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Lumine’s dreams tended to dwell over the same thing each time. Aether.
She was running a hand over an old bow she had found, leaning against a wall. “I need to get better with a bow,” she hummed, placing the weapon on the ground between her and Aether.
Aether scrunched his face up, looking at her curiously. “Why?” he asked, flicking the string. “I thought you liked sword-fighting!”
Lumine smiled at him before standing up, Aether quickly in pursuit. “I do. But I need to make sure I can cover you in battle. Just in case.” She leaned against the wall with a sigh, examining the flood of emotions that passed over her brother’s face. There was a speck of annoyance, a flash of guilt—but she blinked and Aether’s expression became collected and cool, a mask he typically wore around her. She didn’t hold a candle to Aether’s ability at being able to cover his emotions, but he wasn’t able to read people as well as she could, either. Perhaps that was what being twins meant.
“...Just in case what? ” Aether responded with a pout, his eyes narrowed. “I’m plenty strong.”
“I know you are,” she responded, looking away. “I guess I’m just… scared.”
“Lumine.” He was beside her in a second, a warm smile covering his face as he slung an arm over her shoulder. “I’m serious. I won’t let anyone touch me. Or you, for that matter. Besides, between the two of us, you’re the more reckless one! Do you even have a brain?” He lightly rapped on her head, letting out a low chuckle.
Lumine huffed, turning away from him, her arms crossed over her chest. “Whatever. I don’t see the point in wasting time on a strategy that might fail. Besides, wasn’t it you that thought that running into an enemy we’ve never seen before was a bright idea?” He scowled at her jab, taking a small step away from her as she laughed at his reaction.
“I did it once!” He replied, shaking his head. “I hate that place.”
She didn’t say so aloud, but Lumine had to agree. Pondering on it, she didn’t quite remember what that place even was; the two had appeared there a while ago. All of her memories consisted of shivering and enduring complaints from her twin. “Yeah,” she said with a grimace. “Never again.”
“We can add it to our block list.”
“We have one of those?”
Aether paused. “...We do now?”
She laughed, nudging his shoulder. “I don’t think that’s how it works, but okay.”
“Still, you really don’t have to worry about me. I can take care of myself.” Aether walked away from her, kneeling besides the bow she had dropped to the ground moments before.
“I’d rather worry about keeping you safe than risk you getting hurt,” she replied, moving to stand beside him.
He tilted his head to the side, looking up at her. “Weren’t you the one that just said back-up plans were stupid?”
“Hey, don’t twist my words around!” She replied indignantly. “I said plans that are probably gonna fail. Like all of the ones you come up with.”
“My plans are great!” Aether said, flopping onto the ground.
“Yet here we are, stuck here because you underestimated how much energy we had. Great thinking.” Lumine gestured towards their surroundings, which was, well, nothing. The two had landed in a barren wasteland and were lucky to have found a small cave to take refuge in. Half of the cavern had been filled with debris, but it was better than nothing. She wasn’t sure when they would be ready to take another jump, but she hoped it was soon.
Aether let out a long sigh. “Okay, you got me there,” he said. “But the quiet is kind of nice, right? I’m tired of having to predict the reactions we get from people.”
She hummed, a small smile dancing across her features. “True, but the last one was nice. It’s been a while since we’ve been revered as gods.”
“You would think that, huh.” Aether’s disapproving tone was betrayed by the smile that covered his face. There was a lull in the conversation as Aether became contemplative, before looking at her. “Lumine?”
“Hmm?” She tilted her head, meeting his gaze.
“I love you, you know.” He paused for a moment before he imitated vomiting into his palm. “That was awful to say.”
“Feeling sentimental?” She asked, a teasing grin on her face. “I suppose I love you, too.”
Aether rolled his eyes. “Wow, thanks.” His mouth remained open for a moment as he pondered what to say. “I just… have this feeling. Like something bad is going to happen soon.”
“Like what?” Lumine asked, concerned, kneeling beside him on the ground.
“I don’t know,” he replied. She wished he could give her a straight answer for once. “I just feel like there’s going to be repercussions for jumping around worlds like this. It’s going to catch up to us eventually.”
“Oh, please,” she replied, waving away his thoughts. “Don’t be so pessimistic. We’ve been doing this for—” she paused, taking moment to count on her hands “—Actually, I have no idea. Anyway, it’s been a while. So stop worrying so much. You’re making me anxious.”
“Whoops,” he replied sarcastically. “Well, whatever happens, at least we’ll be together, right?”
“Of course! I don’t think it’s possible for us to be separated. We’ve been together since birth, after all.” Lumine grinned, taking his hand in hers. “We’ll always be there to protect each other. Promise?”
“Promise,” he replied with a laugh, shaking her hand.
She smiled at him, enjoying this feeling. If she had known that his feeling was going to come true in the following months, she would’ve said more. She wouldn’t have half-assed her I love you . She would’ve told him why he was important to her. Why, sure, they didn’t have their parents, but at least they had each other.
But now, she didn’t have any of that.