The Witches #9

 Daphne’s bedroom was not like her sisters. A sense of serenity reigned in the private rooms of both Lilac and Tulip, but Daphne’s room held very little anything. It was dark and, for the most part, she kept it that way for even the opening of the door - let alone the curtains or, good grief, a window - was a signal for things to go to hell.

‘Tulle?’ Daphne skidded into the room, dough covering her hands and face rapidly shifting from concern to… well, a wince.

Lilac casually appeared beside her sister and took in the scene silently, spatula in one hand and wooden spoon sticking out of her mouth. She removed it only to say, ‘I knew you should have told her,’ before disappearing, leaving Daphne to get through this on her own.

Tulip didn’t often come into Daphne’s room, simply because Daphne was never there; she’d be in the garden or the kitchen or in their rooms or, more often than not, nowhere to be found. It had been… months, Tulip realised as she sat on the floor trying not to express any number of emotions, screaming foremost. The last holiday they’d been on had been over a year before and even then Daphne had simply dropped her bag and entire wardrobe on Tulip’s bed with a pitiful look.

‘I can explain,’ Daphne said, helplessly wiping her hands on her trousers and wishing Lilac hadn’t left quite so quickly.

‘Can you?’ Tulip whispered, her first words since the crash and yell that had alerted Daphne, mid argument with Lilac, that she no longer had a chance to warn Tulip. The way she said those words, the faint glacial tone in her voice as “can” and “you” were put together made Daphne seriously question the story she had been trying to weave.

‘I… well you’ve met Alphonse,’ she said brightly, rushing forward to stroke the passive phoenix atop what was left of her desk, but she tripped, fell and landed with a thud on the floor, whereupon she was beset by six very small, scratchy and icy cold dragons.

‘How,’ Tulip asked very slowly, ‘do you expect us to go on holiday when you’re hiding six dragons - baby dragons, Daph - not to mention a phoenix in your room? Where have you even been sleeping?’

‘Oh, that’s simple!’ Lilac reappeared, ball of cookie dough in one hand and another portion clearly in her mouth. Daphne gave Lilac a wide eyed, head shaking gesture… which Lilac ignored. ‘She’s set up a camp bed in the cupboard.’

‘The dragons like my bed…’ Daphne admitted, quite possibly because the creatures had stopped clambering over her and were now clambering over each other atop her bed.

‘How didn’t you tell me this?’

‘Us! I only found out about two minutes ago,’ Lilac clarified.

‘Well, I knew we were going on holiday and I didn’t want to make you change your plans… not when it’s so important, but I had to help them! They bonded to me and-‘

‘So what was your plan? Roughly?’ Tulip asked, arms crossed as she noted how one of the dragons had bonded to Daphne’s finger with its teeth. It seemed to have fallen asleep while trying to chew it off.

‘I… didn’t really plan on you doing my packing… I thought they could… come with us?’

‘On holiday?’

‘Yes.’

‘To the beach?’

‘Uh-huh.’

‘Six baby dragons.’ The phoenix cawed. ‘And Alphonse,’ Tulip added, stretching a finger out to the bird who nuzzled it, accepting her apology.

‘Well… it’s not only them.’

Tulip couldn’t help but laugh.

Lilac left to get some more dough.

  The Witches is a serial story, published every week on Thursday/Friday. See you then!