✓ | Girls of a Feather | #OpenNovellaContest2019

| twenty |

Annemie

Annemie watched in horror as her sister struck a deal with Antsje Pluk. The witch stepped close to Aleta, and Annemie's heart clenched like a fist in fear. She would kill Antsje Pluk if the heks laid so much as a finger on her sister. But all the witch did was grab the flower from Aleta's palm before sliding back into the shadows like the serpent she was.

"Aleta!" Annemie cried. Her sister turned around, tears glinting like pearls in the corners of her eyes. "Please," Annemie said, her voice cracking before she could finish the sentence, but Aleta understood. Silently, she nodded, and she started limping toward her zus.

"Ow!" Sofie hissed, startling Annemie into turning her gaze away from her sister.

"What's wrong?" Annemie asked as the older girl's face contorted in pain.

"It's nothing," Sofie said, waving away Annemie's concern. But then she winced again, sinking to the ground, and spat out a series of swears.

As if on cue, the other birds all collapsed to the ground, emitting whimpers and curses of pain. Annemie whirled around, staring at her fallen army. What was happening? Were they all going to die, just like Elke? Suddenly, Annemie understood. The pain was sharp and dull all at once, setting every nerve in her body on fire. She crumpled, banging her bony wings against the hard dirt.

"Annemie!" Aleta screamed. 

Annemie raised her head to see her sister sprinting toward her, worry and fear spread across her face.

"It's ok," Annemie tried to say, but the words wouldn't come. After all that had happened, she couldn't lie to Aleta.

"That heks!" Aleta spat, skidding to a stop in front of Annemie. She bent down and wrapped her sister into a tight embrace. Annemie winced, and Aleta quickly undid her arms, realizing that she was only causing her zus more pain. "Antsje Pluk promised she would free all of you if I gave her that flower. I never should have trusted her!" As much as Annemie wanted to agree, she knew now was not the time to argue.

"You did what she thought was right," she said instead, meeting her sister's pale blue eyes. Annemie wasn't often sentimental, but she couldn't bear to see Aleta so miserable. It was her fault, but it also wasn't. They were nothing more than pawns in Antsje Pluk's game. The witch was to blame, not Aleta. "It's ok."

"It's not ok!" Aleta said, gesturing wildly at Annemie's weakened, pain-ridden state. "Look at you, you're suffering. It's all my fault."

"No, Aleta, you didn't," Sofie interjected, and the twins turned to stare at her in shock. She had changed back into her human form while they had been busy arguing, but Annemie could tell something was different. Usually, the girls had an in-between look, as if their bodies knew it was useless to settle into one form. But now, Sofie glowed with both healthiness and magic. Annemie couldn't stop herself from staring. Aleta nudged her, and she snapped out of it with a blush. "You saved us," Sofie whispered softly. Shadowy strands flowed from her body, dissipating into the surrounding air. The witch's curse was leaving, but the older girl kept turning her hands over and over, as if she couldn't believe she was finally free.

"Aleta, you really did it," Annemie breathed, her heart rising as she watched the heks' shadowy magic bleed from the other birds too. When her army of birds had become an army of girls, the pain finally began to ebb from her own body. She closed her eyes as her wings stretched back into arms and legs and her feathers faded to peachy skin.

Annemie opened her eyes, greeting the pinkening sky with a smile. She flexed her fingers. Her joints were stiff and weak, but at least she was human again. Sofie reached over to squeeze her hand, the warmth of their palms intermingling.

Aleta ruined it all with a sigh.

"I really, really hate to interrupt the happiness," she began, and Annemie clenched Sofie's hand tighter, "but Antsje Pluk is still out there." She hesitated, averting her eyes before she continued. "And she's free."

[ a / n ]

aaa i can't believe it's finally over! i'm happy, but at the same time i'm kind of sad that it's over, if that makes any sense? this ended on a cliffhanger, but idk if i'll write a sequel (though if i do, i'm thinking of titling it Girls of a Heart).

anyway, thank you all so much, especially the ones who've read this far! <3  it'd be amazing to win the Open Novella Contest, but even if i don't, i'm still glad i got to share this.

as always, please feel free to comment your thoughts, reactions, predictions, and etc.! <3