The Red Pendant

Chapter 4

Maryanne slowly opened her eyes, and then instantly closed them again, acting as a shield. The sun was shining brightly through her window as a very unwelcome guest, so she must have slept in. She slowly got herself up and felt a dull aching all over her body with a little bit of popping from her tense bones.

"Probably from sleeping in the forest," she mumbled tiredly to herself.

She got dressed in some not very formidable clothes, and walked out of her room, unable to suppress her yawning. As usual, Aaron was already up and dressed and was making some breakfast. Another thing to put on the long list of the things he has done for me, Maryanne thought quietly to herself. Aaron was making some delicious smelling pancakes, along with his homemade maple syrup as a side.

"Look who the sun finally brought up," Aaron said, flipping a few pancakes in the process. "It is nine-thirty, so sit down and start eating some pancakes."

Maryanne sat down and looked over to the mountain of golden pancakes. As usual, Aaron had overdone himself and made more than anyone could possibly eat. Smiling, Maryanne scooped up a few pancakes and placed them onto her plate, and then poured some maple syrup on top. As the waterfall of opulent liquid started to drip down the pile onto her plate, she started happily eating, and Aaron soon joined her down at the table to eat his own pancakes.

Maryanne looked over to her brother. "Thanks for making breakfast. This is really good."

Aaron turned his head, a little startled at her sincerity, then replied, "Your welcome, Maryanne." A small smile tugged at his lips as he continued to eat.

They continued eating their breakfast in silence, a sort of peaceful, comfortable silence. When they finished eating, Maryanne took care of the dishes, which surprised Aaron very much, as that is normally what he does. When she finished, Aaron asked, "Why the sudden helpful mood, Maryanne?"

Maryanne looked over to him and shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I guess I just wanted to do something for you once in a while."

"Well, I guess that is ok," Aaron said. "You know, I like this. We are both in better moods when helping each other, and you seem happy. This is much more enjoyable than the normal bickering that passes between us."

"Yeah, I like it too," Maryanne replied, smiling to herself. "You know what, I think today is going to be a great day."

The two siblings then left their house and made their way to the park, where they were meeting up with their friends.

Once they were there, Maryanne spotted the group almost immediately. "Hey, guys!" Maryanne called them over with excitement. "Whatcha wanna do today?"

"I think that we should play soccer," Jaden, a sturdy boy with dirty blonde hair stuffed into a man-bun, suggested to everyone.

"Yeah!" Macie, a small pipsqueak of a girl with curly red hair, agreed.

"Me too!" several others piped in, as soccer was a sport favored by many in the little town of Flowlit.

"It's settled then," Aaron said, leadership emanating from him like a halo, compelling all to listen. "We will be playing a game of soccer with Jaden as the first team leader against any opponent of his choosing. So, Jaden, who is the other team leader?"

Everyone turned their heads to Jaden, and without skipping a beat he announced, "Aaron will be my opponent!"

Aaron continued, "So, we all know the rules, the leader will pick team members of his choosing, alternating between male and female to get an even number of each on each team. Since Jaden and I are both boys, we will begin by picking a girl each, while since Jaden is the challenger, he will go first."