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“Come on, like Luz said, positive reinforcement.” Amity began, surveying herself in the mirror as she stood in her bathroom, clad in soft pink pajamas and sporting messy lavender hair. Today would be the day that she’d finally show off her new hair colour to her parents. She’d been dreading it for the past week, finding every opportunity to cover her hair or dodge her parents’ gaze as she awaited the inevitable.
Today was her family’s weekly brunch, wherein she and her siblings would report their school marks and assignments they are to do followed by an uneasy silence. It was one of the few days all five Blights would be in the same room, considering Edric and Emira often were out pranking anyone unfortunate enough to run into them and their parents were too busy with their business to check in on the three siblings.
“I can do this, I can do this…” she whispered to herself, trying to conjure up some courage, some drive, something to prepare her for this moment she had dreaded. But all she could manage was a tired sigh. While her girlfriend, Luz, was able to always be cheery and ready to go at a moment’s notice, Amity was a different case. Amity was much more unsure of herself, being one to stress over tiny things, especially academically.
“Mittens!” a voice hollered from outside of the bathroom, shaking the girl from her attempts to raise up even a drop of courage and assurance.
“Oh, uh, what’s up?” she replied, her voice a tiny bit shaky.
“You’ve been in the bathroom for almost half an hour, mom and dad are getting a bit impatient…” Emira explained, “are you alright?”
“Um, mmhmm…” Amity mumbled, trying to hide her nervousness. With every passing moment her heart rate got a tiny bit faster, a slow incline that rose along with her voice’s pitch.
Still, her big sister wasn’t convinced and slowly peeked inside the bathroom, opening the door just a crack. “Are you sure, Mittens?” she gently pried, “you don’t exactly sound big right now...”
Amity blushed faintly and lightly played with the hem of her pajama shirt, trying to stay calm and collected. She’d been regressing much more often ever since that… well, incident with Hooty, and both Edric and Emira had been babying her much more as a result. A few months ago, Amity probably would’ve regressed only once every few weeks, and if so it wouldn’t be much of anything beyond cuddling some plushies in her little alcove in the library, but now that she was less focused on perfection, she had a bit more reason to slip.
Of course, this didn’t mean that she’d been able to keep it a secret, seeing as Edric and Emira are her siblings. After Amity started showing the tiniest signs of being little, they’d immediately jumped on it. Thankfully they never teased her about it too much, but the nickname of ‘Mittens’ did mostly come from the fact that she’s not always ‘Little Miss Perfect’, well, the ‘little’ she still is, but that’s besides the point. Still, they respected her secret enough to not mention anything beyond normal teasing, and they even occasionally took care of Amity when she was feeling extra little or just needed a little support.
“Well… um,” her voice got fainter and more childish, with the occasional lisp slipping through, “I’m just a wittle, er, l- little nervous, is all…” she whispered, trying her best to hide her smaller side, even if it didn’t do much.
Emira then carefully slid into the bathroom, looking her little sister in the eye as she gently put a hand on her shoulder “Mittens, I can tell you’re not big right now… do you want me to cover for you? I could get you Otabin if you need him…” she offered, since Amity’s favourite plushie always helped her calm down.
Amity blushed more and shyly looked away, nervously fidgeting with a loose strand of hair, “Nu, it’s fine…” she mumbled in her babyish tone before remembering herself and taking a deep breath. “Don’t worry, Emira, I’m fine,” she assured in her normal voice, trying desperately to keep herself from slipping.
“Emira! Mittens!” Odalia called from downstairs, startling the two. “Come down this instant!”
The two siblings winced and Emira gave her little sister one last look before Amity shone a shaky smile. Emira, trusting Amity’s shaky assurance, sighed before sliding out of the bathroom and quickly made her way downstairs.
The younger sister then let loose a sigh, well, more of a whimper, and then quickly threw on some clothes, being a simple black tunic and some leggings, before hopping downstairs.
As she slipped downstairs, the decadent orchid hues of the manor around her shone under the morning sun, it’s perfectly organized decorations sparkling as a shining reminder of the status of the Blights. Even the dinner table, pristine and made of a glossy purple wood carved to perfection, showed this pristine demeanor in all its glimmering glory.
Sat at such a dinner table was Odalia, her normal business woman smile replaced with a frustrated frown, Alador, who was absentmindedly toying with a small abomination in his hand, and Edric, who was anxiously tapping his foot, awaiting the return of his two siblings. Emira quickly joined at the table next to Edric, sat across from her parents, and quickly murmured something to Edric as the two’s younger sister approached.
Amity shakily approached the table, trying to keep composure as she sat down next to her siblings, taking a deep breath as she leaned on the table for a second. “Amity, we don’t lean on the table, dear,” Odalia warned, causing the girl to jolt up, going quickly into her perfect posture, with no slouch and her arms tucked carefully at her side.
As she sat there, with her mother glaring her down, her nervousness peaked, ‘Come on, just don’t slip, just don’t slip…’ she thought to herself, trying her best to stay prim, proper and placid. She already had enough to deal with in terms of her hair, and ending up in little space may well be an expulsion from the family.
