she continued.

None of our expressions change with that explanation. We didn't know what difference it made that Amity possessed the necklace instead of being summoned. She'd still be able to leave once she wanted to, right?

"Now, Edric, Emira. Pay close attention to this next part. With simple commands you can easily allow your sister to appear and roam at close proximity and encase her back to this gem at whim. For instance,". Our mother cleared her throat so she could give the command clearly.

"Amity, cower".

All three of us just gawked at our mother in confusion. "Cower"? Now, I was no expert, but I'm pretty sure that "cower" was one of the commands a witch would use on an abomination. An abomination, as in, the mindless goop puppets my father and sister ordered around.

I shot a glance over at Ed who was shooting a glance back at me. I could practically hear what he was thinking. "This is messed up".

I gave him a nonchalant shrug. It was messed up, but this was mom we were talking about. This was the woman who had put a tax on our allowance since we were six.

I was abrasively shoved out of my thoughts by a sudden purple light. A confused holler lured my attention over to Amity who was now just a giant magenta flame. As quick as the fire had lit, it extinguished, leaving the spot at the end of the table vacant.

Edric and I had another silent conversation before our mother drew our gazes back towards her necklace by continuing her presentation. She, not surprisingly, had the same enthusiastic smile on her face, not at all phased by her youngest daughter burning up and disappearing.

"By giving Amity this command, you send her back inside of this charm. Don't be concerned for your sister. I'm not sure exactly what kind of environment she will experience in there, but I do know that she is safe and awake" she explained while grasping the now a bit shinier stone. "You can even communicate with her. All you need to do is grab the stone and talk, though if you are a skilled oracle like I am you can communicate silently with her".

A shiver ran down my spine. It seemed like she had forgotten who she was talking to when she was finishing her last thought. She knew she was explaining something to two illusionists not presenting a sales pitch to a group of witches with many different talents, right?

"Amity" our mother called after gripping the gem a little harder.

"Mom?" our sister answered genuinely flustered. "What happened? One minute I was at the table and now I'm in some purple room".

"Don't stress, dear. You are safely in your proper holding place. Here you will be able to rest until you are summoned again". Mom's voice hadn't left work mode as she reassured Amity. Even though our sister wasn't at the table anymore, she was still being presented to.

Mom went back to addressing us but kept her fingers on the gem so we could hear Amity respond.

"To resummon Amity, you simply have to give her the associated command. Amity, rise". Within seconds after the command was given, the chair at the end of the table lit ablaze. A moment passed before the flames flickered away, uncovering a mildly shocked Amity.

"Now, Amity dear. When you have no task to complete, you will be allowed to roam the manor as you like. Beware, though, that if you misbehave or show any attitude you will be sent back into the amulet until your attitude changes". It was Amity's turn to shiver. Even when she was dead, mom had a screwed-up way to punish her.

How much was it gonna take for her to finally catch a break? She was supposed to be chilling out in the spirit realm not running around like a cockatrice with his head cut off doing a bunch of mom's chores.

"Hope mom doesn't do this if Ed and I suddenly die" I thought while shooting yet another glance at Edric. This time though, his eyes refused to leave our mother.

"You will also be placed there while we are transporting you to a different location. Most spirits living on the isles or summoned by oracles have been spirits for all of their existence. It is rare and quite alarming when the spirit of a witch or demon still lingers here after their demise. So, you will only be allowed out of your new chamber in the mansion or while on assignment" our mother explained, speaking so quickly it was kind of hard to comprehend everything she just said.

Amity seemed to understand it enough, though. Her glazed golden eyes gave our mother a devastated pleading stare. She was able to keep herself from hollering in dismay but her struggle to do so was visible.

"Uh, mom?" I called before Amity could say something. "Perhaps, in her available time that is, we could take Amity to the library. As you know she has an isolated study section provided to her by Malphus. It should be very easy to keep her hidden from the public eye there".

Before mom could refuse, Edric added in, "besides, she could use that time to study. Sure, she can't do magic anymore but… wait she can't do magic anymore, right?". Ed leaned over and murmured the question towards me. I gave him a scowl that grumbled, "get on with it, Ed". He then continued after snapping back upright again.

"But, even if she can't do magic, she can study to help her be one hundred percent efficient when doing... the thing… that you're going to have her do". It was amazing how Edric kept his usual nonchalant tone all the way through his oh so graceful ramble.

"Ah, yes. Perhaps I should explain what Amity's new position in the family business will be. In fact, I should give you your first assignment now, Mittens" mom smiled.

"Tomorrow evening Edric and Emira will escort you to the Ovis estate. The Ovises have been very uncooperative with us during our last couple gatherings. They don't seem to trust Blight Industries to properly compensate them for a handful of their daughter companies. So, Amity, it's your job to help them see things our way".

Our mother's grin then turned almost devilish. "Try to kindly persuade them to sell us the daughter companies we wish to acquire for the price we are graciously offering them. They should see how wonderful the deal is eventually, though if they still refuse our offer then you may have to take some more mortiferous course of action".

"You want Amity to murder someone?" Edric asked, basically summing up everything mom just said.

"I don't want her to harm the Ovises, but if things dwindle down to it then, yes, I am asking Amity to take some drastic measures. As cruel as it sounds, that's how it works in the business world" the older witch responded coolly. She did lose her enthusiastic smile, but she still spoke like she was asking something normal of Amity.

Amity began to stammer. "What… mom… I just… n-".

