Chapter Text
The clouded-out sun was beginning to set. Drifting snow danced through the air. These things would normally fill Evi with feelings of content and safety, but all she could feel was a nervous excitement. Her sister Amsel, as her close friends and family knew her, was coming back to their hometown, Bad Vigsten, for the festival of the winter solstice. It had been three years since the sisters had seen one another as Amsel moved away. They often talked over the internet but it would never beat the real thing. Online, they both got along great, but after three years of not seeing each other, she was very anxious about the reunion.
Snow crumbled beneath her feet as she walked in circles, looking at the grey sky above her and the white ground below her. Gosh, why am I so nervous? I talk to her all the time! But what if she is different in person after these years? What if she is more anxious, and can hardly talk with me? What if… Her mind was running wild. It was maddening. She kicked the snow and clapped her hands against her head in an attempt to regain composure. As she was finally calming down, she heard the familiar sound of a ringing bell, eventually joined by wheels treading through snow. Evi caught her breath and looked over at the road.
The dim, flickering lights of a bicycle entered Evi's view, her heart rate raising in sync. She brushed some snow off her coat and cleared her throat. After a tense moment, she saw the bike and the woman riding upon it. Although they were sisters, Amsel looked much more delicate than Evi, being smaller and skinnier. Her head was covered in snow, masking her reddish-blonde hair fashioned into braids that resembled a crown. She donned a dark green coat, embroidered with golden around around the hem, that kept her warm in the cold air. It was more than likely she added the golden flowers herself. Amsel's skin was fairly pale, but as Evi was able to get a closer look, she noticed how flushed her sister's face was.
At the sight of her exerted sister, Evi was knocked out of her trance, looking closer to see if she was alright. To her surprise, Amsel was panting like a dog on her bike! The condensation from her breath practically covering her lower face. Evi's eyes widened as Amsel kept riding forward wildly. Realizing what's likely to happen next, she adjusted her stance so she could catch her sister if need be. Evi was dumbfounded as she watched Amsel swerve off the dirt road and clumsily dismount the bike, stumbling towards her like a madwoman.
"Ah!"
"Hm!" Evi grunted. "I've got you." She caught the falling Amsel under her arms. It was sort of like holding a toddler. She stabilized herself, groaning a bit, and she looked down at her exhausted sister.
Amsel expected to be hit with cold snow when she dropped. It was a pleasant surprise to be met with such a soft warmth. She had not felt the embrace of another for quite some time, so she instinctively pushed herself deeper into it. This was made all the more lovely as the surface she pressed against cushioned around her face perfectly. After a moment of bliss, she finally examined her surroundings and quickly realized this comforting surface was her sister's chest.
"Mm!" Amsel yelled, although it was muffled from Evi's coat. In a moment of pure flustered panic she pushed herself off her sister and crashed into the snow. This was more what she expected when she collapsed originally. Upon hearing Evi begin to laugh and laugh, Amsel covered her face with her hands. The snow was freezing but the pain from embarrassment was much, much worse.
Evi walked over to Amsel and poked at her with her boot. "Well, that wasn't exactly the reuniting moment I expected," she laughed again. It had been quite some time since she laughed so hard at anything. Poking her a few more times, she teased, "I hope that my chest was a good pillow." Amsel squirmed at her sister's teasing and couldn't help but get more flustered at the sound of Evi's warm voice. She was like a puddle of panic in the snow as she rolled around recklessly.
After watching the embarrassed Amsel for a moment, Evi poked her once more. "Okay, okay, enough teasing. For now at least." Amsel's hands slowly uncovered her red face. "Get up! I want to hug you and actually greet you, silly." Her extended hand an invitation towards Amsel.
Grabbing Evi's hand, Amsel tutted as she was pulled to her feet. She tried to say some witty remark, but no words formed in her melted brain. "Nice to see you, Amsel," Evi said wholeheartedly, "I missed you."
Amsel tried her best to hide her smile, but it was impossible to hide the pure happiness written all over her face from being with her sister again. Evi's arms trapped Amsel in a warm hug. "Nice to see you too," Amsel whispered. "I really, really missed you." She hugged Evi back with all her might. She never wanted to let go.
Eventually Evi pulled back a bit to look Amsel in the eyes. "It's really great to see you again." A big, warm, honest smile was on her face as she looked at Amsel, who had the very same smile. After a moment, Amsel's expression became mischievous as she pushed forward and tried her best to crash Evi down into the snow. Evi grunted a bit but barely moved as she wrapped Amsel in a tighter hug. "Did you really think that would work? You can't tackle me down, Amsel, I've only gotten stronger since you left."
