It all started when Mom called out from the kitchen.
"Kris! Kristina! Have you finished your homework?"
Kristina groaned dramatically. "Homework? Already?"
I raised an eyebrow. "It's not even that late."
"Time is an illusion," Kristina whispered, pointing a finger at me like she was some kind of philosopher. "Homework is a social construct."
Grandma appeared, arms crossed. "Social construct or not, you two better have done it."
Kristina rolled her eyes. "We did it… mostly."
"Mostly?" Grandma's eyebrows shot up. "Mostly is not a word I recognize."
I shrugged. "Maybe it's a universal word Grandma doesn't know about yet."
Grandma shook her head. "I recognize trouble when I see it."
Mom peeked in. "What's going on?"
Kristina jumped to her feet. "Nothing! Absolutely nothing! We're studying… um… physics."
"Physics?" I asked, staring at her. "Really?"
"Yes," she said, dramatically pointing at the ceiling. "Physics of the universe. Big brain stuff."
Grandma muttered under her breath, "Big brains, small attention spans."
I decided to investigate the "homework" myself. I opened Kristina's notebook. Inside, half the pages were doodles—tiny stick people fighting dragons, one page labeled "Epic Battle of the Socks vs. Slippers."
"Kristina…" I started.
"Yes?" she asked innocently.
"This is… art, not homework."
She shrugged. "Art is educational. Clearly."
Grandma pinched the bridge of her nose. "Educational? That's what you say when you want to avoid trouble."
Kristina smiled slyly. "Exactly."
I couldn't help laughing. Kristina had mastered the art of talking her way out of anything.
Then it happened. Kristina froze mid-doodle. Her hand twitched a little, then her eyes went wide.
"Kristina?" I asked, concerned.
She blinked and shook her head. "I… I think I need water."
Grandma and Mom immediately rushed over. "Water! Kristina, are you okay?" Grandma asked, panic creeping in but mixed with her usual over-worrying.
Kristina drank quickly, then blinked a few more times. "I'm fine," she said finally. "Just… drama of the universe."
I raised my eyebrows. "Drama of the universe? Is that your new excuse?"
Kristina nodded, still smiling. "Side effects of genius. You wouldn't understand."
Mom sighed but smiled softly. "You've got a lot of energy, little one."
Grandma whispered to me, "Keep an eye on her, Kris. That girl… she's full of surprises."
We went back to our "study session," which really turned into a full-scale battle between pencils and paper. Kristina claimed pencils were "wizards" and the notebook was a "castle under siege."
I grabbed a pencil. "I'm defending the castle!"
Kristina waved her pencil. "No! I command the wizards! Prepare for magical chaos!"
A pencil flew across the table and nearly hit Grandma. She yelped, "Careful! You're going to poke someone's eye out!"
Kristina grinned. "That's part of the challenge, Grandma."
Grandma muttered, "Challenge? I call it trouble."
I couldn't help laughing. Even with small scares and the tension of Kristina's sudden twitch earlier, the room was alive with energy, chaos, and laughter.
After the pencil battle, Kristina leaned back and sighed. "Alright, sidekick. You win this round. But the homework mystery isn't over."
"What mystery?" I asked, exhausted from dodging flying pencils.
"The Mystery of the Disappearing Homework," she said solemnly. "Someone keeps making it vanish from the desk."
I laughed. "That someone is probably you!"
Kristina shook her head. "Impossible. I am the Keeper of Knowledge. Only the chosen can handle this sacred duty."
Grandma huffed. "Sacred duty? You two are going to give me gray hairs before I'm fifty."
Mom laughed. "You're already sixty-five, Ma. Gray hairs are a given."
Kristina jumped up, grabbed a cookie from the counter, and held it like a trophy. "This cookie represents victory!"
I groaned. "Victory for whom? The cookie?"
"Yes!" she shouted. "It is mine! And possibly yours, sidekick… if you survive the cookie trial."
I ate the cookie anyway. Survival was my specialty.
Later, we moved on to a quieter moment. Kristina curled up on the couch with a blanket, and I sat beside her.
"You know, Kris," she said softly, "sometimes I get tired. Even during adventures."
I frowned. "You mean like yesterday? Or… before?"
She shrugged. "Sometimes. But it's okay. We still have fun, right?"
I nodded. "Always."
Mom walked by and smiled at us. "You two are inseparable."
Grandma joined, sitting nearby, muttering, "Inseparable, but full of trouble."
Kristina looked up at me. "Sidekick, no matter what happens… we stick together. Right?"
"Always," I said, putting my arm around her.
Even in moments when her body betrayed her a little, Kristina's spirit was unstoppable. And even though Grandma worried too much, Mom stayed calm, and I sometimes got distracted, we all knew one thing:
The bond between me and Kristina, and all the people who loved us, was unbreakable.
I laughed softly. "Tomorrow, another adventure?"
Kristina grinned. "Definitely. But maybe a quieter one… just for water breaks and cookie trials."
Grandma muttered, "Quieter? Hah. That'll be the day."
Mom laughed. "Let them enjoy their childhood. It won't last forever."
And as I watched Kristina, smiling under her blanket like a tiny commander ready for anything, I realized something important:
Even with the small scares, the twitches, the worry… laughter and love could carry us through anything. And somehow, Kristina always made sure life stayed both funny and magical.