Fate In Ink

chapter 13

Writing had become fancier and a lot harder since I came to this time. I wrote poems and simple essay entries, but it was hard to control the ink from the pen. Writing at night - when I usually obtain inspiration - put a strain on my eyes due to the weak light from the candles.

But when Salome came back from the De Leon's clinic, my mornings became busy as the twins were enthusiastic to learn how to read and write.

"What is this again?" Lume asked, pointing at the curly 'o.'

I winced. "Sorry, it's an 'o.' I have a hard time writing with these pens," I said.

"Why?" she asked.

I lifted my skirts up and crossed my legs underneath. The children sat on each step of the back stairs and leaned forward with their writing materials.

Blotches of ink splayed on the parchment. Their letters were shaky and it rose up and down, never ending up on the same line I drew to serve as their guide, but their hands were still unaccustomed to the pen.

"Relax your hands." I patted each of their hands. "You'll get tired easily if you grip the pen too hard."

"It keeps falling off!" Salome slammed the pen on the wood and heaved a great sigh.

The girl slumped on her seat and stretched her legs. Marco, who sat just below her, was quiet. His hand was still tensed, but he was determined to finish the activity I assigned to them. He was about halfway through it, while his sister only finished three lines.

Susanna's wails echoed from the house. I turned around and saw Mother hurrying inside the bedroom with a white cloth slung over her arm. Soon after, the cries waned, and the song of the morning wind reigned once more.

The mother hens clucked as they passed by. The mothers raked the earth; they were looking for worms. The chicks hopped around, rolling against the dust and jumping over each other.

"Solana!" I called out.

Solana walked towards me with a beaming smile on her face. The chickens flapped after her like loyal henchmen and she laid down the basket of eggs beside me.

Then I thought: imagine the amount of betrayal the chickens would feel when they find out she's been stealing their eggs all this time.

"How do you know when to harvest and when to let the eggs be?" I asked.

I picked up an egg and jumped at the warmth of it. It was small and brownish in color, contrast to the large commercial white eggs I eat back in the future.

"For one, those just came out of the hens," Solana chuckled. My eyes widened and I immediately returned the egg back to the basket. "We harvest eggs when there are still a lot of chicks to care for and when the weather is about to get cold. The hens have a hard time warming them."

"Ate," Marco called out and held out his paper. I smiled, ruffled his hair and took the paper.

There were a lot of bleeds of ink on the paper. It was messy, with smudges and shaky letters, but I had to admire his perseverance. He was enthusiastic to learn and a big part of me was happy to impart something, too.

I returned the paper back to him. "Well done."

Salome peered at her brother's paper and a pout appeared on her face. "Yours look nice..." her voice trailed off.

I chuckled and hugged my knee. "Lume, you have to finish yours too. I'm sure they'll look just as nice. But you have to finish them first."

"Alright," she said and picked up the pen once again.