Amsel had pushed past her embarrassment was getting a lot more comfortable. "Stronger? Geez, find that hard to believe."
At that remark, Evi picked her sister up effortlessly as they hugged, spinning Amsel around in her arms. Amsel laughed and wiggled in excitement. In this moment, it really sunk in for Evi how much Amsel had missed her. After a bit more spinning and laughing, Evi put Amsel back down and gave her hair a careful scuffle.
Amsel recoiled a bit. "Hey! Don't mess up my hair. These braids take a long time to get right." She touched up her hair delicately.
"Don't worry, I was careful." Evi stepped closer and looked over her sister's head to make sure her hair was okay. "You're all good," she smiled, "and even if I did mess it up, I could braid it back for you, like old times."
Amsel scoffed, blushing as her sister loomed over her in examination, "As if! You don't know how to braid hair like I do, Evi," she pointed at Evi's hair which boasted one loose braid.
"Only one way to learn!" Evi said. "Plus, I remember very fondly that you love when I braid your hair." she looked down at the snow. "Or, loved, I guess. Been a while."
Amsel frowned. It had been a while. Far too long for either of them. She gave a scrunched smile as she tried to lighten the mood, "well, we are here now. Let's make the most of this," she poked at Evi. "When the main festival events are over, I promise I'll let you braid my hair."
Like a lamp amongst the dim snow, Evi lit up in excitement. "Yay!" she cheered. "Sounds like a great time! We can drink, relax, and I can braid your hair as we talk." Evi watched as snow fell and melted on her sister's face. "So come on! We should get to the festival, it'll be the main offering soon and I'm sure dad and people would love to see you!"
Amsel's mouth gave a soft smile as their dad was mentioned. "Sounds great but let's wait a bit more. I'm still exhausted, and we have to haul my bike back to town." They were on the outskirts of town. It was about a ten-minute walk through the snow and forest to get to Bad Vigsten.
Evi nodded, "sounds good, but take it easy next time you are biking to me! It's not like I'm going to run away from you or something." The little wooden bench next to the road squeaked under her weight as she sat down. She pat the spot next to her.
Amsel walked over and took a seat right beside her. "I know, but I just get so excited to see you." Her face went red, clearly from something other than exhaustion. "You are my best friend and my sister and… I missed you a lot."
"I missed you too, Amsel." She pat her sister's thigh softly. "I missed you so much." Looking up at the small covering above them, she said, "let's just relax for a bit, recover both physically and verbally. We'll have plenty more time to catch up later, and this will be like old times, minus hiding away from our angry parents."
Amsel looked up as well, although looking at the small lone lamp beside them. "Yeah, sounds nice. I like spending silent time with you."
The sisters both continued looking up at all the surrounding wonders from the lamp to the covering to the trees, the snow, the sky, and occasionally each other. Amsel was taking in the moment and trying her hardest to recover. Her mind was a shallow stream of thought, constant movement yet no depth. Evi, on the other hand, was deep in the trenches of her mind. I'm so happy that she is being so open and energetic, Evi thought, last I saw her, even with me, she sometimes struggled with a conversation. Maybe she has gotten better with this sort of stuff.
Suddenly, Amsel poked Evi's side. "We should probably get going now. We don't want to miss the main events, or not get there in time to see everyone."
Evi let out a deep breath as she looked up, estimating the time. "Sounds great! Do you want to hold the bike as we go, or should I?"
"Mm… Could you roll it?" She groaned as she stretched, "you are much stronger than me, as we know." She chuckled, getting the bike off the ground and walking it over to Evi.
Evi grabbed the bike's handle and brushed some snow off it. "You are right about that, unless you've been working out at your fancy school." They started to walk off from the old road towards the town.
Amsel scoffed as she looked at the ground in front of her, "that doesn't sound much like me at all, does it?" They kept on walking through the snowy trail, guided by old wooden fences at the sides, though nature had reclaimed much of them already. Amsel bit her lip and blushed a bit as she looked at Evi beside her, "um, when we get to the festival, do you think it'd be possible if you could maybe do most the talking?"
"There's the sister I know and love. I was worried you suddenly became a people person at that school of yours," she said as she grinned. "I want you to improve and not worry so much, but I would be lying if I said I didn't miss having you rely on me like that when things got social."
