Lou

There was a hustle and bustle outside. Lou looked out his window and heard people passing by talking excitedly to each other. Every now and then he could hear his friend's name.

Lou frowned and listened intently, but he couldn't understand anything else. Too many were talking as they gathered in front of their homes. But so much excitement could only mean one thing, right? When it was about his friend?

Remy now had a dragon!

Lou had known he could do it. Of course, he could! Remy was the best wizard Lou knew! And he would one day be the strongest and make the world a better place! Become the king! He would be a hero. He had promised. And then, Louise and Nina would have a better future.

Curious, he left his room and looked for his parents. He heard his father in the main room. He was working on something. Therefore, Lou went there. Someone ran past him. Probably Nina. In terms of size. However, she did not speak to him.

"Dad?" Lou asked when he arrived in the main room of the small, now slightly dilapidated house. "What's going on out there?"

"Your mother went to find out!", his father grumbled.

"Did the young wizard succeed?"

"Huh?"

"The one who brought me home?", Lou asked. "Did he?"

"I don't know yet. Succeed? At what?"

"Does he have a dragon?" Lou tugged at the brown, holey coat he was wearing.

"A dragon?", his father replied. "Possibly. That would explain the hustle and bustle. But I'm interested in how you come up with that."

Lou shrugged. Of course, his parents didn't know that Remy had told him that he wanted to visit the dragons today. At least that's what Lou believed. "Just like that."

"Ah."

"Heavens, you don't believe it!" His mother rushed into the room.

"A feast! There's a feast!" Louise followed her. "Oh! Hey, Lou! You need to hear that!"

"Maybe Lou should go now!", his father suggested. He sounded a little sad.

"No, he can hear that!", his mother replied quickly.

"A feast?" Now Nina also came into the kitchen. "Are we going? Why is Lou here? He has to stay in his room!"

"It's all right, sweetie!", his mother replied. "There's news that Lou should hear too."

"Oh." Nina didn't sound convinced. Lou felt a stinging in his heart. Her words hurt, even if she was right. He should go. But he also wanted to know if Remy had his dragon.

"The feast! That's where I want to go! We must! Absolutely!" Louise sounded euphoric. Lou wondered how it felt to be so happy. He wasn't happy.

"What kind of party? Why?", he asked instead. "I heard a few people talking. It was about the wizard."

"Indeed!" His mother petted his hair fleetingly. "It's a sensation. Three dragons! This has never happened before! And he's still so young! Three! In the temple, this is celebrated in the evening. Everyone has to join."

"Everybody?" Nina's voice sounded skeptical. "Lou too?"

He, too? Could that be?

"Oh! No, no!", his mother replied quickly. "Of course not. We don't want to risk his curse disrupting the celebration!"

Lou sighed. Of course, he didn't expect to be allowed to come along. But it still hurt. "I wouldn’t be able to see anything anyway!", he muttered and crept back into his room.

Louise

Louise pouted. She wanted to enjoy the party with her brother. Instead, she had to walk hand in hand with Nina, who always spoke of Lou as if he were a terrible disease. Lou was not a disease. No. He was her twin brother and she missed him.

Sometimes at night, when everyone was asleep, she would sneak into his room to hold his hand while he slept. Louise knew that her parents did the same from time to time. Nevertheless, she took great care not to get caught. She didn't want them to forbid her this. Just because they were afraid that Louise's golden future could be jeopardized by it. And sometimes, she snuggled up to her brother for a few minutes. When she was sad. Then she felt a little better.

Her mother wished Louise would become a witch. Maybe a healer, like her mother. Louise didn't want magic if that meant always being separated from her brother. She saw him terribly seldom during the day, even though they lived in the same house. Her father planned to send Lou out of the house as soon as he was old enough to take care of himself. He wanted to send Lou out on the street! Louise didn't want that!

Her father claimed to want to find a hut for Lou, but who would let him live close to his own house? The neighbors were already whispering because they didn't want him near them.

"What are we going to do at the party?", asked Nina. She jumped as she walked.

"Oh! There is a ceremony in the temple that we all watch. And then there's a big fire and music!", her father replied. They followed the crowd through the streets. Louise looked at other families. Richer families whose children wore beautiful clothes.

"Is there anything to eat?", Nina wanted to know. "I'm hungry."

"Of course! But we don't have money to pay for it!" Her mother stroked Nina's fine hair. Nina had been born with very light, blond hair. The thin fluff curled around her face. Her parents were worried that no one would want to marry her later, with the little hair. Otherwise, Nina was very pretty. Petite, with a cute nose and the prettiest freckles and big, light blue eyes. Louise was jealous of Nina's eyes.

"How stupid!", grumbled Nina.

Louise agreed. Having little money was stupid. "We should’ve taken Lou with us!", she finally grumbled. "Now he's all alone at home!"

"What?" Nina shook her head. "We can't do that!"

"It's for the good of us all!", her father repeated. That's what he always said when Louise complained. "Especially for our future witch!" He winked at her.

Louise rolled her eyes. "I don't want magic. I want my brother!"

"But you've got me!" Nina hugged her fiercely. "The best little sister! And the prettiest!"

Smiling, Louise returned the hug. "Of course. But I miss Lou."

"I know, my darling!", her mother replied, wiping a tear from her face. "But it isn’t possible." Her father also suddenly seemed very sad.

Eventually, they arrived at the sublime buildings of the temple and its magnificent courtyard. Stalls had been set up on the sides, where servants of the temple would later sell drinks and small snacks. There would be soup at a stand. A young man stirred in a large bowl hanging over a fire. It smelled wonderful. Immediately, Louise's stomach began to growl. She ignored the sound. As she often did. Unlike Nina, who now complained all the more.

Her family rarely came here. The poor were otherwise only allowed on New Year's Day to receive the blessing of the gods. At the end of this ceremony, the servants of the temple distributed a thin soup in simple cups to all the poor. The soup was supposed to bring good luck. Most ceremonies and festivals were reserved for the rich. The rich and the magical. But her mother had been excluded from these after Lou and Louise were born.

Louise stretched her chin to see enough while her father let Nina sit on his shoulders.

"Mom? Can you lift me up?", she pleaded hopefully.

"Unfortunately, no. You're already too heavy!" Her mother hugged her. "And Nina will soon be too, as fast as she grows!"

"I'm not heavy!", Nina protested so loudly that a few people turned around in anger.

"Hush now! It’s starting!", her father quickly told her.

Louise had to jump to be able to see a bit. But even that didn't do her much good. Until a nice gentleman picked her up and let her sit on his shoulders. Her parents thanked him. Just like Louise. Now she could finally see it all: on a stage made of white and blue stone, surrounded by flowers in shimmering vases, a teenager stood among the wise men. Behind them were three people Louise had never seen before. Were they the dragons? She could see glowing eyes, even though they were far away. The wise men congratulated the boy and held their hands over him so that he would receive the blessing of the gods. The boy seemed happy. Behind him, the sun was setting.

Then they went to the dragons and knelt before them with a deep bow as if the dragons themselves were gods. The dragons only bowed their heads. Then a loud drum sounded. The wise men stood up and thanked the gods for another powerful sorcerer and his dragons that would protect their realm. The crowd cheered.

Finally, several small fires were lit and music was played. The feast began. Louise and Nina danced together to the music. However, their family did not stay long, as they had no money to buy food or drinks. And a few people also grumbled about the fact that they were present. Nina secretly stuck her tongue out at them.

Louise and Nina.