"We can't just forget about this, Clara." Àjé's voice trembled slightly, though she stood firm. "I love you so much, that's why I'm saying all of this."
Clara looked up slowly, her eyes catching the strain behind her sister's words. Àjé continued, her tone quieter now. "I saw Fred, cloaked in armor, standing in the heart of firelight. He was fighting the great dark coil."
Clara blinked, stunned. "Wait, really? Like the black coil? The ones that possess people in the old stories?"
"Absolutely," Àjé said. "That's exactly what I saw. The coils, the darkness in its eyes. It was not a normal dream, Clara. It was a vision. Brief, but powerful. I am still uncertain I grasped it all. But it was real."
Clara sat there, her mouth slightly open before letting out a soft, breathy laugh. "I was worried for a second. But hearing you say you're unsure? That makes this easier to digest." She smiled, shaking her head. "Come on, Àjé. Something that huge hiding inside a human? That is prophecy talk. That is ancient myth, not in a weak human as Fred. That is not Fred. He is just Fred."
Àjé's face hardened. "So you think I am making this up?"
Clara raised her brows. "No. I just think maybe you misread what you saw."
"Then tell me, where do you think he lives?" Àjé asked, folding her arms.
Clara shrugged. "Probably somewhere in the city. Maybe near the school."
"You are dead wrong." Àjé pointed toward the darkened window. "Your sweet, mysterious Fred lives near Worthloth Forest."
Clara's brows furrowed. "So? Maybe he just likes the peace and quiet out there."
Àjé stepped closer. "Clara, that place is cursed. You and I both know what roams that forest. Beasts. Shadows. Spirits that have not whispered a word in centuries. But they let Fred walk unharmed. Not only that, they accept him. Like he is one of them."
Clara did not speak. The silence hung between them, heavier than before. Could it be true? Was Fred really something more than a gifted, quiet student with eyes that seemed to look through her? Was his charm just a veil, something ancient waiting beneath the surface? But Clara had always been superstitious.
"I am not buying it," Clara finally muttered. "You are making too many assumptions. That guy can never be something as that. He's Innocent."
"We are afflicted coils, Clara," Àjé said slowly. "We know what it means to wear a skin that is not fully ours. And you want to show that part of you to someone who might be born to kill it?"
"I do not love him, Àjé." Clara said it quietly, though the tremor in her voice betrayed her doubt.
Àjé raised an eyebrow. "Then why not walk away now? Why not run from someone your own sister says is ancient and dangerous?"
Clara hesitated. "Ancient being?" She gave a shaky laugh. "You are reaching now. Aren't we the ancient ones? We are the cursed blood, the ones hiding in human form. Not him."
Àjé did not respond. She just looked at her for a long, hard moment.
"I am done arguing," Àjé said, brushing past her toward the door. "When you are finished lying to yourself about how you feel, let me know."
Clara stood quickly. "Do not leave tonight. My father is out, as usual. Just stay, and we will go to school together in the morning."
"You have a full house staff, Clara. You are not exactly alone."
"But you are not the housekeeper. You are my sister," Clara said, her voice softening as she moved forward and wrapped her arms around her.
Àjé sighed, reluctantly returning the hug. "Alright. I will stay. But my uniforms are at home."
"You do not need to go back for anything. I have plenty here, you can wear any of mine," Clara offered with a playful smile.
"Fine." Àjé rolled her eyes, but her voice was warm. "I will stay for the night."
They sat on the edge of the bed again, the weight of their conversation still lingering within them. Outside, the sky had taken into deep indigo color. Faint thunder rumbled across the horizon, and the haunting cry of a night birds echoed from somewhere near the trees.
The hour grew late, but neither of them reached for sleep. There was too much unsaid. It's very unsure for any of them to claim they were right, the issue about this Fred guy ought to be handled with subtetly.