forenote: uhh I think I uploaded this a bit late as I was doing the Message In a Bottle theme.
Merida and Alice had always lived alone in the little cottage at the forest’s edge. They knew how to build a fire, make stew from foraged mushrooms, and mend torn clothes with steady hands. They never felt lonely—the wild woods, the open sky, and each other were all they had ever needed.

That afternoon, the sun cast golden patches over the stream as they knelt by the water. Alice, the younger of the two, cupped her hands, letting the cool current slip through her fingers like liquid crystal. Merida balanced on a mossy rock nearby, eyes sharp as she scanned the shallows for fish.

Then, something unusual drifted past—a glass bottle, turning lazily in the current.

Alice gasped. “Look! A message in a bottle!”

Before it could slip away, Merida stepped into the stream, the water swirling around her ankles as she caught it. The glass was colder than she expected, sending a shiver up her spine. Inside, a roll of yellowed parchment sat tightly curled, sealed with wax.

They scrambled onto the bank, breathless with excitement. Alice broke the seal with trembling fingers and unrolled the note. The writing was neat but faded, as if it had been written long ago.

"To those who live beneath the whispering trees,
Do not fear the eyes that watch unseen.
When the silver light dances on the leaves,
Follow the path where the fireflies convene."

The sisters stared at each other, their hearts racing—not with fear, but with wonder.

“What does it mean?” Alice whispered.

Merida glanced toward the dark line of trees beyond their cottage. They had always known these woods, played in them, gathered berries and herbs beneath their boughs. But they had never followed fireflies.

A soft breeze rustled the leaves. In the distance, a flicker of golden light moved between the trees—there, then gone.

Alice reached for her sister’s hand. “Shall we follow?”

Merida hesitated, then nodded. Hand in hand, they stepped into the woods. As they disappeared into the shadows, the fireflies began to glow once more.