With all the questions on my mind, I couldn’t calm down. Was it right to live your final days knowing you may die? Or was it better to live them happily? I couldn’t figure out which was right.
“They’re growing well this year.”
We were in Grandma Flaire’s garden. It was elevated, with a brick border, and had a variety of different plants sprouting in it. Though it was cold, there were many flowers that blossomed at this time of year. Blooming pansies, violas, and Christmas cactuses lined one part of the garden, with the herbs being planted in a different spot. It was quite a feat for this variety of plants to coexist in the same garden without impeding one another, a testament to Grandma Flaire’s meticulous effort in pruning them and keeping the dirt healthy.
“If you see something you like, feel free to take it home with you. I harvest many seeds every year.”
“Hmm, perhaps a new face could bring life to my empire…”
Three days passed. I found time to go to the library and study magic here and there, but there wasn’t much information on Death, let alone a method to save my friend. The time we spent together was relatively mundane, but there was a warm comfort to it. Something about it felt like it would last forever.
“Oh my, look at the time. Would you like to join me for a walk, Meg?”
“It is a nice time for a walk.”
It was two in the afternoon. The only people who could go for a walk at this time were university students set to graduate with a job already lined up, the unemployed, and old people. Which did I fall under? I was a witch, which definitely wasn’t unemployed.
“It looks like you go on walks every day. Don’t you ever get tired of them?”
“I like to observe the growth of the plants and how the town changes every day; it has a strange way of keeping me happy and healthy. I’m sure the only reason I can walk at all at this age is thanks to this habit.”
“You might be onto something there.”
I learned quickly that Grandma Flaire liked to walk to new places every day. Today, we were headed somewhere different from the day before. Judging by the direction, it looked like we were going to the park north of town.
It was a bright and sunny day, and the marketplace was bustling with busy mothers buying food for their families. Carbuncle ran around us at my feet, with White-Owl occasionally picking him up for the pair to glide around for fun. I walked slowly next to Grandma Flaire, matching her footsteps with my own.
With every step she took, it felt to me like she was walking closer to her impending death. She would walk, slowly but surely, until she couldn’t anymore. I shook my head to stop myself from thinking such thoughts.
“Maybe we should take a little break.”
Grandma Flaire moved toward a bench near the entrance of the park as she said this, and I decided it would be best to try and keep any intrusive thoughts out of my mind. I sat down next to her, and she took something out of her bag that was wrapped in paper and smelled really nice.
“What is that delicious smell?”
“They’re biscuits. I woke up early to make them while you were asleep.”
“Talk about the royal treatment! You make me feel like a princess…”
They were herb biscuits. I took a bite, and the crunchy sweetness filled my palate and then was followed by a hint of rosemary. I didn’t know how long it’d been since I had Grandma Flaire’s homemade cookies. I was almost trembling with delight as I savored the flavor, and then Grandma Flaire produced a steaming cup of warm tea.
“You can’t have biscuits without tea, now, can you?”
“You must be a goddess, because this is heaven…”
The fragrant tea soothed my body and soul.
I feel at peace. It almost makes everything—Grandma Flaire’s situation, my curse, and my fight with my teacher—seem like it never even happened.
I knew this was just my mind running away from the problem, but it really did feel like that after the past three days of being so stressed about everything.
I was so preoccupied with trying to find an answer that it was likely starting to take a toll on my mental health.
“So, Grandma Flaire, where are we headed—?”
Turning to look at her while I spoke, I stopped mid-sentence in utter shock.
I could see the darkness.
No, this isn’t the black mist… It is Death itself.
The thickness of the mist was unlike anything I’d ever seen before, and it was enveloping Grandma Flaire.
“Grandma Flaire!”
The mist dissipated with my shout, allowing me to see Grandma Flaire’s friendly face once more. She seemed like her usual self, so I sighed with relief.
“Oh, I must’ve dozed off. I often do that on nice warm days like this. Is there something wrong, Meg? You don’t look so well.”
“I’m perfectly fine! The world could end tomorrow, and I’d be crawling around on the ground alive with the cockroaches. What about you, though, Grandma Flaire? How’s your health been?”
“That’s a bit of a sudden question, but I suppose I’ve been getting more tired recently. Especially on nice days like this. It is almost as if the sun’s warmth lulls me to sleep. It feels so nice, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah…”
Her sleepiness was trying to invite her to an eternal slumber, or so it felt. Seeing the thick black smog kicked the rose-colored glasses right off my face and brought me back to reality. It was Grandma Flaire who stood up and said, “Let’s get a move on, shall we?” while I worried over what I’d just seen.