What We Wish For

Prologue

An Old Woman sat on a chair.

Her breathing laboured, she took her time savouring every breath she took. The Woman's wrinkling hands remained hidden underneath the sleeves of the thrifted summer dress she wore. The dress swirled with patterns, petals of daisies.

Her calves, which were uncovered, shivered. The threats of goosebumps remained ignored by the Woman, who feigned ignorance, refusing to eye the shawl laid across the arm of the chair promising only relief.

The Woman had shut her eyes a few hours ago, so she relied on her ears. Giggles and shouts of young children softly echoed across the room. Her chapped lips tugged slightly into a smile.

Another Woman, perhaps half the age of the one that sat on the chair, rushed out of a door. Her steps were tired but loud, brows furrowed in frustration and anger. Only after attempting to rip out all her hair did her grey eyes look up to watch the old Woman.

"Mum?", she whispered, "...are you really asleep?"

Although the Older Woman's ears twitched, no response came.

Her daughter sighed, eyes softening at the sight of her frail Mother. She stretched her arms out, ready to drape the ignored shawl over the stubborn Woman's freezing body.

"Mum!", a child screamed from the door the Woman had recently left, "We're finished!"

The Woman sighed again, quickly draping the shawl over her own Mother, she walked towards the door the call came from.

Three children were clustered around a spacious, white tiled bathroom.

A girl, no older than the age of nine, gargled her throat in front of the sink. Her brown eyes snapped towards her mother's grey ones, she stared blankly.

The Mother of the child nodded in approval.

"Alright Melinda, hop into bed. But do not, and I repeat, do not, disturb your grandmother" She warned.

Melinda barely nodded before her feet had already taken her out of the bathroom, towards the direction of her bed.

A cry of help captured the tired mother's attention.

"Mummmmm" the boy whined, "Where's my Phone?"

The Mother kissed her teeth in agitation.

The boy she glowered at appeared to be sixteen years of age, seventeen at most, and he had seemed to have inherited his mother's grey eyes. His tall body leaned against the wall in a stance of laziness, a glint of desperation in his eyes.

"How should I know Kevin?" The woman muttered, "Your father took it and I know he did it for a reason, so if you have nothing else to do here, follow Melinda and make sure she's tucked in before you do the same to yourself. Oh, and do not- "

"-Wake Grandma, I know, it's only ever Melinda who does that anyway" Kevin continued for his mother, his voice lathered in an attitude that seemed as if it had been with him from the day of his birth.

Before his mother could scold him, he had already walked out of the bathroom, towards the temporary shared room of his siblings.

The mother of the children sighed for the third time that night, before laying her eyes on her last and most obedient child.

"Layla", the mother said, "come up off the floor and tuck yourself in for the night".

The gentle voice of her mother stirred the girl who sat in the corner of the bathroom.

The teenage girl, who looked identical to her twin brother, except for her brown eyes, pulled out an earphone from her left ear. Her tired eyes nodded in agreement before pulling herself up and walking out of the bathroom.

The Mother left the bathroom quickly after turning off the light. She kissed each of her children's head as they laid in their beds, before doing the same to her own mother who still sat quietly in the corner of the large room in her chair.

"Good night my darlings, don't stay up tonight" she said softly.

After those words were spoken, she carefully closed the door to the room, before descending down the large staircase to her own.

A minute of silence came, and then another,

"Alright, she's gone" The weak voice of the old woman whispered.

"Finally!" Kevin muttered, springing himself upright on his bed. His wide eyes eagerly awaited on his grandmother's next words.

Layla, who had been sitting upright on her own bed already, rolled her eyes at her twin's words. Nevertheless, she too could not hide the eagerness shining through her eyes.

Melinda, the youngest out of the siblings, carefully lifted herself out of her position and stared blankly at her family.

Their Grandmother coughed quietly, before taking a sip of the glass of water sitting on the table at her side.

"Alright", she wheezed, "I assume I'm telling the tale of Peter Pan again. I'll start from the beginning- "

"No. I want a different story". The softly spoken, but firm words came from Melinda.

The Grandmother's eyes widened slightly, this granddaughter of hers had never been interested in any of her stories before.

"She's right, I'm sick of hearing about stupid Wendy, and stupid Peter. The only Character in that story worth hearing about is Tinkerbell" Kevin whined.

His Twin nodded in agreement. She herself disliked how easily discarded Tinkerbell was by Peter when Wendy had come into the picture, Tinkerbell had only ever given him her heart, and then the never aging boy had taken it, and gifted it to another girl.

"Oh...ok. What kind of story would you like to hear Melinda?" Their Grandmother asked, slightly confused at the denial of their once favourite story.

"I...want to hear a story I've never read before, a story that hasn't been heard of" The young girl whispered, slightly shy.

Before her siblings could gape at their sister's newfound emotion, their grandmother waved a frail hand in the air.

"So be it. The story I have in mind is a story you've never read before, because it hasn't been heard before. Not for many, many years anyway..." The woman trailed off, a slightly glossy glaze coating her eyes.

Her attention snapped back to her grandchildren, her grey eyes narrowing slightly,

"But the story I am to tell you, must be kept that way. In this world no one knows what is real and what is not, simple children's stories made to scare you into shape are probably truer than you think. This story is no exception, the value of it I believe, would be sought after more than life itself. Get comfortable"

The three children, if not entertained enough before, were intrigued now. Busying themselves with adjusting their pillows, they soon relaxed into a position they would find no discomfort in.

The old woman nodded in approval. She cleared her throat once more, after another sip of her water.

Then?

Then she began.

"In The World of Time there were only four rules to follow. We had not ever attempted to bend any of those rules, and those who entertained the thought were never seen again.

We cannot disturb those who no longer breathe.

We cannot take on more wishes than given

We cannot wish for materialistic wealth

We must not twist our tongues"