“She looks just like me!” Kylee pointed at the girl in emerald on the painting.

Calli absently nodded, her eyes still glued at the painting. “But they look younger… more beautiful certainly…”

“How can they look like us when we just met…?” Arianna murmured, her head turning to Peter and Beatrice in question.

“Good question. How can the four of us be used as models? Surely this is the portrait of the four sisters in the story you just told us?” Yuna frowned.

“It was made even before you were born.” Peter answered simply.

Kylee’s eyes widened. “What? You mean, there are other ones like us decades ago?”

“That’s right.” Beatrice confirmed it. “This portrait was drawn even before your great grand mothers were born. You can verify the age of the painting through tests, right?”

Arianna nodded. “Yeah…”

“But that doesn’t answer my question…” Yuna muttered.

“No, I haven’t.” Beatrice smiled at Yuna, hearing her little statement a few seconds ago. “Tell me, Yuna, what else do you see in the painting?”

Yuna moved her gaze back at the painting and studied it more closely. Studying it with more intensity, not minding the four girls inside the portrait but what surrounds them. “There are four keys… but they are scattered everywhere…”

“There is one by the water~” Kylee chimed.

“One by the tree…” Calli followed as she was moved to study the portrait again as well.

“…Is that a shadow?” Arianna asked out loud. “by the trees…?”

“Yes…” Calli murmured as she took a few more steps closer to the painting. “A man or maybe a woman… ? Just a hint of it watching them … and there is also a serpent slithering its way to the four sisters.”  And with that, Calli lost herself inside the painting as if she was reading a book. “There is a couple, a man and a woman embracing each other. The woman is robed richly.”

“It speaks of status… I think? The more you dress well, the higher the status you have?” Arianna asked no one in particular.

“Yeah…”Yuna confirmed it. “I read books about it…”

“The man wears metal for clothes~” Kylee chimed in happily.

Peter chuckled at this, covering his mouth to hide his laugh.  “That’s very cute of you Ms. Antonov.”

“Yeah. Yeah. So? What’s next?” She asked excitedly jumping in place.

“Yeah… The man was a warrior.” Yuna continued staring at the portrait. “There is a raven in the tree just above them.”

“Here comes trouble~” Kylee sing songed.

“The raven is a symbol of impending doom.” Calli added. “Just like the sky is darker here.” She pointed over her right side of the painting. “It looks like the darkness is coming closer… closer to the sisters.”

“But they are not aware of it… In fact, they are looking ahead; unaware of what might happen to them. They are grouped together; there is a sense of companionship and affection for each other and the white dove near them symbolizes their purity.” Arianna continued.

“Each wears an amulet.”Yuna murmured as she studied – amazed by the details of the painting. “About the same size of the other; the jewels reflecting the color of their gown…They are a unit but individuals.”

“It is a magnificent work…” Kylee’s eyes gleamed at the portrait. “It’s like…” She hesitated a moment but something surprised her when she heard herself along with Arianna, Calli and Yuna said one thing in common at the same time. “You can almost see them breathe.” Some of them gasped, while Kylee beamed widely.

Peter clapped his hands at them, a face of contentment or even a sense of pride for the four girls who analyzed the painting absolutely of detail as it was intended by the painter herself. “You all have such discerning eyes for the painting. I am so happy to see that in all of you.”

“But… What are we going to do with this? I don’t think any questions were answered when we observed the painting.” Kylee frowned. She was feeling the sense of excitement but frustration at the same time for they were not being direct with the whole situation at all.

“Magic couldn’t break the spell that locked the souls of the King’s daughters in a box glass. Many sorcerers, wizards and witches were called to break the spell but not one of them succeeded. So, another was cast. In this world, in every generation, four women are born who will come together in one place at one time. They are not sisters, but mere strangers to each other. They are not gods as well, but mere mortal women and these women are the only ones who can break the spell by finding the keys.” Beatrice explained clearly with her gentle voice.

