It was one of those casual days in winter vacation, the climate cool and the sun bright. Clouds bedded the sky like fluffy pillows just waiting to fall. Woah... The sky's beautiful today... Levi thought. He ran a hand through his dark gray hair, the dark green dyed tips rustling softly before eventually settling, subtly framing his face.

"Levi darling!! Can you help me with the luggage while your sister grabs the pillows??" Valéry's voice echoed from the entrance of the house as she pulled up the small grid that locked it. "Your parents are probably arriving soon! So I suggest you two hurry!!"

Levi was already picking up the luggage, grabbing the heavier ones first and heading inside to the living room, setting them near the largest couch before returning for the lighter ones, placing them on the adjacent couch. "Aunty! You mentioned a bird nest in one of the cups near the shelves, right?? Did you leave the window open for the birds?" he asked curiously.

Valéry's head tilted as she locked eyes with him and reached toward where he stood. "Huh... I thought your mother had already relocated the nest?" The first part was clearly thought aloud, the musing giving it away.

... Who relocates a BIRD nest without professional aid? "Nope, relocating it would be dangerous," Levi replied.

"Eh. I guess," Valéry responded.

They checked the downstairs bathroom, ensuring there were no pests. Valéry opened the ground shelf—no cockroaches or frogs—and took the opportunity to grab pool noodles: one yellow for herself, one green and one orange. Alright! Good thing there are many of these handy little things. Sister will probably want one too when she arrives. She also grabbed one of the pool floaters. "I think the pool's clean, we put the chemicals there last time we visited," Valéry shouted from the bathroom.

Levi was already grabbing his swim trunks and his sister's bikini. "Sis! Got our swim clothes already!!" he called, tossing them to her before going to change. "Also, have you heard about the legend here? Of a wolf that apparently terrorizes the locals? Maybe we should try to hunt for it at night, or just tell horror stories—we really need to go back to doing those."

"Oh! Horror stories?? I'm in!!" Valéry said cheerfully. She had already changed into her black two-piece bikini and, to complement it perfectly, golden resin glasses—the perfect combo that made her look gorgeous. She would definitely ask for pictures later.

While setting up the sunshade near the pool, something caught her eye: a pair of amber eyes through the upstairs window. The glimpse was too faint to be certain what it was... honestly, she couldn't even be sure if it was real. Just a brief shadow.

They wouldn't be going upstairs until night, and that would likely be late since their parents were arriving soon along with Levi's boyfriend Alan.