The Blights sat still for a moment, a slight bit of tension running between them, as some abominations came into the room, giving each member of the family a carefully organized plate of food as the often-tense brunch once again began. Not much was said at first, other than the three siblings reporting their most recent projects in school, as was customary, and yet not a word was said of Amity’s hair, causing her nerves to rise higher and higher.
“So, Amity, have you gotten your palisman yet?” Alador asked as he took a gentle sip of tea, glancing around the room curiously.
“Oh, yes, I received one three days ago, a cat named Ghost,” she noted, surprised her curious father hadn’t noticed the moon-white cat that followed her around most of the day.
“Hm… and yet, was it not supposed to be four days ago that Hexside was supposed to have it’s palismans being handed out?” Odalia commented, giving an idle glare to her youngest daughter, who was now shaking slightly in her seat.
“Well… yes, they were, but I wasn’t able to um, get to school that day…” she murmured, her outwardly calm demeanor weaning as she winced.
Alador glanced up from his tea, puzzled, “And why would that be?”
With the looks of the four other Blights upon her, Amity shrunk a little in her seat, looking down in shame as she muttered, “I um… was… well…” she stammered, again fidgeting with a loose strand of her lavender hair before she realized her mistake as Alador’s attention was brought to the girl’s hair.
“Hmm… Your hair…” he began, causing Amity to brace for a lecture, “It’s not styled, is it? How dreadful.” he remarked before going back to his tea.
Odalia let out a groan, “Dear, can’t you see? She’s dyed it,”
And with that, Amity’s hopes of avoiding the issue plummeted, and so too did her calm demeanor. Her breath caught in her throat and she let out a tiny whimper, looking away from the other Blights as she felt everything around her get bigger and bigger, the stress causing her to begin slipping.
“Oh Amity, this is quite peculiar… not attending classes and you’re bringing extra attention to yourself with your hair change?” Alador pondered, his tone becoming more serious. “Have you forgotten your status, our prestige?”
“And with that incident with that Noceda girl, it seems you’ve been running into all number of issues as of late.” Odalia added, her glare adding to Amity’s stress as the girl let out another whimper and tears began to form in her eyes.
“I… I um, y- you s-s-see…” she stammered, trying to give some kind of explanation, but her normally educated grammar slipped away from her, and all she was left with was scared whimpers, nothing to dissuade the disappointed glares from her parents from intensifying.
Edric and Emira were left there horrified, unsure whether to aid and risk retaliation or just sit there and let it happen. It hurt to see their little sister being lambasted like this, and eventually, Edric had to step in. He stood at the table, glaring down at his mother with passion not often seen in the often distracted teen. “Look, she’s just overwhelmed, ok?” He barked, shushing his parents. “One or two bad weeks doesn’t mean anything, and she’s taking twice the classes, so maybe she just needs time to settle into them.”
Emira chimed in, standing along with her twin brother, “Yeah, Mittens is trying her best, doesn’t that matter?”
The twins’ input startled Alador and Odalia, causing the whole table to go silent, with the exception of Amity’s occasional sniffles, and Edric gently sat back down, giving his little sister a soft pat on the back to help her calm down a tiny bit. Even Amity herself was surprised at her siblings’ input, since they usually wished only to avoid their mother’s wrath, but were willing to take a fall here.
After a few moments of silence, Alador cleared his throat. “Well… Amity, I am disappointed to see your progress in school being stunted due to these recent events, but still, you are our daughter. I am willing to partly excuse your stunted progress, at least for now.”
Odalia let out a disgruntled sigh, “I agree so long as it’s partly, since you do still deserve some punishment for your lackluster performance.” she concurred, and Alador nodded along with her decision.
Emira then spoke up, “What, you’re punishing her just for missing one day and changing her hair colour?”
“Young lady, we’re already being rather kind in lessening her punishment, do not push your luck.” Alador grumbled, glaring at Emira as she mumbled an apology.
As abominations came in to carry away the dirty plates from brunch, Odalia concluded, “Amity, you will be grounded for one week, and will not have access to your scroll for that time.”
Amity sighed and muttered, “O- ok, mom..” before excusing herself from the table and swiping away a few stray tears from her face as she made her march back upstairs. As she walked upstairs, with her nerves spiking, she could feel herself slipping more into little space, with the allure of hugging a soft plushie being all that was on her mind. She didn’t want to worry about the fact that she wouldn’t be able to spend much time with Luz for a week, or that she messed up again, she just wanted to relax, at least for a moment.
She slipped inside her room, making her way to her bed, where there were several large books tucked underneath it. She pulled away some of the books to reveal a tiny pink backpack with a light coating of dust speckled atop it. With a ‘humph’, she reached under the bed and pulled out the backpack, gently swatting away some of the dust from it and opening it to reveal a soft, fluffy plush of Otabin the Bookmaker that she’d had since she was quite young.
Upon having her beloved plushie in her arms, she smiled faintly and hugged him tight, letting her worries wisp away as she relaxed and sat there on the floor, cuddling Otabin.
