Ain't nobody messin' with Mama Muffin

Changes

"I have a question." You said, when you came back with your own cup of tea in your hands.

"Yes?", asked your sister putting her pone away.

"Yesterday you said this house was *built*?"

"Yep. Built from scratch. The entrance was made to look like your old apartment. There's a big garden on the back, and the rest is based on our likes.", she sounded so rich you felt the world difference feeling aggraviate.

"How so?"

"Well, the library goes from the ground to the ceiling, has a ladder and some kind of special place for the puffs and the couches, not to mention the window that lightens the whole room. The kitchen has a mini bar. There's a pond in the garden."

"This family is really rich, aren't we?", you unironically asked, taking another long sip of the warm drink. You got tired of standing and sat on the couch facing the door. You also noticed a blanket left were you slept. You said nothing, but thanked Asta with your eyes.

"Well, yeah, partly thanks to you. You told mom who would become great companies. What the future would most probably bring. Now, thank goodness mom's intelligent, she was able to manipulate things to our advantage."

"Wow, I- that's nice I guess. Tell me more. How did she use the future's information?"

"Well,"- "You say well a lot."

"Oh shut it. Mom does it too., let me finish. The most beautiful play she ever did happened not too long ago actually. It's about the climate change. Just in case you don't know, our company makes green products but also tells who do it and who helps the environment. This, of course, is all part of her plan. We were medium rich at that point. And what she does is she paid scientists to do researches over the forced global warming, but told no one about it. I mean no one like other industries didn't know. And one year ago, BAM, she releases everything at once. In popular journals. Well known for it's seriousness press, magazines, everything. But of course, adapting to the audience. So everyone in the world knows at once what's happening."

Your sister isn't the best story-teller, but it was interesting enough for you to pause everything and just listen, "So, chaos, I presume."

"Totally. And since green companies were listed, just like not-green companies., not-green suffered massive losses of clients, and greens gained shit ton of money. The scientists were overjoyed, let me tell you, we received their thanks, there was a party made whithin y'know, the green scientists community, everyone on the same day, so there was like a huge conference and mini-conferences for the ones that couldn't be there."

Feeling her tea grow cold she put it aside to replenish it later. "Back to the companies. Promises were made by the non green, the green  just boasted. Governments said they would consider the problem. Of course, not long after it went a bit back to normal, not completely, but it lasted maximum one, two good months. But for that moment, Mom, the Allinger company behind,  was a Hero. Our sales went up, like seven not-green suffered massive losses and two straight up disppeared. I personally think it was the right move to show mom as the public image. It showed diversity, y'know. A young, half german, half chilean, not white, divorced woman that became a super badass CEO after leaving her husband, was what the public needed after only seeing old white men in economics, politics and the news."

"Damn.", you stated.

"Definitely. And so yeah, that's why mom stayed there for a bit. For the one year anniversary. The scientists are backing up Mom on putting pressure on the rich."

"Hmmm", you leaned back and rested the back of your head against the couch.

"Climate change is being taken care of. There's global warming, but there are precautions being taken. It's okay."

"Alright.", you said calmly. You closed your eyes, and felt Asta's hand brush your cheek.

"What?"

"You're crying.", she stated, not showing any kind of judgement.

"What? I'm not.", you protested softly, but refused to open your eyes and when you raised your hand to touch your face, it was wet.

You half-sighed, half-laughed, "I just- Global warming was always kind of a promise that we weren't going to have a future. But we grew up with it so we were always kinda 'meh, we'll die anyway fuck life, let's just live and survive', I mean you get the mood."

"But?", your sister sat next to you and took your hand to massage it as an encouragement to continue.

"But I guess it affected  a bit more than that. At some points- at some points it felt like a black hole in the chest. What could we, poor people, do against the profit-minded rich people that basically owned everything. Their actions could save the world so easily, while ours relied on basically useless deprivation, because for it to work, everyone should do it. But to force everyone is only something rich people can do. And they want people consuming, not saving money."

It felt really nice to be able to tell someone without being judged, to be able to be listened to with no repercussions.

"So sometimes it was just, just kind of depressing. Late at night, when you wonder what your life will be, and it's too hot or too cold and bad thoughts are in your mind and you just, don't see the point. But it's at such a minor scale bad feeling that you know tomorrow it won't be there. You want to cry but there's no tears. But you're still scared, but not scared in your legs or your tummy, scared in your chest and heavy in the back of your head. Because you an't do anything against it, even more when you're a child."

You finished with a deep sigh.

"So I'm glad it's being taken care of.", you muttered, "It's relieving."

You two stood there without moving for a while after. It was the awkward moment where you know it's a deep moment, you respect it, but you have to move on.

Your sister broke it announcing that coming back yesterday she acquired a walkman.

"Lovely.", you said with a small grin,"I really want to listen to the cassette."