Once the elegant woman let go of Lorelei, she realized that she hadn't even introduced herself yet — and neither had Lorelei. So she asked.
"What is your name, dear?"
She wiped the tears off her face with her apron.
"Lorelei."
The woman smiled. "What a beautiful name you have. My name is Silvia, Maria's mother."
Silvia clapped her hands together. "Now, let's eat!"
Maria immediately started devouring the plate in front of her. When she looked over at Lorelei, she noticed that she hadn't budged yet, still holding her fork while staring at the food.
"You aren't eating?" Maria said.
Lorelei looked at her and replied in a shy voice, "I don't Know hOw to usE thIs."
Maria's mother glanced over at Lorelei. "It's alright, eat however you want. I'll teach you tomorrow morning."
Lorelei thanked her as she placed the fork on the table and took off her glove. She ate with her hands hastily. She was very hungry — all the walking and running had tired her out. She ate and ate until everything on the plate was gone in an instant.
Silvia giggled. "You must have been hungry. Poor child, do you want more?"
At first, Lorelei didn't want to be a bother, so she replied, "No, it's Fine. I'M full."
Silvia insisted and took her plate to the kitchen, returning with it loaded with food. She handed it to Lorelei with a smile. "Here you go, dear!"
Once again, Lorelei thanked her and started eating — a little slower this time. She ate until she felt her stomach was full.
After they finished eating, Silvia took the plates from both of them and said, "Now it's time to go to sleep. Maria, could you please take her to the other room?"
"Sure! Lorelei, follow me!" she said playfully.
She got up and ran up the stairs. Soon enough, Lorelei followed after thanking Silvia with a bow.
Maria suddenly stopped, opened a door in the hallway, and told Lorelei, "From now on, this is your room!"
Maria entered, but Lorelei stayed at the entrance. Was it really okay for her to accept such kindness, she wondered. Maria turned back and, without saying anything, dragged her in and closed the door.
"Listen, Lorelei, it's fine. Don't worry, you don't have to repay us anything. That's just how my mother is. She loves helping people, and since you're about the same age as me, she couldn't just leave you to yourself in a place this far from the capital."
Maria stared into Lorelei's eyes, waiting for her to say something, but she stayed silent.
Lorelei stood there while Maria went over to the bed and jumped on it. She turned toward Lorelei and said, "Join me! It'll be fun!"
As was her habit, Lorelei observed every corner of the room. It was filled with hand-drawn portraits of flowers, a few books on the shelf, and a bed in the corner. It was a simple-looking room, yet it felt so nostalgic and comfortable. Before Lorelei could even take a step toward the bed to join Maria, Silvia called from downstairs.
"Now, back to your room, young lady! Let Lorelei rest!"
Maria replied from the room, "Yes, Mom!"
She quickly dashed off the bed and told Lorelei, "Goodnight! We can play tomorrow if you want!"
She ran back to another room, leaving Lorelei alone in hers. Lorelei quietly sat on her bed as she processed everything that had happened so far, deciding whether she should trust them or not.
For a short while, she thought to herself, Just for a little.
She lay on the bed. She thought it was surprisingly soft and started rolling around, feeling every inch and corner of it. She grabbed the pillow and clung to it until she felt herself slowly drifting into sleep.
A few hours passed, and Lorelei still wasn't asleep. She looked under the door and saw that the lights were off. Silvia must have gone to sleep too.
She heard little footsteps getting closer to her door until it slowly creaked open. It was Maria. She swiftly turned around to close the door behind her and crawled onto Lorelei's bed. She was carrying a book, as well as Lorelei's glove, and told her in a whispery voice, "Here, you forgot it downstairs."
Maria handed the glove back to Lorelei. She brought the book onto her lap, and that's when Lorelei noticed it. Maria asked Lorelei if she wanted to read it with her. Naturally, Lorelei replied with a yes.
Maria reached out to the nightstand and lit the candle, letting the book cover be revealed. It was an apple on the cover — a rotten apple. The flame was a bright orange that instantly captivated Lorelei's attention. The little fire produced by the candle wavered and twirled around it, as if the flame was dancing for her and her only. Lorelei's little spectacle was interrupted by Maria flipping the pages of the book. Maria then started reading from the first page. Before she reached the end, Lorelei asked if she could teach her how to read and write, since she wasn't very good at it.
"Sure, I'll teach you!"
She slowly started spelling out the words for Lorelei as Lorelei repeated after her.
"A p p l e."
Lorelei repeated, "A p P L E."
This went on and on until Lorelei was finally able to read the first phrase of the book.
"The apPle fell frOm the tree and Someone pickeD it."
Maria excitedly said, "Great!" — a little too loud.
Her mom heard her voice from the bedroom. "Back to your room, young lady!" She was still snoring and barely awake.
Maria laughed and looked at Lorelei. "Goodnight, Lorelei. Sleep well."
Before closing the door and going back to her room.
Soon after, Lorelei also fell into a deep slumber.