For a bowl of soup

Something's poking me. Slowly, I open my eyes. In front of me, the little girl is still asleep in her nest. I sit up, and as I move I hear a rustle. Something tickles my cheek, so I touch my left side. “Straw?” I look down. I'm lying on a bed of straw too. “Where's Laila?” I wonder, glancing around.

Getting to my feet, I stumble for a moment. “I got up too fast.” I lean against a wall until the dizziness fades.

I step outside, and when I don’t see her, I slip into an alley to relieve myself. When I come back, I notice her sitting on a rooftop, staring at the horizon. «Good morning.»

Her eyes land on me. «Oh! You're finally awake,» she says, before evaporating and reappearing behind me with a top hat, which she removes with a small bow. «Maybe you should say, ‘good evening’.» “What?” I look up at the sky. It’s still night. «Don’t look so surprised. The night isn’t eternal—you just slept for a couple of days.»

«Ah, shame. I would’ve liked to see what it’s like in the daytime.»

«Trust me, you don’t want to see it.»

“Why is she frowning at the moon when she says that? What did she see that was so awful or terrifying? Now I want to see it. No, that’s not true—I’m afraid. Actually, I really do want to see it.” I sigh. «I wish I knew more about this world.»

«Wish granted.»

«What? Wait! No! I didn’t mean to wish for that!»

«Too late, it’s done!» she exclaims, looking at me with a smile out of the corner of his eye.

«Damn it, I wasted a wish. That means I’ve got three left.» I sigh, counting on my fingers.

«Looks like someone else is interested in this conversation.» I glance around to see who she’s talking about, but there’s no one. She rolls her eyes upward. «The door.» She turns my head with a shove. The little girl is glaring at us from the doorway… or at least, I think that’s what she’s trying to do. She’s leaning against the frame, hands covering half her face. Her stomach growls, and her cheeks turn faintly red. In response, my stomach growls too…

«Adorable. You both suck at talking!» We both turn to see Laila sitting in a cinema armchair halfway between us, munching on popcorn. “Wait! Where the hell did she even get those popcorns?” Our stomachs growl in unison at the sight, and a line of drool drips from the corner of our mouths. «What?» asks Laila, confused, as she stuffs a generous handful into her mouth.

«Those…» I point at them. «So you can make food out of nothing!»

«It’s not good, I can tell you that much.»

«Say that without your mouth full!»

«Fine, if you insist.» With a snap of her fingers, she makes a plate of roast with mashed potatoes—exactly like my grandma’s—appear in my hands. Just looking at it makes me drool. I sit on the floor, ready to make it vanish instantly into my stomach. Then I notice the girl has stepped closer, staring at my plate.

«H-hey, Laila…»

«What?» she asks, floating on an inflatable ring in the gravy and mashed potatoes.

“Gross… If I weren’t starving to death, I’d leave it. Who am I kidding, I hate wasting food—I’d eat it anyway.” «Could you… make one for her too?»

«Bad idea, but if you say so.» With another snap, she makes an identical plate appear in the little girl’s hands.

«Enjoy,» I say, already scarfing mine down. But after a few bites, I stop. The girl doesn’t seem to enjoy hers either. «What the hell is this?»

«Told you so.»

«No you didn’t. You never explained a thing.»

«Ugh, such a pain. The taste and smell of food—especially cooked food—are insanely complicated to replicate from scratch. I’d have to put in effort I don’t have. If I had all my powers, you’d see the kind of banquets fit for a Haab-shu.»

«So you can’t just put in some effort for once?»

«Depends. Are you willing to burn through a ton of energy?»

«What do you mean?»

«Oh right, I didn’t tell you. Stupid past me—always leaving problems for future me.» She grumbles. «Anyway, one of the rules is that when the Haab-shu—in this case, lucky you, me—is outside its base container, it drains the summoner’s energy. A few days ago I used my powers a lot, which made you burn through quite a bit of yours. Add the bait on top of that… Basically, you’re the mom and I’m your darling baby who hasn’t been weaned yet.»

«So that’s why I had trouble running.»

«Partly, but mostly because you’re a sedentary nerd.»

«And why I slept so long…»

«Are you even listening to me?»

«Wait, so it wasn’t necessary for you to stay out of the arrow?»

She glares before answering. «No, but in the contract you signed, it is. So that’s your problem.» I slap my mashed potatoes. When I lift my hand, she’s gone. «Didn’t your parents teach you not to squash people?» she teases, floating a few meters away. I jump up, knocking my plate to the floor. I stumble again. «Slow down. You don’t have much energy left.»

