“Blood?” I replied. I pointedly glanced to my arm and then back at my sister and raised my eyebrows. “Really sister dearest? You know, you could have told me before I sealed this up.”

“Sorry! So very very sorry!” she giggled. She reached out her hand and I put my hand in hers. She turned my palm outwards to face her and held the knife to it.

“You don’t seem very sorry,” I muttered.

“I did not think about it. Honest! Don’t look at me like that! I really didn’t. And… I also didn’t think you would be leaving me so soon. Don’t worry. It will be over before you know it. At least, our wounds heal faster than other people.” She paused just before the knife touched my skin. “You know when we learnt the prince was old enough to hold the Trial of Roses before we came of age, I thought we wouldn’t have to go through with this.”

“Yeah, neither did I.”

“I suppose, I just didn’t think our uncle was malicious enough to keep him poisoned for a few years until we came of age.”

“Yeah. Lucky for us, he mysteriously recovered just as we turned twenty,” I said darkly.

“How soon… is soon anyway?”

“The day after tomorrow,” I said.

She took a sharp breath in. “Really?” Tears started to swell up in her eyes again. “That soon?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry. I didn’t get much warning myself -Ow!” I winced as I felt the knife break the skin. “You could have warned me!”

“Well, you knew what I was going to do. Maybe you should stop being a baby,” she said with a little smirk, though she was quieter than usual. She turned the knife on herself and cut her own palm. “Okay, give me your choker.” I did as she instructed as she handed me her own necklace. “We need to drip our blood on it at the same time. Into the amber piece. Then we have to switch chokers and drip more blood on it again. Ready?”

“I suppose I am,” I said. I watched and mirrored her movements, dripping blood onto the amber, switching necklaces and then dripping more blood. The first time blood touched the gemstones, it shone a brilliant white. On the second time, it shone a yellow that lit up the entire room. I blinked the light from my eyes away when it was done, and watched as my sister did the same.

I looked down at my necklace. The blood was gone. It had been completely absorbed into the stone. Both gems now had a darker hue. They gave off a slight sweet scent.

“It kind of smells like blackcurrant,” I said.

“Really?” she held the necklace up to her nose and gave it a sniff. “How peculiar. You’re right, it does. Now, turn around, and let me put yours on you,” she commanded softly. I complied without argument. “There,” she said as she finished. “It looks good on you.” She smiled, though it wasn’t as radiant as it usually.

“Let me put yours on you too,” I said. She turned around and pulled her hair to the side. I placed the choker around her delicate neck. “It looks good on you too,” I said, as she turned around to face me.

“Of course it does. Everything looks good on me,” she said, as though it was a matter of fact. “Alright. Do you feel it?”

“Feel what?” I touched the gemstone. “Oh it feels… warm… and sad,” I said. I looked up at her. “Does it…?”

She nodded. “You can feel me through it and I can feel you. It only works because we are twins. So no one else will be able to feel it. Mother always said there was a power in a twin’s bond. I just leveraged that into something a little more tangible.”

“Thank you,” I said with a quivering lip and a soft smile. “It’ll be nice to feel connected.”

She smiled and nodded. “And I’ll always be able to know that… you’re… that you’re…” her smile faltered, and her lips quivered. Tears started to well up in her eyes once again.

Still alive.

The words hung in the air, unable to be said.

Quickly, I gave her a tight hug. “Oh Duskie. It’s alright. I’ll be fine. Really. You know me. I’m strong. I’ll get the ingredients we need to remove our curse before you know it. I’m certain we’ll fine everything we need at the Garden Palaces. Once I do, I’ll call for you. We’ll break this thing, and then nothing can tie us down. And you’ll never have to return here again.”

“How are you so certain you’ll find everything there? What if we’re wrong?”

I shook my head. “We’re not. Mother told us,” I said. I put my forehead on hers. “She wouldn’t lie to us. I remember her stories. I’ll follow in her footsteps. And I’ll keep myself safe.”

