Another Way

Chapter 34: Charity

For once, Sue woke up early enough for everyone else to still be asleep, even despite the creeping dawn. It took her a few minutes of staring upwards in a daze to finally recall what had happened in her dream before she was suddenly pulled out of it. The gash in her recent memories where the events that transpired should've been didn't reassure her any. Once she'd pieced it together, though, she just sighed and got comfortable on her bedding.

Seems Night Father was right, after all.

That answered one mystery, but so many others remained. Mysteries that not even having the identity, fingerprints, and mugshot of the responsible deity would have explained, but which still burned her psyche to think about. Why was she the one thrust into this world? Why was she being taunted with her memories being kept from her, over and over again? The questions hurt to think about, no less so even after Night Father's recent assistance, but... Sue didn't let them get to her. Not this time.

Yes, she wanted to know the answers and hoped she'd get them one day, but they didn't matter anywhere near as much as what she had right beside her. She carefully reached to stroke Joy's maw with one hand as the other brushed its fingers against the canvas of Twinkle's bag. No matter the reason for her god-given task, no matter their excuse for putting her here, in this dangerous world where she'd brushed against death more in days than she had in years back on Earth, she was here now; she had people, big and small, caring for her. And she cared for them in return.

As far as she was concerned, this was her actual mission here, her grand goal in this world. To help these two lil' oddballs feel loved and cared for, to make positive change around her wherever she could, maybe to even help Moonview and Newmoon mend some of their scars—not because an asshole god told her so, but because she wanted to help, however she could.

All that and more could come later this morning, though.

Hopefully Solstice won't mind if I snooze a bit...

A few hours later, the first part of Sue that awoke from her nap was her nose. The thick, peppery smell of yesterday's breakfast filled the air once more, now somehow even more intense. Her ears chimed in shortly after, noticing the distant murmur of a well-awake town, the quiet crackling of flames, and diligent scraping of a wooden spoon as it stirred the pot's contents. All those would've been lovely on their own, but occasional interjections from a shrill, harsh, girly voice, responded to by a smoother, older, more sing-song voice only made the scene incomparably more pleasant.

Triply so once the latter voice had noticed Sue having woken up, and extended the tent's telepathic translation to her.

"Wh-wh-what... umm, red a-and yellow?" Joy asked, uncertain.

"Red and yellow?" Solstice responded, unsure. There was faint shuffling in response, quickly interrupted by the Mayor cautioning "Careful Joy, the pot is very hot. Here, let me levitate some of the chopped veggies—"

"Th-this one!"

"Ah! That's a carrot, sweetie. They're really sweet, and orange," the older Forest Guardian explained.

Joy tried her best to pronounce the sounds she'd heard. "Orh-rgh-oooorhhha—"

"Oooooorange," Solstice repeated, an audible smile in her voice.

"Orgh—orhange?"

"You got it, Joy! Their color is orange, between red and yellow. Any other veggies you wanna know more about?"

*yaaaaaaaaaawnnnn—*

Sue didn't realize the sound came from her until she felt the focus of the rest of the room home in on her, the little toothy girl included. A smile crept on her face as she heard Joy get up from her seat and walk closer. Before long, her little hands were clumsily patting against her chin to catch her attention. At first slowly, then increasingly faster as Sue's smile grew without her responding.