FD: Birth of a Wishing Heart

9. Waging War

Grizelda was preparing some bread when she heard the victorious cries of soldiers. She ran up to the window, watching as they announced their victory. She dusted her hands on her apron and ran down to the public area. "Mamma! Papa! The war is over! We were victorious!"

Gotto stopped to watch her. She was putting on a display of excitement in front of everyone for them to believe that she did side with them. That way the rumors would lessen and increase the bakery's reputation again. In reality, it was more than that. One side finally winning meant innocent people on both sides would stop dying.

"The Rhioninians surrendered?" A customer stood up and asked rushing to the window.

"It's them! They're back home!" Another who came to pick up a dish exclaimed joyfully.

Milia couldn't help but smile at Grizelda. She had grown to love more than most, despite her lineage. As her caretaker, she couldn't help but be proud.

There it was. They had heard her exclamation, maybe the rumors would stop there. With time and counsel, Grizelda had learned to ignore the rumors. The curse would try to magnify their importance to anger her, but she had chosen to magnify the goodness and love in everything and everyone instead. She was getting better at it. She learned that the more good she did, the less the rumors bothered her, and the less bad people could say about her. She continued to stand there proudly, before nodding at her family and heading up to continue her work privately.

She giggled as she got back to work. "The war is over." She paused thinking it over. "I endured the stress of war and rumors. It's been nearly a year!" she exclaimed. "I really did it!"

As she spoke to herself a dove perched up on the window sill. Grizelda's eyes set on it. It was beautiful. It seemed like a pure dove, without fault or blemish. It chirped a beautiful song that made Grizelda stop and listen. With that, the bird crawled in through the window.

Grizelda cocked her head and attempted to shoo her away. "I'm sorry little one, I can't let you near the bread." The bird flew off causing Grizelda to sigh, before returning with a black feather inside its beak. This startled Grizelda. "You chirp beautifully!" she said heading over. "but I told you, you can't be near..." the bread." The bird wasn't near the bread at all! It wasn't near anything edible, it was just perched on a series of books. It lay the feather down in the middle of two of them. "Okay. well if you don't go near the edibles. I can let you stay."

With that Grizelda continued her work. The chirping continued, longer than she thought it would. Grizelda couldn't help but talk back. "Do you want something little bird?" the sound that came out was something that she wasn't expecting. Two chirps, yet in a different syllable. It was almost as if the bird was trying to respond. Grizelda wondered how to respond to it. She may have been getting distracted by humoring the thought that birds could speak. "I can't give you anything to eat or drink, I'm sorry." She responded. She was greeted with another syllable chirp. Then silence. "Or perhaps you're looking for a friend?" The bird didn't respond.

It waited until Grizelda began putting the bread in the oven. The front was now clear of edibles other than flour. It took a handkerchief laid it down and spread it to not contaminate the counter. When Grizelda turned back she looked at the bird. "It's almost as if you understand me." She muttered quietly. The result was a two-syllable chirp. Grizelda was starting to get a little frightened by it. She decided to repeat the question differently and find a response. "Do you not understand me?" There was a one-syllable chirp. The bird flew to Grizelda, tapping its head over and over at her chest in some sort of rhythm. This confused her. "What are you trying to say to me?" She asked without her usual playful tone.