She nodded. “Keep that on you at all times okay?” She said, pointing to the necklace. “I mean it. It doesn’t work if you’re not wearing it. I won’t be able to feel you. And if I don’t I’ll come to find you. Regardless of whether this curse kills me or not.”

“All the time? Really? Even when I have to bathe or sleep?” I teased.

“Well, you can take it off when you have a bath, but you have to keep it on you when you sleep. I’m serious Dawnie. Please. For my sake. You can’t take it off for more than an hour. Alright? Promise?”

I nodded. “Okay. I promise.”

“I wished I could just grow whatever we needed here,” Dusk said regretfully.

“There’s no use thinking that. You know you can’t grow what you haven’t seen before,” I said. Shaking my head. “At least you have the ability to grow things. I’m rather disappointed I didn’t get to see your saffarin.”

“You can grow things too,” she said with a snort.

“Not as well as you! Within your hands life flourishes. Whereas within mine lay only death.”

“Stop being so dramatic! It only happens because you grow things too fast. So they die fast too.”

“I wasn’t being dramatic,” I scoffed. “I only speak the truth.”

“Sure, sure. Well, what now?” She asked.

“I don’t really know. I guess I’ll have to pack?” I looked around the room, at the books strewn about, and all of the flasks and alembics that were filled with various concoctions of different colours. Creations abandoned. Experiments half done. I spent most of my time in this room, toiling away, trying to find different ways to make life easier for my sister and I. Finding cures for everything that ailed her. Attempting to find a way to break the curse upon our arms. “I don’t suppose I can take any of these with me,” I mused.

“I doubt it,” Dusk responded. “I think uncle would be a little bit suspicious if you were to carry any of our equipment with you. Though maybe you can bring ready made potions if you hide them away.”

I nodded. “That thing Martha made me for my birthday will finally be in use. But aside from that I suppose I don’t really have much to pack, do I?”

“Are you allowed to bring any weapons?” She said quietly.

I shook my head. “They check you on the way in. None of the contestants are allowed anything that could be used to harm another.”

“What if it’s for self defence?”

“Still not allowed I’m afraid. We’ll each be assigned a knight to protect us between the tests.”

“But… the girls, they die every year! How are you going to face off against others with connections when you have none?”

I shrugged. “I highly doubt the contestants are coming at each other with knives at every corner. And if they do, it would make my life a lot easier, knowing who I can and can’t trust. I’ll have to make do with what I have. I’ll be fine. Trust me.”

“At least you’ll have a knight.” She paused. “I hope he’ll be handsome.”

I blushed. “What do looks have to do with anything? He just needs to be skilled! I’m not going  there for romance!”

She laughed. “You don’t have to want romance to admire a good looking face.”

I sighed. “We have to stop giving you romance novels. I just hope he’ll be friendly. Or at least cordial enough. You know our family isn’t looked upon kindly.” 

“Yeah, but once they get to know you, I’m sure they’ll understand you’re nothing like our uncle. Aren’t you going to bring any clothing?”

“Maybe a few articles, but I believe our uncle dearest will be providing me with clothing and such.”

“I suppose, he’ll not want you to wear any of our usual shabby outfits. He probably has already tailored all sorts of luxurious outfits for you I’m sure.”

“For all his faults at least he does make us keep up with appearances. Well… with me at least,” I said.

Twice a year or so, the duke opened up the manor to host social gatherings. I would call them balls, but nobody ever danced, though we did bring in some people to perform music. It was only during those times that Uncle would buy me a new dress. Luckily my sister and I were the same size. I often gifted her the dresses afterwards, and we would have our own little ball in the tower. One where we actually danced. Martha would cook us a scrumptious feast. Adare would retrieve the gramophone from the storage room, and we would each take turns dancing with each other. I did not care too much for dancing, but my sister loved it so. And I would do anything to make her happy.

We went back to our room afterwards and lay on my bed, chatting away. About everything. About nothing. We chatted until the sky darkened and stars dotted above and we both drifted off to sleep. Unperturbed by the horrors I’d yet to face.