Sure enough, Magnus’s admonishment would come true. The years passed by, and while Edna was growing older, her mother was not getting younger. Now older, Edna’s heart had finally caught up with her precocious mind. And, with mind and body unified, she was able to completely grasp just how dire the current situation was.

“Mom, hold on, ok?” Edna said softly, trying desperately to warm Veronica up. They were currently in the throes of winter, the harshest one Apollyn had seen yet. As usual, Edna was playing the role of a heater for both Jackson and Veronica, but, despite her best efforts, Veronica had fallen ill, and, according to Jackson, the chances of it being a slight cold were nil. For the past few days, she had had a fever and been coughing, but Veronica didn’t want to go to the clinic, and thought it only a mere cold. And then, during this blizzard, her condition had suddenly worsened rapidly. “Edna, dear…I’ll be fine,”

Veronica mumbled, though her reassuring words didn’t have much effect, since she started violently coughing afterwards. “Edna, we’re going to have to get her medicine, or something,” Jackson said softly. Edna looked up at him with worried eyes. “But Jackson, how will we afford it? Can we even get to the Clinic?”

Right now, a blizzard was raging outside. Thanks to Edna helping Jackson cover most of the holes in the shack and her heat, they were well protected from the cold, but to go outside, especially with the fact neither Edna nor Jackson had any sort of adequate winter gear, was to essentially commit suicide.

“Edna…you’re not affected by the snow, remember?” Jackson told her. “You’re the only one who can get to Serena’s clinic!”

“But…if I go…” With Edna gone, they would have no heat source. Jackson held up the few ratty blankets they had. “I’m sure we can make due with these for now; just hurry back, ok?” Edna hesitated, then slowly nodded. “Got it!” with those words, she stood up straight. Since the clothes George had bought her had long stopped fitting her, she now wore simple, patchwork clothing lovingly sewn by her own hands. However, it was poor gear to brave the elements; seeing a child enter a blizzard wearing this could only be seen as criminal.

But Edna had an ability other children didn’t- the ability to withstand cruel temperatures for far longer than others, be it hot or cold. So, she brushed aside the ramshackle door and stepped into the frigid air. It was impossible to see greater than a foot or so- her vision was blanketed with white.

Snowflakes hammered mercilessly into her skin, and she involuntarily shivered at their contact. The temperature was low enough that even she was feeling it. But it was nothing she couldn’t handle! With a brave face, Edna began trudging through the snow, moving as fast as possible towards Serena’s clinic.

Moving through snow was hard work, especially for a kid. Edna was panting heavily, but she managed to find her way out of the slums. Thoroughly exhausted, she was now at the main road, and Serena’s clinic was within her view. Sprinting, Edna reached up and threw the door open. “SERENA!” she shouted, her adorable voice filling the empty clinic. “Bwah?!” Serena’s surprised sputter was equally loud as cold air began blowing into the clinic. Edna hastily closed the door behind her, while Serena got up and moved around the counter.

“Edna! What are you doing in this weather?”

“Serena, Mom’s sick!” Edna explained the situation to Serena in between her heavy breaths. “…sounds like pneumonia,” Serena said softly, thinking furiously. “The medicine won’t come cheap, you know? As much as I’d like too, I’d get in some serious hot water with my boss if I used it without being paid…”

“Put it on my tab!” Edna said loudly.

“Beg pardon?”

“Put it on my tab! I’ll work it off, I’ll do anything! Serena…please!” Under Edna’s pleading, Serena’s halfhearted resistance crumbled. “…alright, let me get my things…” she rushed back and quickly grabbed the bag she relied on when she answered house calls. Next, came her winter gear. Donning a heavy, fur-lined woolen coat and a wool cap, she was barely recognizable under her clothes. “Edna, you should get a coat too…”

“There’s no time!” Edna shouted, throwing open the door again. Serena groaned, and, lugging her bag, followed Edna into the frigid wintery outdoors.

Despite being exhausted, Edna trudged forth mechanically, but her high temperature revealed another blessing- the tracks she left behind were far easier to navigate, having yet to be filled in by the snow, allowing the burdened Serena to move at a decent clip. Eventually, they reached Edna’s ramshackle hut once more. Ednavand Serena both climbed in. Serena involuntarily shivered at how cold the cabin was, but now that Edna had returned, it would quickly become warm soon enough.

“Edna, you made it!” Jackson said, his voice filled with relief. “Let me look at her,” Serena said in a firm voice. Jackson made as much room as he could, but the hut was not big at all, so it didn’t do much. Serena sat down and opened her bag. “Vera, how are you feeling?” she asked.

“…terrible,” Veronica rasped. “Ha, you and me both,” Serena said as she pulled out a stethoscope and put it on. “Breathe deeply for me, alright?” Veronica nodded, and drew in a rattle-y breath. Serena placed the probe on Veronica’s chest and intently listened.

Gurgle, gurgle…

Her expression darkened, her lips tightening. There’s a lot of liquid in her lungs. This isn’t good at all…

She quickly put the stethoscope away. “So, it’s definitely pneumonia, but it’s advanced to a terminal stage. I can give her medicine, but…without proper equipment, there’s not much more I can do,” she said, offering her candid opinion. Despite how much it hurt her to do so, she was a Doctor. To lie about a patient’s condition to her family was absolutely unforgivable. Jackson was silent, pondering this information. Edna was the first to speak, “…so we have to move her to your clinic?” she asked.

Serena nodded grimly. “…yes, that would be ideal. However, in this weather, moving the patient will surely worsen her condition. There’s no feasible way for us to get her to the clinic. All I can do is try to stabilize her condition and keep her going until the blizzard passes. At least with you, Edna, we won’t have to worry about freezing to death…”

It was a small comfort, but an insignificant one at that. “I’m going to try and get the liquid out of her lungs, is that ok?” she asked Veronica. “It’ll be a bit rough, but I do have some anesthesia…” Veronica slowly nodded. “Do it.”