“And you want us to believe that the women in those painting are us?” Arianna raised one of her eyebrows. This is all becoming surreal… She wanted to run away from this foolish act but something inside her was stopping her from doing it as well. Is this destiny or just a foolish joke? “That we happen to look like those women in the painting?” She added with pure mock in her voice but not quite showing it physically.

“Nothing just happens in this world my dear. You girls are the chosen ones and it is my duty to tell you.”

“Well… you have told us~” Kylee grinned excitedly. “Now what do we do??”

“And to make you this offer.” Peter cleared his throat. “You ladies would have a month each to find one of the four keys. If the first one fails, the matter is done. There is no need for any of you to continue if one fails. If all four keys are found, and brought to this place, by the end of the fourth month, you will be given a boon.”

“What kind of boon…?” Calli asked carefully.

“1 million dollars.” Peter gave a small smile.

“Each.” Beatrice emphasized.

Four pairs of eyes widened at their words. Two of the girls practically had their reactions out at the same time. One was that of rejoice and the other was of disbelief. The other pair on the other hand was able to stop themselves from saying anything.

“So what do you say, ladies?” Peter asked, crossing both of his arms in front of his chest.

Yuna’s eyes squinted at this and didn’t get to stop herself any further. “Oh come on. Easy for him to give that much of money when we on the other hand would be out there, looking for the keys that don’t even exist!”

“What if they did?” Kylee stepped up and askedYuna with eyes glinting brightly, thinking about that kind of money and all the interesting things that they are about to do for the quest. “What if they do really exist… wouldn’t you want to go for it? With that amount of money in stake?”

“What chance?” Yuna countered. “The world is so big. Even if we only look for the keys in this city, it would be impossible.”

Beatrice raised her hand, gesturing for the talking to stop for a moment to explain everything that she can about the quest of finding the keys. “Each of you would be given a guide when in turn. This is all we can do, the two of us.” She gestured to herself and at Peter. “You may all work together on finding the keys. In fact, we hope that you will. When one of you would not agree to do this, everything will end even before it starts. But if all four of you would agree, each one would get 25,000 dollars.”

“What?” Calli asked, not seeming to hear the right word she just said or was it?

“You get twenty-five thousand dollars each if all of you agree to this task. It remains your whether you fail or succeed.” Peter clarified it.

“Wait a minute.” Calli held up her hands stopping every girl’s reaction first and continued talking when she got silence. “So are you saying if we agree to this thing, we would have 25k free and clear?” She eyed both Beatrice and Peter, wanting to see if they are telling the truth or not.

“The amount will be deposited to the account of your liking immediately.” Peter added. “You do have bank accounts, right?”

“Oh my god.My god. This hasgotta be a dream.” Kylee squealed, unable to hide her excitement like before.

“Yes, of course.”Yuna nodded-answering the question of Peter but frowned when she remembered something. “Wait, is this a scam? This has gotta be it. A scam.” She shook her head in disgust.

“What’s the fine print?” Arianna took a step closer to the couple, giving them a chance to prove themselves and if they should believe them or not.

Peter sighed, quite restless with all these things happening but when he felt the comforting hand of Beatrice, he was able to smile and regain some of his energy. He then looked at the four girls squarely in the eye. “I hate to say this but… if you fail, anyone of you, the penalty for all will be a year with your lives.”

“What? Like in a jail?” Kylee asked, horrified.

“No.” Beatrice shook her head for further emphasis. “A year of your life will not exist at all.”

“You mean, we will never know or feel it?” Yuna questioned.

“Poof. Like magic.” Arianna added.

“The keys exist.” Beatrice murmured. “Not in this house, but in this place, in this world. This is the only thing that we can do. If you ask for more, we would be breaking the rules. But we CAN give a little guidance. This quest would never be simple. So you will be rewarded for the attempt. Should you succeed, the reward would be even greater, should you fail, and there will be a punishment. Please take the time to discuss this. Peter and I will give you some privacy.”

The couple went out of the room and Peter turned back with a small smile to close the door behind them to give the girls alone time to think about what they should do.

