The playground hummed with laughter. “Who are you?” a girl asked.

“She’s my sister,” the eldest declared, gripping her sibling’s arm.

“No, she isn’t. You’re white. She’s black.”

A flicker of hurt, then resolve. “Families don’t have to match.”

A pause—then giggles. Princesses again, adventure-bound.

Ashley E. Enderle wrote this story.