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Christmas had come and gone with no signs of the war ending soon. Sally frowned. Perhaps she was still too young to try and figure out the 'gift' that the women in her family always had.
But she couldn't fret about that now. She was cooking - oh! She snapped out of her thoughts and quickly removed the skillet from the heat. She hadn't burnt the chicken breast, and for that she was greatful.
She platted the chicken with a small side of greens, admiring her work. Her sister was often the one to cook, but since Egbert left for war, she hardly left the window. Sally, trying to support her sister, took on the task of cooking. She was by no means a great cook (the fire department became quite familiar with the Xavier family over the last few months...), she got the job done.
Picking up the plate, she made her way to Mother's room. She passed the room her sister often stayed in, hearing soft sobbing coming through the door. Sally's heart hurt for her sister, and she made a mental note to visit after bringing Mother her food.
Her Mother's door was somewhat open, as per Mother's request, but Sally still knocked on the doorframe.
"Knock knock, Mother, are you awake? I brought you some food," Sally spoke softly, in case Mother was sleeping through another migrane. Mother waved her in weakly, and Sally swiftly made her way to the bed.
"Thank you, Sally," she smiled and slowly sat up. Sally placed the plate of food down on Mother's lap. "This looks delicious!"
"How are you feeling?" Sally asked.
"I'm quite alright, darling. Is... is your sister still at the window?"
Sally sighed. "Yes. I've tried getting her to leave but it's a fool's task. I just feel so sorry for her..."
Mother beckoned Sally to kneel at the bed. "Sally... you want the boys to return, correct?"
"Of course I do!" Sally exclaimed, taking a knee by the bed. Mother turned away, brows furrowed.
"And you would do anything in order to get them back, yes?"
"Anything in my power!"
Mother hummed for a moment, before the caring smile she often sported returned to her face. She raised one of her hands to Sally's head, lightly brushing hair out of her face, before resting her hand on Sally's forehead. "Mm, I much agree. Daughter, your head is feeling rather warm, are you feeling alright?"
Sally cocked her head. "Me? I'm feeling quite alright."
Mother hummed once again, removing her hand from the young girl. "My mistake. Could you be a dear and go check on your sister?"
"Of course, Mother. I'll return later to collect your dishes!" Sally stood and began making her way out of the room.
"Sally, dear," her Mother called. "If you start to feel under the weather, please lie down for a spell. We couldn't have you falling ill on us."
"I'm fine, Mother, I promise! Please, eat your food and get some rest, okay?"
"...alright dear."
Sally left the room, shutting the door softly. As she made her way down the hall, a sharp pain coursed through her head. Caught off guard, she stumbled slightly, catching herself on a nearby wall.
"Oh... oh that cannot be good. Perhaps Mother was right..." Sally spoke aloud to nobody in particular. Clutching her head, she began making her way to her bedroom, but another sharp pain coursed through her head, causing her to lose balance once again. She was not fortunate enough to catch the wall the second time and fell to the floor in a fainting spell.
A few hours passed before Sally came to, laying in her bed with her sister preparing a wet towel. Now that you mention it, Sally had one on her head already.
"...sister? What... happened?" Sally asked, softer than she intended. Her sister turned around, her face lighting up for the first time in months.
"Sally!" she exclaimed, wrapping the younger one in a tight hug. "Oh, you had me so worried! Are you alright?"
"Yes, yes I... I think I'm alright? What happened?"
"I was sitting by the leftenmost window when I heard something fall out in the hall. I thought maybe a painting or- or a vase fell, so I went to check on it and I saw you laying on the floor! So Father and I brought you in here, and I've been taking care of you. Father's out, getting medicine for you."
Sally smiled. "Thank you, sister. I know how much the window means to you and..."
Suddenly, Sally's thoughts began to slow. The window. The boys. Egbert. Egbert.
Thoughts (memories?) of her and Egbert flooded her mind - a single night, mere days before he went off to war. The garden. The pain and the pleasure, the guilt and the satisfaction - all flooded her mind like a broken dam. Her face went pale.
"Sally? Are you alright? Do you need another towel?"
"No no, I..." God, Sally couldn't even look at her sister right now. "Could you, erm, run to the shops? I think some soup would help my head and I'm pretty sure we're out."
"Of course. Are you okay by yourself for a little bit?"
"Yes, I'll take care of myself. I'm almost a full woman grown."
Her sister smiled. "Okay, rest up. I'll be back." And like that, she was gone. Sally quickly got out of bed and began to pace around.
"Why would images of that-?! I would never, much less with Egbert!" she tried rationalizing to herself. It was just intrusive thoughts! She had been dealing with those for years. But... this felt different.
In an act of desperation, she went to visit Mother's room again. "Knock knock, Mother it's me. Can I talk to you?"
"Come in," called Mother from the other side of the door. Sally opened it to find Mother reading 'Evergreen.' "You would love this book, Sally. I-" when Mother looked up, she saw Sally's expression, a mixure of sadness, disgust, and anger. "Darling, what's wrong?"
"I-I fainted in the hallway, and when I came to, thoughts of Egbert having- having sex with me flooded my mind, and it feels different from my other intrusive thoughts, and I-"
"Thoughts? Oh dear... you don't remember?"
Sally's heart dropped. "Remember what?"
"You know the women in our family have always had a gift... and your sister needs to finally unlock hers in order to win this war. Your father commanded you to have sex with Egbert."
"No, no, no! That's- no! I would never do that! I would never hurt my sister by fucking her husband, I-" Sally looked to her Mother for any reassurance, but was met with only a pained expression.
Oh god, what had she done?