Tree of Wishes

To His End: A Juniper Perspective

Nothing lasts forever. Even if something has been around for millions or billions of years, that doesn't make it eternal. I'll eventually die someday, the sun will implode and destroy the galaxy, and the whole universe will collapse on itself, leaving but an endless nothingness until the big bang starts over again. Despite that, it doesn't stop it from hurting when something you care about is coming to an end.

So imagine my shock when Cypress said, "Everyone, I have something important to announce. It's regarding the future of this estate. To put it simply, I will be leaving you all once Juniper has become the head of this household."

At first, everyone was silent, trying to process what Cypress said. We exchanged confused glances with each other, unsure of how to respond.

Then Anubis, being innocent, asked, "Where are you going?"

"It's a bit complicated," Cypress said. "No one truly knows what the afterlife is like after all. But I can assure you I'll be fine, as will all of you."

"The hell?" Eddie said as he clenched a fist in anger, barely managing to contain himself. "You sayin' you're dyin'? What's goin' on exactly?"

Cypress nodded with a grim confirmation that shot dread down into my stomach. "I discovered that Lagdrygis escorts the Sylvan family to the afterlife once they've reached the end of their lives. I recently received a visit from them, and I was able to negotiate holding it off until Juniper graduates from college and fully takes over."

That's when Eddie lost it. Knocking the wooden table over, he charged over to Cypress and grabbed him by the collar, glaring him down as he shouted, "So what?! Ya gonna listen to some damn tree and leave us behind?!"

Cypress's expression shifted from calm acceptance to painful melancholy, and the sadness reflected off his deep, emerald eyes extinguished Eddie's anger, causing him to loosen his grip.

"Trust me, I don't wish to leave you all either," Cypress said. "But one of us has to leave first, and I would rather it be me." He then sighed, his voice lowering and wavering as if he was holding back tears. "I'm tired, Eddie. Please understand that. I wish to retire in peace."

Eddie scowled and released Cypress, then stomped off out of the house to who knows where. Meanwhile, Anubis was left whining with his head low to the ground, completely helpless.

"Not gonna lie. I don't like this," I admitted, managing to keep myself cool and composed. "But I'm not graduating for a while, so at least we still have time left."

"I guess that's true..." Anubis murmured with his entire body drooping, clearly upset by this. "But I don't want Cypress to die..."

Cypress put back on a small smile and kneeled down to gently pet Anubis's head. "I appreciate the thought, but that's how it must be."

Anubis pouted like a child as he grumbled, "Would've chased that ghost away sooner had I known..."

His attitude made me giggle a little, which helped ease the situation. Eddie didn't come back for dinner, but none of us were worried. We all knew he was just sulking somewhere, not wanting anyone to see him in such a vulnerable state. He cared about Cypress as much as the rest of us, maybe even more so. It might have been easier for me to accept because I already had experience with this sort of thing with my grandma.

Later that night, I sat outside in front of the altar with my laptop open, messing around while waiting for my mom to give me one of her weekly calls. My aunts left Cypress alone and went back to their own lives after he passed all their tests and requirements for a year. My mom also let up on him a little, and over time the two were able to actually able to talk like family members rather than business partners. Still, my mom is a mom, and that means calling up to see how I was doing when there was a chance.