After a few minutes, Edric and Emira approached their younger sister’s room, standing outside of the closed door “Should we go in?” Edric whispered, and Emira softly shook her head, “I’m not sure, she might need more time to herself…”
Their pondering was interrupted as they heard a cute giggle from inside the room, signaling big Amity wasn’t around. Quite glad to see her sister being able to relax and be little, Emira then slowly pushed the door open, “Hey baby sis, do you mind if Ed and I come in?” she asked in a soft voice, looking down at her adorable sister, sitting on the floor and cuddling her pink plush bunny.
“I nu mind,” Amity babbled, looking up at her big sis with a cheery grin. Little Amity was quite happy to see her siblings, and quickly hopped up to give them both a big hug.
“Aww, having fun playing with Otabin, Mittens?” Edric cooed, returning Amity’s hug and giving her a few soft pats on the head.
She then let out a sweet little giggle and nodded, “Mmhmm, I’m having a gweat time wit him!” she chimed, her voice’s lisp growing as she slipped further into little space. “An’, um, fanks for eawlier...” she added, her tiny self faintly recalling the events of the brunch.
“Oh, any time, Mittens, we’re always gonna make sure you’re doing alright!” Emira assured, turning to Amity’s little backpack, “Now, do you want your paci, little one?”
Amity then quickly nodded as Emira bent down and pulled a pastel purple paci from Amity’s bag, gently popping it into her mouth before she began happily suckling on it. “Fanks chu!” she babbled from behind the paci, and the twins happily ‘aww’-d at their adorable little sister.
“Now, Mittens, do you think you might want some nap time?” Edric gently asked, and Amity then wondered for a second before nodding and letting out a tiny yawn. “Aww, alrighty, well do you want one of us to tuck you in?”
Amity smiled gleefully and then pointed up at Emira, deciding sucking on her paci was far more important than speaking. Emira then smiled and gently scooped up her baby sister before softly tucking her into bed, covering her up under her soft purple blanket and giving her another few pats on the head before saying “alrighty, now that you’re all comfy, would you like a bedtime story?”
Amity did another cute nod whilst suckling on her paci as Edric then went into the bag and pulled out Otabin the Bookmaker, opening it up and beginning to read it along with Emira, and while Emira did the narration, Edric did the funny voices, which always made Amity giggle, and the two twins even added some illusions into the story, making the book’s pictures move along with the story.
As the story went on, Amity got more and more sleepy, but all of a sudden something came to mind. She remembered, through Edric doing the funny voices and Emira doing the narration, that Luz wasn’t around, since recently Luz had aided her in reading to the kids at the library and did the same thing. A few tiny tears began to form in her eyes, and Edric took notice.
“Oh, baby, what’s wrong?” he softly asked, stopping the story as Amity whimpered and clutched her Otabin plush closer. It seems Amity’s big thoughts managed to find their way to her little self.
“Wa.. Where Mamí…?” she choked out as more memories of what happened at brunch started to come to her, tears washing down her face.
Emira then swiftly scooped up Amity and gently cradled her, rocking her softly to calm her down, “Shh… it’s ok, Mittens,” she assured her, before looking up at Edric with a look of confusion. “Does she mean Mom?” she whispered to Edric, who shook his head.
“I’m not sure, but either way, I don’t think bringing her to Mom would do anything good…” he whispered back, and Amity then piped in,
“Nu! Mamí! Wuz!” she cried out, and the two twins then softly shushed her, trying to make sure she wasn’t too loud. For once, it seemed Amity was able to keep a secret from the twins, since neither of them knew Luz had been Amity’s caregiver. Nevertheless, they were glad Amity had someone else who could help her while she was little.
“Shh, Mittens, it’s ok, we’ll make sure you can see your Mamí,” Emira assured her, reaching into her pocket and pulling out her scroll. She then quickly sent Luz a text explaining the situation and then Luz fired up a facegrime, (The boiling isles’ version of facetime).
“Cariño?” Luz sweetly said to Amity as Emira handed Amity the scroll.
“Mamí!” she cheered, calming down as she saw her caregiver’s face, “I missed you wots…” she pouted from behind her paci.
Luz then softly frowned, “Oh, cariño, I’m so sorry, but don’t worry, I’m here now,” she assured her little one, and after a few minutes of talking, and Amity being put back in bed by Emira, Amity was softly asleep, and the two twins left out a soft sigh together. Luz had already ended the facegrime by that point, and the two got ready to head out of Amity’s room.
“I’m so glad Mittens has Luz now, she needs a caregiver now more than ever…” Edric quietly commented, trying not to wake their sleeping sister.
“Yeah… but still, I think we need to make sure she gets plenty of chances to be with Luz and be little…” Emira replied, looking at her sleeping sister with a tiny frown. “She hasn’t been this happy in a while, and I really wanna make sure she’s ok…”
Edric then smiled, “Don’t worry, if we can do anything, it’s cover for her, since what else are we gonna use our illusions for?” he mused, chuckling as he thought up pranks to keep their parents distracted in case Amity needed to be out for a long time.
Emira, sharing in the joy of some pranks, chuckled along and then slipped out of the room, looking at her sleeping baby sister and gently smiling at how cute she looked as she softly slept.
“Yeah, we’ll make sure she gets to see her Mamí again.”