The Narrator and the Story With No End [Under Editing]

Grandparents, studies, and... soup?

Day One, Entry Three

Oh shoot.

"Wait, what? Wait—" I struggled to even know where to begin. I whipped my head toward Simon. "You told them?!"

I may have been starting to panic, but he looked almost as confused as I felt. "Yeah? What did you expect me to do, lie to the only adults at the house?"

"Well— wait. How old are you guys?"

"Nineteen. You?"

"...Same, I think. I thought most places considered that to be adult."

"Yeah. I don't see myself as an adult though."

"...Fair enough."

Celine chuckled. "Oh dear, I fear we may have frightened her a bit," she said to Henry. She returned her gaze to me. "I'm sorry, dearie, I suppose I should have eased you into things."

I sighed. "No, no, it's okay, this lets us get straight to the point. How much did he— wait. Did you say 'the powers of Lumi?'"

"She did indeed," Henry said, a smile on his face. "It's not the first time we've heard a story quite like the one Simon told."

Simon just stared at them, dumbfounded.

"Wait, so, Jake and I were right, that book is what we're looking for?" I said, not bothering to hide my excitement that we actually were on the right track.

"Ah, you found The Tales of Lumi and Obscur, then?" Celine said. She gave us a nod. "Why, yes, based on what Simon described that seems to be exactly what you're looking for."

"Good luck gleaning what you need to know from it, though," Henry chimed in. "I've read it twice and I'm still unsure I really understand the powers at play."

"But you do understand some things?" I inquired.

"Oh, certainly," Henry replied, giving me a smile. "I'd be happy to share with you all my insight should you just ask."

"Though it would likely do you kids good to learn these things yourself. Given your different perspectives, you might learn things from that old book than we were able to," Celine said.

"Especially since Celine and I have never actually seen the powers of Lumi and Obscur at work, at least not in the literal sense that you all saw," Henry added.

"I doubt that will be a problem," Simon chimed in. His moment of surprise had passed, and his smile showed his usual air of confidence. "I think even if you told Jennelle everything you knew about that book, she would want to read it over at least three times herself to make sure she 'didn't miss any details.'" He added air quotes around that last bit, which earned a chuckle from Celine and Henry.

"Then perhaps we could exchange notes when she's finished," Henry said.

"Regardless," Celine returned her gaze to me. "I'm sure you have many questions."

A harsh laugh escaped me. "Understatement of my career," I said.

"Well, Henry and I would be more than willing to answer anything we can. How 'bout we go inside for a real meal while we do so, hm?"

My stomach growled as soon as she suggested it. "I will take you up on that."

"You already know my answer!" Simon said.

"Well hold on now, Simon," Henry piped up, "I could use some help taking this ladder here back to the garage. Mind lending me you muscles?"

"Ah, come on, Gramps, you know I'm built like a stick," Simon said, already moving over to the ladder. He had finished eating his apple during the conversation and discarded the core on the ground, his hands on one side of the ladder. Henry simply smiled at him, putting his hands on the other side. "Yeah, of course," Simon said with more sincerity.