I grinned at her. She was the one I was worried about. I wasn’t sure if she was willing to get her hands dirty, considering she always had her nose in a book. Actually, doing things wasn’t something she went out of the way to participate in. The fact that she seemed excited to do this at all seemed to imply that she just needed the opportunity to try, and the more she wasn’t given said opportunity, the more she doubted herself.
“The floor is yours, ladies,” I said, sweeping my hands out and gesturing at the field in front of us.
Bella and Courtney raised their hands, pulses of energy and electric current coursing through the air. It tickled my skin, and the hairs on my skin stood straight up. It was as though I was coated in a blanket of warm, static electricity.
“Talk aloud guys. It’ll be easier for you,” I said, naturally guiding my sisters in their job. I hoped it didn’t come across as though I was telling them what to do. I didn’t want them to assume that I didn’t trust them the way Mother didn’t trust them.
“I think we should have one level, with four—no, five—rooms,” Bella said, her eyebrows raised and her eyes wide. I didn’t think I had ever heard her speak so quickly. “A bedroom each, a kitchen, a sitting room, and a bathroom. Oh, and a library.”
“Maybe you guys should do a bathroom for each of us,” I suggested. “One bathroom for three sisters doesn’t seem like a lot.”
“Especially with Courtney,” Bella said.
“Hey!” Courtney exclaimed, but her eyes twinkled with amusement.
The building began to materialize. A brick veneer with small windows. A nice, thatched roof. My sisters’ fingers moved in a deliberate, delicate manner, as though they were playing the keys of an invisible piano.
“Oh, no...bigger windows, I think.” Courtney frowned, flinging her hands around and changing the details of the outside.
“And a small garden,” Bella said, flicking her wrist and making peonies and roses sprout around the house. “Like Mother used to have, save that we can actually pick the flowers from this one. And water them. And just be in the garden if the weather is perfect and we want to read a book outside and be surrounded by beauty.”
I rolled my eyes. Those details could be done later. The structure was much more important. However, I could not blame them for adding the details they wanted. When someone had been muted for so long, sudden control was as addictive as a drug. I would not be the one to take that power away from my sisters.
“Now for the inside,” Bella said. Her fingers bent and the joints cracked, as though she was creating even faster than her mind could keep up with. She was as focused as she was when she read one of her books. “A huge library for me.”
“And a fridge for me,” Courtney added. Her lips twitched up, as though she just remembered that she had the ability to create whatever she wanted, including a fridge for herself.
My sisters constructed their perfect house with white light and imagination. I watched in amazement as they did it all by themselves.
Mother would be so proud.
I was so proud.
My eyes teared up, but I quickly blinked them away. I had done enough tearing up and crying for the day. At least this time, my tears were of happiness, maybe even relief. Knowing that they were capable of this level of magic, made it easier for me to accept the fact that we would be separated soon. Because of me. At least I knew they could take care of themselves and each other.
As the house settled and the magic around us began to dissipate, my sister’s lips lifted into identical smiles of satisfaction.
“Good job,” I said, as the flowers continued to sprout around us and a picket fence wove around the house.
Mother had always erected strong magical guards around our home, and I would speak to Bella about doing them as well, before I left.
The house itself looked completely normal. More than that, it looked worn in, as though we had been here for a long time. It felt like a home rather than a structure we were just moving in.
Courtney charged forward first.
Bella had more self-control. The book she had been reading on one of the couches had disappeared, forgotten. Her movements towards the door were jerky, as though she was trying to control her excitement to see the new home and was having a difficult time doing so.
I followed in their wake, suppressing a smile of amusement. My magic tingled in my veins, and my palms pulsated with stagnant energy. I wanted to help, to create, to strengthen. But I kept my hands to myself, holding them together behind my back as I walked through the small cottage.
I had to trust my sisters. I did.
Suddenly, I realized the problem. I felt left out. I felt as though they were creating something for themselves. They were creating something I wasn’t going to be a part of.
You don’t have to go to the magical realm, Ava, I thought. You could stay here. Hell, you could put off going to the magical realm for a while if you wanted to, just to make sure your sisters are settled in, until you’re sure they’re safe.
Bella and Courtney dashed through the downstairs, throwing details around with relish, adding to the house to really make it a home. Now, there were paintings, and rugs, and glasses, and fresh flowers. My jaw dropped as I looked around the foyer—the high ceiling, the smell of cinnamon in the air. This place was amazing.
We headed up the stairs and peeked into the rooms. I laughed as I glanced inside Courtney’s bedroom. Her bed was huge, with dark wood and red splashes of color through the covers that match