A Broken, Once Supposed Fairytale

𓆩ƻ𓆪

Dead. The word rang in her head so loudly, mimicking the sirens coming from the ambulances she had just seen few moments ago. But it couldn't be. Her parents couldn't be dead. It must have been a terrible mistake. Yes, that would be it.

But as she turned to look back at Yuuri, to comfort her, the words stopped at her throat, only to have been swallowed back again. Tear tracks still glistened on her little sister's face. She was there with their mother and father in the fire. She'd watched them get scorched by the flames. That was obviously way worse than her. To have witnessed something like that... no, she didn't want to think about it anymore.

She sat back down on her bed, burrowing her head into her knees with her stubby arms wrapped around them. Then, she started to cry. 

Dead. Her parents were dead.

If they were gone, who would be the one to support her through her life? Would she ever hear their words of reassurance again? Until now, Jiyuu had always taken 'happily ever after' for granted. But now, she felt that even if she did find someone who liked her, her happily ever after would never be a fully happy one, for the people who ignited the spark of hope in her had been the ones who had just left her, along with the beautiful flame of hope, which she could feel fading away with her every heartbeat, making her feel cold, lonely and scared again.

But what about Yuuri? She was definitely going through the same things as Jiyuu was, for she was still her sister, and her parents had just died too. It didn't matter even if she was too young to understand. They were the people closest to her.

They would never heard her mother call them sweet nicknames again.

Their father would never pat them to sleep with his warm hands again.

They would never be able to hug them, let alone call their names again.

They would never be able to feel the soft stroking of their hair as they were told stories,

And they would never see the people they loved and cared about most again.

Their happily ever after had gone as easily as their life had changed. 

Where would they live? On the streets? Would they turn out like the poor grandpa begging for money? What about food? Her head felt queasy from questioning so many things at once, she wanted to throw up. But then again, she was powerless, and so weak. All she could do was sob her heart out for their parents.

She felt pathetic.

The next day, Jiyuu and Yuuri left the hospital. It was located a long distance from her apartment, and so they had to walk there by foot. The soles of her feet ached painfully. When they finally reached the apartment, it was a treacherous sight. Her heart wrenched painfully as she remembered the happy moments she had with her family there. 

There wasn't even a proper funeral for their parents. Their bodies were thrown out and buried. They had no money left, and they didn't know any of their relatives either. Their grandparents had passed away when they were babies.

Jiyuu wanted to find somewhere to rest, and something to eat and drink. Drink. Her stomach rumbled and her throat was dry. The pair of them looked horrid. Their hair was matted and dirty, their clothes torn by prickly bushes and low branches along the way. They looked exactly what they were: homeless peasants. She wondered how the students in her class would react if they saw her like this—

Pang. The memory of school came back so hard, Jiyuu felt dizzy again. As they continued marching to a rather secluded area of town, she felt the need to clear her mind.

"Yiruu," she muttered, slightly raspy due to the lack of water.

"Y-yes, nee-san?" answered her sister timidly. Jiyuu's mind cleared for a mere second upon hearing her sister call her.

"Stay here. I'll go get water from a fountain. Find a place to sit down, but don't go too far." 

Although she obeyed, Jiyuu could see the fear in her eyes. She was only six.

"Don't worry, Yiruu. It'll be- it'll be okay." she said with a heavy heart. She couldn't say what she couldn't confirm would be.

Yiruu smiled a little as she tottered over to a shady tree near the town square. Jiyuu could go get water, and think straight again. As she limped, she remembered she still could do strange things. Maybe she could perform tricks like some circus clown for money. But she didn't have control over it, so it would be dangerous if it harmed somebody...

Jiyuu couldn't believe what she was saying. In this state, she could still worry about other people, other happy people, getting hurt. Scandalous. But her father and mother wouldn't have had liked that. She gritted her teeth, biting her lower lip to stop her tears from spilling out. 

Now that she was finally exposed to the real world, she realised that life wasn't what it seemed in her fairytales. In her books, you'd get karma for being a good person. Jiyuu tried, only to be trampled on. In the books, you'd get lucky for being a good person. Her luck was  like her poor throat: dry. Reality was so cruel, so overwhelming, so colourless, so unfair — and she hated herself for letting her parents keep on feeding her those delusional little tales every night.

When she returned to Yuuri, she was sitting anxiously under the shady oak tree, waiting for Jiyuu to come back. Jiyuu had managed to clean a used plastic bottle and fill it with fountain water. But she couldn't find food. Could she work? No. She knew nothing of the outside world, and her parents never taught her many life skills. She doubted even anyone would want to hire some ugly old rag like her. 

She trampled and crunched on the dry leaves scattered across the white sidewalk while muttering to herself. It had only been a few hours, but it seemed like an eternity. She wanted to lie down and just pass out, but she couldn't just leave Yuuri there, alone. And the first thing she needed was food.

The next day, Jiyuu woke up under the shade of the same oak tree  from yesterday. She shifted her gaze to the side, where Yuuri was curled up, soundly asleep. Yuuri was afraid of the dark, and so insisted on sleeping beside Jiyuu. 

She stood up and strolled around a little. Nobody would pass the streets except for the occasional out-for-a-jog middle aged woman or a stray cat. As she passed some of the older shops, she noticed a notice that made her heart skip a beat.

HIRING! IN NEED OF MAID TO CLEAN THE SHOP AFTER HOURS.

She glanced up. It was a barbershop. She sighed. It certainly wasn't a dream job, but she could at least earn a little money to buy food for her and Yuuri. She trotted happily back to where Yuuri was still sleeping. 

She didn't care that something was slowly chipping away at her soul. She could only think of how to survive and take care of her sister.

Hey there! I just finished Chapter 2. I apologise if it seems a little rushed. I don't do well writing these kind of scenarios. T_T