The Birth of a Wishing Heart

5. The Marketplace

Grizelda peered at the sign as she rushed closer. "Puppet Show."

She had never seen a puppet show. "Addy!" She turned to see her sister well behind. She was looking down toward the floor and adjusting her bonnet. "Addy?" Still avoiding her gaze, her sister made her way forward. Adiscordia was always a lot more sullen than she was. She wasn't sure why, but she was here to cheer her up. "There's a puppet show today."

"That's nice Gri," Her sister spoke monotonously as she caught up.

"Do you not like puppets?"

"I've never seen them. I wouldn't know." She took her and and continued forwards on their expedition.

Something didn't seem right. Her worries were reaffirmed when she noticed that her sister's arms were hidden behind her back and she was scratching them. They were already starting to have red marks from her nails. "Are you mad? Did I say something wrong?"

"You did nothing wrong, Gri."

"Are you sure?"

Her sister turned to her with a smile on her face. "You did nothing wrong."

Did her sister really think she wouldn't notice something was wrong? She watched Adiscordia let her arms fall back to the side, but her movements were rigid. Grizelda could almost see them shaking from how tense the muscles were knit together.

"Are you upset?" She hated to say it but their forced honesty could be annoying sometimes. Grizelda loved playing games, but playing 'Find the right question' with her sister wasn't one she favored.

As expected, the smile faded. "I'm upset, but it's not because of you. I don't want to talk about it right now. This is going to be a fun trip, right? We can talk about it when we get home."

"It's going to be very fun." Grizelda reassured with a grin and confident nod. She wished Addy would tell her why she was so upset, but she was right. This was going to be the best trip, and she'd make her feel better. Her sister may have been looking for flowers but her mission had changed. Her new mission would be to make her smile. "I love you sissy!" She squeezed her hand and mardched forward. "We're gonna see puppets, dresses, they had dolls last time. Do you think they'll have more dolls now?"

"Maybe."

Hmm, she didn't seem to like the subject. Well, there was one place that always made her sister smile. "We could see the bakery. I know we can't go inside but they make really pretty treats."

Adiscordia didn't even speak. Whatever was upsetting her must've been bad if even talk of the bakery didn't help. Her hand reached up again and this time rubbed at her bonnet as if to scratch an itch. Grizelda wished she knew what she was really thinking.

An uncomfortable silence filled the space between them. Why was her sister so- She may have been the "baby sister, but she could still help!

Moments like these scared her. She hated being alone. Ever since her sister had found that scroll and became so determined to become a wishing heart Grizelda found herself playing by herself more. The space apart seemed foreign. Her sister used to be so caring and playful, and now she was avoiding her gaze, keeping secrets, and had a pout that only deepened as she went further. She wasn't even looking for flowers anymore. How long would this last?

She brought her doll to her face. "You'd never keep secrets from me Nanna, would you?"

Her sister turned to her and retracted her hand from their hold. She stopped and frowned at her. Now, what had she done? She just wanted to make her feel better, but she wouldn't tell her what was wrong. She frowned back and crossed her arms.