At the word love, Amsel's face got red again. She couldn't figure out why she was being so affected by Evi's teasing today, and chalked it up to how long its been since they've been with each other. Amsel made a few jokingly mocking noises, then said, "Thanks, Evi," her voice clear and sincere.
"No problem, I'd do anything for my little sister, even if she is a little bundle of anxiety." Evi patted her shoulder.
"Anything?" Amsel said under her breath—unsure herself why she said it.
"Hm?"
"Oh, nothing, sorry." She backtracked.
The two sisters kept walking through the increasingly dark forest. The snow and trees made for a very pleasant atmosphere, made even more cosy by the occasional lamp still lit. It was a calm walk that they both needed together. The only excitement so far being a small unkindness of ravens and a hare that ran across their path. Amsel couldn't be happier to be home.
After a few minutes of walking, however, they got to a point on the trail that they couldn't forget. They both slowed down and looked to the side of their path. It was a small, almost completely hidden trail leading into a denser part of the forest. They stood in silence for a moment before one of them spoke up.
"Did you want to say hi?" Evi asked with a small voice.
Amsel took a deep breath and nodded. At her nod, Evi put the bike against a tree and they both diverged from the main trailway together towards the path. It was a thin trail dense with trees and thick brush. Each step came with a crunch from the buildup of snow. As they got to the end of the trail they could see a familiar small clearing. It was only big enough for one person to sit down, so Evi stopped right before and leaned against a tree, letting Amsel through.
At the end of the clearing was a strong tree, and at its base was a small, rounded woodblock, covered in snow. Amsel knelt down before the tree and began to brush the snow off the woodblock. As she brushed, some detailed and delicate carvings became visible, that of a feather, a bird's foot, and the moon. In front of the woodcarving was a small bowl, also covered in snow, and as she brushed it off she noticed dried herbs. They were old and withered but it was clear that they were somewhat recent.
Amsel looked back at Evi and asked, "Have you been taking care of Lotte for me, Evi?"
Evi blushed a bit. She had never been into anything spiritual or occult and was fairly embarrassed to be—due to past trauma. "Well, yeah…" She said, fidgeting with her fingers. "I knew that if you were here, you'd be taking care of it, so whenever I'm nearby and have time I try to clean things up and bring whatever I remember you used to bring." She looked away. "I liked them too, you know. Even if I don't know if this would matter to them anymore, I still come here to remember them and… to think about you."
Lotte was one of Amsel's dearest friends and companions. She was a blackbird who Amsel had found malnourished and chose to nurse back to health. When Lotte was back in good shape Amsel let her go, but the two formed a connection and Lotte chose to stay in the area with Amsel. Lotte is even the reason that Amsel is called Amsel, the name meaning blackbird, by those who are close with her. After Lotte passed away, her family and friends stopped calling her Amsel, and rather called her by her chosen name Esther. However Amsel decided she wanted to honour Lotte and their connection, so she asked them to keep calling her Amsel, and it became her primary name with those who she trusted.
All of a sudden, Amsel got up and hugged Evi with all her might. Evi returned the hug without a second thought. She heard light sobs coming from Amsel, in which she tightened her hold and rested her face against her sister's shoulder. "Thank you. Thank you so much, Evi," Amsel said against Evi's coat. After a long moment of hugging, she lifted her head to look up at Evi. "This really means everything to me. Thank you for caring about me, and thank you for caring about Lotte."
Evi was beginning to tear up as well. "Of course, of course," she said as she let any tears flow freely. "I said I'd do anything for you, didn't I?" Softly and slowly, she planted a kiss on Amsel's forehead. "You mean so, so much to me, Amsel." Evi considered saying more, but she couldn't find the right words for how she truly, deep down, felt. Instead she decided to slowly start sliding down the tree with Amsel. They both held each other, surrounded by snow, yet kept warm between their shared heat.
The snow kept drifting down onto them as they held one another. The only sounds either of them could hear being the sound of their own tears. After a little while, Evi patted Amsel's back, "we should get going, all right? We don't want to miss the festival."
Amsel sniffled and nodded, "I know…" She slowly pushed herself a bit away from Evi, still sitting between her legs, and looked into her eyes. "Thank you for that, I needed it."
Evi gave her sister a warm smile and nodded. "Of course, I needed it too." She wiped her own tears away, then softly wiped Amsel's away as well. They both started to get up. "There will be more where that came from after the festival," she said as she brushed the both of them off. "Come on, lets go see some friends." Evi extended her hand at her, and Amsel gladly accepted. The sisters began to walk back to the from Lotte's shrine, crunching through snow hand in hand.