"riseee and shineeeee" I open Max's door too hard on purpose and enjoy hearing it wack against the wall.

  "go. away. no one else wakes up at fiveee" Max grumps

  "well we do, cause you got a nice dress for the ceremony that shows your shoulder bdes" I grin "who likes foundation now"

  "urggggg your annoying" but Max sits up then lies with her back facing up, and pulls down her nightgown so her shoulder bdes are exposed.

  "I said rise and shine not slouch and grump" I say but start to cover her wing tattoos on her back with a matching foundation.

  Max isn't like other mortals, some god (you'll never know who, I'm the only one sure) blessed her so she has tattoos that turn into bck raven wings.

  "Rowan?"

  "yes, grumpy?"

  "shut up . . ." She took a breath and turned her head "are there things other than just girls and boys?"

  "depends on the context"

  "well, you know how you said you don't care what nouns you go by?"

  "pronouns, what about them?"

  "you're like both, but is there one that's neither?"

  "yes, some people go by they/them, its called nonbinary"

  I'm used to Max asking the kind of stuff that other people get, like once she asked "is it okay to call your sibling ugly and be serious?" and "can girls like other girls?" she knows that she can trust me and I know the same about her.

  then why can't you tell her the truth? she knows its wrong, what he did to your people.

  shut up brain.

  "do you think you're nonbinary?" I ask, finishing up on the second tattoo, covering the bck ink.

  "maybe, I dunno, I need time to think" she fiddled with a strand of loose hair, still in a braid-bun but a very tangled and messy one.

  "of course" I say, then yank the hair tie out of the bun, Max yelped"now getta moving! It's already five forty!"

  "come onnnnn" she says, rolling onto the floor.

  I grab the gray and purple dress in a simple style and only a little fake jewels, the one Max pnned to wear and threw it on the bed.

  "yeah you should come on, I'm literally doing my job right here, unlike you" I grab a pair of Mary Janes and threw them t Max, who was just sitting up.

  she caught them and shoved them on, not even bothering to do the strap, then took out the rest of her hair I hadn't got to yet.

  "the ceremony starts at nine Rowan" she says "we'll have an extra hour and a half to get there"

  "yes, and that hour and a half is designated for our prank on Cassander, now go change!"

  Max went into her bathroom and came out eight minutes ter with the dress fully on.

  "good, now sit"

  we sat on her bed and I did her hair in two fish braids, it took forever her hair was very tangled, unlike mine which was short, curly and chestnut colored with white streaks. (and also easy to brush)

  then I did her makeup, just a bit covering her eye bags and some blush.

  "anddd nowwww" I do a drum roll on my p "there is no prank! I woke you up early to annoy y- ack!"

  Max threw a pillow at me, then started picking me out to her small balcony that really wasn't that high up.

  "hey, listen can we negotiate peace here maybe we could raid the kitchens!" Max grinned evilly and backed me up against the railing.

  the maniacal bitch knew I hated water yet she purposefully pushed me off the railing and directly into a pond!

  "MAAAAXXXXXX" I screamed while treading water.

  "WWWWHHHAAATTT" Max yelled back, smirking "you deserved it"

  I smiled back, swimming to the shore and ringing out my ash gray shirt, and tried to dry my hair, looking down at the ke I see my bronze skin form a blob, can't even see my gray eyes in it because of the ripples.

  "don't suppose you can throw me a tow- ECK" I shriek as Max whips a towel at me, which I use once I know its safe.

  I dry myself up, then find the nearest tree and climb up as quickly as possible, to avoid flying objects, and make my way for the balcony.

  I'm just about to reach the balcony when another towel hits me in the head.

  I grab the railing and try to hide my smile as I scream "MAX THIS ISN'T YOU"

  "oh, but this is really me" Max puts on her most creepy voice, picking up a curtain rod that is designated for these moments and pointing it at me like a sword. "you killed my parents!"

  "that's a lie!" I fake gasp "they simultaneously jumped off two different cliffs without fail!"

  "they were pushed off the cliff, Rowan!" Max said, obviously not liking my improvised line "you did it!"

  "bsphemy!" I cried "I was two years old at the time!!!"

  "a murderer since infancy!" Max gasped and turned to the imaginary guard "Cedric, you said she was thirty!"

  "I'm offended by this assumption!" I bellow "I don't look a day over twenty!!!"

  someone gently knocks on the door, and before Max has time to even look normal, Sye opens the door and peeks inside.

  Sye looks from me, still soaking from the pond and hanging on the railing, to Max, still pointing a curtain rod at me.

  "uhhhhhh" she says "is now a good time?"

  "no!" Max says, blushing "I mean yes! just um-"

  "ignore the fact I'm hanging from the balcony" I grin at how Max acts around Sye, like and absolute dork.

  "do you need help getting up or-" Sye kept on looking from me to Max, who had now returned the curtain rod to where it normally is.

  "no, no he doesn't he'll get up eventually" Max shoots me and evil look.

  "I'm sorry okay? please don't leave me to fall in the pond again!" I attempt puppy dog eyes.

  "only if you let me borrow your woopie cushion"

  "but you'll never give it back!"

  "uhm, hello, sorry but the ceremony is happening in like, ten minutes . . . soooo . . ." Sye interjected

  "fine I'll give you the woopie cushion! lemme up!!!" I yell and Max (fianally) pulls me up.

  I sprint out of the room and stick the key in my room's lock so Max can't get in, sliding the key under the door.

  "ROWANNN" Max screams, knowing exactly what I'm doing.

  Max stormed up to me and crossed her arms, Sye on her heels, eyes wide.

  "too te!" I reply "better go to your ceremony now before you're aatttteeeee"

  she gred at me with that evil grin and I knew that I was gonna see the pond again by tonight.

  "yeah" she said "I better go now"

  "see yah Maxie" I smirked, gods Max was a scary friend.