«And whose fault is that?!»

«Yours, for accepting the contract without asking questions.»

“Damn it! She’s right. I was an idiot. I shouldn’t have trusted her, and everything so far has only proven how unreliable she is. I shouldn’t be surprised.” With a sigh, I give in. «Fine. I’m sorry.»

«Already tucking your tail between your legs? I thought you’d at least hold out a few more comebacks.» “Bitch. Stop trying to provoke me.” «Anyway, given what I’ve done and your physical condition, you should be worse off. I guess that by staying out of the arrow so long, your resistance to passive drain is improving—or maybe your energy’s just growing. I don’t know, I don’t really care. You’re the first idiot to fall for this.» She shrugs. «A learning experience for both of us.»

«You…» I stop, distracted by something else. «Do you smell that too?» Laila sniffs the air like a dog. «Yeah. What is it?»

We follow the scent back into the house, where the girl is cooking something in a pot over the fire.

«Oh, wow! You cooked for everyone!» Laila exclaims, crawling closer. The girl leans back with her usual scowl.

I crouch, staying where I am. “I need to be careful with my words. She probably still sees us as a threat.” «Hi. Sorry about her enthusiasm. We haven’t introduced ourselves yet. I’m Søren Nero, and this is my friend Laila. Nice to meet you.» The girl’s expression seems a little less severe. «And what’s your name?»

At my question, she lowers her gaze, her breathing grows unsteady, and her eyes start to glisten. “Doesn’t she have a name? Damn it, I didn’t mean to hurt her… I shouldn’t have asked.” «If you don’t have one, can I call you Nadia?» She sniffles, looking at me. «It means ‘hope.’ Kind of like the hope I have now of being your friend.»

Hesitant, she nods. «Nice to meet you, Nadia.» My stomach growls loudly. «If you don’t mind, could we eat with you?»

She glances between the pot and us. Two familiars shaped like little hares appear from her hands. They push the bench forward with their heads, then vanish as she nods toward it. «Thanks,» I say, sitting down.

Nadia ladles some soup and looks around. «Laila, I think she’s looking for bowls.»

«If she wants them, she can just ask instead of playing coy.»

“Look who’s talking.” «Please, we’re guests here.»

«Fine, but next time make your own damn bowl.» She snaps off three splinters of wood from the bench, turning them into bowls with spoons, and floats them over to the girl.

Nadia starts filling them. Laila floats ours back to us. I take mine and thank her. She quickly averts her gaze, hiding her eyes as she eats with the spoon upside down. I copy her and that glutton Laila. «Mh?! This is amazing!»

«Yeah! Who taught you?»

Her eyes widen, her cheeks tint red, and she hides her face deeper in the bowl, fringe covering her eyes.

I don’t know why, but my chest feels warm. Maybe it’s the sweet mushroom soup? What did she put in here?

From the corner of my eye, I notice Laila staring at me with her chin resting on her palm, smiling. «What?» I ask with the spoon in my mouth.

«Nothing. Just thinking you look pretty handsome when you smile like that.»

«Huh? Don’t mess with me.»

«It’s true, idiot!» she snaps, smacking me on the head with her spoon. «I’ve told you before—if you’d wake up a little, girls would actually like you.»

I look down at my soup. «I doubt it.»

«With that attitude, you won’t make it with anyone. Not even in this world.»

“If anyone’s going to like me, it should be for who I am, not for being some perfect hero with the perfect body and a pure heart I’ll never have.”

When we finish eating, Laila and I stand. «It was a pleasure meeting you, Nadia, but we have to keep going. I hope we see you again someday.»

Without dragging it out, we leave and resume our journey.

«Why didn’t we stay?» asks Laila, walking beside me with her hands behind her head.

«I don’t know. Maybe it’s better not to bother her too much. She already gave us shelter for two days and food.»

«You made such a fuss about hugging her—I thought you’d grown attached.»

“I did. I wanted to stay with her longer. But I can’t take care of a child. I can’t even take care of myself, let alone her.” «Yeah, but it’s better this way. For everyone.»

She raises a brow at me. «Maybe. But just so you know—she’s been following us for a while now.»

«What?!» I turn, and sure enough, a few steps behind us, there she is, with her scowling, judging gaze, clutching a hare in her arms. «What are you doing here? Go back home.» Nadia shakes her head, grumbling.

«You can’t come with us. We’re the worst people you could follow.»

«If she wants to get herself killed by some beast, let her come. Not our problem,» says Laila.

«Friends.»

Our eyes widen. Neither of us manages to say anything.