“Gotcha.”

And thus, Serena performed a backdoor surgery, and managed to get some of the liquid out of Veronica’s lungs. However, even with that and the application of antibiotics, Veronica’s condition steadily worsened. At around midnight, Serena sat back, her face emotionless. “Serena…?” Edna asked softly.

“…there’s nothing we can do for her,” Serena said softly, her eyes beginning to glisten. “Edna, Jackson…you should…say farewell,” Serena’s voice was trembling almost as much as her hands were. “Are you serious?” Jackson asked, unable to believe it.

“…I tried…I tried itrieditried!” Serena buried her face in her hands and began to cry. “Vera…I’m sorry I couldn’t save you!”

“Serena….it’s……..fine….” Veronica’s face was ashen, but even so, she was able to try to reassure Serena. “Veronica, it was…fun spending time with you. I promise I’ll look after Edna for you, alright?” Jackson said, his voice heavy. Veronica smiled wanly in response to that. “Thank you…Jackson. I’m…sorry...”

“Mom, I…” Edna struggled to find some sort of words to speak, but she couldn’t think of anything. “Mom…I love you,” she finally managed to choke something out. “I love…you too, Edna…” Veronica said softly. “Jackson…make sure to…take care of her….”

“I understand,” Jackson replied. Edna crawled under the covers and hugged her mother, trying desperately to warm her shivering body up.

For so long, this simple act had kept them both alive.

It kept the cold at bay.

So why?

Why was it not working?

Sometime after midnight, Veronica stopped breathing, and Serena, with a heavy heart, pronounced her dead. Jackson began to weep, and the simple dwelling was filled with the heartbroken sobs of three people.

The next day, Serena and Jackson were discussing matters of burial with wretched voices, but Edna was too unfocused to care. She had hugged Veronica’s body, even as it grew cold, certain that everything would be alright.

And in the end, things were not alright. “I can help pay the bills for the burial, but there’s the matter of the medicine I used…” Serena said softly.

“I understand, I’ll try to find some way to pay it off,” Jackson told her. “Alright, thank you Jackson.” Behind her, two golems stood at attention. In one of their arms was an elongated object wrapped in a blanket. When people who were unable to make proper arrangements, such as the homeless, died, the golems would usually come by and deal with them to prevent disease from spreading. “…there won’t be much of a funeral, but I’ll make sure you and Edna will be able to attend,” Serena told him. “That much I promise.”

“Thank you, Serena…”

“Think nothing of it. Jackson, work hard to raise Edna, alright? She’s…growing up, and I want her to become a respectable lady, so don’t screw up!”

“Ahaha, yeah, I won’t let her go astray. I owe Veronica that much, at least.”

With those words, the two separated, and Jackson walked back to the front of the hut, where Edna was currently sitting. “Hey kiddo, how you feeling?” he asked. Edna looked up at him with a listless gaze. Those eyes, which were usually so vibrant, were looking empty, and the sight of such a gaze was like a stake in his heart.

“Jack…it hurts,” she said softly. “I cry, and I cry, and there’s never any tears. I feel so…empty, Jack. Why do I feel so empty?” Jackson fell silent as he sat beside her. “…that’s because you’re grieving, Edna. I…feel empty too. It’s the sort of thing that can only really heal with time,” he told her softly. Edna stared at him, then returned her gaze upwards, staring at the blue sky.

“...I see,” she said softly. A few days passed. June and Hart came by, offering their condolences. They offered to play with Edna, but she turned them away. For now, she wanted to be alone, and the perfect place for that was on top of the turreted tower, a place she had not been too for a long, long time. This high up, she was able to see most of the city. With gloomy eyes, she watched the city, which continued to remain so vibrant, even with the tragedy of her mother’s death just a few days before.

Time had no consideration for others, it moved on no matter what happened. Even if the entirety of the world were to die, time would march on. Edna came to that realization, and, within her heart, she knew that she too, had to move on; because life was just like that. She draped herself over the crenellations lazily, staring up at the beautiful blue sky.

To give into despair? To cry and sob? To remain still and do nothing? She would do none of these things. Because, that was unproductive; Jackson was now in debt towards Serena, and above all else, she knew that it was only a matter of time before Jackson would also succumb to illness. For whatever reason, Edna was unable to contract illness, but in the dirty slums, it was all too easy for such a thing to occur.

She had to do something, take some sort of step, to help ensure that these things would be resolved peacefully. I...I have to be strong.

But for a child like her, homeless and uneducated, it’d be exceptionally hard to get a job of some kind beyond menial labor. Sell herself into slavery? As if. She never wanted to experience the pangs of hunger again, or to watch Jackson shiver from cold. She never wanted to see Hart gaze jealously at the newest toys, or June wish for some jewelry. She could never support herself or others by relying on such a choice. She idly thumbed the necklace she still wore, after all this time. Due to her meticulous care, its luster had not faded one bit, and the ruby within shone quite brilliantly.

She could not bring herself to pawn it off, because it was a gift, a memento, of a boy she never wanted to forget. There was a way out of this, surely. She remembered the words of Magnus, asking for her to join. She was all too aware that his words implied the option would always be open.

To become a wizard and learn the ways of magic…it was a rare opportunity. Sure, all beings had mana, but not all of them could effectively use magic, and even the ones that could weren’t guaranteed to have the skill or talent to grow into a full blown wizard.

But neither of those was the case for Edna, who had an incredible amount of magical energy. With that resolution, all she had to do…was find Magnus. And for once, the Gods granted her wish.