Silence enveloped the room at first but Yuna broke it with a questionas she slumped on the nearest seat she can find. “You guys don’t believe any of this, right? I mean, this is nuts. How can this be real?”

Calli released a big sigh. “Let me say just one thing…” She said calmly as she kneeled at the center table where there were plenty of desserts and drinks on it as she poured herself some water. “Twenty-five thousand dollars.Each.That’s a wow.” She reminded the girls, wanting to let them know what she was thinking as of the moment.

“You don’t really believe that they are going to just give us the 25,000 dollars, right? Who in their right minds would give that to anyone just because we say okay and find the keys to free these demigoddesses..?”

Calli shrugged. “Only one way to find out, right?”

Arianna absently looked at the portrait once again, having Kylee follow her gazes. “They look like us.”

“So much like us.” Kylee agreed. “Look! My look alike even has my smile.” Kylee beamed, pointing the portrait.

“Yes, they do.” Yuna agreed, standing up from her seat. “But this is the creepiest part of the night. Why would they paint us all together when we never met before until this night? And the thought of them spying on us spooks me.”

“This wasn’t made out on a whim and this is a pure masterpiece and we all know it.” Kylee shrugged, not liking the thought that this must be all a fake, a scam.

“Plus, what’s the point? I’m broke.” Arianna added. “How about you?” she asked Yuna.

Yuna frowned in response but added with a groan. “Close enough.”

“Me too~” Kylee held her hands up in the air.

Calli smiled internally, all of us are nearly broke. What a day. She thought to herself and spoke up when she remembered something. “These people don’t seem to want the money the little that we have now.”

“Agreed.” Arianna nodded.

“Plus, I really need money right now. We might’ve just met tonight and I don’t expect any of you to care but I really need as much money I can have right now. I want a stable business of my own or just a stable job.”

Kylee nodded profusely. “Yes yes. We just have to say yes. So, we look for the keys. It’s not something bad to do.”

“There are no keys.” Yuna insisted.

“What if there are?” Kylee asked, looking at Yuna’s eyes.

“It would be like a treasure hunt.” Calli sipped at her drink, calmly. “And considering that we are either broke or nearing to being broke right now, it kinda brightens our doomed futures. Especially the 1 million dollars that waits for us once we have succeeded this quest.”

“Nothing is that simple. Our life is not like Peter pan or the Disney princesses who got it easy with their own stories.” Yuna shook her head in frustration. She feels that she was outnumbered. The girls obviously want to pursue this without thought. Why does she have to be the one to be more mature about this? “There has got to be more under this entire surreal thing that they just told us.”

“Maybe they believe it. The story, I mean.” Kylee looked up at the portrait once again. She had been looking at it more than enough times tonight but she can’t seem to stop looking at i. “If we believe in it, you would get 25,000 dollars.”

“But we are talking about souls here. Souls that are worth more than the 25,000 dollars or even a million.”Calli murmured

“I’m going to do it.” Kylee announced, fire of excitement poured over her soul. “Besides, they have the money, if we are going to play along with this, it would seem that we are the ones pulling the scam.” She grinned widely, trying to convince Yuna as much as she can.

Calli saw this and backed Kylee up. “That’s right. Yuna loosen up. There is nothing to lose if we do this.”

Yuna sighed. “If I say no, the three of you would have no choice no matter how you guys wanted to do this thing. If I say yes, it feels like I am an idiot.” She let out a big sigh once again, she knew that the others were watching her every move, anticipating a yes as her decision. Yuna smirked, “I guess I am an idiot.”

Kylee’s eyes widened for the nth time tonight but this time, Arianna and Calli joined her. “You will?” They asked in sync. “That’s great!!” Kylee exclaimed in joy. “I always wanted to go for adventure~”

“I’m glad you like it.” Beatrice smiled.

The four girls looked at her, seeming to be used to the fact that they could never sense her presence at all. Standing beside her was none other than Peter. The both of them had small smiles on their faces.

“Hello again, ladies.” Peter greeted. “Have you made your decision?”

Four girls looked at each other and nodded at Peter.

Kylee was too excited that she squealed their decision. “Yes~! We will do it~!!!”