Amity was once again cut off by my rapid call to mom. I had to say something before Amity finished. If she wouldn't have been interrupted, she would have said something she would have gravely regretted.

"I thought you said we were keeping Amity's presence a secret. What if one of the Ovises tell someone about seeing her. I mean, ghosts of former witches are rare but it's not unbelievable".

"That is a valid concern, Emira, but it's a concern I have already thought of" our mother "reassured" me.

Her blue eyes never left my sister. You could see she was intensely searching for any sign of an objection from Amity herself.

"To prepare for your mission, I will summon a spirit to teach you how to stay invisible as well as interact with objects. As for your voice, I don't think you will need to disguise it. The Ovises have met you, but I doubt they remember what your voice sounds like''.

Of course, mom had thought of that. I knew she had before I questioned her about it. She knew that sending Amity to spy and attempt to assassinate her business rival wouldn't be simple and that a lot of problems could arise. Yet, I still had to say something. Amity needed a voice while she was left nearly speechless.

"So, Amity will be living both here and the spirit realm?" Edric asked. He knew the answer but asked hoping that he could somehow make mom see how crazy this all sounded.

Based on what mom was saying, it seemed like she wasn't going to allow her daughter to even visit the spirit realm, instead forcing her to stay here like she was still alive.

Amity couldn't have been okay with this. From the way she had flinched when mother told her she wasn't allowed in public, she obviously wasn't. But oracles didn't need a ghost's consent to summon them and, though the ghost was free to leave after being summoned, our mother would probably keep summoning poor Amity until she agreed to stay here.

"No. No. She cannot visit the spirit realm at all. Though it's not impossible, it would be very hard for us to take her there.

You see, if she wants to go anywhere, she will have to get permission and an escort from one of us. Her soul is linked with this amulet. She cannot stray far from it, and if it gets damaged then so will Amity" Mom explained nonchalantly.

Wow... I wasn't expecting that. I figured Amity was here against her will, but she literally couldn't leave this realm? Hell, now that I thought about it for a moment, she couldn't even go outside without one of us! For Titan's sake, how was mom ok with this?!

Both Ed and I glanced over at our sister. She was trying her best to keep her composure but was miserably failing. She looked mortified and I couldn't blame her.

I shot Amity a soft glance. Just like Edric, she too could easily have a silent conversation with me.

"I'm sorry, Mittens. Who knew mom could get this insane" I quietly told her.

No. This wasn't just insane! Forcing your daughter back from the dead was insane. Forcing your daughter back from the dead and then using her to kill your rivals, that was downright disturbed!

Amity's shoulders slightly relaxed. She gave me a thankful smile with her eyes. I softly released a held in deep breath. For a moment, relief washed away the tension I was feeling.

She trusted us. It had been so long since the last time she trusted us. Hell, it had been so long since anyone in this family had trusted me, aside from Ed of course. Mom always acted as if I was inadequate, dad barely spoke to me, and Amity saw me as yet another obstacle. To see that, even for a split second, Amity saw me as a sister again caused my heart to swell a bit in my chest.

"Well, you three have had a very long day and will have another long day tomorrow. You may now retreat back to your rooms" mother stated before the three of us could say anything more about the situation. Daintily, she rose from her spot at the table and turned her back towards us.

She paused for a moment before adding, "Oh, and try not to let your father know Amity is here. I don't want his emotions to affect his work more than they already have". With that she strutted away, leaving the three of us stunned.

Finally, I rose from my seat and let out a sigh. My eyes turned to Amity. "We can hang out in my room if you still wanna talk. We don't need to talk about… whatever the hell that just was if you don't feel like it" I offered.

Amity had her head slightly ducked down as she stared into nothing. She appeared to be deeply submerged in her thoughts. Edric and I let her think, not making another sound until she was ready to respond. Amity then shook her head and snapped her attention forwards.

"Uh… yeah. Talking sounds nice" she answered reservedly.

"Great" Edric piped before clapping his hands together. He rose from his chair. "Actually, this gives us the perfect chance to tell you about our heartfelt goodbye speeches. You weren't awake for them last time, Mittens, so we're gonna have to redo them".

"Huh" Amity neutrality responded. "Mom was wrong. I am in the spirit realm". I furrowed my brow. Amity took in our confused reactions before continuing.

"I mean, I'm in hell, clearly" she clarified curtly.

I couldn't hold in my laughter. It leapt out of me with the force of a runaway ratworm. The calm delivery, her indifferent expression, it was killing me. Who knew prissy little Mittens knew how to tell a joke

Edric was beaming at her, pride radiating from him. He was obviously loving our sister's sudden sass.

The witchling glared daggers at us, thinking we found her irritation funny. But she soon noticed that we weren't laughing at her embarrassment and anger but instead were genuinely enjoying her moxie.

Her slight trust from earlier returned. Yes, she thought we were obnoxious, nosey, and stupid (her words not mine) but, sometimes, she couldn't help but love us. Our amusement broke her testiness and a half-smile crawled onto her face. Much to her embarrassment a giggle slipped out before morphing into full on laughter.

After the tension left over from the meeting with our mother completely subsided, Amity stood up and began to walk on top of the air if I might add, towards the large wooden staircase. She looked back at us with the usual apathetic visage returning.

"Com' on you two" she sighed. "You need to catch me up on the two hours I missed". She didn't think we noticed but we definitely saw the small smile that remained.