“Yes, but you’ll want to look over the contracts first?” Beatrice explained as she walked to get the said contracts.

“Contracts?” Kylee tilted her head a little.

“Yes, you’ll need to read them and find out for yourselves if you really agree to do this or not. Once done, we’ll select for the first key.”

Arianna, Yuna and Calli had different kind of reactions but they were all impressed with the fact that there was a contract to sign which should be legal.

“Shall we sit?” Peter let out a hand as one of his hands was handling the contracts that were from Beatrice.

“These are simple and I believe that we already discussed what’s written in here. If you write where you want to put the money in the bank it will be greatly appreciated.” Peter handed out the papers to each of the girls as well as pens for them to sign.

Yuna accepted the paper given to her but looked at Peter in the eyes. “Does it matter if we believe in this thing or not?”

“Signing the contract means giving your word, your promise. That’s it for now.” Beatrice told her.

A loud thunder was heard as they signed and countersigned the contract.

“You are the chosen ones.” Beatrice said as they finished. “Now, let’s begin choosing who goes find the first key first, Peter?”

Peter walked to a desk and picked up a box as he returned. He opened up the box and placed it on the table, in front of the girls to sit. The girls leaned over to have a look at what’s inside the box and saw four folded tiny papers. “Each would get one paper as you will unfold it and by this we will know who goes first when only one person would have a printed key on the paper.” Peter explained and signaled the girls to get the papers.

I hope I won’t be the first one. Calli hoped internally as she prayed to see no key on her paper.

“Let’s open them together.” Arianna suggested as she got nervous nods as an agreement. She gathered her breathe and let them go with a big sigh. “At the count of three. One…. Two…. Three…”

The four of them opened the papers at the same time. Calli made a sound of pure relief as she found her paper key free. She looked to her sides and found that they have none as well. She then froze to notice that Kylee must’ve gotten the paper with the key. She leaned over to see Kylee’s shock face as she was still holding her paper.

“I have it…” She murmured softly, her eyes still shown pure shock.

The others were about to comfort her thinking that she didn’t want to be the first one but stopped when Kylee shouted as she jumped with joy. “I have it! I am the first one~! Yaaay~!”

The girls stared at her as well as Beatrice and Peter for surely they hadn’t expected that kind of reaction. Beatrice took the initiative to calm her down and as Kylee did that, Beatrice gave her a couple of pats on the shoulder. “You are the first. Your quest will start tomorrow at sunrise as it will end on the 28^th.”

“Okay~!” Kylee chimed. “What do we do now then?”

“You will be given a clue.” Peter said as he handed her a scroll.

“Thank you~” Kylee sing songed, accepting and opening the scroll to read her clues.

You must seek beauty, and truth and courage. One alone will never stand. Two without the third is incomplete. Search within and know what you have yet to know. Find what the dark covets the most. Search without, where the light conquers shadows, as love conquers sorrow. Silver tears fall for the song she makes there, for it springs from souls. Look beyond and between, see where beauty blooms and the goddess sings. There may be fear, there may be grief, but the true heart vanquishes both. When you find what you seek, love will break the spell, and the heart will forge the key and bring it to light.

“Wow.” Kylee commented when she finished reading it as well as the other girls who were behind her, silently reading the clue as well. “I didn’t understand a thing.”

“Is this really the clue?” Calli asked curiously, frown was evident on her face.

“Can you give us something else? There must be other clues you can give us.” Arianna added.

“We are not allowed to give more clues.” Peter said.

“Blessings on your task, my dears.”Beatrice added.

The girls frowned as they made their way out of the house together. Feeling hopeless as to what little they got as a clue.

Beatrice watched them go from the window and soon felt arms envelope around her waist. “I had higher hopes for them before tonight.” Peter murmured by her ear.

Beatrice chuckled and turned around to face Peter. “Give them a chance. I actually like them.”

“They are interesting enough…. For mortals.” Peter smirked and guided Beatrice out of the room. The fire from the fireplace went out on its own, leaving a hint of gold in the dark.